Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: The Capital Deve­lopment Authority (CDA) has decided to stop operations against informal settlements to retrieve state land in Islamabad after the hue and cry over the prime minister’s decision to halt action against the ‘One Constitution’ skyscraper. After a court order, the CDA and police had arrived outside the twin towers on Constitution Avenue to vacate the building, but the operation was stopped due to the intervention of PM Shehbaz Sharif, who formed a committee to resolve the matter after listening to the residents. The decision, however, caused an uproar on social media, with the CDA and the interior ministry attracting flak for their operations in the capital to retrieve state land in working-class neighbourhoods of Bari Imam and Saidpur. Against this backdrop, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi told an interior ministry officer there was no justification for carrying out operations to retrieve state land until the One Constitution issue was settled, sources in the CDA told Dawn. They said th...

• CPI rises nearly 11pc year-on-year in April • Transport costs, perishable food prices jump by over 15pc ISLAMABAD: Consumer inflation returned to double digits for the first time in 21 months, with prices rising by nearly 11 per cent year-on-year in April, driven by sharp increases in transport costs and essential food items, official data showed. The last time inflation was above 10pc was in July 2024, when the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was recorded at 11.1pc. For consumers, the April spike reflects a growing squeeze on daily expenses, as higher fuel and transport charges, along with rising prices of perishable food items, continue to erode purchasing power, even as some relief in wheat and flour prices offers only limited respite. The continued increase in monthly inflation, measured by the CPI basket containing several goods and services, has pushed it beyond the earlier comfort range as domestic energy tariffs registered a sharp rise in April. Energy prices rose sharply during the month due to the cont...

TEL AVIV: A US military-run body near Gaza that critics say failed in its mission to monitor the Israel-Hamas ceasefire and boost aid flows to besieged Palestinians is set to be shut by the Trump administration, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. The closing of the Civil-Military Coordination Centre (CMCC) in Israel would mark the latest blow to President Trump’s Gaza peace plan, already undermined by repeated Israeli attacks since the October truce. Diplomats said the move, which has not been previously reported, underscores the difficulties facing US efforts to oversee the truce and coordinate on aid, as Israel seizes more Gaza territory and Hamas firms its grip in areas under its control. The move could add to unease among Washington’s allies, whom Trump encouraged to deploy personnel to the CMCC and commit funds for his Gaza rebuilding plan, effectively on hold since the US launched its joint war with Israel against Iran. Trump-led board denies Civil-Military Coordination Centre is shutting do...

WASHINGTON: The United States Air Force has awarded a $488 million contract to Northrop Grumman Systems Corp. for long-term engineering and technical support of F-16 Fighting Falcon radar systems, with Pakistan among the countries covered by the deal. According to an official award notice, released this week, the firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract will support the APG-66 and APG-68 radar systems used on F-16 fighter aircraft. Work will be carried out in Linthicum Heights, Maryland, and is scheduled to continue through March 31, 2036. The contract covers support for multiple partner countries under the US Foreign Military Sales (FMS) programme, including Bahrain, Belgium, Chile, Denmark, Egypt, Greece, Indonesia, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, South Kor­ea, Morocco, the Nether­lands, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Poland, Portu­gal, Romania, Thailand and Turkiye. The award was issued on a sole-source basis by the US Air Force Lifecycle Mana­gement Centre in Utah. An initial $2.64 million in fi...

More than 100 activists, including former Pakistani senator Mushtaq Ahmad, who were aboard aid ships bound for Gaza were released and taken to the Greek island of Crete on Friday, a day after Israeli forces seized their vessels in international waters near Greece. The activists were part of a second Global Sumud Flotilla, launched in recent months in an attempt to break Israel’s blockade of Gaza by delivering humanitarian assistance. The ships set sail from the Spanish port of Barcelona on April 12. On Friday, an Israeli army ship transferred 168 members of the flotilla crew to Greek boats, which then took them to shore, where buses and an ambulance waited for them, organisers said and Reuters footage showed. Before communications were jammed, former senator Ahmad posted videos to social media platform X saying, “Flotilla under attack, Israeli terrorist army has captured 11 of our boats.” On Friday, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said on X that the former senator, “who was unlawfully det...

Tehran delivered a new proposal for peace talks with the United States via Pakistan, Iranian state media reported on Friday, with US President Donald Trump saying that he was “not satisfied” with what had been put forth. Though the United States and Iran have suspended hostilities since an April 8 ceasefire, the two countries remain at odds over a range of issues, including Iran’s nuclear ambitions and control over the Strait of Hormuz, and they have yet to agree to a second meeting, following a brief ​summit of senior officials in Islamabad last month. Trump’s comments on Friday indicated the deadlock ‌over the two-month-old war is likely to persist. He also conveyed to the US Congress his stance that the hostilities had “terminated” following a ceasefire with Iran as the deadline to get Congress’s approval for the war arrived. Trump ‘not happy’ The text of Iran’s new proposal was handed to Islamabad on Thursday evening, the IRNA news agency reported on Friday. Hours later, Trump spoke to reporters at the Wh...

FAISALABAD - State Minister for Interior Senator Talal Chaudhry on Friday announced a decisive nationwide strategy to eliminate ille-gal occupation of state land and said that no individual, group or company would be allowed to defy the law as the government moved to firmly re-establish the writ of the state.

ISLAMABAD - Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Yahya Afridi has said that International Labour Day invites us not only to honour the contributions of workers, but to reflect on the quality of justice and protection available to those who sustain our economy.

LAHORE/ FAISALABAD - Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday formed a high-level committee on the One Constitution Avenue issue.

Peshawar - Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Minister for Health, Khaleeq ur Rehman, on Friday reaffirmed the provincial government’s commitment to strengthening rehabilitation services and promoting inclusive healthcare during a visit to the Habib Physiotherapy Complex in Hayatabad.

Peshawar - Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sohail Afridi, formally inaugurated the Package-I of the Northern Section (missing link) of the Peshawar Ring Road.

Peshawar - Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sohail Afridi, has reaffirmed that the health and education sectors remain the foremost priorities of the provincial government, underscoring their direct impact on public welfare and human development outcomes.

RAWALPINDI/LAHORE/KARACHI: Pakistan is confronting a stark weather dichotomy this week, as extreme heat scorches southern parts of the country while central and northern regions brace for widespread dust storms, rain, and potential landslides triggered by an incoming weather system. The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) said that a fresh westerly wave is expected to approach the northwestern parts of the country on Saturday evening and would persist in the upper regions until May 5. In sharp contrast, extreme heat has gripped much of Sindh. In Karachi, the maximum temperature is expected to rise to 39 degrees Celsius over the weekend, according to Chief Meteorologist Ameer Hyder. Across the large swathes of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the fresh westerly weather system is forecast to bring dust-thunderstorms and rain, with isolated heavy falls and hailstorms. Chitral, Dir, Swat, Kalam, Shangla, Buner, Kohistan, Malakand, Battagram, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Balakot, Haripur, Mardan, Nowshera, Peshawar, Bajaur, Mohm...

Pakistani pilgrims currently in Saudi Arabia for Hajj 2026 have expressed immense satisfaction with the government’s arrangements, describing the facilities provided in Makkah, particularly in the Al-Aziziyah district, as “unparalleled.

PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi expressed on Friday his intention to protest against drone attacks in his province, saying that these attacks were resulting in “collateral damage”. The CM made these remarks while addressing a provincial cabinet meeting, a day after he hinted at introducing legislation to criminalise collateral damage in such incidents. He said the meeting was called against “persistent drone attacks” and the subsequent collateral damage, which had “become a curse in KP”. The CM condemned these attacks, saying that they were fostering sentiments of “revenge among the people”, as well as resulting in an increase in terrorism, which was harmful for KP and the entire country. On Thursday, Afridi also announced that a jirga would be summoned on Saturday against drone attacks, while the opposition was also told to ensure tribal elders’ presence for deciding the future course of action. Addressing the cabinet meeting, Afridi also termed the loadshedding of gas in KP a viola...

• Iran submits 'revised proposals' through Pakistan • US president says he's not satisfied with latest plans • T

Fuel price surge, global shocks send CPI soaring

Drone attack injures 3 at Bajaur match

Urges measures to provide training to youth in modern technologies

Two new polio cases reported in K-P