Pakistan

The Pakistan Meteorological Department has shared its outlook on the start of Ramadan 1447 AH, indicating that fasting is expected to commence on February 19, 2026.

Seventy-five years ago, the idea of harnessing the power of the skies was little more than a fantasy spun by futurists like Arthur C. Clarke and Isaac Asimov. Elon Musk’s mega-merger of his companies xAI and SpaceX this week brings this sci-fi dream a step closer. Nasa engineers and technologists have speculated for nearly two decades about moving energy-hungry computing off the planet. More recently, the idea has captured the attention of Big Tech, including Alphabet and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin. The physics made sense; the solar energy was abundant. Still, the challenges seemed insurmountable. Musk, though, known for betting on seemingly far-out theories and getting them to work, may finally be laying the groundwork to make data centres in space a reality. He is armed with the world’s busiest satellite launch fleet, an AI startup, and an appetite for infrastructure that stretches from Earth to vacuum. “In the long term, space-based AI is obviously the only way to scale,” Musk said on Monday. “To harness even...

In the latest violence to undermine the ceasefire in Gaza, health officials said Israeli tank shelling and airstrikes killed 20 Palestinians, including four children, on Wednesday. Among the dead was a medic who rushed to help victims of a strike in the southern city of Khan Younis and was then killed by a second attack on the same location, health officials said. Other strikes hit Gaza City in the north, where health officials said a five-month-old boy was killed. The attacks come three days after Israel reopened Gaza’s main border crossing with Egypt, a major step in the US-backed truce. The Israeli military claimed it had launched the strikes in response to gunmen opening fire against Israeli troops operating near its armistice line with Hamas. It said an Israeli soldier was severely injured by the fire. Wednesday’s attacks bring the number of Palestinians killed since the border reopened to 28, according to a tally from Gazan health officials. On Saturday, before its reopening, Israeli strikes killed more...

Islamabad - Commander Azerbaijan Naval Forces (ANF), Rear Admiral Shahin Mammadov called on Admiral Naveed Ashraf, NI, NI (M), T Bt, Chief of the Naval Staff, at Naval Headquarters, Islamabad.

The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) on Wednesday issued an important forecast regarding the commencement of Ramazan 1447 Hijri, indicating that the first day of the holy month is likely to fall on February 19, 2026.

The Punjab government has notified public holidays in the province on February 6 and 7 (Friday and Saturday) for Basant, said a notification. The notification was issued on Tuesday by the provincial government’s Services and General Administration Department, a copy of which is available with Dawn. “It is hereby notified for general information that 6th and 7th February, 2026 (Friday and Saturday) shall be observed as public holidays in the province of Punjab,” the notification said. On Sunday, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz had announced a “long weekend” in the province, declaring a Basant holiday. “Punjab will enjoy a long weekend with Kashmir Day on February 5, a provincial Basant holiday on the 6th, followed by Saturday and Sunday. “We hope people across Punjab take this time to relax, recharge, and make the most of the break,” she posted on X. The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has said dry weather with clear skies was expected for the majority of the Basant festival. “Mainly dry weather wi...

Terrorists martyred a police recruit constable in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Lakki Marwat district, the local police said on Wednesday. Pakistan has seen a surge in terrorism since the TTP ended its ceasefire deal with the government in November 2022, vowing to increase attacks. KP and Balochistan are particularly frequent targets. The constable was killed in the Darga forest in Nasrkhel, near the Sarai Naurang area of ​​Lakki Marwat. District Police Spokesperson Qudratullah confirmed the incident, saying that the martyred constable had been undergoing training at Hangu Training School. “On Tuesday night, terrorists abducted him from his house in Nasrkhel and took him to a forest called Darga and shot and killed him there,” he said. The funeral prayers of the constable were offered with official honours at the Lakki Marwat Police Lines. Lakki Marwat’s District Police Officer (DPO) Nazir Khan, Superintendent of Police (SP) Investigation Murad Khan, police officers, district administration officers and police personn...

Kite enthusiasts in the provincial capital have spent more than Rs540 million on kites and strings over the past three days as preparations gather pace for the upcoming Basant festival, according to the Kite Association.

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Wednesday directed the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to move the trial court concerned after the anti-graft body decided to close the Chaudhry Sugar Mills inquiry against Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz. The case pertains to alleged money laundering and income beyond means via “dubious” business transactions of the Chaudhry Sugar Mills, of which Maryam was a major shareholder. A three-member bench, headed by Chief Justice Aalia Neelum and including Justices Muhammad Jawad Zafar and Abher Gul Khan, heard CM Maryam’s civil miscellaneous application seeking the refund of Rs70 million deposited as a guarantee in the case. During the proceedings, the NAB’s prosecutor informed the bench that following the new amendments, the bureau’s chairman had approved the closure of the probe. Justice Neelum, however, observed that the NAB should have approached the accountability court concerned for closure of the inquiry. Questioning the investigation process, the chief justice...

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has strongly condemned the series of terrorist attacks across multiple locations in Balochistan. In a statement issued on Tuesday, the UNSC said the attacks, which occurred on January 31, 2026, were carried out across the province and described them as “heinous and cowardly acts of terrorism”. The UNSC expressed its “deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims, as well as to the governor and people of Pakistan”. The council also wished a speedy and full recovery to those who were injured in the attacks. The statement reaffirmed that “terrorism in all its forms and manifestations constitutes one of the most serious threats to international peace and security”. It added that it was crucial to “hold perpetrators, organisers, financiers, and sponsors of these reprehensible acts of terrorism accountable and bring them to justice,” urging all states to cooperate with the government of Pakistan in accordance with international law and relevant UNSC resol...

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar called on Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on Tuesday during the latter’s two-day official visit to Pakistan, reaffirming Islamabad’s commitment to strengthening bilateral ties.

The United States and India have held high-level talks in Washington focused on critical minerals cooperation, trade and strategic ties. The talks were held late on Tuesday against the backdrop of a recently finalised bilateral trade deal that has drawn attention across the region. Diplomatic observers in Washington, however, maintain that the agreement is unlikely to affect recently improved bilateral ties between Pakistan and the US, as those are not linked to India. The observers note that recent developments in the greater Middle East, as well as in South and Central Asia, have further enhanced Pakistan’s relevance as a key regional player in Washington’s strategic calculus. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar during the latter’s three-day official visit to the United States, as both sides moved to deepen economic and strategic coordination in the Indo-Pacific. According to the US State Department readout, Secretary Rubio and Minister Jaishankar d...

President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev arrived in the capital on Wednesday on a two-day state visit aimed at strengthening bilateral trade, investment and regional connectivity between Pakistan and Kazakhstan.

Gold prices extended gains on Wednesday on safe-haven appeal, as renewed geopolitical tensions between the US and Iran added to the yellow metal’s recent upswing that saw it mark its best day since 2008 in the previous session. Spot gold gained 2.7 per cent to$5,071.79 per ounce as of 03:53 GMT, after surging 5.9pc on Tuesday, its biggest daily gain since November 2008. Bullion scaled a record high of $5,594.82 last Thursday. US gold futures for April delivery climbed 3.2pc to $5,092.0 per ounce. “Gold has climbed back about the key $5,000 level, … (as) geopolitical tensions have lifted the metal’s safe-haven appeal after US forces downed an Iranian drone,” said Jigar Trivedi, a senior research analyst at IndusInd Securities. The US military on Tuesday shot down an Iranian drone that “aggressively” approached the Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea, the US military said, in an incident first reported by Reuters. Nuclear talks between the US and Iran are expected to take place in Oman on Friday...

Human Rights Watch (HRW) warned on Wednesday that President Donald Trump was turning the United States into an authoritarian state as democracy declines globally to its lowest ebb in four decades. Trump’s return to the White House has intensified a “downward spiral” on human rights that was already under pressure from Russia and China, the New York‑based advocacy and research group said in its annual report. “The rules‑based international order is being crushed,” HRW said. In the United States, the group said, Trump has shown “blatant disregard for human rights and egregious violations.” In descriptions that would have been unthinkable in the US section of its previous annual reports, the group pointed to the deployment of masked, armed agents — the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency — which has carried out “hundreds of unnecessarily violent and abusive raids.” “The administration’s racial and ethnic scapegoating, domestic deployment of National Guard forces in pretextual power grabs, repeated a...

Foreign ministers from Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE are also invited to attend the talks likely in Istanbul Iran’s president seeks ‘fair and equitable negotiations’ with US.

The federal government has appointed Dr Akbar Nasir Khan, a BS-20 officer of the Police Service of Pakistan, as the new Inspector General of Police (IGP) Gilgit-Baltistan, according to an official notification issued on Wednesday.

Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev was accorded a formal welcome at the Prime Minister’s House on Wednesday during his official visit to Pakistan, where he held talks with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif aimed at strengthening bilateral cooperation.

Pakistan’s spin-heavy squad are in winning form ahead of the T20 World Cup, but a controversial decision to forfeit their marquee clash against India could still trigger another early exit. Pakistan came close to withdrawing from the tournament in solidarity with Bangladesh, who pulled out after refusing to play in India, citing security concerns. The Pakistan government eventually cleared the team’s participation but it barred them from facing India in Colombo in a blockbuster clash on February 15. With two points for a win, a forfeit of the match will leave Pakistan with no margin for error if they are to progress as one of the top two from a five-team Group A. It means they must win their opening game against the Netherlands in Colombo on Saturday and beat the United States three days later to stay in contention. Their final group game will be against Namibia on February 18. Captain Salman Agha said the move to boycott the India game was out of the team’s hands. “That is not our decision. We have to follow...

TRIPOLI: Saif al Islam, the most prominent son of the late Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi, was shot dead at his home on Tuesday. Abdullah Othman Abdul Rahim, a relative, told a TV channel that Saif al Islam was killed in his house by a group of four unidentified men. “Four armed men stormed the residence of Saif al Islam Qadhafi after disabling surveillance cameras, then executed him,” Abdul Rahim said. While Saif al Islam was well known in the north African country, especially for his role in shaping policy during his father’s rule, his public profile receded in recent years. In 2015, a Libyan court passed a death sentence in absentia on Saif al Islam for suppressing peaceful protests during the country’s 2011 revolution that ended his father’s rule. He was also provisionally charged by the International Criminal Court for alleged crimes against humanity. In 2021, Saif al Islam registered as a presidential candidate for a December vote that eventually collapsed amid a political deadlock. Saif went from being ...