WAR.WIRE
US defense chief Rumsfeld visits quake-hit Pakistan
 ISLAMABAD (AFP) Dec 21, 2005
 US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld arrived in Pakistan on Wednesday for a first-hand look at areas of the country that were battered by the devastating October 8 earthquake.

The United States has been one of the major contributors to the relief effort in Pakistan, a key ally in the US-led "war on terror."

He said there were currently around 850 US military personnel, 12 helicopters and two medical facilities set up to help the effort in Pakistan, where more than 73,000 people were killed by the quake.