Dawn
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Dawn - 13:24 Dec 10, 2025
The Supreme Court (SC) will take up on Thursday (December 11) the application of lawyer Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir, seeking an early hearing of her plea for a stay in the trial of the controversial social media post case. On December 4, Mazari and her husband, Hadi Ali Chatha, were facing trial before the additional sessions judge and Peca (Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, 2016) special judge in the controversial tweets case. On December 1, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) denied the couple ad-interim relief of staying the trial. They appealed the IHC order before the SC through their counsel, Faisal Siddiqi. In their subsequent application from December 4, the petitioners pleaded that the criminal trial against them was at its concluding stage and therefore, extreme urgency in the matter was required. The application also pleaded that the petitioners filed a criminal revision before the IHC to question the trial proceedings in view of violations of due process as prescribed under CrPC, particularly the reco... -
Dawn - 12:46 Dec 10, 2025
Japan has scrambled jets to monitor Russian and Chinese air forces conducting joint patrols around the country, the Japanese defence ministry said late Tuesday, amid rising tensions between Tokyo and Beijing. Two Russian Tu-95 nuclear-capable strategic bombers flew from the Sea of Japan toward the East China Sea to rendezvous with two Chinese H-6 bombers, and performed a “long-distance joint flight” in the Pacific, the ministry said. Four Chinese J-16 fighter jets joined the bombers as they made a round-trip flight between Japan’s Okinawa and Miyako islands, it added. The Miyako Strait between the two islands is classified as international waters. Japan also detected simultaneous Russian air force activity in the Sea of Japan, consisting of one early-warning aircraft A-50 and two Su-30 fighters, the ministry said. Japanese Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said in a post on X on Wednesday that the Russian and Chinese joint operations were “clearly intended as a show of force against our nation, which is a ser... -
Dawn - 12:01 Dec 10, 2025
Growing up in Karachi in the 1990s, it was unthinkable for most of us to have access to fresh strawberries. All one came across were artificial strawberry flavours and essence, which were generously used in chocolates, biscuits, ice creams, desserts, jams, jellies and custard, to name a few convenience products. Pushcart fruit vendors selling strawberries were unheard of and only a lucky few would find fresh strawberries at any of the handful of supermarkets that existed in the city in those days. To our family’s delight, my father would sometimes purchase a can of strawberries from the then-renowned chor bazaar, a flea market where smuggled items were also available. The only fresh strawberries that we were exposed to in those times were the ones we saw being consumed on television. It is no surprise, then, that these factors added to our eagerness to not only consume fresh strawberries, but also to grow them. Fast forward to the 2020s and, during its fruiting seasons, different sizes and varieties of strawb... -
Dawn - 11:24 Dec 10, 2025
A three-day Basant festival would kick off in Lahore from February 6, 2026, following the Punjab government’s decision to lift a ban on the historic event of celebration, colours, and kite-flying after 18 years, with strict regulations. The festival was banned in 2007 because of an increasing number of deaths and serious injuries caused by sharp strings, particularly to motorcyclists and pillion riders, as well as by celebratory gunfire. “The Basant festival will be held in Lahore from Feb 6 to 8, 2026,” Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari told Dawn on Wednesday. The festival would be “completely safe, regulated, and strictly monitored,” she added. In a post on X, Punjab Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said, “CM Punjab Maryam Nawaz has approved the revival of our beloved Heritage Basant Festival on February 6th, 7th and 8th, celebrated across Lahore after 25 years, a tradition rooted in history and admired worldwide.“ On CM Punjab’s directions, a city-wide campaign to install safety antennas on all mo... -
Dawn - 11:11 Dec 10, 2025
Venezuela’s Maria Corina Machado is safe and will be in Oslo, the Norwegian Nobel Institute said in a statement on Wednesday. Earlier, the organisers said the Venezuelan opposition leader, who lives in hiding, will not attend Wednesday’s Nobel Peace Prize ceremony, and the award will be accepted by her daughter. Machado has only been seen once in public since going underground in August last year, amidst a tense showdown with President Nicolas Maduro. Venezuela’s attorney general has said the 58-year-old would be considered a “fugitive” if she left the country to accept the award. It was not known in the hours before the ceremony whether Machado was in Norway for the event due to start at 1pm (5pm PKT). The Nobel Institute finally confirmed that she would not be there. “It will be her daughter Ana Corina Machado who will receive the prize in her mother’s name,” Nobel Institute director Kristian Berg Harpviken told Norway’s NRK radio. “Her daughter will give the speech that Maria Corina herself wrote.” Harpvik... -
Dawn - 10:54 Dec 10, 2025
US President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency was only “a little bit successful”, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said on a podcast on Tuesday, adding that he would not lead the project again. The billionaire, who is founder of electric car company Tesla, was a major donor to Trump’s presidential election campaign and became a close ally and adviser to his administration. Musk led the DOGE team in seeking to slash the federal government’s budget and workforce in the first five months of Trump’s second term. But the role and his political rhetoric sparked a backlash against him and Tesla, including vandalism of Tesla cars. “I think instead of doing DOGE, I would have basically worked on my companies. And they wouldn’t have been burning the cars,” Musk said on the podcast with former Trump administration official Katie Miller. “We were a little bit successful. We were somewhat successful. We stopped a lot of funding that really just made no sense, that was entirely wasteful,” Musk said. Asked if he would ... -
Dawn - 10:10 Dec 10, 2025
Pakistan’s population has crossed an estimated 257 million at midyear, placing it among the world’s most populous nations even as its fertility and growth rates continue to decline, according to a report released by the US Census Bureau on Tuesday. Demographic databases, including projections by the US Census Bureau and the United Nations, show Pakistan’s population density at 333 persons per square kilometre, underscoring the scale of pressure on land and public services. The data depict a country facing one of the most complex population transitions in South Asia — caught between rapid numerical expansion and slow human-development gains. Despite decades of policy debate, Pakistan is still adding millions of people each year. Its annual population growth rate stands at 1.82 per cent, lower than in previous decades but high enough to keep total numbers rising steeply for at least another generation, the report said, It added that the total fertility rate (TFR) — the average number of births per woman — has f... -
Dawn - 10:06 Dec 10, 2025
The PTI said early on Wednesday that authorities used water cannons to disperse protesters, including the sisters of PTI founder Imran Khan, who were staging a sit-in outside Adiala jail after being denied a meeting with the ex-premier. In a post on X at 3:58am, the party said, “Pakistani authorities used water cannons to disperse Imran Khan’s sisters and peaceful PTI workers outside Adiala Jail, despite a court order allowing a meeting with the jailed former PM. “This brutal crackdown on a peaceful sit-in violates basic human rights and freedom of assembly in freezing weather!” the party said. It also shared a video of a water cannon being used as people, bundled up against the cold, fled the scene. In another post, the party said that Imran’s family was deliberately blocked from meeting him, which led to the sit-in. It said that the use of water cannons was “not only a shameless violation of Imran Khan’s prisoner rights but also an outright assault on the constitutional rights of people who gathered to prot... -
Dawn - 09:17 Dec 10, 2025
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) rejected on Wednesday Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti’s petition seeking the postponement of local government elections in Quetta that were scheduled to be held on December 28. Bugti had filed the petition on Monday, and informed sources told Dawn that he cited the precarious law and order situation in the provincial capital and the suspension of internet services as reasons for postponing the Quetta Metropolitan Corporation (QMC) elections. In its written order today, seen by Dawn, the ECP said the plea was being rejected for “being devoid of force” and that the electoral body had decided to hold local government elections in Quetta on the already scheduled date of Dec 28. However, in the majority decision, one of the six members of the commission that considered the plea was in favour of the postponement of local government elections. In its order, the ECP directed the Balochistan government to assist the commission and “all other functionaries who have bee... -
Dawn - 08:58 Dec 10, 2025
A man riding a motorcycle was killed on Wednesday morning after a water tanker collided with his vehicle in Karachi, prompting a mob to torch the tanker. According to a statement by Khawaja Ajmer Nagri police, the incident took place near 4k Chowrangi in North Karachi. The statement said the motorcyclist sustained severe injuries in the accident, following which he was rushed to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital, where doctors pronounced him dead. The tanker’s driver managed to escape, leaving his vehicle. The tanker was then set on fire by a mob, the statement added. Separately, a bus ran over a 45-year-old woman in the Baldia-8 area of Karachi on Wednesday morning, a statement by Saeedabad police said. The body was rushed to Dr Ruth Pfau Civil Hospital Karachi, it said, adding that the driver and conductor of the bus managed to escape. Today’s incidents come two days after a dumper of the Sindh Solid Waste Management Board (SSWMB) carrying garbage struck and killed a motorcycle rider in the Nagan Chowrangi area of Ka... -
Dawn - 08:10 Dec 10, 2025
Thailand and Cambodia accused each other of targeting civilians in border attacks on Wednesday, as US President Donald Trump said he would make a phone call to stop the fighting and salvage a ceasefire he brokered in July. The two Southeast Asian nations have each blamed the other for the clashes that started on Monday, and remain at odds on a diplomatic solution to the border tensions that have been simmering for months. Thailand’s foreign minister said in an interview on Tuesday that he saw no potential for negotiations, adding the situation was not conducive to third-party mediation, while a top adviser to Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Manet told Reuters his country was “ready to talk at any time”. Speaking at a rally in Pennsylvania on Tuesday evening, Trump listed a number of wars that he claimed he helped stop, including between Pakistan and India, and Israel and Iran, before commenting on the renewed conflict in Southeast Asia. “I hate to say this one, named Cambodia–Thailand and it started up today an... -
Dawn - 07:26 Dec 10, 2025
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) granted 10-day protective bail to YouTuber Rajab Butt and TikToker Nadeem Mubarak, also known as Nani Wala, on Wednesday in multiple cases related to gambling apps, cybercrime and other allegations after they surrendered before the court. Justice Raja Inam Ameen Minhas approved the bail after the social media influencers appeared before the IHC after reaching Pakistan from the United Kingdom. The development comes a day after the IHC granted protective bail to the two till December 10 (today), in response to a petition filed by Butt and Mubarak’s relatives, to ensure the content creators were not arrested upon their arrival in Pakistan. Their counsel informed the court yesterday that Butt and Mubarak had been abroad for several months and feared arrest upon landing at Islamabad International Airport. He argued that the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and other departments had registered several cases against them, but under the law the petitioners were entitled to seek relief... -
Dawn - 04:31 Dec 10, 2025
ISLAMABAD: A parliamentary committee on Tuesday directed the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to prepare a report on tax rates for mobile phones, covering policy options, economic impact, international comparisons, and proposed revisions. The directive came from the National Assembly Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue, chaired by MNA Naveed Qamar, who expressed displeasure over rising taxes on mobile phones, noting that these institutions have wrongly classified mobile phones as luxury items. The chairman urged both the FBR and Tax Policy Office to review current tax rates on mobile phone imports under the personal baggage and registration schemes. Mr Qamar said the report should be prepared by March 2026, enabling the committee to examine the matter comprehensively ahead of the next budget. MNA Qasim Gilani criticised the heavy taxes on mobile phones, noting that consumers are forced to pay taxes again if their phones are lost or stolen. He highlighted that... -
Dawn - 02:48 Dec 10, 2025
BERLIN: More than 250 human rights groups and other NGOs renewed pressure on the German government on Tuesday to take in hundreds of Afghans stranded in Pakistan who had been offered sanctuary by Berlin. The organisations, including Amnesty International, Save the Children, Human Rights Watch and church groups, urged the government to bring the roughly 1,800 Afghans to Germany from Pakistan before the end of the year. Those affected must be evacuated in the coming weeks to protect them from deportation back to Afghanistan, the groups said. The Afghans were accepted under a refugee scheme set up by the previous German government, but have been stuck in Pakistan since conservative Chancellor Friedrich Merz took office in May and froze the programme. Around 350 people on the scheme have been able to come to Germany after winning legal challenges against the government in German courts. UNHCR survey shows only 1.2m of 2m Afghans in Pakistan are registered According to the open letter sent to the German governm... -
Dawn - 01:29 Dec 10, 2025
ON Human Rights Day, the pitiful state of basic liberties in Pakistan — which is combating militancy, climate shocks and a damaged economy — conveys that the country has little to celebrate. Additionally, an outdated criminal justice system and institutional overreach contribute to civil rights violations. What lies ahead for Pakistan’s children is the more pressing aspect. Not only are millions without essential services — food, education and health — they are also forced into labour and illicit trade. Even their existence is ignored by the state: The Human Rights Review noted that only 42pc of children under five were registered at birth. Pakistan, with some 26m children out of school, has allowed the education emergency to persist. Education statistics show that 40pc of children have only a slim chance of acquiring a primary education. This is worsened by the displacement and destruction wrought by both extreme weather patterns and turmoil in KP and Balochistan. According to a World Bank report, poverty ca... -
Dawn - 19:18 Dec 09, 2025
A sit-in led by Aleema Khan, the sister of incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan, continued on Tuesday night near Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail after she was once again denied a meeting with the ex-premier. The sit-in continued into the night, with party leaders and supporters present on Adiala road as of midnight. Senior party members, including PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja and PTI KP Provincial President Junaid Akbar Khan, also joined the demonstration earlier tonight. The PTI has made multiple attempts to meet the incarcerated party founder, being denied an audience each time by jail authorities despite a court order allowing meetings on Tuesdays and Thursdays. However, last week, the authorities allowed Uzma Khan, another one of Imran’s sisters, to meet her incarcerated brother. After the visit, she said he was “perfectly fine”. Speaking in video statements as she made her way to the prison today, Aleema alleged that the state had been breaking the law, while maintaining that the PTI had done nothing ... -
Dawn - 19:13 Dec 09, 2025
A High Court judge in the United Kingdom has ordered YouTuber Adil Raja to publicly apologise to Brigadier (retd) Rashid Naseer following a defamation case. Raja, who runs a YouTube channel and has positioned himself as a whistleblower, was accused of making multiple defamatory statements on social media, including allegations of corruption, electoral interference, judicial manipulation, and human rights abuse, all of which Brigadier (retd) Naseer strongly denied. Judge Richard Spearman KC directed that the apology must remain on Raja’s social media accounts and website for 28 days. The court also ordered Raja to pay £50,000 in damages and £260,000 in legal costs by December 22. The order was issued after Raja lost a defamation case in October, in which the court ruled that allegations he made against Brigadier (retd) Naseer were unfounded. The judge had earlier directed Raja to publish a summary confirming that the statements were defamatory and that the retired military official had succeeded in his claim. ... -
Dawn - 19:02 Dec 09, 2025
The sun burned with a fierce, summer-like intensity on the winter morning but it couldn’t temper the spirit of the competitors gunning for glory at the National Games on Tuesday. The open field at the athletics venue hummed with simultaneous action — discus flying in one sector, hurdlers pacing in another. On the track, athletes bobbed and stretched, their shadows short under the midday blaze. In the stands, a scattered crowd fanned themselves, eyes darting between events. The pool offered some respite from the blazing sun as swimming began at the Games on a day headlined by Commonwealth Games gold medallist Inam Butt extending his remarkable legacy by clinching his 18th national title — the most by any wrestler — and a national record for discus thrower Faryal Farooq. Faryal’s feat was the culmination of a four-years effort; those long days of lonely training meeting minutes of razor-edged opportunity. Through her first four throws, she was nowhere near the mark. The record, it seemed, would elude her once m... -
Dawn - 19:02 Dec 09, 2025
PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Tuesday said that the country’s economy cannot be run with force and suggested that the federal government allow provinces to collect taxes to bolster the economy. Speaking to journalists after meeting with the business community at the Federation of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), Bilawal also suggested that the provinces could directly collect sales tax, in view of independent reports about a Rs3 trillion leakage. “Wherever you need our help at the level of the president of Pakistan, our governors, we are ready to do so for your district-wise economic uplift plan,” the PPP chief said. “The prime minister also desires to work for this, but the difference between their approach and ours is that they believe in centralisation and we focus on decentralisation,” he added. Bilawal acknowledged the business community’s concerns about high tax rates, but maintained that his party believes in collecting more taxes to strengthen the economy. “Though the goal i... -
Dawn - 18:12 Dec 09, 2025
A new national assessment by the Pakistan Air Quality Initiative (PAQI) has found that local emission sources are the primary contributors to the hazardous air quality levels in Pakistan’s major cities. This emerged on Tuesday. The PAQI is an independent research and advocacy organisation committed to addressing air pollution in Pakistan. The report, Unveiling Pakistan’s Air Pollution: A National Landscape Report on Health Risks, Sources and Solutions, provides the country’s first multi-sectoral emissions inventories and concludes that urban smog is overwhelmingly generated within Pakistan’s own airsheds. “Toxic air pollution reduces the life expectancy of the average Pakistani by 3.9 years,” the report states. The report draws on satellite-derived aerosol datasets, chemical transport modelling and PAQI’s nationwide real-time monitoring network, the largest open-data air-quality system in Pakistan, to map the sources, scale, and health impacts of PM2.5 across the country’s largest cities. PM2.5 is a cancer-ca...
10758 items