Pakistan

Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) successfully completed its pre-Haj flight operations on Thursday, according to a PIA spokesperson. This year, over 53,000 pilgrims were transported to Saudi Arabia for Haj via 210 flights of the airline, the spokesperson said. The success rate of these flights was 97 per cent, i.e., more than 97pc of flights departed on time. This was 7pc higher than the set target, the spokesperson added. Direct flights were operating from Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad, Sialkot and Quetta for the pre-Haj period. The post-Haj operation is due to start on May 30 and will end on June 30 this year. Meanwhile, PIA has completed the necessary steps for the post-Haj operations, the spokesperson elaborated. PIA’s pre-Hajj operation formally commenced on 19 April, with 49,000 pilgrims set to travel under the government scheme, while over 6,000 others under private Hajj group operators were also facilitated through PIA flights. Under the “Route to Makkah” facility, modern immigrat...

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Peshawar High Court restrains cantonment board from taking coercive action

Uzbek envoy praises launch of dictionary, short story collection

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The Islamabad Traffic Police has finalised a special traffic management plan for cattle markets across the federal capital ahead of Eidul Azha to ensure smooth vehicular flow and public convenience.

When Donald Trump warned Iran on April 7 that “a whole civilisation will die tonight,” a European diplomat in Washington said his government wanted an urgent answer to a chilling question: Was the US president contemplating the use of a nuclear weapon? Across Europe and Asia, the concern went beyond whether Trump’s apocalyptic threat was real or bluster. One fear, the diplomat said, was that Russia could seize the moment to justify similar threats in Ukraine, triggering a nuclear crisis on two continents. European governments immediately sought reassurance through a traditional channel: the US State Department. But according to the diplomat, officials there gave an unsettling response: they didn’t know what Trump meant or what actions his words might portend. The previously unreported episode points to a historic breakdown in American diplomacy. At a moment when a uniquely unpredictable US president is rattling markets and capitals with dramatic pronouncements, governments around the world are scrambling for ...

ISLAMABAD: After PTI leaders were denied a meeting with party founder Imran Khan yet another time on Thursday, MNA Ahad Ali Shah said it seemed his party would “now have to resort to agitation”. “We have reached a conclusion that the government will not arrange meeting with Imran Khan if the party remains peaceful. It seems that now we will have to resort to agitation as the government is not ready to listen to our peaceful requests and demands,” he said while speaking to Dawn. The Islamabad High Court has allowed Imran twice-a-week meetings — on Tuesdays and Thursdays — with his family, lawyers and other associates at Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail, where he is incarcerated since 2023. Despite the court order, the former premier has been restricted from meeting visitors for several weeks. On Wednesday, MNA Ahad Ali Shah posted on X that the PTI had submitted a list of six leaders, including him, to Adiala jail authorities for their meeting with Imran. He told Dawn that the leaders reached the Adiala jail around 1:...

BAJAUR/KHYBER: Two schoolchildren were killed after a quadcopter drone, reportedly operated from an unknown location, struck a hilly area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Bajaur district on Thursday. Local residents and official sources told Dawn that the fatal incident occurred in the Shahi Thangi area, located about 25 kilometres from Khar, the district headquarters of Bajaur, around noon. They added that the children were returning home from school when they were hit, leaving them critically wounded. The two boys, aged 10 and 12, were immediately taken by locals to the District Headquarters Hospital in Khar for treatment. However, both were pronounced dead upon arrival, they said. It remains unconfirmed where the quadcopter was launched from and who was responsible for the attack. Meanwhile, sources in the local police told Dawn that they have launched an investigation into the incident to determine who was responsible and what the motive was. The killing of two innocent schoolchildren in the strike sparked condemn...

A special ceremony was organised at the Ministry of Interior, Pakistan, to celebrate 75 years of diplomatic relations between Pakistan and China.

The Ministry of Religious Affairs announced that Pakistan’s Hajj flight operation is set to conclude today, with 3,296 pilgrims departing for Saudi Arabia on 12 flights from various cities across the country.

The Foreign Office (FO) on Thursday condemned Israel’s unlawful interception of the Global Sumud Flotilla in international waters as well as the arbitrary detention and reported mistreatment of humanitarian workers. The statement came a day after Israel’s far-right national security minister posted a video showing detained activists from a Gaza-bound flotilla kneeling with their hands tied and foreheads on the ground, sparking international condemnation. In the statement released on Thursday, the FO said, “The government of Pakistan condemns in the strongest possible terms the unlawful interception of the Global Sumud Flotilla by Israeli occupying forces in the international waters as well as arbitrary detention and reported mistreatment of humanitarian workers onboard.” The statement said that those detained also reportedly included humanitarian activist Saad Edhi, son of prominent social worker Faisal Edhi and grandson of late philanthropist Abdul Sattar Edhi. “Pakistan demands the immediate release of all ...

The Afghan Taliban government’s new decree governing the separation of spouses “reinforces systemic discrimination” and erodes the rights of Afghan women and girls, the United Nations said on Thursday. Published in mid-May, the 31-article code sets out various grounds for separation in Afghanistan, including a husband’s prolonged disappearance, “incompatibility” between couples, renunciation of Islam and “failure on the part of the husband”. The decree, which appeared in the country’s Official Gazette, also states that marriage contracts drawn up by relatives “on behalf of a minor boy or girl” can be annulled, which suggests child marriage is permitted in Afghanistan, according to the UN. In most cases, the procedures for women seeking a separation are more complicated than those for men. The document, approved by Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, “is part of a broader and deeply concerning trajectory in which the rights of Afghan women and girls are being eroded”, said Georgette Gagnon, deputy special re...

A total of 60 flights were cancelled across Pakistan on Thursday, while 14 others faced major delays due to operational issues, affecting both domestic and international travel.

Pakistan Railways has started releasing travelling allowances pending for Grade IV employees over the last eight years, bringing relief to workers after a long wait.

The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has forecast mainly hot and dry weather in most parts of the country on Thursday, while very hot conditions are expected to continue in southern regions during daytime hours.

The Hajj flight operation to transport Pakistani pilgrims under the government scheme to Saudi Arabia has entered its final phase, with 114,078 pilgrims (96 per cent) already reached the holy cities via the ‘Route to Makkah’ initiative and other scheduled flights.

Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) and Chief of the Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir reaffirmed on Thursday that Pakistan’s fight against terrorism “will continue with full national resolve” until “enduring peace and stability” were achieved across the country, the military’s media wing said. CDF Munir made the declaration at an investiture ceremony held at the General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi to confer military awards on officers and soldiers of the Pakistan Army,” Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement. The CDF was the chief guest at the ceremony, where he “conferred awards on the families of shuhada (martyrs), officers and soldiers in recognition of exceptional gallantry in operations and distinguished services rendered to the nation”, the statement said. It added that awards conferred on the occasion included 50 Sitara-i-Imtiaz (Military) and 12 Tamgha-i-Basalat. “Medals awarded posthumously were received with honour by families of shuhada,” it said. “Shuhada and Ghazis remain th...

Pakistan Railways has announced the launch of three special trains for Eidul Azha to facilitate passengers travelling between major cities during the holiday season.

Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) and Chief of the Army Staff, Field Marshal Asim Munir, has reaffirmed that Pakistan’s fight against terrorism will continue with full strength until lasting peace is achieved.