Pakistan

Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik announced on Thursday that the price of petrol was being raised to Rs458.4 per litre and that of high-speed diesel (HSD) to Rs520.35 per litre. He made the announcement while addressing a press conference alongside Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb. Breakup of the new petrol prices Soon after his announcement, the energy ministry also notified the new prices, with petrol’s price being raised by Rs137.24 per litre and diesel’s by Rs184.49 per litre. The government also increased kerosene prices by Rs34.08 per litre to Rs457.80 per litre. Malik said the new prices would be effective from Friday. The latest hike comes amid a global fuel crisis resulting from the US-Israeli war on Iran, which began on February 28. It was announced around a week after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said he had rejected a third recommendation for an increase of Rs95 per litre in the price of petrol and Rs203 per litre in that of HSD since the war began. Previously, the PM said he had rejected a...

KARACHI: At least five people were killed on Thursday as heavy rain lashed the metropolis, while the city administration declared an emergency. According to police and rescue officials, the deaths occurred in separate incidents; four people died due to electrocution while a fifth was killed due to a crumbling building amid the heavy rainfall. Site Superhighway Industrial Area Police Station House Officer (SHO) Mohammed Nawaz told Dawn that Shahabuddin, 40, was trying to fix an electrical issue in Ahsanabad when he suffered an electric shock and died. He said the deceased was believed to be an employee of K-Electric. PIB Colony police SHO Rana Mohammed Ajmal said that a 35-yer-old man, Abdul Waleed, died when he touched an electric pole near Faizan Milad Masjid. Surjani Police SHO Sohail Khaskheli told Dawn that 7-year old Dua Batool Sarfraz was killed when she suffered an electric shock inside her home in Sector-7-A. Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Edhi Foundation said in a statement that a 23-year-old man,...

The 34th day of the US-Israel war against Iran unfolded in the immediate aftermath of US President Donald Trump’s speech, which, rather than opening any pathway to de-escalation, appeared to have hardened positions across the conflict spectrum. The remarks triggered swift Iranian retaliation, and reinforced a trajectory of sustained attrition with an increasingly central focus on economic pressure and maritime control. In his speech, Trump declared that US and Israeli objectives were nearing completion, while committing to another two to three weeks of intensified strikes and warning that Iran could be pushed “back to the Stone Age” if it failed to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Trump’s formulation looked to be a combination of coercive diplomacy and continued military escalation, even as it left ambiguity over the precise end state being sought. The immediate Iranian response underscored the limited deterrent effect of the speech as Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched one of its largest single-ni...

US President Donald Trump has removed Attorney General Pam Bondi from her post, a White House official said on Thursday, following mounting frustration with her performance, including her handling of investigative files related to the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Trump had also reportedly grown frustrated that Bondi was not moving quickly enough to prosecute critics and adversaries whom he wanted to face criminal charges. In a social media post, Trump praised Bondi as a “Great American patriot and a loyal friend” and said she will move to a job in the private sector. Trump said Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, his former personal lawyer, will lead the Justice Department in the interim. During her tenure as the top US law enforcement official, Bondi was a combative champion of Trump’s agenda and dismantled the Justice Department’s longstanding tradition of independence from the White House in its investigations. But it was repeated criticism over the Epstein files, including from Trump...

MUZAFFARABAD: The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) High Court on Thursday ruled that Afghan nationals residing in the region, even if subject to repatriation policies, could not be detained or deported without due process of law and directed the government to immediately establish a legal mechanism to regulate such cases. In a detailed judgment authored by Justice Syed Shahid Bahar, the court disposed of three identical constitutional petitions challenging the detention of Afghan nationals allegedly taken into police custody for repatriation. The petitioners had contended that despite possessing valid documents and residing lawfully in AJK for decades, they were taken into custody by police without lawful justification and faced imminent deportation. The government, in its reply, maintained that Afghan nationals were being taken into custody as a precautionary measure under a broader repatriation policy, though it conceded that no specific criminal charges had been levelled against them.  The court observed that ...

Pakistan on Thursday expressed optimism about ongoing efforts for US-Iran negotiations, despite rhetoric from any side, while highlighting the strong commonalities and widespread appreciation received by the five-point peace plan announced in Beijing and the seven-point summary of the quadrilateral talks held in Islamabad.

PM asks provinces to axe 'some' projects

Petrol price smashes records after Rs137 jump HSD surges by 55% to Rs520 per litre Petroleum levy reaches a reco

8 terrorists killed in North Waziristan

IRGC says it attacked Amazon cloud data center in Bahrain, Oracle data centre in Dubai Trump says Iran's biggest b

FO says cross-border anti-terror operation to continue

The National Assembly of Pakistan on Thursday passed the National Fund for Cultural Heritage (Amendment) Bill, 2026, with a majority vote.

Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar held separate phone calls with his counterparts from Egypt and Uzbekistan on Thursday to discuss regional developments and diplomatic cooperation.

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Warns of escalation if denied rally permission

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Warns Indian counterpart against provocations ahead of Pahalgam attack anniversary

Advisory body to meet on April 7 as rains boost water levels across major reservoirs

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