Pakistan

Earlier this month, Pakistan’s Supreme Court (SC) set aside a rape conviction, changing it to fornication (consensual sex out of marriage), reducing a 20-year sentence to five years and slashing the fine from Rs500,000 to Rs10,000, sparking fresh calls for better protections for Pakistani women. “Such judgments do not give confidence to women to come out and report sexual violence perpetrated on them,” said Ayesha Farooq, chairperson of the government-notified Committee of the Anti-Rape Investigation and Trial Act, formed in 2021. Despite protective legislation, 70 per cent of gender-based violence (GBV) incidents go unreported. Of those reported, the national conviction rate stands at just 5pc, with some categories as low as 0.5pc and domestic violence convictions at 1.3pc. Senator Sherry Rehman highlighted the stark figures: in 2024, Islamabad recorded just seven convictions out of 176 reported rape cases. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa reported one conviction from 258 cases, Sindh reported no convictions despite 243 c...

Business opportunities and investment in Pakistan have seen a significant boost, driven by the efforts of the Special Investment Facilitation Council.

Pakistan Air Force Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Zaheer Ahmed Baber Sidhu held a meeting with Commander of the Iraqi Air Force, Lieutenant General Staff Pilot Mohanad Ghalib Mohammed Radi Al-Asadi, during his official visit to Iraq.

Pakistan’s Foreign Office on Saturday issued a travel advisory urging citizens to avoid unnecessary travel to Iran due to the prevailing security situation and growing unrest in the country.

The Punjab government is likely to extend winter holidays for educational institutions by another week due to the prevailing cold weather conditions.

US President Donald Trump on Friday continued to make a case for him deserving the Nobel Peace Prize, yet again highlighting his role in ending the May 2025 conflict between Pakistan and India. Taking media queries after a meeting with oil and gas executives at White House in Washington, Trump was asked about Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado’s offer to share her Nobel Peace Prize with the US president. “Norway is very embarrassed with what took place,” Trump said; the Norwegian Nobel Committee is responsible for selecting the Nobel Peace Prize laureates. “Whether people like Trump or don’t like Trump, I settled eight wars — big ones,” Trump said — a claim that he has repeated in the past. “Some going on for 36 years, 32 years, 31 years, 28 years, 25 years. Some just getting ready to start, like India and Pakistan, where already eight jets were shot out in the air,” Trump said. He pointed out that he arranged a ceasefire between the two countries in “rapid order without nuclear weapons”. “I ca...

The Foreign Office on Saturday issued a travel advisory urging Pakistani nationals to avoid unnecessary travel to Iran amid growing unrest in the neighbouring country. In a statement, FO said, “For their safety and security, Pakistani nationals are advised to avoid all unnecessary travel to the Islamic Republic of Iran until conditions improve.” It also advised Pakistani nationals residing in Iran to exercise “extreme caution, remain vigilant, minimise non-essential travel, and stay in regular contact with the Pakistani missions” in Tehran, Zahidan and Mashhad. The FO also shared the phone numbers for the Pakistan embassy in the three cities; Tehran +98-21-66-9413-88/89/90/91, +98-21-66-9448-88/90, +98 910 764 8298; Zahidan +98 54 33 22 3389, +989046145412; Mashhad +98 910 762 5302, +98 937 180 7175. Protests have taken place across Iran for nearly two weeks in a movement sparked by anger over the rising cost of living, leading to authorities imposing internet restrictions. Iranian rights group HRANA said on ...

United States Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Australia and several other countries would join a meeting of finance ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) advanced economies that he is hosting in Washington on Monday to discuss critical minerals. Bessent said he had been pressing for a separate meeting on the issue since last summer’s summit of G7 leaders, and finance ministers had already held a virtual meeting in December. India was also invited to attend the meeting, Bessent told Reuters in an interview after touring the Minneapolis-area engineering lab of RV and boat maker Winnebago Industries. He said he was unsure if it had accepted the invitation. It was not immediately clear which other countries had been invited. The G7 includes the United States, Britain, Japan, France, Germany, Italy and Canada, as well as the European Union, most of whom are heavily dependent on rare earth supplies from China. The group last June agreed on an action plan to secure their supply chains and boost their economie...

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has unveiled a comprehensive plan to establish state-of-the-art cardiac catheterisation (cath) labs in every district of the province to ensure timely and quality treatment for heart patients.

Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Saturday that security forces killed eleven terrorists in two separate intelligence-based operations (IBOs) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. In a statement, the military’s media affairs wing said the operations were carried out on Jan 8 and that the terrorists belonged to Indian proxy Fitna al Khawarij. Fitna al Khawarij is a term the state uses for terrorists belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). It said that an IBO was conducted by the security forces in North Waziristan district on the reported presence of terrorists. During the operation, troops engaged the terrorists, and six were killed after an “intense fire exchange”. “Another joint IBO by police and security forces was conducted in Kurram district. In the ensuing fire exchange, five khawarij were effectively neutralised,” it said. The statement said weapons and ammunition were also recovered from the terrorists, who remained “actively involved in numerous terrorist activities against security f...

Pakistani security forces killed eleven khwarij belonging to Indian proxy Fitna Al Khwarij in two separate engagements in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Saturday.

Cold and dry weather is expected to prevail across most parts of the country, while very cold conditions are likely in hilly areas, according to the latest weather outlook.

Venezuela said on Friday it had launched talks with the United States on restoring diplomatic ties, days after US forces deposed Nicolas Maduro as its president. It was the latest sign of cooperation following the leftist leader’s capture and US President Donald Trump’s claim to be “in charge” of the South American country. Officials said US diplomats were in Caracas to discuss reopening the country’s embassy, while in Washington, Trump met with oil companies over his plans to access Venezuela’s huge crude reserves. The government of interim President Delcy Rodriguez “has decided to initiate an exploratory diplomatic process with the government of the United States of America, aimed at re-establishing diplomatic missions in both countries,” Foreign Minister Yvan Gil said in a statement. John McNamara, the top US diplomat in neighbouring Colombia, and other personnel “travelled to Caracas to conduct an initial assessment for a potential phased resumption of operations,” a US official said on customary conditio...

KARACHI: Terming the country’s ‘Illegal Foreigners Repat­riation Plan’ — now in its third and final phase — “unlawful… given it violates… the right to non-refoulement”, Amnesty International has called on Pakistan to halt the deportation of Afghan refugees. In an open letter to PM Shehbaz Sharif, Agnes Callamard — secretary general of the global rights watchdog — noted that Pakistan has been a generous host to refugees for over 40 years, but noted that its policy changed significantly once the repatriation plan was announced in Sept 2023. “Since then, Amnesty Inte­rnational has documented a complete lack of transparency, due process and accountability in the unlawful arrests, detentions and deportations of Afghan nationals in Pakistan,” it said. It also called on the country to create well-resourced and accessible pathways for the registration of refugees, taking proactive measures to expedite the registration of refugees particularly at risk, including but not limited to women and girls, journalists, and tho...

ISLAMABAD: Despite the government’s proclamations of reforms and economic stabilisation, the overall financial performance of state-owned entities (SOEs) deteriorated further in 2024-25, with their consolidated losses surging by 302 per cent, mainly led by the power sector, according to the Ministry of Finance (MoF). The ministry confirmed that not only did overall revenues decline, but consolidated profits also fell, and financial losses and budget injections increased in 2024-25 compared to the previous year. The consolidated financial results of the SOEs firmed up by Central Monitoring Unit (CMU) of the MoF came up for review before a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on SOE (CCoSOEs) presided over by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Friday. The committee was informed that “during 2024-25, aggregate revenues of SOEs stood at approximately Rs12.4 trillion, reflecting a decline largely attributable to reduced profitability in the oil sector following lower international oil prices,” the MoF said. Aggreg...

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has begun soft global marketing of the 2nd Pakistan Minerals Investment Forum, 2026 (PMIF26), scheduled to be held here on April 8 and 9, according to an official announcement on Friday. Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik held a briefing session with Pakistan’s ambassadors and high commissioners posted in key foreign capitals to advance preparations and mobilise international participation for the event. The meeting was conducted virtually with Pakistan’s missions abroad, while senior officials from the petroleum division and representatives of key public sector entities attended in person. The session focused on aligning diplomatic outreach with national economic priorities and positioning PMIF26 as a premier global platform for investment in Pakistan’s mineral and mining sector, the petroleum division said. PM approves national policy framework to reform gemstones sector During the briefing, the minister explained the aims, scale, and strategic importance of PMIF26 as a forum represent...

Turkiye is reportedly seeking entry into a mutual defence agreement between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, potentially paving the way for a new security alignment that could shift the balance of power in the Middle East and beyond, Bloomberg reported Friday. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman signed a “Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement” in Riyadh last September, pledging that any attack on either nation would be treated as an act of aggression against both. Citing people familiar with the matter, who spoke anonymously, Bloomberg reported that the talks are at an advanced stage and “a deal is very likely”. “The expanded alliance would make sense because Turkiye’s interests increasingly overlap with those of Saudi Arabia and Pakistan in South Asia, the Middle East and even Africa,” the report read. “Turkiye also sees the pact as a way of strengthening security and deterrents when there are questions over the reliability of the US, which has strong military ties with all three ...

India’s trade pact with the United States was delayed because Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not make a telephone call to US President Donald Trump to close a deal they were negotiating, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said on Friday. The trade talks fell apart last year and Trump doubled tariffs on Indian goods in August to 50 per cent, the world’s highest rate, including a levy of 25pc in retaliation for India’s purchases of Russian oil. “It’s all set up and you have got to have Modi call the president. And they were uncomfortable doing it,” Lutnick said in an interview on the All-In podcast, a US show by four venture capitalists that focuses on business and technology. “So Modi didn’t call.” The comments came after Trump stepped up the pressure for talks with a warning this week that tariffs could rise further unless India curbs its Russian oil imports. That step pushed the Indian rupee to a record low and spooked investors waiting for progress in two-way negotiations for a trade deal that remains elus...

ISLAMABAD - Federal Minister for Climate Change and Environmental Coordination Dr Musadik Malik on Friday chaired a high-level meeting to review environmental protection measures and the preservation of green cover in the federal capital, stressing the need for coordinated and transparent action to address public health and ecological.

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States, Rizwan Saeed Sheikh, said on Friday that he held a “productive meeting” with US Representative Mike Rogers, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, to discuss the evolving partnership between the two countries.