Bomb targets bus outside of Peshawar

A bus bombing just outside of Peshawar, Pakistan killed at least 19 and injured as many as 40 on Friday (Reuters, ET, WaPo). A Pakistani government official said at least 22 of those riding on the bus were members of the Peshawar Civil Secretariat. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack as of this writing. The bombing comes a day after a remote-control bomb placed on a motorcycle killed 14 outside of a madrassa in Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan province.

Amidst the ongoing crumbling of relations between the U.S. and Pakistan, British Foreign Secretary William Hague is set to head to Islamabad next week in an attempt to broker a deal between the estranged allies (ET). Hague’s trip will piggyback on the visit of U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense Peter Lavoy, who will be in the capital as early as Friday to meet with civilian and military functionaries (Dawn). Lavoy is expected to press Pakistan to resume allowing its territory to be used for supply lines for Afghanistan — something the country hasn’t done since a November 2011 U.S. military strike killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.

Navi Pillay, the U.N.’s high commissioner for human rights, has advised Pakistan to press for an official U.N. investigation into the legality of U.S. drone strikes in the country (Guardian). At a press conference in Islamabad, Pillay suggested that the drone attacks raise serious questions. "The secretary general of the United Nations," she noted, "has urged member states to be more transparent about the circumstances in which drones are used and to take all necessary precautions to ensure…attacks…comply with international law."

China, Afghanistan sign strategic partnership

After a week in which Afghanistan became an observer member in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization during its annual summit in Beijing, China and Afghanistan officially signed an anticipated strategic partnership agreement on Friday (Reuters). The agreement will provide over $23 million dollars of aid to Afghanistan, encourage Chinese investment and infrastructure development, and grant educational scholarships to Afghan students to study in China. Meeting at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People, President Hu Jintao told Afghan President Hamid Karzai Friday that China would offer "selfless help" to the war torn nation (VOA).

At least 14 prisoners are still at large after a Taliban attack on a jail in the Northern Afghan province of Sar-e Pol (LAT, BBC). The gun battle between the Taliban and prison guards killed three and injured at least 28. Officials said that while 30 had initially escaped, 16 had been re-captured, though the Taliban insisted that 170 people had escaped. The governor of Sar-e Pol said that while Taliban fighters and commanders were among the escaped, no high-value targets were among them.

Secret agent man

Following a sting operation on Thursday in Islamabad, a Pakistani man was arrested for posing as an FBI agent in order to commit fraud against unwitting customers (AFP). Hayat Khan, who used the alias Riaz Khan, is alleged to have stolen over $21,000 by selling U.S. dollars at a below market rate and seriously overcharging at higher amounts once he had lured victims in. It remains unclear why he chose to pretend to work for the FBI.

–Tom Kutsch