Pakistan

Punjab cabinet approves scheme for 50,000 beneficiaries

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• Ruling covers 62 models across Apple, Samsung, Google Pixel, OnePlus • iPhones see steepest cuts • Values apply regardless of condition; accessories not included • Phones must be activated six months before import ISLAMABAD: As mobile phone prices remain elevated for new buyers due to higher assessed values, the Customs Valuation Department has reduced assessment rates for duties and taxes on the commercial import of used and old mobile phone sets to ease pressure on consumers in the used smartphone market. At the same time, fresh assessment values have been set for high-end used iPhone models, ranging from the iPhone 14 and its variants to the iPhone 15 series. For Samsung, Google Pixel and OnePlus, the assessed rates have largely been left unchanged or fixed for the first time. The revised rates were notified through Valuation Ruling No. 2035 of 2026, which will come into effect from Jan 16, 2026. Customs officials said the revision reflects a decline in international prices of older smartphones, particul...

A Spanish court has sentenced a Pakistani man to 36 years in jail for murdering three elderly siblings over debts reportedly linked to an online romance scam. A jury in October convicted Dilawar Hussain of killing the two sisters and their disabled brother in Morata de Tajuna, near Madrid, in December 2023. In November, a Madrid court sentenced Hussain to 12 years in jail for each murder, citing a “psychological alteration” as a mitigating factor, according to a copy of the ruling seen by AFP on Friday. Hussain has appealed the sentence. Hussain, 44, turned himself in to police and admitted the killings after the siblings’ partially burned bodies were found in their home. The siblings, who were in their 70s, had been beaten to death, possibly with an iron bar. When he took the stand at his trial, Hussain asked for forgiveness, saying he had “heard voices” and “was not in my right mind”. Neighbours told Spanish media the tragedy was linked to a fake online love affair, in which the two sisters believed they we...

At least nine people lost their lives after a powerful avalanche hit the remote Seregal area of Damil Arandu in Chitral, officials confirmed on Friday.

KHYBER/ SHANGLA/ RAWALPINDI: Commuters and residents faced difficulties on Thursday as snow blanketed several parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Murree. While a restriction was placed on the entry of vehicles into Murree, a rescue operation was under way in Tirah. Meanwhile, the Met Office said more rain and snowfall was expected in different areas from Sunday night till Tuesday under the influence of a westerly wave. Rescue efforts in Tirah Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Rescue 1122 Spokesperson Bilal Faizi said on Friday that a comprehensive rescue operation was ongoing to help the people affected by heavy snowfall in the province. “The operation is ongoing in Tirah valley, Painda Cheena, Dawatoi and Bagh Maidan on the directives of Rescue 1122 director general,” he said in a statement. “Twenty-three operational vehicles of Rescue 1122 and rescue teams comprising more than 100 personnel are taking part in the rescue operation,” he said. In an update at 5:30pm, Rescue 1122 said 50 stranded vehicles and around 100 affected ...

The Punjab Cabinet has approved the creation and recruitment of hundreds of new posts across several key departments in a move aimed at strengthening governance and improving public service delivery.

KARACHI: Seven people were rescued while a search operation was underway to find four others missing after a merchant vessel hit a fishing boat off Manora Beach on Friday morning. South Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Syed Asad Raza told Dawn that seven people had been rescued, with four still missing, in the incident. In a statement, an Edhi Foundation spokesperson said that their divers had continued the search operation during the day but it had to be halted once night fell. He said the resuce operation would resume on Saturday morning. DIG Raza detailed that the incident took place in a channel of the Karachi Port Trust (KPT) at about 2am, when a civil fishing boat named Al-Shahbaz was hit by merchant vessel Kang Huan. “All fishermen on the boat jumped into the sea, and the fishing boat toppled down,” the police officer added. Subsequently, rescue operations were initiated by HPO, the Pakistan Maritime Security Agency and the KPT. “Seven persons were rescued by another fishing boat,” DIG Raza said, adding ...

ISLAMABAD: The government on Friday again defended its decision to join the Board of Peace led by US President Donald Trump, with Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal saying that Pakistan being at the “centre stage” along with its brother Muslim countries to contribute towards peace in Gaza and Palestine was a “diplomatic win”. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was among the leaders and senior officials of 19 countries, including Pakistan, who gathered in Davos on Thursday and put their names to the founding charter of the Board of Peace — a move that has been denounced by the opposition. Trump had originally proposed establishing the board when he announced his plan last September to end the onslaught in Gaza. It was originally meant to oversee peace in Gaza after Israel’s two-year onslaught on the Palestinian enclave, but the board’s charter envisions a wider role in resolving international conflicts. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry on Thursday had defended the move in the National Assembly, say...

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Accused in child earring-snatching case re-arrested after escape

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ISLAMABAD: Hours after the arrest of activist and lawyer Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and her husband Hadi Ali Chattha on Friday, the couple was sent to jail on judicial remand by an anti-terrorism court. The development came in a case registered against the two for protesting outside the Islamabad High Court (IHC) and allegedly manhandling the IHC Bar Association (IHCBA) president. Strict security was enforced during the proceedings and lawyers and media persons were not allowed to enter the courtroom. The case was heard by ATC Judge Abual Hasnat Muhammad Zulqarnain. It should be mentioned that prior to Imaan and Hadi’s arrest on Friday morning, the two had spent three nights at the office of IHCBA President Syed Wajid Ali Gilani. Their arrest subsequently prompted lawyers’ bodies to announce a complete strike, strongly condemning the action. Imaan and Hadi were scheduled to appear in a trial court on Friday in the controversial social media posts case, in which Additional District and Sessions Judge (ADSJ) Moh...

KARACHI: The death toll of Karachi’s Gul Plaza blaze crossed 70 on Friday as rescuers found more remains from the rubble of the gutted shopping centre. Police Surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed issued an updated list of 71 deceased. Of the 16 identified so far, nine were identified through DNA tests, which have been performed for 49 samples. The deadly inferno, which erupted on the night of January 17 at the mall and took nearly two days to be fully extinguished, has left the ground-plus-three-storey building in ruins, with some sections collapsed. As more bodies were recovered from different parts of the building, officials cautioned that the final toll can only be determined once the identification of the remains is completed. Meanwhile, officials expressed the hope to complete their search efforts on Friday. South Deputy Commissioner (DC) Javed Nabi Khoso told reporters that the search operation was in the “final stages”. “The search in the wreckage will be completed today,” he said. Stating that a total of 77 missi...

ISLAMABAD: Barbs flew in the Senate on Friday with the opposition taking the government to task over its policies and demanding a parliamentary probe into “institutional overreach” and “election fraud”. In response, the government accused the opposition of committing “economic terrorism” while also chiding it for the Results Transmission System (RTS) fiasco in the 2018 general polls. Speaking on a calling-attention notice, PTI’s Ali Zafar, the party’s parliamentary leader in the Senate, said Parliament had been made irrelevant and meaningless. His speech was interrupted several times by the members of the treasury benches, who loudly objected to his remarks. “Matters pertaining to the country’s economy, security and foreign policy are not brought before Parliament; [instead] decisions are taken in drawing rooms,” he said, regretting that even agreements linked to the country’s future were signed while keeping Parliament in the dark. “This is a betrayal of the constitutional concept of civilian supremacy,” he ...

Govt defends company law amid criticism over intent and timing

Dr Ibad says CM now disowning decision endorsed in Apex Committee

SCADA systems and meter installations aim to curb losses

Separately, three people died and three others were injured in traffic accidents in different parts of Karachi