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  • In a first, ICC announces all-female panel of umpires and referees for Women’s World Cup
    Dawn - 10:13 Sep 11, 2025
    The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Thursday said the upcoming Women’s Cricket World Cup would feature an all-female panel of umpires and match referees for the first time in the 50-over tournament’s history. “While three recent events — the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and the two most recent ICC Women’s T20 World Cups — have featured all-female match official panels, this is the first time in the history of the Women’s World Cup the feat will be achieved,” the ICC said a statement. The 13th edition of the Women’s World Cup is set to be held in India and Sri Lanka from September 30. The tournament would be overseen by a group of 14 umpires, including Claire Polosak, Jacqueline Williams, Sue Redfern, Lauren Agenbag and Kim Cotton. The ICC statement mentioned that Polosak, Williams and Redfern “will be appearing at their third Women’s World Cup” this year while Agenbag and Cotton “will be at their second World Cup”. View this post on Instagram The all-female panel of match officials for the Wor...
  • Pakistan must shape its clean-energy future
    Dawn - 08:28 Sep 11, 2025
    In the hot summer sun of southern Punjab, the roof of Lucky Cement’s factory glints with solar panels soaking up rays. Below, inside a quiet control room, sit rows of lithium-ion batteries made by Chinese company CATL. While the plant usually draws from the national grid when possible, these batteries can power it during the blackouts that have become an almost daily problem. Across Pakistan’s busy industrial zones – from Faisalabad’s textile mills to food processing units in Sindh – an increasing number of businesses are turning to solar panels paired with batteries. They, along with wealthier households, are trying to cope with soaring electricity prices and frequent load shedding, where power is shut off to parts of the grid to ease the strain on power stations. Helping drive this change is an unexpected factor: China producing more batteries than it can use. But rather than continuing to rely on Chinese battery and solar products, Pakistan needs policies that promote their manufacture domestically, that m...
    Tags: Pakistan
  • Freedom of the press at its lowest in 50 years: study
    Dawn - 08:18 Sep 11, 2025
    Press freedoms worldwide have declined significantly over the past five years to hit their lowest level in 50 years, a report by a democracy think tank showed on Thursday. Afghanistan, Burkina Faso and Myanmar — already among the poorest performers in press freedoms — posted the biggest falls, the report by the Stockholm-based International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA) said. The fourth-biggest drop was in South Korea, it added, citing “a spike in defamation cases initiated by the government and its political allies against journalists, and raids on journalists’ residences”. “The current state of democracy in the world is concerning,” IDEA secretary general Kevin Casas-Zamora, secretary general told AFP. More than half of countries in the world (54 per cent), registered a drop in one of the five key democracy indicators between 2019 and 2024, the report said. “The most important finding in our report is the very acute deterioration in press freedom around the world,” Casas-Zamora sai...
  • 2 dead, 4 injured in KP’s Mansehra as vehicle plunges into ravine
    Dawn - 07:19 Sep 11, 2025
    Two women were killed, while four people were injured after the jeep they were travelling in plunged into a ravine in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Mansehra district, police said on Thursday. Shenkiari Station House Officer Muhammad Saqib told Dawn.com that a jeep heading towards the Jabori area fell into a ravine due to landslide debris following heavy rains on the road. “The local people rushed to the scene after the accident and retrieved the victims from the ravine. Two of them were [found] dead,” he said, adding that four others were injured in the incident, including three children and a driver. He also said that the dead bodies and the injured were taken to the Shenkiari Rural Health Centre, while two of the injured were later taken to the King Abdullah Teaching Hospital for further treatment. Fatal accidents are common on roads in the mountainous regions of the country due to traffic rule violations, treacherous terrain, and poor infrastructure. Earlier this month, two people were killed and 24 others sustaine...
    Tags: Mansehra
  • Uzbekistan Airways to increase flights to Pakistan
    Dawn - 07:10 Sep 11, 2025
    ISLAMABAD: As part of efforts to deepen ties, enhance economic diplomacy and boost tourism cooperation, Uzbekistan Airways is increasing the number of regular flights between the two countries. The Uzbek embassy in Islamabad said on Wednesday that Uzbekistan and Pakistan continued to strengthen their friendly relations and expand cooperation across multiple sectors. In this process, transport and logistics, particularly air connectivity, played a crucial role. Starting October 28, the frequency of flights on ‘Tashkent-Islamabad-Tashkent’ route will be doubled, from once a week to two flights per week. Currently, Uzbekistan Airways operated flights twice a week — on Wednesdays and Fridays — on the ‘Tashkent-Lahore-Tashkent’ route, and once a week (on Saturdays) on the ‘Tashkent-Islamabad-Tashkent’ route. Due to consistently high demand, with flights running at full passenger capacity and tickets selling out several days in advance, the airline had decided to expand its flight schedule. The Embassy of Uzbekista...
  • New York marks 9/11 attacks against divided backdrop
    Dawn - 06:57 Sep 11, 2025
    New York prepared to mark the devastating attacks of Sept 11, 2001 on Thursday, 24 years after the deadly plane hijackings that claimed almost 3,000 lives and forever changed the United States. Vice President JD Vance was expected to attend memorial events at Ground Zero in Manhattan, where the World Trade Centre’s twin towers were destroyed in coordinated attacks that also saw a jetliner crash into the nerve centre of American military power, the Pentagon in Washington. Another jet, Flight 93, crashed into the Pennsylvania countryside when passengers overran the hijacker and took control of the aircraft. This year’s gathering takes place against a backdrop of sharp political division both in the city and nationally. New York is in the grip of an unprecedented mayoral election campaign in which socialist Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani is facing off against former governor Andrew Cuomo and sitting mayor Eric Adams. New Yorkers go to the polls on November 4. It was unclear which of the mayoral candidates w...
    Tags: New York
  • Soured rivalry: India vs Pakistan as ‘brothers’ Chopra and Nadeem clash for world gold
    Dawn - 06:50 Sep 11, 2025
    India’s Neeraj Chopra and Arshad Nadeem of Pakistan will battle for javelin gold in Tokyo next week, the latest chapter in a brotherly rivalry which has soured since a deadly military conflict between their countries. The Tokyo Olympic champion, Chopra, and his successor in Paris, Nadeem, will line up at the athletics world championships for their first encounter since the nuclear-armed neighbours engaged in a four-day conflict in May, their worst since 1999. Chopra, who took Olympic silver behind his great rival a year ago, had often spoken about his friendly relations with Nadeem despite the tensions between their countries. After Nadeem won gold and Chopra stood alongside him on the podium in Paris, Nadeem’s mother Raziah Parveen said: “Winning and losing is part of sport, but they are like brothers.” Chopra’s mother Saroj said she took some solace in Nadeem beating her son because the Pakistani “is also our boy”. But publicly at least that changed after the conflict. The 27-year-old Chopra, who will defen...
  • Rains halt Karachi’s industrial activities
    Dawn - 04:30 Sep 11, 2025
    KARACHI: The industrial sector in Karachi was significantly impacted on Wednesday as heavy rains and flooding paralysed key industrial areas. According to industry leaders, industrial output remained subdued as workers failed to report for duty due to safety concerns and transportation issues. Faisal Moiz Khan, President of the North Karachi Association of Trade and Industry (NKATI), stated that nearly half of the 4,500 industrial units in the area remained closed. Workers were reluctant to return after the torrential rains in the third week of August left several people stranded in factories late into the night. Additionally, around 100-125 factories in sectors A to D in F.B. Area, including export-oriented units, suffered damage as the swollen Lyari River inundated production facilities, destroying raw materials and finished goods worth millions of rupees. Moiz pointed out that the overflow from Thado Dam had submerged roads leading to the Super Highway, exacerbating the city’s already struggling infrastruc...
    Tags: Karachi
  • Interfaith body set up to tackle hate speech, extremism
    Dawn - 04:21 Sep 11, 2025
    National Paigham-i-Aman body is a subcommittee of National Committee on Narrative Building Senate committee alarmed by misuse of Peca by provinces ISLAMABAD: The government has notified a special panel — comprising clerics, religious leaders of non-Muslim communities and senior officials — to counter extremism, hate speech, terrorism and sectarianism in the country. The Ministry of Information has set up the National Paigham-i-Aman Commit­tee (NPAC), which will draft a unified national stance against extremism and terrorism. The NPAC, a subcommittee of the National Committee on Narrative Building (NCNB), has been tasked with devising a unified national narrative that promotes peace, harmony and religious moderation. The NCNB, which was notified earlier this month, is a 20-member body that includes the information ministers of all four provinces, GB and AJK, as well as federal minister. It also includes representatives of the military, intelligence agencies, the foreign and IT ministries, as well as the PTA ch...
  • Judges should be cautious when sharing grievances publicly: Tarar
    Dawn - 02:56 Sep 11, 2025
    ISLAMABAD: Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar issued a word of caution on Wednesday, urging Supreme Court judges to raise internal grievances within private forums — such as tea rooms, the Chief Justice’s chambers, or committee rooms — instead of expressing them publicly through letters. “In view of the sensitivities attached to the highest institution like the judiciary, it is my humble request to all honourable judges that the best forums for expressing grievances are their tea rooms, the chambers of the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Yahya Afridi, or the committee rooms,” he said. This marked the minister’s first response to a recent series of letters written by several Supreme Court judges — a development he termed “unfortunate” and part of a troubling trend that has emerged in recent months. Speaking informally to the media after attending a ceremony outside the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry in Islamabad, the law minister recalled that even during the New Judicial Year ceremony ea...
  • Karachi rain deaths rise to 8; over 300 relocated as heavy showers swell Lyari, Malir rivers
    Dawn - 19:19 Sep 10, 2025
     The image shows the Malir River inundated following heavy monsoon rains in Karachi on Sept 10. — DawnNewsTV The death toll from rain-related incidents in Karachi rose to eight on Wednesday, while over 300 people were relocated to safety after heavy monsoon showers swelled the Malir and Lyari rivers. Lyari and Malir rivers serve as Karachi’s main storm drains, channelling rainwater through a network of nullahs into the Arabian Sea. Once natural seasonal streams, they are now heavily constricted by urban sprawl, encroachments, and solid waste, turning many drains into open sewers. This blockage reduces their capacity to carry stormwater, causing frequent urban flooding during monsoon downpours. Four more people died in rain-related incidents in the metropolis today, raising the death toll since yesterday to eight, while three were missing, according to rescue services. Edhi rescuers recovered the bodies of three men and a woman after a van carrying four people fell into the rain-filled Konkar Nadi in Gadap Town, a statement issued by the Edhi Foundation said. The rescue operation to find the other missing people was ...
  • Pakistan requests emergency UNSC session on Israeli strikes in Doha
    Dawn - 19:15 Sep 10, 2025
    Pakistan on Wednesday requested an emergency session of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) following Israeli strikes in Qatari capital Doha, which targeted Hamas leadership. With Tuesday’s strikes, Israel is expanding military actions that have ranged across the Middle East to include the Gulf Arab state, where the Palestinian group has long had its political base. Qatar, which has acted as a mediator alongside Egypt in talks on a ceasefire in the almost two-year-old conflict in Gaza, condemned the attack as “cowardly” and called it a flagrant violation of international law. In a post on X, Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar wrote that Pakistan requested the meeting along with Somalia and Algeria, after “unprovoked illegal Israeli aggression” in Qatar to “discuss the situation and seize itself of this grave matter”. “Pakistan expresses its complete solidarity and firm support with the government and brotherly people of Qatar,” Dar wrote. ‘Our enemies are not safe anywhere’: Israel Meanwhile, Israel warned its...
  • Swabi police arrest 226 people for ‘resisting raid on musical show’
    Dawn - 18:08 Sep 10, 2025
    Police on Wednesday arrested 226 individuals in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Swabi for allegedly resisting a raid and participating in a ‘musical show’. Swabi Deputy Superintendent of Police Ijaz Khan Abazai told Dawn.com: “The number of arrested individuals was 226, and a number of them belonged to various areas outside the district, and the larger issue was that they tore the uniforms of three police personnel when they were resisting the police order to close the show.” He added that the arrested included two members of the transgender community as well. The first information report (FIR) of the incident was registered at the Swabi City Police Station on the complaint of Station House Officer (SHO) Saidul Amin under Sections 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon), 149 (every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object), 186 (obstructing a public servant in discharge of public functions), 294 (obscene acts in public) and 506 (criminal intimidation of the Pakistan Penal C...
    Tags: Swabi
  • Kuldeep stars as India crush UAE in opening encounter of T20 Asia Cup
    Dawn - 17:09 Sep 10, 2025
    Kuldeep Yadav returned figures of 4-7 to lead holders India to a crushing nine-wicket win over hosts United Arab Emirates in their opening match of the men’s Asia Cup 2025 on Wednesday. Kuldeep struck three times in one over with his left-arm wrist spin as tournament favourites India skittled UAE for a paltry 57 in 13.1 overs after they elected to field first in the T20 in Dubai. India romped home to victory in 4.3 overs after left-handed opener Abhishek Sharma hit 30 off 16 balls and vice-captain Shubman Gill stood unbeaten on 20. But it was the bowlers who set up victory for the reigning T20 World Cup champions as medium-pacer Shivam Dube claimed three before Kuldeep wrapped up the innings. Put in to bat, UAE opener Alishan Sharafu started briskly with boundaries before falling to pace bowler Jasprit Bumrah for 22 off 17 balls. Skipper Muhammad Waseem struck 19 to be the only other batsman to make double figures in an otherwise shambolic show by the rest of the team. Kuldeep’s three wickets, including Wasee...
  • Shanghai Electric Power terminates purchase of stake in KE
    Dawn - 16:18 Sep 10, 2025
    Shanghai Electric Power Company has decided to terminate its offer to acquire up to 66.4 per cent of K-Electric Ltd due to changes in Pakistan’s business environment, it emerged on Wednesday. KE is the only electricity generator, transmitter, and distributor for Karachi and its adjoining areas, and the only listed electricity supplier. It was privatised in 2005. Shanghai Electric Power had agreed to buy a controlling shareholding in KE from Abraaj Group back in 2016 for a sum of $1.77 billion. The transaction never materialised because the seller failed to obtain the required approvals from different authorities and liquidity constraints as a consequence of mounting circular debt in the country’s power sector. In June 2023, Shanghai Electric reiterated its commitment to the deal. In a statement issued a day ago, the Chinese company said: “On September 9, 2025, the company convened the fifth meeting of the ninth board of directors and reviewed and approved the proposal to terminate and write off the equity acq...
  • Cabinet approves resumption of new gas connections; declares climate and agriculture emergencies
    Dawn - 15:57 Sep 10, 2025
    Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik on Wednesday announced that the federal cabinet has approved the resumption of new gas connections across the country, ending the ban imposed in 2021. Briefing the media on cabinet decisions along with Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, he said the government had responded to strong public demand by lifting the restriction on new connections. He said the cabinet took several key decisions, including restoring new domestic gas connections, particularly in newly developed housing areas where residents had been forced to rely on LPG cylinders and alternative fuels. The minister assured that both Sui companies had already completed procurement processes for meters and pipelines, and would immediately begin processing pending applications once the official notification is issued. Existing applicants would also be given the option to convert their requests to RLNG-based connections by paying the prescribed security fee to the Oil and Gas Regulatory ...
  • Soldiers guard Nepal’s parliament, patrol streets after two days of deadly protests
    Dawn - 15:49 Sep 10, 2025
    Soldiers guarded Nepal’s parliament and patrolled deserted streets on Wednesday amid a curfew in the capital Kathmandu, after two days of deadly anti-corruption protests forced Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli to resign. The upheaval in the Himalayan nation was unleashed by a social media ban that was announced last week, but was rolled back after 19 people were killed on Monday as police fired tear gas and rubber bullets to control crowds. The death toll from the protests had risen to 25 by Wednesday, Nepal’s health ministry said, while 633 were injured. Burnt-out vehicles and twisted metal littered the area around parliament, where army firefighters battled to douse a blaze in the main hall, while the building’s exterior was charred after protesters set it ablaze on Tuesday. TV footage showed youths cleaning up some damaged buildings and clearing debris from roads and the areas near parliament. “I have been informed by the (parliament) security chief that the fire has destroyed the entire infrastructure. Nothin...
  • Poland says ‘hostile objects’ downed in its airspace during Russian attack on Ukraine
    Dawn - 14:32 Sep 10, 2025
    Poland said on Wednesday it had scrambled aircraft alongside allies to shoot down “hostile objects” violating its airspace during a Russian attack on neighbouring Ukraine, a first for a NATO country during the war. “Aircraft have used weapons against hostile objects,” Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said on social media, adding: “We are in constant contact with NATO command.” The incursion came as Russia unleashed a barrage of strikes across Ukraine, including in the western city of Lviv, around 50 miles (80 kilometres) from the Polish border. Russian drones and missiles have entered the airspace of NATO members — including Poland — several times during Russia’s three-and-a-half-year war, but a NATO country has never attempted to shoot them down. A cornerstone of the Western military alliance is the principle that an attack on any member is deemed an attack on all. The operational command of Poland’s military slammed the “unprecedented” airspace violations, saying it had spotted around a dozen dron...
  • Kamala Harris slams Biden US presidential re-election bid as ‘recklessness’
    Dawn - 14:21 Sep 10, 2025
    Former US vice president Kamala Harris said it was “recklessness” to let Joe Biden run for a second term as president, in an excerpt released on Wednesday from her upcoming memoir. Harris — who replaced Biden as the 2024 Democratic presidential candidate but lost to Donald Trump — admitted that the then-81-year-old got “tired” and was prone to stumbles that showed his age. She also lashed out at White House staff, whom she accused of failing to support her — and sometimes actively hindering her — while she was Biden’s deputy. “‘It’s Joe and Jill’s decision.’ We all said that, like a mantra, as if we’d all been hypnotised. Was it grace, or was it recklessness? In retrospect, I think it was recklessness,” Harris said in the first extract from “107 Days”, published by The Atlantic magazine. “The stakes were simply too high. This wasn’t a choice that should have been left to an individual’s ego, an individual’s ambition. It should have been more than a personal decision.” Biden stunned the world by dropping out o...
  • PTI’s Hassan Niazi moves LHC against his military custody, court martial
    Dawn - 12:03 Sep 10, 2025
    PTI leader Hassaan Khan Niazi, party founder Imran Khan’s nephew, on Wednesday moved the Lahore High Court (LHC) against his military custody, a court martial carried out against him and the full operation of the military court. Niazi was handed over to the military for trial in 2023 over his alleged involvement in the May 9 riots at Lahore’s Jinnah House. He was sentenced to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment last December. Niazi filed a petition with the LHC today through his lawyer, Faisal Siddiqui, contending that after being arrested in the May 9 case, he was not presented in a civilian court. “The transfer of the petitioner’s custody directly to the military authorities without any judicial oversight is patently and wholly without jurisdiction,” the petition, available with Dawn.com, argued. “No application under Section 549(3) (delivery to military authorities of persons liable to be tried by court-martial) [of the] CrPC (Criminal Code of Procedure), 1898, was filed before any court, including the ATC (...

5467 items