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ISLAMABAD: PTI leaders on Thursday arrived at Adiala jail hoping to meet party founder Imran Khan but were once again denied permission to meet the former prime minister. The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has allowed the incarcerated ex-premier to have twice-a-week meetings — on Tuesdays and Thursdays — with his family, lawyers and other associates. Despite the order, Imran has been restricted from meeting visitors for several months. A day earlier, the PTI sent a list of six leaders to Adiala jail authorities, requesting that they arrange a meeting with the incarcerated former premier. The list included Seemabia Tahir, Usman Jora, Asad Abbas, Malik Yasir Patwali, Malik Azeem and Rohail Anjum. Patwali, while speaking to Dawn, said that all the leaders arrived at the prison well before 2pm. “We informed the prison administration that we had been nominated for the meeting, as per the directions of the IHC, but we were told that a message was being sent for approval,” he said. “Officials also recorded our video foo...

Despite volatility, KSE-100 rises 0.58% to 171,175 over selective buying

Export support, low-markup loans and lower power tariffs proposed for upcoming budget

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday directed the launch of a pilot project for a proposed automated income tax collection system in Islamabad, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said. In a statement, the PMO said that Prime Minister Shehbaz chaired a review meeting on ongoing reforms in the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), attended by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, State Minister for Finance Bilal Azhar Kayani, and others. “The meeting reviewed the ongoing measures aimed at modernising the tax system and increasing tax collection in detail,” it said, adding that a comprehensive plan was presented to make inland revenue collection more “effective, transparent and faceless”. According to the PMO, the meeting was informed that the proposed new tax system would have the capability to identify under-declared income and assets through data relating to properties, vehicles and banks. “Modern technology and artificial intelligence would be used to make the tax system automated, transparent and effective,” i...

Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar on Thursday reaffirmed the government's commitment to protecting minority rights and ensuring that the concerns of all communities are reflected in legislation and public policy.

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court (SC) on Thursday dismissed a review petition filed by Zahir Jaffer and maintained its earlier verdict upholding his death sentence in the Noor Mukadam murder case. Noor, aged 27, was found murdered at Zahir’s Islamabad residence in July 2021, with the probe revealing she was tortured by him before being beheaded. Zahir was sentenced to death by a trial in February 2022 and his sentence has already been upheld by the SC once. Prior to that, the Islamabad High Court had also dismissed his plea challenging the trial court’s verdict. A three-member bench comprising Justices Muhammad Hashim Khan Kakar, Salahuddin Panhwar and Ishtiaq Ibrahim heard Zahir’s review plea on the SC verdict on Thursday. Advocate Khawaja Haris appeared as Zahir’s counsel, while Shah Khawar was present from the respondents’ side. Both presented their arguments, following which the bench announced its verdict. After today’s ruling, a presidential pardon under Article 45 of the Constitution could possibly provide...

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday directed relevant authorities to ensure the effective implementation of the National Tariff Policy (2025-30) and modernise tariff-related institutions to support investment, trade and industrial growth.

The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Thursday ordered police to provide protection to a newlywed couple from Jacobabad whose relatives allegedly torched multiple houses in the groom’s village last month in retaliation for their marriage of choice. Hearing an application seeking protection for the couple — Hassan Buriro and Sidra Channa — Justice Saleem Jessar issued a written order stipulating that the couple be given protection, directing that the couple’s “life, honour and property” be ensured. The IO also recorded the woman’s statement within the court premises. During the hearing, the couple’s legal counsel informed the court that the two had married without any pressure and with consent on May 5. He added that the couple was receiving threats from their relatives who did not approve of the marriage. The counsel added that the relatives set fire to Jacobabad’s Siddique Arain village on May 13. The state counsel stated that the government was bound to ensure the safety of all citizens without discrimination and t...

When Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang makes his second visit to South Korea in just seven months this week, it won’t be only to meet top memory chip and robotics executives, but to throw the first pitch at a baseball game and appear on a TV talk show. While a celebrity in his own right, the charm push by the Taiwan-born 63-year-old highlights South Korea’s critical position in the AI landscape. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix between them make about 70 per cent of the memory needed for AI chips like Nvidia’s. And the country’s strength in manufacturing and robotics sets it up to be a key player in physical AI, where AI is embedded in robots, cars and factories. “Nvidia’s dependence on South Korean suppliers is rising,” Jeff Kim, an analyst at Seoul-based KB Securities, wrote in a research note. Huang “needs a manufacturing site for physical AI”, Kim said. “South Korea is emerging as a perfect testbed.” Asia’s fourth-largest economy is also a major Nvidia customer, with the Silicon Valley-based company announcing in O...

The Balochistan government has decided in principle to introduce gender-neutral primary schools as part of a broader reform programme aimed at improving the province’s education sector.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei said on Thursday that his country’s adversaries had turned to “hybrid warfare”, aimed at creating divisions among Iranians, after receiving a “decisive blow”. Mojtaba, who has not appeared publicly since being named as the supreme leader on March 8, made these remarks in his message on the death anniversary of Iran’s founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. The message shared on his official X account and reported by the Iranian media. Mojtaba’s message stated, “The malicious enemy has been defeated in its confrontation with the armed forces. Since it has received a decisive blow both in military combat and in Iran’s public squares and streets, it’s experiencing a profound and significant humiliation. “The enemy has focused its schemes in hybrid warfare on two points: the resilience of the Iranian people and trying to create errors in the assessments of the country’s officials. The instrument it’s using for both is sowing the seeds of doubt, despair, fear, mistrus...

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) on Thursday ruled that directions to the high courts for expeditious decisions in pending matters by superior courts should be issued sparingly and couched in appropriate words. The judgement comes against the backdrop of a recent petition by the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) before the Supreme Court challenging its May 12, 2026 direction to the Islamabad High Court (IHC) for deciding in two weeks the sentence suspension pleas of human rights lawyers Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and Hadi Ali Chattha in the controversial social media posts case. The NCCIA had also requested the SC to recall and withdraw that order to help preserve the “sanctity and independence of the judiciary, maintaining equality among citizens and avoiding discrimination”. According to a three-page order by Justice Aamer Farooq, issued in deciding a dispute between the Gujranwala Electric Power Company (Gepco) and Master Tiles and Ceramics Industries Ltd, it was held that h...

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday held separate meetings with Members of the National Assembly Gul Asghar Khan and Raja Osama Sarwar in Islamabad.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Thursday congratulated Austria, Kyrgyzstan, Portugal, Trinidad and Tobago, and Zimbabwe on their election as non-permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for the 2027–2028 term. “We wish them every success in discharging this important responsibility,” he said in a post on X. “As Pakistan continues its tenure on the UNSC through 2026, we remain committed to advancing peace, security, dialogue, and multilateral cooperation,” he added. Dar further stated, “We look forward to working closely with the incoming members in pursuit of our shared objectives and a more peaceful, secure, and equitable world.” Only 10 out of the 15 members of the council are elected, with no election for the five veto-wielding permanent members — Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States. The United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday elected Austria, Kyrgyzstan, Portugal, Trinidad and Tobago and Zimbabwe to the 15-member UN Security Council for ...

Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar on Thursday reaffirmed the government’s commitment to protecting minority rights, saying consultations with minority communities were essential for ensuring that legislation and public policies reflected the needs and concerns of all citizens.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un called for an “exponential” expansion of the country’s atomic arsenal during a visit to a newly operational nuclear material production factory, state media agency KCNA said on Thursday. Kim said production capacity for weapons-grade nuclear material had reached more than double its previous level over the past five years and instructed officials to further increase output to meet long-term strategic goals. During the visit, he was briefed on new production processes incorporating more advanced technology and reviewed current output targets and future plans, KCNA reported. Photographs published by state media showed Kim walking between rows of cylinder-shaped equipment inside the facility, which some analysts said could indicate the location is at the country’s main nuclear complex in Yongbyon. Kim said the expansion was necessary given what he called worsening security threats and long-term confrontation with “the most ferocious enemies” and reaffirmed the country’s policy of ...

Israel and Lebanon agreed on Wednesday to implement a ceasefire but said it would require a “complete cessation” of fire by Hezbollah, according to a joint statement after US-led talks in Washington. The two sides, which do not have formal diplomatic relations, also agreed to create “pilot zones” in which the Lebanese armed forces “will take exclusive control of the territory to the exclusion of all non-state actors”. The development came despite continued cross-border attacks earlier in the day, with Hezbollah saying it targeted Israeli troops and Israeli strikes killing at least ten people in southern Lebanon. Just hours after the agreement was announced, air raid alarms sounded in northern Israel with a “suspicious aerial target” identified without causing any casualties. The joint statement said the ceasefire was “contingent on a complete cessation” of fire by Hezbollah as well as evacuation of the group’s operatives from southern Lebanon. The meetings in Washington were the fourth round of direct talks b...

The repatriation of illegally residing foreign nationals from Punjab is continuing under the federal government’s ongoing policy, with more than 35,000 individuals deported from the province so far, according to Punjab Police.