Dawn
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Dawn - 02:32 Jul 06, 2025
PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Khan Gandapur has once again hinted at approaching the court to claim PTI’s share of reserved seats, citing his own nomination papers as the basis. Talking to journalists informally, the chief minister emphasised that he never contested the Feb 8 general elections as an independent candidate but rather as a PTI nominee. He said this would form the foundation of his legal challenge and vowed to go to any extent to secure PTI’s share of reserved seats in both the national and provincial assemblies. The development come in the wake of the Constitutional Bench’s recent ruling on June 27, which effectively overturned the earlier Supreme Court verdict that had declared PTI eligible for the reserved seats for women and non-Muslims. The CB decision, handed down by a majority of seven judges, nullified the Supreme Court’s July 12, 2024 ruling by eight judges and transferred the reserved seats to rival parties. Cites his own nomination as basis for contesting case in... -
Dawn - 02:27 Jul 06, 2025
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Poland have agreed to enhance collaboration through the exchange of high-level visits, parliamentary interactions and dialogue. The agreement was reached during the 9th round of Bilateral Political Consultations (BPC) between Pakistan and Poland held in Warsaw. According to the Foreign Office, Pakistani delegation was led by Ambassador Muhammad Ayub, Additional Foreign Secretary (Europe), while the Polish delegation was headed by Secretary of State at the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs Wadysaw Teofil Bartoszewski. The Ambassador of Pakistan to Poland, Muhammad Sami-ur-Rehman, and the Polish Ambassador to Pakistan, Maciej Pisarski, were also present during the consultations. The two sides reviewed the entire spectrum of bilateral relations. The additional foreign secretary reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to further broadening and deepening its ties with Poland in various fields, including trade, investment, energy, security and defence cooperation, science and technology, agric... -
Dawn - 02:26 Jul 06, 2025
• Deputy PM says PML-N won’t abandon PPP despite having better strength in parliament now • Interior minister dismisses reports about president’s removal, says two parties, army ‘on same page’ • PPP leader claims party in no mood to join federal or Punjab cabinet LAHORE: Two key federal ministers on Saturday dismissed speculations regarding the disintegration of the PML-N-PPP alliance, saying the two parties, and even the army were “on the same page”. However, the enthusiasm regarding the coalition was a bit more diminished among PPP leaders who accepted having differences with the ruling party and also stressed the party has no desire to take ministries in the federal government. While talking to the media in Lahore, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said that the PML-N’s total seats in the National Assembly have increased after the distribution of reserved seats in light of the Supreme Court’s order but the party was in no mood to shun PPP. “The Bilawal-led party stood by the government d... -
Dawn - 02:15 Jul 06, 2025
RAWALPINDI: Pakistan’s Meteorological Department on Saturday issued an alert for heavy rains in the upper parts of the country, including the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad, for July 6 and 7. The alert said that heavy to very heavy rainfall from Sunday to Monday may trigger flash floods in local streams of Murree, Galiyat, Mansehra, Kohistan, Abbottabad, Buner, Chitral, Dir, Swat, Shangla, Nowshera, Swabi, Mardan and Islamabad/Rawalpindi. Flash flooding is also possible in the hill torrents of D.G. Khan, northeast Punjab, Kashmir and parts of Balochistan. Officials warned that landslides and mudslides could cause road closures in vulnerable hilly areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Murree, Galiyat and Kashmir during the wet spell. Chilas records its highest temperature since 1997, hitting 48.5 degrees Celsius The department said heavy downpours may also cause urban flooding in low-lying areas of Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Lahore, Sialkot, Sargodha, Faisalabad, Nowshera and Peshawar. An official sai... -
Dawn - 00:54 Jul 06, 2025
KARACHI: Foreign exchange companies contributed around $450 million to remittance inflows during June, taking their total contribution to approximately $5 billion in FY25, according to the Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan (ECAP). “We sold about $450m to banks in June, highlighting our growing role in supporting the country’s exchange rate stability,” said Zafar Paracha, Secretary General of ECAP. Exchange companies have welcomed the State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) recent decision to include them in the Pakistan Remittance Initiative (PRI). For years, these companies have demanded similar incentives to those offered to banks, arguing that they also play a crucial role in channelling remittances. “This incentive will certainly boost remittance inflows through exchange companies, and I believe FY26 could witness a new record,” Mr Paracha said. He estimated the total remittances handled by exchange firms during FY25 to be around $5bn, although he noted the figure is not yet officially confirmed. The SBP ... -
Dawn - 19:06 Jul 05, 2025
The Punjab Wildlife and Parks Department on Saturday arrested five individuals and seized 13 lions after launching a crackdown against people illegally keeping the big cats without a licence. A day earlier, a pet lion escaped from a home and chased a woman and two children down a busy street in Lahore. Police arrested three suspects who had fled from the spot, while the lion was confiscated and sent to a wildlife park. A press release issued today from the provincial government said that the wildlife department launched a “major province-wide crackdown” on the special directives of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz against those keeping lions without a licence. “This operation is being carried out under a zero-tolerance policy and has already led to significant progress,” the press release said, adding that authorities conducted inspections of 22 locations across the province. “So far, the wildlife department has taken 13 lions into custody. Five individuals have been arrested, five first information reports... -
Dawn - 18:53 Jul 05, 2025
The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) on Saturday reported that new extreme maximum temperature records were set in Gilgit-Baltistan’s Chilas and Bunji areas, according to a press release. The country is currently experiencing high summer temperatures, with the PMD reporting in June that ‘Feels Like’ temperatures crossed 50 degrees Celsius in four cities. According to today’s press release, both cities recorded extreme temperatures that shattered previous records. The PMD recorded a maximum temperature of 48.5°C in Chilas today, breaking the previous historical extreme maximum record of 47.7°C on July 17, 1997. Meanwhile, the temperature recorded in Bunji was 46.1°C. The previous historical extreme maximum record was 45.6°C on July 12, 1971. “These persistent high temperatures over northern areas may accelerate snow and glacier melt, triggering Glof (glacial lake outburst flood) and flash floods incidents, in vulnerable valleys and surrounding regions during upcoming week,” the PMD warned, citing a war... -
Dawn - 18:40 Jul 05, 2025
Rescue teams pulled more bodies from the rubble of a five-storey building collapse in Karachi overnight, taking the toll on Saturday to 19 as the recovery continued for a second day with eighty per cent of the operation completed. South Deputy Commissioner (DC) Javed Nabi Khoso told Dawn.com: “Eighty per cent [of the] rescue operation has been completed and it is still ongoing.” He added that there were “19 confirmed deaths and 13 injured” so far in the incident. However, South Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police Syed Asad Raza earlier told a higher toll of 21 to Dawn.com. The same figure was reported in an update by the Edhi Foundation and according to the data from the Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Institute Of Trauma (SMBBIT) at Civil Hospital Karachi, seen by Dawn.com, which showed that 20 bodies were brought to the facility while one person died during treatment. The data showed that 11 injured people were brought for treatment with 10 later discharged. The five-storey building on Fida Husain Shai... -
Dawn - 18:20 Jul 05, 2025
Karachi’s central mourning procession of Muharram 9 entered its destination of Hussainiya Iraniyan Imambargah in Kharadar on Saturday and peacefully concluded amid tight security, according to police. Earlier in the week, Karachi Traffic Police issued a traffic plan for Muharram 8 to 10, outlining the procession routes as well as alternative traffic flows. Stringent security measures are being taken across the country, such as army deployment as well as a crackdown on sectarian content and hate mongers, ahead of Ashura (Muharram 10), which will be observed tomorrow. In Karachi, the Muharram 9 majlis started at Nishtar Park at 12:15pm, according to an alert from the police. “The number of participants is approximately 800 to 1000, and it is being led by Shahenshah Hussain Naqvi,” the alert read. Another alert at 1:29pm said that the procession had departed the park, while another at 1:54pm read that head of the procession reached Aza Khana Zuhra, while the tail was still at Nishtar Park. A later alert at 2:16p... -
Dawn - 18:06 Jul 05, 2025
Pakistan were knocked out of the qualifiers for the 2026 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women’s Asian Cup on Saturday despite a 2-1 victory over Kyrgyzstan, as Chinese Taipei scored the most points in their group. The national squad was drawn in Group ‘D’ of the qualifiers in Jakarta alongside Chinese Taipei, Indonesia and Kyrgyzstan. Pakistan lost their first match of the campaign to Chinese Taipei 8-0 on June 29, but beat hosts Indonesia 2-0 in their second group match this week. Mariam Mahmood scored her first international goal in the very first minute of the match. “Layla Aliya won possession at the halfway line and threaded a pass that initially looked to be claimed by Dilnura Abibulla, only for the Kyrgyz Republic custodian (goalkeeper) to drop the ball, allowing Mariam Mahmood to roll it into an unguarded net,” said an AFC press release. Mahmood then doubled Pakistan’s tally by converting a penalty in the 18th minute. Kyrgyzstan scored their only goal of the match when Alina Gaparova scored a low ... -
Dawn - 17:51 Jul 05, 2025
Some 27 people, including nine children, have been confirmed dead after flash floods in the central of the US state of Texas, authorities said on Saturday, as rescuers continued a frantic search for survivors, including dozens still missing from a girls’ summer camp. The sheriff’s office in Kerr County, Texas, said more than 800 people had been evacuated from the region as flood waters receded in the area around the Guadalupe River, about 137 kilometres northwest of San Antonio. “We will not stop until every single person is found,” Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said at a news conference. At least 23 to 25 people from the Camp Mystic summer camp were missing, most of them reported to be young girls. The river waters rose 29 feet rapidly near the camp. The US National Weather Service said that the flash flood emergency has largely ended for Kerr County, the epicentre of the flooding, following thunderstorms that dumped as much as a foot of rain early on Friday. A flood watch, however, remained in effect unt... -
Dawn - 17:22 Jul 05, 2025
Parisians rushed for a dip in the Seine on Saturday as authorities opened the river to public swimming for the first time since 1923 after an extensive clean-up operation spurred on by it being used last year as a venue in the Paris Olympics. Three sites along the banks of the Seine in the city will be able to welcome over 1,000 swimmers daily until August 31, local officials said, to the delight of the Parisians and visitors who were among the first to take the plunge. “Really nice, I’m impressed, surprised,” said 24-year-old Victoria Cnop, a Brazilian who lives in Paris. “I never imagined being in the water close to the Eiffel Tower.” “The water is clean, it’s warm, it’s clear. There is a bit of algae, but that’s normal,” said 51-year-old Karine. “Come here everybody, it’s great!.” The reopening of the Seine for public swimming follows efforts by authorities to improve its water quality so it could be used for Olympic events last summer. Investments included connecting tens of thousands of homes to the sewe... -
Dawn - 17:13 Jul 05, 2025
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police said on Saturday they had arrested a suspect after a 13-year-old maid was allegedly raped and murdered in Abbottabad last night. Azam Mir Afzal, public relations officer (PRO) for the Abbottabad district police officer (DPO), told Dawn.com today that the victim was working as a maid in the house where she was allegedly raped and murdered. “The house owner has been arrested, and further investigation into the case is underway,” the PRO said. “The incident took place in Habibullah Colony, within the limits of Mirpur Police Station,” the PRO said. “According to the initial reports, the victim’s body was brought to the hospital last night, where doctors examined it and found evidence of torture and rape.” Afzal added that a postmortem was conducted at Ayub Medical Complex in Abbottabad. According to the initial investigation, the victim’s mother was separated from her husband for the past 12 years and was living in Mansehra, Afzal noted. “The girl had been working as a household maid... -
Dawn - 16:17 Jul 05, 2025
The United Kingdom is re-establishing full ties with Syria following the toppling of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December, foreign minister David Lammy said during a visit to Damascus on Saturday. “After over a decade of conflict, there is renewed hope for the Syrian people. The UK is re-establishing diplomatic relations because it is in our interests to support the new government to deliver their commitment to build a stable, more secure and prosperous future for all Syrians,” Lammy said in a statement. The statement came following Lammy’s meeting with Syria’s leader Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus, the Syrian presidency said, in his first visit since Assad’s ouster. Interim President Sharaa received Lammy alongside Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, according to photos of the meeting released by the presidency. The talks addressed “bilateral ties … and ways of strengthening cooperation, as well as regional and international developments”, Sharaa’s office said in a statement. The Syrian foreign min... -
Dawn - 14:41 Jul 05, 2025
India’s six‑match white‑ball cricket tour of Bangladesh next month has been postponed to 2026, both cricket boards said on Saturday. The series, including three one-day and three T20 matches, had been due to start on August 17 in Dhaka. Political relations between India and Bangladesh have turned frosty since a mass uprising last year in Dhaka toppled the prime minister, Sheikh Hasina. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have “mutually agreed to defer” the series, the statement read. It said the decision was made “taking into account the international cricketing commitments and scheduling convenience of both teams”, without giving further details. It added that Bangladesh’s BCB “looks forward to welcoming India in September 2026”, with exact fixtures to be released later. There is deep anger in Dhaka at the fate of Hasina, who escaped a student-led uprising by helicopter in August 2024 and flew to New Delhi. Up to 1,400 people were killed between July and Au... -
Dawn - 14:33 Jul 05, 2025
The central government debt of Pakistan has swelled by 12 per cent compared to last year to reach nearly Rs76.05 trillion at the end of May, according to statistics released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). In its debt bulletin issued on Friday, the SBP reported the central government debt at Rs76.045tr, showing an increase of more than Rs8.31tr (12.3pc) in a year, when it stood at Rs67.73tr in May 2024. The domestic debt stood at Rs53.46tr, posting a year-on-year growth of 15.9pc. The external debt was stated as nearly Rs22.59tr, 4.52pc higher than the same month last year. In just a month from April to May, the central government debt grew by Rs1.11tr, slightly higher than the Rs1.035tr increase recorded in the same period of 2024. Pakistan’s total debt and liabilities had stood at Rs89.83tr at the end of March, according to the data released by the SBP in May. The SBP data showed that Pakistan Investment Bonds (PIBs) contributed around Rs35.24tr to the public debt — surging from Rs27.70tr in May 2024 —... -
Dawn - 13:31 Jul 05, 2025
The Punjab Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) said on Saturday it had killed five terrorists and successfully thwarted a terror plot in Taunsa Sharif in a “major counter-terrorism breakthrough”. There has been a recent uptick in terror attacks in Pakistan over the past year. The CTD regularly carries out operations to prevent and investigate terrorism-related activities and gather intelligence. A press release issued today by the CTD said that an intelligence-based operation took place near the Tri-Border Village. According to a CTD spokesperson, the operation was launched following “credible intelligence reports” about the presence of alleged armed terrorists in the area. Although the operation aimed to apprehend them, they opened fire on the CTD team, leading to a retaliatory crossfire. The press release detailed that the exchange of heavy fire continued for several hours, during which five terrorists were eliminated, while five others sustained injuries and escaped into the nearby forest. “The CTD teams ac... -
Dawn - 13:12 Jul 05, 2025
At least one person was killed and three others were injured after armed assailants attacked a jirga in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Bannu district, police said on Saturday. Pakistan has witnessed an uptick in terror activities recently, especially in KP and Balochistan after the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) ended its ceasefire with the government in November 2022. Bannu police spokesperson Kashif Nawaz told Dawn.com, “The Sardi Khel community had organised a jirga in the Mandi Khel area, which was attacked by militants who attempted to take away the jirga leader, Malak Eid Nawaz Sardi Khel, resulting in a clash with the jirga participants.” He said that the armed men opened fire at the participants, killing one person and injuring three other people, including a police constable. Nawaz further said the injured were taken to the District Headquarters Hospital Bannu for treatment. A police party had gone to the crime scene and searched for the terrorists while making efforts to maintain peace in the area, h... -
Dawn - 12:49 Jul 05, 2025
Pope Leo on Saturday appointed a French archbishop as the new leader of the Vatican’s commission on clergy sexual abuse, in the US pontiff’s first public move to confront an issue that has damaged the global Church’s credibility. Thibault Verny, 59, will be president of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors while also remaining the archbishop of Chambery in southeast France. The Vatican commission was created by Pope Francis in 2014 in an effort by the late pontiff to respond after sexual abuse scandals affected the Church in countries across the world. The scandals have damaged the Church’s standing as a moral voice, led to lawsuits costing millions in countries across the globe, and resulted in a number of resignations of bishops. Verny said he was committed to improving the Church’s safeguarding measures. “We will promote the […] equitable sharing of resources so that all parts of the Church, regardless of geography or circumstance, can uphold the highest standards of protection,” he said ... -
Dawn - 10:51 Jul 05, 2025
The Dalai Lama said on Saturday he hopes to live until he is more than 130 years old, two decades longer than his previous prediction, following his assurance to followers that he would reincarnate as the spiritual head of the faith upon his death. The Nobel Peace Prize winner was speaking during a ceremony organised by his followers to offer prayers for his long life, ahead of his 90th birthday on Sunday, and as China insists it will choose his successor. The Dalai Lama told Reuters in December he might live to 110. “I have been able to serve the Buddhadharma (the teachings of Buddhism) and the beings of Tibet so far quite well,” he said between prayers, clearing his throat now and then. “And still, I hope to live over 130 years,” he said, sparking applause and cheers among his followers. The 14th Dalai Lama, already the longest-lived head of Tibetan Buddhism, spent about 90 minutes at the prayers in his temple. The ceremony was attended by thousands of followers from around the world who gathered in the nor...
5467 items