Pakistan

The 27th martyrdom anniversary of Kargil war hero Havaldar Lalak Jan, recipient of the Nishan-i-Haider, is being observed on Tuesday, with the country's military leadership paying tribute to his courage and sacrifice.

RPO says following the successful thwarting of attacks on police, terrorists have directed attacks on civilians

Price of gold per tola falls by Rs2,500

Actor thanks supporters for standing by him through tragedy and triumph

Bench warned that if arguments were not presented at next hearing, no further adjournment would be granted

Actor recalls fan moments with Saba Qamar on ‘Muamma’ set, says she studied her performances to hone her craft

• Minister says seven civilians kidnapped, nine wounded in gun battle; suspects TTP involvement • Several policemen injured, four ‘terrorists’ killed in subsequent operation • CM orders joint checkposts to monitor terrorists’ movement, forms committee to placate protesters QUETTA: A violent clash between locals and armed men in Hanna Urak on the outskirts of the provincial capital resulted in the death of three people and injuries to at least nine others, prompting the provincial government to launch an operation in the area to eliminate the suspected terrorists. At least four suspected attackers were killed and several policemen had sustained injuries in the operation, which was ongoing by the time this report went to press. Officials said the clashes started after armed men attacked the Babri area on Sunday night. The locals responded by taking positions against the attackers, and a gun battle ensued. Home Minister Ziaullah Langove said three people were killed and nine sustained injuries in the incident, w...

Chief says the price of petrol should not exceed Rs225 per litre

ISLAMABAD: An anti-terrorism court on Monday sent the alleged killer of Pakistan Air Force (PAF) Group Captain Asim Tariq to jail on a 14-day judicial remand for an identity parade. The order was passed by Anti-Terrorism Court Judge Abual Hasanat Mohammad Zulqarnain. The police produced the suspect, Saad Abbasi, before the court under tight security. Prosecutor Raja Naveed and the investigating officer (IO) also appeared in the court. The IO informed the court that a case had been registered against the suspect under the anti-terrorism law at the Margalla Police Station. He requested that an identity parade be conducted in accordance with the law. Accepting the request, the court remanded the suspect to jail for 14 days to facilitate the identity parade and directed the officials concerned to submit a report after completing the process. The court adjourned further proceedings until July 20 and ordered that the suspect be produced again on the next date of hearing. The suspect allegedly shot the PAF officer w...

Belgium brought the United States’ World Cup party to a shattering halt on Monday, thrashing the tournament co-hosts 4-1 to set up a quarter-final showdown with Spain. Charles De Ketelaere scored twice, Hans Vanaken punished a goalkeeping howler, and substitute Romelu Lukaku added a fourth to settle a last-16 clash that had been overshadowed by the pre-match uproar surrounding US striker Folarin Balogun. Balogun, named in US coach Mauricio Pochettino’s starting line-up after FIFA suspended a one-game ban following lobbying by US President Donald Trump, was largely anonymous throughout Monday’s knockout tie at Seattle’s Lumen Field. Instead, a rampant Belgium ruthlessly dismantled the USA’s hopes of reaching a first World Cup quarter-final in 24 years, in a bitterly disappointing end to a campaign that had captivated the host nation. De Ketelaere fired Belgium ahead after nine minutes, and although Malik Tillman’s deflected free-kick leveled it in the 31st-minute, the US fightback was shortlived. De Ketelaere ...

Selling in banks, cement, energy and auto stocks, coupled with weak Asian markets drags KSE-100 lower at 186,255.55

Trump urges House and Senate leaders to prioritise passage of Reconciliation 3.0

Blasts rock Damascus during Macron visit; French president says he did not hear them

NEW DELHI: India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday filed charges against Pakistan’s Hafiz Saeed for allegedly being behind an attack on tourists in India-held Kashmir last year. The Pahalgam incident sparked a major military escalation between the countries after New Delhi blamed Islamabad for the attack, without evidence, and proceeded to unilaterally suspend the Indus Waters Treaty and launch attacks on Pakistani territory, which were effectively responded to by the armed forces. Saeed was charged with “waging war against India and hatching a conspiracy from across the border”, according to an NIA statement. India had previously blamed a little-known group known as ‘The Resistance Front’ for the attack. Now, it has charged Saeed, alleging that the group is a proxy of the proscribed Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) outfit. Pakistan has consistently denied any involvement in the attack and has repeatedly sought evidence from India regarding its claims. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif even offered an independ...

• Buses, private transporters, ride-hailing apps still charging rates set during Iran-US war • Commuters urge Sindh govt to take action and bring transport fares to pre-conflict level KARACHI: Despite a cumulative reduction of around Rs100 per litre in petrol and diesel prices in recent weeks, commuters in Karachi say private transport operators and ride-hailing services have yet to lower fares, prompting calls for government intervention to ensure that the benefit of lower fuel prices is passed on to passengers. Speaking with Dawn, many passengers claim that transporters increased intra-city fares by around 40 per cent after the government sharply raised petroleum prices amid heightened regional tensions. At that time, the transport operators argued that it had become financially “impossible” to continue operating at the pre-conflict fare structure. However, the commuters add, the situation has since changed considerably. Successive cuts in fuel prices have brought the rates of both petrol and diesel down by...

Samsung's estimate would be 'largest quarterly operating profit in history', beating that of AI chip titan Nvidia

Missiles, developed by India, Russia, among world's ​fastest cruise missiles, can be launched from land, sea, air

2,150 people died last year as a result of using dangerous illegal drugs

SCORES of public intellectuals, former diplomats and erstwhile denizens of the deep state from India and Pakistan renewed a call recently for the resumption of peace talks and friendlier relations between their strained countries. They sought restoration of full diplomatic ties and reopening of trade routes with improved transportation links. They sought to make it easier to get visas to encourage and enable people from both countries to visit each other. The statement argued that continued tension hurts millions of young people. The activists asked leaders to put the welfare of the people ahead of conflict. What could be worthier than the charter of utterly reasonable demands for a more harmonious and integrated South Asia? It’s an increasingly overdue need. However, the call for peace came at a time when Pakistan had locked up the main opposition party in the person of its charismatic leader. India on its part has preferred a similar route but by locking out the opposition from its critical role inside and ...

A RECENT World Bank report has looked into the NFC Award post-18th Amendment and provided some interesting details. For instance, it has shown how the bulk of the money seems to have gone into expanding local bureaucracies in health and education. It notes that 80 per cent of provincial spending is recurrent spending (a fancy way of saying it goes towards salaries and similar expenditures). It also argues that higher spending hasn’t improved health and education indicators all that much. Among other issues, the report has pointed out the provinces’ failure to shape rules for the fair and institutionalised distribution of funds to the local level. Even where the rules are clear or formalised, fund distribution remains patchy and is dependent on the provincial government’s largesse. In fact, the report points out that spending at the local government level had fallen from 10pc in 2005 to 5pc by 2011; it has remained stuck at this number. For the sake of contrast, India spends 12pc at the LG level, Nepal 24pc an...