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Dawn - 15:40 Jun 18, 2025
At least 935 people have been impacted by theextreme heat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa this month, rescue officials said on Wednesday. Climate change is a pressing reality for Pakistan, directly impacting millions of lives. Heatwaves, intensified by climate change, are becoming more frequent, prolonged and severe, disproportionately affecting communities with limited resources to adapt. According to Rescue 1122 KP spokesperson Bilal Ahmad Faizi, “The ongoing heatwave across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has reached alarming levels, affecting both human lives and the environment.” He told Dawn.com that, “A total of 935 people were impacted by the intense heatwave in June, of which 48 were taken to hospitals in critical condition due to heat-related health complications.” He added that to mitigate the impact of the heatwave, Rescue 1122 has established 108 anti-heatwave camps across 34 districts of the province. “The camps are equipped with first aid and hydration facilities to provide immediate relief to those suffering from he... -
Dawn - 14:31 Jun 18, 2025
Three Pakistani schools — two in Lahore and one in Quetta — have been shortlisted for the World’s Best School Prizes 2025, according to a press release issued by the award’s founder, T4 Education, on Wednesday. T4 said in a press release that the five awards are “the world’s most prestigious education prizes” and winners are chosen “by an expert judging academy based on rigorous criteria”. The awards are for Community Collaboration, Environmental Action, Innovation, Overcoming Adversity and Supporting Healthy Lives. Sanjan Nagar Public Education Trust Higher Secondary School, Nordic International School from Lahore, and the Beaconhouse College Programme’s Juniper Campus in Quetta are the three shortlisted Pakistani institutions. “All 50 finalist schools across the five prizes will also take part in a public vote, which opened today, to determine the winner of the Community Choice Award,” the press release read. “All six winners will be announced in October.” According to T4, Sanjan Nagar — a charity-run prima... -
Dawn - 14:12 Jun 18, 2025
Two people were killed and one was injured during a shooting incident in Karachi’s Ittehad Town, police said on Wednesday. South Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Syed Asad Raza told Dawn.com, “The incident occurred inside a house near Amir Muawiyah Mosque. Police have detained two people from the site of the incident, recovering a 30-bore pistol from there. A woman was being investigated.” DIG Raza added that the exchange of fire occurred due to “personal enmity between the two sides.” According to the preliminary investigation, a man brought a married woman from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Tank district to Karachi, he said. “The firing exchange took place after the woman’s husband and brothers arrived at the scene to take her back,” he added. He further said that two people died on the spot and another person, sustaining bullet injuries, was arrested. “The crime scene unit is at the scene and evidence is being collected,” he said, adding that the bodies of the deceased have been taken to the Civil Hospital ... -
Dawn - 14:04 Jun 18, 2025
The iVerify Pakistan team reviewed this content and determined that it is false. To reach this conclusion, iVerify Pakistan analysed the flight-tracking image to verify whether the aircraft mentioned actually existed in the US military and whether the mapped locations were accurate. Posts from multiple Indian users on the social media platform X on Tuesday shared an air traffic map claiming that Pakistan is helping the United States in obtaining crucial intelligence on Iran’s sensitive sites amid the conflict with Israel. However, the image is fake with numerous discrepancies. Nearly 80 people, including top army officers, were killed while civilians were among over 300 wounded in Iran as a result of Israel’s strikes on military sites and private residences on June 13. Iran subsequently launched its retaliation with ballistic missiles fired at Israel, and the two countries continued to exchange volleys over the weekend. Tensions have escalated since, with more than 224 Iranians killed and over 1000 injured, m... -
Dawn - 13:14 Jun 18, 2025
Terrorists have blown up a gas pipeline in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Lakki Marwat district which supplied gas to Punjab, police said on Wednesday. Assistant spokesperson to the Lakki Marwar’s district police officer, Qudratullah, said, “The explosion triggered a fire and caused a massive gas leak. The pipeline was attacked in the Torwah seasonal stream area, which provided cover for the perpetrators.” Calling the incident a “major act of sabotage”, Qudratullah added: The khawarij (terrorist) operatives targeted a key gas pipeline from the Bettani Gas Field to Punjab, using explosives to destroy a main section of the line.“ “Soon after the blast, security forces were dispatched to the site and cordoned off the area,” Qudratullah further said, adding that emergency teams had also been mobilised to control the fire and assess the extent of the damage. “Investigations are underway to identify and apprehend those involved in the attack,” he said. “Officials have condemned the incident as an assault on critical national... -
Dawn - 12:41 Jun 18, 2025
At least 18 people have died since Monday as torrential rains lashed parts of India’s western Gujarat, state officials said. Disaster response teams have been deployed to help residents in the south of the state, who are bracing for more heavy monsoon rainfall. “Eighteen people have lost their lives in rain-related incidents, while dozens have been rescued across low-lying areas by disaster response teams,” the state government said late on Tuesday. The worst-hit areas included Palitana and Jesar towns, which on Tuesday registered 867 millimetres of rain over the past 24 hours. State relief commissioner Alok Kumar Pandey said the 18 deaths were the result of storms, lightning strikes and structural collapses due to rough weather. “The state is fully geared to handle the situation, and inter-departmental coordination is being intensified to ensure swift relief and rescue operations,” Pandey said. Those rescued included 18 farm labourers who were trapped in mango orchards in the Gadhada area and 22 people in Su... -
Dawn - 12:41 Jun 18, 2025
A ban on smartphones in schools issued by Taliban authorities in southern Afghanistan came into force, students and teachers confirmed to AFP on Wednesday, over concerns of “focus” and “Islamic law”. The directive by the provincial Education Department in Kandahar applies to students, teachers and administrative staff in schools and religious schools. “This decision has been made to ensure educational discipline, focus”, the statement said, adding that it was taken from a “sharia perspective” and that smartphones contribute to “the destruction of the future generation”. The policy, which has already taken effect in schools across the province, has divided opinion among teachers and students. “We did not bring smartphones with us to school today”, Saeed Ahmad, a 22-year-old teacher, told AFP. “I think this is a good decision so that there is more focus on studies,” he added. Mohammad Anwar, an 11th grader, said, “The teachers are saying if anyone is seen bringing a phone, they will start searching the students... -
Dawn - 10:43 Jun 18, 2025
PTI’s parliamentary leader Senator Ali Zafar distanced the party from holding talks with the PPP on boycotting the federal budget voting, saying the fellow party leader Asad Qaiser’s move to do so was in his personal capacity. When asked about the meeting between Qaiser with Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, he said it was the former NA speaker’s “personal choice” and not on the instructions of the party or Imran Khan. “Nothing is official. There is no indication we are heading for an alliance,” he said during an appearance on Dawn News TV programme ‘Doosra Rukh’. Former National Assembly speaker and PTI leader Asad Qaiser had told Dawn that PPP leader Abdul Qadir Patel, in his speech, said that his party will not support the money bill. He later contacted PPP leader and former prime minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf and sought support to block the bill. Zafar said Qaiser took an initiative but it is does mean talks were held on a party level but rather between two MNAs. He said the budget is riddled with inaccuracies and seve... -
Dawn - 09:36 Jun 18, 2025
Sindh reported its first death of the year from the Congo fever as a 42-year-old man in Karachi passed away after being diagnosed a day earlier, as per a statement from the provincial health ministry’s media coordinator on Wednesday. According to the WHO, the Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF), commonly known as Congo Virus, causes severe viral hemorrhagic fever outbreaks with a case fatality rate of 10-40 per cent. There is no vaccine available for the disease. According to experts, the CCHF virus is primarily transmitted to people either by tick bites or through contact with infected animal blood or tissues during and immediately after slaughter. In April, the National Institute of Health (NIH) issued an advisory urging prevention of Congo fever ahead of Eidul Azha. The 42-year-old man, a resident of District Malir, was admitted to Indus Hospital in Korangi, where he tested positive for CCHF on June 16, Media coordinator for the Sindh health ministry, Meeran Yousuf told Dawn.com. The patient passed away... -
Dawn - 09:29 Jun 18, 2025
Careem will suspend its ride-hailing service operations in Pakistan from July after nearly a decade in the industry, its CEO announced on Wednesday, adding that its journey in the country would continue “in a different role”. Mudassir Sheikha, Careem’s CEO and co-founder, shared a post on LinkedIn announcing “a new chapter” for the company. “It is with a heavy heart that I share this update: Careem will suspend its ride-hailing service in Pakistan on July 18,” Sheikha said, adding that it was “an incredibly difficult decision.” “The challenging macroeconomic reality, intensifying competition, and global capital allocation made it hard to justify the investment levels required to deliver a safe and dependable service in the country. “In the end, the Careem Rides team had to make this tough call,” he said. He called the ride suspension “the end of an iconic chapter — one built with purpose, grit and a ton of relentless hustle”. Sheikha highlighted some of Careem’s notable achievements while operating in Pakista... -
Dawn - 09:17 Jun 18, 2025
For years, allies and adversaries alike have ridiculed Benjamin Netanyahu as the boy who cried wolf. The far-right hardliner has long been haunted by the prospect of an Iranian nuclear bomb, decrying that Tehran is just “weeks away” from such a weapon for over three decades now. A poster boy for genocide, he may be, it takes a man of a certain skillset to be able to be taken seriously after being so wrong for so long. Despite his faulty calculus, Netanyahu never really let up. From infamously waving a cartoon sketch of an Iranian bomb at the UN in 2012 to privately lobbying Western leaders into a broader military entanglement with Ayetollahs, the Israeli premier has long prized a war with Iran as the crown jewel of his sordid legacy. Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu infamously points to a cartoon sketch of a nuclear bomb at the UN in 2012. — Reuters So when he finally signed off on a series of “pre-emptive strikes” that looked to target Iran’s nuclear centrifuges and military brass in the early hours of Friday, ... -
Dawn - 08:44 Jun 18, 2025
Former climate change minister, PPP Vice President Senator Sherry Rehman, assailed the federal government on Wednesday for slashing funds for environment protection in the upcoming budget for fiscal year 2025-2026. The federal government has earmarked a major chunk of next year’s budget for climate-resilient development, but its failure to set a clear course of action and policy contradictions weigh heavily on financial allocations that amount to hundreds of billions. The budget under the head of ‘environment protection’ has also reduced from Rs7.2billion to Rs3.1bn, with funds for ‘pollution abatement’ going down from Rs6.29bn to Rs3.1bn. “As far as climate is concerned, I am disappointed to share that in the environment protection budget, which used to be Rs7.2bn — which was already quite low — has now been slashed by more than half to Rs3.1bn. What will we do with this money? We will start depending more and more on international money. There have already been aid cuts in climate funding internationally,“ ... -
Dawn - 08:26 Jun 18, 2025
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi maintained in a conversation with US President Donald Trump late on Tuesday that a ceasefire between India and Pakistan after a four-day conflict in May was achieved through talks between the two militaries and not US mediation, India’s senior-most diplomat said. Trump had said last month that the nuclear-armed South Asian neighbours agreed to a ceasefire after talks mediated by the US, and that the hostilities ended after he urged the countries to focus on trade instead of war. “PM Modi told President Trump clearly that during this period, there was no talk at any stage on subjects like India-US trade deal or US mediation between India and Pakistan,” Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said in a press statement. “Talks for ceasing military action happened directly between India and Pakistan through existing military channels, and on the insistence of Pakistan. Prime Minister Modi emphasised that India has not accepted mediation in the past and will never do,” he said. M... -
Dawn - 07:10 Jun 18, 2025
LAHORE: The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Tuesday unveiled the schedule for the ICC Women’s World Cup, to be jointly hosted by India and Sri Lanka from September 30 to November 2. Pakistan will commence their campaign on October 2 against Bangladesh at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, where all their group-stage matches are set to be played. This arrangement is in line with the hybrid model announced by the ICC last year. Led by all-rounder Fatima Sana, Pakistan qualified for the eight-team event after an unbeaten run in the ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifier, held in here earlier this year. Pakistan’s highly anticipated clash with arch-rivals India is scheduled for October 5, followed by encounters against defending champions Australia on October 8 and 2017 champions England on October 15. The national side will then face New Zealand (October 18), South Africa (October 21), and co-hosts Sri Lanka (October 24) to conclude their round-robin stage. If Pakistan secure a semi-final berth, they will play... -
Dawn - 06:49 Jun 18, 2025
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) has pushed the families of several of its most dedicated Central Secretariat staff members to the verge of starvation. Well-placed sources said PTI had neither reversed the 50pc salary cuts imposed on Central Secretariat staff since October last year, nor had it cleared overdue dues despite repeated promises, leaving the employees in deep distress. The affected staffers said the party leadership broke its promise by neither restoring reduced salaries nor releasing any of the withheld half-pay despite nine months having passed. They said the leadership’s callousness was evident in dismissing several loyal employees who endured detention and torture, instead of recognising their sacrifices. Sources said that while the party leadership continued to enjoy all perks and privileges, they were unwilling to spend a single penny on the party, only doing so when their leader Imran Khan was present to witness it. They lamented that PTI lawmakers, who once branded treasury legisl... -
Dawn - 06:15 Jun 18, 2025
ISLAMABAD: Lawmakers belonging to the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), a major partner in the ruling coalition, on Tuesday continued their criticism of the federal budget for the next fiscal year, lambasting the federal government over its alleged discriminatory policies towards the party-ruled Sindh province. Taking part in the general debate on the federal budget in the National Assembly, almost every PPP member delivered a similar speech in which they highlighted the “injustices and excesses” being committed by the Centre with the Sindh province by denying its due share in the development plans. Members of MQM-Pakistan, another key partner in the ruling coalition, also expressed their reservations on meagre allocations for various projects in Sindh, but at the same time they also targeted the PPP-led Sindh government, accusing it of ignoring Karachi. PPP lawmakers mainly protested over “failure” of the federal government in handing over the projects which were being carried out by now-defunct Public Works Dep... -
Dawn - 05:23 Jun 18, 2025
• Members of parliamentary committees say protectionist measures unnecessary as no one producing solar panels locally • Omar Ayub insists tariff structure altered under IMF pressure • Nafisa Shah slams ‘martial law-style’ FBR enforcement measures ISLAMABAD: In a rare show of unity, parliamentary committees on Tuesday unanimously rejected the proposed 18 per cent sales tax on imported solar panels and recommended lowering tax rates on smaller cars to ease the burden on low-income groups. The Senate and National Assembly Standing Committees on Finance and Revenue held parallel sessions at Parliament House to conduct a clause-by-clause review of the Finance Bill 2025-26. Both panels, chaired by Senator Saleem Mandviwalla and MNA Naveed Qamar, respectively, proposed amendments and rejected several measures outright. Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Chairman Rashid Mahmood Langrial defended the solar tax, arguing it would protect domestic manufacturers. However, lawmakers pointed out that solar panels are ... -
Dawn - 03:48 Jun 18, 2025
ISLAMABAD: The PTI patron-in-chief, Imran Khan, has delayed his party’s countrywide protest for at least two weeks owing to the situation in the Middle East. This was announced by Mr Khan’s sisters, Noreen Niazi and Uzma, after they met their brother in Adiala Jail on Tuesday. Mr Khan’s third sister, Aleema, was not allowed to meet her brother. Talking to the media, Ms Niazi said her brother was “well aware of the international situation” and said that Pakistan should remain united during Iran-Israel war. Ms Uzma said the world already knew about Mr Khan’s stance against Israel. Earlier, Mr Khan had called upon his supporters to start preparations for countrywide protests after Eidul Azha. PTI Central Information Secretary Sheikh Waqqas Akram also confirmed that Mr Khan has delayed the protests for two weeks. “We are passing through very sensitive time. So it has been decided that the party will not hold any protest for two weeks,” Mr Akram told Dawn. Raoof Hasan, the head of PTI’s political think tank, stat... -
Dawn - 19:08 Jun 17, 2025
President Donald Trump dramatically stepped up his rhetoric against Iran’s supreme leader on Tuesday amid the country’s ongoing fighting with Israel, saying on social media that the United States knows where Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is located but will not kill him “for now.” The comments fuel questions as to whether Washington would join Israel’s attacks after insisting it had no hand in the campaign. Trump’s sometimes contradictory and cryptic messaging about the conflict has deepened the uncertainty surrounding the crisis. His public comments have ranged from military threats to diplomatic overtures, not uncommon for a president known for an often erratic approach to both domestic and foreign policy. In another post, Trump also appeared to demand Iran’s “unconditional surrender!” as he fuelled questions about whether the US would join Israel’s attacks on Tehran’s leadership and nuclear facilities. “We know exactly where the so-called ‘supreme leader’ is hiding. He is an easy target, but is safe there — We ar... -
Dawn - 18:56 Jun 17, 2025
The Gilgit-Baltistan administration on Tuesday imposed a fine of Rs1.5 million on a hotel for allegedly dumping sewage waste into Hunza’s Attabad Lake. The development came a day after a foreign tourist and vlogger named George Buckley posted a video on his Instagram page, claiming that sewage water was being pumped out by the hotel into the Attabad Lake In the video, Buckley could be seen standing next to the lake with a friend and saying: “We found out some information through a local that the sewage is actually being pumped into the water.” The tourist also showed muddy water being mixed into the lake. The post gained significant traction on social media, prompting a response from the hotel. View this post on Instagram The hotel dismissed the claims in a social media post today, saying, “This lake has been home for us for the last six years.” “… To dump sewage water into the lake would be like desecrating our own house. We have never nor will we ever dump a single litre of wastewater into Attabad Lake.” Th...
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