Pakistan

Lawyer and rights activist Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and her husband, Advocate Hadi Ali Chattha, on Thursday objected after the apparent vanishing act of the court-appointed lawyer representing them in the controversial social media posts case and the appointment of a new counsel. Judge Afzal Majoka, who has been presiding over the case’s proceedings, too, was also seemingly unaware of the finalisation of the appointment of the new counsel when Advocate Taimur Janjua showed up in the Islamabad district and sessions court instead of Advocate Shakeel Jatt. Advocate Jatt, who attended the case’s hearing as Imaan and Hadi’s court-appointed defence counsel for the first time on Tuesday, had previously refused to cross-examine the prosecution’s witnesses, saying that he could not “ask questions dictated” to him. “I am in favour of a fair trial. I cannot ask questions that are dictated [to me]. My conscience does not allow this,” he had said. The counsel had alleged without sharing any specific details that he had “...

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has initiated legal action, through the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA), against those involved in spreading fabricated information on social media regarding the offloading of passengers. Over the past few months, numerous incidents have been reported of travellers being offloaded from flights at various airports, despite possessing valid travel documents. The actions came after a crack down on migrant smuggling after last year’s Greece boat tragedy that claimed several Pakistani lives. Earlier this month, FIA Director General Riffat Mukhtar acknowledged that incidents of people being offloaded had been reported at Lahore and Karachi airports, and that investigations were underway. According to sources, more than 15 such social media accounts have initially been found to be involved in spreading baseless propaganda and hatred against provinces. It has been learned that the FIA has initiated action by identifying social media accounts spreading fabricate...

Adding a 'zero' to land records inflated 50 kanals to 500 kanals for fraudulent plot allotments

Party offices locked, workers disillusioned as once-bustling political hubs turn deserted

.

.

Court orders federal govt to submit clause-wise replies within two weeks

.

.

.

.

CCTV footage leads to recovery of gold worth millions

.

Under Punjab's new protection ordinance district committee to resolve cases within 90 days

.

.

Afghans who fled the Taliban and have waited years for resettlement decision from the United States say their last path to safety has shut since Washington froze all Afghan immigration cases following a shooting near the White House. The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said late on Wednesday it had halted processing for Afghan nationals indefinitely, hours after an Afghan man shot and critically wounded two National Guard soldiers in Washington. US President Donald Trump called the attack “an act of terror” and ordered a review of Afghans who entered the country during Joe Biden’s presidency. For Afghans sheltering in Pakistan, tens of thousands of whom are awaiting US resettlement decisions, the announcement felt like their last safe route had closed. Law enforcement members gather in a cordoned-off area after two National Guard members were reportedly shot near the White House in Washington, DC., the U.S on, November 26. — Reuters ‘If I go back you will hear news of my arrest or my death’ “I...

.

Pakistan assured the visiting European Union (EU) Monitoring Mission on Thursday of its total and complete commitment to the Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+). The country was granted GSP+ status by the EU in 2014, resulting in a 108 per cent increase in Pakistani textile exports to the EU due to concessional tariffs. In October 2023, the European Parliament unanimously voted to extend the GSP+ status for another four years until 2027 for developing countries, including Pakistan. A seven-member EU delegation is currently visiting Karachi as part of the fifth Biennial Review of the GSP+ scheme. It is led by Sirgio Baliberia, adviser to the GSP+ Directorate in the Directorate General for Trade. The monitoring mission will scrutinise Pakistan’s record on 27 international conventions tied to the trade scheme. Maintaining GSP+ status is critical for Pakistan to keep export costs low. A press release issued by the human rights ministry today said Human Rights and Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar welcomed ...

With Predator: Badlands, director Dan Trachtenberg (of the brilliant 10 Cloverfield Lane) brings one of cinema’s most semi-appealing alien species closer to first-tier status — if not fully, then nearly. But to make it to the big league, the aliens from the hardcore hunting species, the Yautja (that’s their name) needed a bigger brand and a little mythic scaffolding: the Weyland-Yutani Corporation, the malevolent backbone of the Aliens franchise. For those to whom these names sound like gobbledygook, here’s the gist: since the first two Predator movies — the wildly popular 1987 original with Arnold Schwarzenegger and the less financially successful 1990 sequel with Danny Glover — the franchise has been in a persistent rut. Despite novel and comic publishers regularly putting Predators on shelves (the Yautja have fought Superman, Batman, Spider-Man, Wolverine and even crossed paths with Archie), the films were sporadic and uneven in terms of their storytelling and lore-making. Predators (2010), starring Adrien...