Pakistani | Pakistan

Pakistani film Moklani: The Last Mohanas has won the country’s first-ever award at the Jackson Wild Media Awards, according to a press release from production company Jawad Sharif Films. Formed in 1991 as the Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival, the Jackson Wild Media Awards recognise achievements in wildlife filmmaking. According to the group’s website, it works to “maximise the impact of storytelling that highlights our urgent and collective responsibility to protect and restore our planet”. According to the press release, the film — directed and produced by award-winning filmmaker Jawad Sharif — was chosen from a pool of over 500 entries and declared the winner in the Global Voices Category at the Awards Gala in Jackson, Wyoming, on October 2. “Over 200 international judges screened more than 1,000 hours of media before selecting the film as [the] winner in the Global Voices Category,” the press release read. “The film tells the story of the Mohanas of Manchar Lake, an indigenous fisher folk community whos...

Civil society and advocacy groups gathered on Thursday outside the Karachi Press Club to protest against the detention of activists aboard the Gaza Sumud Flotilla (GSF), calling on the government to demand the release of the Pakistani delegation, led by former Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) senator Mushtaq Ahmad Khan. On Wednesday, the GSF, carrying aid to Gaza in its attempt to break Israel’s blockade, was intercepted by Israeli military forces. On board the GSF were over 400 activists from 40 countries, among them a five-member delegation from Pakistan. Thursday’s demonstration, organised by the Pakistan Palestine Forum (PFF) in collaboration with the Palestine Action Coalition (PAC) and the non-profit organisation Human Rights Council of Pakistan, aimed to mobilise the public against the state’s inaction. People of all ages gathered, chanting slogans for a free Palestine. The demonstrators demanded the immediate release of the detained Pakistanis and called on the government to take concrete action against Israel. “...

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi confirmed on Saturday that the Pakistani crew of an LPG tanker attacked in Yemen has been safely released.

WASHINGTON: In a major bipartisan initiative, US lawmakers have introduced the Pakistan Freedom and Accountability Act (H.R. 5271), aimed at imposing sanctions on Pakistani officials responsible for human rights abuses and actions undermining democracy. The bill was announced by Bill Huizenga, Chairman of the House Subcommittee on South and Central Asia and Republican Party lawmaker from Michigan, and co-led by Democrat leader from California Sydney Kamlager-Dove, along with representatives John Moolenaar (Republican), Julie Johnson (Democrat), and Jefferson Shreve (Republican). Additional cosponsors include Rich McCormick (Republican), Jack Bergman (Republican), Joaquin Castro (Democrat), and Mike Lawler (Republican). The freedom and accountability bill authorizes the US President to impose sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act, which allows Washington to target individuals responsible for severe human rights violations or corruption. In this case, it would apply to current or ...

Pakistani authorities have allegedly been surveilling over four million of its citizens, via tools of mass surveillance, acquired from private foreign companies, further clamping down on the country’s cyber landscape, an Amnesty International report revealed on Tuesday. The report, titled “Shadows of Control: Censorship and Mass Surveillance in Pakistan“ alleged that “Pakistani authorities have continued to unlawfully surveil the country’s citizens, including regular citizens, journalists, as well as prominent politicians.” The rights watchdog stated that Pakistani authorities allegedly “use the Lawful Intercept Management System (LIMS) to surveil a significant portion of the population’s digital activity through Pakistani telecommunications providers.” The number of phones under surveillance could be higher as all four major mobile operators have been ordered to connect to LIMS, Amnesty technologist Jurre van Berge told Reuters. The report, citing the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), said that tel...

Bangladesh has announced 500 new scholarships for talented Pakistani students in a bid to strengthen bilateral ties between the two countries.

Posts from multiple Islamophobic, right-wing and Indian users on social media platform X since Tuesday were sharing a video of a small girl with a baby on a hospital bed, alleging that it showed a 12-year-old Pakistani girl with a newborn baby after being impregnated by a 60-year-old man. However, this video is not from Pakistan and shows two Vietnamese siblings. A day ago, a video showing a young girl with a baby was shared on X by a user sharing Islamophobic content, based on their past posts. The caption of the post said: “Pakistan: Islam is a Cult Religion. How sad … A shocking case has emerged in Pakistan where an 11-year-old girl was married to a 60-year-old man and gave birth at age 12. Really, Islam is sexual child abuse religion!” This post was viewed by over 16 million users. An Indian propaganda account on X also shared a similar post with the same claim, which received over 102,000 views. Additionally, several other users on X widely circulated the same claim as can be seen here, here, here, and h...

Former Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) senator Mushtaq Ahmad Khan will lead the Pakistani delegation aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla bound for the Gaza Strip, according to posts from his social media account on Friday. Earlier this month, it was announced that Pakistan would be joining the Global Sumud Flotilla to break the Israeli siege of Gaza, according to a post on Instagram by the Pak-Palestine Forum, a platform aiming to advance support for the Palestinian cause. According to its website, the flotilla is a “coordinated, nonviolent fleet of mostly small vessels sailing from ports across the Mediterranean to break the Israeli occupation’s illegal siege on Gaza”. Reuters reports that dozens of boats carrying aid will depart Spain and Tunisia and set sail for the Gaza Strip. Swedish activist Greta Thunberg and Portuguese left-wing politician Mariana Mortagua are among hundreds of people from 44 countries participating in the flotilla. Sumud means “perseverance” in Arabic. Among the participants is a five-member deleg...

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday expressed his satisfaction that as a result of the consensus reached during his visit to Belarus, a memorandum of understanding was signed today to facilitate the employment of skilled Pakistani workers in different sectors of Belarus.

WASHINGTON: For the first time since their four-day flare-up in May that brought South Asia to the brink of nuclear confrontation, the prime ministers of India and Pakistan will appear on the same day at the 80th session of the UN General Assembly on Sept 26. According to a provisional schedule shared by UN officials, Pakistan may have a strategic advantage of speaking after India, giving it a direct platform to respond to New Delhi’s narrative. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will lead a high-level Pakistani delegation, which will include Deputy Prime Mini­ster Ishaq Dar, as well as the PM’s adviser on foreign affairs, Tariq Fatemi. The 80th UNGA officially opens on Sept 9, with the high-level general debate running from Sept 23 to 29. Brazil will speak first, followed by the US, where President Trump will deliver his first address to the UNGA in his second term. This year’s theme is: ‘Better together: 80 years and more for peace, development and human rights.’ According to the provisional list, India’s premie...

Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar on Tuesday appreciated the united front posed by the Pakistani diaspora in the United Kingdom during Operation Bunyanun Marsoos.

LAHORE: Türkiye has made changes in transit visa fee for Pakistanis, and updated rates for both single and double transit categories. The changes are part of continues efforts of Türkiye to simplify travel processes for international passengers going through its strategic hubs, especially Istanbul. A Türkiye transit visa lets Pakistani and travellers from other countries to […]

ISLAMABAD - Senate parliamentary party leader and senior PML-N figure Senator Irfan Siddiqui has strongly rejected India’s latest claim of downing Pakistani aircraft, calling it “baseless and farcical”.

ISLAMABAD – Pakistani security officials have rejected Indian media reports framing Field Marshal Asim Munir’s recent interaction with the Pakistani diaspora in the United States as jingoistic, saying the portrayal is misleading and politically motivated.

China’s former defence attache in South Asia Cheng Xizhong on Sunday spurned India’s much-delayed claim that it had shot down six Pakistani aircraft during the May conflict, terming it “self-amusement”. Having faced international coverage of its own craft being downed by Pakistan and scathing criticism from the opposition, India’s Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh — three months after the conflict — claimed yesterday that his country had shot down five Pakistani fighter jets and one other military aircraft during those clashes. While Pakistan had already denied that India downed any of its aircraft, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif swiftly rubbished Singh’s “belated assertions” yesterday. Commenting on the matter today, Cheng said India’s allegations lacked strong evidence and have been “widely questioned by the international community, being considered groundless”, the Associated Press of Pakistan reported. Singh’s remarks were “comical, implausible and unconvincing”. “We may call it self-amusement,” he said i...

Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff, Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, held meetings with senior American political and military officials, as well as members of the Pakistani diaspora, during his official visit to the United States, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Sunday.

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Saturday rubbished what he said were “implausible” and “comical” claims by the Indian Air Force chief that the country had shot down five Pakistani fighter jets and one other military aircraft during clashes in May. The comments are the first such statement by the Indian side three months after its worst military conflict in decades with its neighbour. During the conflict, Pakistan said it downed five Indian planes in air-to-air combat on May 7, later stating that figure as six. India’s highest-ranking general has also acknowledged that its forces suffered losses in the air, but denied losing six aircraft. Speaking at an event in the southern city of Bengaluru, Indian Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh claimed: “We have at least five fighters confirmed killed, and one large aircraft,” adding that the large aircraft, which could be a surveillance plane, was shot down at a distance of 300 kilometres. He alleged that most of the Pakistani aircraft were downed by India’s Russian-m...

Pakistani security forces have downed an Indian drone in Lahore’s Manawan area, raising fresh concerns over cross-border surveillance activities.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani students have secured four medals at the 2nd International Nuclear Science Olympiad (INSO-2025) held in Malaysia, marking a proud moment for the country’s scientific community. The team’s impressive performance includes one Gold, one Silver, and two Bronze medals, underscoring the exceptional talent and potential of Pakistan’s youth in the field of nuclear science. […]

Applications are now open for the UK Government’s Chevening Scholarships 2025, offering fully funded one-year master’s degrees at leading UK universities for Pakistani students.