Pakistan

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Tuesday held a meeting with Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-F (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman to discuss the country's political landscape and matters of mutual interest.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Tuesday expressed deep grief and sorrow over the tragic incident in Kahna, Lahore.

Nasa is set to launch a daring robotic rescue mission, a long-shot bid to prevent one of its ageing telescopes from vanishing into dust. If successful, the effort could pave the way for giving other satellites a second life. The operation is set to last several months, kicking off with the launch of a robot designed to rescue the Swift space telescope that’s currently falling towards Earth. Without intervention, Swift is expected to soon burn up in the atmosphere. The rescue spacecraft developed by the US startup Katalyst was slated to lift off on Tuesday at 10:23am GMT (3:23pm PKT) from a Pacific Ocean atoll aboard a small rocket named Pegasus. But Nasa postponed the launch, citing unfavourable weather conditions, and set the next launch attempt for “no earlier than Wednesday, July 1” at 09:43am GMT (2:43pm PKT). The rocket-propelled launch vehicle will not take off from a launch pad. Instead, it will be released from a jet. “Everything about this mission is so crazy,” said Nasa astrophysicist Regina Caputo ...

US envoys were meeting with Qatari mediators on Tuesday in Doha to discuss negotiations with Iran, the Gulf state said, after Tehran and Washington agreed to a memorandum of understanding this month to halt the Middle East war. Iran said a team would head to Doha this week but contradicted US President Donald Trump’s claim that direct talks will take place. Qatar also said no high-level meetings or direct talks between the longtime foes were planned in Doha. Here is what we know about the discussions: Who and when Trump posted on Monday that Iran had requested fresh talks in Qatar the following day. “IT WILL TAKE PLACE TOMORROW IN DOHA!” he wrote. After his social media post, his spokeswoman told Fox News that US envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner “will be flying to Doha for high-level meetings this week”. Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesman Majed Al Ansari confirmed on Tuesday that Witkoff and Kushner were in Doha, but said “they are not here for their negotiations with the I...

Pakistan has become a permanent member of the International Olive Council (IOC) for the first time, the Foreign Office (FO) said on Monday. According to the FO, Pakistan assumed its seat during the IOC’s 123rd session held in Lisbon, Portugal, which was attended by 27 olive-producing countries. A Pakistani delegation, led by Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research Rana Tanveer Hussain, represented the country at the meeting. The minister briefed council members on Pakistan’s rapidly expanding olive sector and highlighted the country’s efforts to promote sustainable olive production in the context of climate change, according to the FO statement. Pakistan also reaffirmed its commitment to playing a positive and constructive role in the global olive sector and to further strengthening its presence in the international olive market. The minister was accompanied by Pakistan’s ambassador to Portugal, Aisha Farooqui, according to a statement from the embassy. During the session, Pakistan highlighte...

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday reserved its verdict on the maintainability of petitions challenging the alleged solitary confinement of the jailed PTI founder Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi. A day earlier, the IHC removed the registrar office’s (RO) objections to petitions challenging the alleged solitary confinement and had directed that both petitions be numbered while deferring the question of maintainability to the judicial side. The court had adjourned the proceedings till Tuesday (today). As the hearing resumed on Tuesday, Justice Khadim Hussain Soomro reserved the order after hearing detailed arguments from counsel for the petitioners and the National Accountability Bureau (NAB). Barrister Salman Safdar, representing the petitioners, submitted that he would first assist the court on the petition filed by Bushra Bibi’s daughter, Mubashara Khawar Maneka. Noting that he also had to appear before a division bench later in the day, he sought to conclude his submissions expeditiou...

Leaders of India’s youth Cockroach Janta Party neared two weeks of sit-in protests on Tuesday, backed by a well-known activist who has started a hunger strike in support of their demand for the resignation of the education minister. The protests in the capital Delhi, come as sources say the government is weighing significant cabinet changes, with Indian media reporting Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan could be moved from his portfolio. Supporters of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) during a sit-in protest called by CJP demanding the resignation of Indian Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, India, June 30, — Reuters The CJP, which gained 22 million followers on Instagram within a few days of being set up last month, is demanding his resignation for the leak of question papers for a national medical college entrance examination. Pradhan, his ministry and the government’s chief spokesperson did not immediately respond to requests for comment. About 100 supporters of the CJP ...

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Tuesday reserved its verdict in a case regarding the suspension of the schedule for a Senate by-election in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The ECP had postponed the by-election for the Senate seat that fell vacant following the disqualification of PTI’s Murad Saeed, on an application moved by a PML-N lawmaker, just two days before the by-election was scheduled to take place. A three-member bench headed by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja heard the case on Tuesday, while counsels for both sides appeared before the commission. Article 224 (5) of the Constitution reads “When a seat in the Senate has become vacant, an election to fill the seat shall be held within thirty days from the occurrence of the vacancy”. Yasin Raza, counsel for the petitioner and KP lawmaker Jalal Khan, argued that the law governing by-elections was clear and that the Constitution provided for three processes of conducting elections. He contended that Murad was only a successful...

Sensitive lists of components and suppliers, and photos of Apple’s upcoming iPhone 18 Pro models are part of files posted on the dark web by the ransomware group that stole data from the US firm’s Indian supplier Tata Electronics, according to documents and a source. The exposure threatens the carefully negotiated business of building the iPhone, which Apple assembles from a thicket of suppliers worldwide. It could also upset Apple and its relationship with Tata given most of the supplier arrangements are fiercely protected by Apple, and could also hand rivals, counterfeiters and its own vendors a view of who makes what. Tata, which both supplies parts and assembles iPhones as a contract manufacturer, is emerging as one of Apple’s most important manufacturing partners outside China, an expansion that is a cornerstone of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s push to make India an electronics manufacturing powerhouse. Apple is reportedly on track to release its iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max in September. The leak comes at...

RAWALPINDI: A first information report (FIR) was registered on Tuesday against the 14 prisoners who escaped from a police van a day earlier while being transported to Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail, with fresh details emerging that the fugitives threw red chilli powder at the police officials escorting them to facilitate their escape. Along with the 14 accused, the FIR, a copy of which is available with Dawn, also nominated five police officials who were present at the site of the incident, which occurred within the jurisdiction of the Sihala police station in Islamabad, for neglecting their respective duties, enabling the prisoners to escape. The complaint was registered under the following provisions of law: Sections 224 (resistance or obstruction by a person to their lawful apprehension), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter a public servant from discharging their duty), 186 (obstructing a public servant in the discharge of public functions), 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of a common intenti...

Rescuers from around the world pushed on Tuesday to save any final survivors trapped under mountains of rubble after Venezuela’s massive quakes that killed over 1,700 people, with tens of thousands still unaccounted for. The twin quakes of magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 — the strongest to hit the South American nation in more than a century — likely damaged or destroyed 58,870 buildings, according to a preliminary assessment of satellite data published by Nasa. By the latest official count, some 1,700 are dead and 5,000 are injured, with no governmental word on the number of missing. Other estimates place these in the tens of thousands. At the only public cemetery in the capital Caracas, the two crematory ovens have been working at full capacity. Between Friday and Sunday, 60 to 70 burials were held each day. A cry of “Mom, I love you!” rose above a steady low sobbing and the sound of shovels mixing cement. When workers began to seal the niche of his nephew, Sergio Vergara fell to his knees. He was the one who found h...

The United States accounted for about a third of the rise in global carbon emissions in 2025, as higher gas prices pushed power producers back to coal, an Energy Institute report showed. The report was produced in partnership with Ember, Kearney Institute and KPMG. US coal consumption jumped 10 per cent last year, reversing a shift towards cleaner fuels and helping lift overall emissions. According to the report, global carbon emissions from the energy sector rose 1.1pc to 35,806 million metric tons of carbon dioxide. More than a third of this increase came from the US. North America’s increase bucked the 10-year trend of emissions falling by 0.7pc, while global energy-related demand continued to grow. Total energy supply rose 1.7pc from 2024, with renewable energy contributing the biggest share of that increase. Renewable power generation climbed 9.1pc, led by a 30pc surge in solar, it said. Europe’s carbon emissions from the energy sector increased by 0.5pc, while China’s rose by 0.7pc in 2025. Electricity ...

The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has forecast widespread monsoon rainfall across much of the country during the first week of July, warning of possible urban flooding, flash floods and landslides in vulnerable areas.

Information Minister Attaullah Tarar on Tuesday criticised what he described as the “unfortunate trend” of calling terrorists ‘militants’. Referring to a news report published by Turkish public broadcaster TRT World on the recent terrorist attack on a Rangers facility in Karachi in which three security personnel were martyred, Tarar strongly objected to the use of the term “militants” for the attackers. “The Karachi attack was a terrorist attack in which innocent people were killed,” he said. “Terrorists must not be called by any other name.” “Terrorists are terrorists, they have no caste, colour, creed or religion,” he explained. Tarar’s statements come days after the military’s media wing announced the capture of one of the terrorists involved in the Rangers facility attack. The terrorist was identified by Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) as an Afghan national with links to Indian proxy Jaamatul Ahrar. He and his companions had been trained in Afghanistan before crossing the border to carry out their ...

A year after the Trump administration dismantled the US Agency for International Development (USAID), most Americans still support foreign aid to provide disaster relief, prevent disease outbreaks and improve security, according to a new poll commissioned by the Rockefeller Foundation and released on Tuesday. The poll of 2,022 voters showed Republicans and President Donald Trump’s Make America Great Again (MAGA) base were sceptical of foreign aid before getting more details. Nearly all Americans overestimated by far how much Washington spent on such programs, with over a third thinking they accounted for 20 per cent of the annual US budget. When told that foreign aid accounted for just 1pc of the US budget before 2025 and briefed on what it accomplished, Americans’ support grew to 70pc from 54pc, the poll showed. Republican support reached 58pc, and even MAGA Republicans, defined as those who primarily support Trump over the party, backed aid by 50pc, the foundation said. Trump, who made cutting off foreign a...

Senate Opposition Leader Allama Raja Nasir Abbas on Tuesday filed a privilege motion in the upper house of Parliament against the station house officer (SHO) of Islamabad’s Bhara Kahu police station over his “rude and discourteous” conduct. The privilege motion comes after a delegation of opposition leaders, including Abbas, was stopped by Islamabad police from travelling to Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) on Monday. The delegation, led by National Assembly Opposition Leader Mehmood Khan Achakzai and including former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and former senator Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar, had planned to express solidarity with protesters participating in a sit-in in Rawalakot. Khokhar had alleged that Raja Nasir Abbas was also stopped from reaching his residence in Bhara Kahu and was forced to continue on foot after authorities prevented his vehicle from proceeding. In the privilege motion, a copy of which is available with Dawn, Abbas said that Sub-inspector (SI) Naeemul Hassan, the Bhara Kahu SHO, stopped...

Mushaal Hussein Mullick, Chairperson of the Peace and Culture Organisation, former Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Human Rights and Women Empowerment, and wife of jailed JKLF Chairman Mohammad Yasin Malik, has strongly condemned the filing of a 737-page chargesheet by India’s State Investigation Agency (SIA) in connection with a.

Morocco beat the Netherlands 3-2 on penalties on Monday to reach the World Cup last 16 after their Round of 32 tie ended 1-1 following extra time, setting up a meeting with co-hosts Canada. Ismael Saibari converted the winning spot kick after Yassine Bounou saved Crysencio Summerville’s penalty, sending Morocco through after a dramatic contest in which they had forced extra time with a stoppage-time equaliser. Morocco’s Neil El Aynaoui and Dutch substitute Justin Kluivert missed their attempts before Bart Verbruggen appeared to save Soufiane Rahimi’s effort, only for the ball to squirm underneath him and trickle over the line. Quinten Timber then put the ball wide with the Dutch side’s fourth kick, Achraf Hakimi struck the post with the chance to seal victory before Saibari kept his nerve to send Morocco through. The shootout capped a gripping encounter in Monterrey that swung repeatedly in both teams’ favour, with Cody Gakpo’s emotional second-half opener cancelled out by Issa Diop’s stoppage-time header bef...

LAHORE: The Punjab Assembly on Monday witnessed a heated exchange on the proposed Punjab Control of Habitual Offenders and Anti-Social Behaviour Bill, 2026 with the opposition describing the legislation as an assault on fundamental rights and freedom of expression while Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan assured the lawmakers that their concerns about the bill would be addressed before being taken up for consideration. Opening the debate, Opposition Leader Moin Riaz Qureshi alleged that the proposed law violated constitutional guarantees and democratic principles. He warned that the bill could become the final nail in the coffin for freedom of expression and accused the government of attempting to suppress dissent through legislation. “The Punjab Control of Habitual Offenders Bill 2026 is being introduced to silence people,” Qureshi alleged, adding that the ruling PML-N had previously enacted accountability laws that eventually rebounded against its own leadership. Responding to the opposition’s concerns, the ...

• Rules husband, in-laws can’t claim ornaments gifted to bride; withholding them is ‘unlawful deprivation’ • Notes dowry constitutes women’s ‘financial security’ • Family courts empowered to order recovery of bridal property ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court has ruled that gold ornaments gifted to a bride by her parents or relatives at the time of marriage for her exclusive use are her absolute property, declaring that neither her husband nor his family can legally claim them. Retaining such jewellery amounts to the illegal deprivation of a wife’s proprietary rights, which is remediable through proceedings before a family court, Justice Shakeel Ahmad cautioned in a judgement. The observation came on an appeal moved by Ghulam Habib against his wife, Shazia, relating to the recovery of dowry articles. A three-judge Supreme Court bench, headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi, took up the husband’s challenge to an Oct 27, 2025, Lahore High Court ruling. That decision upheld a family court decree requiring th...