Pakistan

As the nationwide polio campaign begins from Monday (tomorrow) to vaccinate over 45 million children, first lady Aseefa Bhutto Zardari has urged parents, caregivers, public representatives and community leaders to actively support the drive. Pakistan is one of the last two countries in the world, alongside Afghanistan, where polio remains endemic. So far, the country has recorded 30 polio cases, with the highest number of cases in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa at 19. This will be the last polio campaign of the year, which will conclude on December 21. “The success of the campaign depends on our collective responsibility, so we must ensure that every child under five years of age receives polio drops,” she said in a statement. The campaign aims to vaccinate 45.4 million children nationwide, including 23.3 million in Punjab, 10.6 million in Sindh, 7.3 million in KP and 2.66 million in Balochistan, with the remaining children covered in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan and Islamabad Capital Territory. The drive is ...

The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) on Sunday issued a press release condemning a ban on government advertisements for various outlets operated by the Dawn Media Group, terming the ban an “attack on press freedom”. Over the past several days, multiple media bodies came together and condemned the 13-month ban, which initially affected the newspaper but extended to DawnNewsTV and the radio channel City FM 89. In its press release today, the PFUJ condemned the ad ban and called it “an attempt to control media and stifle free expression”. “In a joint statement, PFUJ President Afzal Butt and Secretary General Arshad Ansari expressed deep concern over the government’s decision, stating that it is an attack on freedom of expression and an attempt to financially cripple a respected media outlet,” the union said. “Dawn was founded by the father of the nation, Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, and the paper is respected globally for its unbiased reporting,” it added, quoting its president and secretary gen...

You may feel worn out after a busy weekend of conversations and appointments, as though your social battery has run out. “The more we move around in large groups, engage in conversations or are exposed to conflicts, the more our energy levels drop, similar to a smartphone battery when used frequently,” says Dr Steffen Häfner, medical director of a hospital in Germany’s Bad Saulgau and specialist in psychosomatic medicine and psychotherapy. Everyone feels exhausted after a lot of socialising, says British author Amy Arthur, whose book Pace Yourself: How to Have Energy in an Exhausting World is dedicated to the issue. “The upper limit varies from one person to the next.” Experts agree that everyone, even extroverts who often draw energy from social interaction, needs time out to recover. “The key is to strike a balance between activity and relaxation,” says Dr Häfner. Only by retreating, resting or engaging in relaxing activities can you recharge your social battery. Good strategies for regeneration include: Re...

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Muhammad Sohail Afridi asked PTI supporters on Sunday to “be ready” in case a call was made for a protest, adding that “we will together seize [our] Haqiqi Azadi (true freedom)” from the country’s current rulers. Afridi’s intimation came during a PTI rally in Kohat, where he reminded the crowd that incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan, had delivered the message from jail of “freedom or death”. “So if we go this time around, we will either return in shrouds or after getting freedom,” he said, adding that Imran had given the responsibility of making decisions — be it about talks with the government or protests — to Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) Chairman Mehmood Khan Achakzai and Senator Allama Raja Nasir Abbas.* The two leaders are part of the opposition alliance Tehreek-i-Tahafuz Ayeen-i-Pakistan (TTAP) along with the PTI, which has also nominated them as the opposition leaders in the National Assembly and Senate. “For my part,” Afridi said, “I met them and assured...

Karachi police said on Sunday that eight suspects, “involved in running an extortion network” were arrested during a raid at the residence of Pakistan Sunni Tehreek (PST) chairman Muhammad Sarwat Ejaz Qadri in Karachi. Special Investigation Unit (SIU) Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Imran Khan confirmed Saturday night’s development during a press briefing in Karachi today. At the same time, he also clarified that Qadri was neither wanted by police nor had he been arrested. Moreover, the official said police had no evidence of the suspects’ association with any party. The SSP also clarified that police had found no evidence of the involvement of the PST chief or any other member in the extortion network. SSP Khan said multiple cases had been registered against the arrested suspects, who were associated with an extortion network run by two men, who he identified as Wasiullah Lakho and Abdul Samad Kathiawari. These two “most-wanted” suspects were reportedly “in hiding abroad”, the official said, adding tha...

Prime Minister’s Adviser on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah has alleged that former army chief Gen (retd) Qamar Javed Bajwa had directed the registration of a narcotics case against him in 2019.

Hamas on Sunday warned against attempts to “re-engineer” the Gaza Strip and displace Palestinians from the enclave in line with Israeli plans.

Pakistan will launch its final nationwide anti-polio campaign for 2025 on Monday, with the seven-day drive set to continue until December 21, according to the National Emergency Operations Centre (EOC).

The finance ministry said on Sunday that the 11 targets, being categorised as “new conditions” under the ongoing programme with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), represented “continuity, sequencing, and deepening of Pakistan’s agreed reform agenda” rather than the “imposition of abrupt or unprecedented conditions”. The ministry’s clarification follows reports of the government agreeing to 11 new targets, including additional tax measures and expenditure cuts from early next month, to make up for rising revenue shortfalls and to keep the $7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) on track. This was revealed in documents released by the IMF earlier this week, according to which commitment to the new or revised structural benchmarks, together with completion of two “prior actions”, enabled the conclusion of a staff-level agreement on the second review of the EFF and its approval by the IMF Executive Board for the disbursement of about $1.2bn for Pakistan on December 9. A press release issued by the finance min...

Chairman of the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) Bilal Bin Saqib has said that the no-objection certificates (NOCs) issued to global cryptocurrency exchanges Binance and HTX were not a “blanket approval” but the “first step under a risk-mitigated, phased, supervised entry framework”. View this post on Instagram Saqib’s video statement, televised on Sunday, comes after Pakistan gave initial clearance for Binance and HTX on Friday to register with regulators to set up local subsidiaries and begin preparations for full exchange licence applications. The clearances allow the exchanges to register on the Anti-Money Laundering system, set up local units and prepare full applications. Speaking about the development, Saqib said the issuance of the NOCs to Binance and HTX was the “first practical step” that reflected a “new mindset”. He further said that the step was based on the “Pakistan-first” approach. Saqib detailed that by working under a supervised entry framework, authorities had been able ...

The district administration on Saturday announced registration fees and safety regulations for kite and string manufacturers following the Punjab government’s conditional approval to revive Basant celebrations.

The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) on Saturday forecast rain and snowfall in various parts of the country until December 18, warning that the weather system could disrupt travel and daily life in several regions.

Several sections of the country’s motorways were closed on Saturday as dense fog enveloped major cities, reducing visibility to dangerously low levels and disrupting traffic.

KARACHI: A provincial anti-corruption court has exonerated Dr Asim Hussain, former petroleum minister and close aide of President Asif Zardari, from all charges of corruption on the recommendations of the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE), Sindh. The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had in 2016 filed a reference against the former petroleum minister and others for their alleged involvement in depriving the state of Rs462.5 billion from 2010 to 2013. The accused were charged with causing financial losses of Rs450bn through a fertiliser scam, Rs9.5bn through land encroachment / fraud and Rs3bn through money laundering. However, the reference was transferred to the anti-corruption court after tweaks in the National Accountability Ordinance (NAO). The ACE filed an investigation report before Judge Muhammad Aminullah Siddiqui of the special provincial anti-corruption court seeking cancellation of graft charges against Dr Asim and others. Judge asks ACE Sindh to file report on Rs3bn money laundering allegatio...

KHYBER: Preparations for a decisive action against terrorist groups in the restive Tirah valley have entered the final phase as security officials verbally agreed on a possible timeframe for the operation and facilitation of the departing families. Sources in the valley told Dawn that hectic deliberations had been taking place between the Tirah Bagh Brigade Headquarters and local elders since Wednesday (Dec 10) to develop a mechanism for the ‘willful’ relocation of families from the valley and an acceptable package for the new internally displaced persons (IDPs). They said that while expressing satisfaction with the voluntary repatriation of families from different areas of Tirah in the last few weeks, officials posted to the Bagh Brigade Headquarters made it clear to local elders that those unwilling to vacate their houses would face “utter difficulties” after the launch of the operation. A Malakdinkhel elder, who was part of the negotiating team, told Dawn on condition of anonymity that the launch of the mi...

LAHORE: Sundar police on Saturday arrested four suspects allegedly involved in gang-raping two sisters. The mother of the victims, a resident of Theme Park, had submitted a complaint against five suspects for raping her two daughters. She said that her daughters had left home for work to Umar Block of Theme Park the other day. When they returned the same day, they told their mother about their ordeal. The complainant added that her daughters went to meet their two acquaintances, identified in the FIR, who called another armed suspect to the location. The armed suspect called his accomplices to the site and they all raped both the sisters. All suspects were identified by the rape survivors. Their mother demanded registration of a case and provision of justice. Sundar police registered a case against the five suspects on rape charges and arrested four of them. They are conducting raids to arrest the fifth suspect. Published in Dawn, December 14th, 2025

LAHORE: Punjab’s air quality has plunged to alarming levels this week, with Lahore emerging as one of the most polluted cities in the world, according to real-time data from IQAir. The situation looks bad even in the coming days with no rain prediction that may bring some respite. On Saturday, the city recorded an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 527 at 8pm, classified as hazardous, following Delhi (710). Lahore’s three-day average AQI hovered above 300. Some hotspots in the city such as Allama Iqbal Town (802), Bedian Road (674) and CERP Office (672) performed worst. The air pollution crisis in the country extends beyond Lahore. Cities across Punjab reported AQI readings well above safe thresholds between December 11 and 13, prompting widespread health warnings. Khurrianwala registered an AQI of 558, Faisalabad 547, Kahna Nau 350, Gujranwala 284, Gujrat 254, Islamabad 246, and both Bahawalpur and Sialkot at 244. Health experts warned that such high concentrations of PM2.5 particulate matter that penetrates deep in...

Displaced residents rest at an evacuation centre in the Thai border province of Buriram.—AFP BANGKOK: Cambodia shut its border crossings with Thailand on Saturday, after Bangkok denied US President Donald Trump’s claim that a truce had been agreed to end days of deadly fighting. Violence between the Southeast Asian neighbours, which stems from a long-running dispute over the colonial-era demarcation of their 800-kilometre (500-mile) border, has displaced around half a million people on both sides. At least 25 people have died this week, including four Thai soldiers, the defence ministry said were killed in the border area on Saturday. The latest fatalities were followed by Phnom Penh announcing it would immediately “suspend all entry and exit movements at all Cambodia-Thailand border crossings”, the interior ministry said. Each side blamed the other for reigniting the conflict, before Trump said a truce had been agreed. Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said Trump “didn’t mention whether we should make ...

RECENTLY, I was invited to speak at a conference on artificial intelligence, where a familiar and increasingly urgent question resurfaced: as AI becomes extraordinarily efficient at sourcing, processing, and delivering information, will journalists eventually become irrelevant? At first glance, the idea feels compelling. If machines can scrape information across multiple feeds in real time, summarise parliamentary proceedings, monitor political developments, crunch data, and respond to user queries in conversational language, why would end users still need traditional journalism outlets, or even digital platforms as intermediaries for news? The argument implies a future where individuals bypass traditional journalism outlets entirely and receive information directly from intelligent systems in a conversational, real-time format. Those who make this argument often point to changing audience behaviour, especially among younger users. Consumers are steadily turning away from conventional news platforms and gravi...

KARACHI: Both domestic and foreign investment are at their lowest levels and could set an unwanted record by falling below a 13 per cent investment-to-GDP ratio during the current fiscal year (FY26), analysts and bankers warn. Trade and industry have repeatedly urged the government to improve the investment climate by addressing political uncertainty and terrorism. “How is it possible to invest in a country where uncertainty has a strong grip and is clearly reflected in declining foreign investment?” asked Aamir Aziz, a textile finishing manufacturer and exporter. He said domestic textile groups have begun investing abroad, citing Interloop and Artistic Milliners as examples. As a result, jobs are effectively being outsourced. For the first time in the country’s recent history, domestic investors are actively securing their investments outside Pakistan. Experts cite political uncertainty, terrorism as main barriers A senior banker described the situation as grim for both the economy and the public, saying job...