Pakistan

Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar stressed on Sunday the need for a national dialogue, saying Pakistan required political and economic stability as the country remains mired in political clashes between the government and the opposition. “Politics is the name of a continuous process,“ he said, as he addressed a seminar in Lahore. “No country or nation can progress amid political and economic instability.” The relationship between the government and the opposition has come under additional strain in recent weeks, especially after the military’s spokesperson, Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, assailed incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan as a “national security threat”, triggering a strong reaction. Moreover, Imran, who is already facing a slew of legal cases, was once again sentenced to 17 years of imprisonment in the Toshakhana 2 case on Saturday, making his release uncertain. The law minister stated that the country had witnessed cultures of tolerance as well as violence, emphasising that it was the duty of politici...

The Pakistan Navy on Sunday commissioned its second Milgem-class corvette, PNS Khaibar, at a ceremony held at the Istanbul Naval Shipyard in Turkiye, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said.

President Asif Ali Zardari met Iraqi President Dr Abdul Latif Jamal Rashid at Baghdad Palace on Sunday, a statement from the Presidency said. The president, who is expected to meet senior Iraqi leadership during the trip, arrived in Iraq on Saturday night, where he was received by Iraq’s Culture Minister, Ahmed Fakkak Al-Badrani, upon his arrival in Baghdad. According to the statement, President Zardari received a guard of honour upon his arrival at the palace, where he was scheduled to have lunch and a one-on-meeting with his Iraqi opposite number. The pair expressed satisfaction over growing diplomatic momentum from high-level exchanges. “The president noted that current levels of bilateral trade do not reflect the true potential of Pakistan-Iraq economic, cultural and security relations,” the statement read. “He highlighted opportunities for expanding trade, investment, agriculture and defence production sectors, besides information technology, construction, pharmaceuticals and related industries.” Preside...

The Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) has affirmed that all other courts in the country, including the Supreme Court, are required to “adhere” to its judgements. The observation was made by a two-member FCC bench, comprising Justices Aamer Farooq and Rozi Khan Barrech, as it rejected a plea wherein the petitioner claimed a piece of land that was resumed from his father’s holding in the 1970s. The order read: “Article 189 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan stipulates that any decision rendered by the Supreme Court, which resolves a question of law or enunciates a principle of law, is binding upon all other courts within Pakistan, with the exception of the Federal Constitutional Court of Pakistan. “This exception arises from the 27th Amendment to the Constitution, which establishes that decisions issued by the Federal Constitutional Court are binding on all courts in Pakistan, including the Supreme Court itself. Consequently, all courts in Pakistan are constitutionally mandated to adhere t...

The European Union (EU) has welcomed Pakistan’s progress towards implementing 27 international conventions under the Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) framework, the Foreign Office (FO) said in a statement. According to the EU, GSP+ status is a special incentive awarded to developing countries to “pursue sustainable development and good governance” in exchange for cutting import duties to zero on two-thirds of the tariff lines of its exports. Governments with this status need to implement 27 international conventions on human rights, labour rights, good governance and the environment. According to Saturday’s statement, the FO noted that the 15th Pakistan-EU Joint Commission meeting was held in Brussels on December 17 and that cooperation between Islamabad and the bloc in several different fields was discussed. The meeting “reviewed Pakistan’s progress on the implementation of the 27 international conventions as required under the GSP+ framework,” the statement read, adding that Deputy Prime Minist...

Pakistan produced a dominant all-round performance to thrash arch-rivals India by a massive 191 runs in the final of the U-19 Asia Cup at the ICC Academy Ground on Sunday, claiming the prestigious title in emphatic fashion. Opener Sameer Minhas lit up the first half of the match with a record-breaking 172 — the highest individual score in a U-19 Asia Cup final — propelling Pakistan to a formidable 347 for 8 after being asked to bat first. In reply, India’s much-vaunted batting line-up crumbled spectacularly, folding for a paltry 156 in just 26.2 overs as pacer Ali Raza ripped through the order with figures of 4 for 42. The victory marked a sweet redemption for Pakistan, who had suffered a heavy defeat to the same opponents in the group stage and had entered the final as underdogs against an unbeaten Indian side. Instead, it was Pakistan who delivered a clinical display, overwhelming India in every department to lift the trophy amid jubilant celebrations. India captain Ayush Mhatre won the toss and elected to ...

Australia honoured the victims on Sunday of a gun attack a week earlier on a seaside Hanukkah celebration, as the prime minister announced a review of the country’s law enforcement and intelligence agencies. The nation marked a day of reflection to honour the 15 people killed and the dozens wounded in the attack by two gunmen at Sydney’s Bondi Beach. With security tight and flags at half-staff on government buildings, a minute of silence was held at 6:47pm (12:47pm PKT), the time the attack began. Television and radio networks paused for a minute’s silence. Tens of thousands, including Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and other leaders, attended a memorial event at Bondi Beach under a heavy police presence, including snipers on rooftops and police boats in the waters. Albanese was booed by the crowd on arrival and later when the speaker mentioned his name during the memorial. He sat in the front row wearing a kippah, the traditional Jewish cap. Albanese, under pressure from critics who say his centre-left gove...

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Sunday held a telephone conversation with Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi to review bilateral relations and discuss the evolving regional situation.

Chief of Army Staff and Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir on Sunday issued a stern warning to Afghan Taliban-backed militants, saying Pakistan would not tolerate threats to its security and sovereignty.

Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) and Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir has said that formations of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban (TTP) infiltrating into Pakistan mostly comprised Afghans. “In the TTP formations coming [into Pakistan], 70 per cent are Afghans,” he said. The defence forces’ chief made this statement at the National Ulema Conference held in Islamabad on December 10. However, details of the Field Marshal’s address at the conference were scant thus far and clips of his speech from the event were broadcast on television today. Islamabad has repeatedly urged Kabul to put an end to the use of Afghan soil by terrorists for carrying out attacks in Pakistan. Kabul, however, denies the allegation. Turning his attention to the matter at the conference, CDF Munir questioned: “Is Afghanistan not spilling the blood of our Pakistani children?” He recalled that the Afghan Taliban had been told to choose between Pakistan and the TTP. Speaking about the four-day May conflict with India, he said in Pakistan’s retal...

The commissioning ceremony of a Pakistan Navy Milgem class ship, PNS Khaibar, has been held at Istanbul Naval Shipyard, where Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan emphasised the need for enhanced mutual collaboration in the field of defence production between the two countries. The warship is the second of four Milgem class corvettes, the contract for which was signed with ASFAT Inc, a Turkish state-owned defence contractor firm in 2018. Under this contract, two ships were to be constructed in Turkiye and the remaining two ships in Pakistan. “The commissioning of PNS Khaibar marks the completion of the construction of both ships in Turkiye,” the military’s media affairs wing said in a statement on Sunday. President Erdogan was the chief guest on the occasion while Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Naveed Ashraf also attended the ceremony, it added. According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) statement, Erdogan “termed the brotherly relations between Pakistan and Turkiye as exemplary” while addressing...

The Ministry of Energy has approved a major revision to Pakistan’s net metering policy, significantly altering the framework for solar power consumers across the country.

Dense fog and overcast conditions gripped several parts of Punjab on Sunday, reducing visibility to dangerously low levels and prompting authorities to close major motorways to prevent accidents.

Widespread rain and snowfall across Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Azad Kashmir on Sunday intensified the ongoing cold spell, bringing much-needed relief from prolonged dry conditions while causing localized disruptions in some areas.

Nine people were killed and 10 wounded in an early morning shooting in a township south-west of Johannesburg and authorities have launched a manhunt for the suspects, the South African Police Service said on Sunday. The incident occurred just before 1am local time (4am PKT) at a licensed tavern in Johannesburg’s Bekkersdal township, the police said in a statement. About 12 unknown suspects in a white minibus and a silver sedan opened fire at the tavern patrons and continued shooting randomly as they fled the scene, the police said, adding the motive for the shooting would be determined by investigation. The injured have been taken to medical facilities for treatment, police added. Bekkersdal is part of the Rand West City local municipality, whose website describes the township as being an area characterised by high levels of unemployment and poverty due to a decline in gold mining. South Africa, Africa’s biggest economy, has one of the world’s highest murder rates, averaging about 60 a day.

As fog engulfed several areas of Karachi on Sunday morning and the city experienced “very unhealthy” weather conditions, flight disruptions and one road accident death were reported. Low visibility due to fog was reported from Super Highway, Surjani Town, Gulistan-i-Jauhar, I.I. Chundrigarh Road, Clifton and Defence. Updates on the Karachi airport’s website showed that multiple flights were cancelled or delayed in the morning. Pakistan Airports Authority spokesperson Saifullah Khan confirmed in a statement that six international flights scheduled to land in Karachi had to be diverted due to fog. The statement said that the diversion was a usual safety measure taken due to reduced visibility. It added that Pegasus Airlines, Eitehad Airways, Flyadeal and Gulf Air flights had been diverted to Muscat. Moreover, a Pakistan International Airlines flight that had departed from Madina, too, had to be divered to Muscat. Similarly, Fly Jinnah flight arriving from Jeddah was diverted to Islamabad. According to the Pakis...

Illustration by Abro George Orwell’s classic novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, published in 1949, explores a fictional totalitarian regime that maintains absolute power by dismantling individual thought, memory and personal connection. Orwell wrote the novel after witnessing the rise of fascism in Germany and, especially, the Stalinist system in the Soviet Union. A self-described socialist, Orwell fought against fascists in the Spanish Civil War (1936-39). But he critically differentiated between ‘democratic-socialism’ and the communism practised in the Soviet Union. By the time Nineteen Eighty-Four was published, totalitarianism in Germany had fallen, but Stalinism persisted. Orwell was particularly disturbed by the Soviet Union’s trajectory, having already satirised it in his 1945 allegory Animal Farm. In Nineteen Eighty-Four, he presented a warning about communism’s potential to create a terrifying dystopia. The term ‘Orwellian’ quickly entered political discourse as a universal descriptor for state overreach, t...

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court has declared that the protective bails, granted to scores of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf’s lawmakers and leaders, including Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, were meant to facilitate their appearance before the relevant courts, so the relief shouldn’t be used for participating in protests or anti-state activities. “This interim relief shall not, under any circumstances, be construed, interpreted, invoked or relied upon by the petitioner(s) as a shield, protection, justification, or safeguard for any purpose other than facilitating their appearance before the competent court. For abundant caution, it is further clarified that this order shall not be used, directly or indirectly, to enable, justify or facilitate the petitioner(s) participation in any protest, demonstration, anti-state activity, or any event of a similar nature,” reads a ruling by a bench consisting of Justice Syed Arshad Ali and Justice Mohammad Faheem Wali in multiple cases. It declared that an...

BANGLADESH has been rocked by spasms of violence after a student leader, who was shot in Dhaka recently, succumbed to his injuries while receiving treatment in Singapore. Sharif Osman Hadi was a key figure in last year’s uprising — which sent Sheikh Hasina Wajed’s regime packing — a spokesman for the Inqilab Morcho political platform, and a candidate for next year’s elections scheduled for February. After news of his death spread on Thursday, protests in various parts of Bangladesh spiralled out of control, as rampaging mobs resorted to rioting and arson. Among the institutions attacked were two of the country’s leading newspapers, Prothom Alo and The Daily Star. Staffers of the latter publication survived a terrifying ordeal when a mob torched their building, and they had to be rescued by security personnel. As per local media, Hadi’s funeral on Saturday drew hundreds of thousands of mourners, including Bangladesh’s interim leader Muhammad Yunus. Inqilab Morchohas termed the murdered leader a “martyr … again...

KARACHI: A sessions court on Friday granted interim bail to YouTuber Rajab Butt, who was booked in a case pertaining to allegedly “hurting religious” sentiments. Lawyer Riaz Ali Solangi had lodged a complaint against the YouTuber in January at the Hyderi Market police station, under Section 295-A (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) of the Pakistan Penal Code. According to the FIR, the complainant claimed that in December 2024 he watched a viral video of the YouTuber in which he was allegedly “disrespecting” prayer (Namaz) that hurt sentiments of Muslims. He added that in the “controversial” video, Mr Butt was performing prayer while music was playing in the background, which left him feeling grieved and angered. It is pertinent to mention that the FIR was registered after a sessions court allowed the complainant’s application filed under Section 22-A, seeking directives for the Hyderi Market SHO to lodge a case agai...