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  • ‘Hunuz Dilli Dur Ast’: Climate crisis in the age of war
    Dawn - 12:14 Mar 31, 2026
    ‘Hunuz Dilli dur ast’, which translates to Delhi is still far away, is a phrase deeply rooted in South Asian history. Legend has it that when Sufi saint Nizamuddin Auliya was threatened by Sultan Ghiyasuddin Tughluq, he responded with these words. The sultan never made it back to Delhi; he died on his return journey. Another popular anecdote recounts Bahadur Shah Zafar, the last Mughal emperor, dismissing the advancing British with the same phrase. History, of course, proved otherwise. Together, these stories illustrate the best and possibly the worst of human nature. On the one hand, they reflect hope; a belief that circumstances may improve even in the face of danger. On the other hand, they illustrate the dangerous optimism that leads societies to ignore looming crises until it is too late. That same instinct has long shaped the global response to climate change. No longer a distant abstraction Since at least the 1930s, scientists have warned that environmental degradation and rising greenhouse gas emissio...
  • UNRWA chief seeks probe into killing of hundreds of staff in Gaza
    Dawn - 11:51 Mar 31, 2026
    The outgoing head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) supporting Palestinian refugees said on Tuesday he wanted an investigation into the killing of nearly 400 UNRWA staff during the conflict in Gaza. “I believe that we need to have a panel … a high-level panel of experts to look into the killing of our staff,” Philippe Lazzarini told reporters in Geneva. Speaking at a press conference on the last day on the job as UNRWA commissioner general, the 62-year-old Swiss national condemned the fact that “more than 390” of the agency’s staff had been killed since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza in October 2023. “Many others have sustained life-changing injuries or have been arbitrarily detained and tortured,” he said. He said an investigation was needed not just into the killing of UNRWA employees but also of other UN staff, stressing: “There have been other UN colleagues who have been also killed. “And we have to look also at the extraordinary, large-scale destruction of the agency, of UN premise...
    Tags: Gaza UNRWA
  • US says respects Israel ‘right’ to legislate as death penalty bill for Palestinians widely condemned
    Dawn - 11:31 Mar 31, 2026
    The United States said on Monday it respected Israel’s right to set its own laws after its parliament introduced the death penalty for Palestinians convicted of killings, a move sharply criticised by European nations and rights groups. “The United States respects Israel’s sovereign right to determine its own laws and penalties for individuals convicted of terrorism,” a State Department spokesperson said. “We trust that any such measures will be carried out with a fair trial and respect for all applicable fair trial guarantees and protections.” The United States is the only Nato country that still practices capital punishment. It has long been the key diplomatic and military supporter of Israel. Meanwhile, the European Union condemned Israel’s approval of the bill, terming it “discriminatory”. “The death penalty bill in Israel is very concerning to us in the EU. This is a clear step backwards — the introduction of the death penalty, together with the discriminatory nature of the law,” EU spokesman Anouar El An...
    Tags: Palestinians Israel
  • KSE-100 gains 1,900 points day after war-driven meltdown
    Dawn - 11:20 Mar 31, 2026
    The Pakistan Stock Exchange’s benchmark index climbed by 1,900.34 points on Tuesday after witnessing a meltdown a day earlier. The KSE-100 index climbed by 1,900.34 points, or 1.29 per cent, to close at 148,743.31 from the previous close of 146,842.97. The index saw an intraday low of 147,743.67 points at around 9:30am. However, it then rose to an intraday high of 150,225.63 points at around 2:20pm, before settling at 146,842.97. On Monday, PSX came under extreme selling pressure, dragging the KSE-100 index below the 145,­000 mil­estone intraday. The benchmark KSE-100 index remained in negative territory from the beginning of trade, hitting an intraday low of 144,656.97, a sharp decline of 7,050.55. It then closed 4,864.54 points lower than the previous session. Ali Najib, Deputy Head of Trading at Arif Habib Ltd (AHL), said that since February 9, it has been the seventh consecutive Monday, excluding March 23, during which the market experienced significant sell-offs, mostly driven by adverse geopolitical dev...
    Tags: KSE-100
  • Fakhar Zaman suspended for two PSL matches for ball-tampering
    Dawn - 11:12 Mar 31, 2026
    Lahore Qalandars batter Fakhar Zaman has been suspended for two Pakistan Super League (PSL) matches after he was found guilty of breaching the code of conduct, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced on Tuesday. The incident occurred in the final over of Sunday’s match between Karachi Kings and Lahore Qalandars, with the former needing 14 runs to win. Fakhar, Lahore captain Shaheen Afridi and fast bowler Haris Rauf were involved in a brief discussion, during which Fakhar and Rauf passed the ball between them. The umpire then approached Rauf and asked to see the ball. Following consultations with the square-leg umpire, the officials awarded five penalty runs to Karachi and ordered the ball to be changed. The penalty proved costly as Karachi went on to chase down a target of 129 with three balls to spare, Abbas Afridi hitting a four and a six to seal a four-wicket victory. On Monday, the PCB had officially charged Fakhar with ball-tampering. In a press release issued on Tuesday, the PCB said, “Fakhar Zaman h...
    Tags: Fakhar Zaman
  • Tribunal dismisses petition against info minister Tarar’s win from Lahore’s NA-127
    Dawn - 10:50 Mar 31, 2026
    LAHORE: An election tribunal on Tuesday dismissed an election petition against Information Minister Attaullah Tarar’s victory from NA-127 in the 2024 general elections as non-maintainable. The decision was announced by the tribunal, comprising retired justice Rana Zahid Mehmood, on the election petition filed by PTI-backed independent candidate Zaheer Abbas Khokhar, who had contested against Tarar. Khokhar had lost his election to Tarar with a margin of 15,980 votes as the latter bagged 98,210 votes against 82,230 of the former. PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari had also contested the 2024 general election from the same constituency; however, he stood third with 15,005 votes. The tribunal dismissed the petition on technical grounds, declaring it not maintainable for failing to comply with statutory requirements under the Election Act 2017. In his petition, Khokhar had alleged the impugned notification of the respondent’s victory was a result of “corrupt and illegal practices” committed on the polling day. H...
    Tags: Tarar NA-127
  • Interior minister directs Nadra to identify foreigners who illegally obtained citizenship
    Dawn - 10:19 Mar 31, 2026
    ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Tuesday directed the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) to immediately identify aliens who managed to illegally obtain Pakistani citizenship, and remove them from the national database. The minister, during his visit to Nadra headquarters, chaired a high-level meeting where he praised Nadra’s performance and effective public services, and directed it to fully support law enforcement agencies in the repatriation of foreigners illegally residing in Pakistan. Nadra Chairman Lt Gen Muhammad Munir Afsar briefed the Naqvi on the institution’s performance, as well as its ongoing and future projects. Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Director General Dr Usman Anwar and senior Nadra officials were also present on the occasion. Naqvi noted significant improvements in Nadra’s services over the past two years and directed that more modern services be introduced for public convenience. He also instructed Nadra to build state-of-the-art offices in major cities...
    Tags: Nadra
  • NDMA warns of Glof, landslides in GB, KP areas from April 1-10
    Dawn - 09:55 Mar 31, 2026
    GILGIT: The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has warned about a risk of glacial lake outburst floods (Glof), flash floods, and landslides in areas of Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from April 1-10. According to an alert issued by the NDMA, there was an “increased risk” of Glof, flash floods, mudslides and landslides in the vulnerable areas of GB and KP and the surrounding regions, particularly near the glacier terminus, due to the “expected widespread weather spell, especially from April 1 to 10”. “Over the past few days, temperatures over the northern mountainous regions remained above normal,” it pointed out. The NDMA advised local communities to remain vigilant, while the relevant authorities were requested to take precautionary measures to safeguard lives and infrastructure. In light of the prevailing situation, it urged all federal ministers and departments, provincial governments and their departments, as well as district and municipal administrations, to proactively monitor a...
    Tags: Glof NDMA April
  • China bans entombing cremated remains in empty flats
    Dawn - 08:47 Mar 31, 2026
    Chinese authorities have banned entombing cremated remains in cheap apartments, a practice that had gained popularity as mourners took advantage of the subdued housing market to dodge rising funeral costs. “Bone-ash apartments” are units in often barely occupied residential complexes used by some families as resting places for their loved ones’ remains. They can be cheaper than a public cemetery plot, according to local media, as well as giving families more control over the site. Acquiring one “kills two birds with one stone”, Carsten Herrmann-Pillath from Germany’s Erfurt University told AFP. “It’s an investment and eases the (process of carrying out) ritual practices.” But regulations that came into force on Monday explicitly ban “the use of residential dwellings specifically for the interment of ashes”. Bone-ash apartments are often identifiable by sealed-off windows or closed curtains, according to Chinese media reports. A resident quoted by the Communist Party-run Legal Daily newspaper described peeking...
  • PMD forecasts chances of thunderstorms, rain in Karachi, other parts of Sindh on Thursday
    Dawn - 08:09 Mar 31, 2026
    The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has forecast chances of rain and thunderstorms in Karachi on Thursday, as well as other areas of Sindh from April 2-4, as a result of a new westerly wave from Balochistan. A westerly wave is likely to approach the southwestern parts of Balochistan on April 1 and likely to persist till April 4, the Met Office said in its daily weather outlook issued on Tuesday. In its three-day weather forecast, it said that Tuesday and Wednesday would both bring partly cloudy weather in the Karachi division. The maximum temperature on Tuesday is expected to be between 29 and 31 degrees Celsius, with a minimum temperature of 22.7°C. The humidity is forecast to reach 54 per cent in the daytime, remaining around 40-50pc in the evening. A west/southwesterly wind is expected to prevail. Wednesday’s temperatures will reach highs of 30-32°C and lows of 22-24°C, according to the forecast. While the evening humidity is similar to Tuesday, a higher daytime humidity of 65-75pc is predicted, a...
    Tags: Karachi Thursday Sindh
  • ‘Diplomacy takes time’: Pak envoy reaffirms Islamabad’s commitment to Iran-US peace amid complex situation
    Dawn - 07:02 Mar 31, 2026
    Pakistan’s Ambassador to the US Rizwan Saeed Sheikh has reaffirmed Islamabad’s commitment to facilitating dialogue between the United States and Iran, even as regional tensions intensify. In an interview broadcast on Tuesday, Ambassador Sheikh told Fox News that Pakistan is “committed to providing every possible facilitation for fruitful dialogue”, while stressing that ultimate decisions rest with the conflicting parties. “While Pakistan continues to be the facilitator, it is actually upon the conflicting parties themselves to not only create the prerequisites for negotiations and to be able to conduct them in all earnest, but they will have to take the decisions which make it successful,” Ambassador Sheikh said. He described the situation as “a highly complex issue involving political, economic, and regional factors” and expressed gratitude that both sides have shown confidence in Pakistan’s ability to help mediate. “We are also mindful of the fact that it is not an easy process. It’s a very complicated matt...
    Tags: Islamabad
  • Israel passes law making death penalty default sentence for Palestinians convicted of lethal attacks
    Dawn - 20:12 Mar 30, 2026
    Israel’s parliament approved a bill on Monday that would allow the execution of Palestinians convicted on terror charges for deadly attacks, a move that has been criticised as discriminatory and immediately drew a court challenge. Sixty-two lawmakers, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, voted in favour and 48 against the bill, championed by far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir. There was one abstention and the rest of the lawmakers were not present. The legislation would make the death penalty the default punishment for Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank found guilty of intentionally carrying out deadly attacks deemed “acts of terrorism” by an Israeli military court. The legislation says that the sentence may be reduced to life imprisonment under “special circumstances”. Palestinians in the West Bank are automatically tried in Israeli military courts. Meanwhile, under the legislation, in Israeli criminal courts anyone “who intentionally causes the death of a person with th...
    Tags: Palestinians Israel
  • Fast bowler Naseem Shah slapped with Rs20m fine after social media post about Punjab CM Maryam
    Dawn - 20:00 Mar 30, 2026
    LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Monday slapped a Rs20 million fine on fast bowler Naseem Shah for breaching several clauses of his central contract. Last week, the cricketer was issued a show-cause notice for “violating the terms of [his] central contract as well as the media policy and regulations”, requiring him to respond within the stipulated time. The notice was ostensibly issued in response to a social media post in which Naseem had expressed a critical opinion about Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, who was the chief guest during the opening match of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) played at the Gaddafi Stadium. According to ESPNcricinfo, Naseem had Naseem’s account responded to a post from the PCB media account, saying, “Why is she treated like the Queen at Lord’s?” It should be mentioned that PSL matches are being played behind closed doors in line with the government’s austerity drive amid the oil crisis triggered by the US-Israel war on Iran. Minutes later, the post was taken down and...
    Tags: Naseem Shah
  • Lahore Qalandars imposes ‘voluntary’ fine of Rs1m on captain Shaheen Afridi over security protocol breach
    Dawn - 19:17 Mar 30, 2026
    Pakistan Super League (PSL) franchise Lahore Qalandars on Monday imposed a Rs1 million fine on pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi over his involvement in an incident of security protocol breach but clarified that the “matter arose from a misunderstanding rather than any deliberate attempt to violate established procedures”. On Sunday, a police official had detailed the alleged incident in a letter to the PSL chief executive officer, claiming that Afridi — who is also the captain of Lahore Qalandars — and his teammate Sikandar Raza had “disregarded the directives and forcefully escorted” four visitors to the latter’s room at the hotel where the players were staying “despite resistance from on-duty security personnel”. Subsequently, a press release by Lahore Qalandars said that the franchise had taken “strong notice of the recently reported incident dated March 28 concerning an alleged breach of security protocol involving its players”. “The franchise promptly initiated a comprehensive internal review to establish the f...
    Tags: Lahore Qalandars
  • India planning false flag operation using Pakistani prisoners: security sources
    Dawn - 18:46 Mar 30, 2026
    Security sources warned on Monday that India was preparing for a false flag operation against Pakistan, which reportedly entails exploiting Pakistani citizens captured after inadvertently crossing the border. Dozens of Pakistanis, including Kashmiris, are currently imprisoned in Indian jails. It is believed that these prisoners are now being shifted to execute a false flag operation, according to security sources. The sources said that the move appeared to be aimed at covering up India’s diplomatic humiliation and to divert attention away from Pakistan. Last year in May, an attack on tourists in India-occupied Kashmir, which New Delhi, without evidence, had linked to Pakistan led to a brief military escalation between the two countries. Islamabad had strongly denied responsibility while calling for a neutral investigation. New Delhi then launched deadly air strikes in Punjab and Azad Kashmir. After tit-for-tat strikes on each other’s airbases during the four-day escalation, it took American intervention on Ma...
    Tags: Pakistani India
  • War Diary Day 31: Economic shockwaves deepen in absence of diplomatic off-ramps to Iran war
    Dawn - 17:30 Mar 30, 2026
    On the 31st day of the US-Israeli war on Iran, the economic dimension of the war continued to become more pronounced as the conflict remained locked in a high-intensity, multi-domain phase, with exchanges continuing across Iran, Israel, and the wider region. Inside Iran, US and Israeli strikes continued to target the civilian infrastructure besides military and strategic targets, including hits on research facilities and air defence systems. The goal seems to be to degrade both Iran’s operational military capability and technological depth. Moreover, there have been attacks on energy sites, leading to power outages in major urban centres such as Tehran and Karaj. Despite these pressures, Iran’s retaliatory capacity remained intact, with continued missile and drone launches targeting Israeli industrial zones and infrastructure, as well as assets in Gulf countries. In Israel, the impact of these strikes has become more visible with a second confirmed hit on the Haifa Bazan oil refinery — one of the country’s mo...
    Tags: Iran
  • Islamabad businessman succumbs to injuries after being shot during dacoity at farmhouse
    Dawn - 17:06 Mar 30, 2026
    ISLAMABAD: A prominent businessman succumbed to his injuries after being shot by armed robbers during a dacoity at his farmhouse located in Orchard Scheme during the early hours of Monday. The deceased has been identified as Amir Awan, the owner of a car showroom at Aabpara. Political figures, VIPs and big-shots, including an adviser to the prime minister, own property in the neighbourhood where the incident took place. Speaking to Dawn on the condition of anonymity, police officers said that CCTV footage of the incident showed five persons armed with submachine guns and wearing bulletproof jackets entering the farmhouse. They said that the crime scene suggested that the deceased had put up resistance. They said that he was initially shifted to a state-run hospital and then moved to a private hospital, where he died during an operation. Meanwhile, a first information report (FIR) of the incident has been registered at Shahzad Town police station under Section 397 (robbery or dacoity with attempt to cause deat...
  • Fire at superstore located in Karachi’s Zamzama area brought under control
    Dawn - 16:44 Mar 30, 2026
    KARACHI: A huge fire that erupted in a superstore in Clifton’s Zamzama area in the early hours of Monday was brought under control after hours-long efforts by rescue officials. The fire broke out in Imtiaz Superstore’s Zamzama branch. The locality is a high-end shopping area, and the store is frequented by thousands daily. Clifton Station House Officer (SHO) Naseer Tanoli told Dawn that the fire had been controlled and the cooling process had begun. He said that police had obtained CCTV footage which showed that the fire erupted in an ATM located on the premises. He said that staff initially tried to control the blaze, before informing police and the fire brigade. Tanoli said that the store’s fiber walls and the presence of clothing items contributed to the fire’s intensity and spread. He said a significant quantity of goods had been saved and seven cars parked in the basement also remained safe. Speaking to the media at the scene in the evening, Karachi Mayor Barrister Murtaza Wahab also said that the fire h...
    Tags: Zamzama
  • What could Trump achieve by threatening Iran’s Kharg Island?
    Dawn - 16:32 Mar 30, 2026
    A scrubby island in the Gulf that is roughly one third the size of Manhattan, Kharg Island is the nerve centre of the Iranian oil industry — and at the heart of US President Donald Trump’s latest efforts to pressure Tehran. On Monday, Trump vowed that a failure by Iran to agree a deal to end the war could see the United States “completely obliterating” the export hub. A day earlier, he had said the United States could take the island, eyed by the Pentagon for ground operations, “very easily”. So what are Trump’s options, and how might Iran react if he presses on this pressure point? What is Kharg Island? It may be a mere scrap of land, but Kharg handles around 90 per cent of Iran’s crude exports, according to a report by US bank JP Morgan. Located in the north of the Gulf, around 30 kilometres from the Iranian coast and more than 500km from the Strait of Hormuz, it has no oil wells. But it has Iran’s largest oil terminal, oil pipelines, storage tanks and related infrastructure. It also has military facilities...
    Tags: Iran Kharg Island What Trump
  • PMDC takes notice of filming of video during medical procedure at Lahore’s Lady Willingdon Hospital
    Dawn - 16:31 Mar 30, 2026
    ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) on Monday took notice of what it called a “disturbing incident” regarding the filming of patients mid surgery at Lahore’s Lady Willingdon Hospital. The video in question, which was widely shared on social media, showed doctors performing what appeared to be C-sections on two patients in the same operating theatre, with a medical curtain in the middle. The person filming the video can be heard saying that a “competition was underway”. On Saturday, the Punjab government had suspended the medical superintendent (MS), head of the gynae department, a woman medical officer, five postgraduate resident doctors, two nurses, and a hospital staff member due to the incident. In a statement released on Monday, the PMDC said, “According to initial reports, a video recorded inside an operating theatre, purportedly showing medical staff engaging in unprofessional conduct and inappropriately treating surgical procedures, has circulated widely.” It said the incident had...
    Tags: Lady Willingdon Hospital Lahore PMDC

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