Dawn
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Dawn - 17:17 Mar 08, 2026
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif would unveil an austerity plan of the government on Monday in view of the prevailing global fuel crisis due to the US/Israel-Iran war, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said. On Friday, the government announced an increase in the petroleum product prices by up to Rs55 in the wake of the regional energy crisis. In a press release, the PMO said the PM Shehbaz chaired a meeting on Sunday and reviewed the austerity plan. “The meeting was apprised that the final plan regarding austerity and savings will be announced tomorrow (Monday),” it confirmed. The meeting was, however, informed that the country had adequate reserves of petrol and diesel, and the government had already taken precautionary measures to meet any awkward situation, it said. It added that the government had already prepared a contingency plan under which work from home and distance learning had been proposed till the situation returns to normal. However, the PM had halted the plan on Friday and decided to r... -
Dawn - 17:08 Mar 08, 2026
In a war already redrawing the region’s red lines, with the death toll from the US-Israeli attacks on Iran reportedly having surpassed 1,000, Tehran has brought one of the Middle East’s most sensitive strategic sites into the escalation equation: Israel’s Dimona nuclear site. A senior Iranian military official told the Iranian website Iran Nuances, later reported by Iran’s semi-official ISNA news agency, that if the US and Israel pursue a “regime change” scenario in practice, Tehran’s “final effective missiles will target the Dimona nuclear reactor and all regional energy infrastructure,” adding: “This is a scenario we have already prepared for.” Iran has retaliated with waves of drone and missile strikes targeting Israel as well as Gulf countries hosting US military assets, raising fears of a wider regional war. The warning has reignited questions that often remain muted in regional crises: what is Dimona, why is it seen as the backbone of Israel’s nuclear capability, and how does its secrecy shape the polit... -
Dawn - 16:57 Mar 08, 2026
ISLAMABAD: Several women’s rights activists, including Aurat March members, were detained by police in Islamabad ahead of a rally they planned to hold on the occasion of International Women’s Day on Sunday. Police sources told Dawn that they were detained near Super Market in Sector F-6. They had planned to reach the National Press Club, but a huge contingent of police was already present there, which arrested the marchers and took them to the Women’s Police Station. The Women’s Police Station released a list of 19 women activists of Aurat March. Those detained include prominent activist Dr Farzana Bari, two of her daughters, and human rights defender Tahira Abdullah, along with other Aurat March organisers and participants, police sources confirmed. Aside from women activists, several participants, including men, were also detained by the police for participating in the march. Zoya Rehman, a participant of the march, wrote on X that her husband, along with 20 other men, was taken into custody by police. “No ... -
Dawn - 14:53 Mar 08, 2026
Outside a mosque in Hilliard, Ohio, a police officer stood in the cold night air, handing out candies and stickers to children while their parents prayed taraveh inside. Hilliard, a quiet suburb near Columbus, the state capital, is home to a growing Muslim community. At its centre stands Masjid-i-Noor, a striking modern structure whose wide glass frontage glows softly after sunset. Smaller mosques also serve the area, including Masjid as Shurooq, where the North American Indian Muslim Association (Naima) hosted an iftar dinner for a small group earlier in the evening. Many who broke their fast there later drove a few minutes to join the larger taraveh congregation at Masjid-i-Noor — a reminder that in a small town, distances are short and communities are closely knit. Muslims offering taraveh prayers inside Masjid-i-Noor in Hilliard, Ohio. — Author Inside, worshippers raised their hands in dua, praying for an end to war and for peace in a troubled world. Outside, beneath the glow of parking-lot lights, a unif... -
Dawn - 14:41 Mar 08, 2026
The joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran represent a further erosion of the international legal order. Under international law, these attacks are neither preemptive nor lawful. Israel and the United States launched Operation Shield of Judah and Operation Epic Fury while diplomatic negotiations between Washington and Tehran were actively underway on Iran’s nuclear programme. Just two days earlier [on February 27], the most intense round of US-Iran talks concluded in Geneva, with both sides agreeing to continue. US President Donald Trump indicated he would give negotiators more time. Then came the bombs. Neither preemptive nor legal, US‑Israeli strikes on Iran have blown up international law The illegality of the attack Israel said the strikes were “preventive”, meaning they were to prevent Iran from developing a capacity to be a threat. But preventive war has no legal basis under international law. The UN Security Council did not authorise any military action, meaning the sole lawful pathway for the use of force f... -
Dawn - 14:33 Mar 08, 2026
Tens of thousands of Indian cricket fans crowded the T20 World Cup final stadium on Sunday, and millions more were glued to their televisions, desperate to witness a historic home triumph. India face New Zealand in Ahmedabad as they attempt to become the first team to retain the trophy, the first to win it on home soil and the first to claim a third world T20 crown. Cricket’s T20 showpiece, a month-long tournament of 55 matches featuring 20 teams, concludes on Sunday evening at the 130,000-seat Narendra Modi Stadium, the world’s largest cricket venue. Diehard supporters arrived from across the country, many clad in Indian colours and waving the tricolour flag as the match began. Anil, a wedding photographer, travelled 1,200 kilometres (745 miles) by train from the southern city of Hyderabad with his brother, dreaming they would see their team triumph. “I hope India wins,” said the 18-year-old who goes by only his first name. Hundreds of vendors, all dressed in Indian jerseys, lined the pavement from the neare... -
Dawn - 14:23 Mar 08, 2026
MANDI BAHAUDDIN: Punjab Police on Sunday registered a first information report (FIR) after a 15-year-old girl was allegedly sexually assaulted in a hospital near the district’s King Chowk, officials said. Per officials, the incident allegedly occurred in a private hospital when the victim went there to collect medicines. She was reportedly taken to a room in the facility. The Civil Lines Police Station registered an FIR on the complaint of the victim’s mother against three individuals under Sections 376(3) (punishment for rape of a minor) and 114 (abetment) of the Pakistan Penal Code. One of the suspects was named in the FIR, while the other two had been listed as unidentified individuals, officials said. The FIR stated that the victim went to the hospital with her aunt and uncle. “She excused herself to go to the toilet, but when she didn’t return for a long time, her aunt grew concerned,” the mother stated in the FIR. “The aunt and uncle went to look for the girl and heard someone crying in a room. Upon ope... -
Dawn - 13:36 Mar 08, 2026
War has a way of widening even when some of the actors involved are simultaneously trying to contain it, and the events of the past day in the US-Israel war with Iran offered a striking illustration of this paradox. The conflict is no longer confined to air strikes and the exchange of missiles and drones between adversaries. It is steadily drawing in the economic lifelines of the region, from oil infrastructure to desalination plants, as a diplomatic effort to end Iranian strikes on its neighbours faltered because of a statement by President Donald Trump and subsequent US and Israeli strikes. The diplomatic opening had begun to emerge quietly through regional channels over the preceding 48 hours. Oman and Qatar, supported by several Muslim countries, attempted to facilitate mediation between Tehran and its neighbours, while Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke directly with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. The Iranian leader then issued a carefully worded public statement in which he referred to neighbo... -
Dawn - 12:59 Mar 08, 2026
Iranian clerics involved in choosing a successor to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei after his assassination a week ago in US-Israeli strikes say they are close to naming the Islamic Republic’s new supreme leader. Iran’s revolutionary theocracy has never been in greater jeopardy, and with the clerical body tasked with naming a new leader ready for an announcement as soon as Sunday, it is hard to predict what might happen next. Israel and the United States have vowed no let-up in their war, promising to kill whoever replaces Khamenei and even those involved in selecting the new leader — a group that may include the clerics who formally make the choice and the Revolutionary Guardsmen and political insiders who influence them. The following explains how power is meant to operate in the Islamic Republic, how a new supreme leader can be chosen, some of the main candidates, and how the US and Israeli attacks have changed the equation. What is Iran’s ‘Supreme Leader’? Iran’s theocratic system dates to the 1979 revolution that... -
Dawn - 12:52 Mar 08, 2026
A Pakistani driver was killed when “debris from an aerial interception” fell onto a vehicle in Dubai’s Al Barsha area late on Saturday night, according to Dubai Media Office. This is the second instance of a Pakistani national losing his life in an attack in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) during the ongoing war between Iran and the US and Israel. The war has expanded in the region, with Iran targeting US assets and bases in Gulf countries and Israel carrying out attacks in Lebanon. The statement by the Dubai Media Office does not specify which projectile was intercepted during Saturday’s incident, or from where it was fired. The Pakistani embassy in the UAE said its consulate in Dubai was in direct contact with local authorities to assist the Pakistani national’s family. “We are profoundly saddened to confirm that a Pakistani national lost his life yesterday in Dubai’s Al Barsha area due to falling debris following the interception of an incoming missile,” the embassy said on X. “Our Consulate General in Duba... -
Dawn - 12:27 Mar 08, 2026
Caitlin Kalinowski, who oversaw hardware at OpenAI, announced her resignation on Saturday, citing concerns about the company’s agreement with the Department of Defence. In a social media post on X, Kalinowski wrote that OpenAI did not take enough time before agreeing to deploy its AI models on the Pentagon’s classified cloud networks. “AI has an important role in national security,” Kalinowski posted. “But surveillance of Americans without judicial oversight and lethal autonomy without human authorisation are lines that deserved more deliberation than they got. Reuters could not immediately reach Kalinowski for comment, but she wrote on X that while she has “deep respect” for OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and the team, the company announced the Pentagon deal “without the guardrails defined,” she posted. “It’s a governance concern first and foremost,” Kalinowski wrote in a subsequent X post. “These are too important for deals or announcements to be rushed.” OpenAI said the day after the deal was struck that it include... -
Dawn - 12:00 Mar 08, 2026
GWADAR: A fisherman from Gwadar was killed after the debris of an Israeli projectile intercepted by Iranian air defence systems hit his boat in Iranian waters, officials said on Sunday. Gwadar Deputy Commissioner (DC) Naqibullah Kakar confirmed the incident to Dawn that took place on Saturday, saying that the deceased was identified as Muhammad Tayyab, a resident of Gannz, a small coastal town in Balochistan’s Gwadar district. District Police Officer Attaur Rehman also confirmed the incident and told Dawn that Tayyab “went into Iranian waters for Iranian oil”. DC Kakar believes an attempt was made to attack fishing boats in a coastal area of Iran’s Sistan-Baluchistan province, but the projectile was intercepted and destroyed by the Iranian air defence system. “A portion of the debris from that drone or missile hit Tayyab’s fishing boat, resulting in his death,” he added. The officials said Tayyab’s body was taken to his native town, Gannz, via the sea, and he was later buried. Iran, a neighbour of Pakistan, h... -
Dawn - 09:27 Mar 08, 2026
Security forces have killed 13 terrorists in five separate operations across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the military’s media affairs wing said on Sunday. “On March 6-7, security forces conducted a series of high-tempo intelligence-driven operations, part of relentless counter-terrorism campaign, wherein 13 khawarij belonging to Indian proxy Fitna Al Khawarij were killed in five separate engagements in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) said. Fitna al Khawarij is a term the state uses for terrorists belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). According to ISPR, five terrorists were killed in the Bajaur district after an intense fire exchange when troops “effectively engaged the khawarij location” during an intelligence-based operation (IBO). In two other encounters in Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan districts, three terrorists “belonging to Indian proxy Fitna Al Khawarij were successfully neutralised”, the press release said. “Simultaneously, in two separate engagements in Khyber... -
Dawn - 09:02 Mar 08, 2026
Consider this: she gets back home after a long hard day at work. “It’s 10pm already,” she thinks to herself, as something outside the window catches her eye. It’s her roommate excitedly waving a cricket bat at her. She now begins to notice her surroundings: almost 15 girls from her neighbourhood out on the street. All positioned for the game, all looking as disheveled as one can be, yet they all have this fiery spark in their eyes. Clearly they feel passionately for the game. They play for the next two hours. Unperturbed by any restrictions. The dark shadows on the street do not scare them. Time is of no concern. They feel free. Their energy, loud passionate voices, and roaring laughter fill the dimly lit street. No one cares for their appearance, they just run and trip and get back up. They get into silly brawls over the rules of the game. By the end of the night, they are drained but they return to their homes content. The kind of contentment almost every young girl and woman in Karachi is starved for; to o... -
Dawn - 08:29 Mar 08, 2026
New York counterterror police said they were carrying out an investigation on Saturday after a man threw “ignited devices” near far-right protesters demonstrating outside the mayor’s home. New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the devices contained nuts, bolts and screws as well as a fuse — but it was not yet clear if they were functional improvised explosive devices, or hoax imitations. The Federal Bureau of Investigation said in an X post that its Joint Terrorism Task Force was “actively investigating” the matter along with New York City Police. There was no indication the incident was related to the ongoing hostilities in Iran, Tisch added. Police arrested six people over unrest at the protest, she said, including two suspects in connection with the devices. Far-right influencer Jake Lang was demonstrating against alleged “Islamification” and calling for an end to “public Muslim prayer” in New York in front of Gracie Mansion, the residence of Mayor Zohran Mamdani. His protest drew around 20 peopl... -
Dawn - 04:53 Mar 08, 2026
TWO nights ago, I logged on to our evening meeting the way I have done twice a day, five days a week for nearly six weeks. On my screen: half a dozen faces I have come to think of as family, based in Beirut. News was coming in of an impending Israeli bombing. They were scrambling — checking phones, calling relatives, trying to locate family members — and simultaneously, they were working. Editing, producing, filming. Because the news goes on. I sat in Islamabad, safe, watching them hold themselves together from across a screen. The friction was unbearable. A war brews in my backyard too, and yet there I was, untouched, while they split themselves in two — one half terrified, one half professional — because that is what survival looks like when the bombs have been falling, on and off, your entire life. I thought of the last time I was in Lebanon in 2009. My friend Shaan and I travelled the length and breadth of the country for two weeks, lost half the time, pre-Google Maps, finding our way through broken Arabi... -
Dawn - 04:51 Mar 08, 2026
NAROWAL: A filling station employee was shot dead and his two colleagues were injured by men for refusing to fill jerry cans with petrol the other night after the government announced Rs55 per litre hike in petrol price. A video of the altercation and murder in the Hajipura police area went viral on social media. Muhammad Nawaz, a resident of Nothen village, Hafizabad, filed a complaint with the police, saying that his nephew, Sibtain Ali, was working at the filling pump on Daska Road, Hajipura, Sialkot. Two persons arrived at the filling station in a car and pressured filling station worker, Hassan Khan, to fill petrol in jerry cans. Hassan Khan refused to fill the cans with petrol as per the policy. The people in the car left after abusing and threatening him of dire consequences. An hour later, the car driver came back with his companions armed with automatic weapons and they all started torturing the filling station staff. They hit Muhammad Shahbaz with the butt of a pistol and injured him while they open... -
Dawn - 04:42 Mar 08, 2026
• Police officers tell six-member panel around 300 protesters reached US mission from Numaish without high-ups’ consent • Say personnel of Sindh police deployed outside consulate fired 30 ‘aerial shots’ to stop the mob from entering foreign mission • ToRs of JIT silent about fixing responsibility of killings KARACHI: A Joint Interrogation Team (JIT) probing the facts and circumstances leading to the March 1 violence was informed that “one US marine” stationed at the American mission in Karachi resorted to firing in “retaliation” when protesters stormed the consulate building after breaching security, it emerged on Saturday. The JIT was also told that Sindh police personnel deployed at US consulate fired 30 shots into the air to stop the mob from storming the complex. As many as 12 people were killed and 49 others, including seven policemen, sustained bullet wounds during the violent protest near the US consulate against the assassination of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in coordinated US-Israel strikes on Tehran. On... -
Dawn - 04:25 Mar 08, 2026
The US embassy in Oslo was hit by an explosion in the early hours of Sunday but no one was injured, police in the Norwegian capital said, adding the cause was not immediately known. The blast occurred around 1am local time (0000 GMT) and caused only “minor material damage” to one of the building’s entrances, Oslo police said in a statement. Investigators were examining the scene, while dogs, drones, and helicopters were involved in the search “for one or more potential perpetrators”, it said. “Police view such incidents in public spaces as very serious, and are investigating the case with substantial resources and high priority.” Police commander Michael Dellemyr told TV2 police would “not comment on anything related to the type of damage, what it is that has exploded and similar details, beyond the fact that there has been an explosion” because “it is very early in the investigation”. He later told TV2 that police “have an idea of the cause”, adding: “It appears to us that this is an act carried out by someo... -
Dawn - 04:12 Mar 08, 2026
KARACHI: The University of Karachi (KU) has announced to hold all morning classes online from Monday (tomorrow) till the end of Ramazan. According to a KU spokesperson, evening classes have already been online since the start of Ramazan and that the latest decision will now provide relief to morning students given the significant hike in fuel prices. “Keeping in view the convenience of its students during Ramazan and transportation restraints likely to be caused by the recent price hike in petroleum products, the University of Karachi has decided that all the morning classes from Monday, March 9, 2026, till end of the month of Ramazan will be conducted only online,” the varsity said in a notification. Published in Dawn, March 8th, 2026
8986 items