Pakistan

Torchlight march staged to mark 23 years since her abduction

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Appointments will be made on a one-year contract basis, extendable depending on performance

In Dir Upper slow progress amid flood damage, infrastructure gaps leaves girls without proper schooling

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, along with several civil society organisations, on Sunday called on authorities to immediately halt all planned and ongoing eviction operations in Islamabad’s low-income areas and katchi abadis (informal settlements). The call was made in a statement issued by the HRCP following a press conference at the National Press Club in Islamabad. “The All Party Alliance for Katchi Abadis, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, National Commission for Justice and Peace, Awami Workers Party, Aurat March Islamabad and allied civil society organisations strongly condemn the imminent threat of demolition and forced eviction facing residents of Allama Iqbal Colony, a 25-year-old, predominantly Christian working-class settlement reportedly slated for clearance in the coming week,” the statement read. It added: “We unequivocally reject the ongoing pattern of evictions carried out by the Capital Development Authority (CDA), Islamabad, without due process, adequate notice or lawful rehabil...

Israeli police prevented the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre to celebrate Palm Sunday mass, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem said. “This morning, the Israeli Police prevented the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, His Beatitude Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Head of the Catholic Church in the Holy Land, together with the Custos of the Holy Land, the Most Reverend Fr. Francesco Ielpo, OFM, the official Guardian of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, as they made their way to celebrate the Palm Sunday Mass,” a statement from the Patriarchate said. It said the two were stopped while proceeding privately without any characteristics of a procession or ceremonial act, and had to turn back. “As a result, and for the first time in centuries, the Heads of the Church were prevented from celebrating the Palm Sunday Mass at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre,” the statement said. “This ...

United States (US) President Donald Trump’s challenge to the longstanding rule that anyone born in the US, with only narrow exceptions, is automatically a citizen echoes a similar dispute that took place on the shores of San Francisco more than a century ago. In the late 19th century, amid a wave of fervent anti-Chinese sentiment, the US government sought to prevent a young man named Wong Kim Ark from re-entering the country upon returning by steamship from a trip to his parents’ homeland of China, contending that, despite being born in the US, he was not a citizen. On March 28, 1898, the US Supreme Court (SC) disagreed, recognising that the Constitution’s 14th Amendment grants citizenship by birth on American soil, including to those like Wong whose parents were foreign nationals. A descendant worries Now his great-grandson, a San Francisco area resident, worries that the principle enshrined by his ancestor’s case may be in peril. “Wong Kim Ark knew he was an American. And he demanded that his citizenship be...

By the 30th day of the US-Israel war on Iran, it has become increasingly clear that the conflict has crossed a critical threshold and is no longer confined to Iranian territory. The conflict is now spilling outward due to Iran’s sustained resilience, the coordinated actions of its regional proxies, and growing domestic unrest in Bahrain. These factors are effectively eroding the tactical gains achieved by US and Israeli forces. Inside Iran, US and Israeli strikes over the past 24 hours continued to target a mix of military, industrial, and increasingly civilian infrastructure, with reported hits on residential blocks in Tehran, academic institutions, aerospace facilities, energy sites and a water filtration plant in Khuzestan, alongside continued pressure on the Bushehr nuclear complex. This expanding target set tells about a shift in the US-Israel alliance’s war focus toward degrading Iran’s broader scientific and industrial base rather than only its military capabilities. Civilian casualties are becoming mo...

Chairman Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) Consortium Arif Habib on Sunday sounded the alarm over the sustainability of PIA operations in the wake of a recent 150 per cent hike in jet fuel rates, calling on the government to reverse the hike in prices. “PIA could be forced to shut down” if jet fuel prices continue to remain high, Habib warned in an interview aired on Bol News. Jet fuel (JP-1) rates have been increased without a formal announcement in recent weeks amid global supply chain uncertainty spurred by the US-Iran war. Official rates seen by Dawn suggest JP-1 prices were raised by Rs84 per litre, or 21.65pc, to Rs472 from Rs388 per litre with effect from March 21. Since March 1, the price has surged by nearly 150pc from Rs190 per litre. Habib connected the hike in jet fuel prices to the government’s subsidisation of the fiscal burden from rising oil prices on ordinary citizens, saying that the government had decided to raise the price of high-octane fuel and aviation fuel to raise money for a cros...

As the war in Iran threatens to imperil United States President Donald Trump’s legacy, the political stakes also are rising for two of his top lieutenants: Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The pair, widely viewed as potential successors to Trump, have been thrust into still-developing negotiations to end the war at a moment when the Republican Party is already weighing its post-Trump future. Vance has taken a cautious approach, reflecting his scepticism toward prolonged US military involvement, while Rubio has aligned himself closely with Trump’s hawkish stance and emerged as one of the administration’s most vocal defenders of the campaign. Trump has said both men were involved in efforts to force Iran to accept US demands to dismantle its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes and allow oil traffic to pass freely through the Strait of Hormuz. With the next presidential election due in 2028 and term limits barring Trump from running again, the president has been putting the succes...

The information ministry on Sunday refuted a notification about a “complete and comprehensive lockdown” across the country on weekends, stating it was fake. In a post on its “fact checker” account on X, the ministry shared the notification being circulated on social media, with “fake” over it. “Avoid sharing fake news and false posts. Be a responsible citizen and only trust verified sources,” the ministry said in its post. The undated fake notification falsely quoted Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif as directing the enforcement of several additional measures in “view of the continuing Gulf oil crisis”. As per the document, a “complete and comprehensive lockdown throughout the country” was ordered for every Saturday and Sunday, starting from April 5 onwards. “The lockdown shall take effect every Saturday from 12:01am (00:01 hrs) and continue till 11:59pm (23:59 hrs) every Sunday,” the fake order read. Earlier this month, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced a host of austerity measures in view of the global oi...

The Government of Pakistan is considering imposing a two-day smart lockdown each week as part of efforts to reduce energy and fuel consumption across the country.

Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has officially resumed its direct flight operations to London after a gap of six years, with the first flight departing from Islamabad on Sunday.

The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (Drap) on Sunday dismissed reports of price hikes in essential medicines across the country, stating that the rates have not “undergone any upward revision”. The statement comes as stakeholders in recent news reports alleged that an unprecedented increase in medicine prices had been observed since February 2024. Pakistan Drug Lawyers Forum President Noor Muhammad Mehr, a day earlier, told Dawn that the price of the insulin delivery device HumaPen Ergo II had increased by 114 per cent The Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (PPMA), however, claimed that the prices of essential medicines had remained unchanged despite a more than 20 per cent rise in fuel prices. In its statement, Drap said that it “strongly refutes the factually incorrect news reports circulating on various media channels regarding the recent increase in prices of medicines”. The regulatory body stated that medicine supply in Pakistan remained “unaffected” by the conflict in the Middle Eas...

A vessel carrying a major fuel consignment for Pakistan State Oil (PSO) has arrived in Karachi, bringing relief amid supply concerns.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw the ground test of an upgraded rocket engine, state media reported on Sunday, marking another key step in its weapons programme. Defence experts believe North Korea is planning to use its solid-fuel rocket engines for launching intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). The engines enable faster missile launches as they require little preparation before ignition. The latest test was “part of the national defence development plan in the period of the new five-year plan”, Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said, without elaborating on the date or location of the test. It was the first officially confirmed high-thrust solid-fuel engine test since September last year, when state media said an engine generated a maximum thrust of 1,971 kilonewtons. KCNA reported the recent test had achieved a higher thrust of 2,500 kilonewtons. The development demonstrates North Korea’s “resolve to acquire missiles capable of hitting targets around the globe”, Hong Min,...

Bushra Bibi, the spouse of Imran Khan, underwent a medical examination at Adiala Jail after reporting pain and vision problems in her right eye, jail sources said.

The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) has rejected reports of a recent increase in the prices of essential medicines, terming such claims baseless.

Pakistan has stepped up its diplomatic efforts to help ease tensions in the Middle East, as foreign ministers from key regional countries gather in Islamabad for high-level discussions.

Seafarers’ helplines say they are overwhelmed with messages from crews stuck in the Gulf by the Middle East war, desperately seeking repatriation, compensation and onboard supplies. “Writing to urgently inform you that our vessel is currently facing a critical situation regarding provisions and one crew health conditions,” read an email from one seafarer on March 24 to the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF)’s Seafarer Support team. “Immediate supply of food, drinking water, basic necessities is required to sustain the crew,” said the message to the team’s helpline. The ITF said it had received more than 1,000 emails and messages from seafarers stuck around the Strait of Hormuz and the wider region since the war erupted with US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28. Bomb strikes Some sought to clarify what their rights are while navigating a war zone, while others sent videos of bombings striking next to their ship and asked the federation for help to get off board, according to ITF documents s...