Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has demanded a debate on the affidavit of former chief justice of the apex court of Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) Rana M Shamim, stating that he was witness to the directives of former Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar to a high court judge asking him not to release Nawaz Sharif and his … Read more
KARACHI: The Anti-Terrorism Court-VII on Monday reserved its order on an application for framing of amended charges against the accused in the Parween Rahman murder case. Suspects Abdul Raheem Swati, his son Mohammad Imran Swati and three co-accused — Ayaz Shamzai aka Swati, Amjad Hussain Khan and Ahmed Khan aka Ahmed Ali aka Pappu Kashmiri … Read more
LAHORE: In a major development following an agreement between the government and Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), the Punjab government on Thursday removed the names of TLP Chief Saad Rizvi and 577 other activists from the Fourth Schedule of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATC). An order, issued by the Punjab Home Department, stated that Rizvi was enlisted on … Read more
National Security Advisor Dr Moeed Yusuf reiterated on Thursday that abandoning Afghanistan again by the international community would be a mistake. The NSA told a four-member US delegation, headed by Minority Staff Director Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chris Socha, that the world needed to constructively engage the Afghan Taliban to prevent a governance collapse and … Read more
A high-level ministerial delegation of the Taliban government led by the interim Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi arrived in Islamabad for the Troika Plus meeting set to take place on Thursday. Adviser for Commerce and Investment to Prime Minister Razak Dawood along with other dignitaries received the delegation. #Live: Acting Foreign Minister of Afghanistan, … Read more
Pakistan is all set to host the Troika Plus meeting in Islamabad on Thursday with special representatives and envoys for Afghanistan from China, Russian, the US and the Afghan government delegation attending the moot. The meeting will be inaugurated by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi. “Pakistan attaches high importance to the Troika Plus mechanism on … Read more
LAHORE: Prime Minister Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government which used to criticise former governments of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) for releasing development funds to their Members Provincial Assembly (MPAs) and Members National Assembly (MNAs) has itself approved development funds worth Rs1.13 for the constituencies of its three national assembly … Read more
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Tuesday instructed the Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (ERRA) to complete the construction of schools destroyed 16 years ago in the 2005 Balakot earthquake by 2022. An irked Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed asked Chairman ERRA Lieutenant-General Akhtar Nawaz for the reasons in delay of the construction. “Had your children been … Read more
ISLAMABAD: A week after Pakistan announced its decision to not attend regional security dialogue on Afghanistan to be hosted by India, China too has backed out on Tuesday citing ‘scheduling reasons’. “Due to scheduling reasons, it is inconvenient for China to attend the meeting. We have already given our reply to the Indian side,” Chinese … Read more
In an effort to curb the sugar crisis across the country, Prime Minister Imran Khan announced on Monday to bring the entire sugar stock for sale in the market and start sugarcane crushing from November 15. It was further decided that strict legal action will be initiated against hoarding and profiteering. Chairing a meeting on … Read more
LAHORE: Chief Secretary Punjab Kamran Ali Afzal appears to have come out victorious as Senior Member Board of Revenue (SMBR) Babar Hayat Tarar has withdrawn office order regarding the establishment of a parallel secretariat. Mr Tarar had recently issued an office order declaring Board of Revenue a fully-fledged secretariat. The unprecedented move sent ripples among … Read more
KARACHI: Massive volatility was witnessed at the bourse in the initial trading hours on account of rumours regarding foreign selling in key sectors. However, recovery was seen in cement stocks, which led the market to fly from negative to positive zone, dealers said on Tuesday. “Rumours regarding civil-military disturbed relationship also subsided, while relief in … Read more
WASHINGTON: A US nuclear submarine was damaged after hitting an unidentified object while operating underwater in Asia, the US Navy has stated. The USS Connecticut, a nuclear-powered fast-attack submarine, “struck an object while submerged on the afternoon of October 2, while operating in international waters in the Indo-Pacific region,” the navy said in a statement. It said there were … Read more
TEHRAN: Iran has dismissed as “baseless” the “allegations” made recently by Saudi Arabia and some European states pertaining to Tehran’s nuclear programme, a representative of the Islamic republic to the United Nations was quoted as saying on Friday by state TV. “As we stated earlier, the uncontested reality is that so far Iran has adhered … Read more
KABUL: “The Americans invaded Afghanistan with arrogance, occupied the country for 20 years but went back home with humiliation after leaving Afghans in doldrums and disarray,” Safar Mohammad, a taxi driver, told Xinhua. He made the remarks on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, which ousted the previous Taliban … Read more
SOKOTO: If donors and the international community are not interested in doing what needs to be done today, in a few years Nigeria will be dealing with a situation that a lot of people will regret, Maulid Warfa, chief of UNICEF’S field office said on Thursday. “I am worried about this brewing humanitarian crisis.” There … Read more
STOCKHOLM: Tanzanian novelist Abdulrazak Gurnah on Thursday won the Nobel Prize in Literature for his work highlighting colonialism. The author, who writes in English and is based in the United Kingdom, was awarded “for his uncompromising and compassionate penetration of the effects of colonialism and the fate of the refugee in the gulf between cultures … Read more
BERLIN: Germany has repatriated eight women who joined the IS terror group and 23 children from northern Syria in the biggest such transfer since 2019, the foreign ministry said. “The children are not responsible for their situation. The mothers will have to answer for their acts,” Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said in a statement issued on … Read more
PARIS: A French report has revealed a staggering number of child victims of clerical sexual abuse in 70 years since 1950, leading French President Emmanuel Macron to call for truth and compensation. On the sidelines of a European meeting in Slovenia on Wednesday, Macron said “behind the figures and terrible situations that are described, there … Read more
WASHINGTON: Facebook’s previous major scandals barely dented its global dominance, but experts said on Wednesday the tech giant may have hit a red line this time, knowing that children using its apps were at risk of being harmed. A day after damning testimony to US lawmakers from Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen, the long-established barriers to regulation … Read more
TEHRAN: A row between Iran and South Korea has intensified with Tehran reportedly threatening legal action unless Seoul releases more than $7 billion in funds for oil shipments frozen because of US sanctions. The Islamic republic was South Korea’s third-largest Middle Eastern trade partner before the US unilaterally withdrew from a 2015 nuclear deal between … Read more
JERUSALEM. Israeli archaeologists have discovered a rare toilet cubicle, dated back to 2,700 years ago. The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) and the City of David archeological site said the toilet was discovered in an ancient royal mansion on the Armon Hanetziv promenade in southeastern Jerusalem, the IAA added. The ancient royal estate operated in the … Read more
CANBERRA. The government of Australia’s Northern Territory (NT) has revealed a plan to achieve its goal of using 50 per cent renewable energy by 2030. Eva Lawler, NT’s environment minister, released a plan for transforming the NT’s largest power grid within nine years. Under the plan, more reliance on solar power and battery storage will … Read more
BRDO. European Union (EU) leaders told frustrated Balkan counterparts at a summit on Wednesday the bloc remains committed to letting them join, but offered no concrete progress on their stalled membership bids. The 27-nation club talked up economic support worth billions of euros for its eastern neighbours at a rain-drenched gathering at Brdo castle in Slovenia, … Read more
MOSCOW. Russia on Wednesday reported more than 900 daily coronavirus deaths for the first time, as the country struggles with stubbornly high infection rates driven by the Delta variant of the virus as well as a low vaccination take-up. A government tally recorded 929 Covid-19 deaths during the past 24 hours, Russia’s highest daily virus death toll since … Read more
TAIPEI. Taiwan’s military relations with Beijing have plunged to their lowest point in four decades, the island’s defence minister warned on Wednesday, following a string of record Chinese jet incursions into Taipei’s air defence zone. “For the military, the current situation is the most grim in over 40 years since I’ve joined the service,” Chiu … Read more
PARIS. French Catholic clergy sexually abused some 216,000 minors from 1950 to 2020, a ‘massive phenomenon’ that was covered up for decades by a ‘veil of silence’, an independent commission said on Tuesday. The commission’s two-and-a-half year investigation was prompted by outrage over abuse claims and prosecutions against Church officials worldwide. When claims against lay members … Read more
COLOMBO. Sri Lanka’s president vowed ‘immediate steps’ to amend anti-terror legislation to retain the European Union (EU)’s generalised system of preferences (GSP Plus) status, his office said on Tuesday. The EU had warned Sri Lanka that its lucrative trade status — a favourable trade scheme to encourage developing nations to respect human rights — could be withdrawn if Colombo … Read more
