Dawn
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Dawn - 17:55 Sep 03, 2025
The death toll in a suicide bombing near Shahwani Stadium in Quetta’s Sariab the previous night rose to 15 on Wednesday. The attack occurred shortly after the conclusion of a public meeting of the Balochistan National Party (BNP-Mengal) held to mark the death anniversary of the late Sardar Attaullah Mengal. The banned militant Islamic State group claimed responsibility today for the attack, AFP reported. Addressing a press conference today, Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Muhammad Hamza Shafqaat said that the suicide attack claimed 15 lives and injured 32 others. He said the explosion occurred approximately 500 metres from the exit point of the rally, adding that the rally had officially concluded hours earlier, with the blast taking place at 9:45pm in a poorly lit area near a graveyard. Shafqaat said that the attacker was unable to breach the main gathering due to stringent security measures, including the deployment of 120 police personnel. He added that this forced the assailant to detonate the device aw... -
Dawn - 17:40 Sep 03, 2025
The management of a private school in Karachi has been booked over charges of manslaughter after a young employee purportedly died by suicide, it emerged on Wednesday. The 25-year-old employee allegedly jumped from the eighth floor of the school building on September 1, according to a first information report (FIR) registered at Brigade police station. According to the complainant, who was the victim’s brother, “On September 1, he (the victim) left home at around 8:15am for work. At around 9:35am, I received a phone call informing me that my brother’s health had deteriorated and he was being taken to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC).” The complainant said that when he arrived at JPMC, the school’s administration staff was also present and they informed him that his brother fell from the eighth floor of the building at around 8:45am. He added that when he reached the emergency room, he saw that his brother was dead. “It later transpired that my brother had left a message on social media, naming three ... -
Dawn - 16:56 Sep 03, 2025
The highest rate Astore markhor hunting permit was sold out for $370,000 as the Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) Wildlife and Parks Department on Wednesday auctioned permits for 118 animals, including four Astore markhors, 100 Himalayan ibex, and 14 blue sheep — for the 2025–26 hunting season. GB’s trophy hunting programme involves local communities, who receive about 80 per cent of hunting revenues for conservation and development projects. While it has been credited with protecting endangered species, stakeholders fear the latest price hikes could jeopardise its sustainability. The bidding ceremony was held today at the Forest, Parks and Wildlife Complex in Gilgit, where a large number of outfitters and hunters participated in an auction. Shikar Safari’s owner, Raja Farhad Maqpoon, placed the highest bid of $370,000 and won the Astore markhor hunting permit at the Nanga Parbat conservancy area in Astore, while the second bidder won the Astore markhor hunting permit for $286,000, the third for $270,000 and the fourth p... -
Dawn - 16:30 Sep 03, 2025
Pakistan on Wednesday dispatched 105 tonnes of humanitarian aid for quake-struck Afghanistan, according to Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar. The earthquake killed a total of 1,469 people and injured more than 3,700, according to a new toll from Taliban authorities, making it one of the deadliest in decades to hit the impoverished country, according to AFP. The vast majority of the casualties — more than 1,450 — were in Kunar province, with a dozen dead and hundreds hurt in nearby Nangarhar and Laghman provinces. “Following my telephone call with Foreign Minister [Amir] Muttaqi, the government of Pakistan today dispatched 105 tonnes of humanitarian relief assistance to Afghanistan,” a statement from FM Dar said. The consignment includes “essential food items, medicines, tents, blankets, and bubble mats”, aimed at supporting those affected by the recent earthquakes in the country, the statement added. “We extend our deepest condolences and prayers for the victims and wish a speedy recovery t... -
Dawn - 15:40 Sep 03, 2025
Prominent business tycoon and renowned philanthropist Rafiq M. Habib passed away aged 88 in Dubai on Wednesday. Rafiq was the former head of the House of Habib conglomerate, Habib University’s chancellor, and a member of Stile company’s board of directors. He was also the chairman of the Habib University Foundation. “With profound sorrow, Habib University mourns the passing of its founding chancellor, Rafiq M. Habib (1937-2025), and honours his enduring legacy,” Habib University said in a post on Instagram. View this post on Instagram Remembering him, the varsity said: “A man whose calm resolve and deep integrity shaped every step of this journey, Rafiq sahab was the moral and visionary force behind the creation of Habib University. “His belief that education must serve the greater good continues to guide our mission. His legacy lives on in the institution he helped build and the generations it will continue to empower.” According to Habib University’s website, Rafiq was a trustee of “several welfare projects... -
Dawn - 15:18 Sep 03, 2025
An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Lahore on Wednesday granted bail to PTI founder Imran Khan’s nephew Shahrez Khan in a case pertaining to the Jinnah House attack during the May 9, 2023, riots. ATC Judge Manzer Ali Gill announced the verdict that was reserved earlier today on Shahrez’s bail petition and ordered his release subject to paying a surety bond set at Rs100,000. Shahrez’s lawyer, Advocate Rana Mudassar, confirmed the development to Dawn.com and PTI lawyer Taimur Malik also said the same. Lahore Police had picked up Shahrez, son of Imran’s sister Aleema Khan, from his mother’s Lahore residence on August 21. His brother Shershah Khan was also arrested the next day over similar allegations, and sent on physical remand and then to jail. Shahrez was sent on 14-day judicial remand by the Lahore ATC on August 30. During today’s hearing on Shahrez’s bail petition, Advocate Mudassar argued that the athlete was accused of inciting party workers, adding that the investigation was approached from multiple angles... -
Dawn - 14:25 Sep 03, 2025
Posts from multiple Islamophobic, right-wing and Indian users on social media platform X since Tuesday were sharing a video of a small girl with a baby on a hospital bed, alleging that it showed a 12-year-old Pakistani girl with a newborn baby after being impregnated by a 60-year-old man. However, this video is not from Pakistan and shows two Vietnamese siblings. A day ago, a video showing a young girl with a baby was shared on X by a user sharing Islamophobic content, based on their past posts. The caption of the post said: “Pakistan: Islam is a Cult Religion. How sad … A shocking case has emerged in Pakistan where an 11-year-old girl was married to a 60-year-old man and gave birth at age 12. Really, Islam is sexual child abuse religion!” This post was viewed by over 16 million users. An Indian propaganda account on X also shared a similar post with the same claim, which received over 102,000 views. Additionally, several other users on X widely circulated the same claim as can be seen here, here, here, and h... -
Dawn - 14:03 Sep 03, 2025
The Punjab Police said on Wednesday that several hideouts of bandits in Katcha Ronti of Punjab’s Rahim Yar Khan were bombed using drones to recover people kidnapped by the reverine gang. For decades, dozens of bandit gangs armed with sophisticated weaponry have operated with impunity in northern Sindh as well as southern Punjab. Kidnappings for ransom, extortion rackets, brutal killings and robberies on major highways occur on a daily basis. In a post on X, the Punjab Police said that “an operation against dacoit hideouts was carried out in Rahim Yar Khan’s Kacha Ronti, using drones”. “The operation left multiple dacoits injured,” the statement added. Punjab Inspector General of Police Dr Usman Anwar commended the efforts of the police and was quoted as saying, “Punjab Police is fully utilising drone technology not only to assist flood-affected people but also to eliminate criminal elements.” On August 1, five cops were martyred after bandits of the Katcha area attacked a police checkpoint in Rahim Yar Khan. ... -
Dawn - 13:21 Sep 03, 2025
Families huddled hungry and homeless days after a deadly earthquake hit eastern Afghanistan, not daring to set foot in the few remaining buildings for fear an aftershock could bring them down. The initial powerful 6.0-magnitude earthquake struck remote regions along the border with Pakistan, killing more than 1,400 people, with at least six strong aftershocks and countless smaller tremors. Some farming villages tucked among the green mountainsides were flattened, with people still under the rubble days later. Elsewhere, some houses were only partially destroyed, but residents preferred to brave the elements rather than risk being crushed. Still haunted by the “terrifying night” when the quake destroyed his house in the village of Dar-i-Nur in Nangarhar province, Emran Mohammad Aref said he had since slept with four other family members outside on a rough plastic mat. An Afghan man sits amid the remains of a damaged house, in the aftermath of an earthquake at the Dara-i-Nur district of Nangarhar province, Afgh... -
Dawn - 13:09 Sep 03, 2025
The Rawalpindi Police on Wednesday said they had arrested the principal of a private academy over the alleged rape and forced abortion of a Grade 10 student. The student, a resident of Khayaban-i-Sir Syed of Rawalpindi’s Pirwadhai town, had lodged a first information report (FIR) with the police on Monday under Sections 338A (punishment for Isqat-i-haml) and 376i (punishment for rape) of the Pakistan Penal Code, alleging that her academy’s principal raped her multiple times and forced her to have an abortion. In her complaint, the victim alleged that the principal, who was childless, had offered to marry her while she was studying in Grade 10. She reportedly told him to approach her parents regarding the matter. She further said that the principal started coming closer to her and assured her that he would help her get good marks in the matriculation examination, convincing her to have physical relations with him. The complainant claimed that the man called her into his office and raped her. After a few months... -
Dawn - 13:00 Sep 03, 2025
Imane Khelif has the right to appeal World Boxing’s decision barring her from events unless she undergoes genetic sex testing but the Algerian is not competing at the world championships as she has not entered, World Boxing president Boris van der Vorst said. World Boxing, which will oversee boxing in the 2028 Olympics, introduced mandatory sex testing for all boxers in its competitions in May, less than a year after Khelif and Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting won gold in Paris amid a gender-eligibility row. But Khelif appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport — sport’s highest court — seeking to overturn World Boxing’s ruling asking boxers to undertake a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) genetic test. “She has the right to do this (appeal). For us, it’s important to stress that we introduced mandatory testing in order to have safe and competitive competitions, fair competitions,” Van der Vorst said on Wednesday. “We announced it in May. And for us, everyone is equal. Every woman here has to submit several documents, ... -
Dawn - 12:18 Sep 03, 2025
Flooding across northern India killed at least five people on Wednesday, officials said, with more thunderstorms expected and local media reporting that 10,000 people have been evacuated from the river banks in capital Delhi. The monsoon season in India has been particularly intense this year, killing at least 130 people in August alone in north India, wiping out villages and destroying infrastructure. The latest round of flooding has hit northern areas of occupied Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Punjab, where the Chenab and Tawi rivers have risen above the danger mark at several spots. The swollen rivers have triggered landslides and damaged many roads, disconnecting parts of the mountainous regions of Jammu and Himachal from the rest of India. At least five people were killed today after landslides battered Rajouri and Mandi districts in Jammu and Himachal Pradesh, respectively, officials said. The India Meteorological Department warned of heavy to very heavy rain in the region today, w... -
Dawn - 11:39 Sep 03, 2025
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif flanked Chinese President Xi Jinping at a massive parade of military might in Beijing on Wednesday, capping a week of diplomatic grandstanding by the Chinese president and his allies against the West. The event, ostensibly to mark 80 years since the end of World War II, was a chance for Xi to put on an extravaganza to showcase China’s military prowess and bring together friendly leaders to send a message to the rest of the world. Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and the heads of foreign delegations arrive for a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two in Beijing, China on September 3. — Reuters Kicking off the parade, President Xi warned the world was still “faced with a choice of peace or war”, but said China was “unstoppable”. China’s enormous new intercontinental ballistic missile DF-5C, with a range of 20,000 kil... -
Dawn - 11:23 Sep 03, 2025
A terrorist commander, allegedly involved in carrying out bomb blasts and targeting law enforcement personnel, was killed during an intelligence-based operation in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s Lakki Marwat district, the police said on Wednesday. According to a statement issued by the Lakki Marwat police, the terrorist — identified as Kifayatullah — was killed during an exchange of fire with the cops. “The police, upon receiving information about a suspected hideout in Nawar Khel, led a Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) team and carried out the operation, during which one police constable was left injured due to an exchange of fire with the terrorists,” the statement said. Ammunition and a Kalashnikov were recovered from the slain terrorist, it added. According to the police statement, the “exchange of fire went on for a long time, during which the police retaliated bravely.” It added that a clearance operation was underway in Nawar Khel. Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Bannu region Sajjad Khan lauded the bravery of t... -
Dawn - 09:24 Sep 03, 2025
United States President Donald Trump said that US forces attacked a boat carrying drugs to the United States on Tuesday, killing 11 “narcoterrorists” from a gang he alleged was controlled by leftist Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. Trump posted a video online of an open-topped speedboat carrying several people travelling on a body of water before it exploded in a ball of flames. The move is a potentially significant escalation in the standoff between Caracas and Washington, after the United States deployed eight warships to Latin America in what it bills as a war on drug trafficking. Trump initially announced at the White House that US forces had “shot out a boat … a drug-carrying boat, lots of drugs in that boat” without giving details. The Republican later posted a statement about the strike on his Truth Social network, along with the black and white video of the exploding boat. “Earlier this morning, on my orders, US Military Forces conducted a kinetic strike against positively identified Tren de Aragua n... -
Dawn - 09:21 Sep 03, 2025
At least 750 people have been hospitalised with cholera and gastroenteritis in Gilgit-Baltistan’s (GB) Astore district, the district health officer (DHO) told Dawn.com on Wednesday. Astore DHO Dr Nawab Ahmed Khan said that the 750 cases were reported over four days, though 90 per cent of them are now under control. “I applied 60 drips to a single patient from morning until night,” Dr Khan said. “Several drips were also administered even after the patient left the hospital.” On August 30, Astore’s District Headquarters Hospital (DHQ) reported a sudden influx of gastroenteritis patients displaying symptoms of diarrhoea and vomiting, according to a report by the deputy commissioner, available with Dawn.com. The report stated that the patients hailed from the areas of Pattipura, Lous, Chongrah, Eidgah, Government Colony, Gorikot, Parishing and Shounter. No fatalities were reported as of today. “[A] preliminary medical opinion indicated a waterborne source,” the report stated.’ On August 30, 80 cases were reported... -
Dawn - 09:11 Sep 03, 2025
LAHORE: Insisting that sending the teams to India for international events amid heightened political tensions was not possible, Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) president Tariq Hussain Bugti on Tuesday said the country will not compete in the Jr World Cup later this year. The event is scheduled to be held in Indian cities of Chennai and Madurai from Nov 28 to Dec 10. Pakistan, primarily due to ongoing political strains with New Delhi particularly after a short yet intense military clash between the nuclear-armed neighbours in May, are not competing in the Asia Cup too which is currently in progress in the Indian city of Rajgir. Talking to reporters in Lahore on Tuesday, Bugti while acknowledging that not participating in international events in India was hurting the country’s hockey, said the national cause was bigger than everything. “As there is a war-like situation [currently] prevailing between Pakistan and India, there is no possibility that the PHF will send its team to India for the Junior World Cup. [... -
Dawn - 09:09 Sep 03, 2025
Islamabad High Court (IHC) Justice Babar Sattar on Tuesday presented a charge sheet against Chief Justice Mohammad Sarfraz Dogar, highlighting the “judicial ills plaguing the high court” ahead of a full court meeting. The new judicial year began in the IHC on Tuesday with Justice Dogar convening a full court meeting attended by all judges. Officials said the chief justice scheduled another full court session for 2pm today (Wednesday), issuing formal notices directing all IHC judges to attend. Although the detailed agenda was not made public, such meetings are generally convened at the start of the judicial year to review the court’s performance, discuss administrative affairs, and set priorities for the coming months. The full court meeting, to be chaired by Justice Dogar, will bring together all serving judges of the IHC for collective deliberations on judicial and administrative matters. Justice Sardar Ejaz Ishaq also wrote a letter addressed to the IHC top judge, with copies sent to others, wherein he alle... -
Dawn - 07:59 Sep 03, 2025
At least six people were killed after terrorists attacked a passenger vehicle in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Kurram district, police said on Wednesday. Kohat Regional Police Officer Abbas Majeed Marwat said in a statement, “Six passengers have been killed in a tragic incident of firing on a passenger vehicle in Lower Kurram. “A search operation has been launched after the terrorist incident,” he said, adding that 12 suspects were detained in the operation and a large number of weapons were recovered from them. “Terrorists will not be spared under any circumstances. No one will be allowed to disturb regional peace,” RPO Marwat stated. Earlier today, Kurram District Police Officer Kurram Malik Habib Khan said that the unknown assailants fled the scene after the attack. “The bodies have been taken to the hospital,” he said, adding that an investigation into the incident was underway. Member of the National Assembly (MNA) Hameed Hussain condemned the incident in a statement, calling it “an attempt to disrupt the peace o... -
Dawn - 07:39 Sep 03, 2025
At least 10 people were killed during violent protests in Indonesia last week, a rights group said on Wednesday, one of several organisations to report fatalities due to the unrest. The disturbances that rocked Southeast Asia’s biggest economy last week were sparked by discontent over economic inequality and lavish perks for lawmakers. They later widened to include anger against police after footage circulated of the killing of a young driver by a paramilitary unit. The state-affiliated National Commission on Human Rights, or Komnas HAM, told AFP on Wednesday that it had received reports that 10 people had died. “There are indications that some of them were victims of authorities’ excessive force,” Anis Hidayah, the head of the group, said. The deaths were reported in the jurisdictions of Greater Jakarta, Makassar in South Sulawesi, Central Java, and Papua, she said. Komnas HAM also reported that more than 900 people were injured and thousands detained, although most of them have since been released. “Many ot...
7447 items