Pakistan

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Wednesday announced the dates for Australia’s T20I tour of Pakistan later this month ahead of the ICC Men’s T20I World Cup in February. All three matches are scheduled to take place at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium on January 29, 31 and February 1, PCB said in a statement. The toss will take place at 5:30pm and matches will begin at 6pm. Australia’s T20I squad will arrive in Lahore on Jan 28. “The series serves as crucial game time for both the sides ahead of the all-important ICC Men’s T20I World Cup 2026, where Pakistan are placed in Group A and Australia in Group B,” PCB said. This is the third time Australia are touring Pakistan; they played a three-match Test and ODI series in March-April 2022, followed by a solitary T20I where they bagged a close three-wicket win at Gaddafi Stadium. Australia also played three of their 2025 Champions Trophy matches in Pakistan. “We are excited and look forward to hosting Australia for the three-match T20I series here in Lahore,“ PCB Chief ...

An important bridge over the Kurram River in North Waziristan’s Shewa tehsil was blown up by unknown attackers using explosives on Wednesday. The structure was completely destroyed, severing land links between the area and Miranshah, Bannu and other adjoining regions. The incident has once again raised serious questions about the law and order situation in the volatile district. According to local sources, unidentified attackers planted a large quantity of explosives beneath the bridge during the early morning hours. The explosion was heard from many miles away, spreading fear and panic among the area’s residents. Following the incident, police and security forces reached the incident site and cordoned off the area. An investigation was launched into the incident. The destruction of the bridge — a vital line of communication in the region — is likely to cause severe hardships for the people as it served as an important route for the daily movement of civilians, patients, students, traders and government emplo...

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government on Wednesday released Rs4 billion to support the temporary displacement of residents of the Tirah Valley in Khyber district ahead of a planned targeted security operation against militants.

A rain-bearing weather system is expected to enter the country from the west on Thursday, bringing precipitation to the upper parts of Punjab, while the plains, including Lahore, are likely to remain dry, the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) said on Wednesday.

Acting President Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani has underscored the need for sustained academic partnerships to address deep-rooted challenges in Pakistan’s education sector and prepare youth for a rapidly changing world.

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Wednesday acknowledged that some multinational companies have left Pakistan due to “high taxes and energy costs”, but called on them to revise their business models, aligning them with the “modern world”. During the past few years, multiple MNCs have shut down their operations in Pakistan, including Procter & Gamble, Eli Lilly, Shell, Microsoft, Uber and Yamaha. He made the remarks while addressing the Pakistan Policy Dialogue, hosted by Policy Research & Advisory Council (PRAC), in Islamabad. The minister, in his address, talked about the exodus of multinational companies from the country, stating, “There are firms that are leaving Pakistan, which is true, and we must acknowledge if the taxation is high, energy cost is high, or financing cost, those have been real issues”. However, the minister continued: “But it takes two to tango [..] if you are wedged into your business models from the last 50 years, it is not going to work in the modern world”. Citing Nestle and Uni...

Several motorways and major highways across Punjab remained closed to traffic on Wednesday amid dense fog, which has severely reduced visibility in many areas.

The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) on Wednesday carried out a successful intelligence-based operation in Dera Ismail Khan, killing three most-wanted terrorists, officials said.

The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has expressed displeasure with the federal government over what it says is a lack of consultation in the law-making process and has decided to condition its support for government-sponsored legislation on prior engagement and formal briefings.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) killed three terrorists belonging to Fitna-al-Khawarij in a successful intelligence-based operation (IBO) in Dera Ismail Khan on Wednesday, said a statement by the department. Fitna-al-Khawarij is a term the state uses for terrorists belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). “On the special instructions of the inspector general of Police Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, targeted operations against Fitna-al-Khawarij have been intensified in response to the attacks on the police,” the CTD said. It added that this morning, DI Khan’s CTD successfully carried out an operation on a confirmed intelligence report. “CTD teams reached the spot and surrounded the terrorists, who opened fire to avoid arrest. CTD teams also retaliated in self-defence, as a result of which the khawariji terrorists were killed,” said the statement. During the search operation, it said, the bodies of three terrorists were recovered and identified. According to the CTD, the slain te...

The planet logged its third hottest year on record in 2025, extending a run of unprecedented heat, with no relief expected in 2026, US researchers and EU climate monitors said Wednesday. The last 11 years have now been the warmest ever recorded, with 2024 topping the podium and 2023 in second place, according to the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service and Berkeley Earth, a California-based non-profit research organisation. For the first time, global temperatures exceeded 1.5C relative to pre-industrial times on average over the last three years, Copernicus said in its annual report. “The warming spike observed from 2023-2025 has been extreme, and suggests an acceleration in the rate of the Earth’s warming,” Berkeley Earth said in a separate report. The landmark 2015 Paris Agreement commits the world to limiting warming to well below 2C and pursuing efforts to hold it at 1.5C – a long-term target scientists say would help avoid the worst consequences of climate change. UN chief Antonio Guterres warned in Oc...

Four young girls sustained serious burn injuries in a house fire in Rawalpindi’s Niazi Town area on Wednesday, according to rescue officials.

Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori on Wednesday said the state will defeat anti-national elements on every front and will make no compromise on the protection of lives and property.

THE Defence Department has spent more than a year testing a device purchased in an undercover operation that some investigators think could be the cause of a series of mysterious ailments impacting US spies, diplomats and troops that are colloquially known as Havana Syndrome, according to four sources briefed on the matter. According to CNN, a division of the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, purchased the device for millions of dollars in the waning days of the Biden administration, using funding provided by the Defence Department, according to two of the sources. Officials paid “eight figures” for the device, these people said, declining to offer a more specific number. The device is still being studied and there is ongoing debate — and in some quarters of government, scepticism — over its link to the roughly dozens of anomalous health incidents that remain officially unexplained. CNN has asked the Pentagon, HSI and the DHS for comment. The CIA declined to comment. The devic...

ISLAMABAD: The government has allowed the re-export of transit cargo stuck at Pakistani ports to save Afghan importers from rising demurrage charges. At a time when there is no indication that the border with Afghanistan will reopen soon, importers engaged in Afghan Transit Trade (ATT) have requested that the Ministry of Commerce grant a one-time waiver for the re-export of over 6,500 containers stuck at Karachi ports, as they are incurring rising demurrage charges. The need for re-export arose after the border crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan was closed on Oct 11, 2025 leading to a near-complete halt of bilateral trade and movement of transit cargo. Pakistan-Afghanistan relations have deteriorated amid tensions over the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). After successive rounds, Pakistan declared the talks effectively over on Nov 7, after which Afghanistan suspended trade ties. Pakistan had already closed its border following the October clashes. Over 6,500 containers stuck at Karachi ports si...

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Mulls scrapping gas subsidy, providing direct relief to farmers through BISP

OMCs estimate cuts in petrol, diesel prices; OGRA to finalise recommendations as global oil prices decline

Remittances subsidise domestic consumption; productive sectors wither away