Pakistan

Heavy rainfall has lashed large parts of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), from Dubai to Abu Dhabi, as well as northern emirates, Gulf News reported on Friday. As per the UAE’s National Centre of Meteorology (NCM), “unstable conditions driven by a low-pressure system have brought repeated waves of rain, strong winds, and thunderstorms across the country”. Gulf News said that flashes of “lightning, booming thunder, and heavy downpours” were reported by residents in major cities across the Gulf state, from Thursday night into Friday early morning. The unstable weather also brought “thunderstorms, dust-raising winds, and reduced visibility”. Heavy rainfall also flooded the streets in some locations, according to the report. In Sharjah, heavy rain caused wadis to flow, “temporarily disrupting traffic on roads”. According to Gulf News, residents said the “skies put on a full-blown light-and-sound show — booming thunderclaps and electric streaks of lightning flashing overhead, all at the height of raging storm clouds...

WASHINGTON: As tensions surrounding Iran once again test regional diplomacy, Pakistan is emerging in Washington’s policy conversations as a potential intermediary — a shift that signals a broader reassessment of its strategic utility beyond the traditional security framework. At an hour-long virtual briefing held on Thursday evening by the Congressional Pakistan Caucus, Congressman Tom Suozzi suggested that Islamabad’s geographic position, demographic weight and cross-regional ties give it space to play a more active mediatory role. “And we see from this negotiation with Iran right now, and the role that it’s playing, Pakistan can play more and more of a role in international affairs as a mediator,” said Suozzi, the Democratic co-chair of the caucus. He described Pakistan as “a very, very important neutral party, with friends on both sides.” The remarks come amid renewed diplomatic maneuvering around Iran, where Washington has relied on regional actors to maintain communication channels. Pakistan’s leadership...

Mohsin Naqvi visited the Chinese Embassy on Friday and met Ambassador Jiang Zedong to discuss security cooperation and regional developments.

PESHAWAR: Repatriation of undocumented Afghan nationals was abruptly suspended on Friday after a border security official was injured in a late evening cross-border attack from the Afghan side on Thursday. The Torkham border crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan was reopened on Thursday for the return of stranded and illegal Afghan nationals, after having remained closed since February 26 with the launch of Operation Ghazab lil-Haq. However, security officials at Torkham said local paramilitary forces went on high alert due to the injury of an FC official at the Awal Khan post near the border. The incident took place around 9:30pm on Thursday evening. Sources at Torkham and the Hamza Baba transit point said that although the entire staff of the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra), the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), National Logistics Corporation (NLC), police and other government departments was present at the transit point and Torkham, they were directed to immediately stop the regi...

Sohail Afridi has launched a public feedback feature to strengthen the Right to Services Commission and ensure timely delivery of government services.

North Korea and Belarus’s strongmen leaders signed a “friendship and cooperation” treaty after Kim Jong Un gave a lavish welcome to President Alexander Lukashenko on his maiden visit. Besides supporting Russia’s war against Ukraine — around 2,000 North Korean soldiers are thought to have died — both nations are under Western sanctions and are accused of gross human rights violations. The two men met last year in China. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, attend a banquet for Lukashenko in Pyongyang, North Korea, in this picture released by North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency on March 27, 2026. —AFP “In the modern realities of global transformation — at a time when the world’s major powers openly ignore and violate the norms of international law — independent countries must cooperate more closely and consolidate their efforts aimed at protecting their sovereignty and improving the well-being of their citizens,” Belarusian state news agency Belta quoted Lukashe...

The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) reported a magnitude 5.3 earthquake felt in the northern regions of the country on Friday morning. According to a statement issued by the PMD, the earthquake was recorded at 9:53am at latitude 36.71° north and longitude 74.44° east. Its epicentre was recorded in northwestern Kashmir, 84 kilometres northeast of Gilgit, at a depth of 12km. The statement said that tremors were reported to be felt in Gilgit, Skardu, Pattan, Balakot and surrounding areas. Pakistan falls on three major tectonic plates — the Arabian, Euro-Asian and Indian — which create five seismic zones under the country. The intersection of multiple fault lines means that tectonic movements remain a frequent occurrence in the region. A 5.6-magnitude earthquake jolted Islamabad and parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in late February. Earlier that month, a 4.5-magnitude earthquake jolted parts of northern Pakistan, a day after another earthquake of magnitude 5.9 that jolted parts of KP.

Tremors of a 5.

The Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education Gujranwala has released a model paper for the compulsory English subject as students gear up for the 2026 annual matriculation examinations.

The Islamabad High Court has scheduled a hearing for March 31 in the £190 million case against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi.

Airstrikes reportedly carried out by Israel struck areas near the Pakistan Embassy and the residence of Pakistan’s ambassador in Tehran on Thursday night, according to a report by Türkiye Today.

KARACHI - Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met a delegation of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan during his visit to Karachi on Thursday, where both sides discussed the country’s political situation and issues concerning Sindh, particularly Karachi.

• Dar confirms facilitating indirect talks between Washington and Tehran • Chances of face-to-face meeting over the weekend remain low, but both sides continue to engage on proposals • Diplomats involved in the process say Araghchi in constant contact with Pakistani officials • Ankara and Cairo also among venue options, but Tehran maintains preference for Islamabad ISLAMABAD: Chances of negotiations between the United States and Iran opening up at the end of President Don­ald Trump’s five-day pause remain limited, but a Pakistan-led initiative — in coordination with Turkey and Egypt — has created a narrow de-escalation window. Islamabad, meanwhile, has emerged as the preferred venue for any initial engagement, even as the gap between the two sides remains wide, diplomats from the region told Dawn. Pakistan has taken centre-stage in a process being carried out in collaboration with Ankara and Cairo, with officials confirming that indirect exchanges between Wash­ington and Tehran are continuing through structur...

On 27th day of the US-Israeli war on Iran, the conflict has continued to be fully kinetic with no sign of de-escalation, even as US President Donald Trump’s five-day pause expires on Friday. Meanwhile, the overall trajectory of the conflict points towards an imminent widening of hostilities across multiple theatres. Over the past 24 hours, direct strikes inside Iran intensified. Multiple explosions were reported across central, southern and eastern Tehran, with air defence systems activated across the capital, while additional strikes hit Khorramabad, triggering blackouts and being followed by rescue operations. Reports also indicated damage in areas where residences and infrastructure are located in Mashhad. Iran’s response, both directly and through its regional network of allies, showed a marked escalation in tempo and scale. Missile and drone strikes continued against Israeli targets, with reports suggesting improved penetration rates against air defences and expanded targeting of defence, industrial and ...

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met a delegation of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) in Karachi on Thursday and commended the services of former Sindh governor Kamran Tessori, who has been replaced by the PML-N’s Nehal Hashmi, a statement issued by the PM’s Office (PMO) said. Both Tessori and Hashmi also attended the meeting. During the meeting, views were also exchanged on the country’s political situation, the statement said, adding that the PM informed the delegation about Pakistan’s diplomatic efforts and initiatives for establishing peace in the region. The meeting also discussed matters related to the situation in Sindh, including Karachi, and development projects, the statement said. According to the statement, the MQM-P delegation was led by party Convener Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui and included Tessori, Health Minister Mustafa Kamal, Farooq Sattar and others. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Federal Ministers Azam Nazeer Tarar, Ahsan Iqbal, Attaullah Tarar, Minister of St...

A US judge questioned on Thursday whether the US can bar Venezuela from funding Nicolas Maduro’s legal defence without violating his US constitutional rights, but stopped short of dismissing drug-trafficking charges against the ousted Venezuelan president facing trial in New York. Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, wore beige prison garb to the hearing in Manhattan federal court over two months after US military forces captured them in a surprise raid on Caracas and ferried them to American soil. Maduro, 63, and Flores, 69, have pleaded not guilty to charges including narcoterrorism conspiracy and have been jailed in Brooklyn pending trial. They had asked US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein to dismiss the charges, saying their inability to rely on Venezuelan public funds due to US sanctions on Venezuela was interfering with their right to have a lawyer of their choosing under the Sixth Amendment of the US Constitution. All criminal defendants in the US have constitutional rights regardless of whether they are...

ISLAMABAD - Federal Minister for Climate Change and Environmental Coordination Musadik Malik yesterday said weekly tree plantation drives would be held across Islamabad after March 31, as the government stepped up efforts to promote environmental protection in the capital.

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday appreciating China’s steadfast economic support, reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to advancing CPEC 2.

ISLAMABAD - Federal Information Minister Attaullah Tarar on Thursday said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) attempts at disrespecting the country’s dignity under the guise of political disagreement are unacceptable.

KARACHI - Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif arrived in Karachi on Thursday and visited the residence of Senator Sherry Rehman to offer condolences over the demise of her daughter, Marvi Malik.