Islamabad Pakistan

ISLAMABAD (AP) — A passenger jet crashed into the hills surrounding Pakistan's capital amid poor weather Wednesday, killing all 152 people on bo...

At least two killed and nine injured in Islamabad's International Islamic University....

Gunmen attack military vehicle in Islamabad, killing at least two army personnel....

Explosion inside World Food Programme's offices in Islamabad causes deaths....

A de-miner near Srinagar, Kashmir. Photo: Flickr user Haumont Ambassador S. Azmat Hassan is a former Ambassador of Pakistan to Malaysia, Syri...

WASHINGTON — Pakistan's foreign minister said Wednesday that senior U.S. lawmakers have eased fears that a multibillion-dollar American aid package would interfere with Pakistan's sovereignty.

U.S. lawmakers, however, have no plans to change the bill, which has already unanimously passed both chambers of Congress and now awaits President Barack Obama's signature into law.

A week ago Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi dismissed complaints about the aid bill during a trip to Washington. On Tuesday, Qureshi, in an about-face, made a rushed return visit amid angry cries in Pakistan that the bill is an attempt to interfere with the powerful military and the weak, U.S.-backed civilian government.

Democratic Sen. John Kerry, a co-sponsor of the bill and head of the Foreign Relations Committee, told reporters after meeting with Qureshi for the second time in two days that a statement attempting to clarify points in the bill would be entered into the congressional record.

Qureshi called the explanatory statement "historic." But lawmakers frequently put comments and documents – even congratulatory notes for local sports teams – into the congressional record. They do not have the force of law. Fred Beuttler, deputy historian of the House of Representatives, said an explanatory statement is merely an attempt to make the intent of Congress clear.

At least six killed and nine injured at Islamabad's International Islamic University....

QUETTA, Pakistan — Pakistan arrested 11 Iranians on Monday after they shot at a vehicle carrying smugglers on the Pakistani side of the border, officials said.

The incident came amid tensions over a recent suicide attack that Tehran alleges was carried out by militants sheltering inside Pakistan and supported by its intelligence officials.

Pakistani officials initially identified the men as members of Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard, but later said most were regular border guards. One official said three senior officers among the detainees probably belonged to the elite unit.

Iran's Press TV carried what it described as a statement from the guard condemning the arrests, but saying that the 11 were not its members. The report cited "informed" sources as saying the 11 were "border guards hunting fuel smugglers (who) accidentally entered Pakistan."

In an attempt to boost security in the region, Iran in April put the Revolutionary Guard directly in control of Sistan-Baluchistan province. Its officers typically take the lead in any operations on Iran's border.

WASHINGTON — Senior lawmakers sought Tuesday to soothe anger in Pakistan over a proposed multibillion-dollar aid package, saying they would provide assurances that the United States has no intention of interfering with Pakistan's sovereignty.

Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., who co-sponsored the aid package, said lawmakers would prepare an explanatory statement to accompany the bill, which has language that some in Pakistan see as outside interference with their government.

The statement would "set the record absolutely straight" and correct misinterpretations about the bill, Kerry told reporters after meeting with Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi.

"The bill doesn't have to be changed. If there is a misinterpretation, it just has to be clarified," Kerry said.

A statement would not alter the bill, which has already been approved by Congress and must still be signed into law by President Barack Obama. Any changes would have to be voted on by both the House and Senate.

Al-Qaida's No. 2 leader warned the Pakistani people in a new audio message that the U.S. interference in their country's affairs poses a grave danger to Pakistan's future and very existence.

The English-language audio message by Ayman al-Zawahri was dated July 14 and addressed to "my Muslim brothers and sisters in Pakistan." In it, the militant group's second-in-command called on Pakistanis to join the fight against the United States or support the battle financially.

He warned that without that help "we shall not only contribute to the destruction of Pakistan and Afghanistan, but we shall also deserve the painful punishment of Almighty Allah."

The tape, whose authenticity could not immediately be verified, was released by the al-Qaida media wing As Sahab and was posted on Islamic Web sites that usually carry militant videos and statements.

Al-Zawahri and al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden are rumored to be hiding in Pakistan's lawless tribal belt along the border with Afghanistan. The Taliban have thrived in that region, and some Taliban commanders maintain links to al-Qaida.

A Pakistani girl displaced by the offensive against the Taliban rests at a camp Saturday north of Islamabad. CNN The United States is sen...