Dawn
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Dawn - 03:16 Jul 05, 2026
MUZAFFARABAD: Government officials have ruled out the possibility of long marches as sit-in participants of the proscribed Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) are expected to hold demonstrations at their respective protest sites today. The main sit-in continued at the Eidgah ground, while smaller gatherings, with attendance ranging between 100 and 500 people, were also being held at Mutyalmera, Singola, Paniola and Shujaabad. According to official sources, participants at the main sit-in on the outskirts of Rawalakot were expected to organise a short rally near the protest site after assembling there at 2pm on Sunday. “There is no information suggesting they intend to move beyond their respective protest sites,” an official said, attributing the rumours of long marches to the absence of communication facilities in the region. An official described the sit-ins on the outskirts of the town as gatherings where participants mostly assembled in the evening “to enjoy the cool weather and free meals”. He said there ... -
Dawn - 03:12 Jul 05, 2026
• FIR alleges reckless driving; authorities seal company’s office • Most victims belonged to KP • Compensation announced for deceased, injured QUETTA: Police have registered an FIR over the tragic passenger coach crash that claimed dozens of lives at Dhanasar police station in Sherani district. The deceased coach driver, Babu Ustad, has also been nominated in the FIR, along with the Mekhtar Bus Company management and owners. The case has been registered under Sections 322, 320, 337-G, 279, 427 and 34 of the Pakistan Penal Code on the complaint of SHO Zulfiqar Ali. Authorities have sealed the bus company’s office and launched an investigation on the directives of Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti. Investigators have questioned several people in connection with the incident. Officials said 26 victims had been identified and their bodies dispatched to their native areas, while the identification process for the remaining victims was continuing. According to officials, most of the deceased belonged to various district... -
Dawn - 03:08 Jul 05, 2026
• Names forwarded to JCP ahead of scrutiny under new rules • Commission likely to finalise appointments later this month ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) administration has finalised three candidates for three vacant positions of judges, sources familiar with the development told Dawn, as the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) prepares to take up appointments. The names forwarded to the JCP include District and Sessions Judge Shahrukh Arjumand, former Advocate General Islamabad Ayyaz Shaukat, who currently serves as Chairman of the Social Media Protection and Regulatory Authority, and advocate Umair Majeed Malik, according to sources privy to the matter. The development comes as the JCP, in its meeting on June 19, formally invited nominations from high courts for appointment of judges against vacant positions. The commission has set July 4 as the deadline for submissions, following which the initial pool of nominees will undergo formal scrutiny under the recently approved 2026 rules. Several... -
Dawn - 02:51 Jul 05, 2026
• Lebanese president urges Washington to ‘keep standing’ by Lebanon’s institutions, army and people • Ceasefire holds unevenly as Israeli strikes continue in the south BEIRUT: Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Saturday urged the United States to stand by his country after a recent US-backed framework deal with Israel aiming to permanently end hostilities after the latest Israel-Hezbollah war. The deal reached in Washington calls for the disarmament of Hezbollah, a gradual Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon and the deployment of the Lebanese army there, starting with two “pilot” areas. Hezbollah has rejected the deal, which does not set a timetable for an Israeli withdrawal. In a congratulatory message to President Donald Trump marking the United States’ 250th anniversary of independence, Aoun urged Washington to “keep always standing beside Lebanon’s right and just causes, its institutions, army and people”. Aoun expressed hope that Lebanon could “turn the page on wars… and open a new page of hope, peac... -
Dawn - 02:40 Jul 05, 2026
LAHORE: A constitutional petition has been filed in the Lahore High Court (LHC) seeking the immediate operationalisation of constitutional benches under Article 202A of the Constitution. The petition, filed by Azhar Siddique, chairman of the Judicial Activism Panel, a public interest litigation association, names the federation, the Law and Justice Commission of Pakistan, and the National Judicial (Policy-Making) Committee (NJPMC), among other federal and provincial authorities, as respondents. The petitioner contends that despite the enactment of the 26th Amendment in 2024, constitutional benches have yet to be established in the Lahore, Islamabad, Peshawar, and Balochistan High Courts. To date, only the Sindh High Court has substantially implemented the framework envisaged under Article 202A. According to the petition, Article 202A uses mandatory language, stipulating that constitutional benches must be constituted and that only these specialised benches may exercise jurisdiction under Article 199. The peti... -
Dawn - 02:32 Jul 05, 2026
• Fresh round expected on July 11 • US, Iran trade barbs despite pause in negotiations • Trump mocks Khamenei funeral as Tehran vows justice against US, Israel • Iran warns against military activity by ‘extra-regional powers’ in Strait of Hormuz • Ghalibaf says post-war ‘realities have changed’, rejects US president’s remarks on food supplies WASHINGTON: Islamabad is emerging as the leading venue for the next round of technical negotiations between the United States and Iran, diplomatic sources told Dawn. The resumption of the talks is part of ongoing efforts to keep the diplomatic process on track and resolve longstanding disputes between Washington and Tehran. “There are two possible venues for the technical talks — Islamabad and the Burgenstock resort in Switzerland,” one diplomatic source said. “Islamabad, however, is the more likely option.” The technical talks are expected to take place on July 11, although a final decision on the venue has yet to be announced. According to diplomatic sources, the neg... -
Dawn - 02:02 Jul 05, 2026
• Storm packs sustained winds of 269km per hour, gusts up to 324km per hour • Emergency shelters open as residents stock seven days of supplies; Guam, Northern Marianas under state of emergency • Communities secure homes, evacuate ahead of landfall SAIPAN: People in the US territories of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands readied themselves on Saturday as the second super typhoon since April drew closer, bringing the equivalent of Category 5 hurricane winds. Super Typhoon Bavi was moving westward with sustained winds of 269 kilometres per hour and gusts of 324km per hour, the Joint Typhoon Warning Centre said in an update at 7pm local time. The eye of the storm was expected to pass Monday very close to the small island of Rota between Guam and Saipan, the main island of the Northern Marianas, with winds set to strengthen to 278km per hour. “My girls were saying to me it’s scary, but it will be okay. My house is concrete, so the worst that can happen is a window could blow in,” Arabella Paulino, 48, said on... -
Dawn - 01:51 Jul 05, 2026
LAHORE: In order to compile comprehensive information on citizens’ health and lifestyles, the Punjab government has created health and demographic profiles of nearly 94 million citizens across the province under its first digital health census. In a meeting on Saturday, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz was informed that the digital health census was near completion and that nearly 94.3 million health and demographic profiles had been registered across Punjab. “More than 85 per cent of the population in 18 districts has been covered through health and demographic profiling. Five districts have achieved 100 per cent coverage, while another five districts have completed over 95 per cent profiling,” the meeting was informed. The meeting was informed that every household in Punjab had been assigned a “unique identification number” through digital mapping, while 14,300 community health inspectors had conducted door-to-door visits to collect citizens’ medical, demographic and socio-economic data. The CM r... -
Dawn - 18:14 Jul 04, 2026
Serena Williams’ Wimbledon comeback is over after the American legend pulled out of the doubles due to a knee injury on Saturday. Williams and her sister Venus were due to play in the first round on Saturday, but Serena announced just hours before the match that her knee had not healed enough to play. “I’m heartbroken to have to withdraw from doubles,” the 44-year-old said on Instagram. View this post on Instagram Serena, a 23-time Grand Slam singles champion, suffered the injury during her defeat against Australia’s Maya Joint in the first round of the Wimbledon singles on Tuesday. That was her first singles match since the 2022 US Open after four years in retirement. The sisters, who won the Wimbledon doubles six times, were scheduled to face Solana Sierra and Camila Osorio after being given a wild card entry into the event. But no court was specified by tournament organisers in the order of play, raising the possibility that seven-time Wimbledon singles winner Serena could withdraw. To the disappointment o... -
Dawn - 18:00 Jul 04, 2026
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday, reiterating the close bond between Pakistan and Turkiye, said the two nations were “two hearts with one soul”, while emphasising that the bilateral economic partnership was “entering a new phase”. He made the remarks during a joint press conference in Istanbul with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan during his official visit to Turkiye. The two leaders had held a bilateral meeting prior to the press briefing. In his remarks, PM Shehbaz described discussions with Erdogan as “very comprehensive and productive discussions”. “We expressed satisfaction over the growing momentum in bilateral trade, investment and industrial cooperation, while reviewing concrete steps to unlock the full potential of our economic partnership,” he elaborated. PM Shehbaz remarked that a “tremendous reservoir of goodwill” between the two nations provided them a “unique and ideal opportunity to achieve our mutually-agreed target of $5bn in bilateral trade”. “Pakistan and Turkiye have always stood fi... -
Dawn - 16:38 Jul 04, 2026
Gaming giant PlayStation has been raked over the coals by consumers after its controversial announcement this week that it would end the production of physical game discs by January 2028, effectively meaning that games produced after that point would only be available on its digital marketplace. The development came days after Rockstar Games announced that physical copies of the much-anticipated Grand Theft Auto VI would not come with a disc, with the case containing a slip of paper with a download code. Additionally, Sony had earlier announced that it would remove over 500 movies on the PlayStation Network without refunds. Not only has the statement generated outrage among game preservationists, players and even politicians, but it has also inspired large companies to cash in on the controversy by putting out memes parodying the statement itself. ‘Digital only’ Domino’s Pizza published a tongue-in-cheek message announcing that from April 1, 2027, it would cease the production of physical pizzas and “shift to... -
Dawn - 15:51 Jul 04, 2026
Thousands protested against Germany’s far-right Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD) party and blocked roads to its annual conference in the eastern city of Erfurt on Saturday, where the party re-elected the two leaders who have overseen its rise as a national force. Protesters from unions, civil society groups and left-wing parties gathered as large numbers of police, including reinforcements from across Germany, were deployed ahead of the AfD’s two-day conference. Watched by police in riot gear, protesters sat in rows to block highways and roads leading to the convention centre where the meeting is being held. Police estimated around 15,000 people joined demonstrations in and around the eastern city. The AfD launched the event by re-electing party chiefs Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla, under whose leadership the AfD has surged to the top of national opinion polls ahead of Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s conservatives. The opening speeches mocked and lambasted the protesters as anti-democratic. They revelled in th... -
Dawn - 14:24 Jul 04, 2026
ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) is demanding a third-party forensic audit of the multi-billion-rupee project for the construction of the Islamabad High Court’s (IHC) Legal Facilitation Centre. The move comes as the legacy of costly flaws continues to haunt the main IHC building, which cost over Rs11 billion and came under severe criticism for faulty elevators, an inefficient cooling system and substandard work. According to official documents and a contempt application filed before the IHC, serious concerns have emerged over the execution of the Legal Facilitation Centre project at Constitution Avenue. The recent application filed by the CDA seeks the appointment of an independent technical auditor — preferably the National Engineering Services of Pakistan (NESPAK) — to verify executed work, measurements and excess quantities. The project, initially entrusted to the Pakistan Public Works Department (PWD), was transferred to the CDA following a federal cabinet decision in August 2024. The or... -
Dawn - 13:49 Jul 04, 2026
Vast crowds of Iranians massed in Tehran on Saturday to begin almost a week of funeral ceremonies for supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — who was assassinated in a US-Israeli strike on the first day of the Middle East conflict — an event intended to send a message of defiance to the West after the US-Iran war. Clad in black and waving blood-red flags seen as a call for vengeance and justice, mourners thronged the Grand Mosalla religious complex in Tehran, AFP correspondents said. Authorities believe the ceremonies will mobilise more than 10 million people in the capital alone for tributes to the man who ran the country for three-and-a-half decades. Six days of funeral ceremonies are planned to commemorate Khamenei, who ruled the Islamic republic as its number one from 1989 until his assassination aged 86 on the first day of the US-Israeli war on Iran on February 28. AFP photographs showed the coffins of Khamenei and four other family members at the front on a dais. There was still no sign of Khamenei’s so... -
Dawn - 13:48 Jul 04, 2026
LAHORE: In a testimony recorded before a judicial magistrate at cantonment courts, two foreign women detailed a multi-day ordeal involving their alleged kidnapping, million-dollar extortion, physical assault and sexual abuse, it emerged on Saturday. The two foreigners recorded their statements on Thursday, the same day police booked five suspects over alleged abduction and sexual assault after the two women were rescued. Four of the suspects, including a close relative of a senior political personality, were arrested and later sent on a five-day physical remand. The complainant-victim, a citizen of the Netherlands, provided her voluntary statement under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) following an investigation registered under a first information report (FIR) filed at the Defence C Police Station. The charges include severe offences under sections 375-A (rape) and 365-A (kidnapping for extortion) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC). According to the victim’s sworn statement, she and her fri... -
Dawn - 13:45 Jul 04, 2026
A dangerous heat wave upended fourth of July celebrations across swaths of the central and eastern US on Friday, forcing officials in the nation’s capital and elsewhere to cancel or postpone dozens of parades, concerts and fireworks displays. Among the events disrupted by the sweltering heat was the Great American State Fair on the National Mall in Washington, a centerpiece of President Donald Trump’s efforts to mark the nation’s 250th birthday. The fair, designed to showcase all 50 states, was temporarily closed on Friday afternoon as temperatures reached 38 degrees Celsius. Visitors wait to enter after a temporary closure of The Great American State Fair due to heat on the National Mall in Washington, DC, US, July 3, 2026. —AFP Late on Friday, organisers of the National Park Service’s Independence Day Parade in Washington announced they had canceled the annual event due to safety concerns. The parade had been scheduled to start on Saturday, with the Weather Service projecting heat index values to reach as h... -
Dawn - 13:22 Jul 04, 2026
The Directorate General of Immigration and Passports (DGIP) has partnered with logistics and courier company TCS to launch “Passport Aapki Dehleez Par” — a home delivery service for passports, according to a press release issued on Saturday. According to the press release, the service enables citizens to receive their passports at their preferred addresses, adding that the initiative marks a significant step towards enhancing convenience for citizens and modernising public service delivery. The service was formally launched during a meeting held at the DGIP headquarters. TCS Chief Executive Officer Hassan Raza Leghari reaffirmed the company’s commitment to supporting digital governance and citizen-centric services. He said: “TCS is proud to partner with DGIP in delivering an essential public service directly to citizens’ doorsteps.” “Passports are highly confidential and important documents. Leveraging our nationwide logistics network and service excellence, we are committed to ensuring that every passport re... -
Dawn - 12:37 Jul 04, 2026
As contaminated floodwater gushed into their home in Buner, north-western Pakistan, Khalid (name changed) and his wife helped their three children up to higher ground. Amid the chaos, the couple had one more crucial thing to rescue: their life-saving HIV drugs. They trudged through neck-deep water inside their home to save their antiretroviral treatment pills from being swept away, ignoring all other valuables. “The waist-deep mud left behind by floodwaters had cut off our village for more than eight days,” Khalid recalls. “Thankfully, my wife and I still had our HIV medication with us,” says the daily wager, who contracted the virus while working abroad five years prior. This happened last monsoon, in August 2025, when the skies opened on Pakistan, causing widespread flooding. Devastating riverine floods affected places like Buner, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Punjab province. The floods claimed over a thousand lives, with 808 of these casualties reported in the two provinces alone. They displaced t... -
Dawn - 11:49 Jul 04, 2026
Canada have already made World Cup history, while Mexico and the USA are also on course to beat their best-ever runs in the tournament as home advantage has paid dividends. AFP Sports looks at how all three co-hosts have thrived while others have struggled with the sprawling tournament spread over three countries and 17 cities. Mexico Swept along by fanatical support in the stadiums and the streets, Mexico have already ended a 40-year wait to win a knockout game by beating Ecuador to make the last 16. El Tri are confident of eliminating England in what could be a World Cup classic on Sunday. Javier Aguirre’s side made the most of a kind group-stage draw to ease past South Africa, South Korea and the Czech Republic. But the first-half destruction of Ecuador, who beat Germany in the group stages and finished second to Argentina in South American qualifying, served as a warning to England. Winger Julian Quinones has been Mexico’s breakout star with three goals in four games, while veteran striker Raul Jimenez br... -
Dawn - 11:02 Jul 04, 2026
Ukraine still controls the strategically important eastern city of Kostiantynivka, President Volodymyr Zelensky and the General Staff said on Saturday, rejecting Russian claims that it has been captured. Russia’s military told President Vladimir Putin on Friday that its forces had taken control of Kostiantynivka, a target that Moscow has long sought in its advance through the Donetsk region. “Of course, that is not true. It is just another Russian lie, an attempt to generate some kind of a news story,” Zelensky said on X. “If Kostiantynivka were under Russian control, then perhaps Putin would have no problem meeting me there to find a diplomatic way to finally end this war,” he added, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The General Staff also said Kostiantynivka remained under the control of Ukrainian forces. “Military units and subunits of the 19th Army Corps of the Eastern Grouping continue to conduct defensive operations on designated lines within the town and on its approaches,” it said in a st...
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