Pakistan

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K-P to pioneer digital pension reforms

Lawmakers unite to address worsening security situation in K-P

Once known for poverty, the province now drives 42% of its GDP through digital innovation, offering lessons for Pakist

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Index rises 1,810 points, getting support from economic reforms, earnings outlook

Cites examples of Saudi Arabia, Indonesia which allocated spectrum at 10% of last price

Unrest killed at least 19 people in Nepal on Monday, authorities said, as police in the capital fired tear gas and rubber bullets at protesters trying to storm parliament in anger at a social media shutdown and corruption. Some of the mainly youth protesters forced their way into the parliament complex in Kathmandu by breaking through a barricade, a local official said, setting fire to an ambulance and hurling objects at lines of riot police guarding the legislature. “The police have been firing indiscriminately,” one protester told the ANI news agency. “[They] fired bullets which missed me but hit a friend who was standing behind me. He was hit in the hand.” More than 100 people, including 28 police personnel, were receiving medical treatment for their injuries, police officer Shekhar Khanal told Reuters. Protesters were ferrying the injured to the hospital on motorcycles. Another two people were killed when protests in the eastern city of Itahari turned violent, police said. Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli cal...

Pakistan is set to host Sri Lanka for a series of one day international (ODI) matches in Rawalpindi from Novermber 11-15, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced on Monday. A day earlier, the PCB announced that it was set to host Sri Lanka and Afghanistan for a T20 International (T20I) tri-series for the first time from November 17 to 29 in Lahore and Rawalpindi. In a press release, the PCB noted that this would be Sri Lanka’s first bilateral ODI series in Pakistan since 2019, when they last visited for a three-match series that the Green Shirts won 2-0, with the first ODI in Karachi abandoned due to rain. “Sri Lanka’s most recent visit to Pakistan came in 2023, when they participated in the ACC Asia Cup and played against Afghanistan in Lahore,” the press release read. The PCB reiterated that the nation’s maiden tri-series will be held after the ODI matches, while the Green Shirts will host two ICC World Test Championship matches and six white-ball games against South Africa from October 12 to November 8....

Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi on Monday said the Supreme Court had plans to use artificial intelligence to categorise cases for fixation but the judiciary was “not ready” for the technology yet. He was addressing a judicial conference at the apex court, marking the commencement of the new judicial year. “We all talk about technology, we all talk about AI to be utilised for enhancing the justice delivery system,” Justice Afridi said, adding that 61,000 files will be digitally screened under a project that will be completed within six months. “It is only when you have them digitally scanned that you can utilise the tools of AI for categorisation. It will be easy to categorise cases and to fix before one bench one issue,” he said. The chief justice emphasised, “Yes, technology is necessary. Yes, AI has to be utilised. But no, not now. We are not ready for it. We have to prepare ourselves for that.” Justices Mansoor Ali Shah, Munib Akhtar, Aminuddin Khan, Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Ayesh...

The Quetta police arrested more than 100 protesters for violating a ban on gatherings, allegedly forcefully shutting down markets and blocking highways, an officer said on Monday. “More than 100 people were arrested under charges of violating Section 144, forcefully shutting down markets and blocking highways,” Quetta Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Muhammad Baloch told Dawn.com. The arrests come as six opposition political parties announced a complete wheel-jam and shutter-down strike across Balochistan today to protest against the suicide bombing that targeted a public meeting of the Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M) on Sept 2 and claimed 15 lives. Police in Quetta fired tear gas to disperse protesters and arrested them, AFP reported. AFP pictures showed people blocking roads by placing stones, which they were also pelting, and burning objects. At 12pm, the National Highways and Motorways Police said the N-25 highway near Baleli Custom in Quetta was closed due to a “public protest”. Parts of t...

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday expressed satisfaction as Pakistan Stock Exchange’s 100 index surpassed the historic 156,000 mark, lauding his economic team’s efforts to put the country’s economy on an upward trajectory.

Commander of United Arab Emirates (UAE) Naval Forces Major General Humaid Mohammed Abdulla Alremeithi who is on an official visit to Pakistan, called on Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, NI, NI (M) here Monday at Joint Staff Headquarters.

China will provide 3,000 training and study opportunities to Pakistani nationals from 2025 to 2029 under a new bilateral cooperation plan.

A Serene Air flight from Jeddah to Lahore was forced to make an emergency landing at Karachi Airport after developing a sudden technical fault.

Commander of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Naval Forces, Major General Humaid Abdulla Alremeithi, was on Monday awarded the Nishan-i-Imtiaz (Military) by President Asif Ali Zardari at a special investiture ceremony at the Presidency. A press release from the President’s Secretariat quoted Zardari as saying that the award was “in recognition of his outstanding services and contributions”. “He (President Zardari) added that the commander’s visit reflected the enduring fraternal ties between Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates, which stand as a testament to the two countries’ shared commitment to deepening cooperation in all fields,” the press release read. According to the press release, the president appreciated the confidence the UAE’s Navy placed in the professional expertise of the Pakistan Navy and expressed interest in further collaboration, stating that they remain ready to support their Emirati counterpart’s manpower requirements in the future. President Zardari also highlighted the extraordinary and...

Monday’s bus stop shooting in Jerusalem killed six people and injured several others, including a pregnant woman, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said at a press conference during a visit to Budapest. Earlier, emergency service and medical teams “pronounced the deaths of four victims, including a man about 50 years old and three men aged around 30”, a statement from Magen David Adom — Israel’s emergency service — said, adding it was providing medical treatment to several other people, with five evacuated to hospitals. The service received reports of more than a dozen people injured by gunfire on Monday at a road junction in east Jerusalem, with police saying the assailants had been “neutralised”. It later said paramedics and ambulance crews were providing medical treatment and evacuating five “seriously wounded people” who had been sent to hospitals in Jerusalem. “Several other victims, with varying degrees of injury, are also being treated at the scene,” it added. Two Israeli policemen speak to a border...

The Gilgit-Baltistan police chief on Monday banned the use of social media platform TikTok by personnel of the force for the purpose of maintaining “discipline”. A notification issued today from the office of the GB inspector general of police said: “In order to maintain discipline, uniformity and dignity of the force, it is hereby directed that no GB police officer/official shall use social media platform (TikTok).” It ordered all district police officers and unit heads to bring the direction to the notice of all personnel under their command, warning that any non-compliance would be “viewed seriously and cause disciplinary action”. In July, two constables from the Security Division Islamabad were suspended and facing an inquiry for allegedly violating the capital police’s social media policy by making and uploading TikTok videos in uniform. Sources had said that dozens of other lower-ranking officials had been warned and directed to remove their TikTok accounts to avoid further action. In March, the Punjab ...

The Embassy of Pakistan in Beijing on Monday commemorated the Defence and Martyrs Day of Pakistan with a solemn and dignified flag hoisting ceremony.

A local court has summoned Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to appear for cross-examination via video link on September 12 in the Rs10 billion defamation case filed against former prime minister Imran Khan.