Pakistan News

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; it’s the only thing that ever has.” — Margaret Mead. EVERY issue in Pakistan is linked to political instability and bad governance. These are two sides of the same coin, and they feed off one another. We have come to the point where people are losing hope, especially young men and women and those with small children. Who can blame them when political instability and uncertainty continue to grow, with no light at the end of the tunnel? The quagmire is evident in our debt-driven economy and shameful human development indicators. Our neonatal mortality rate is second only to that of Lesotho, a sub-Saharan African country. If considered by region, the neonatal mortality rate in Balochistan alone would be the highest in the world. Two indicators put together speak volumes about the mess we have created in Pakistan by ignoring the people: 26 million of our children are out of school, which is the high...

Torn apart and rewired by Donald Trump’s historic criminal conviction , the 2024 presidential campaign moves into uncharted territory on Friday with all eyes on how the two main protagonists navigate the dangers. Trump wasted no time in shifting from courtroom to campaign mode. “I am a political prisoner!” he announced immediately after the guilty verdicts landed on Thursday on all 34 charges in his New York hush-money trial . On early Friday, the Republican was scheduled to make public remarks from his signature New York property, Trump Tower. In addition to the New York case, he faces three far more serious criminal indictments over his attempts to overturn his 2020 election loss to Joe Biden and hoarding of top-secret documents at his home in Florida. Those cases, however, are not likely to go to trial before the November election. And Trump has in any case turned what would immediately destroy an ordinary political career into a badge of honour, comparing himself to poli...

New York will boost security for the upcoming T20 Cricket World Cup in June, the governor said on Wednesday, after reports of threats especially related to the India-Pakistan match. “In preparation for the Cricket World Cup, my team has been working with federal & local law enforcement to keep attendees safe,” Governor Kathy Hochul wrote on X, adding there was “no credible threat at this time”. ABC News cited a New York City Police Department bulletin saying the tournament and its related events in New York City could be viewed by extremists as an opportunity to commit acts of violence or disruption. “Recent pro-ISIS propaganda which specifically referenced the upcoming India-Pakistan match at this major event […] raises concerns and reinforces the need for heightened vigilance” among security partners, the bulletin is quoted as saying by ABC News . Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said the World Cup received a threat linked to the militant Islamic State’s...

The Supreme Court on Thursday resumed hearing a case about changes in accountability laws, with the bench deliberating whether to broadcast the proceedings live. A five-member bench — headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa and including Justices Athar Minallah, Aminuddin Khan, Jamal Khan Mandokhail, and Hasan Azhar Rizvi — resumed hearing the case. The last hearing had turned out anticlimactic as ex-premier Imran Khan had appeared via video link but did not get a chance to speak as a petitioner in the matter. Earlier this month, the SC had ordered the federal and Punjab governments to facilitate Imran’s appearance before the court via video link from Adiala jail, where he is currently incarcerated. While the May 14 hearing had been broadcast live, the last one was not, with the reason remaining unclear. As per the court orders at the last hearing, Imran again appeared via video link today. The judges then introduced a short break in the proceedings, retiring t...

Shares at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) gained more than 180 points in intraday trade on Thursday. The KSE-100 index stood at 75,021.59, gaining 185.29, or 0.25 per cent, at 11:34am from the previous close of 74,836.30. However, at around 10:30am, the PSX stood at 75,300.03, having gained 463.73 from the previous close. Awais Ashraf, director of research at Akseer Research, said, “The drop in cutoff yields of treasury bills in yesterday’s auction, amid lower expected inflation readings for May, enhances optimism for a rate cut in the upcoming monetary policy. Subsequently, investors remain bullish on cyclical sectors.” “However, this enthusiasm seems to be short-lived given concerns over fiscal tightening and the new IMF programme,” he cautioned. Yousuf M. Farooq, director of research at Chase Securities, attributed the upward trajectory to the decline in the three-month treasury bills by 60 basis points yesterday. He also noted that there were 30bps declines in six-month ...

KHAN YUNIS: Ahmed Abu Athab’s aunt, Jamila, was ‘sobbing’ as she implored the world to ‘get the boy out of Gaza’ for medical treatment. Ahmed sustained injuries due to Israeli firing, this week. He joins the fast-expanding list of wounded individuals, who are stuck in the embattled territory, without access to medical aid. On Tuesday, Ahmed went to the beach, to wash himself with a group of children. His aunt stated that just as they were coming out, a munition landed, spraying him with shrapnel. As Israel’s barbaric assault on the border city of Rafah continues, Ahmed now lies ‘swathed in bloody bandages’, in the Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis. The attack on Rafah the only part of the tiny and crowded Gaza Strip that Israeli troops had not entered by force thus far, has cut off the main border crossing into Egypt. Aid has been constricted and the ‘trickle’ of people departing for medical care, has stopped. “Where should I take him? Tell me. Where should I go?” Jamila Abu Athab pond...

Temperatures in India’s capital New Delhi have soared to a record-high 49.9 degrees Celsius as authorities warn of water shortages in the sprawling mega-city. The India Meteorological Department (IMD), which reported “severe heat-wave conditions”, recorded the temperatures on Tuesday at two Delhi suburbs stations at Narela and Mungeshpur. The weather bureau said the temperatures were nine degrees higher than expected. Forecasters predict similar temperatures on Wednesday for the city with an estimated population of more than 30 million people, issuing a red alert warning notice for people to take care. The IMD’s red alert is a warning there is a “very high likelihood of developing heat illness and heat stroke in all ages”, with “extreme care needed for vulnerable people”. Heat remains high even during the night, it added. The IMD said the heat wave in northwest and central India was “likely to reduce gradually” from Thursday. In May 2022, parts of Delhi hit 49.2 degrees Celsius ...

An Islamabad district and sessions court on Wednesday did not announce its already reserved verdict in the iddat case against former premier Imran Khan and his spouse Bushra Bibi while the complainant was assaulted outside the court. The court had reserved the verdict last week on appeals filed by the PTI founder and his wife against their conviction in the iddat case — which was the third and last in a series of verdicts announced just a few days before the general elections. While the verdict was expected to be pronounced today, District and Sessions Judge Shahrukh Arjumand sought transfer of the case and would not be announcing the judgment. Earlier this month, complainant Khawar Fareed Man­eka, Bushra Bibi’s former husband, had requested Arjumand to rec­use himself from hearing the appeals, accusing him of being biased and sympathetic towards the PTI. A video broadcast on television showed Maneka, dressed in a white shalwar kameez, walking outside court as men, who appeared...

SUNRISE, Fla. — A zillion statistics and feelings ran through Paul Maurice’s head 59 seconds into overtime in those moments between Blake Wheeler hooking the Florida Panthers ‘ best player on a breakaway and waiting to see if the official’s raised arm would point to centre ice. The coach weighed the chances of another goal from his deadly power play, which had already solved hockey’s hottest goalie thrice in the past two games versus a clean Aleksander Barkov breakaway against Igor Shesterkin , who’d already turned away a handful of those Tuesday. “I don’t know, if you asked me and I got to pick one, which one I would pick,” Maurice smiled , blessed with hindsight and a newly tied Eastern Conference Final.  “If we hadn’t scored? Penalty shot all day long.” But they did score.  The Panthers, and the hockey gods, found a way in Game 4, spoiling the New York Rangers ‘ perfect OT record with a 3-2 decision. Unlike Game 3, the deserve-to-win-o-meter and the ac...

SUNRISE, Fla. — The Florida Panthers peppered Igor Shesterkin with shot after shot Tuesday night, and the New York Rangers goalie had an answer for almost all of them. It wasn’t enough, and despite 37 saves and another stellar performance from Shesterkin, the Rangers fell 3-2 in overtime of Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final. With the teams knotted at two wins apiece, the series will head back to New York for Game 5, with the Rangers needing to find some answers to complement the play of their goaltender, who Rangers coach Peter Laviolette praised after the loss. “He was (dialled in),” Laviolette said, “especially in the second, there was a lot of heat there.” New York jumped out to a one-goal lead at 8:51 of the first when Vincent Trocheck fired a shot past Sergei Bobrovsky that ricocheted off the crossbar into the goal. It was the Rangers’ first power-play goal of the series after they’d gone 0 for 8 entering the game, and it reflected an energetic start that diss...

England captain Jos Buttler will miss their third T20 International against Pakistan for the birth of his third child, the team said ahead of Tuesday’s match in Cardiff. Buttler has returned home to be with his wife after leading England to a 23-run win at Edgbaston on Saturday, which gave them a 1-0 lead in the four-match series following the washout of the first game in Leeds. “Jos Buttler is set to miss our third IT20 match vs Pakistan as his wife Louise is expecting the birth of their third child,” England Cricket said in a statement . All-rounder Moeen Ali will captain England in Buttler’s absence. Meanwhile, Pakistan need to ensure they end up on the winning side to go into the T20 World Cup with their confidence sky-high. A victory — after a 23-run defeat in the preceding game on Saturday following a washed-out opening fixture — will keep the four-match series and Pakistan’s chances to win it alive. England did not say whether Buttler would return in time to play...

At a school for the deaf in Pakistan, the faces of students are animated, their smiles mischievous, as their hands twirl in tandem with their sign language teacher. The quiet classes exude joy, led often by teachers who are also deaf. “I have friends, I communicate with them, joke with them, we share our stories with each other about what we have done and not done, we support each other,” said Qurat-ul-Ain, an 18-year-old deaf woman who joined the school a year ago. More than 200 pupils, children and adults mostly from disadvantaged backgrounds, are among the few given a new fervour for life at this inner-city school in historic Lahore. Of more than a million deaf school-age children in Pakistan, less than five percent go to school. The figure is even lower for girls and, without a language to express themselves, many children are marginalised by society and even their families. “Life is a little difficult. There is a huge communication gap here where people generally don’t know ...

Skipper Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will look to end India’s global title drought as the star duo step out for what is likely to be their final World Cup appearance. Rohit, 37, and Kohli, 35, have long been the twin torchbearers for the hopes of their cricket-mad nation, which last saw a major title triumph in the 2013 Champions Trophy. India made the final of last year’s ODI World Cup at home but lost to Australia in front of a crestfallen packed house at the world’s biggest cricket stadium in Ahmedabad. The T20 World Cup , starting June 1 in the West Indies and United States, may be the last chance both men have to hoist a trophy from one of the showpiece white-ball tournaments. “Rohit Sharma knows he isn’t going to play for too long now. Just two to three years more. Same with Virat Kohli,” former India batsman Mohammad Kaif said on Star Sports . “So this is the last chance for Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. “They lost the World Cup final in Ahmedabad. They played as if they ...