Retired US General Under Investigation for Stuxnet Leak

Reports from NBC news channel on Thursday has indicated that a high ranking military officer in the US has been placed under investigation for allegedly leaking top secret information about a cyber attack on Iran's nuclear programme.

The covert computer virus called Stuxnet, was used in 2010 to temporarily disable 1,000 centrifuges used for enriching uranium by Iran's nuclear facilities.

According to the report from NBC, Stuxnet is capable of both surveillance and harming computers, and was initally spread using infected removable drives.

Retired General James Cartwright, a former second-highest-ranking officer, was  in a New York Times article published last year as one of the men instrumental in the development of Stuxnet.

The article exposed that the Obama administration used it as a key weapon in fighting against the development of Iran's nuclear programme.

"My attitude has been zero tolerance for these kinds of leaks. These are criminal acts when they release information like this", President Barack Obama said, responding to the article.

While there was ongoing speculation about Cartwright's motive behind the leak,

"Sometimes to attack a programme, sometimes to defend it, sometimes we don't ever know", Director of the Federation of American Scientists Steve Aftergood told NBC while trying to explain that there are many reasons why people leak classified information.

Cartwright was the number two person in the joint chiefs of staff from 2007 to 2011. As at the time of this report, neither he nor his lawyer has responded to requests for comment.

Former Pakistan PM’s Son Abducted at Election Rally

Ex Prime Minister Raza Gilani

There has been a report that the son of former Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has been abducted by unidentified gunmen during his own campaign rally at their hometown of Multan on Thursday.

A candidate for the Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP), Ali Haider was kidnapped in an ensuing gunfire during the rally. His secretary was reported to have been killed in the process, leaving several others with scores of injuries.

Police officer Khurram Shakur told reporters that people came on a motorbike and a black Honda car. Then, they opened fire at the rally, and abducted Gilani’s son, Ali Haider in the car.

Eyewitnesses added that Ali Haider was injured in the gun attack, as he was bleeding when his abductors put him in the car.

Mr Gilani has accused his political rivals as being the perpetrators of the crime, ahead of Saturday’s elections.

“We want our brother back tonight. If we don’t get him, we will not allow elections to be held in our area,” elder brother of Haider, Musa, told reporters in tears.

“There is a war going on between pro- and anti-Taliban forces in this country. They have captured the son of our leader. We are saddened by this and praying that he is safely recovered”, former interior minister Rehman Malik told an Al Jazeera correspondent.

So far, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack. Although, the Pakistani Taliban has promised to dispatch suicide bombers to carry out attacks at the upcoming election, as they have threatened to prevent all parties from conducting any election.