Pakistan

SC bench takes up appeals against LHC's June 24 ruling

Move aims at avoiding straining alliance with PML-N

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Expresses concern over Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Project closure

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Texas legislators on Wednesday took up a new state congressional map intended to flip five Democratic-held U.S. House seats in next year’s midterm elections, after dozens of Democratic lawmakers ended a two-week walkout that had temporarily blocked passage. Republican legislators, who have dominated Texas politics for over two decades, have undertaken a rare mid-decade redistricting […]

Three children were among four more people killed in rain-related incidents in Karachi on Wednesday evening, raising the death toll to 14 as the metropolis was lashed with heavy rainfall for a second consecutive day. Tuesday’s rains had severely strained Karachi’s fragile infrastructure, causing stormwater drains and sewers to burst, and also disrupted industrial operations across the economic hub. Several areas experienced extended power and internet services outages which continued late into Wednesday, disrupting everyday life and adding to citizens’ misery. Due to the severity of the situ­ation, the provincial admin­­istration had anno­unced a public holiday in the city today. An Edhi Foundation spokesperson said in a statement that two unidentified children drowned in the Lyari River in Liaquatabad’s C-1 Area and near Al-Asif Square in Sohrab Goth, while Rescue-1122 spokesperson Hassaan Ul Haseeb Khan told Dawn.com that their rescue team continued the search operation until nightfall, but it was halted du...

India on Wednesday test-fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile capable of carrying multiple nuclear warheads, a government statement said, in an apparent show of strength ahead of a threatened US tariff increase. The Agni-5 missile was successfully launched in India’s eastern Odisha state, with authorities saying it “validated all operational and technical parameters.” The test-fire came a week before US tariffs are set to double from 25 per cent to 50 pc, unless India meets President Donald Trump’s demand that it stop buying Russian oil. India last tested the Agni-5 missile in March 2024. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said this month that, in the face of US tariffs, India was seeking self-reliance with energy independence and the development of its own defence systems. New Delhi has deepened defence cooperation with Western countries in recent years, including in the Quad alliance with the United States, Japan and Australia as an apparent counter to rival China. But India’s relations with China have wa...

Israel’s military has taken the first steps of a planned operation to take over Gaza City, Israeli military spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin said on Wednesday. Following a clash with Hamas south of Khan Younis in the strip on Wednesday, he said: “We will deepen the attack on Hamas in Gaza City, a stronghold of […]

Hindu women in Sindh weigh heritage tattoos against modern identity

Mahira Khan recounts terrifying experience amid floods and rains

Actor speaks of grief after Jeff Baena's death, calling it a "daily struggle" on Poehler's podcast

From futuristic battlefields to demon hunt, gaming finds new frontiers

Sanam Marvi and Ahmed Shah resolve dispute

The First Descendant makers address claims of fake AI

Kalash community's heritage enters legal framework

A letter, penned by Supreme Court Justices Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Munib Akhtar, has exposed another deepening rift within Pakistan’s apex court, this time over Chief Justice Yahya Afridi’s failure to implement what the two judges argue was a legally binding decision by a Supreme Court Committee to hear challenges to the controversial 26th Constitutional Amendment before a Full Court. The letter, which has surfaced amid a brewing controversy, reveals a clash over judicial independence, transparency, and the handling of one of Pakistan’s most politically charged constitutional issues: the 26th Amendment, which alters judicial authority and tenure, and has been a lightning rod for debate, with opposition parties and legal experts questioning its impact on the judiciary’s autonomy. The letter states that on October 31, 2024, Justices Shah and Akhtar, members of the Supreme Court Committee formed under the Practice and Procedure Act, 2023, had pushed for a Full Court hearing to address petitions challenging the...

KABUL: Pakistan, China, and Afghanistan on Wednesday reaffirmed their commitment to enhancing joint efforts in counterterrorism and deepening cooperation in trade, transit, and other key sectors. The pledge came during the Sixth Trilateral Foreign Ministers’ Dialogue held today in Kabul. The meeting brought together Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, China’s Foreign Minister, […]

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday visited the flood-affected districts of Swat, Buner and Shangla in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, as 14 more bodies were recovered from debris in Swabi’s Dalori. Record rains in KP, which started on August 15, have wreaked havoc on different parts of the province. Last week, the provincial government declared an emergency as torrential rains ravaged homes, displaced families, and left a trail of destruction across Buner, Swat, Shangla, Mansehra, and beyond. “Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, accompanied by federal ministers and Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, visited the flood-affected districts of Swat, Buner, and Shangla,” the Press Information Department said in a press release. Separately, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar, while speaking to the media in Peshawar, expressed gratitude to the federal and provincial governments, Pakistan Army, political parties and their organisations, as well as all individuals and institutions that came forward to provide a...