Pakistan

A subedar and a sergeant of the Gilgit-Baltistan Scouts were martyred, while another soldier was injured when terrorists opened fire on their checkpoint along the Karakoram Highway (KKH) in Diamer district on Friday morning, officials said. The Gilgit-Baltistan Scouts are a federal paramilitary force responsible for internal security in GB and for guarding its borders. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Diamer Abdul Hameed told Dawn.com that the terrorists attacked the GB Scouts checkpoint situated at the KKH near Chilas of Diamer district on Friday at 12:15 am. “Unknown armed men fired at the checkpoint from an elevated hilltop position, injuring three scout personnel, two of whom succumbed to their injuries later,” he said. “A total of nine people were present at the checkpoint when the attack took place.” The deceased were identified as Naib Subedar Khush Dad and Havaldar Ashraf, while Lance Naik Sajid Ali sustained abdominal injury and is under treatment, he said. “The police, led by the deputy inspect...

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has tightened compliance protocols by mandating quarterly return filings from couriers and payment intermediaries responsible for collecting or deducting withholding tax. The revenue authority issued draft amendments to the Income Tax Rules, 2002, through SRO 1634 of 2025. The draft will be finalised after receiving feedback from stakeholders. The proposed protocols will only apply to domestic e-commerce outfits and couriers. Under the proposed amendments, in line with Sub-Section 2 of Section 165 and Sub-Section 1 of section 165C, any courier or payment intermediary tasked with tax collection or deduction under Division II or Division III of Part V of Chapter X of the Ordinance, or under Chapter XII, must submit a quarterly statement. These are to be filed electronically using the format prescribed in Part X of the Second Schedule to the rules. The deadlines for filing are set as April 20 for the quarter ending March 31, July 20 for the quarter ending June 30, Oc...

Olympic 100m champions Noah Lyles and Julien Alfred will head to the world championships in Tokyo in two weeks’ time on the back of impressive victories at Thursday’s Diamond League Finals. Lyles and Alfred were but two of the cream of track and field’s elite who rose to the top in a scintillating night of action at a 25,000 sell-out Letzigrund Stadium. American Lyles became the first track athlete to win six Diamond League Final titles by producing a strong finish to outpace Botswana rival Letsile Tebogo for victory in the men’s 200m. View this post on Instagram Lyles, the reigning world champion in both the 100 and 200, trailed Tebogo coming off the corner before reeling in his rival to cross the line in 19.74 and win by 0.02 seconds. “Six in a row, the most in track!” Lyles said. “That’s pretty cool, I’m not going to lie. I saw Letsile lean on the finish line and I leaned on the finish line but I knew I won. The most important is getting wins. I know if I panicked I was not going to win. If you are tight y...

Iga Swiatek weathered an unexpected storm to reach the US Open third round on Thursday, while defending men’s champion Jannik Sinner delivered a masterclass and Naomi Osaka rediscovered her groove at Flushing Meadows. But the day’s most dramatic moments belonged to Coco Gauff, who wiped away tears mid-match before rallying to beat Donna Vekic and avenge her Olympic heartbreak from Paris. Second seed Swiatek, fresh from her Wimbledon triumph and Cincinnati title, was forced to grind it out against unseeded Suzan Lamens in a 6-1 4-6 6-4 thriller on Arthur Ashe Stadium that proved far trickier than expected. “It got a bit complicated in the second set, but I’m happy that I could reset and start playing better in the third,” said the 2022 champion, who sealed victory with an ace to set up a clash with 29th seed Anna Kalinskaya. World number one Sinner had no such trouble, dismantling Australian Alexei Popyrin 6-3 6-2 6-2 in ruthless fashion to book a third-round date with Canadian 27th seed Denis Shapovalov. Osak...

ISLAMABAD - The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected the pre-arrest bail an accused in cheque dishonor case.

Authorities warn of severe flood as Ravi, Chenab, Sutlej Rivers burst their banks NDMA records rapid surge in Ravi River Warns 200,000 cusecs flow at Balloki Barrage by 7am today.

Shehbaz Sharif directs speedy construction of Bhasha, Mohmand dams Receives condolence call from Turkiye President Erdogan over flood losses in Pakistan Eastern rivers facing flood conditions with heavy flow at Head Ganda Singh Wala, PM told.

Evacuations underway in Shahdara, Farrukhabad, Badami Bagh, Chunhg, Thokar Niaz Baig, Theme Park Holidays announced in 16 Lahore division colleges PPSC decides to postpone exams Two major bus stands closed.

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan yesterday called on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to end its silence over Gaza and to hold Israel accountable for what it described as “mass carnage” of Palestinians, urging those shielding the occupying power to reassess their policies that have enabled atrocities in the be-sieged.

ISLAMABAD: The Lah­ore High Court’s Rawal­pindi bench has dismissed a pro bono petition, challenging the ongoing privatisation of Pakistan Inter­national Airlines Corpor­ation Limited (PIACL), ruling that the Privat­isation Commission has complied with the statutory requirements under the Privatisation Comm­ission Ordinance, 2000. The court ruling paved the way for smooth selling of the national flag carrier. The petition, filed by Advocate Sardar Amber Maqsood, alleged that the Privatisation Commission had failed to issue proper notices of intent under Section 23 and did not conduct a lawful valuation of PIACL’s assets under Sec­tion 24 of the Ordinance. The petitioner also sought suspension of the process until the establishment of a Privatisation Appellate Tribunal. Justice Jawad Hassan, who authored the detailed judgement, observed that the Privatisation Comm­ission had advertised its intent to privatise PIACL in leading international and national newspapers, including Financial Times, China Daily, The Wa...

RAWALPINDI: Anot­her spell of monsoon rains is likely to penetrate all parts of the country from August 29, with the Pakistan Meteorological Department forecasting “heavy to very heavy” rainfall with occasional gaps in several regions till September 2. The Met Office said strong monsoon currents from the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal were likely to enter the upper parts of the country from August 29, while a westerly wave was also expected to approach the upper and central parts from August 30. These conditions will bring widespread rain, “at times very heavy” with thunder and lightning in Kashmir’s Neelum Valley, Muzaffarabad, Rawa­lakot, Poonch, Hattian, Bagh, Haveli, Sudhanoti, Kotli, Bhimber, and Mirpur areas from August 29 to September 2. The Diamer, Astore, Ghizer, Skardu, Hunza, Gilgit, Ghanche, and Shigar districts will witness rain-wind/thundershower (with isolated heavy falls) from August 30 to September 1 with occasional gaps. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, rain-wind/thundershower (with isolated heavy ...

KABUL: At least three people were killed and seven wounded in two separate incidents in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar and Khost provinces, which Afghan authorities claimed were strikes carried out by Pakistan. There was no official word from Islamabad, and Afghan authorities did not provide any evidence of Pakistan’s involvement in the incident, either. Islamabad has repeatedly warned Kabul to prevent its soil from being used to stage attacks in Pakistan, and that it is fully capable of targeting terrorists who carry out such attacks. Quoting Afghan authorities, the Reuters news agency reported on Thursday that three children were killed and several others wounded when ‘drones’ hit the home of one Haji Naeem Khan in Khost’s Spera district, near the border with North Waziristan. AFP photographs from Spera showed people standing outside a badly damaged home in the Lahori Village. Meanwhile, Afghan officials claimed that four sons and two wives of a man named Shahsawar were among those injured when his house was destr...

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan Navy (PN) has successfully relinquished command of Combined Task Force 151 and handed over command to Brazilian Navy.

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