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LAHORE: A sessions court on Saturday adjourned a Rs10 billion defamation suit of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif against incarcerated PTI founding chairman Imran Khan as the counsel for the defendant continued the cross-examination of the plaintiff. Additional District & Sessions Judge (AD&SJ) Yalmaz Ghani conducted the hearing on the suit, while PM Shehbaz and his counsel Mustafa Ramday joined via a video link. At the outset of the hearing, the prime minister congratulated all attendees on winning the battle against India. In response, the judge also said, “Congratulations to you as well.” Advocate Muhammad Hussain Chotia, the counsel for the PTI founder, said this was indeed a matter of joy and it was a victory for the whole nation. During cross-examination, the defendant’s counsel asked the plaintiff whether the alleged defamatory statement had been made in writing. The prime minister said the allegations had been repeatedly made on television. The lawyer then asked PM Shehbaz whether he himself ever made su...

ISLAMABAD: Access to the social media platform X was gradually restored in Pakistan on Saturday after a global outage, which affected services in several countries. Downdetector, which mon­itors internet outages in real time, showed a spike in users’ complaints after 5pm. The tally pea­ked with 372 complaints at 5:36pm, with more than 600 complaints in total reported by late evening. Users said they were unable to log in to their accounts and send tweets. However, the number of complaints reduced by 8pm, indicating the restoration of services. The Pakistan Telec­ommunications Authority (PTA) noted that social media platform X was facing a mass global outage, including in Pakistan, but stated that the country’s internet services “remain fully functional”. “PTA’s investigation into the matter has confirmed that there are no technical issues at Pakistan’s internet gateways.” “All other internet services across the country remain fully functional,” PTA said. X was blocked in Pakistan on Feb 17, 2024, after allega...

LAHORE: Federal Minister for Water Resources Muhammad Moeen Wattoo has warned India that holding the Indus Water Treaty (IWC) in abeyance unilaterally is “absolutely unlawful and an act of war”. He further said that the treaty still exists despite New Delhi holding it in abeyance “unilaterally and illegally”. “The words ‘holding in abeyance’ used by India doesn’t exist anywhere in the law. Therefore, the Indus Water Treaty exist as it is, as these words cannot abolish it,” Mr Wattoo said while speaking at a seminar on Saturday. “Holding the treaty in abeyance is absolutely illegal immoral. It is a violation of all international agreements,” the minister added. Ex-Indus water commissioner warns China and other upstream countries may block flow of water to India Talking about the background of the issue, the federal minister said the correspondence between the two countries were underway since 2024. India wrote a letter to Pakistan, seeking some modification in the treaty under the Article 12 (3) of the treaty....

Saad Bin Munawar has made history by becoming the first Pakistani to climb Mount Everest (8,848.

• Both sides to continue discussions on revenue, defence, development, tariff reforms • Next review likely in second half of 2025 • Mission thanks federal, provincial authorities for constructive engagement ISLAMABAD: In a significant development, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Pakistani authorities have reached a preliminary agreement on a comprehensive financial framework, paving the way for continued negotiations on the budget for fiscal year 2025-26. Officials in the finance ministry indicate that discussions are set to advance in the coming days, with the goal of finalising crucial fiscal policies, including the revenue collection target for FY26, development outlay, defence expenditure, and the highly debated tariff rationalisation plan for the industry. The areas where agreements remain pending include tax concessions for the salaried class, an increase in defence budget and policies related to real estate. The discussions will also focus on reducing expenditures, as well as continuing refor...

Door de sterke vraag naar AI-chips en halfgeleiders groeit de economie van de eilandstaat veel sneller dan die van  buurlanden. De investeringen in science parks betalen zich uit. 

Comunicat Sesiunea ordinară de primăvară a Sinodului Episcopilor Bisericii Române Unite cu Roma, Greco-Catolică București, 26-27 mai 2025   În perioada 26-27 mai 2025, cu binecuvântarea Preafericirii Sale Cardinal Lucian Mureșan, se vor desfășura la București lucrările sesiunii ordinare de primăvară ale Sinodului Episcopilor Bisericii Române Unite cu Roma, Greco-Catolică. Lucrările vor fi găzduite la reședința episcopală din București. Luni, 26 mai 2025, [...]

A powerful storm swept across multiple districts of Punjab, leaving a trail of destruction and claiming at least eight lives while injuring 45 others, according to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA).

Ночью россияне массированно нанесли комбинированный удар по городу Конотоп Сумской области: в результате обстрела часть населенного пункта обесточена, зафиксированы попадания. Городской голова сообщил о "самом массированном ударе со времен Второй мировой войны" и призвал "некоторых нардепов" идти в ряды ВСУ из-за того, что они "не на своем месте".

LAHORE: The country has unveiled its first Power Equipment Manu­fact­uring Dash­­board, a real-time digital tool to monitor local­­­i­­sation progress, assess vendor capacity and ide­­ntify strategic investment opportunities under the Power Sector Indig­enisation Plan (PSIP). The launch took place during the National Consu­ltative Workshop on the Power Sector Indig­eni­sation Roadmap, organised by the National Grid Company of Pakistan (NGC) — formerly known as the National Tran­smission and Despatch Company (NTDC) — in collaboration with the LUMS Energy Institute. Speaking via video link, Energy Minister Awais Leghari said the government was finalising a plan to supply 7,000-megawatt electricity to Pakistan’s export industry at the most competitive tariff in the region. “We are working on providing electricity at a marginal cost to boost exports,” the minister said. He added that power sector indigenisation was vital to shifting the country from an import-dependent to an export-led economy. The event brought ...

Na een auto-ongeluk in Zuid-Afrika moet psychologe Martien Ebus jarenlang revalideren. Terug op de plek van de aanrijding voelt ze geen angst, maar kracht. ‘Ik stá hier gewoon’.

GAZA: Health officials say 38 Palestinians killed by Israeli airstrikes on Sunday ■ ISRAEL: IDF chief says Gaza war is 'not an eternal war,' army will 'work to shorten it, while fulfilling its goals'; Israel raises travel warning for Canada over terrorist threat

THE government of Bangladesh has cancelled a $21 million contract awarded to Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd (GRSE), an Indian public sector undertaking under the Ministry of Defence, for the construction of an advanced ocean-going tug, The Hindu reported. According to the Indian publication, the cancellation closely follows India’s recent move to withdraw the transhipment facility previously extended to Bangladesh to export its cargo to third countries — a development that analysts interpret as signalling strain in bilateral relations. In a regulatory disclosure submitted to the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd and BSE Ltd under the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Require­ments) Regulations, 2015, GRSE confirmed that the government of Bangladesh had cancelled the order, originally placed in July 2024. The cancellation adds to a series of geopolitical developments since the change in political leadership in Bangladesh following the fall of prime minis...

Cathie Wood says crypto ETFs will not “lose a lot of their luster” and will stay around for those who just “wanna push a button.” ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood says crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs) will likely maintain their place in the economy, regardless of how widespread crypto wallet adoption becomes over the next decade. “I think ETFs are an important stepping stone because, you know, wallets seem so complicated, so much friction for consumers, they just wanna push a button,” Wood said at the Solana Accelerate event in New York on May 23. “So ETFs for those who want the convenience, I don’t think, will lose a lot of their luster,” she said. “But they will be a stepping stone into wallet-based.” Wood reiterated the extra layer of protection that crypto wallets provide: Read more

Во время ночной массированной комбинированной атаки России по Украине под ударом оказались в частности Киев и область: в Киевской области погибли люди, в столице и области есть раненые, среди них — дети. Также в области и столице зафиксированы пожары и разрушения.

ISLAMABAD - An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission led by Mr Nathan Porter has concluded its staff vis­it to Is-lamabad which began on May 19, 2025, the Fund said in press release issued on Saturday.

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Sheh­baz Sharif on Sunday (today) will embark on a visit to Turkiye, Iran, Azerbaijan and Tajiki­stan from 25-30 May.

ISLAMABAD - A dinner was hosted by Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, NI (M), Chief of Army Staff, to honour the political leader­ship, steadfast commitment of the Armed Forces, and the in­domitable spirit of the people of Pakistan as demonstrated during Marka-e-Haq, Operation Bunyanum Marsoos.

American economist Kenneth Rogoff believes that the rise of crypto poses a threat to the hegemony of the U.S. dollar. Rogoff previously served as the chief economist at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and on the Federal Reserve Board. He is a published author and an economics professor at Harvard University. In an interview with […] The post Former IMF chief economist believes crypto is a rising threat to the U.S. Dollar’s dominance appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Sources in the defense establishment fear the Shin Bet appointment is just the beginning. They warn that Netanyahu may escalate further, potentially provoking a confrontation with Iran, unless Donald Trump steps in to rein him in, as he did last week on Gaza aid