Pakistan

The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Thursday that a “high-value target” identified as a commander of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) was among four terrorists killed after security forces thwarted an attempt to infiltrate the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. In a statement, the military’s media affairs wing said that last night the movement of a group of khwarij attempting to infiltrate through the Pakistan-Afghanistan border was picked up by security forces in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Bajaur district. “Own troops effectively engaged and thwarted khwarijs’ attempt to infiltrate. As a result of precise and skilful engagement, four khwarij, including kharji leader, a high-value target kharji Amjad alias Mazahim, were sent to hell,” the ISPR said. The statement further said that the militant leader was the deputy of TTP chief Noor Wali Mehsud and the head of Rehbari Shura of Indian proxy Fitna al Khwarij. Fitna al Khawarij is a term the state uses for terrorists belonging to the TTP. The ISPR said th...

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Teachers protest as 100 colleges face outsourcing in first phase

Former DGs, finance directors quizzed; two suspects arrested

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Drive aims to curb rising air pollution in Islamabad, Pindi and other districts

Thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jewish men, dressed in black, rallied in Jerusalem on Thursday to protest against military conscription, an issue that has caused major strain in Israel’s right-wing ruling coalition. The vast crowd were protesting against the absence of a law guaranteeing their right to avoid Israel’s mandatory military service — a pledge long promised by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Crowds of men, many wearing black hats, set fire to pieces of tarpaulin as hundreds of police officers cordoned off several roads across the city, AFP correspondents reported. Carrying placards denouncing conscription, demonstrators marched along main roads leading into Jerusalem. The mass demonstration follows a recent crackdown on ultra-Orthodox draft dodgers, with thousands of call-up notices sent in recent months and several deserters imprisoned. Under a ruling established at the time of Israel’s creation in 1948, when the ultra-Orthodox were a very small community, men who devote themselves full-tim...

Rules FIRs alone can't restrict movement

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CM pledges Rs10b for modernisation, integration of forces

Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani blamed a “Palestinian party” for a ceasefire violation, referring to the reported killing of an Israeli soldier in southern Gaza’s Rafah on Tuesday. Speaking at the Council of Foreign Relations in New York yesterday, the PM told interviewer Ayman Mohyeldin that the attack on the Israeli soldiers was “basically a violation by the Palestinian party”, pointing out that while Hamas has put out a statement that they are not in communication with this group, there is no “verification if this is true or not”. View this post on Instagram It is important to note, however, that following the attack on the soldier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered “powerful” retaliatory strikes on Gaza. The attacks killed 104 people, mostly women and children, Al Jazeera reported, citing Gaza’s Health Ministry. Israel claimed its strikes targeted senior Hamas fighters, killing dozens, and then said it would start observing the ceasefire again mid...

Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Sardar Muhammad Yousuf announced on Thursday that Pakistan will host the First International Qirat Competition from November 24 to 29, bringing together top Qaris from member countries of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah said on Wednesday that first-time offenders caught by the newly implemented traffic e-ticketing system can have their fines waived within 10 days by appearing in person and submitting an apology, according to a press release. The CM inaugurated the Traffic Regulation and Citation System (TRACS), commonly known as the e-ticketing system, at the Central Police Office (CPO) on Monday. He explained that the new system replaces the outdated manual ticketing process with a fully automated e-ticketing mechanism, utilising advanced AI-integrated CCTV cameras to detect violations such as speeding, red-light jumping, and helmet non-compliance. According to the press release, CM Shah received a report from Sindh Inspector General of Police Ghulam Nabi Memon detailing traffic rule violations under the new system, which has issued fines to 35 official vehicles for various infractions. “According to the report, e-challans were issued for offences such as not wearing seatbelts, running re...

The Punjab Labour and Human Resource Department has launched a province-wide campaign to enforce minimum wage laws and key provisions of the Punjab Occupational Safety and Health Act 2019 (OSH Act).

Police on Thursday arrested two men who allegedly mutilated a cow that entered his field in the village of Mohaal in Punjab’s Jhelum district, according to a senior officer. A first information report (FIR) — seen by Dawn.com — was filed against two landowners who allegedly attacked and mutilated a cow that crossed onto their land under Section 429 (Mischief by killing or maiming cattle, etc, of any value or any animal of the value of fifty rupees) of the Pakistan Penal Code. The complainant, who is the owner of the cow, alleged that the suspects struck its front leg with an axe, severely injuring it. They fled the scene while threatening the complainant. Jhelum District Police Officer Tariq Aziz Sindhu told Dawn.com that both suspects had been arrested, one of whom was apprehended from a forested area near the scene of the incident. “Police have registered a case under Section 429 of the PPC and investigations are underway,” the DPO said “Cruelty against animals is intolerable and after proper investigation,...

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi was on Thursday denied a meeting with incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan for the fourth time since assuming office. The denial comes despite the Islamabad High Court (IHC) last week directing the Adiala jail superintendent to implement a March 24 order that reinstated the twice-a-week meeting schedule for the former prime minister. Afridi has termed consultation with Imran as crucial in order to announce his new provincial cabinet after he was elected as the chief minister earlier this month. Speaking to reporters outside Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail, Afridi said he was yet again prevented by the police from meeting Imran. He was flanked by PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja, who was approved by the IHC as the designated person to provide the jail officials with the list of individuals named to meet Imran. Afridi highlighted the various legal steps he had taken in order to secure his meeting with Imran, including letters written to the Punjab Home Department a...

Tech giants Google and Amazon agreed to use a secret code to evade legal obligations in countries around the world to serve Israeli interests, a report by The Guardian has revealed. The joint investigation, conducted with Israeli-Palestinian publication +972 Magazine and Hebrew-language outlet Local Call, highlights how a $1.2 billion cloud-computing deal in 2021 (known as Project Nimbus) between Israeli government and the tech firms had an “unusual demand”, i.e., agree to use a secret code as part of an arrangement that would become known as the “winking mechanism”. Project Nimbus was a joint contract that aimed to provide cloud computing infrastructure, artificial intelligence (AI) and other technology services to the Israeli government and its military, which has faced condemnation for its war on Gaza, described by United Nations experts and several countries as a genocide. Google employees based in the United States also staged protests last year at the tech giant’s offices in New York City, California an...

PTI-backed independent candidate Khurram Zeeshan on Thursday was elected as a senator on the general seat from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The seat had fallen vacant following the disqualification of PTI leader Shibli Faraz, who was the opposition leader in the Senate, after he was convicted in cases pertaining to the May 9, 2023 riots. A minimum of 75 votes were needed to win the seat. Zeeshan won a total of 91 votes out of the 137 cast by KP lawmakers during the polling process today. He defeated opposition-backed Taj Mohammad Afridi, who was able to secure 45 votes. Out of the 145-member KP Assembly, eight lawmakers did not cast their ballots, including four Awami National Party (ANP) leaders. One vote was rejected. “Thank God,” Zeeshan said in a post on his Facebook account after his win. “Our priority is Pakistan’s haqeeqi azadi (true freedom)”, the PTI leader told reporters outside the KP Assembly earlier today, echoing a phrase used by Imran. Though three candidates were in the run for the polls, the main cont...

Hurricane Melissa smashed through the northern Caribbean and was seen picking up speed as it churned across open ocean towards Bermuda on Thursday, leaving a trail of high winds and destruction from Jamaica to Cuba and Haiti in its wake. People across the Bahamas and nearby Turks and Caicos hunkered down as the passing storm pummelled them with dangerous gusts and rain. Around 600 miles (970 km) northeast of the storm’s last position, Bermudans prepared for its approach, expected by the evening. Authorities across the region, struggling to keep track of the devastation, confirmed 25 deaths in Haiti - 10 of them children - and four in Jamaica. As of 1200 GMT (5pm PKT) Melissa was packing winds of close to 105 miles per hour (165 kph), according to the US National Hurricane Centre, downgraded from its peak to a Category 2 hurricane. Wading barefoot through mud It was expected to keep accelerating northeastward and “pass to the northwest of Bermuda” later on Thursday, before likely weakening on Friday, the Flori...