Pakistan

DHS rule sets fixed stays for student, exchange and media visas, replacing duration-based admissions

Strong H1 growth driven by innovation, high-tech sectors and resilient domestic demand despite global slowdown

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) has introduced a new Transport Monetisation Policy allowing judicial officers across Punjab’s district judiciary to purchase their officially allotted vehicles at depreciated prices. According to a notification issued by the LHC registrar, the policy was approved by Lahore High Court Chief Justice Aalia Neelum in pursuance of the decisions of the National Judicial (Policy Making) Committee (NJPMC) and the Punjab cabinet. The policy has taken effect retrospectively from July 1, 2026. Under the new policy, judicial officers will no longer receive official fuel, maintenance, or driver facilities for personal use. Instead, they will be paid a monthly transport monetisation allowance — the rates of which will be determined by the competent authority and revised periodically in line with fuel prices and economic conditions. A key feature of the policy is that judicial officers have been given the option to purchase the official vehicles currently allotted to them at a depreciated...

Dalian Ocean University (DLOU) of China and Lasbela University of Agriculture, Water and Marine Sciences (LUAWMS) of Pakistan recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), marking a pivotal milestone for bilateral cooperation in marine science and education.

Pakistan and Portugal on Thursday reviewed the full range of bilateral relations and discussed ways to strengthen political engagement and cooperation in trade and investment, labour mobility, agriculture, renewable energy, information technology, education, tourism, culture, and people-to-people exchanges.

Multiple X users have been sharing a video on the social media platform since July 14, claiming that it shows the Iranian Navy destroying a ship in the Strait of Hormuz amid renewed hostilities in the Middle East. However, the video is old and shows the US Navy destroying an Iranian Soleimani-class corvette vessel in the Persian Gulf. Traffic in the Strait of Hormuz was disrupted once again after Iranian forces shut down the vital maritime route after exchanging heavy missile and drone assaults with US forces, with multiple US facilities in the Gulf states coming under fire on July 12, 2026. The United States military has concluded a fourth consecutive night of strikes against Iran, as Washington and Tehran both stake claims for control of the Strait of Hormuz. On July 14, a pro-Iranian account, based on its display profile and past posts, shared a video on X, showing a ship engulfed in flames in the sea, claiming to have been attacked by the Iranian Navy in the Strait of Hormuz. The post was captioned: “This...

Pakistan’s domestic aviation network received a significant boost on Wednesday as South Air commenced scheduled flight operations from Jinnah International Airport, Karachi, introducing new routes aimed at improving regional connectivity and supporting tourism and economic activity across the country.

South Air’s inaugural flights from Karachi to Quetta, via Turbat, and to Islamabad, via Bahawalpur, departed from Jinnah International Airport on Thursday morning, the Pakistan Airports Authority (PAA) said in a statement. The authority added that the new carrier’s flight operations have “ further strengthened Pakistan’s domestic air connectivity”. “The new services represent an important addition to the domestic flight network at Jinnah International Airport, providing passengers with enhanced travel options and improved connectivity.” Initially, South Air will operate one weekly flight on the Karachi-Quetta route via Turbat and three weekly flights on the Karachi-Islamabad route via Bahawalpur. The airline plans to expand its operations with additional flights from Karachi to Peshawar, Rahim Yar Khan, Sukkur and Gwadar, according to the PAA. “These new air services are expected to promote tourism, facilitate trade and improve travel convenience by strengthening regional connectivity across Pakistan,” PAA sa...

Pakistan’s Foreign Office has said that tensions between Iran and the United States are not in the interest of anyone and urged both sides to exercise restraint.

An Indian court directed authorities on Thursday to monitor the health of an activist who is on the 19th day of a hunger strike on a stage in central Delhi to demand the education minister quits, and to intervene if his condition deteriorates. It is the first time that a court has intervened in the protest, as concern over Sonam Wangchuk’s condition grows among his supporters. The instruction means he could be moved to a hospital if his health worsens. Wangchuk has been fasting in solidarity with India’s youth Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), which is staging a sit-in demanding minister Dharmendra Pradhan step down over exam paper leaks that affected millions of students. The 59-year-old, who has said he will continue his strike until their demands are met, has lost more than 9 kilograms since he began his fast but remains mentally alert, a doctor attending to him told news agency ANI. Acting on a petition for authorities to force-feed Wangchuk before his condition worsens, a two-judge bench of the Delhi High Cou...

Replaces official transport facilities with a monthly allowance for judicial officers across Punjab

Junaid Rashid was five when his father vanished from military custody nearly three decades ago, one of the thousands who disappeared in Indian-occupied Kashmir during the 90s. But after years of the family searching for him and fighting court battles, a judge in the contested Himalayan territory declared what Rashid already believed: his father Abdul Rashid Wani was dead. It was the first such ruling among thousands of petitions for the disappeared, marking a rare recognition that many other families still don’t have of their loss. The judgement ordered the issuance of a “death certificate”, but also acknowledged a police probe that identified the army officer who took Wani into custody in July 1997. Wani, a timber trader, was stopped near his home in the city of Srinagar while carrying “a good amount of cash” on his way to pay suppliers, according to his family and the police probe. That evening, his wife and two children sat “all dressed up” waiting for him to return and take them to a wedding reception. “H...

US Vice President JD Vance has said that late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein “seemed to be connected” to elements of the “Israeli deep state” as well as the “highest levels of American intelligence”, while also acknowledging the Trump administration mishandled its response to the case. He made these remarks in a podcast episode with host Joe Rogan that was published on Wednesday. During the episode, Rogan brought up that most people thought Epstein was linked to Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, to which Vance replied, “Yeah, Mossad or CIA or some other deep state, whether in America, Israel, or another country.” “He clearly had connections to the upper, the highest levels of American intelligence. He clearly had connections to the highest levels of Israeli intelligence,” he said. He added that he found the Epstein case “interesting” because, “as much as I know, [Israeli] Prime Minister Netanyahu, not a particularly popular person in the United States of America right now, Epstein seemed to be connected to t...

TikTok said it met UK online safety rules, after the law tightened protections for children last year

ISLAMABAD: The Directorate General of Immigration and Passports (DGIP) has urged citizens to use its official helpline and the Pakistan Citizen Portal for passport-related assistance, feedback and complaint registration, reaffirming its commitment to providing accessible and citizen-centric services.

EU targets Big Tech under Digital Markets Act, ordering firms to open competition and give users more choice

KARACHI: A judicial magistrate on Thursday granted police week-long physical remand of three suspects in the murder case of a young doctor that drew widespread condemnation. Dr Akash Kumar, a doctor at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), was killed on Monday after robbers intercepted his vehicle near Teen Talwar and escaped with around Rs2 million that he was carrying after withdrawing cash from a private bank. Three suspects were later arrested in connection with the murder and robbery. The three men were presented before South Judicial Magistrate Zahid Ali on Thursday. Prosecutor Abdul Latif appeared on behalf of the state and supported the investigating officer’s (IO) request for the suspects’ physical remand. Seeking the suspects’ 14-day physical remand, the IO contended that more accomplices of those arrested, including a woman, needed to be traced. He added that the motorcycles and car used in the incident were yet to be recovered, as well as the stolen money. Police on Wednesday said they ha...

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar reached China’s Shanghai on two-day visit on Thursday to sign an agreement for Pakistan to join the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organisation (WAICO) as a founding member, the Foreign Office (FO) said. China proposed the creation of WAICO last year for AI governance. Upon his arrival in China, Dar was received by Shanghai Vice Mayor Wu Wei, Pakistan’s Charge d’Affaires to China Aizaz Khan and Consul General of Pakistan in Shanghai Shahzad Ahmad Khan, the FO said on X. It added that apart from attending the signing ceremony of WAICO, Dar will also participate in the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) 2026 during the visit and engage with other leaders to advance international AI cooperation and promote inclusive, equitable AI governance. An earlier statement by the FO said that Dar would also hold a bilateral meeting with his Chinese counterpart, as well as meetings with other officials to discuss matters of mutual interest during t...

LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz on Thursday launched the green electric bus service in five more districts of the province, expanding the government's eco-friendly public transport initiative.

ISLAMABAD: The Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) has decided to begin large-scale drilling operations following the discovery of significant shale gas reserves in Sindh, the company's managing director said.