Pakistan News

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un wrapped up the year with fresh threats of a nuclear attack on Seoul and orders for a military arsenal build-up to prepare for a war that can “break out any time” on the peninsula, state media reported on Sunday. Kim lambasted the United States during a lengthy speech at the end of five days of year-end party meetings that set his country’s military, political and economic policy decisions for 2024. The meeting announced plans for further military development in the coming year, including launching three more spy satellites, building unmanned drones and developing electronic warfare capabilities, as well as strengthening nuclear and missile forces, according to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) . This year, Pyongyang successfully launched a reconnaissance satellite, enshrined its status as a nuclear power in its constitution and test-fired the most advanced intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in its arsenal. Kim accused the United ...

Police in Punjab and Sindh said security and other arrangements, including measures against aerial firing, have been completed across the provinces ahead of New Year’s Eve. In a statement released today, the Punjab police spokesperson said that more than 21,000 police personnel were deployed across the province. In Lahore, 2,373 officers were deployed. It said 2,312 metal detectors and thousands of security cameras were being used in the security of new year events. Similar arrangements were also made in Multan, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala and other cities. The statement quoted Punjab police chief Dr Usman Anwar as warning that indiscriminate action would be taken against revellers indulging in hooliganism, one-wheeling and aerial firing. He added that a special police team had been formed for this purpose. “Any unlawful or dangerous activity in the name of entertainment is unacceptable. The life and property of citizens is our utmost priority,” IG Anwar stated. Furthermore...

The year 2023, on the news front, was dominated by former prime minister Imran Khan, his arrest, the subsequent events of May 9, and the consequent crackdown on the PTI that led to a switching of political loyalties. Throughout these events, one question persisted on the media’s minds: will the elections take place? When will they be held? But surprisingly, only a few of these events garnered the attention of Dawn.com’s avid readers. Instead, it was topics like the Khalistan Movement, the IMF-dictated bill being passed by the National Assembly, an opinion piece on the criticism of the country’s elite class, a take on the Pak-India World Cup fixture, and PIA flight attendants slipping away in Canada that captivated the interest of readers in 2023. Scroll down to find out more about the 10 stories published on Dawn.com that attracted the highest digital traffic in the outgoing year. 10. Two more PIA flight attendants vanish in Canada Published November 14 Over the past three yea...

ARLINGTON, Texas — Detroit coach Dan Campbell said he explained to officials before playing the Dallas Cowboys what would happen on a 2-point conversion play the Lions had planned. Chaos ensued anyway, and left the Lions feeling as if a victory was taken away from the NFC North winners in their pursuit of the top seed in the NFC playoffs. Officials ruled offensive lineman Taylor Decker wasn’t an eligible receiver when he caught a 2-point conversion pass that would have given Detroit a one-point lead with 23 seconds remaining. Instead, the Lions (11-5) lost to the Cowboys 20-19 on Saturday night when the third 2-point try was an incomplete pass short of the goal line. Jared Goff threw an interception on the attempt after Decker’s catch was disallowed, but Dallas was offsides. The explanations contradicted each other, with Goff saying he was certain Decker reported as an eligible receiver and Dan Skipper had not. In a pool report, referee Brad Allen said the oppos...

Norway’s Alieu Bah has been suspended one game for an illegal check on Slovakia’s Milan Pisoja, the IIHF world juniors disciplinary panel announced Saturday. The incident occurred early in the second period of the game on Friday that Slovakia ultimately won, 8-4. Bah was issued a minor for charging.   The disciplinary panel ruled that Bah left the ice as he hit Pisoja in the head and neck, which violated Official Playing Rule 48.   In three games with Norway at the world juniors, Bah has zero points and is a minus-1. He will miss Norway’s game on Saturday against Switzerland. More from Sportsnet WJC Takeaways: Swedes proving it’s their gold medal to lose WJC Three Stars Day 4: Havelid’s shutout keeps Sweden undefeated from Sportsnet.ca https://ift.tt/Mw0jBQR

Veteran politician and senior lawyer Aitzaz Ahsan has predicted that PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif would leave the country before elections and watch the results unfold from there. “He lives abroad anyway,” said Ahsan in an interview on DawnNewsTV programme “Doosra Rukh” on Friday night. In the interview, the PPP stalwart also claimed that JUI-F leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman was “retreating [from elections]”, claiming that from the two drums that are beaten — either of victory or retreat — Rehman seemed to be “beating the drum of a retreat”. Previously, the lawyer had also called Sharif a “ ladla ”(favoured) and had claimed that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and the caretaker government were trying to ensure Nawaz Sharif wins a two-thirds majority in next year’s general elections. Nawaz, who had returned to Pakistan on October 21 after spending four years in self-imposed exile, said he had “no wish for revenge” and stressed on beginning a “new journey” towards growth....

The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) on Saturday claimed that Umar Dar, the brother of former party leader Usman Dar, was allegedly abducted in Lahore, accusing PML-N’s Khawaja Asif of “engineering” the incident to weaken the Dar family’s position in the upcoming elections. In a video shared by the PTI on X (formerly Twitter), Umar’s mother said that she had just discovered her son’s abduction from Lahore. She appealed to the chief justice of Pakistan to intervene and take notice of the situation. “I am a mother and a widow. I am deeply distressed by the current situation. I appeal to the CJP to ensure the appearance of my son in court,” she said in the video. She added: “I am facing all these challenges solely to prevent me from participating in elections. I have been denied the opportunity to submit my papers, and there are police personnel stationed outside my residence. I assert the truth that these actions are aimed at hindering my candidacy in the polls.” ...

Despite having little in common, even our political parties could agree on one thing: Pakistan’s economic situation was dire in 2023. The year saw Pakistan go through a long and rocky road to finding some semblance of economic stability — if it can even be called that — while weathering political and social turmoil. Pakistanis also experienced a double whammy this year: the one-two punches of the worst economic crisis in decades and all-time high inflation. Add to that the gut punch of the aftermath of the catastrophic floods of 2022 began to settle in. Flood victims receive boiled rice from relief workers, after taking refuge on a motorway, following rains and floods during the monsoon season in Charsadda, Pakistan on August 27, 2022 — Reuters In 2023, according to the World Bank , over 39.4 per cent of the population fell below the poverty line, which means over 12.5 million people are living in meagre conditions. Additionally, 8.5 million people face acute food insecurity due ...

Former prime minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday vowed to end the perils plaguing Karachi and administer infrastructural changes if the city falls under the leadership of PML-N following the February 8 general elections. The PML-N president arrived in Karachi on Thursday evening to meet MQM-P leaders to finalise a deal on an electoral alliance between the two parties. In November, the parties had announced their decision to jointly contest the upcoming polls in Sindh and strengthen local governments nationwide through constitutional cover. In the run-up to polls, the PML-N has set its sights on the port city. Last week, Shehbaz filed his nomination papers from Karachi National Assembly constituency NA-242 (Baldia Town) — the same seat that he had contested in the 2018 elections. However, that time around, he had lost to then-PTI leader Faisal Vawda in NA-249, which has now been renumbered to NA-242. Earlier, party sources had told Dawn that one of the main reasons why Shehbaz was ...

The office of the provincial election commissioner in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has asked returning officers in different districts to ensure the recovery of unpaid fines from political leaders, including former premier Imran Khan, who owes Rs200,000 to the electoral watchdog, during the scrutiny of their nomination papers for Feb 8 elections, it emerged today. According to a letter to returning officers dated Dec 28 issued by the provincial election commissioner — which Dawn.com has seen — it is disclosed that a total of 62 political figures from KP and Punjab are indebted to the ECP with fines ranging from Rs5,000 to Rs50,000. The fines are contingent on the severity of the committed violations. As per the letter, Imran allegedly committed four separate violations, and each time, he received a fine of Rs50,000, which he has yet to pay. All these violations occurred in March 2022, just a month before his ouster through a parliamentary vote. In the ECP’s list, the largest outstanding amo...

The last time the Edmonton Oilers ventured into San Jose looking for two points, they instead unearthed the nadir of their season. It was a 3-2 loss to the Sharks and a tie with San Jose for 32nd place. The Oilers were broken, a supposed Stanley Cup contender tied for dead last with a 2-9-1 record.  Our lede that Thursday night: “It’s likely over for Jay Woodcroft, the whip-smart head coach who simply has run out of answers for his Edmonton Oilers.”  By Sunday afternoon, the Oilers were announcing Kris Knoblauch as their new head coach. If it was Knoblauch’s job to find some answers after that last tour through Northern California, then on the return visit Thursday night the Oilers definitely like a team that had righted itself. Edmonton did what a good team is supposed to do when they play these Lemon Sharks, scoring one minute into the game, pouring in three more for a 4-0 lead after 20 minutes, and then taking care of business the rest of the way. ...