Pakistan

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Thursday said the suicide bomber involved in the blast at Islamabad’s judicial complex was “related to Afghanistan”, while Rawalpindi’s Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) arrested seven suspects who allegedly facilitated the attack. Speaking on the Senate floor, Naqvi termed the alleged links to Tuesday’s blast incident, which killed 12 people and injured 35, a “very serious” concern. He noted that Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar and Defence Minister Khawaja Asif have also been informed about the matter. Referring to the attack on Cadet College Wana in South Waziristan on November 10, the interior minister said the suicide bomber involved in that incident was also from Afghanistan. “It is becoming very difficult for us; the way people from Afghanistan are coming here and attacking us,” he said, adding that with Deputy PM Ishaq Dar also taking up the issue, they will do “whatever is possible” to tackle it. Naqvi said the government was ensuring that illegal Afghans residing in...

President Asif Ali Zardari gave his assent to the contentious 27th Constitutional Amendment on Thursday, enacting it into law. The summary signed by the president, a copy of which is available with Dawn, states: “The Constitution (Twenty-Seventh Amendment) Bill, 2025, is assented to, as advised by the prime minister, at para 5 of the summary.” Meanwhile, sources told Dawn that the president was expected to administer the oath to the chief justice of the Federal Constitutional Court — the establishment of which would now be realised after the enactment of the 27th Amendment bill — tomorrow at the Presidency. Senate’s approval The president’s assent to the legislation came hours after the Senate approved the bill for the amendment after voting on it for a second time amid the opposition’s protest. Announcing the result, Senate Chairman Yousuf Raza Gilani said 64 votes had been cast in favour of the bill and four against it. “So the motion is carried by the votes of not less than two-thirds of the total membersh...

The foreign ministers of Iran and Russia have called for continued dialogue between Pakistan and Afghanistan to resolve their ongoing disputes on cross-border terrorism. Last week, a third round of talks between Islamabad and Kabul, which were taking place in Istanbul in the presence of mediators, broke down without any agreement, as negotiators failed to bridge deep differences over how to prevent cross-border terrorism. The talks had followed deadly border clashes between the two neighbours in October. Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi spoke on the telephone on Wednesday, during which the two sides exchanged views on the latest bilateral and regional developments. In its statement on Telegram, the Russian foreign ministry said the two ministers “welcomed the agreement reached between Kabul and Islamabad, mediated by the authorities of Qatar and Türkiye, on a mutual ceasefire and an end to cross-border shootings along the Afghan-Pakistani frontier”. “The sides...

The vibrant green and pink displays of Northern Lights, or Aurora Borealis, were reported across unusually large swaths of the United States earlier this week as far south as Texas, Florida, and Alabama. Meanwhile, skywatchers across large parts of Australia and New Zealand were treated to a celestial delight yesterday evening, with a severe solar storm making it possible to view the Southern Lights, or Aurora Australis. Here are some images from across the world. Northern Lights, also called aurora borealis, illuminate the sky in Connewarre, Victoria, Australia, on November 12, in this screengrab obtained from a social media video. — Reuters Northern Lights, also called aurora borealis, illuminate the sky in Connewarre, Victoria, Australia, on November 12, in this screengrab obtained from a social media video. — Reuters Northern Lights, also called aurora borealis, illuminate the night sky in Valtournenche, Aosta Valley, Italy, on November 12, in this screengrab obtained from a social media video. — Reuters ...

The federal government announced the launch of the “Safe Secure Islamabad” initiative to ramp up the security of the federal capital. The announcement comes two days after 12 people were killed and 36 were injured in a suicide blast outside the district and sessions court building in Islamabad’s G-11 area. The incident occurred as international events were being hosted in the capital, including the first one-day international (ODI) match between Pakistan and Sri Lanka in Rawalpindi. The announcement about the new initiative was made by Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry while he was addressing a press conference outside Parliament House alongside Islamabad Deputy Commissioner (DC) Irfan Nawaz Memon and Inspector General of Police Syed Ali Nasir Rizvi. He said that as part of the programme, a first-of-its-kind new ‘Secure Neighbourhood’ survey would be launched that would allow the administration to know who was occupying every house, shop or office in the capital with information about the number o...

President Asif Ali Zardari has formally approved the 27th Constitutional Amendment Bill, officially incorporating it into the Constitution of Pakistan.

The Punjab government has decided to immediately suspend the ongoing process of verifying and computerizing old manual arms licenses, according to a spokesperson for the Home Department.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Thursday said Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir facilitated the talks with Sri Lanka, resulting in the latter’s cricket team deciding to stay in Pakistan for the ongoing matches. Sri Lanka’s cricket board said late last night that its team’s ongoing tour of Pakistan will proceed, averting a crisis-like situation after reports about some players returning home in the wake of Tuesday’s deadly suicide bombing in Islamabad. “Our field marshal himself spoke to their defence minister, secretary and convinced them and assured them fully of [providing] security,” Naqvi, also the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief, said while speaking on the Senate floor. View this post on Instagram He recalled that the Sri Lankan team yesterday “decided to return after the bomb blast occurred”. “Our interaction with them began […] their board, players and everyone decided with great bravery to stay here,” the PCB chairman added. “They had many concerns, but we tried to allay all of ...

A non-functional distribution box of Safe City cameras installed near a residential apartment in Karachi’s posh Clifton area was found on Thursday after reportedly being stolen, police said. “This was a non-energised/non-operational pole site near Sea Rock Apartments at Seaview, where the theft of a distribution box was reported to local police on November 6,” South Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Syed Asad Raza told Dawn. Later, the DIG confirmed, “The distribution box has been recovered from a nearby plot.” He asserted that the police were “developing a strategy in coordination with Sindh Safe City Authority to prevent such incidents in future”. Quoting a staff member from a nearby hotel earlier today, the South police chief said, “A vehicle with a crane was witnessed working on the pole hours before the theft was reported. “Since then, a few switches and the battery are missing,” the DIG added. The officer said the distribution box was installed at an “extreme height”, adding that it would not have been pos...

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said on Thursday that terrorist incidents in Pakistan were linked to “neighbouring countries”. He made the remarks while meeting with the director general of the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency (NCA), Graeme Biggar, according to a handout issued by the interior ministry. “Links of all terrorist incidents come from neighbouring countries,” Naqvi was quoted as saying. He said that, adding that there was no other example in the world for Pakistan’s determination against terrorism. He said that modern forensics and training could further enhance the capabilities of law enforcement agencies, adding that effective measures were being taken to stop illegal immigration. The statement further said that Naqvi and the NCA official held detailed discussions on enhancing cooperation in the areas of countererrorism, narcotics, human trafficking, forensics, immigration and police training. The participants of the meeting agreed to enhance mutual cooperation in training courses for offic...

Fuel prices in Pakistan are expected to change for the next fortnight, with a possible increase of up to Rs9.

The Sindh government has called on the federal government to establish a mechanism for setting a support price for paddy (rice), similar to the one in place for wheat.

Law enforcement agencies on Thursday arrested the mastermind and facilitator behind the suicide attack on the Islamabad Judicial Complex, officials confirmed.

The ten-day visit of Sikh pilgrims from India to Pakistan concluded today, as over 2,000 devotees returned home after participating in the 556th birth anniversary celebrations of Baba Guru Nanak Dev Ji, organized under the auspices of the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB).

An anti-terrorism court has once again issued non-bailable arrest warrants for Aleema Khan, sister of imprisoned PTI founder Imran Khan, in connection with the November 26 protest case — marking the 10th such order against her.

The Balochistan government has suspended internet services across most areas, including Quetta, for three days in response to potential terrorist threats.

Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry recently held a special session with students and teachers from various educational institutions to discuss current affairs and military matters.

India has urged a UN wildlife trade body not to curb its imports of endangered species, saying it has tightened oversight amid growing allegations of irregular animal shipments to a large private zoo run by Asia’s richest family. Vantara, a 3,500-acre zoo in Gujarat state run by the philanthropic arm of a conglomerate led by billionaire Mukesh Ambani and his family, has faced allegations of improper imports of certain animals, triggering higher scrutiny from authorities in Germany and the European Union, Reuters has reported. Indian investigators tasked by the country’s Supreme Court to examine the allegations by non-profit and wildlife groups cleared the sanctuary of any wrongdoing in September, and Vantara has said it complies with all regulations. However, after visiting the facility in September, the Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) issued a report last week asking India to review its procedures. The report cited discrepancies betwe...

The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) on Thursday commenced the licencing of Virtual Private Network (VPN) service providers under the reinstated Class Value Added Services (CVAS-Data) regime. In December last year, the PTA had devised a new strategy to register VPNs after its previous efforts to ensure compliance, such as warning to ban unregistered VPNs, failed to yield the desired results. It said it had resumed granting Class Licence for Data services to service providers in Pakistan. In a press release issued today, the telecom regulator said licensing under the CVAS-Data regime “aims to streamline the provision of secure and lawful VPN services in Pakistan while ensuring compliance with national regulations and data security standards”. The PTA said it has granted class licences to several companies, including Alpha 3 Cubic Pvt Ltd (Steer Lucid), Zettabyte Pvt Ltd (Crest VPN), Nexilium Tech SMC-Pvt Ltd (Kestrel VPN), UKI Conic Solutions SMC-Pvt Ltd (QuiXure VPN), and Vision Tech 360 Pvt Ltd (Kr...

The National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) has advised citizens to collect their Computerized National Identity Cards (CNICs) without delay after issuance.