Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: In a surprise move, the Shehbaz Sharif government on Friday increased the prices of both petrol and diesel by Rs26.77 per litre with immediate effect for the week ending May 1, passing on the impact of global prices during the last fortnight while also seeking to raise revenues in the final months of the fiscal year under commitments with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The IMF’s executive board is expected to approve in the first half of May the disbursement of more than $1.2 billion under two ongoing programmes. As of April 23, diesel prices were estimated to go down by around Rs25 per litre and petrol by Rs6 per litre. However, the government partially restored the petroleum levy on diesel and increased petrol prices to meet overall fiscal targets. Unlike the prime minister’s anno­uncements of price cuts, the increase this time was quietly announced by the petroleum division on the day Iran and the United States dispatched their negotiators to Islamabad for the second round of talks. Petr...

Every time exams come around, you are told to make a proper schedule, wake up early, drink water, be the responsible and disciplined child. And then somehow, many of you end up on your bed every night around 2 am with zero new information in your brain, but a detailed colour-coded schedule that you made instead of actually studying. Perhaps it’s not wrong. You have the motivation to start your studies accordingly. Whether you actually studied or the schedule became the whole project, at least you started. But there is a specific type of student with the most organised notes, the most colour-coded timetable, the neatest desk setup and, somehow, they actually do study. So that leaves the rest of us — the big lot — the students who also genuinely try, sacrifice sleep, panic-watch YouTube lectures and explanations. But the results still don’t match the effort they put in, leaving them confused and demoralised. What makes their efforts fail? Mostly, it’s study methods that don’t work. The pressure is on vigorous s...

Foreign Office (FO) Spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said on Friday that an Iranian delegation led by the Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had arrived in Islamabad. The development came as the White House said that envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would also be heading to Pakistan for talks with Iran. However, Iran asserted that it would not be meeting with the US. In a post on X, FO spokesperson Andrabi Araghchi was received by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir and other senior officials. “During the visit, the Iranian foreign minister will hold meetings with Pakistan’s senior leadership to discuss the latest regional developments as well as ongoing efforts for regional peace and stability,” he added. Subsequently, Dar posted on X that he was pleased to “receive and welcome my brother, Foreign Minister of Iran, Abbas Araghchi, to Islamabad”. “Look forward to our meaningful engagements aimed at promoting regional peace...

The government raised the prices of petrol and high-speed diesel (HSD) by Rs26.77 each on Friday. Following the increase, the price of petrol now stands at Rs393.35 and that of HSD at Rs380.19. The announcement was made in a press release issued by the Petroleum Division. It said the prices were revised for the week starting on April 25. Petrol is mostly used in private transport, small vehicles, rickshaws and two-wheelers and has a direct bearing on the budget of the middle and lower-middle class. High-speed diesel is mainly used in the heavy transport sector and for large generators. The government has been revising petroleum prices every week on Friday night following the now-paused US-Israeli war on Iran, which began on February 28. The war also led to a global fuel crunch caused by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which one-fifth of the world’s supply of oil and gas used to pass in peace time. After the US-Israeli war on Iran began, the government initially hiked petrol and diesel prices by R...

KARACHI: An 11-year-old boy was feared to have drowned after he could not be recovered even hours after being swept away while swimming in an open water line in Karachi’s Scheme-33 area on Friday. East Deputy Commissioner (DC) Nasrullah Abbasi, who was supervising the rescue operation, told Dawn that the boy, Zahid Mohammed Khan, was swept away around 2pm while swimming in the Karachi Water and Sewerage Corporation (KWSC)’s line. He was not recovered until late at night, when the last updates were received. Lifeguards from Rescue 1122 and Edhi Foundation carried out the search for him, the DC said, adding that the delay in finding the boy could have been due to the heavy flow of water. Rescue 1122 said in a statement that its two teams were searching for the boy at two spots. The DC said KWSC officials had also visited the spot and had estimated that the boy may end up as far away as in Gulistan-i-Jauhar’s Block-1 near Continental Bakery, where an iron grill had been installed in the line. But that might take...

RAWALPINDI - Security Forces and Law Enforcement Agencies killed 22 khwarij terrorists belonging to India sponsored Fitna -al-Khwarij in a joint intelligence operation in Khyber District.

ISLAMABAD - The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) repaid a deposit of US $1 billion to Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD), UAE, on Thursday (23 April 2026), said a post shared on social media by the central bank of Pakistan on Friday.

ISLAMABAD - Security has been heightened in federal capital Islamabad ahead of arrival of US and Iranian delegations for peace talks aimed at ending the Middle East crisis.

ISLAMABAD- US and Iranian top diplomats are heading back to Pakistan for a new round of peace talks, officials from both the countries confirmed on Friday, ending week-long uncertainty amid deadlock.

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif has reaffirmed Pakistan’s unwavering commitment to dialogue, cooperation, and peaceful resolution of disputes in accordance with the principles of the United Nations Charter, marking the International Day of Multilateralism and Diplomacy for Peace.

ISLAMABAD - Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister (DPM/FM), Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar on Friday held a telephonic conversation with the Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation, Sergey Lavrov.

Islamabad - Pakistan’s National Security Committee (NSC) which met on April 24, 2025 two days after Pahlgam terror attack in IIOJK, had issued a forceful, wide-ranging and strategically calibrated response, describing it as a “false flag operation” and rejecting India’s subsequent actions as provocative,.

Islamabad - Prominent Pakistani journalist Gharida Farooqi has filed a formal complaint with the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) following a coordinated online harassment campaign involving morphed images and abusive content targeting her appearance and attire.

ISLAMABAD: Maritime Affairs Minister Junaid Anwar Chaudhry sought on Friday a detailed report on the purported hijacking of an oil tanker by pirates near Somalia, with Pakistanis said to be among the hostages. A statement issued by the Ministry of Maritime Affairs referred to the reported incident, mentioning that the crew of the hijacked vessel was said to comprise 11 Pakistanis. It added that the ministry was monitoring the situation and was in contact with relevant departments, including the Foreign Office. The statement said efforts were also being made to contact the Somali authorities regarding the matter. According to media reports, an oil tanker named “Owner 25” was hijacked by pirates near Somalia’s coast on April 21, and 11 Pakistani crew, as well as the Indonesian captain of the vessel, were taken hostage. The incident is said to have taken place in the Gulf of Aden, while the name and nationality of the tanker’s operator have not been reported. In 2024, Somali pirates had hijacked an Iranian fishi...

ISLAMABAD: Police have arrested a citizen for allegedly mocking and likening the Tarnol Railway crossing to the Strait of Hormuz. The Strait of Hormuz, a crucial shipping route, has been virtually paralysed by the Middle East war. The first information report (FIR), a copy of which is available with Dawn, has been registered on the complaint of Sub-inspector Shahid Asghar on the state’s behalf. The FIR was registered under Section 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by a public servant), Section 341 (punishment for wrongful restrains) and Section 511 (punishment for attempting to commit offences punishable with imprisonment for life or for a shorter term) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC). According to the complaint, a man identified as Khurram was accused of sharing a post on social media, saying, “Tarnol Railway Crossing is no less than the Strait of Hormuz. If it is closed, all our problems will be resolved”. It said that the citizen was taken into custody and his phone was also checked, wherein evi...

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