Pakistan News

KARACHI: In an open warning to the government, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan on Sunday made it clear that it sees no use in staying in the parliament if controversial quota system is extended for another 20 years. The key ally of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government also criticised the ruling Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N), which it said had yet to fulfill its promise of devolving powers the grassroots level. Addressing a ceremony organised in connection with ongoing plantation campaign by the party, senior MQM-P leader Mustafa Kamal questioned the effectiveness of the deal his party had signed with the PML-N after quitting the PTI-led federal government in April 2022. And again, after Feb 8 elections, the party had decided to clinch a power-sharing deal with the PML-N at the Centre. However, the promises made with party by the PML-N have yet to make reality checks, he said. Mustafa Kamal blames PML-N for ‘ignoring’ his party’s concerns “It would be a curse f...

LAHORE: Red-ball coach Jason Gillespie says Pakistan will need to show sustained quality and added ruthlessness if they are to challenge a formidable team like England in a home series starting early next month. “We showed glimpses of quality in the [recent] home Test series against Bangladesh, where we were really driving the game forward. We played some excellent cricket. [But] the issue was that we didn’t sustain it long enough. When we allowed our opponents to get into the game, they capitalised and pulled ahead. That’s where we let ourselves down,” Gillespie said in a podcast released by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Saturday. “So, what we need is a bit more ruthlessness. When we’re ahead, we need to stay ahead and make sure we really drive home that advantage,” added the former Australian Test fast bowler. “That’s the main takeaway from the Bangladesh series. There was some very good work done, but when we had a bad hour, it really set us back. We need to minimise those...

THIMPHU: Pakistan’s Under-17 football team suffered an agonising semi-final defeat to Bangladesh in the SAFF Championship, losing 8-7 in a nail-biting penalty shootout at the Changlimithang Stadium on Saturday. Despite taking a 2-0 lead, Pakistan’s youngsters were unable to contain a spirited Bangladeshi comeback, which forced the match into penalties after a dramatic 2-2 draw in regular time. According to the bylaws of the tournament, no extra time was given after 90 minutes and the game went to the shootout. Shabab Ahmed’s 32nd-minute strike from a corner gave Pakistan the advantage and Abdul Rehman’s penalty in the 61st minute seemed to put the national team in control. However, Bangladesh staged an impressive fightback, with Mithu Chaudhary reducing the deficit in the 75th minute and substitute Manik equalising in the fourth minute of stoppage time. The intense penalty shootout saw both teams convert their first five attempts, sending the match into sudden death. But Banglade...

BEIRUT: Hashem Safieddine, a potential successor to his slain cousin Hassan Nasrallah , is one of Hezbollah’s most prominent figures and has deep religious and family ties to Iran. Safieddine bears a striking resemblance to his charismatic maternal cousin Nasrallah but is several years his junior, aged in his late 50s or early 60s. A source close to Hezbollah said the grey-bearded, bespectacled Safied­dine was the “most likely” candidate for party’s top job. As head of the executive council, Safieddine oversees Hezbollah’s political affairs. Safieddine’s public statements often reflect Hezbollah’s militant stance and its alignment with the Palestinian cause. At a recent event in Dahiyeh, Hezbollah’s stronghold in Beirut’s southern suburbs, he declared, “Our history, our guns and our rockets are with you,” in a show of solidarity with Palestinian fighters. The United States and Saudi Arabia put Safieddine, who is a member of Hezbollah’s powerful decision-making Shura Council, on thei...

KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has announced procedure for execution of buyback transactions of treasury bills. According to a circular issued on Friday, the SBP will conduct a buyback auction of treasury bills on behalf of the government. The SBP will announce the details such as security, target amount, auction schedule, etc, and auction result for the buyback of MTBs on Refinitiv, Bloomberg, SBPK pages and on SBP website, said the circular. The buyback price of the security will be determined through multiple-price competitive auction process, it added. All banks will be eligible to submit competitive bids in the auctions. Non-competitive bids can also be submitted as per existing instructions. Eligible participants will be required to submit the details of bid price (per Rs100 of face value) for the buyback up to four decimal and amount of the securities in the auction bidding on Bloomberg Auction Module (AUPD) within the stipulated time. On settlement date, ...

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Five people were arrested in India for the killing of a seven-year-old boy in an alleged ritual sacrifice aimed at bringing good fortune to a public school, police said on Friday. The victim was found dead in his bed on Sunday night at the hostel where he lived in the city of Hathras, not far from the country’s famed Taj Mahal. Instead of alerting authorities, police said that school director Dinesh Baghel hid the body in the trunk of his car. Police officer Himanshu Mathur told AFP that the boy was killed before a black magic ceremony conducted by Baghel’s father. “The boy was meant to be taken to an altar as part of a ritual, but got killed before the ceremony could be completed,” he said. Baghel and his father were arrested along with three other teachers at the school, Mathur added. Mathur did not give further details on how the child had died and local media reports said the body was undergoing a post-mortem examination. India’s National Crime Records Bureau lodged 103 cas...

From disinformation campaigns to soaring scepticism, plummeting trust and economic slumps, the global media landscape has been hit with blow after blow. World News Day , taking place on Saturday, September 28 with the support of hundreds of organisations including AFP , aims to raise awareness about the challenges endangering the hard-pressed industry. ‘Broken business model’ In 2022, Unesco warned that “the business model of the news media is broken”. Advertising revenue — the lifeline of news publications — has dried up in recent years, with Internet giants such as Google and Facebook owner Meta soaking up half of that spending, the report said. Meta, Amazon and Google’s parent company Alphabet alone account for 44 per cent of global ad spend, while only 25pc goes to traditional media organisations, according to a study by the World Advertising Research Center. Platforms like Facebook “are now explicitly deprioritising news and political content”, the Reuters Institute’s 2024...

Chinese President Xi Jinping and other top leaders admitted Thursday that the world’s number two economy was facing new “problems” and vowed to resolve a long-running housing sector crisis . Beijing has this week unveiled a raft of measures to boost its ailing economy, which it has targeted to grow five per cent this year — an objective analysts say is optimistic given the many headwinds it faces. On Thursday, the ruling Communist Party convened a meeting of its top body, the Politburo, to “analyse and study the current economic situation”. “Some new situations and problems have emerged in the current running of the economy,” the Xinhua news agency reported after the meeting, which was attended by Xi. “We must view the current economic situation comprehensively, objectively and calmly, face difficulties squarely, (and) strengthen confidence,” it added. Politburo members agreed on the need to “further improve the focus and effectiveness of policy measures” aimed at lifting the ...

Afghanistan’s Taliban government faces multinational legal action that could land it in the UN’s top court over its “contempt” for the rights of women and girls, government officials said. Australia, Canada, Germany and The Netherlands announced in New York they were initiating the proceedings, which could lead to a hearing at the International Court of Justice in The Hague. “The Taliban have demonstrated their contempt for human rights and fundamental freedoms of women and girls,” Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong told reporters on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. “And they have engaged in a campaign of sustained and systematic oppression ,” she said. Wong described the legal push, led by Germany, as “unprecedented”. The four countries intend to argue that Afghanistan is flouting the Convention on the Elimination All Forms of Discrimination against Women, to which it is a party, she said. Wong urged Afghanistan to participate in negotiations as provide...

Eight terrorists were killed after security forces conducted an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in the North Waziristan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the military’s media affairs wing said on Thursday. According to a press release issued by Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the operation was conducted last night on the “reported presence of terrorists in the area”. The press release said that an intense exchange of fire took place between the security forces and Khawarij during the operation and, as a result, eight terrorists were “sent to hell”. While it wasn’t mentioned in the statement which terrorist group was involved in the attack, in July, the government, through an official notification, designated the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as Fitna al Khawarij, while mandating all institutions to use the term khariji (outcast) when referring to the perpetrators of terrorist attacks on Pakistan. Director General ISPR Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry h...

ISLAMABAD: The station house officer (SHO) of Karachi Company police station was suspended and departmental action initiated against him while the station clerk (Moharrar) was dismissed from service for not entertaining the complaint lodged against a policeman who kidnapped two minors, detained them, tortured them and also raped them, police said on Tuesday. Besides, the SHO of Shams Colony police station was also suspended, but within hours he was reinstated, police officials told Dawn , adding that the children were illegally detained at Shams Colony police station and sexually assaulted there. The SHO and station clerk of Shams Colony failed to check the illegal detention and sexual assault on the premises of the police station, officials said, adding that the SHO and station clerk of Karachi Company police station also did not entertain the complaint of the children’s father. The supervision of the Sub-Divisional Police Officer of Margalla and SP Saddar (supervisory officer of ...

Twelve people were injured in a blast that targeted a police van near Eastern Bypass in Quetta, hospital and government officials said on Wednesday. Balochistan government spokesman Shahid Rind confirmed in a statement that a police van was targeted while the Balochistan Health Department released a list of 12 individuals who were injured in the incident. Rind condemned the attack and said a policeman was among the injured. An investigation into the incident was launched and the bomb disposal squad teams were collecting evidence, the spokesperson added. The health department’s statement, issued by its media coordinator Dr Waseem Baig, said the injured had been shifted to Quetta Trauma Centre for further treatment after they were provided with initial medical aid in Civil Hospital’s emergency department. This is a developing story that is being updated as the situation evolves. Initial reports in the media can sometimes be inaccurate. We will strive to ensure timeliness and accura...

China unveiled some of its boldest measures in years on Tuesday aimed at boosting its struggling economy as leaders grapple with a prolonged property sector debt crisis , continued deflationary pressure and high youth unemployment. The world’s second-largest economy has yet to achieve a highly anticipated post-pandemic recovery and the government has set a goal of five per cent growth in 2024 — an objective analysts say is optimistic given the headwinds it is facing. On Tuesday, central bank chief Pan Gongsheng told a news conference in Beijing that it would cut a slew of rates in a bid to boost growth, pledging to “promote the expansion of consumption and investment”. The moves represent “the most significant… stimulus package since the early days of the pandemic”, said Julian Evans-Pritchard, head of China economics at Capital Economics. But “it may not be enough”, he warned, adding a full economic recovery would “require more substantial fiscal support than the modest pick-up ...

The Utah Hockey Club debuted in front of the home crowd at Delta Center on Monday night ahead of its inaugural season in the NHL. Facing the Los Angeles Kings , Utah secured a 3-2 overtime victory to continue their successful start to the pre-season. It was winger Clayton Keller who played hero, scoring the game-winner 19 seconds into overtime to give his team its first win on home ice.  Utah also won its first-ever pre-season game on Sunday, defeating the St. Louis Blues, 5-3. That game was held at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa. Forwards Lawson Crouse and Alexander Kerfoot scored Utah’s two other goals on Monday night. In net, goaltenders Connor Ingram and Matt Villalta split time, with Ingram making 18 saves on 20 shots and Villalta stopping all nine shots he faced. For the Kings, forwards Jeff Malott and Alex Turcotte recorded tallies. Their net was shared by Erik Portillo, who made 14 saves on 16 shots, and Carter George, who stopped six ...

ISLAMABAD/QUETTA: As many as 160,000 candidates appeared in the Medical and Dental Colleges Admission Test (MDCAT) held across the country on Sunday amid allegations of mismanagement and malpractices , particularly about alleged paper leaks. Sources in the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) told Dawn they had anticipated such attempts in light of their experiences during the previous years. “We have been verifying the complaints received from across the country. Once complaints are analysed, we will issue a detailed report over it and will take appropriate action,” they added. In Sindh, rumours began circulating in the morning that the paper had leaked, but Dow University of Health Sciences told candidates not to worry about ‘baseless’ reports. At least 50 held in Quetta for cheating; ‘devices’ recovered from 11 candidates in Islamabad A faculty member, on the condition of anonymity, criticised the allegations of malpractices, claiming there were several stakeholde...

KARACHI: Despite aggressive foreign selling due to mounting political tensions, the stock market surged to an all-time high above 82,000 during the outgoing short week. Local investors went for value-hunting amid an improved economic outlook and firm hopes of approval for a new IMF bailout, which would further boost the economic outlook amid rising hopes for a further reduction in the interest rates due to receding inflation. In its review, Arif Habib Ltd (AHL) said the KSE-100 index experienced a bullish week, driven by anticipation of $7bn appro­val from the IMF Exec­utive Board, for which a meeting is scheduled on Sept 25. Moreover, the first rate cut of 50bps by the US Fed since 2020 boosted market participation across Asian markets, including local bourses. The Large-Scale Manufacturing Industries (LSMI) output witnessed an increase of 2.4pc year-on-year in July, while on month-on-month, it shrank by 2.1pc. After four months, the country posted a current account surplus of $7...

LONDON: British government debt hit 100 per cent of economic output for the first time in recent history and there was another large budget deficit last month, adding to the problems for Finance Minister Rachel Reeves as she readies her tax and spending plans. Public sector net debt, excluding public sector-owned banks, rose to 100 per cent of GDP for the first time since monthly records began in 1993, up from 99.3 per cent in July, the Office for National Statistics said on Friday. Bank of England records show debt was last running at this level on a regular basis in the early 1960s, when Britain was still dealing with the financial repercussions of World War Two. Government debt soared during the global financial crisis and then again during the Covid-19 pandemic. Weak economic growth since then has also contributed to the increase as a share of gross domestic product. The government borrowed 13.73 billion pounds ($18.29 bn) last month, 3.3bn pounds more than in August last yea...

The United Nations has awarded two Pakistani female peacekeepers with the Gender Advocacy Award for their “outstanding performance”, a statement from the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said. In a statement issued on Thursday, the ISPR said the awards were presented to Major Sania Safdar, part of the UN Peacekeeping Mission in Cyprus, and Major Komal Masood, who served in the Central African Republic, “for their outstanding performance and commitment in promoting the ideals of UN”. The accolades were presented by the under-secretary general in the UN’s Department for Peace Operations at its New York headquarters. “While serving in [an] international environment, both officers demonstrated exceptional professionalism [and] dedication,” the ISPR noted. It added that the two peacekeepers “made [a] significant contribution to Mission’s Peace and Stability efforts, especially with regards to advancing women’s meaningful participation in Peacekeeping Operations within the mission”...

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday ordered the city’s deputy commissioner to decide by 5pm upon PTI’s petitions for permission to hold a rally in the provincial capital tomorrow. A three-member bench, constituted by LHC Chief Justice Aalia Neelum, took up the petitions a day ago and sought the personal appearance of top civil brass, including the Punjab chief secretary, the police chief, the commissioner, the DC, and the advocate general. The PTI has already launched its mass contact campaign to muster support for the much-hyped Lahore power show at the Minar-i-Pakistan ground. The petitions for tomorrow’s gathering had been filed by PTI leaders, including ex-MNA Aalia Hamza Malik, MPA Imtiaz Mahmood Sheikh and party’s Lahore Vice President Akmal Khan Bari. Today, the bench — headed by Justice Farooq Haider and also including Justices Tariq Nadeem and Ali Zia Bajwa — resumed hearing the pleas. While the party had approached the DC for a no-objection certification (NOC) for t...

Huawei and Apples latest smartphones went on sale in China on Friday, with many fans of the Chinese company disappointed that its much-anticipated $2,800 phone — more than twice the price of the iPhone 16 Pro Max — was not available for walk-in customers. At Huawei’s flagship shop in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen, some who described themselves as Huawei “super fans” were annoyed after being told only those whose pre-orders had been confirmed could buy the new, tri-foldable Mate XT. “I’ve been here since 10pm last night because this tri-folding phone is a first and I’m excited to support our country,” said a university student surnamed Ye, adding, “But this is very disappointing. They should have made it clear we can’t buy.” It was a similar story at the Huawei Wangfujing store in Beijing, where consumers were told only those whose pre-orders had been confirmed could buy the much-hyped phone, which folds three ways like an accordion screen door. A shopper surnamed Rui who g...

TEHRAN: The daughter of former Iranian president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani was released on Wednesday after two years behind bars in Tehran’s Evin prison, media outlets in the Islamic republic reported. Faezeh Hashemi Rafsanjani, 61, was arrested in September 2022 for allegedly inciting people to get involved in protests sparked by the death that month of Mahsa Amini , after her detention for an alleged breach of Iran’s strict dress code for women. The women’s rights activist and former parliamentarian was released from the prison in Tehran following an appeal court ruling, her lawyer Mohammad Hossein Aghassi was cited as saying by the Hammihan newspaper. Hashemi, previously convicted in 2012 for propaganda against the Islamic republic, had been sentenced to five years in jail in the wake of the 2022 protests. Her father served as Iran’s president from 1989 to 1997 and was known for advocating better relations with the West. Published in Dawn, September 19th, 2024 from The Dawn ...

Hundreds of paging devices used by members of Hezbollah exploded across Lebanon in an attack that killed at least nine people, including a child, and wounded 2,800 more. The blasts dealt a heavy blow to the Lebanese group, which blamed its arch-foe Israel for the attack. Hezbollah already had concerns about the security of its communications after losing several key commanders to Israeli strikes in recent months. Here is what we know so far about the attack. What happened? Shortly after 3pm (1200 GMT) on Tuesday, hundreds of paging communication devices carried by Hezbollah members began exploding across Lebanon. The explosions killed at least nine people and wounded 2,800 others, according to Lebanon’s Health Minister Firass Abiad, who said more than 200 were in a critical condition. Those hurt include people wounded in the eyes, he said, adding that there had been “a lot of cases of amputations”. Hezbollah swiftly pointed the finger of blame at Israel, though Israel has yet...

Three terrorists were killed and two escaped during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in Nankana Sahib, CTD spokesperson said on Wednesday. The terrorists had opened fire on the CTD team, the spokesman said, adding: “In the exchange of fire, three terrorists were killed by the firing of their [own] comrades, while two [others] escaped.” The CTD said it recovered three grenades, three detonators, safety fuse wire, two rifles, bullets and explosives from the terrorists. “A search operation to arrest the escaped terrorists is underway,” said the spokesperson, adding that CTD teams had set up a picket near Motorway Nankana Interchange A and the process of identifying the slain terrorists was underway. The spokesperson said that the terrorists were planning to launch a major attack on Lahore. Pakistan has experienced an increase in terrorist attacks as a total of 59 such incidents occurred countrywide in August compared to 38 attacks in the previous month, according to a digital d...

India-held Kashmir began voting on Wednesday in the first local elections since the cancellation of its special semi-autonomous status in sparked fury in the valley. Many in the Muslim-majority territory of 8.7 million registered voters remain bitter over the 2019 order by the Hindu-nationalist government of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to impose control from New Delhi. A federally appointed governor has controlled the territory since, with the first regional assembly election in a decade viewed by many as being more about exercising their democratic rights than practical policies. Voters queued under heavy security in the three-phased elections, which will be staggered geographically due to security arrangements and logistical challenges in the mountainous region. “After 10 years we are allowed to be heard,” said Navid Para, 31, among the first to vote in the cool morning mountain air of Pulwama, near the main city of Srinagar. “I want my voice represented”, he added. ...

Bulls continued their stampede at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) as shares rallied more than 600 points in intraday trade on Wednesday. The benchmark KSE-100 index climbed 628.14 points, or 0.79 per cent, to stand at 80,119.27 points from the previous close of 79,491.13 points at 11:33am. Awais Ashraf, director research at AKD Securities, said that investor sentiment was being driven by “expectations of the IMF Executive Board’s approval of the US$7 billion Extended Fund Facility, coupled with improvements in key economic fundamentals”. Earlier, the International Monetary Fund had confirmed that the Fund’s board will meet on September 25 to discuss the loan facility for Pakistan. The Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif-led government initially expected to secure a deal with the Fund in August after the lender approved the 37-month programme agreed upon in July. The country also raised its tax revenue target by a record 40pc and hiked energy prices to meet the global lender’s demands...

A draft of the 26th Constitution Amendment Bill is in circulation. If this is indeed what is being contemplated by the government, I am reminded of the words of a doctor friend — sometimes there are patients so insistent on ignoring medical advice, you want to give them spades to dig their own graves. Nonetheless, this article is written in the forlorn hope there are still a handful of undecided parliamentarians (and only eight or 10 are needed) who possess the wisdom to understand the implications of this bill, a sense of duty towards their oath as a parliamentarian and the courage needed to resist this national suicide pact. At the very least, all parliamentarians (whichever party they belong to) must consider whether they should rubber-stamp a change to the fundamental structure of our constitutional system without even being afforded an opportunity to read, consider or debate those changes. Solution to what? For months, there were rumours of a bill aimed at extending the ten...