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Dawn - 06:46 Sep 20, 2025
WASHINGTON: The Trump administration is seeking congressional approval to sell Israel $6.4 billion in support equipment and weapons, including attack helicopters and troop carriers. The Wall Street Journal reported the potential helicopter and vehicle sales on Friday. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The news of the proposed sale came days before world leaders were set to gather in New York for the annual United Nations General Assembly next week, while the UN Security Council is also due to hold a high-level meeting on Gaza. The planned package includes a deal worth $3.8bn for 30 AH-64 Apache attack helicopters and $1.9bn for 3,250 infantry assault vehicles for the Israeli army. Another $750 million worth of support parts for armoured personnel carriers and power supplies are also working its way through the sale process. The Republican president’s full-throated support for Israel’s military contrasts with growing wariness about Israel’s assault on Gaza among Democrats. O... -
Dawn - 06:18 Sep 20, 2025
ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on IT and Telecom was informed on Thursday that the proposed merger between Pakistan Telecommunication Company Ltd (PTCL) and Telenor Pakistan is expected to be finalised within two weeks. Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) Chairman Dr Kabir Ahmed Sidhu told the committee that the case had been under review for 18 months due to its complex nature. He added that untimely responses from PTCL management partly caused delays. Committee Chairperson Senator Palwasha Khan raised concerns about appointments to the boards of PTCL and its subsidiary Ufone, noting that while PTCL board details were available online, Ufone’s board composition was missing from its website. She said the names had also not been shared in previous meetings. Senator Kamran Murtaza questioned the perks and privileges enjoyed by board members, including reports of $5,000 allowances and foreign trips. “This is public information and should be disclosed,” Senator Khan remarked. Stolen data Meanwhile,... -
Dawn - 03:27 Sep 20, 2025
• Khawaja Asif first suggests nuclear capabilities may be extended to KSA; later retracts, says nuclear weapons ‘not on the radar’ • FO adopts cautious approach; cites ‘evolving doctrine’ but offers no specifics • Dar hints other states also interested in defence deals ISLAMABAD: Defence Minister Khawaja Asif’s conflicting statements about Pakistan’s new defence agreement with Saudi Arabia have intensified speculation about the pact’s nuclear dimension. During an appearance on a TV talk show on Thursday night, Mr Asif had suggested that Pakistan’s nuclear capabilities could be made available to Riyadh under the new framework. “What we have, and the capabilities we possess, will be made available to (Saudi Arabia) according to this agreement,” he said, stressing that Pakistan has always acted as a responsible nuclear state. The remarks were interpreted as the first explicit signal that Pakistan might extend its nuclear deterrence to the kingdom, particularly as Mr Asif was present at the signing ceremony in Ri... -
Dawn - 03:06 Sep 20, 2025
• GCC leaders vow tighter intel sharing under Unified Military Command • Plan missile early warning system; joint drills GULF Cooperation Council (GCC) countries have pledged sweeping steps to bolster collective defence, including plans to increase intelligence sharing, develop new missile warning systems, and hold joint defence drills, after Israel launched a deadly strike on Doha earlier this month. Following an emergency Arab-Islamic summit, where leaders expressed alarm about Israel’s attacks across the Middle East, GCC officials met in Doha to discuss military intelligence unification, UAE-based The National reported. The GCC — a political and economic alliance of six Middle Eastern nations: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates — has agreed to expand intelligence sharing through Unified Military Command. The six-member bloc said they would fast-track the creation of a regional early-warning system to counter ballistic missiles and share the “air situation” with all aff... -
Dawn - 02:47 Sep 20, 2025
• Envisions sworn affidavits disowning relatives linked to militancy • Non-compliant individuals to be treated as abettors, facilitators QUETTA: The Balochistan government has directed families to immediately report if any of their relatives go missing or join non-state or militant groups, warning that strict legal action will be taken against those who fail to comply. According to an official notification issued by the Home Department, families are required to provide such information within seven days and submit sworn declarations disowning relatives involved in militancy, or else face action under anti-terrorism laws. The notification stated that citizens, parents and guardians must inform the nearest police station and FC/army unit within one week if a family member goes missing or is found to have joined any non-state or militant group. It further directed that details of individuals already missing must also be submitted within seven days under Sections 118 and 202 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), read... -
Dawn - 02:28 Sep 20, 2025
ISLAMABAD: Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri has also challenged the Sept 16 restraining order that barred him from performing judicial functions after a division bench raised serious questions about the validity of his law degree from Karachi University. Filed by Justice Jahangiri in person, the appeal before the Supreme Court pleaded for the Sept 16 restraining order to be set aside and suspended during the pendency of the petition, and for the division bench to be directed to hold back from proceeding further. The two-judge IHC bench, headed by Chief Justice Sardar Mohammad Sarfraz Dogar alongside Justice Mohammad Azam Khan, had issued the interim order while hearing a writ petition filed by lawyer Mian Dawood under Article 199 of the Constitution. The petition sought a writ of quo warranto, questioning “by what authority” Justice Jahangiri held judicial office. In his appeal under Article 185(3), Justice Jahangiri cited the 2010 Iftikhar Chaudhry case, in which the SC had held that the Constitution did not ... -
Dawn - 00:30 Sep 20, 2025
“The demolition of the IHC and its independence, that is being witnessed today, is only because the petitioner judges dared to object to the executive’s interference in their judicial work and uphold their oath as judges of the IHC.” These are the words of five Islamabad High Court (IHC) judges who have moved the Supreme Court (SC) against the IHC itself, and its top judge. Justices Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, Babar Sattar, Tariq Mahmood Jahangiri, Saman Rafat and Ejaz Ishaq Khan have filed similar petitions in the country’s apex court. Their applications also outline the events that led to them making the move. Here’s how these events unfolded, as detailed in their pleas. It began in Justice Aamer Farooq’s tenure During the tenure of the previous IHC chief justice, now Supreme Court Justice Aamer Farooq, the petitioners had raised the “issue of executive interference in judicial work and attempts to pressurise the judges to influence judicial outcomes in certain cases”. “These serious concerns” were first brought... -
Dawn - 23:28 Sep 19, 2025
Pakistan were all set to chase South Africa’s daunting 313-run total, but fell 25 runs short in their second one-day international (ODI) pre- Women’s World Cup ODI encounter in Lahore. A spectacular knock by Sidra Amin, who brought up her second consecutive century of the series, brought them close, but in the end, the Duckworth-Lewis method adjusted 313-run target was a step too far. Set a mammoth score to chase after the Proteas batters ruled the roost in the first innings, Sidra stepped up again under the Gaddafi Stadium lights to score a sublime hundred — but failed to close the chase. What could have been a night to remember for the fans in the rain-affected ODI clash saw the Women in Green falter in the final stages of the chase — which, if they had come through, would have been their second-highest chase ever. The match saw the Proteas reach 292-3 in 46 overs before the total was adjusted to 313 according to the D/L method after a disruption in play as the Pakistani bowlers had a forgettable day with t... -
Dawn - 20:57 Sep 19, 2025
World champions India overcame a gutsy Oman team to win the last group match of the men’s Asia Cup by 21 runs on Friday and stay unbeaten in the T20 tournament. India had already qualified for the Super Four stage and posted 188-8 after they elected to bat first at Abu Dhabi. Oman — ranked 20th in world T20 rankings — put up a spirited batting show and finished on 167-4 after top knocks from Aamir Kaleem, who made 64, and Hammad Mirza, who hit 51. The left-right batting pair of Kaleem and Mirza put on 93 runs for the second wicket and attempted to pull off the chase with some late boundaries that gave India a scare. Hardik Pandya broke the stand with a stunning outfield catch to dismiss Kaleem off Harshit Rana and then sent back Mirza with his pace bowling in the next over. Left-arm quick Arshdeep Singh snared the fourth wicket of the innings and his 100th in T20 internationals — the first Indian bowler to reach the century mark. Earlier, wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson top-scored with 56, and his second-wi... -
Dawn - 19:07 Sep 19, 2025
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Friday hinted that some countries were showing interest in building strategic defence agreements with Pakistan, following the country’s landmark pact with Saudi Arabia. Pakistan and Saudi Arabia entered into a landmark mutual defence agreement, under which any aggression against one state will be considered an attack on both. The pact was signed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman at the Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh on Wednesday. The agreement came amid diplomatic upheaval in the Middle East and just months after a deadly India-Pakistan conflict in May. “It’s premature to say anything, but some other countries want to enter into an agreement of this nature,” Dar told reporters in London, replying to a question about whether other states will join the pact or ink similar deals. “This was not signed overnight; it has taken several months.” Calling the agreement a “historic pact”, FM Dar said Pakistan has always maint... -
Dawn - 19:01 Sep 19, 2025
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) gunned down three “terrorists”, including an Afghan national, during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) carried out in Khyber district late on Friday night. Two among the three militants killed during the IBO, were involved in a suicide bombing in Peshawar which led to the deaths of a sub-inspector and a constable. A statement issued by the CTD said that the department conducted an IBO based on the reported presence of Fazal Noor, a commander of the banned militant Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) and his group members in Ali Masjid area of the district. It added that as soon as the SWAT reached the spot, the militants opened fire which was retaliated and the exchange of fire continued for around 30 minutes. The CTD said a search operation was launched after the firing stopped and the SWAT team found three dead bodies who were later identified as Muhammad Naeem, Muhammad Karim, residents of Karak, and Noor Nabi, a resident of Nangarhar in Afgh... -
Dawn - 17:47 Sep 19, 2025
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has taken strong exception to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) recording a meeting between match referee Andy Pycroft and Pakistan team officials ahead of their Asia Cup fixture against the UAE in Dubai on September 17, with the controversy stemming from the so-called “handshake-gate” incident involving India captain Suryakumar Yadav, the Press Trust of India news agency reported on Friday. According to the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency, ICC chief executive Sanjog Gupta wrote a ‘strongly-worded email’ to the PCB on Thursday, terming the use of a mobile phone to film the conversation inside the Players and Match Officials Area (PMOA) a breach of protocol. The meeting was attended by Pycroft, Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha, head coach Mike Hesson, team manager Naveed Akram Cheema, media manager Naeem Gillani, and ICC general manager cricket Wasim Khan. Gillani was initially told by ICC officials that mobile phones were not permitted inside the PMOA under anti-c... -
Dawn - 17:21 Sep 19, 2025
China on Friday strongly reacted to United States President Donald Trump’s plan to retake control of Afghanistan’s Bagram air base and said “hyping up tensions and creating confrontation” in the region runs counter to people’s aspirations. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said the country’s future should be decided by the Afghan people, according to state-run Global Times. “China respects Afghanistan’s independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity, and that the country’s future should be decided by the Afghan people,” he said. “Hyping up tensions and creating confrontation in the region runs counter to people’s aspirations,” Lin said, adding that China hopes all parties will play a constructive role in promoting regional peace and stability. On Thursday, Trump said that his administration is trying to secure the return of the Bagram air base from the Taliban, though specifics on the hitherto secretive negotiations remained scarce. Trump said part of his motivation for attempting to reacqu... -
Dawn - 16:41 Sep 19, 2025
Members of the legal fraternity on Friday expressed solidarity with the five Islamabad High Court (IHC) judges — Justices Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, Babar Sattar, Tariq Mahmood Jahangiri, Saman Raffat Imtiaz and Ejaz Ishaq — who submitted separate petitions at the Supreme Court (SC) on Friday against several issues concerning their court; from the composition of benches to rosters to case transfers. The petitions, available with Dawn.com, named the IHC, IHC Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar and the Federation of Pakistan as respondents and have been filed under Article 184(3) of the Constitution. Article 184(3) sets out the SC’s original jurisdiction and enables it to assume jurisdiction in matters involving a question of “public importance” with reference to the “enforcement of any of the fundamental rights” of Pakistan’s citizens. In their petitions, the judges moved the SC to declare that administrative powers could not be “deployed to undermine or trump the judicial powers” of the high court judges.... -
Dawn - 16:23 Sep 19, 2025
United States President Donald Trump hailed on Friday what he called progress with Chinese President Xi Jinping, including on selling blockbuster app TikTok, and said he would visit the Asian power, which offered a more cautious assessment of their talks. The leaders of the world’s two largest economies spoke by telephone for the second time since the return to the White House of Trump, who has tried to keep a lid on tensions despite his once virulent criticism of China. Trump told reporters ahead of the call that he hoped it would finalise a deal to take out of Chinese hands TikTok, the social media platform hugely popular with young Americans that the Republican mogul has turned to himself to garner support. Neither side reported a final agreement but Trump said the call was “very productive”. “We made progress on many very important issues, including trade, Fentanyl, the need to bring the war between Russia and Ukraine to an end, and the approval of the TikTok Deal,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platfor... -
Dawn - 16:01 Sep 19, 2025
Pakistan on Friday extended the airspace ban for Indian aircraft till October 24, according to a statement by the Pakistan Aviation Authority (PAA). Last month, the government extended the closure of its airspace to Indian aircraft for another month, until September 25, according to a NOTAM (notice to airmen) issued on August 22. New Delhi had accused Islamabad, without evidence, of orchestrating April’s deadly attack in occupied Kashmir’s Pahalgam. Pakistan had strongly denied the allegations and called for a neutral probe. As the situation turned into a military confrontation between the nuclear powers, it took American intervention for both sides to agree to a ceasefire. On April 24, Pakistan’s top brass had announced a series of measures, including the closure of its airspace to all India-owned or Indian-operated airlines with immediate effect, as it retaliated against New Delhi’s slew of aggressive measures against the country. PAA spokesperson Saifullah Khan confirmed to Dawn.com that the airspace clos... -
Dawn - 15:38 Sep 19, 2025
The Foreign Office (FO) said on Friday that the Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement signed between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia earlier this week would not be used to threaten any other country. Pakistan and Saudi Arabia entered into a landmark mutual defence agreement, under which any aggression against one state will be considered an attack on both. The pact was signed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman at the Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh on Wednesday. On Thursday, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif stated in an interview that the pact was defensive in nature. During a weekly press briefing today, FO spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan called the agreement “an important milestone for promoting peace and security in the region and the world” and noted that since the 1960s, a key pillar of the ties between Islamabad and Riyadh has been defence cooperation. “The Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement formalises this decades-old and robust defence partnership,” the spokesperson said. “It i... -
Dawn - 15:13 Sep 19, 2025
Post from multiple Indian users on social media platform X on Friday shared a video clip of a Houthi official, claiming that it showed him threatening Pakistan for allegedly sending troops to the Saudi–Yemen border amid the signing of a mutual defence deal with the kingdom. However, the video is old and does not show the Houthi official talking about Pakistan. Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed a “Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement” in Riyadh on Sept 16, pledging that any attack on either nation would be treated as an act of aggression against both. A statement from the PM’s office announcing the signing of the pact read: “This agreement, which reflects the shared commitment of both nations to enhance their security and to achieve security and peace in the region and the world, aims to develop aspects of defence cooperation between the two countries and strengthen joint deterrence against any aggression.” A known Indian propaganda account shared the picture of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif with Saudi Crown Prin... -
Dawn - 15:12 Sep 19, 2025
Five Islamabad High Court (IHC) judges — namely Justices Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, Babar Sattar, Tariq Mahmood Jahangiri, Saman Rafat Imtiaz and Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan — submitted separate petitions at the Supreme Court (SC) together on Friday against a number of issues affecting the court recently, from the composition of benches to rosters to case transfers. The petitions, available with Dawn.com, named the IHC, IHC Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar and the Federation of Pakistan as respondents and were filed under Article 184(3) of the Constitution. Article 184(3) sets out the SC’s original jurisdiction and enables it to assume jurisdiction in matters involving a question of “public importance” with reference to the “enforcement of any of the fundamental rights” of Pakistan’s citizens. In their petitions, the judges moved the SC to declare that administrative powers could not be “deployed to undermine or trump the judicial powers” of the high court judges. They further asked the apex court to declar... -
Dawn - 14:59 Sep 19, 2025
Pakistan and India will clash again in the Asia Cup on Sunday, renewing one of cricket’s fiercest rivalries a week after their last match was overshadowed by a handshake row. India won the September 14 group match by seven wickets in Dubai and afterwards refused to shake hands with their opponents in a controversial move. It was the first meeting between the neighbours since a four-day cross-border conflict in May left more than 70 people dead. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) lodged a protest with the International Cricket Council (ICC), alleging that match referee Andy Pycroft had told skipper Salman Ali Agha not to approach Indian counterpart Suryakumar Yadav for a handshake at the toss. The PCB demanded that Pycroft be removed from their matches and threatened to withdraw from the eight-team Twenty20 competition. Their last group game was held up for an hour before the PCB said Pycroft had apologised and the match, with the Zimbabwean in charge, eventually went ahead. Pakistan beat hosts, the United Arab ...
5467 items