Dawn
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Dawn - 09:17 Jul 18, 2025
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told his European counterparts on Friday that they have no grounds for reactivating UN sanctions after they threatened to do so in the coming months unless there is progress in nuclear talks. “If EU/E3 want to have a role, they should act responsibly and put aside the worn-out policies of threat and pressure, including the ‘snap-back’ for which they (have) absolutely no moral (or) legal grounds,” Araghchi said on X. He added that “any new round of talks is only possible when the other side is ready for a fair, balanced, and mutually beneficial nuclear deal.” The remarks came after Araghchi held a conference call with his British, French and German counterparts and European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas. The European diplomats told Araghchi of “their determination to use the ‘snapback’ mechanism — which allows for the reimposition of all international sanctions against Iran — in the absence of concrete progress” towards a new deal on Iran’s nuclear programme “by... -
Dawn - 08:10 Jul 18, 2025
Lightning strikes during monsoon storms in eastern India this week killed at least 33 people and injured dozens, officials said on Friday. The deaths in Bihar occurred during fierce storms between Wednesday and Thursday, a state disaster management department statement said, with the victims mostly farmers and labourers working in the open. More heavy rain and lightning are forecast for parts of the state. Bihar state’s disaster management minister, Vijay Kumar Mandal, told AFP that officials in vulnerable districts had been directed to “create awareness to take precautionary steps following an alert on lightning”. The state government announced compensation of 4 million Indian rupees ($4,600) to the families of those killed by lightning. India’s eastern region, including Bihar, is prone to annual floods that kill dozens and displace hundreds of thousands of people during the peak monsoon season. South Asia’s annual monsoon season from June to September offers respite from the intense summer heat and is cruci... -
Dawn - 08:03 Jul 18, 2025
QUETTA: Reko-Diq Mining Company (RDMC) has paid more than $17.5m in royalties to the Balochistan government, its officials said on Thursday. The details were shared during a media briefing on the Reko-Diq project’s progress. Communications Manager Samia Ali Shah said payments tallied as of June 2025 include $17.5m in royalties to the Balochistan government and nearly $3.8m to the federal government on account of employees and others parties’ income taxes collected by the company. Ms Shah explained that the Balochistan government holds a 25 per cent partnership in the project without making any direct investment. The overall venture is a 50-50 partnership between the government of Pakistan and RDMC. The briefing also highlighted the company’s efforts in local workforce development. Present at the event were trainees who had just returned to Pakistan after completing 18 months of training in Argentina, sponsored by the company. “The young talent going for training abroad comprises 14pc females,” Ms Shah said, a... -
Dawn - 07:07 Jul 18, 2025
A 59-year-old milk supplier was killed when a dumper (loaded truck) ran over his motorcycle in Karachi’s Saudabad on Friday morning, police said. Saudabad Police Station House Officer (SHO) Ateeq Rehman told Dawn.com, “The victim, Basit Saeed, had left his home to supply milk on a motorbike when a dumper hit him. He sustained critical injuries and died on the spot.” The incident angered area residents who damaged the heavy vehicle and beat the errant driver, he said. “However, the police arrived on the spot, preventing the situation from deteriorating. The driver was arrested and the vehicle impounded. The body was taken to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre for legal formalities.” Karachi has lately witnessed a rise in traffic accidents, especially involving heavy vehicles, including dumpers and water tankers, which killed nearly 500 people and injured 4,879 in 2024, according to hospital data. Earlier this month, at least four people lost their lives and another six were injured after their speeding car cra... -
Dawn - 05:45 Jul 18, 2025
US President Donald Trump threatened to sue The Wall Street Journal on Thursday over a story about an alleged off-colour letter he wrote to Jeffrey Epstein, amid lingering political fallout over his administration’s handling of the late financier’s sex trafficking case. The Journal story says the letter featuring a sketch of a naked woman and Trump’s signature was part of a collection of notes for Epstein’s 50th birthday in 2003. The newspaper says it reviewed the letter but did not print an image. Wall Street Journal editor-in-chief Emma Tucker “was told directly by (White House press secretary) Karoline Leavitt, and by President Trump, that the letter was a FAKE,” Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social network. “Instead, they are going with a false, malicious, and defamatory story anyway,” he said. “President Trump will be suing The Wall Street Journal, NewsCorp, and Mr. (Rupert) Murdoch, shortly. The press has to learn to be truthful, and not rely on sources that probably don’t even exist.” The Republic... -
Dawn - 04:19 Jul 18, 2025
• Mujtaba terms meeting ‘productive’, insists there will be no use of abusive language, sloganeering in future • Claims opposition didn’t raise issue of reinstating suspended lawmakers • Bhachar rejects assertion, says no return to house until MPAs’ suspension withdrawn LAHORE: Negotiations between the treasury and opposition benches in the Punjab Assembly made headway during the third round of talks on Thursday, with both sides reaching an agreement on parliamentary conduct and activation of key house committees. However, a deadlock persists over the reinstatement of 26 suspended opposition lawmakers and the withdrawal of fines imposed on them — an issue the opposition insists is non-negotiable for their return to the house. The 26 PTI lawmakers in question were suspended for 15 sittings following their protest during Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif’s speech on June 27. Finance Minister Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman told reporters after the meeting on Thursday, “This was the third sitting of the negotiation c... -
Dawn - 03:25 Jul 18, 2025
KARACHI: The US has designated the group, which claimed an attack in India-held Kashmir’s Pahalgam area, as a foreign terrorist organisation (FTO) and specially designated global terrorist (SDGT) group. Without any evidence, New Delhi had blamed Islamabad for the April 22 attack, which saw 26 people killed in the Baisaran hill station, and used it as a pretext to launch military strikes against Pakistan. According to a recent BBC News report, the group had initially said it was behind the attack, but later disowned it. Thursday’s statement from the State Department seemed to echo India’s viewpoint, which has claimed that the little-known newly-formed group was actually a “front and proxy” of the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). India also blames the LeT for orchestrating the 2008 Mumbai attacks and several other attacks on military forces. The US earlier designated LeT as an FTO in December 2001. One of the first mentions of the group came in 2020, when then-Indian army chief M.M. Naravane accused Pakistan of cr... -
Dawn - 18:50 Jul 17, 2025
Section 144 was imposed across Punjab along with a state of emergency in several districts on Thursday as heavy rains triggered flooding and claimed over 60 lives across the province in the past 24 hours, according to authorities. The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) on Monday issued a warning of torrential rains with wind-thundershowers that would last throughout the country till today. The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has forecasted that heavy rains will continue to lash parts of the country over the next 24 hours. Data from the Punjab Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) showed that 61 people were killed and 268 injured in the last 24 hours, warning that more monsoon rains were expected in the coming days. An order from the Punjab Home Department said there was a significant increase in the accumulation of rainwater in low-lying areas, streets and open spaces, posing serious risks to the safety of children who often bathed in standing water. “Dams, rivers, canals, ponds,... -
Dawn - 17:38 Jul 17, 2025
Pakistan, Uzbekistan and Afghanistan signed the Framework Agreement on the Joint Feasibility Study for the Uzbekistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (UAP) Railway Project in Kabul on Thursday. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar made the announcement in a post on X from Kabul, where he arrived earlier today on a day-long visit for the signing. “I congratulate the people and governments of Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Uzbekistan on the signing of the Framework Agreement on the Joint Feasibility Study for the Naibabad–Kharlachi rail link under the UAP Railway Corridor. “I also thank the foreign ministers of Uzbekistan and Afghanistan for their support and commitment for timely signing of the agreement. We remained closely engaged throughout the negotiation process to finalise the details.” He hailed the UAP Railway Corridor as a major milestone in advancing regional connectivity and economic integration that would connect Central Asian countries to Pakistani seaports through Afghanistan. Dar said the signi... -
Dawn - 17:32 Jul 17, 2025
A French couple went on trial on Thursday, accused of planning to “sacrifice” their five-year-old son in the Moroccan desert, accusations they have strongly denied. The two music teachers were arrested in southern Spain in late 2023 as they were about to board a ferry to Morocco after buying a new four-wheel-drive and subletting their apartment near the French city of Bordeaux. An alarmed relative had told French prosecutors that the father intended to “sacrifice” his son in the desert because he believed he was “possessed”, the investigation showed. The father, Florian L, denies ever having said that, his lawyer Audrey Boussillon said. “Never did he have the intention to harm his son in any way,” she added. The couple, who hold “anti-system” and “mystical” beliefs, vehemently reject the charges of being part of a criminal gang and failing in their duties as parents, their defence team has said. The attorney for the mother, Marie L, Aurelie Filippi-Codaccioni, said the couple had been to Morocco two years ear... -
Dawn - 17:30 Jul 17, 2025
The Punjab Police on Thursday arrested former first lady Bushra Bibi’s son, Musa Maneka, for allegedly attempting to kill his domestic servant by shooting him at his Pakpattan residence. The first information report (FIR) of the incident was registered at the complaint of the servant’s father at Saddar Police Station under Section 324 (attempted murder) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC). The complainant said that he and his son worked at Maneka’s residence, adding that the incident occurred at 11am when his son placed two bedsheets outside the bedroom, prompting Maneka to ask his son why he touched the bedsheets. The son responded by saying, “I kept the sheets outside with care,” according to the FIR. “The suspect became enraged and shot my son using a pistol,” it added. “My son was hit in front of his left knee, and the bullet passed through his leg, causing him to fall,” the complainant said. He also stated that two other people witnessed the incident, who reached there after hearing the gunshots. District P... -
Dawn - 17:13 Jul 17, 2025
The White House on Thursday said that no visit of United States President Donald Trump was scheduled to Pakistan “at this time” after widespread reports of a trip. Earlier in the day, some local television news channels reported, citing sources, that Trump was expected to visit Pakistan in September. The news channels said that Trump would also visit India after arriving in Islamabad in September. The channels later withdrew their reports. The White House dismissed the rumours. “A trip to Pakistan has not been scheduled at this time,” a White House official said. Talking to Dawn.com on the reported visit earlier, Foreign Office Spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan said: “We have no information about this matter.” Similarly, a US embassy spokesperson in Islamabad told Reuters, “We have nothing to announce,” and said that the White House might be able to provide confirmation on the president’s schedule. George W Bush was the last US president to visit Pakistan in 2006. US-Pakistan relations saw a major boost when Trum... -
Dawn - 16:46 Jul 17, 2025
Haripur police on Thursday arrested a madressah teacher for allegedly sexually abusing a visually-impaired five-year-old child in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Haripur area, police said. A first information report (FIR) — available with Dawn.com — was filed by the victim’s uncle at Saddar police station on July 10 under Section 376 of the Pakistan Penal Code (rape) and Section 53 (sexual abuse) of the KP Child Protection Act (CPA). The complainant alleged in the FIR that the child, after feeling pain, told their mother about the incident and said that he was sexually abused by the teacher in his room in the mosque. “The child is visually impaired and just five years old,” the complainant stated in the FIR, demanding legal action against the suspect. According to a statement issued by Haripur District Police Officer Farhan, after the incident, he actively engaged the team at Saddar police station, who successfully arrested the suspect. “Under the supervision of DSP (Deputy Superintendent of Police) Saddar Muhammad Arif... -
Dawn - 15:51 Jul 17, 2025
Ukraine’s parliament appointed the country’s first new prime minister in five years on Thursday, part of a major cabinet overhaul aimed at revitalising wartime management as prospects for peace with Russia grow dim. Yulia Svyrydenko, 39, has been tasked by President Volodymyr Zelensky with boosting domestic weapons production and reviving Ukraine’s loan-dependent economy. In a speech to parliament, Zelensky said he expected his new government to increase the share of domestic weapons on Ukraine’s battlefield to 50 per cent from 40pc within six months. He also singled out deregulation and expanding economic co-operation with allies as other key aims of the biggest government reshuffle since Russia’s February 2022 invasion. Svyrydenko, an experienced technocrat who had served as first deputy prime minister since 2021, pledged to move “swiftly and decisively”. “War leaves no room for delay,” she wrote on X. “Our priorities for the first six months are clear: reliable supply for the army, expansion of domestic we... -
Dawn - 14:37 Jul 17, 2025
Pakistan and the European Union (EU) on Thursday agreed on bolstering cooperation in security and counter-terrorism among other sectors during a bilateral dialogue, according to a press release issued by the Foreign Office (FO). EU Ambassador to Pakistan Dr Riina Kionka in March had announced that European companies recognised Pakistan as a potential business destination and were exploring new avenues for economic partnership. The EU is Pakistan’s second-largest trading partner, with the GSP+ status allowing the country to enjoy duty-free or minimum duty on European exports. According to the press release, Pakistan and the EU held their 10th Political Dialogue in Brussels and discussed key regional and international issues, including multilateral cooperation. Both sides agreed to deepen dialogue and discussions on security during the event. “The EU and Pakistan reaffirmed their commitment to the implementation of the Strategic Engagement Plan (SEP) signed in 2019,” the FO stated. “Both sides aim to further d... -
Dawn - 14:26 Jul 17, 2025
The British government said on Thursday that it would allow 16-year-olds to vote in general elections, a landmark change giving the United Kingdom one of the lowest voting ages worldwide. The ruling Labour Party pledged to lower the age from 18 ahead of winning power last year. It is among several planned changes to the democratic system. Some argue Britain’s democracy is “in crisis”, in particular due to low turnout. The voting age change is contentious, however, with critics previously arguing it is self-serving as newly-enfranchised teenagers are seen as more likely to support centre-left Labour. “I think it’s really important that 16- and 17-year-olds have the vote, because they are old enough to go out to work, they are old enough to pay taxes, so [they] pay in,” Prime Minister Keir Starmer said. “And I think if you pay in, you should have the opportunity to say what you want your money spent on, which way the government should go,” Starmer added. The government will have to bring legislation before parl... -
Dawn - 12:42 Jul 17, 2025
The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Thursday continued its renewed bullish momentum as it crossed the 138,000-point barrier. The benchmark KSE-100 index rose by 1,785.25 points, or 1.31 per cent, to stand at 138,165.21 points at 11:57am, from the previous close of 136,379.96 points. The index closed at 138,665.49 points, up by 2,285.53 points or 1.68pc. Awais Ashraf, research director at AKD Securities, said: “Investor optimism over a potential rate cut in the upcoming monetary policy, expected later this month, has strengthened following a decline in yields during yesterday’s PIBs (Pakistan Investment Bond) auction. “A stable external account and easing inflation further support the case for bringing interest rates down into single digits,” he told Dawn.com. The PSX had staged a modest recovery yesterday as investors resumed buying, encouraged by the formation of a high-level committee to address the business community’s concerns over the recently introduced taxation measures. The development has helped the... -
Dawn - 12:33 Jul 17, 2025
Three “wanted terrorists” were killed during a joint operation between the regional police and the Counter Terrorism Department in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Bannu district on Wednesday night, police said. The spokesperson for the Bannu police, Khanzala Quraishi, told Dawn.com, “The three terrorists, belonging to the Zarar group, had been eliminated in an intelligence-based joint operation conducted in the Bannu city outskirts at midnight.” He said that the “terrorists were wanted for attacks on security forces and the target killing of police personnel”. According to the spokesperson, the terrorists were identified and all of them were residents of Bannu. “Three Kalashnikovs, magazines, pistols and handmade improvised explosive devices were recovered from their possession,” he said. Pakistan has witnessed an uptick in terror activities over the past year, especially in KP and Balochistan, after the proscribed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) ended its ceasefire with the government in November 2022. KP has seen an ... -
Dawn - 12:23 Jul 17, 2025
A cockpit recording of dialogue between the two pilots of the Air India flight that crashed last month indicates the captain cut the flow of fuel to the plane’s engines, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday. The newspaper cited people familiar with US officials’ early assessment of evidence uncovered in the investigation into the June 12 crash of a Boeing Dreamliner in Ahmedabad, India, that killed 260 people. A preliminary report into the crash released by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) on Saturday said one pilot was then heard on the cockpit voice recorder asking the other why he cut off the fuel and “the other pilot responded that he did not do so”. Investigators did not identify which remarks were made by Captain Sumeet Sabharwal and which by First Officer Clive Kunder, who had total flying experience of 15,638 hours and 3,403 hours, respectively. Kunder, who was flying the plane, asked Sabharwal why he moved the fuel switches to the “cutoff” position seconds after lifting ... -
Dawn - 12:04 Jul 17, 2025
A massive fire in a hypermarket in al-Kut city in eastern Iraq has left at least 69 people dead and 11 others missing, the city’s health authorities and two police sources told Reuters on Thursday. Reuters’ footage of the aftermath of the overnight fire showed the blackened exterior of “Corniche Hypermarket” building, with rescue teams and security forces still at the site. Videos verified by Reuters showed firefighters spraying water on the blazing building overnight and people climbing from the roof with the help of rescue teams. View this post on Instagram “We have more bodies that have not been recovered still under fire debris,” city official Ali al-Mayahi told Reuters. Officials said many people suffocated in bathrooms, while one person told AFP that his five relatives died in an elevator. Several people told AFP they lost family members, including mothers and children who had gone to shop and dine at the mall. The cause of the fire was not immediately known, but the province’s governor said initial res...
5467 items