Islamabad | Pakistan

ISLAMABAD - Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry on Friday warned the Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) of its ongoing long march on Islamabad, saying the government will no longer tolerate chaos.

ISLAMABAD - The residents of federal capital faced inconvenience in both commuting and communication as the authorities placed containers on key intersections and suspended mobile data services in anticipation of the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) march towards Islamabad on Friday.

• Law enforcers use tear gas, barricades to contain procession • Dozens of personnel hurt; TLP alleges casualties from police firing • Trenches dug up to block marchers on G.T. Road; Chenab, Jhelum bridges sealed • Talal warns against violence or ‘mob blackmail’ • ATC grants 12-day remand for 110 TLP activists LAHORE: The Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) began marching towards Islamabad after Friday prayers, with a large number of supporters reaching Shahdara and staging a sit-in after clashes with police, partially paralysing the provincial capital. The law enforcers repeatedly tried to contain the procession near the group’s headquarters by erecting barricades and containers and using tear gas and other crowd-control measures. In the Gujrat district, local authorities on Friday night dug up trenches at least three locations along the G.T. Road to block the march headed towards Islamabad. However, the TLP, led by its chief Saad Rizvi, not only managed to take out the main procession in Lahore as part of its ...

POLITICAL uncertainty in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) has been deepening with each passing day, as both major coalition partners in the Chaudhry Anwarul Haq-led government have urged their leaders to allow them to withdraw from the coalition, ahead of the upcoming elections. Following recent shifts in political affiliations in the 53-member AJK Legislative Assembly, the PPP has raised its strength to 17 and the PML-N to nine, while the PTI forward bloc stands at 20. The PTI, which holds the office of the leader of the opposition, is left with only five lawmakers — one of whom has tendered his resignation, although it hasn’t been accepted yet — while two seats are held by members of other parties. The PPP’s parliamentary party and some key ticket holders, who met in Islamabad on Wednesday with its regional president Chaudhry Muhammad Yasin in the chair, unanimously resolved that the party should quit the government “sooner rather than later” to protect its political goodwill among the masses. Amid suspicions t...

Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry said on Thursday that the government always allowed peaceful marchers and demonstration, however, the Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) did not seek permission for a protest in Islamabad. Violence broke out in Punjab late yesterday night, after police launched a crackdown on the headquarters of TLP in a bid to arrest its chief, Saad Rizvi. At least three police constables were reportedly injured in clashes with enraged TLP supporters, who attacked law enforcers with stones and iron rods. Police responded with tear-gas shelling, turning Multan Road into a battleground. The group had annou­nced plans for a massive anti-Israel demonstration outside the US emb­as­sy in the federal capital on Friday. Addressing a press conference today in Islamabad, Chaudhry said the speeches by the leaders of the religious party were inflammatory and abusive in nature. “When did the TLP seek permission, when did it give assurances of following SOPs (standard operating procedures),” he ...

ISLAMABAD - A high-level Saudi business delegation led by Chairman of the Saudi-Pakistan Joint Business Council Prince Mansour bin Mohammad Al Saud arrived in Islamabad on Tuesday.

An Islamabad anti-terrorism court on Monday issued bailable arrest warrants for PTI leaders Omar Ayub, Zartaj Gul and central information secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram in a case pertaining to the Sangjani rally in September last year. On Sept 8, 2024, clashes took place between PTI leaders and the Islamabad police as party supporters rallied on the outskirts of the city, demanding the “immediate release” of ex-premier Imran Khan and criticising the government for marginalising the party. Following that, at least 10 PTI MNAs were arrested on Sept 9 and 10 last year from different areas of Islamabad, including the Parliament House. Today, ATC Judge Tahir Abbas Sipra presided over the hearing, where lawyers Sardar Masroof Khan, Amna Ali and Murtaza Toori appeared on behalf of the PTI leaders. The judge rejected Ayub’s application seeking an exemption from the hearing. “None of them have appeared before the court even once,” Judge Sipra observed. Subsequently, he ordered that the three PTI leaders be arrested and ...

Residents of various sectors of Islamabad have demanded that authorities intensify efforts to tackle the rising number of stray dogs in the city. Pakistan faces a worsening stray dog crisis marked by rising dog bites and rabies cases. The problem stems from unchecked breeding, poor waste management, and inadequate vaccination or sterilisation efforts. Authorities’ reliance on culling has drawn criticism from animal rights groups, which call for humane, coordinated strategies focused on vaccination, sterilisation, and awareness. According to a report by the state-run Associated Press of Pakistan (APP), citizens have reported that several areas — including sectors G-6, G-10, I-8, F-11, and surrounding localities — have been witnessing increased activity of stray dogs, often moving in aggressive packs. It added that multiple dog bite cases have been reported, with children and elderly residents being the most vulnerable. “This is not just a matter of nuisance — it’s a public safety emergency. Authorities must ac...

The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) announced on Saturday that it would resume flights to the United Kingdom from October 25, with nonstop flights from Manchester to Islamabad. This comes a day after the Pakistan High Commission in London announced that the national carrier would resume flight operations to the UK this month as PIA received its Foreign Aircraft Operating Permit from the UK Civil Aviation Authority and Third Country Operator approval, but no exact date was given. PIA announced its “historic return” to British skies with a post on X today, which read: “The wait is finally over! Pakistan International Airlines proudly reconnects Manchester and Islamabad, bringing loved ones closer once again.” In yesterday’s announcement, the high commission said flight operations to Manchester would be resumed during the first phase, after which Birmingham and London would follow suit. In July, the UK removed Pakistan from its Air Safety List, allowing Pakistani airlines to apply to operate flights in Bri...

A district and sessions court in Islamabad issued bailable arrest warrants for YouTuber Imran Riaz Khan and two officials from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s anti-corruption body, it emerged on Saturday. The arrest warrants, issued by Judicial Magistrate Abbas Shah yesterday and available with Dawn.com, were issued for Khan, head of the Directorate of Anti-Corruption Sadeeq Anjam and Adviser to the KP Chief Minister on Anti-Corruption Musaddiq Abbasi, over their alleged involvement in a social media campaign against Islamabad Judge Humayun Dilawar. Dilawar was the judge who convicted PTI founder and former prime minister Imran Khan in the Toshakhana case in 2023 and sentenced him to three years in prison. All three warrants were issued under Sections 20 (offences against dignity of a natural person), 24 (cyber stalking) of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, 2016 and Sections 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention), 109 (punishment of abetment if the act abetted is committed in consequ...

ISLAMABAD - Islamabad police Thursday stormed National Press Club Islamabad, vandalised the cafeteria, and assaulted journalists after reportedly mistaking them for Kashmiri protesters.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Thursday ordered an inquiry into a raid carried out by Islamabad police at the National Press Club (NPC), where several journalists were allegedly attacked. Visuals aired on DawnNewsTV showed policemen armed with batons attacking journalists on the press club premises. Visuals shared on social media also showed police dragging journalists out of what appeared to be the cafeteria. View this post on Instagram Another video shared by a Dawn.com correspondent showed a journalist holding his broken Nikon camera and his shirt ripped across the back. A statement issued by Naqvi stated that he had taken notice of the “unfortunate” incident and demanded a report from the Islamabad inspector general of police. “Violence against the journalist community cannot be tolerated under any circumstances,” he was quoted as saying. “Disciplinary action must be taken against officials involved in the incident,” he said. Meanwhile, Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) President Afzal Butt ...

Earthquake tremors were felt in several parts of Pakistan, including Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Islamabad, on Friday morning.

An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Islamabad on Monday issued a bailable arrest warrant for PTI senior leader Asad Qaiser in a case related to the March 2023 clashes outside the Federal Judicial Complex (FJC). Hours-long clashes took place between PTI workers and the Islamabad police on March 18, 2023, when former prime minister Imran Khan arrived at the FJC to attend a hearing in the first Toshakhana case, in which he was later arrested in August that year and has been behind bars since then. The same day, the Punjab police personnel had entered Imran’s Zaman Park residence in Lahore, which had also been the venue of a chaotic stalemate between the cops and the PTI just days before. ATC Judge Tahir Abbas Sipra presided over today’s hearing. Advocate Sardar Masroof Khan, Amna Ali and others appeared as the legal team for the PTI leaders, while Advocate Sardar Muhammad Razzaq was present as former Punjab chief minister Parvez Elahi’s counsel. The judge issued a bailable arrest warrant for Qaiser, ordering that h...

Former minister Shireen Mazari said on Saturday that a “heavily armed raiding party” of the Islamabad police had surrounded her house at 1am and enquired about her daughter, Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir, and son-in-law, Hadi Ali Chattha. “At 1am this morning, a heavily armed raiding party of ICT police from Secretariat thana (police station) surrounded my home and asked for Imaan and Hadi. They were not there, and we informed them of the same. Cops said they had an FIR (first information report) against them and they should report to the thana. Eventually they left,” she posted on X. In a subsequent post, she referred to a protest at the Islamabad High Court yesterday, where Imaan — who is a lawyer and rights activist — and others had raised slogans in support of judicial independence. The lawyers had staged a protest on the premises of the IHC to oppose the suspension of Justice Tariq Mahmood Jahangiri from judicial work. Isl­a­mabad Bar Council member Ale­­em Abbasi, ex-president of the Islamabad High Court Ba...

An Islamabad court indicted accused Umar Hayat in the murder case of 17-year-old social media influencer Sana Yousaf on Saturday. The accused pled not guilty to murdering Yousaf, who was shot dead at her house in June. During the hearing, Additional District and Sessions Judge Mohammad Afzal Majoka enquired whether Hayat had killed Sana. “I did not commit any such crime,” the accused replied. The judge then asked him whether he was falsely accused in the case. “Is this all a lie?” the judge remarked. He also pointed out that Hayat had also been accused of snatching Yousaf’s mobile phone. At that, the accused maintained that all allegations levelled against him were “based on falsehood”. The court then adjourned the hearing until September 25. Islamabad police had arrested Hayat on June 3, a day after Yousaf was killed at her house in Islamabad. Preceding his arrest, a first information report (FIR) of the murder was registered at Islamabad’s Sumbal police station against an unidentified man on the complaint o...

Pakistan Railways has announced plans to introduce a high-speed train service between the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi, aiming to ease daily commutes and cut travel time to just 20 minutes.

ISLAMABAD: Days after Pakistan asked the Afghan Taliban to choose whether they want to stand with their neighbour, or the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pak­­i­s­tan (TTP) militant group, a key US official has called on Islamabad to seek a political settlement with Kabul. Zalmay Khalilzad, who was named US special representative to Afghanistan during the previous Trump administration, also called on Afghanistan to “help Pakistan with such negotiations”. The former diplomat recently undertook a visit to Kabul alongside US hostage envoy Adam Boehler, where he met with key members of the Afghan Taliban regime. In a tweet posted after he wrapped up his visit, Khalilzad noted that violence between Pakistan’s security forces and the TTP had resulted in the deaths of a significant number of security personnel and citizens. Imran echoes Khalilzad’s views, terms dialogue with Kabul only way to achieve lasting peace Saying that he believed pursuing a military solution to this challenge was a mistake, he called on Islamabad...

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government has decided to construct a new “KP House” in the Makhnial area of Haripur district, located just 15 kilometers from Islamabad.

An Islamabad court has issued a written order on a petition seeking registration of a case against former president Arif Alvi.