Pakistan

Party walks tightrope as government eyes governor's rule in province ruled by PTI, claim insiders

ISLAMABAD - The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Tuesday launched a new online system to ensure timely redressal of public complaints.

RAWALPINDI - The Anti-Terrorism Court Rawalpindi on Tuesday issued orders the immediate at-tachment of all immovable properties belonging to 15 senior PTI leaders and workers who have been declared proclaimed offenders in the May 09 GHQ attack case.

ISLAMABAD - The Pakistan Army and the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of China have commenced the joint military exercise Warrior-IX, the ninth edition in the series of bilateral counterterrorism exer-cises conducted annually between the two iron clad brothers.

ISLAMABAD - The Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) Tuesday recommended the appointment of Sindh High Court and Balochistan High Court chief justices and elevation of Justice Miangul Hassan Au-rangzeb as the judge of the Supreme Court.

ISLAMABAD - Federal Information and Broadcasting Minister Attaullah Tarar on Tuesday underlined the need to dispel misconceptions about Pakistan by promoting its true story to a global audience.

Islamabad - Pakistan yesterday dispatched 200 tonnes of relief supplies to Sri Lanka via sea cargo after India refused to use its airspace.

ISLAMABAD - The joint session of parliament yesterday passed the National Commission for Minorities Rights Bill, 2025 with the aim to safeguard the rights of non-Muslims in the country.

Baber Sidhu says world stunned to witness ‘superb execution’ of PAF operation against India in May Living in challenging times Defeated enemy with far greater numerical might.

Islamabad - Participants of the Cambrian Patrol competition called on Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, NI (M), HJ, Chief of Army Staff (COAS), at General Headquarters (GHQ) Rawalpindi on Tuesday.

Prime minister says govt holds tax-paying businesses and companies in high regard n Invites Turkish companies to increase investment in Pak energy sector Protection of PDs’ rights, provision of equal facilities, among govt’s top priorities.

ISLAMABAD - The ambassador-designate of Pakistan to the United Arab Emirates Shafqat Ali Khan on Tuesday presented his diplomatic credentials to the UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

PESHAWAR - US Consul General Thomas Eckert met with Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Sohail Afridi at the Chief Minister’s House, where both sides exchanged views on cooperation for mutual development and prosperity.

Islamabad - Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Faisal Karim Kundi strongly condemned the terrorist attack on the convoy of the Assistant Commissioner of North Waziristan in Bannu, calling it a tragic and heartbreaking incident.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that Russia was “ready” for war if Europe seeks one, accusing the continent’s leaders of trying to sabotage a deal on the Ukraine conflict before he met with US envoys. The comments came as United States envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner were in Moscow for high-stakes talks on ending the nearly four-year war, which were preceded by days of intense diplomacy. “We are not planning to go to war with Europe, but if Europe wants to and starts, we are ready right now,” Putin told reporters in Moscow. “They have no peaceful agenda, they are on the side of war,” he added, repeating his claim that European leaders were hindering US attempts to broker peace in Ukraine. He added that European changes to Trump’s latest plan to end the war “aimed solely at one thing — to completely block the entire peace process and put forward demands that are absolutely unacceptable for Russia”. Washington has presented a 28-point draft to end the c...

An Afghan man has been charged in Texas with threatening to build a bomb and carry out a suicide attack, United States officials said on Tuesday, as the Trump administration vows a crackdown on Afghan migrants after a deadly shooting. Mohammad Dawood Alokozay, 30, of Fort Worth, allegedly made the threats in a November 23 video that he shared on TikTok, X and Facebook, the Justice Department said in a statement. In the video, Alokozay allegedly praises the Taliban and threatens to carry out a suicide attack on Americans. “Thanks to public reports of a threatening online video, the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force apprehended this individual before he could commit an act of violence,” FBI Dallas special agent in charge Joseph Rothrock said. Attorney General Pamela Bondi said Alokozay “came into America during the Biden administration and, as alleged, explicitly stated that he came here in order to kill American citizens”. He faces up to five years in prison if convicted of making a threatening interstate commu...

Uzma Khanum, sister of PTI founder Imran Khan, said on Tuesday her incarcerated brother was “perfectly fine” after she was allowed to meet him, putting to rest rumours surrounding the former premier’s health. Prison authorities had allowed her to meet the former prime minister today. She was accompanied by scores of PTI supporters who gathered outside the jail as Uzma went inside the prison to meet her brother. In a short talk with the media after the meeting, she said: “Imran Khan’s health is perfectly fine. However, he was very angry and said that they are subjecting him to mental torture.” She added that Imran was confined to his cell throughout the day and was allowed only a short time outside. Uzma further said that he was not in communication with anyone, and the meeting between them lasted around 30 minutes. The meeting took place under strict supervision and without mobile devices, she added, declining to provide further details. In a separate talk with the media, flanked by Aleema Khanum and PTI lead...

A joint session of Parliament passed the National Commission for Minorities Bill 2025 with some changes on Tuesday, which aims to establish a national body dedicated to protecting and promoting the rights of minority communities in Pakistan. Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar tabled the bill amid outcry from some members, particularly those belonging to the PTI and Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam—Fazl (JUI-F), and with National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq presiding over the session. The bill was supported by 160 members, with 79 voting against it. While the law minister was presenting the bill, several members vocally opposed the bill. At this, Tarar clarified that “neither the law and the Constitution, nor our conscience allows us to make a proposal that contradicts the Quran and Sunnah”. He said four amendments were suggested to the original draft of the bill, and they had been incorporated into the proposed legislation. Saying that minorities were defined as “non-Muslims” in the Constitution, he said: “This is a commissi...

A minor girl died of burns while five of her family members were injured in an explosion in a car in Karachi’s Quaidabad area early on Tuesday morning, according to police, hospital and rescue services officials. They added that six people suffered burn injuries when a liquified petroleum gas (LPG) cylinder exploded inside the car at Quaidabad’s main roundabout. Rescue-1122 spokesperson Hassaanul Haseeb Khan told Dawn that the family was filling LPG cylinders from a roadside shop when the explosion took place. Regarding possible reasons, Khan said that generally, “Such explosions take place because of a lack of mandatory hydrostatic tests after a certain period. “Another possible reason was that when the cylinder is filled with LPG with pressure, it triggers an explosion,” he added. Khan noted a similar incident in Shah Faisal Colony recently with human casualties. He added that these roadside shops took no precautionary measures, as they were illegal. “The injured were transported to the burns centre at Kara...

The Foreign Office (FO) said on Tuesday that India was preventing humanitarian assistance from being sent to Sri Lanka by air, prompting Islamabad to send aid by sea to the south Asian island, where severe flooding and landslides triggered by Cyclone Ditwah have claimed more than 400 lives. In a post on X, the FO said: “India continues to block humanitarian assistance from Pakistan to Sri Lanka. The special aircraft carrying Pakistan’s humanitarian assistance to Sri Lanka continues to face a delay of over 60 hours now awaiting flight clearance from India. “The partial flight clearance issued by India last night, after 48 hours, was operationally impractical: time-bound for just a few hours and without validity for the return flight, severely hindering this urgent relief mission for the brotherly people of Sri Lanka.” A statement issued later by the Pakistan High Commission in Sri Lanka said aircraft were awaiting clearance to fly and accused India of blocking the humanitarian relief operation through “shenani...