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Dawn - 07:44 May 17, 2026
The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) on Sunday took exception to the Indian army chief’s recent provocative remarks and cautioned New Delhi against pushing South Asia towards another conflict with “devastating” consequences for the region. “Indian COAS gave a provocative statement during a recent interview that ‘Pakistan should decide if it desired to be part of geography and history’,” ISPR noted in a statement issued in response to Indian Army Chief Gen Upendra Dwivedi’s comments made a day earlier. “Contrary to the delusional and hallucinational belief system and despite the omnipresent ill wishes that prevail in Hindutva-led India, Pakistan is already a country of consequence at global level, a declared nuclear power and an indelible part of South Asia’s geography and history,” the ISPR said. It observed that the statement reflected that the “Indian leadership has neither been able to reconcile with the very idea of Pakistan nor it has learnt the right lessons, even after [the] passage of eight deca... -
Dawn - 06:50 May 17, 2026
Two student chefs prepare to showcase a pineapple and peach drink ahead of the judges’ arrival. —Fahim Siddiqi / White Star KARACHI: A drinks show at the Wok Hei restaurant on Saturday was a unique opportunity to beat the heat by tasting refreshing summer beverages prepared by student chefs and professionals. From lemonades, mint drinks, falsa juice and the timeless and traditional Rooh Afza and its new variations to milkshakes that included coconut milk too and the more adventurous of hydration supporting mocktails and punch drinks that included fruit chunks, citrus juices, sugar and salt, one was also treated to a cool iconic Southeast Asian dessert known as ‘cendol’, which seemed like a yummy twist on the good old Pakistani gola ganda. There were also a few drinks that one felt slightly afraid to taste such as the ‘Blue Thunder’ prepared by young Aseef Ayaz and the ‘Blue Lagoon’ prepared by Anum Yousuf. Both drinks were very unnaturally blue in colour, which reminded one of neela thotha also known as the d... -
Dawn - 06:37 May 17, 2026
KARACHI: While police on Saturday managed to secure a further six-day remand of Anmol Pinky in two cases, the suspected drug baroness contested the police’s claim that she was arrested on May 12 in Karachi, saying she had actually been picked up 22 days earlier in Lahore and was being pressured to give “false statements involving Banigala” — an Islamabad area known as the residence of former prime minister and incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan. On Saturday, police produced the suspect, Pinky, before various courts for remand. The screengrab shows a police officer trying to cover Pinky’s face with a chador while others hold her in court. In an intense show of resistance and scuffle with policewomen and officials escorting her, Pinky, whose face was covered with a chador, shouted while unmasking her face and alleged that law-enforcement authorities had forced statements from her. “They forced me to give false statements to say that I used to deliver items to a man in Banigala. These people picked me up from L... -
Dawn - 06:33 May 17, 2026
• Absence of traffic police, non-functional signals contribute to road chaos • DIG claims e-ticketing boosts rule compliance • Says number of cameras will be increased by 2,000 in next phase KARACHI: Although compliance with traffic laws remains inconsistent throughout the city, chaotic situations are seen even on roads where cameras are installed to detect violations and issue e-challans, due to dysfunctional signals, fading stop lines, zebra crossings and other issues. The traffic police had in October 2025 launched their faceless e-ticketing system on some of the major corridors in the metropolis. Officials claim that the total number of e-challans increased every month from January to March, before declining in April — 128,990 in January, 156,099 in February, 164,033 in March, and 144,437 in April. However, which road you are taking, whether the traffic signals are functioning, and whether traffic wardens are present, are some factors that determine traffic conditions in the city. It is up to individuals ... -
Dawn - 05:13 May 17, 2026
ISLAMABAD: Maritime Affairs Minister Junaid Anwar Chaudhry on Saturday said the fish and fisheries product exports exceeded the $500 million mark for the first time in the first eleven months of the current fiscal year, mainly due to the opening of the Russian market. In a statement, the minister called it a landmark achievement for the maritime sector and the blue economy. Currently, the minister said 16 Pakistani companies have been authorised to export seafood to Russia. He was confident that access to Russia could pave the way into other Eurasian Economic Union markets and estimated that annual seafood exports could climb to $800m, with initial exports to Russia alone projected to reach about $300m. ‘Historic high’ driven by new Russian market access Frozen fish remained the top export category. Other exports, including shrimps, prawns, crabs, sardines, mackerel, flatfish and fish meal, helped broaden the product mix and increase value-added processing. China remained the largest seafood market, importing... -
Dawn - 04:47 May 17, 2026
ISLAMABAD: Just days after the first anniversary of Marka-i-Haq, calls for dialogue with Pakistan have grown in India, with several leaders in India-held Kashmir among the latest to support efforts to end hostilities between the neighbouring nuclear powers. Former chief ministers of India-held Kashmir, Farooq Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti, have backed the recent demand by Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) Secretary General Dattatreya Hosabale for the Indian government to hold peace talks with Pakistan, alongside promoting people-to-people contact between the two countries. According to India’s NDTV report, both Abdullah and Mufti have faced criticism in the past for advocating talks with Pakistan amid deepening hostilities between the two countries. However, the situation appears to be different this time. “It is a very significant move that the RSS leader called for talks with Pakistan, and a former army chief [retired Gen Manoj Naravane] has backed his statement. I am glad that somebody is now realising that ... -
Dawn - 03:20 May 17, 2026
• Strikes on Harouf medical centre kill six, including paramedics; at least five villages targeted • Evacuation warnings trigger another wave of displacement; civilians dismiss ceasefire as ‘meaningless’ BEIRUT: Israel launched a series of airstrikes across southern Lebanon on Saturday, striking at least five villages and prompting a new exodus of residents, despite a 45-day extension of a fragile truce agreed to only a day earlier. The ongoing Israeli bombardment and expanded evacuation warnings have fuelled deep scepticism about the ceasefire among the thousands of Lebanese already driven from their homes. Israel says it is targeting Hezbollah positions, but Saturday’s strikes were preceded by an evacuation warning that covered nine villages. The attacks have expanded in scope in recent weeks, reaching areas north of the Litani River and farther from the border. Since the truce began, the Israeli military has repeatedly issued such warnings ahead of strikes, compounding the humanitarian crisis in the south.... -
Dawn - 03:13 May 17, 2026
GWADAR / QUETTA: A woman police constable and a Brahvi-language poet were gunned down in the Turbat and Nushki areas of Balochistan on Saturday. Police officials said woman police constable Shakeela was on her way to Turbat town on a motorcycle along with her husband and child when armed men targeted her near Apsar Research Farm. “The lady constable died on the spot as she suffered multiple bullet injuries, while her husband and child were injured in the firing,” a police official in Turbat said. Police rushed to the site soon after receiving information about the attack and shifted the body and injured to hospital. The husband was identified as Sunil and the child as seven-month-old Abbas. The official said, “It was a case of targeted killing”. He added police were investigating the matter. The constable was on her way to perform court duty when she was attacked. The attackers fled the scene immediately after the incident. Last month, a woman constable of the Khuzdar police was killed by armed men in the Zeh... -
Dawn - 02:57 May 17, 2026
• Waqas Akram insists difference of opinion part of political process • Rejects social media campaign against party • Insiders complain about lack of unified strategy amid ‘multiple centres of influence’ ISLAMABAD: Amid reports of internal rifts, leadership crisis and serious differences within the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) over its policies, the party has stressed that its leadership, workers and parliamentary representatives remain united behind the party’s founding chairman Imran Khan. PTI Information Secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram told Dawn that differences of opinion should not be interpreted as a split calling these part of political process. “Anyone can have their own opinion, but when it comes to Imran Khan, all are united,” he asserted. His remarks came amid claims by officials and even some PTI insiders that the party has been struggling to evolve a unified political strategy nearly three years after Mr Khan was put behind bars, with differences over protest politics, parliamentary engagement, de... -
Dawn - 02:47 May 17, 2026
• Naqvi lands in Tehran to ‘promote regional peace’, facilitate talks; Dar speaks to Uzbek counterpart • Araghchi says Iran does not trust the US at all due to contradictory messages • Iran’s UN envoy blames Hormuz disruptions on aggressors amid claims of Europe’s request for transit • Putin, UAE president discuss Iran conflict in phone call ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi landed in Tehran on a previously unannounced two-day visit, which diplomatic sources said was linked to Pakistan’s continuing efforts to revive the stalled Iran-US peace process after President Donald Trump rejected Tehran’s latest response to American proposals. Diplomatic sources in Islamabad said the unscheduled trip was part of Pakistan’s continuing shuttle diplomacy aimed at preventing the negotiations from collapsing entirely after momentum generated by earlier rounds of talks in Islamabad slowed sharply. The visit, officially framed around bilateral and border security cooperation, came as the fragile ceasefire brokered ear... -
Dawn - 02:25 May 17, 2026
PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi on Saturday approved the summary and signed the notification for the induction of 18 new cabinet members sent by the office of Chief Minister Sohail Afridi. An official statement issued by Governor’s House said the governor approved the summary for the expansion of the provincial cabinet. It stated that the provincial government had sent a summary for the appointment of six new ministers, four advisers, and eight special assistants to the chief minister, which was approved by the governor. The oath-taking ceremony for the new cabinet members will be held at the Governor’s House on Sunday (today). Eighteen new members to be sworn in today Although the official notification was not shared at the time of filing this report, the chief minister’s Special Assistant for Information and Public Relations, Shafi Jan, confirmed the names. New ministers include Nazir Ahmad Abbasi, Shakil Ahmad, Muhammad Adnan Qadri, Muhammad Arif Ahmadzai, Tariq Mehmood Aryani, and... -
Dawn - 18:47 May 16, 2026
ISLAMABAD: Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Director General Dr Usman Anwar took notice of an incident during a raid in Karachi’s Sarafa Bazar and sought a detailed report within 48 hours. On May 15, 2026, the agency carried out a raid on a jewellery shop in the market, targeting alleged silver smuggling. The FIA had initially taken the position that official records showed 178 kilogrammes of silver should have been at the shop, but only 15kg of locally branded silver was recovered. The agency alleged the missing 163kg may have been removed during a disturbance created by traders and shopkeepers at the market. It further claimed that some people tried to worsen the situation by forming crowds and obstructing official action, but personnel handled it with restraint. Moreover, the FIA said it had obtained digital evidence from suspects’ phones linked to smuggling networks. The FIA chief directed the Karachi Zone director to conduct a full inquiry into the matter, instructing that all aspects of the incident, ... -
Dawn - 18:23 May 16, 2026
WASHINGTON: The United States is entering a period of structurally higher industrial natural gas demand, with consumption expected to remain at record levels through at least 2027, even as the Iran war intensifies disruptions across global oil markets and tightens energy supplies worldwide. According to the latest Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), industrial natural gas consumption in the United States averaged a record 23.6 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) in 2025, exceeding the previous high of 23.4bcfd recorded in 2023. The projections suggest that rising industrial demand is no longer merely cyclical, but increasingly tied to deeper structural shifts in manufacturing, energy trade flows and global supply-chain realignment. The EIA expects industrial gas consumption to rise by another 1.2 per cent, or 0.3bcfd, in 2026, followed by an additional 1.7pc increase, or 0.4bcfd, in 2027. At the centre of the trend is sustained expansion in energy-intensive manu... -
Dawn - 18:08 May 16, 2026
A driver injured seven people, four of them badly, when he drove on a sidewalk in the northern Italian city of Modena on Saturday and then got out possibly holding a knife, the mayor said. Early eyewitness accounts said the driver, aged in his 30s, apparently “aimed for the sidewalk, hitting a bike, then crashed while slamming head-on into a woman, badly hurt with both legs crushed”, mayor Massimo Mezzetti told local media and the ANSA news agency. The car then crashed into a shop window. “He was seen with a knife in his hand, but he didn’t manage to stab anyone. It seems like he was trying to hit someone,” the mayor said. Police have arrested the driver and are questioning him, he added. Mezzetti told RaiNews channel that four of the seven hit had been seriously injured. One witness told Italian broadcasters the car had arrived at high speed on Emilia Centro street, which is very busy on Saturday afternoons. “I heard impacts and I saw people getting run over, ” he said. “The car got to me and I managed to th... -
Dawn - 17:24 May 16, 2026
KARACHI: A judicial magistrate on Saturday remanded alleged drug queenpin Anmol alias Pinky in police custody till May 22 in a narcotics case registered against her. Anmol was arrested earlier this week from her apartment in Karachi in connection with two cases pertaining to the possession of narcotics and an unlicenced weapon. She was already booked in multiple criminal cases prior to her arrest. Earlier in the day, magistrates of districts South, Central and Malir reserved their decisions on police requests for Anmol’s physical custody in a total of 15 cases. She was presented before Karachi Central Special Sunday Magistrate Abdul Sattar in a case registered under the Sindh Control of Narcotic Substances Act 2024 (NSA) at the Specialised Investigation Unit (SIU/CIA) police station. Separately, a magistrate also remanded Anmol in police custody for two days in a murder case registered at Baghdadi police station. In the remaining 13 cases, the police sought her physical custody but were denied, as the courts ... -
Dawn - 17:19 May 16, 2026
Minister-in-Charge of the Establishment Division Senator Ahad Khan Cheema on Friday attributed the high failure rate in the Central Superior Services (CSS) examinations to inadequate academic preparation, the competitive nature of the test and other factors. The question was raised by PPP Member of the National Assembly (MNA) Sehar Kamran, who asked about the mechanism, criteria and process of the civil service examination for the induction of civil servants, as well as the reasons behind its high failure rate. She further inquired if the existing examination system is aligned with international testing standards. In a written reply to the National Assembly, Cheema highlighted that there were an average of 125–133 candidates for each CSS vacancy, with an average of 200–225 vacancies against 25,000–30,000 applicants. His response attributed the high failure rate in the CSS examinations to weak academic preparation, poor analytical skills, low comprehension levels and the highly competitive nature of the recrui... -
Dawn - 16:31 May 16, 2026
Tens of thousands of people rallied on Saturday in London at a march organised by far-right activist Tommy Robinson and a counter-demonstration fused with a pro-Palestinian protest, amid a huge police presence. London’s Metropolitan Police said ahead of the duelling events that it would mount one of its largest operations in recent years, as the British capital also hosts the FA Cup Final. The force was set to deploy 4,000 officers — alongside horses, dogs, drones and helicopters — to manage Robinson’s so-called ‘Unite the Kingdom’ march and the rival rally marking Nakba Day. Nakba commemorates the 1948 displacement of Palestinians during the creation of Israel. It will combine with an anti-fascism march organised by the Stand Up to Racism group. The Met police estimated 30,000 people would attend that event, setting off from west London, while 50,000 would be at the “Unite the Kingdom” march starting from Holborn in the heart of the capital. Aerial footage broadcast by UK media showed tens of thousands at Ro... -
Dawn - 16:29 May 16, 2026
BANNU: Police have killed a highly wanted commander involved in the suicide attack on Fateh Khel Police Post along with his accomplice during “Operation Intiqam-e-Shuhada” (Operation Revenge of the Martyrs). The police claim to have eliminated five terrorists within the last 24 hours. At least 15 police personnel were martyred last week after a suicide attack on the Fateh Khel police post in Bannu district. The terrorists launched their attack on the post by ramming a vehicle laden with explosives. Under the special directives of RPO Sajjad Khan, Bannu Police have intensified decisive operations against militants across the district. Following the attack on a police post, multiple intelligence-based operations (IBOs) were carried out in the district. According to police officials, the killed militants include Hiyatullah, a key target killer of the Zargul group; Asad Yar, who was involved in the attack on Checkpost Fateh Khel; along with Nimatullah, Commander Mansoor, and one unidentified militant. Police furt... -
Dawn - 15:55 May 16, 2026
Sindh Senior Minister Sharjeel Memon on Saturday said that the provincial government had exempted shops, markets, malls, hotels, restaurants, wedding halls and marquees from fixed closing timings to “facilitate businesses and citizens”. According to the notification, which he shared on the social media platform X, all shops, markets, shopping malls, hotels, restaurants, food outlets, marriage halls, and marquees have been exempted from the 9pm closing time, which was enforced last month. “This decision reflects our commitment to economic growth, public convenience, and support for the business community, which remains the backbone of our economy,” Memon said. KP lifts market timing restrictions In a notification issued by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Secretary, the provincial government lifted restrictions on closure timings for markets, commercial and business centres with immediate effect. The notification, available with Dawn, follows a prior public notice regarding temporary electricity conservation and c... -
Dawn - 15:19 May 16, 2026
Litton Das struck a century to rescue Bangladesh from a top-order collapse, as the hosts posted 278 in their first innings of the second and final Test against Pakistan on Saturday. Pakistan reached 21-0 at stumps in reply with Azan Awais on 13 and Abdullah Fazal on 8 in Sylhet. Batting at number six, Litton struck 16 fours and two sixes in his 159-ball 126, his sixth Test century, after Bangladesh had been reduced to 116-6 after lunch. Pakistan, trailing 1-0 in the two-match series after a 104-run defeat in Mirpur, opted to bowl and the decision immediately paid off. Opener Mahmudul Hasan Joy fell for a duck, edging Mohammad Abbas to second slip off the second ball of the match. Pakistan’s Mohammad Abbas (3R) celebrates with teammates after taking the wicket of Bangladesh’s captain Najmul Hossain Shanto during the first day of the second Test cricket match between Bangladesh and Pakistan at the Sylhet International Cricket Stadium in Sylhet on May 16, 2026. —Photo by Munir UZ ZAMAN / AFP Debutant Tanzid Hasa...
10418 items