Pakistan

US Homeland Security chief Kristi Noem ordered the suspension of the diversity visa lottery progamme on Thursday after saying it was used by the suspect in a mass shooting at Brown University. “The Brown University shooter, Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, entered the United States through the diversity lottery immigrant visa programme (DV1) in 2017 and was granted a green card,” Noem wrote on social media. “At president Trump’s direction, I am immediately directing US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to pause the DV1 programme to ensure no more Americans are harmed by this disastrous programme,“ she said. According to the Associated Press, the diversity visa programme makes up to 50,000 green cards available each year by lottery to people from countries that are little represented in the US, many of them in Africa. The lottery was created by Congress, and the move is almost certain to invite legal challenges, AP reported. Officials said earlier that the suspect was dead as investigators said he also...

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Tuesday warned that India’s unilateral actions concerning shared river waters pose serious risks to peace and stability in South Asia, accusing New Delhi of using water as a political tool.

Special Assistant to the Chief Minister Zeeshan Ashiq Malik has been appointed Adviser on Political Affairs to Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif.

CJ-led bench orders law ministry to de-notify Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri.

ISLAMABAD: Former Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Sohail Aman has described attacks on Pakistan in May this year as a strategic mistake by India. “They underestimated our military power and thought we will not react. They never expected a befitting response,” he said while speaking at a seminar here. The seminar was organised by an overseas Pakistanis group led by Barrister Shehzada Hayat, in collaboration with the Pakistan Ex-Servicemen Society (PESS), headed by Senator retired Lt Gen Abdul Qayyum to pay homage to Pakistan’s martyrs, express solidarity with the armed forces, and commemorate the 149th birth anniversary of Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah. The former air chief said the telling response by Pakistan shattered the myth of “shining India”. He chided India for blaming Chinese help to Pakistan for its failure saying “If we have Chinese JF-17 aircraft, you also have Rafale jets. Overseas Pakistanis’ contribution to national economy praised He made it clear that Chinese pilots did not come to...

• 1,200 policemen, anti-riot personnel deployed; number of pickets increased • Party leaders return without visiting Imran after being barred by prison authorities RAWALPINDI/ISLAMABAD: As the PTI staged two sit-ins outside the jail in as many weeks, the Punjab government has deployed more than 1,200 police officials, installed additional pickets, and deployed anti-riot police in the vicinity of Adiala jail, in an apparent bid to pre-empt such protests. Separately, the jail authorities also barred the PTI leaders, including KP’s former finance minister Taimur Saleem Jhagra, who had arrived in Rawalpindi to meet their incarcerated party chief, Imran Khan. According to the Islamabad High Court, Mr Khan can have two weekly meetings with his family and party leaders, but the authorities have routinely restricted such visits, much to the PTI’s chagrin. Last Tuesday, the PTI leaders staged a protest, which was dispersed by police with water cannons after midnight. In a seemingly pre-emptive measure that would dissu...

• FO says discussions ongoing; Islamabad has not been formally requested to deploy troops • Andrabi, White House say no Munir-Trump meeting planned ‘at this time’ ISLAMABAD: No decision has been taken yet on contributing troops to the planned International Stabilisation Force (ISF) for Gaza, the Foreign Office said on Thursday, seeking to quell renewed speculation about Washington’s pressure on Islamabad for joining the mission. “About Pakistan’s participation in the ISF, we have not taken a decision to participate in ISF as yet,” Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Hussain Andrabi said at the weekly media briefing. ISF forms a key component of US President Donald Trump’s plan to end the Gaza conflict, a 20-point framework announced in September that facilitated a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in October. On Nov 17, the United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution, with Russia and China abstaining, endorsing the plan and authorising the establishment of the ISF as a temporary multinational force to...

• Govt rations funds to meet IMF’s contingency measures for growing revenue shortfall • Health, energy allocations mostly unspent; better used in foreign-funded projects ISLAMABAD: Develop­ment spending under the federal Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) remained subdued in the first five months of the current fiscal year, with utilisation amounting to just 9.2 per cent of the Rs1 trillion annual allocation amid fiscal rationing to meet the IMF’s contingency measures for growing revenue shortfall. “Development spending remained modest, with Rs92 billion utilised against Rs196bn sanctioned, led mainly by infrastructure,” the Ministry of Planning and Development said in its Monthly Development Outlook (December 2025). It added that foreign-funded projects showed relatively better utilisation, with Rs12.8bn spent out of Rs25.1bn sanctioned. At Rs92bn, the July-November utilisation was 20pc lower than the Rs115bn spent in the same period last year. The ministry attributed the slowdown to “significant red...

President Asif Ali Zardari, on early Friday morning, approved the de-notification of Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri as a judge of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on the advice of the prime minister. “The president has approved the de-notification of Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri as judge, Islamabad High Court, on the advice of the prime minister, in compliance with the IHC verdict and in accordance with the Constitution and law,” a statement from the President’s Secretariat said. IHC judgement The IHC ruling on Thursday said Justice Jahangiri’s elevation to the superior court “without lawful authority” and that he “ceased to hold” the office of the IHC judge forthwith. A division bench led by Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar and Justice Muhammad Azam Khan issued the judgement, which was earlier reserved, on a plea that challenged the legitimacy of Justice Jahangiri’s law degree and appointment as a judge. A short written order of the court, available with Dawn, said at the time of Justice Jahangi...

As the Foreign Office sought clarification from India via a letter over a sudden variation in the Chenab River’s flow, the situation is badly affecting wheat and other crops being fed through the Marala-Ravi link and other canals in various parts of Punjab. “The situation is really disturbing as the Chenab River’s control from upstream (India) is being handled by the Indian authorities through various run-of-the-river hydropower projects,” a senior official of the Punjab Irrigation Department said while speaking to Dawn on condition of anonymity. “When India releases the water from dams towards downstream (Pakistan) without informing us, the flow suddenly increases. Sometimes, they hold water for days, reducing flow massively,” he said. He continued, “Once the river inflows recorded at Marala reduced to 1,500 cusecs, leaving us with no option but to stop outflows.” “The situation is very serious and strange for us, as the growers, in several villages, couldn’t water wheat crops due to the lack of water flow t...

The Swiss star edged compatriot Franjo von Allmen on a shortened Saslong course, with Italy’s Dominik Paris third

David Neres opened the scoring late in the first half, and Rasmus Hojlund wrapped up the win

Masters champion is first golfer in 36 years to claim award

Dogar-led bench declares LLB degree 'invalid'; President approves de-notification on PM's advice

FO 'contradicts' media reports of CDF Munir visiting US

Civil-military leadership briefed on new roadmap

Sultan Aziz Azzam arrested in operation near Pak-Afghan border

LHC orders written reasons for offloading

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday inaugurated the Iqbal Flyover at T-Chowk along with a newly completed signal-free corridor on the Islamabad Expressway, marking the completion of two key infrastructure projects aimed at easing chronic traffic congestion in the federal capital.

LAHORE - An anti-terrorism court (ATC) on Thursday reserved its verdict in the case relating to the May-9 attack on GOR-1 gate at Club Chowk.