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Dawn - 11:53 Apr 18, 2026
Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has announced that its pre-Haj operation will formally commence on April 19, during which more than 55,000 pilgrims will be transported to the Holy Land through 191 flights from across Pakistan. A PIA spokesperson said that under the government scheme, 49,000 pilgrims will travel, while over 6,000 pilgrims through private Haj group operators will also be facilitated via PIA flights. He also noted that the first flight of the Haj operation, PK-747, will depart from Sialkot for Madinah on April 19 at 1:55am, carrying over 390 pilgrims. Under the pre-Haj operation, PIA will transport over 15,400 pilgrims from Islamabad to Saudi Arabia through 46 flights. From Karachi, over 15,000 pilgrims will be flown through 55 flights; from Lahore, 12,377 pilgrims through 34 flights; from Faisalabad, 3,680 pilgrims through 23 flights; from Multan, 5,383 pilgrims through 13 flights; from Sialkot, 2,075 pilgrims through five flights; and from Quetta, 4,487 pilgrims through 15 pre-Haj flight... -
Dawn - 11:50 Apr 18, 2026
The foreign ministers of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Egypt exchanged views on “evolving regional dynamics,” the Foreign Office (FO) said in a post on X on Saturday. According to the FO, the meeting took place on the sidelines of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum in Turkiye. It included Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Saudi Arabia Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan, Turkiye Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Egyptian Foreign Minister Dr Badr Abdelatty. In an effort to halt the US-Israeli war on Iran, the foreign ministers of the four countries had held two meetings ahead of the announcement of ceasefire, which is set to expire on April 22. The first meeting was held in Riyadh on the sidelines of a consultative ministerial meeting, while the second meeting was held in Islamabad. On Saturday, the FO said that the foreign ministers “exchanged views on evolving regional dynamics, reaffirming the vital role of dialogue and diplomacy in promoting peace, stability and shared prosperity”. ... -
Dawn - 09:50 Apr 18, 2026
Turkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Saturday accused Israel of using security as a pretext to acquire “more land”. “Israel is not after its own security. Israel is after more land. Security is being used by the Netanyahu government as an excuse to occupy more land,” Fidan told the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, referring to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Speaking in English at a panel discussion, Fidan said Israel had created an “illusion” internationally by portraying itself as acting purely in its own defence. “It has become very clear, especially in recent years, that it is more than that,” he said. From Palestinian lands including Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and now extending towards Lebanon and Syria, Israel was pursuing “an onward occupation and expansionism in the region,” Fidan said. “I think this has to stop,” the Turkish FM added. “Israel has to know that the only way to live peacefully in the region … is to let the other countries enjoy their own security, and territorial in... -
Dawn - 09:46 Apr 18, 2026
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei visited US officials at the White House on Friday, where they struck a different tone from the recent dispute between the United States’ government and the AI startup. US media reported Amodei met with Susie Wiles, President Donald Trump’s chief of staff, as well as US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. “Today, the White House hosted an introductory meeting with Anthropic that was both productive and constructive,” a White House spokesperson told AFP. “We discussed opportunities for collaboration, as well as shared approaches and protocols to address the challenges associated with scaling this technology.” The rhetoric marks a departure from months earlier, when US President Donald Trump instructed the US government to “immediately cease” using Anthropic’s technology after the company refused to allow the Pentagon have unconditional use of its Claude AI models for military purposes. “We look forward to continuing this dialogue and will host similar discussions with other leading AI c... -
Dawn - 09:31 Apr 18, 2026
Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) and Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi have concluded a three-day official visit to Iran, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Saturday. The discussions focused on “bringing sustainable peace to the region, with particular emphasis on the evolving regional security environment, ongoing diplomatic engagements, and collaborative measures aimed at promoting enduring peace and stability in the region”, the ISPR said in a statement. Munir underscored the need for dialogue, de-escalation, and peaceful resolution of outstanding issues through sustained diplomatic engagements, it added. During the visit, the field marshal called on Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and held separate meetings with Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, and the commander of Khatamul Anbiya Headquarters, Major General Ali Abdollahi. According to the ISPR statement, the CDF expressed deep app... -
Dawn - 09:01 Apr 18, 2026
The Trump administration on Saturday renewed a waiver allowing countries to buy sanctioned Russian oil at sea for about a month, even as lawmakers accused the government of going easy on Moscow as its war on Ukraine grinds on. The United States Treasury Department’s waiver lets countries purchase Russian oil and petroleum products loaded on vessels as of Friday through May 16. It replaces a 30-day waiver that expired on April 11 and excludes transactions involving Iran, Cuba and North Korea. The move is part of the administration’s effort to control global energy prices that have shot higher during the US-Israeli war with Iran. It came after countries in Asia, suffering from the global energy shock, pressed Washington to allow alternative supplies to reach markets. Reversal by treasury “As negotiations (with Iran) accelerate, Treasury wants to ensure oil is available to those who need it,” a Treasury Department spokesperson said. Just two days earlier, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington would no... -
Dawn - 07:42 Apr 18, 2026
Former captain Sarfaraz Ahmed has been appointed as head coach for the two-match Test series in Bangladesh next month, the Pakistan Sports Board (PCB) said on Saturday. The first of the two matches – part of the ICC World Test Championship — will be played at Sher-i-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Dhaka from May 8 to 12, while Sylhet International Cricket Stadium will host the second Test, which will be played from May 16 to 20. Sarfaraz, who led Pakistan to the Champions Trophy title in 2017, has worked with the under-19 team as well as Pakistan Shaheens after his retirement. Since Australian Jason Gillespie quit as Pakistan’s red-ball coach in December 2024, Aaqib Javed and Azhar Mahmood temporarily guided the team led by Shan Masood, who will continue as captain in Bangladesh. Pakistan have named four uncapped players — Abdullah Fazal, Amad Butt, Azan Awais and Muhammad Ghazi Ghori — to their 16-member squad for the Bangladesh series starting in Dhaka on May 8. Sarfaraz’s former teammate Umar Gul will j... -
Dawn - 07:24 Apr 18, 2026
Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb held a “productive” meeting with officials of the United States Department of the Treasury, with both sides discussing avenues for cooperation in the mineral and energy sectors, the finance ministry said on Saturday. Aurangzeb arrived in the United States on Monday to participate in the World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund (IMF) Spring Meetings 2026, taking place from April 13 to 18 in Washington, DC. The Spring Meetings bring together finance ministers, central bank governors, policymakers and development experts from around the world amid ongoing global economic uncertainty. On the sidelines of the World Bank-International Monetary Fund (WB-IMF) Spring Meetings 2026 in Washington, DC, Aurangzeb held a “productive” meeting with Francis Brooke, the deputy secretary at the US Department of the Treasury, the ministry said in a post on X. “Both sides discussed avenues for cooperation and collaboration in energy, mineral development, and strengthening the anti-money... -
Dawn - 03:52 Apr 18, 2026
• 159 patients admitted to three city hospitals this year • Majority of them contracted the incurable virus due to ‘unsafe healthcare practices’ • Alarm raised over lack of basic infection control protocols in hospitals KARACHI: Three hospitals in Karachi have recorded a dramatic increase in the number of paediatric human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) cases over the last nine months and their numbers continue to grow, it emerged on Friday. According to sources, 10 HIV positive children were admitted to the Sindh Infectious Diseases Hospital and Research Centre (SIDH&RC) in 2024 and their number rose to over 70 in 2025. This year, 30 children with HIV positive status were admitted to the hospital. At the Indus Hospital, 144 HIV positive patients were reported in 2024, whose number rose to 176 in 2025. In the first quarter of this year, 69 HIV patients have been reported at the facility. “There has been an alarming surge in paediatrics cases registered at our hospital. Since August 2025 till date, 72 children le... -
Dawn - 02:39 Apr 18, 2026
WASHINGTON: Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said on Friday that while he has discussed with International Monetary Fund (IMF) officials the impact of the Iran conflict on Pakistan’s economy, “our focus is on getting an early approval for the next tranche” of the IMF package and that a team of the global lender will visit Pakistan next month for consultations on the upcoming review. Talking to Dawn after his news conference at the Pakistan Embassy, the minister reiterated that the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz was “a very good development”, which would ease pressure on global oil supplies, bring down oil prices everywhere and benefit Pakistan as well. Had the conflict persisted, it would have adversely affected everything “from economic growth to inflation”, he said, adding: “We hope the situation will improve, but hope is not a strategy, and that’s why we had planned for everything.” Aurangzeb said he also discussed the possible consequences of the Iran crisis with the IMF, which has established facil... -
Dawn - 02:22 Apr 18, 2026
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday announced a reduction of Rs32.12 per litre in diesel prices while keeping petrol rates unchanged for the week ending April 24, passing on the impact of easing global prices following the ceasefire announced by the United States and Iran. The last-minute reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and the resulting 12-13 per cent decline in global prices were not taken into account before the prime minister approved the diesel price cut through a written statement. The sharp fall, which came soon after the agreement between the US and Iran, along with further expected reductions in the coming days, is likely to be reflected in domestic prices next week. Accordingly, the ex-depot price of high-speed diesel (HSD) has been fixed at Rs353.42 per litre, down from Rs385.54, marking a decline of 8.3pc. Diesel prices have dropped significantly from their peak of Rs520.35 on April 10. HSD is considered the most inflationary fuel due to its widespread use in freight transportatio... -
Dawn - 01:28 Apr 18, 2026
MUZAFFARABAD: As many as 125 people, including women and children, were safely rescued from Mangla Dam on Thursday night after a sudden thunderstorm disrupted their return journey from Ramkot Fort, an official said on Friday. According to Mirpur SSP Khurram Iqbal, the group had travelled to Ramkot Fort for a day-long outing on a locally designed floating transport platform. The platform, operated with the help of boats, has a capacity of around 100 passengers. Ramkot Fort is a 16th-century fortified structure featuring around 440 stairs to reach the top, offering panoramic views of Mangla Lake, which surrounds it on three sides. The group, comprising employees of a life insurance company and their families from Mirpur and adjoining districts, had taken nearly three hours to reach the historic site. They were returning around 8pm when a severe thunderstorm, accompanied by torrential rain and strong winds, struck the area. The SSP said the adverse weather caused the floating platform to lose stability and drif... -
Dawn - 01:04 Apr 18, 2026
KARACHI: After three years, the US dollar slipped below Rs279 on Friday in the inter-bank market, reflecting a sign of exchange rate stability. According to data issued by the Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan, the buying rate in the inter-bank market on Friday was Rs278.95, against Rs279 a day earlier. The US dollar was traded between Rs277-278 in March 2023 in the interbank market. However, before this appreciation of the rupee, the country was on the verge of default but recovered after the IMF programme and support from China. Atif Ahmed, a currency dealer, said that since Jan 16, the rupee had kept appreciating against the dollar and had reached this level. “For more than a year, currency dealers have not been working on ready transactions but have been doing swaps only, as the State Bank has strict rules for dollar trading,” he added. The stable exchange rate played a key role in the stabilisation of the economy despite poor growth and very high inflation during this period. Inflation has come ... -
Dawn - 18:50 Apr 17, 2026
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday emphasised the importance of “effectively utilising the current window of opportunity to advance durable and lasting regional peace” amid the ongoing war in the Middle East. In a statement, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said that the premier met Erdogan on the sidelines of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum. The premier arrived in Turkiye on Thursday on the last leg of his tri-nation tour. “During the warm and cordial meeting, President Erdogan welcomed the Prime Minister to Türkiye and thanked him for his participation in the 5th Antalya Diplomacy Forum,” the statement said. According to the PMO, the premier thanked Erdogan for his warm invitation and the traditional Turkish hospitality extended to him and his delegation during his stay in Antalya. He also congratulated the Turkish president on the success of the forum, which he said had transformed into an important global event. “The two leaders exchanged views on recent region... -
Dawn - 18:18 Apr 17, 2026
Myanmar has reduced the sentence of imprisoned ex-leader Aung San Suu Kyi, her lawyer told Reuters on Friday, as part of an amnesty by a new president who ousted her government in a coup five years ago. Suu Kyi, 80, was serving a 27-year sentence for a litany of charges her allies said were politically motivated to keep her at bay, ranging from incitement and corruption to election fraud and violating a state secrets law. The sentence has been cut by one-sixth, but it remains unclear whether the Nobel Peace Prize winner will be allowed to serve the rest of her sentence under house arrest, the lawyer said. Suu Kyi, who had dismissed the charges against her as “absurd”, has not been seen in public since the end of her marathon trials, and her whereabouts have been unknown. Earlier, state media reported that President Min Aung Hlaing approved an amnesty for 4,335 prisoners, the third such move in the past six months. Amnesties typically take place in Myanmar each year to mark Independence Day in January and the ... -
Dawn - 16:53 Apr 17, 2026
The government on Friday reduced the price of diesel by Rs32.12, according to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). The statement said that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had decided to provide relief to the nation and approved a reduction of Rs32.12 in the price of diesel. “After the approval, the price of diesel has decreased from Rs385.54 to Rs353.43,” the statement said. “The effects of the reduction in oil prices will be conveyed to the public as soon as possible,” the premier was quoted as saying. The statement did not make any mention of the price of petrol, which was set at Rs366.58 per litre last week. Petrol is mostly used in private transport, small vehicles, rickshaws and two-wheelers and has a direct bearing on the budget of the middle and lower-middle class. High-speed diesel is mainly used in the heavy transport sector and for large generators. After the US-Israeli war on Iran began, the government had initially hiked petrol and diesel prices by Rs55 per litre on March 6 and a... -
Dawn - 15:57 Apr 17, 2026
India’s government has decided not to go ahead with a proposal to require Apple, Samsung and others to pre-install the country’s biometric identification app Aadhaar on phones, a move that had been opposed by the smartphone giants, a state body said on Friday. It was reported last month that the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), the state body that operates Aadhaar, had asked the IT ministry in January to engage with Apple, Google and other leading smartphone makers to consider mandatory pre-installation of the Aadhaar app. A unique 12-digit identity number tied to an individual’s fingerprints and iris scans, Aadhaar is held by nearly 1.34 billion residents and is widely used for verification purposes in banking and telecom services, as well as for faster airport entry. India’s IT ministry reviewed the proposal and “is not in favour of mandating the pre-installation of the Aadhaar App on smartphones,” UIDAI said in a statement to Reuters on Friday, giving no reason for the decision. India’s IT... -
Dawn - 15:45 Apr 17, 2026
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Friday that the Strait of Hormuz, vital for the global trade in oil and other commodities, was open following a ceasefire accord agreed in Lebanon. Araqchi said in a post on X that the Strait was open for all commercial vessels for the “remaining period of ceasefire”. It was not immediately clear whether he was speaking of the 10-day truce agreed by Lebanon and Israel that went into effect at midnight or an earlier two-week truce between Iran and the United States that began on April 8. He said the passage of ships would need to be along the route that Iran’s Ports and Maritime Organisation had announced. US President Donald Trump welcomed Iran’s announcement. “THANK YOU!” he wrote on his Truth Social platform, before going on a posting spree. In a separate post, he said that the US military blockade of ships sailing through the Strait to Iranian ports — announced after talks with Iran last weekend in Islamabad ended without a breakthrough — remained in place. “T... -
Dawn - 15:11 Apr 17, 2026
ISLAMABAD: A day after receiving $2 billion in assistance from Saudi Arabia, the government on Friday announced it had raised $500 million from the international capital market through a Eurobond after four years. In a post on the social media platform X, Adviser to the Finance Minister Khurram Schehzad said, “Pakistan has successfully returned to the international capital markets after a four-year hiatus, with the issuance of a $500m Eurobond today, at attractive terms under its Global Medium-Term Note (GMTN) Programme.” “The three-year Eurobond witnessed strong investor demand despite ongoing global market and geopolitical uncertainties — signalling renewed confidence in Pakistan’s economic outlook,” he said. Informed sources said the bond attracted 6.95 per cent interest rates with maturity in April 2029. The announcement came a day after Saudi Arabia announced it was extending its support of $5bn to $8bn, with the first additional disbursement of $2bn. In his X post, Schehzad said that this “well-timed is... -
Dawn - 14:09 Apr 17, 2026
Ancient maps are often labelled with a warning: “Hic Sunt Dracones” (here be dragons), marking the point where civilisation ended, and the unknown began. Today, we have updated the legend for a colder, more administrative age: “Here be collateral damage.” The modern cartography of power trades the dragon for the statistic. And human loss is codified as a necessary friction of a global machine. This logic does not remain confined to maps or language — it settles into terrain. The geographic transition from the Anatolian heights in Turkiye to the scorched arteries of the Levant and the sub-Saharan corridors marks the threshold of a profound moral silence. In this landscape, faces dissolve into grainy wide-shots of a crowd, dubbed over with the dry, percussive phrase of “regional volatility”, where deaths are merely the ticking of a metronome: expected, rhythmic, and, eventually, ignored. The value of human life is determined by its proximity to the centres of Western hegemony. Peering at the Levant or the Horn ...
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