Pakistan

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar arrived in Manila on Wednesday to participate in the 33rd Asean Regional Forum (ARF) ministerial meeting, the Foreign Office (FO) said. “A busy programme of engagements lies ahead, including participation in the ARF plenary meeting and bilateral meetings with counterparts on the sidelines,” the FO said in a post on the social media platform on X. It said that upon his arrival, Dar was received by Elmer G Cato, the assistant secretary at Philippines’ foreign affairs department, Pakistan’s Ambassador to the Philippines Asima Rabbani and other officials. In a statement issued on Tuesday night, the FO said that the high-level meeting will bring together foreign ministers and delegates from 27 ARF member states, adding that the Asean secretary general will also attend the meeting. It said that Dar will participate in discussions on “political and security issues affecting the Asia-Pacific region, with a special focus on promoting peace, stability, and mutual coo...

The United States plans to announce an agreement with Saudi Arabia on Wednesday that would give the country a civilian nuclear programme, according to media reports, amid renewed fighting between the Gulf oil giant and Houthi rebels in Yemen. Citing two unnamed US officials, the New York Times reported on Tuesday the Trump administration plans to formally sign and announce the deal with the Saudis on Wednesday. President Donald Trump’s administration said the deal will provide billions of dollars for the US nuclear industry. A provision in the deal, which would last 30 years, would have American companies build a uranium enrichment facility in Saudi Arabia if a joint study determined it warranted, the Wall Street Journal reported. The deal is expected to be submitted to Congress in the coming days, but their approval is not required for it to go through. Two sources also told Reuters that the Trump administration plans to submit the agreement to Congress. The sources said the administration would submit to Co...

Beijing, Washington weighing how to regulate advanced AI models

Authorities say arrested facilitator used religious rulings to justify extortion

ISPR says multiple intelligence-based sanitisation and targeted operations conducted in Surab and Mastung in 48 hours

KSE-100 index falls over 1,000 points as broad-based selling grips market with trading underway

Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb met with U.

On Tuesday, the price per tola rose by Rs4,700 to Rs429,236

KP’S petition before the Federal Constitutional Court, seeking Rs964bn as the province’s claimed share of tax revenues since the Fata merger in 2018, may well be a political move by the PTI-led government. Still, it raises larger constitutional and fiscal questions about Pakistan’s federal structure, a dysfunctional National Finance Commission and distribution of fiscal resources among the provinces. The core issue is whether constitutional and fiscal arrangements can be left frozen indefinitely despite major changes in a province’s demographic and administrative realities. While the Fata merger increased KP’s responsibilities, the province’s share from the federal tax pool is unchanged, raising questions about fiscal rights, as well as the centre’s role under Article 160 of the Constitution. Can an NFC Award, based on circumstances more than 15 years old, continue as it is indefinitely? And does a major constitutional change like the Fata merger automatically alter provincial entitlements, or require formal ...

Says threats challenge rules-based maritime order and jeopardise uninterrupted flow of global commerce

• Tally rises to 94 as Sindh govt had earlier confirmed 78 cases at Valika Hospital • Ombudsman orders comprehensive audit of hospital’s affairs KARACHI: Sindh Ombudsman Mohammad Sohail Rajput was informed on Tuesday that 16 more children were infected with HIV/AIDs at the Sindh Employees Social Security Institution (SESSI)-run Kulsoom Bai Valika Hospital. The ombudsman was hearing a case pertaining to an HIV outbreak at Valika Hospital, where the provincial government confirmed that 78 children had been infected with the infectious disease so far. During the hearing, Adviser to Ombudsman Haani Jamal Khan presented a report on the outbreak, which showed that 16 more children had been diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, while concerns remained high that more cases might emerge. The fresh findings brought the total number of HIV-infected children to 94. Parents and families of the affected children, who were also present during the hearing, expressed serious grievances regarding the alleged lack of cooperation by the hosp...

Firefighters battle blazes amid record heat, strong winds as 66 fires remain active across 19 provinces

New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani said on Tuesday his office does not have the authority to carry out the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and called on US federal officials to step in. “Benjamin Netanyahu is a war criminal, the architect of a horrific genocide against the Palestinian people,” Mamdani said in a brief video message posted to social media. “My administration has reviewed every avenue available under applicable law to determine whether New York City could execute the ICC’s arrest warrant if Benjamin Netanyahu came here,” he said. “It is clear that we do not have the independent legal authority to enforce this warrant. The federal government, however, does, and I call on them to join the ICC and execute this warrant.” The Hague-based International Criminal Court said in 2024 that it had reasonable grounds to believe Netanyahu was responsible for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity related to Israel’s offensive in Gaza follow...

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan faces possible oil supply disruption as petrol pump owners announced indefinite strike from Thursday, following talks with government over daily pricing mechanism for POL products and dealers’ commission collapsed.

Shehbaz says Pakistan will continue to play role as sincere mediator between US, Iran Iran interior minister calls on Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir.

ISLAMABAD - The Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP), chaired by the Chief Justice of Pakistan, on Tuesday recommended the confirmation of an additional judge of the Lahore High Court, the appointment of 10 additional judges to the Lahore High Court and three additional judges to the High Court of Balochistan, besides considering.

MUZAFFARABAD - Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday said he would ask Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to make him the prime minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) if his party wins the upcoming elections.

ISLAMABAD - Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar yesterday chaired a high-level meeting at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to review preparations for Pakistan’s forthcoming diplomatic engagements, directing officials to ensure close coordination and comprehensive planning to effectively advance the country’s.

PESHAWAR/GUJRANWALA - Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Disaster Management Authority on Tuesday said that at least 12 people died in rain-related incidents over the past 24 hours in the province.

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan and Iran have reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening bilateral cooperation in education, science, research, innovation, and higher learning during a meeting between Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Education and Professional Training and Iran’s Minister of Science, Research and.