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  • Justices Shah and Minallah — Guardians of the Constitution
    Dawn - 11:37 Nov 14, 2025
    One of the most striking moments in A Man for All Seasons comes when Thomas More debates his hot-headed son-in-law, Roper, who insists that the law should be swept aside to catch the “devil”, meaning anyone dangerous or politically threatening. More responds with a powerful image: England is planted thick with laws, “like a forest”, and those laws protect everyone, even the people we despise. Then More asks a piercing question: if you cut down every law to hunt your enemies, what will protect you when power turns and comes for you? Without the law, More warns, you will be standing in an open field with the winds blowing from every direction, completely defenceless. This scene captures the core of the play: the rule of law is not a tool for the powerful but a shield for everyone, and once it is weakened for expedience, no one can control what comes next. Yesterday, Pakistan lost two of its most brilliant jurists — Justices Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Athar Minallah. Why that happened remains for history to answe...
  • Justice Aminuddin Khan sworn in as first chief justice of Federal Constitutional Court
    Dawn - 11:34 Nov 14, 2025
    Justice Aminuddin Khan on Friday was sworn in as the first chief justice of the newly established Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) after the 27th Amendment was enacted into law a day earlier. Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir and Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) General Sahir Shamshad Mirza were also present for the ceremony held at the Aiwan-i-Sadr in Islamabad. Meanwhile, Supreme Court Chief Justice Yahya Afridi, President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif sat alongside Justice Aminuddin on the stage. View this post on Instagram PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, his sister Aseefa Bhutto-Zardari, Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq, Senate Chairman Yousuf Raza Gillani, and members of the federal cabinet were also in attendance. The ceremony began with the recitation of the Holy Quran, following which President Zardari administered the oath to Justice Aminuddin in English. In his oath, Justice Aminuddin vowed to discharg...
    Tags: Federal Constitutional Court Justice Aminuddin Khan
  • Khawaja Asif assails SC judges for stepping down, says ‘conscience awakened only after monopoly curtailed’
    Dawn - 11:22 Nov 14, 2025
    Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Friday criticised two Supreme Court judges for tendering resignations following the passage of the 27th constitutional amendment a day earlier, saying their “consciences only awakened after their monopoly was curtailed.” Justices Mansoor Ali Shah and Athar Minallah handed in their resignations, hours after the contentious 27th Constitutional Amendment was signed into law by President Asif Ali Zardari on Thursday. Speaking on the floor of the National Assembly today, Asif accused the judges of having “selective amnesia”, saying that they had “forgotten their past” and were now becoming “guardians of democracy”. “Four to five years ago — in fact, eight to 10 years ago — when the process to remove Nawaz Sharif from his post started, I want to tell you about the history of our SC judges at that time. The conspiracy created against Nawaz before that and the role our judiciary played in turning that conspiracy into reality,” Asif said, amid chants of ‘kon bachayega Pakistan; Imran K...
  • Govt says 4 TTP terrorists arrested for involvement in Islamabad suicide attack
    Dawn - 09:53 Nov 14, 2025
    Four terrorists belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) were arrested for their involvement in the suicide blast in Islamabad earlier this week, the government said on Friday. “In a joint operation conducted by the Intelligence Bureau Division and the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD), four members of the TTP/Fitna al-Khawarij terrorist cell involved in the suicide attack at the Judicial Complex G-11, Islamabad have been apprehended,” the government said in a post on social media platform X. Fitna-al-Khawarij is a term the state uses for terrorists belonging to the TTP. The government said that during the investigation, the handler of the suicide bomber, identified as Sajidullah alias Sheena, confessed that TTP Commander Saeedur Rehman alias Daadullah contacted him through the Telegram app to carry out a suicide attack in Islamabad to cause maximum casualties of law enforcement agencies. The government said that the TTP commander sent pictures of the suicide bomber, identified as Usman alias...
    Tags: Islamabad
  • Following NA approval, Senate also passes bill for resetting COAS Munir’s tenure after appointment as CDF
    Dawn - 08:38 Nov 14, 2025
    The Senate swiftly passed four bills related to the recently approved contentious 27th Constitutional Amendment on Friday, including one that seeks changes to the Army Act and resets the tenure of Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir after his appointment as the chief of the defence forces (CDF). As explained by Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar in the National Assembly (NA) yesterday, this means that the five-year tenure of the chief of the defence forces would commence from the date of his notification of the appointment. The four bills were passed by the Senate today — a day after their hurried passage in the National Assembly — without debate and with little resistance from the opposition. Apart from the Pakistan Army Amendment Bill 2025, the bills also included the Pakistan Air Force Amendment Bill 2025, the Pakistan Navy Amendment Bill 2025, and the Supreme Court Practice and Procedure Amendment Bill 2025. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar tabled the Pakistan Army Amen...
    Tags: Senate
  • Fresh US draft on Gaza mentions path to Palestinian statehood while Russia submits counter proposal
    Dawn - 08:00 Nov 14, 2025
    The United States circulated a second revision of its draft resolution on Gaza at the UN Security Council (UNSC) on Thursday, even as Russia countered with its own text calling for the preservation of the current ceasefire and a renewed commitment to a two-state solution. Senior UN diplomats told Dawn that Washington placed “Revision 2” of its draft under a silence procedure until 6:30pm New York time on November 13, a step intended to indicate that the negotiation phase was nearly complete. Under this procedure, the absence of objections signifies consent. “But China and Russia broke the silence,” one diplomat said, noting that both delegations submitted formal objections shortly before the deadline. “Once silence is broken, other member states may also submit comments — and some did — although Pakistan did not,“ the diplomat added. Following the break, Russia swiftly distributed its own draft resolution to UNSC members. Breaking silence means, the US may now be forced to resume negotiations. Washington may ...
    Tags: Gaza Russia
  • Focus back on cricket as Pakistan eye series triumph over Sri Lanka
    Dawn - 07:48 Nov 14, 2025
    RAWALPINDI: After a day and a night of chaos, focus will finally shift back to cricket when Pakistan take on Sri Lanka in the second One-day International at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Friday. The encounter — Pakistan’s opportunity to wrap up their second successive ODI series — comes after a turbulent 48 hours that threatened to overshadow the cricket itself. The match was originally slated for Thursday, but the schedule was thrown into disarray after a terror attack in Islamabad on Tuesday sparked understandable concern within the Sri Lankan camp. Reports soon emerged that several visiting players were contemplating abandoning the tour altogether. The uncertainty prompted urgent intervention from Pakistan’s interior minister and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi, who, along with the country’s top security officials, held lengthy discussions with the Sri Lankan delegation to assure them of their safety. By late Wednesday night, the situation had stabilised. Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) rea...
    Tags: Pakistan Sri Lanka
  • PTI parliamentary body suggests holding countrywide protests
    Dawn - 03:00 Nov 14, 2025
    • Proposals to be considered in TTAP meeting today • Achakzai wants demos on Fridays • KP CM stopped from meeting Imran for sixth time ISLAMABAD: Appre­ciating the resignations of the judges of the top court and urging the judiciary to stand on its feet, the PTI’s Parlia­mentary Commi­ttee has suggested holding countrywide protests against the passage of the 27th Constitutional Amendment. However, the suggestions will be discussed in a meeting of the opposition alliance Tehreek Tahafuz Ayeen-i-Pakistan (TTAP) on Friday (today), followed by a press conference. The parliamentary party’s meeting was chaired by Mahmood Khan Achakzai, the Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) chief and TTAP chairman, and attended by PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, Asad Qaiser and other members of the National Assembly. Former NA speaker Qaiser, while talking to Dawn, said during the meeting, proposals were sought to devise a strategy after the passage of the 27th Amendment. “The participants [of the meeting] unanimously agr...
  • COAS Munir’s tenure to reset with CDF appointment after NA approves army act changes
    Dawn - 18:57 Nov 13, 2025
    Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir is set to have his tenure reset upon his appointment as chief of the defence forces (CDF), after the National Assembly approved amendments to laws governing the three branches of the armed forces shortly after the government tabled them. The amendments were tabled soon after President Asif Ali Zardari gave his assent to the contentious 27th Constitutional Amendment, enacting it into law. Defence Minister Khawaja Asif introduced the Pakistan Army Act (Amendment) Bill 2025, the Pakistan Air Force (Amendment) Bill 2025 and the Pakistan Navy (Amendment) Bill 2025, which were passed with a majority vote. Meanwhile, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar introduced the Supreme Court Practice and Procedure (Amendment) Bill 2025, which was also passed with a majority vote. Tarar said the four bills, which were passed in nine minutes without any debate, were meant to harmonise the existing laws with the recently signed 27th Constitutional Amendment Act. “These are not ne...
  • All terrorists in Wana attack Afghan nationals; orchestrated by TTP from Afghanistan: information ministry
    Dawn - 18:46 Nov 13, 2025
    The information ministry on Thursday said that all terrorists involved in the attack on Cadet College Wana in South Waziristan were Afghan citizens. Security forces confirmed a day ago that they had successfully foiled a terrorist attack on Cadet College Wana, killing all the attackers after an intense clearance operation. The attackers had targeted the main gate of the college on Monday evening and gained entry to the educational institution, but a timely response from security forces averted a major tragedy. Government ministers had linked the attack to Afghanistan and said it was orchestrated from there. “The attack on Cadet College Wana was planned and controlled from Afghanistan. The attack was planned in Afghanistan by kharji Zahid and the final approval was given by kharji Noorwali Mehsud. All the khwarij who attacked Cadet College Wana were Afghan citizens. The equipment for this attack was provided from Afghanistan, which included American-made weapons,” said the information ministry in a statement t...
    Tags: Afghanistan Afghan
  • ‘Flagrant attack on independence of judiciary’: jurists’ body assails newly enacted 27th Amendment
    Dawn - 18:34 Nov 13, 2025
    The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) on Thursday issued a statement assailing the passage of the 27th Constitutional Amendment, calling it a “flagrant attack” on judicial independence and the rule of law. Last year, the ICJ similarly derided the 26th Constitutional Amendment being signed into law as a “blow to judicial independence”. ICJ Secretary-General Santiago Canton was quoted as saying: “The changes made to the judicial system in the 27th Amendment are alarming …They will significantly impair the judiciary’s ability to hold the executive accountable and protect the fundamental human rights of the people of Pakistan.” The jurists’ body expressed concern over several main points, namely the formation of the Federal Constitutional Court (FCC), the appointment of judges and chief justices to the Supreme Court and the FCC, the composition of the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP), the transfer of high court judges and the immunities granted to the president and the military leadership. “The FCC w...
    Tags: Amendment
  • Justice Aminuddin appointed first chief justice of Federal Constitutional Court
    Dawn - 18:01 Nov 13, 2025
    Justice Aminuddin Khan was on Thursday appointed the inaugural Chief Justice of the Federal Constitutional Court (FCC). The development comes hours after the 27th Constitutional Amendment was signed into law by President Asif Ali Zardari and shortly after Supreme Court Justices Mansoor Ali Shah and Athar Minallah resigned from their offices in protest. A notification from the law ministry said President Zardari made the appointment under clause (3) of Article 175A read with Article 175C of the Constitution, adding that it would come into effect from the date that Justice Khan took his oath. The judge will take the oath at the Presidency tomorrow at 10am. The chief justices and judges of superior courts, high-ranking officials have been invited to participate in the oath-taking ceremony Justice Khan was born in Multan in 1960. A second-generation lawyer, he earned his LL.B from University Law College, Multan, in 1984 and began practice under his father, Khan Sadiq Muhammad Ahsan. He became an advocate of the L...
    Tags: Federal Constitutional Court
  • India inaugurates new military airbase close to China border, source says
    Dawn - 17:52 Nov 13, 2025
    India’s air force chief made the inaugural landing of a military transport aircraft at a new airbase capable of fighter jet operations close to the disputed Himalayan border with China, a defence official said on Thursday. The move comes amid a thaw in ties between the nuclear-armed neighbours, following a milestone pact last October to ease military tension along their de facto border and a visit this year to China by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Air Chief Marshal AP Singh landed the C-130J aircraft on Wednesday at the Mudh-Nyoma air force station in Ladakh, perched at a height of about 4,000m, added the official, who sought anonymity as the matter is a sensitive one. The Indian Air Force and the defence ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. The new airbase, the region’s third such key station, is just 30 kilometres from the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China. “This new airfield in Ladakh, capable of fighter operations, will add a new challenge for both of our adversari...
    Tags: China India
  • Newly-enacted 27th Constitutional Amendment challenged in Supreme Court
    Dawn - 17:07 Nov 13, 2025
    Lawyer Asad Rahim Khan filed a petition with the Supreme Court (SC) seeking to challenge the recently enacted 27th Constitutional Amendment, moving the court to declare the amendments unconstitutional and to “take measures” to ensure judicial independence. The 27th Amendment, signed into law earlier today by President Asif Ali Zardari, was widely criticised by the legal fraternity for abolishing judicial independence through the formation of a Federal Constitutional Court (FCC). SC Justices Mansoor Ali Shah and Athar Minallah resigned earlier this evening, in response to the 27th Amendment, which “diminished” the apex court. Khan’s petition, a copy of which is available with Dawn, requested that the Supreme Court declare Sections 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 12, 14 to 43, 45A and B, 46 and 48 of the Constitution (Twenty-seventh Amendment) Act, 2025 illegal and unlawful, as it violated Entry 55 of the Federal Legislative List, read with other provisions of the Constitution. According to the petition, Entry 55 “ensure...
    Tags: Constitutional Amendment Supreme Court
  • ‘Darkest day in our judicial history’: Lawyers, politicos react to resignations of SC Justices Shah, Minallah
    Dawn - 16:44 Nov 13, 2025
    Lawyers and politicians alike lamented the resignations of two Supreme Court judges, Justices Mansoor Ali Shah and Athar Minallah, in the wake of the 27th Constitutional Amendment’s passage as a “dark day” for the country’s judicial history. Both judges had called on Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi in separate letters to summon a full court meeting and judicial conference to hold a debate on the 27th Constitutional Amendment. In his resignation letter today, Justice Shah said that “staying on would not only amount to silent acquiescence in a constitutional wrong, but would also mean continuing to sit in a court whose constitutional voice has been muted,” while Justice Minallah regretted that the Constitution he swore to uphold was “no more”. Here is what the lawyers and politicians had to say on the departure of the two judges. ‘Darkest day’ Lawyer Mirza Moiz Baig said today marked the “darkest day” in our judicial history. “Not only has the Supreme Court lost two of its greatest jurists, but the passa...
    Tags: Darkest Lawyers
  • CJP calls full court meeting tomorrow to discuss 27th Constitutional Amendment
    Dawn - 16:26 Nov 13, 2025
    Yielding to several letters from Supreme Court judges, Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Yahya Afridi called a full court meeting on Friday, after Justice Salahuddin Panhwar became the third judge to request that he convene the judges to deliberate on the 27th Constitutional Amendment. Earlier, senior puisne Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Athar Minallah had written separate letters to the CJP asking for a full court meeting or the convening of the judicial conference. However, the two justices resigned on Thursday evening in protest against the 27th Constitutional Amendment Justice Panwhar, in a two-page letter, requested the CJP to call the full court to examine the amendment clause by clause and study its implications against Articles 175, 175A, 189, 190, 191 and 209 of the Constitution — provisions which deal with the judiciary. Headed by the CJP, the full court meeting will be held at the Supreme Court building before the Friday prayers. Justice Panwhar stated he was writing the letter “not in pr...
    Tags: Constitutional Amendment
  • ‘Constitution no more’: Justices Shah, Minallah resign from ‘diminished’ SC following passage of 27th Amendment
    Dawn - 16:22 Nov 13, 2025
    Supreme Court Justices Mansoor Ali Shah and Athar Minallah handed in their resignations, hours after the contentious 27th Constitutional Amendment was signed into law by President Asif Ali Zardari on Thursday. Both judges had called on Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi in separate letters to summon a full court meeting and judicial conference to hold a debate on the 27th Constitutional Amendment. In his letter to the president today, Justice Shah assailed the amendment as “a grave assault on the Constitution of Pakistan”, which “dismantles the Supreme Court of Pakistan, subjugates the judiciary to executive control, and strikes at the very heart of our constitutional democracy”. “By fracturing the unity of the nation’s apex court, it has crippled judicial independence and integrity, pushing the country back by decades,” he wrote. “As history bears witness, such a disfigurement of the constitutional order is unsustainable and will, in time, be reversed - but not before leaving deep institutional scars.” T...
    Tags: Constitution
  • (Un)constitutional amendments: Why the 27th could mean the death of justice
    Dawn - 15:05 Nov 13, 2025
    This article was originally published on November 6, 2025, and has been replugged. “I looked around in that ceremony, at the majority of recipients, and realised the rot that had set in: a constitutional colossus like him being honoured in the company of pygmies and dwarves … we have violated our oath to uphold the Constitution, and the result is a stark regression in the judicial protection of human rights.” — Justice Shahid Karim on the conferment of Hilal-e-Imtiaz on the late Justice Fazal Karim, 17 November 2023 A year ago today, Qazi Faez Isa departed as the chief justice of Pakistan. His parting gift was to reverse the ruling on dissident votes in the parliament. This, we know, kicked the gates open to the 26th amendment, as once-unbothered lawmakers were promptly forced into voting for the judiciary’s funeral rites. The bill was passed, and the third branch was destroyed. But while obeying His Lordship’s decision, the unity regime felt free to disobey that of the other lordships in a different case — r...
  • Navy chief concludes ‘milestone visit’ to Bangladesh, meets senior military leadership
    Dawn - 14:13 Nov 13, 2025
    Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Naveed Ashraf on Thursday concluded his visit to Bangladesh, where he met with Dhaka’s senior military leadership and discussed regional maritime security and avenues to bolster defence cooperation, a statement from the Navy’s Directorate General of Public Relations (DGPR) read. According to the statement, the navy chief’s visit coincided with the PNS Saif warship being docked at Bangladesh’s Chattogram port. “This milestone visit symbolises a renewed chapter in fostering mutual respect, bilateral naval collaboration and contributing to strengthening maritime security cooperation between Pakistan and Bangladesh,” the statement said. During his visit, Admiral Ashraf called on Bangladeshi army chief General Wakeruz Zaman, navy chief Admiral M Nazmul Hassan, air force chief Air Chief Marshal Hasan Mahmood Khan and the Principal Staff Officer Armed Forces Division Lieutenant General SM Kamrul Hassan. “During the meetings, discussions on matters of mutual professional interest, reg...
    Tags: Navy Bangladesh
  • Medical experts perform surgery using Toumai surgical robot in Islamabad
    Dawn - 14:11 Nov 13, 2025
    Medical experts at Islamabad’s largest public-sector hospital, Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims), performed a robotic surgery using the Toumai surgical robot on Thursday. Robot-assisted surgery has significantly advanced urology — medical speciality that deals with the urinary system. It offers superior precision, reduced invasiveness, and improved clinical outcomes compared to traditional techniques. The Toumai system integrates force sensing, high-frequency response capabilities, and telerobotic surgery capabilities. The robotic surgery at Pims was performed by both local and international medical experts, including Prof Shamim Khan, Prof Mateen Sharif and Dr Javed Burki from the UK, while the surgical team from Pims included Dr Atif Inam Shami, Dr Burhan ul Haq, and Dr Khalid Saeed. Executive Director Pims Dr Rana Imran Sikander said it was the first time a robotic surgery was performed at the hospital. During the surgery, the adrenal glands of a female patient were removed. Pims spokesperson D...
    Tags: Toumai Medical Islamabad

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