US offers $8 mn in fresh aid for refugees in Pak

US President Barack Obama in a memorandum to the State Department said on Wednesday that the money should go toward meeting the "unexpected" needs of refugees amid a growing conflict in Pakistan between the government and opposition, as well as with Islamic extremists in its north-eastern provinces.

The US will offer up to $8 million in aid to help refugees in Pakistan, the White House has said.

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President Barack Obama in a memorandum to the State Department said on Wednesday that the money should go toward meeting the "unexpected" needs of refugees amid a growing conflict in Pakistan between the government and opposition, as well as with Islamic extremists in its north-eastern provinces.

The funds will go to government and international aid organisations.

The Pakistani government is in the middle of a tense stand-off with the political opposition. Police arrested more than 300 people earlier on Wednesday and the government banned a planned protest by opposition activists that was to begin on Thursday.