London | Pakistan

The first Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) direct flight to London in six years took to the skies on Sunday afternoon after a special inauguration ceremony at Islamabad International Airport and landed at Heathrow airport hours later. The national flag carrier is expected to operate four weekly flights from Islamabad to London. These will be operated from Heathrow Airport’s Terminal 4, according to an earlier statement issued by the PIA spokesperson. PK-785’s voyage was inaugurated by Defence Secretary Lt Gen (r) Muhammad Ali, British High Commissioner Jane Mariott, and Chairman PIA Consortium Arif Habib, who jointly cut the ribbon, state-run Pakistan TV reported. The flight was scheduled to take off at 12:50pm, but faced a slight delay, eventually departing at 1:19pm. On March 26, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif had said that the PIA would commence its first direct flights from Islamabad and Lahore to London’s Heathrow Airport on March 29 and 30, respectively. Last September, PIA had received the go-ahead...

Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has officially resumed its direct flight operations to London after a gap of six years, with the first flight departing from Islamabad on Sunday.

LONDON: Prime Min­ister Shehbaz Sharif arr­ived in London in the early hours of Saturday morning after attending the in­augural meeting of the ‘Board of Peace’ in Was­hington, convened by US President Donald Trump. The prime minister’s spe­cial aircraft touched down at Luton Airport, after which he travelled to his residence in the British capital. Sources said he would remain in London for two days before leaving for Pakistan on Monday. He is accompanied on the visit by Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar and Federal Information Minister Atta Tarar. The premier had travelled to the United States at President Trump’s invitation to participate in the high-level gathering foc­u­sed on Gaza and broader peace efforts. Addressing the gathering in Washington, PM Shehbaz stressed the need to end ceasefire violations in Gaza, calling it “very important” for achieving long lasting peace in the war-torn territory. “The people of Palestine have long endured illegal occupation and immense suffering,” he said, adding that pro...

Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) founder Altaf Hussain was shifted to a hospital in London late Sunday after his health condition worsened, the party confirmed.

Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) founder Altaf Hussain was hospitalised in London on Sunday night after his “health deteriorated”. In a post on Sunday night, the party said doctors had conducted a medical examination of the MQM leader and admitted him to the hospital. Hussain currently lives in London, where he has been in self-imposed exile since 1992. He was later granted British citizenship. From London, Hussain played an active role in politics, regularly broadcasting political speeches to his followers in Karachi. “Mr Altaf Hussain was taken to the hospital on Sunday evening due to ill health, where after an initial examination, the doctors have admitted him to the hospital,” said the post on X. The party elaborated that doctors “administered an injection to him, and started an IV drip in view of weakness in his body”. Doctors will conduct a detailed examination of the party founder on Monday, added the post. The party founder was also “administered a blood transfusion on Sunday night on the advice of doct...

LAHORE - PIA is enhancing its flights to United Kingdom and now after resumption of flights to Man-ches­ter and announce­ment of flights from Islamabad to lon­don from 29 March, the airline has also finalised arrange­ments for launch of direct flight from Lahore to London from 30 March.

Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has announced the restoration of its Lahore–London flight operations, marking a return to the route after six years.

London Zoo on Tuesday arranged a photocall for its annual stocktake in central London, where a pair of newcomer capybaras, a huddle of penguins and a pride of lions were among the animals counted by zoo staff. The photocall is a media-friendly photo opportunity that the zoo organises for journalists and photographers at the start of its yearly animal count. During this event, keepers pose with animals, so that news agencies can capture images illustrating the zoo’s annual stocktake — the formal process of counting every animal on site as part of its licensing and conservation reporting obligations. The annual stocktake itself is a complete headcount of the zoo’s animals — from mammals and birds to reptiles and invertebrates — required under the zoo’s zoological licence and used to update global conservation databases that help manage breeding programmes worldwide. Here are a few glimpses from the 2026 stocktake for all animal lovers, featuring lions, penguins, capybaras, and other species. A lion is pictured ...

The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) announced on Tuesday that it was resuming direct flights to London in March 2026 after a six-year hiatus. In a statement, the PIA spokesperson said the national flag carrier was increasing its flights to the United Kingdom. He said the airline would operate four weekly flights from Islamabad to London from March 29, 2026. He said that the flights would be operated from Heathrow Airport’s Terminal 4. “The flights are being resumed after a long gap of six years,“ he added. The spokesperson further said that London was the airline’s “first-ever” international destination and remained one of its most important routes. He maintained that the national carrier was already operating three weekly flights to Manchester. In June 2020, the European Union Air Safety Agency had barred PIA from operating in EU countries over safety concerns after a flight from Lahore to Karachi crashed near Jinnah International Airport, killing around 100 passengers. The ban on flights followed the ...

LONDON: A demonstration outside the Bangladeshi High Commission in London on Saturday briefly turned tense when pro-Khalistan Sikh activists and a small group of Hindu protesters confronted each other, prompting police intervention. The Khalistan Movement wants an independent Sikh state carved out of India and dates back to India and Pakistan’s independence in 1947, when the idea was pushed forward in negotiations preceding the partition of the Punjab region between the two new countries. The protest was held in connection with reports of violence against Hindus in Bangladesh. During the gathering, Paramjeet Singh Pamma, identified by organisers as a coordinator of the Khalistan Referendum campaign, was involved in a brief scuffle with an Indian Hindu protester. Metropolitan Police officers on duty intervened quickly, separating the individuals and dispersing the groups from close proximity to the mission building. No injuries were reported. Following the incident, pro-Khalistan Sikh protesters formed a cordo...

Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) announced on Thursday that it will resume direct flights to London from March 2026, following the removal of a five-year ban on Pakistani airlines by UK authorities earlier this year.

Former Prime Minister and PML-N President Nawaz Sharif departed for London once again on Saturday.

The Foreign Office (FO) on Friday said it had “no information” about the prime minister’s coordinator on tourism, Sardar Yasir Ilyas, interacting with an Israeli ministry official in London. The spokesperson was asked about the incident after a video of the interaction began circulating on social media. It was filmed during the World Travel Market event in London, which took place from November 4 to 6, 2025. In the clip, Ilyas could be seen shaking hands with and conversing with an individual later identified as the Director General of Israel’s Ministry of Tourism, Michael Izhar-Kov. A translation of Israeli journalist Rai Kais’ X post in Hebrew said: “As you may recall, Pakistan was recently mentioned as one of the countries that may join the international force in Gaza.” However, London-based journalist Murtaza Ali Shah claimed in a post on X that “a group of individuals from Israel visited the Pakistan Pavilion unannounced and met the Pakistani delegation without introducing themselves.” Asked during a wee...

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has arrived in London, where she is staying at Avenfield House.

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif met world record holder Pakistani-origin student Mahnoor Cheema during his recent visit to London.

NEW YORK: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif reached London after concluding a week-long trip to the United States, where he headed a delegation to the 80th session of the UN General Assembly and met US President Donald Trump, describing their discussion as “very encouraging”. The formal bilateral interaction between the two leaders was held at the Oval Office and was closed to the press. According to a statement issued from Pakistan, the leaders discussed regional security and cooperation on counter-terrorism, among other matters. Calls Trump talks ‘very encouraging’ During an interaction with the media in New Jersey, aired on Saturday, the prime minister said the US was ready to share “techniques” with Pakistan in the areas of artificial intelligence, information technology and agriculture. He added that the US was also open to investment opportunities in the country. At the airport, the PM along with the foreign minister and others was seen off by UN and US ambassadors. Published in Dawn, September 28th, 2025

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday departed from London for New York to participate in the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif concluded his official visit to Saudi Arabia and departed from Riyadh for London on Wednesday.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif departed for London on Monday, where he is expected to stay for around two weeks.

More than 100,000 people massed on Saturday in central London for a march and rally organised by far-right activist Tommy Robinson, as anti-racism campaigners held a smaller counter-protest. Huge crowds, many draped in English and British flags, gathered through the morning just south of Westminster for what Robinson, a veteran of UK far-right organising, has branded the country’s “biggest free speech festival”. His latest ‘Unite the Kingdom’ event saw attendees march over Westminster Bridge before rallying near Downing Street for speeches by far-right figures from across Europe and North America. “The silent majority will be silent no longer,” Robinson told the crowd. “Today is the spark of a cultural revolution.” Supporters of British far-right activist Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, wave Union Jack, St George’s cross and Welsh flags as they walk through central London during a ‘Free speech’ march, on September 13. — AFP UK police said an estimated 110,000 people attended, noting ...