Pakistan

Minister for Railways Muhammad Hanif Abbasi made an unannounced visit to Lahore Railway Station on Thursday, engaging directly with passengers to gather feedback on services.

Swedish prosecutors said on Thursday the intelligence service’s arrests of a Kurdish representative and a Swedish diplomat were not linked to a journalist facing “terror” charges in Turkiye. Public broadcaster Sveriges Radio had alleged late on Wednesday that one of the suspects was connected to the case of Swedish journalist Joakim Medin, who is currently in custody in Turkey awaiting trial on a charge of belonging to a “terrorist” group. The Swedish Security Service (Sapo) confirmed to AFP that two people had recently been arrested for “aggravated unauthorised handling of secret information”. They had since been released but were still suspects, Sapo said. It declined to disclose any details of the case. Sveriges Radio said one of the suspects in Sapo’s case was a Swedish citizen who was a leading representative for Kurds in Northern Syria. The other was a diplomat at the foreign ministry. The broadcaster said it was unclear whether the arrests had been made as a result of a request from Turkey or not. But ...

Bulls took control of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Thursday as shares gained over 1,400 points, bringing calm to yesterday’s heightened volatility. The positive momentum comes just a day after Pakistan received the second tranche from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), worth $1 billion, under its loan programme. The KSE-100 index opened with a gain of 858.23 points (0.73 per cent) to stand at 119,394.75 points from the previous close of 118,536.52 at 9:40am. The intraday high was recorded 119,990.30 points at around 3:18pm, 1,453.78 points (1.23pc) higher than yesterday. Finally, the KSE-100 closed at 119,961.91 points, with a gain of 1,425.39 points (1.20pc) compared to the previous close. This screengrab taken at around 3:40pm shows bullish activity at the PSX on May 15, 2025. — PSX data portal Samiullah Tariq, head of research and development at Pak Kuwait Investment Company Ltd, said the market was positive due to the recent inflows from the IMF. He also noted there were “expectations of furth...

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan has firmly denied any agreement or deal involving PTI founder Imran Khan.

The Islamabad High Court has issued notices to all parties, including the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), regarding appeals seeking suspension of the sentences handed to former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi in the £190 million case.

Minister of State for Petroleum, Ali Pervez Malik, on Thursday shared key details about the Reko Diq gold and copper mining project during a National Assembly session, revealing timelines, production targets, and financial benefits for Balochistan.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, in a phone conversation with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on Thursday, voiced strong concern over recent provocative remarks by Indian leaders, asserting that Pakistan would firmly defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity against any future aggression.

The Director Generals of Military Operations (DGMOs) of Pakistan and India held their third hotline conversation on Wednesday since agreeing to uphold a ceasefire brokered with the support of the United States and other friendly nations.

A powerful explosion targeted the vehicle of local JUI-F leader Maulana Noorullah on Thursday near a seminary in the lower South Waziristan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, police said. The explosion hit Maulana Noorullah’s car near Shahzad Madrassah, adjacent to a police station in the district’s Azam Warsak market. According to a police statement, the bomb attack was carried out to target Maulana Noorullah, who remained unharmed. Police confirmed the incident and said there were no casualties in the explosion. Security forces cordoned off the area and started an investigation. According to a video later released by the JUI-F, Maulana Noorullah told his supporters that he was accompanied by local party leaders Maulana Ishaq and Maulana Amanullah when the blast occurred. “We all are safe,” he told his supporters. “We want peace in the country and protection of religious schools, mosques and all Muslims.” JUI-F leaders have been targeted in different parts of KP and Balochistan over the past several months. On ...

ISLAMABAD - Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq on Wednesday visited the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) Rawalpindi to meet with soldiers and civilians injured during the recent escalations between Pakistan and India.

The first of 180 Pakistani Hajj flights scheduled to fly to Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah — part of the Road to Makkah Initiative — arrived at the King Abdul Aziz International Airport from Islamabad carrying 310 Haj pilgrims, the Associated Press of Pakistan reported today. Launched in 2019 at the Islamabad airport and later extended to Karachi, the Road to Makkah initiative offers an exemption to Haj pilgrims from the immigration process at Saudi airports by clearing them at their respective airports in Pakistan by Saudi immigration officials before boarding their flights. Marking the second phase of the initiative, the passengers were received at the airport by Minister of Religious Affairs & Interfaith Harmony Sardar Muhammad Yousaf, Consul General of Pakistan in Jeddah Khalid Majid, DG Hajj Abdul Wahab Soomro and the senior officers of the Consulate General of Pakistan. The pilgrims were presented bouqets by the receiving party. This year, an estimated 50,500 Haj pilgrims will travel to Saudi Arabia under the in...

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United States was getting very close to securing a nuclear deal with Iran, and Tehran had “sort of” agreed to the terms. “We’re in very serious negotiations with Iran for long-term peace,” Trump said on a tour of the Gulf, according to a shared pool report by AFP. “We’re getting close to maybe doing a deal without having to do this … there [are] two steps to doing this, there is a very, very nice step and there is the violent step, but I don’t want to do it the second way,” he said. An Iranian source familiar with the negotiations said there were still gaps to bridge in the talks with the United States. Fresh talks between Iranian and US negotiators to resolve disputes over Tehran’s nuclear programme ended in Oman on Sunday with further negotiations planned, officials said, as Tehran publicly insisted on continuing its uranium enrichment. Though Tehran and Washington have both said they prefer diplomacy to resolve the decades-long nuclear dispute, they remai...

Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, Raja Faisal Mumtaz Rathore, announced on Thursday that the AJK government has allocated Rs1 billion in relief funds for victims affected by recent Indian aggression across the Line of Control (LoC).

The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) on Thursday registered a case against five individuals for allegedly orchestrating a social media campaign targeting Pakistan’s state institutions.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday directed authorities to provide agricultural loans to farmers on easy terms and enhance focus on agricultural research to boost productivity.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has reaffirmed Pakistan’s determination to elevate its relationship with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) into a robust and mutually beneficial economic partnership.

• OMCs, refineries, dealers to benefit from additional Rs75bn • Petroleum division mulls GST on oil products ISLAMABAD: For a third time in two months, the government is considering imposing additional costs — this time at the rate of Rs4.12 per litre — on the prices of petroleum products, a move that may deprive consumers of potential relief in prices due to be announced for the next fortnight today (Thursday). This has been proposed by the petroleum division to the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet. The impact of Rs4.12 per unit works out to be around Rs75 billion on an annual basis to be paid to oil marketing companies (OMCs), refineries and retail dealers to meet their demands. On top of this, the petroleum division has also recommended imposition of general sales tax on petroleum products at the rate of Rs3-5 per litre from July 1, through the finance bill 2025-26. Without these proposed measures, the prices of petrol and diesel were estimated to decline by about Rs3.5 and Rs7 per litr...

Pakistan has called for revitalizing the political process in Yemen, emphasizing that only a comprehensive, diplomatic solution can secure a peaceful and stable future for the war-torn Arab nation.

Pakistan Air Force’s Air Vice Marshal (AVM) Aurangzeb Ahmed has become a widely admired figure among Pakistani youth, following his composed and confident presence during media briefings in the aftermath of the recent conflict with India.

PARIS: Human Rights Watch on Wednesday said grave abuses were being committed on giant construction sites in Saudi Arabia and warned the risks to migrant workers could increase as the building of stadiums for the 2034 World Cup gathers pace. HRW said that “scores of migrant workers in Saudi Arabia die in gruesome yet avoidable workplace-related accidents, including falling from buildings, electrocution, and even decapitation”. The NGO, which has studied nearly 50 cases of deaths in Saudi Arabia, said Saudi authorities had “failed to adequately protect workers from preventable deaths, investigate workplace safety incidents, and ensure timely and adequate compensation for families” including through life insurance policies and benefits to survivors. “The risks of occupational deaths and injuries are further increasing as the Saudi government ramps up construction work for the 2034 World Cup as well as other ‘giga-projects’,” HRW added. The Gulf kingdom was handed the right to host the 2034 World Cup at a FIFA C...