Pakistan

PPP leader and former speaker of the Sindh Assembly Agha Siraj Durrani passed away on Wednesday at the age of 72, according to a statement by Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah. In a statement issued by the Sindh CM House, Shah expressed deep sorrow and grief over Durrani’s passing. Murad called Durrani “a sincere, loyal and principled leader of the party, saying he played an important role in strengthening the Sindh Assembly and stabilising democracy. “Agha Siraj Durrani made public service the axis of his politics,” he said, expressing his condolences to the bereaved family. “The services of the late Agha Siraj Durrani will always be remembered,” he said. President Asif Ali Zardari also expressed “deep sorrow” over Durrani’s passing. “The president paid tribute to his political and public services, noting his role in strengthening democracy and serving the people of Sindh,” said a post by the Presidency on social media platform X. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also paid tribute to the late Durrani for his ...

The Boards of Intermediate and Secondary Education (BISEs) across Punjab announced the results for the 2025 Intermediate Part-I (11th grade) annual exams on Wednesday.

Chairman Senate of Pakistan, Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani Wednesday held a meeting with the Ambassador of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Emin Cohodrevica.

Pakistan is expanding its trade and investment footprint in Saudi Arabia, with over 100 Pakistani information technology (IT) firms now formally registered to operate in the Kingdom.

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has emphasized the need to translate the emerging consensus between Pakistan and the US on trade into a broader economic partnership.

Former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan has directed the newly elected Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi to collaborate with all relevant stakeholders to devise an effective and comprehensive strategy to counter terrorism in the province.

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif has expressed satisfaction over the staff-level agreement reached between Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF).

The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Wednesday dismissed a petition seeking the annulment of Sohail Afridi’s election as the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister, who is set to be administered his oath by the provincial governor, Faisal Karim Kundi, later today. The petition, on which the court had reserved its verdict earlier today, was filed by JUI-F leader Maulana Lutfur Rehman yesterday. Rehman, who was among the four contenders for the KP CM post, had requested the court to “set aside” Afridi’s election and declare it null and void. At today’s hearing, which was presided over by Justice Arshad Ali and Justice Waqar Ahmad, Barrister Yaseen appeared on behalf of Rehman against PTI’s Salman Akram Raja. Addressing the court, Raja pointed out that the JUI-F petition at hand “has become ineffective in light of yesterday’s PHC order.” Responding to his comments, Justice Ali said, “Yes, we are aware of the order, but let’s hear the petitioner’s argument.” Barrister Yaseen told the court, “How was a new chief minister e...

Pakistan Tele­commu­nications Limited (PTCL) on Wednesday said the international cable consortium had completed the repair of a repeater installed in the submarine cable, which had affected internet speeds across the country. Yesterday, internet users, already facing disruptions in parts of upper Punjab and the federal capital due to law and order situation, experienced slow connectivity. PTCL had said that a maintenance activity was planned on one of the company’s submarine cables to repair a faulty repeater by the international cable consortium. “The repair process began at 11 am on October 14 and has been successfully completed,” PTCL spokesperson Amir Pasha said in a statement today. “Internet service speed and connectivity have been restored across the country.” The state-owned PTCL manages three undersea optical fibre cable networks that provide international internet connectivity to Pakistan. The combined capacity of all six submarine cable systems serving the country, including three PTCL cable system...

The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Wednesday dismissed a petition seeking to annul the election of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s newly elected Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, just hours before Governor Faisal Karim Kundi was set to administer the oath of office.

Pakistani security forces successfully foiled coordinated attacks by Afghan Taliban and terrorist elements at multiple locations along the Pak-Afghan border early Wednesday, killing around 15 to 20 militants in the Spin Boldak area of Chaman, Balochistan, the military’s media wing said.

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday met with the outgoing Australian High Commissioner to Pakistan, Neil Hawkins, who paid a farewell call at the Prime Minister’s Office.

The Pakistani passport has ranked the fourth worst for the fifth straight year, according to this year’s Henley Passport Index, a ranking of the world’s 199 passports based on the number of destinations their owners can access without a prior visa. In the latest global ranking issued on October 7, Pa­­kistan’s travel docum­ent was placed at 103 in the list — tied with Yemen — and ranked higher than only those of Iraq (104), Syria (105) and Afghanistan (106). Per the ranking, Pakistan and Yemen’s passports permit visa-free access to 31 countries only out of 227 travel destinations, Iraq’s allows travel to 29, Syria’s gives access to 26 destinations, and Afghanistan’s travel document only affords the bearer access to 24 destinations without a visa. Pakistan’s passport has been declared the world’s fourth worst since at least 2021 on the Henley index, which calculates countries’ “visa-free score” — the number of destinations travellers can access without a prior visa, or with a visa on arrival. The travel docume...

Apple is lobbying India’s government to modify its income tax law to ensure the company is not taxed for ownership of high-end iPhone machinery it provides to its contract manufacturers, an issue seen as a hurdle to its future expansion, sources say. The push coincides with Apple’s growing India presence as it diversifies beyond China. Counterpoint Research says iPhone’s share in the Indian market has doubled to 8 per cent since 2022. And while China still accounts for 75pc of global iPhone shipments, India’s share has quadrupled to 25pc since 2022. India is the world’s second-largest mobile market. Apple’s contract manufacturers Foxconn and Tata have pumped in billions of dollars to open five plants, but millions of those expenses go into acquiring pricey machines for iPhone assembly. Experts say Apple potentially faces billions of dollars in additional taxes if it changes its business practices without convincing New Delhi to change a 1961 law covering foreign ownership of equipment used in India. In China,...

Pakistan’s space agency on Wednesday announced the upcoming launch of the country’s first hyperspectral satellite (HS-1) from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in China, scheduled for October 19. Hyperspectral imaging is a type of advanced camera technology used in satellites to study the Earth and space, according to a study published in the Journal of Computational Intelligence and Neuroscience. Unlike regular satellite cameras that capture only a few colours (like red, green, and blue), hyperspectral cameras capture hundreds of very narrow colour bands. This means they can detect tiny differences in light that the human eye, or even normal satellites, can’t see. Because of this, scientists can use hyperspectral images to identify materials, detect changes in vegetation, find minerals, monitor pollution, or even study the atmosphere in much greater detail than before. According to a statement from the Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco), the launch is a “landmark mission [which] repre...

Security sources have revealed that the organizers and financers behind Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan’s (TLP) recent violent protests have been identified, with a list of names prepared and shared with law enforcement agencies.

The Punjab government has approved the establishment of a new industrial estate spanning 400 acres of land near Sialkot Airport to boost industrialization and attract investment in the province.

The Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) has announced the completion of repair work on the submarine cable segment that had caused internet disruptions across the country.

Left-arm spinner Noman Ali was South Africa’s chief tormentor as Pakistan won a gripping first Test by 93 runs in Lahore on Wednesday. Set a daunting 277-run target for victory, the visitors and World Test champions were bowled out for 183 on day four. Man of the match Noman finished with 4-79 and 10-191 in the match for his third haul of ten wickets or more in Tests. With the weary Gaddafi Stadium pitch taking sharp turn and low bounce, the 39-year-old Noman exploited the conditions well despite a stubborn 73-run stand between Dewald Brevis and Ryan Rickelton in the morning. In all, spinners from both sides took 34 wickets, with just six going to fast bowlers. South African left-armer Senuran Muthusamy took 11-174 in the match. Pakistan made 378 in their first innings, with South Africa scoring 269 in reply. On a deteriorating surface, the hosts collapsed in their second-innings 167 but it proved enough. On Wednesday, with the tourists 137-6 at lunch the writing was very much on the wall, then Sajid Khan dis...

The Special Central Court in Lahore has reserved its verdict on former Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi’s acquittal plea in the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) money laundering case.