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• IHC seeks CDA response on appeals of One Constitution Avenue apartment sub-lessees

  Dawn - 13:18 May 18, 2026
  

  ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday issued notices to the Capital Development Authority (CDA) on intra-court appeals filed by 20 apartment sub-lessees of the multi-billion-rupee One Constitution Avenue project, seeking protection of their possession rights after the cancellation of the project’s lease. The court sought the CDA’s response by tomorrow (Wednesday). A division bench comprising Justice Muhammad Azam Khan and Justice Raja Inaam Ameen Minhas sought a response from the CDA while hearing appeals filed by apartment owners, including former Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ehsan Mani and former air chief Mujahid Anwar Khan. During the hearing, counsel for the appellants argued that paragraph 30 of the recent single-bench judgment adversely affected the rights of apartment owners even though their possession and occupation of the apartments had been recognised. The court was informed that residential towers B and C were constructed in accordance with the approved layout plan, and that, aft...

  Tags: One Constitution Avenue

• Accused in teenage TikTok star Sana Yousaf’s murder retracts confession, alleges false implication

  Dawn - 12:32 May 18, 2026
  

  ISLAMABAD: The prime accused in the murder case of 17-year-old TikTok influencer Sana Yousaf retracted his earlier confessional statement admitting to the murder while testifying before the trial court on Monday, alleging that Islamabad police had falsely implicated him in the case. Last year, Umar Hayat — son of a retired government official and a TikToker himself — had confessed before a magistrate under Section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) that he shot Sana. In his statement, he admitted developing a one-sided obsession with her after online interactions, and said jealousy and suspicion drove him to commit the crime. On Monday, Hayat maintained in his statement under Section 342 of the CrPC that he was falsely implicated. Section 342 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) allows a trial court to question an accused person regarding any incriminating evidence against them. Its main purpose is to ensure a fair trial by providing the accused an opportunity to explain the circumstances before pr...

  Tags: Sana Yousaf TikTok

• CM Afridi seeks PM's intervention on CNG crisis in KP, warns of possible 'widespread agitation'

  Dawn - 12:06 May 18, 2026
  

  PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on Monday sought Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s intervention on an ongoing CNG crisis in his province, warning that the shortage was setting the stage for “widespread agitiation” across KP. The province has been affected by a compressed natural gas (CNG) crisis since April with several filling stations shut and millions of citizens struggling for affordable fuel. The situation has also negatively impacted the economic activity in the province. KP CM Afridi drew PM Shehbaz’s attention to the matter in letter on Monday. The letter stated: “I wish to draw your kind attention to the recent decision of the Petroleum Division regarding the curtailment of gas supply to the CNG sector in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, reportedly due to liquified natural gas (LNG) supply disruptions and system constraints faced by the Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited (SNGPL). “While we fully appreciate that SNGPL is operating under a constrained supply environment and must manage line p...

  Tags: Afridi

• Two policemen deployed with polio teams martyred in KP's Bajaur

  Dawn - 12:02 May 18, 2026
  

  BAJAUR: At least two policemen, deployed with polio vaccination teams, were martyred in firing by unidentified assailants in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Bajaur district on Monday. The attacks were carried out on the first day of a four-day anti-polio campaign across KP. In the first incident, Bajaur police spokesperson Israr Khan told Dawn that a 35-year-old martyred cop was returning home when the assailants, carrying rifles, opened fire on him. Separately, Salarzai Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Jamal Shah told reporters that the martyred cop, Constable Sayed Aziz, sustained multiple bullet wounds and died on the way to the hospital. Soon after the incident, a team from the Salarzai police station reached the site of the incident and began tracing the attackers, who had fled the scene, he said. The DSP said an investigation had been launched to identify the attackers. Meanwhile, the Bajaur police spokesperson said that the second incident also happened in Salarzai Tehsil on Monday afternoon, about two hours...

  Tags: Bajaur

• Counsel for Imran, Bushra challenges IHC order setting deadline for arguments in £190m case

  Dawn - 11:48 May 18, 2026
  

  ISLAMABAD: In a significant development in the £190 million case pending before the Islamabad High Court (IHC), counsel for incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan and his spouse Bushra Bibi challenged the court’s order setting a deadline for concluding arguments in the appeals against their conviction. Imran — imprisoned since Aug 5, 2023, for concealing details of Toshakhana gifts — is serving a 14-year sentence at Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail in the £190m case, also known as the Al-Qadir Trust case. An accountability court in Islamabad had sentenced Imran and Bushra to 14 and seven years in prison, respectively, on Jan 17, 2025, in the case. Subsequently, both had challenged their convictions before the IHC. Earlier in May, the IHC rejected their petitions seeking the suspension of their sentences in the case, observing that their main appeals were already fixed for hearing. Barrister Salman Safdar filed two separate miscellaneous petitions on behalf of the PTI founder and Bushra Bibi, contending that the April 30...

  Tags: Bushra Imran

• Markets, shops, eateries exempted from early closure timings till May 31

  Dawn - 11:12 May 18, 2026
  

  The federal government has allowed temporary exemption of shops, markets and eateries from early closure timing of 8pm, state broadcaster PTV News reported, citing a notification, on Monday. The Cabinet Division notification dated May 18 states that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has given the approval to exempt “with immediate effect and till May 31” several entities from the closure timings specified in a April 6 notification. According to the latest notification, all shops, departmental stores, markets, shopping malls, bakeries, tandoors, restaurants and grocery stores have been exempted from the early closure timings for all days of the week. On April 6, the federal government had announced that all markets across the country, barring Sindh, would close by 8pm throughout the week as part of energy conservation measures amid a global fuel crisis triggered by the US-Israeli war on Iran. Meanwhile, the closure time for wedding halls, bakeries, restaurants, tandoors and other eateries was set at 10pm. Days lat...

• A TikTok feature that Pakistan’s dirty money loves

  Dawn - 11:03 May 18, 2026
  

  Social media is now working as a high-speed pipeline to move money comfortably outside the perimeter of financial regulations. On TikTok and other apps, likes, gifts and livestream donations are converted into platform-specific digital credits. A follower buys virtual currency with their debit card, mobile wallet, or bank account, then sends gifts to the TikToker or creator during live streams or content interactions. The app takes a commission and sends the remaining ‘amount’ to the TikToker’s internal wallet. Once you earn a minimum amount, or cross a threshold, you can withdraw or transfer earnings through payment processors, digital wallets, or linked bank accounts into your local currency. In practice, a transaction that begins as a seemingly harmless “gift” or online appreciation can pass through multiple layers — virtual tokens, platform wallets, payment intermediaries, and cross-border processors — before emerging as legitimate funds in a bank account. What appears on the surface as digital admiration...

  Tags: TikTok

• No need for 28th Constitutional Amendment, says Raza Rabbani

  Dawn - 10:09 May 18, 2026
  

  PPP stalwart and former Senate chairman Raza Rabbani on Monday said that there was “no need” for a 28th Constitutional Amendment, saying that the Constitution could not “bear the burden” if it were to happen. In a statement, he said, “The ruling elite should realise that the Constitution, 1973, cannot bear the burden of another amendment. There is no need for the 28th Constitutional Amendment.” He said that the 26th and 27th Constitutional Amendments had already “defaced” a number of the original provisions of the Constitution, particularly those relating to the judiciary. The former took away the Supreme Court’s suo motu power, while the latter made significant changes to the judicial system and the military’s chain of command. Rabbani said the “transfer of a judge without his or her consent impinged on the independence of the judiciary”. “The federal government should be looking at the backlash of these two amendments and, in consultation with the stakeholders, taking remedial measures,” he said. He further...

  Tags: Constitutional Amendment Raza Rabbani

• JI emir challenges petroleum levy in FCC, terms it 'unconstitutional'

  Dawn - 09:37 May 18, 2026
  

  ISLAMABAD: Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman on Monday approached the Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) against the petroleum levy, arguing that the government had effectively granted itself unrestricted power to tax citizens through executive notifications without parliamentary oversight. The government had announced a petroleum and carbon levy on June 14, 2025, under an iron-clad commitment with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Last month, the government had cut the levy by Rs80 amid the global oil crisis triggered by the Middle East crisis. However, following the IMF’s condition of restoring an average Rs80 per litre petroleum levy on petrol and high-speed diesel last week, the government passed on a slight reduction in global oil prices to domestic consumers. The petroleum levy on petrol currently stands at Rs117.41 per litre, while the levy on HSD is Rs42.60 per litre. In a petition moved through senior counsel Imran Shafeeq, Rehman sought a declaration from the FCC that the present p...

• Pakistan condemns drone attack on UAE nuclear power plant

  Dawn - 09:16 May 18, 2026
  

  The Foreign Office (FO) on Monday strongly condemned the drone attack on the United Arab Emirates’ nuclear power plant, saying that “such reckless actions carry potentially catastrophic and irreversible consequences for human life, the environment and regional as well as global peace and security”. A day ago, a drone strike had triggered a fire near Barakh Nuclear Power Plant in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, reporting no injuries or impact on radiation levels, according to the UAE’s defence ministry. The UAE defence ministry said two other drones had been “successfully” dealt with, and that the drones had been launched from the “western border”. It did not elaborate. Emirati officials said they were investigating the source of the strike and that the UAE had the full right to respond to such “terrorist attacks”. The UAE has previously accused Iran of attacking its energy targets in what it has called an escalation of the conflict in the region. In the statement released on Monday, the FO said that “any deliberate...

• 2 cops martyred as speeding dumper crashes into parked police van on M9 Motorway

  Dawn - 06:08 May 18, 2026
  

  KARACHI: Two police personnel were martyred on Monday when a speeding dumper truck crashed into a police van parked on the M9 Motorway within the limits of the Gadap City police station, officials said. In a statement, Malir police said that a police mobile assigned for patrolling and snap checking was hit by a speeding dumper. As a result of the impact, both Constable Wajid and Sub-Inspector Sahib Dad Solangi were martyred on the spot, a police spokesperson said in a statement. “The speeding dumper was travelling to Karachi from Hyderabad. The driver has been taken into custody,” the spokesperson said, adding that legal action had also been initiated against the driver. Meanwhile, Motorway police also issued a statement, confirming that two cops had been martyred in the incident. “According to initial information, the dumper hit a police van parked on the side of the road,” the statement said. According to Edhi, the bodies of the martyred cops were taken to the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital for medico-legal formal...

  Tags: Motorway

• Oil touches two-week high after drone attack on UAE nuclear power plant

  Dawn - 04:59 May 18, 2026
  

  Oil prices extended gains on Monday as efforts to end the Iran war appeared to have stalled, after a nuclear power plant in the United Arab Emirates came under attack and as US President Donald Trump is expected to discuss military options on Iran. Brent crude futures climbed $2.01, or 1.84 per cent, to $111.27 a barrel by 0432 GMT, but were off the $112 they had touched earlier for their highest since May 5. US West Texas Intermediate crude stood at $107.75 a barrel, up $2.33, or 2.21pc, after a rise to $108.70, its highest since April 30. The front-month June contract expires on Tuesday. Both contracts gained more than 7pclast week as hopes dimmed for a peace deal to end ship attacks and seizures around the key waterway of the Strait of Hormuz. Last week’s talks between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping ended without an indication from the world’s top oil importer that it would help resolve the conflict unleashed by the US-Israeli attacks on Iran. Drone attacks on the UAE and Saudi Arabia and rhetoric ...

• PM Shehbaz thanks Qatari PM for 'strong endorsement, support' of Pakistan-led peace efforts

  Dawn - 19:37 May 17, 2026
  

  Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif held a phone call with his Qatari counterpart on Sunday and thanked the leadership of Qatar for its “strong endorsement and support of Pakistan-led peace efforts”. According to a statement shared by PM’s spokesperson for foreign media Mosharraf Zaidi on X, the premier had a “warm and cordial conversation” with Qatar’s Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al Thani, and the two leaders exchanged views on the evolving regional and international situation. “The prime minister thanked the leadership of Qatar for its strong endorsement and support of Pakistan-led peace efforts aimed at de-escalation and promoting regional peace and stability,” the statement added. It said that PM Shehbaz expressed his “deep appreciation for Qatar’s constructive role in regional diplomacy and for building a consensus in support of ongoing mediation efforts”. Both leaders agreed on the need for continued close coordination and dialogue among all stakeholders to address common challenges, it added. ...

  Tags: Qatari Pakistan-led Shehbaz

• Islamabad, Baku developing ties within Pakistan-Turkiye-Azerbaijan trilateral framework: President Aliyev

  Dawn - 19:10 May 17, 2026
  

  Islamabad and Baku are developing their ties under a trilateral framework involving Pakistan, Turkiye and Azerbaijan, President Ilham Aliyev said on Sunday. The Azeri president met with Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz in Baku, where CM Maryam arrived on a three-day visit on Saturday to represent Pakistan at the 13th UN World Urban Forum (WUF13). “President Ilham Aliyev also emphasised that Azerbaijan-Pakistan relations are currently developing within a trilateral framework involving Azerbaijan, Türkiye, and Pakistan,” read a statement issued by the Azeri president’s office on the meeting. During the meeting, the two sides “commended the development of fraternal relations and strategic partnership between Azerbaijan and Pakistan”. “They discussed cooperation in political, economic, diplomatic, defence, and other fields, while also highlighting the importance of interregional cooperation and the strong potential for further expanding trade ties,” the statement said. It was also highlighted during the meeting...

  Tags: Baku Islamabad

• PM Shehbaz credits 'political-military partnership' for Pakistan's recognition as US-Iran mediator, changed image

  Dawn - 18:59 May 17, 2026
  

  Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has termed Pakistan’s emergence as a key mediator between the US and Iran as a “shining moment in our history”, crediting the “political-military partnership” for the change in the country’s image internationally. The premier made these remarks during an interview with The Sunday Times, as Islamabad remained engaged in efforts for de-escalation between the US and Iran. “It’s one of the shining moments in our history. Pakistan is acknowledged worldwide as an honest mediator and as a country in which international leadership has full trust and faith. It’s our shining hour, and I feel a very proud Pakistani — as do 240 million Pakistanis,” he was quoted as saying in the interview published on Saturday night. The PM’s expressed optimism even as military pressure and fears of renewed confrontation continue to shape the conflict that began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran in late February. While a deal for a complete end to the war is yet to happen, hostilities have largely ceased since...

• Section 144 imposed throughout Balochistan for one month

  Dawn - 18:09 May 17, 2026
  

  QUETTA: The Balochistan government on Sunday imposed Section 144 across the province for a month. In a notification available with Dawn, the provincial government imposed a complete ban on gatherings of five or more than five persons, including sit-ins, processions, or rallies throughout the province for 30 days, effective immediately. The ban also extended to covering faces in public places, “particularly through the use of mufflers, masks, or any other means that obstruct identification”, as well as the display or use of weapons, pillion riding, tinted glasses on vehicles and using unregistered motorcycles. In light of the development, Special Assistant to the Home Department Babar Khan Yousafzai, in a statement, said that security had been placed on high alert. “If Fitna-al-Khawarij and Fitna-al-Hindustan make any attempt of any misadventure, they will be met with full force,” he said, adding that security forces remained ready to thwart such attempts and all institutions remained on high alert. The state ...

  Tags: Section

• Entry of vehicles loaded with sacrificial animals banned on motorways ahead of Eidul Azha

  Dawn - 17:48 May 17, 2026
  

  ISLAMABAD: The National Highway and Motorway Police (NHMP) has imposed a ban on the entry of vehicles loaded with sacrificial animals on motorways, according to an official statement released on Sunday. “Overloaded, unfit, and improperly loaded vehicles often lead to traffic congestion and serious road accidents,” the statement said. It added that such vehicles would be diverted to alternative routes. The statement said that several vehicles transporting animals had been involved in “serious accidents” in the past, resulting in significant loss of life and property. “Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police have also been requested to establish check posts near motorway entry points and cattle markets to ensure the effective implementation of these measures,” it said. The statement said the initiative had been taken to “ensure the safety, security, and convenience of commuters travelling on motorways during the Eidul Azha season”.

  Tags: Eidul Azha

• Pakistan hails PCA's decision in IWT proceedings, says it affirms limits on India’s water-control capability

  Dawn - 17:41 May 17, 2026
  

  Pakistan expressed on Sunday “utmost satisfaction” over a supplemental award by the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) that it said affirmed Islamabad’s position of the Indus Waters Treaty placing “substantive limits on India’s water-control capability” on Indus River system’s western rivers. The decision pertained to maximum pondage — a technical term for the maximum volume of water that could be stored in a reservoir — in Indus Waters Treaty proceedings arising from design disputes concerning the Ratle Hydroelectric Plant and the Kishenganga Hydroelectric Project in occupied Kashmir, a statement issued by the Pakistan government said. According to the statement, the supplemental award was issued on May 15. However, the decision has not been publicly shared by the PCA yet. Pakistan had first instituted arbitral proceedings against India regarding the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) in 2016. And while India continues to boycott the proceedings, the court shares its procedural updates and decisions with both India...

  Tags: Pakistan India

• Zilhaj moon sighted, Eidul Azha to fall on May 27

  Dawn - 16:07 May 17, 2026
  

  The Ruet-i-Hilal Committee announced on Sunday that the Zilhaj moon had been sighted and Eidul Azha will be celebrated on May 27. The announcement came after the committee met earlier today in Karachi for the moon sighting, while meetings of zonal committees were also convened in Islamabad, Lahore, Quetta and Peshawar. Addressing a press conference after the meetings, Ruet-i-Hilal Committee Chairperson Maulana Abdul Khabeer Azad said skies were mostly clear in the country today except in some areas. Resultantly, moon sighting testimonies were received from Karachi and other cities of Sindh, Mardan, Rawalpindi, Peshawar and some other areas. “Hence, it has been unanimously decided that first Zilhaj 1447 AH will be on May 18 (Monday) while Eidul Azha will fall on May 27 (Wednesday),” he said. Earlier this week, the Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco) had also forecast that Eidul Azha was expected to fall on May 27 as the “new moon of Zilhajj 1447 AH is expected to be born on May 17...

  Tags: Eidul Azha Zilhaj

• Applicants will soon have the option to get passports delivered to their doorsteps, says official

  Dawn - 15:12 May 17, 2026
  

  ISLAMABAD: The Directorate General of Immigration and Passports (DGIP) is set to introduce nationwide home delivery of passports and launch a chatbot to help applicants, Passports DG Muhammad Ali Randhawa told Dawn on Sunday. “Applicants will soon have the option to get passports delivered to their doorsteps,” he said, adding that discussions with a courier service company were under way for this purpose. “After an agreement is signed, the facility will be available across the country. Under this initiative, passports of those ready to pay nominal courier charges will be shipped directly to their addresses from Islamabad,” he said. Randhawa said authorities planned to extend the service to overseas Pakistanis in the second phase. “Meanwhile, a chatbot will also be launched soon,” he said. “Applicants will be able to get guidelines through it on procedures and document requirements, and check the status of their passports after submission.” He said this would also reduce the load on his department’s call centr...

  Tags: Applicants

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