Dawn
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Dawn - 15:19 Jun 05, 2025
Worshippers prayed on Mount Arafat during the high point of Haj on Thursday as authorities urged them to avoid the hottest hours of the day after tragedy struck last year. Thousands of white-robed pilgrims recited verses from the Holy Quran from dawn on the 70-metre rocky rise near Makkah, where the Holy Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) gave his last sermon. But numbers thinned by midday following official warnings for pilgrims to stay inside between 10am and 4pm, a year after 1,301 people died in temperatures that hit 51.8 degree Celsius. “I came here early to [avoid] the sun and later I will pray inside my tent,” said 54-year-old Adel Ismail, from Syria. Saudi authorities have taken several steps to reduce the risk from heat at Haj, which has drawn more than 1.6 million pilgrims to one of the world’s hottest regions, according to fresh figures published on Thursday. A surveillance drone flies past a Muslim pilgrim as he prays at dawn on Saudi Arabia’s Mount Arafat, also known as Jabal al-Rahma or Mount of Mercy,... -
Dawn - 14:47 Jun 05, 2025
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday said that Pakistan’s recent appointment to key UN committees reaffirmed the international community’s trust in the country’s counterterrorism credentials. A day ago, Pakistan was appointed chair of the committee established under Resolution 1988 (2011), which oversees the implementation of sanctions against the Afghan Taliban. Pakistan was also named vice chair of the Security Council’s Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC), which monitors implementation of Resolution 1373 (2001), a core component of the UN’s global counterterrorism architecture. Additionally, Pakistan will serve as co-chair of two important subsidiary bodies: the Informal Working Group on Documentation and the newly formed Working Group on Sanctions. In a post on X, the prime minister said the appointments were a “matter of great pride”. He added: “These key appointments validate the international community’s confidence and trust in Pakistan’s counterterrorism credentials as well as an acknowledgement of... -
Dawn - 13:41 Jun 05, 2025
The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) on Thursday notified a negative fuel cost adjustment (FCA) of Rs2.98 per unit for K-Electric (KE) consumers in June’s bills for power consumed in March. According to a notification issued by Nepra today, the authority “decided to allow a negative FCA of Rs2.9898/kWh (negative Rs4.045 billion) for March 2025, to be passed on to the consumers in the billing month of June 2025”. Nepra said the negative FCA would apply to “all the consumer categories except lifeline consumers, domestic protected consumers, Electric Vehicle Charging Stations (EVCS) and prepaid electricity consumers of all categories who opted for pre-paid tariff”. The adjustment would be shown separately in the consumers’ bills on the basis of units billed to the consumers in the respective month to which the adjustment pertains, it said. “In case any bills of June 2025 are issued before the notification of this decision, the same may be applied in the subsequent month,” the notification s... -
Dawn - 12:54 Jun 05, 2025
A Japanese startup will attempt a tricky lunar touchdown on Friday with an unmanned lander named Resilience, two years after its first try which crashed onto the moon’s surface. If successful, it will be only the third private mission to the Earth’s rocky natural satellite ever completed, and the first by a company based outside of the United States. The startup, ispace, says touchdown is expected at 4:17am Japan time on Friday (1917 GMT on Thursday) with the potentially nail-biting attempt streamed on its website. Resilience is “ready to attempt a historic landing on the moon” and “we are confident in our preparations for success”, ispace CEO Takeshi Hakamada said last week. “We have leveraged the operational experience gained in Mission 1 and during this current voyage to the moon,” he said in a statement. Only five nations have soft-landed spacecraft on the moon: the Soviet Union, the US, China, India and Japan. Companies are vying to offer cheaper and more frequent space exploration opportunities than gov... -
Dawn - 12:43 Jun 05, 2025
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday ordered an investigation into what Republicans claim was a “conspiracy” to cover up Joe Biden’s declining cognitive health during his time in the White House. The move, which was slammed by Biden, is the latest in a long-running campaign by Trump — with the backing of Republican Party politicians and their cheerleaders in the conservative media — to discredit his predecessor. But it also comes as a growing chorus of Democrats begin to acknowledge the former president appeared to have been slipping in recent years. Those concerns were thrown into stark relief by a disastrous debate performance against Trump during last year’s presidential campaign, in which the then-81-year-old stumbled over his words and repeatedly lost his train of thought. “In recent months, it has become increasingly apparent that former president Biden’s aides abused the power of presidential signatures through the use of an autopen to conceal Biden’s cognitive decline,” a presidential memorandum iss... -
Dawn - 12:22 Jun 05, 2025
Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfaraz Bugti on Thursday said Pakistan was fighting a full-fledged “intelligence-driven war” funded by India’s Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) and carried out through “Indian proxies”. The security situation in Balochistan has deteriorated, with militants escalating attacks as part of a long-running insurgency. Last month, Inter-Services Public Relations Director General Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry accused India of activating its “assets” post-Pahalgam to intensify terrorism in Pakistan, citing “irrefutable evidence” of state-sponsored attacks directed by Indian military personnel. He said “credible intelligence” showed India tasked groups such as the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban and other militant cells to ramp up activity. Addressing a press conference in Islamabad today, Bugti referred to the attacks in his province and said: “This is a completely Raw-funded intelligence-driven war against the state of Pakistan.” He said India changed its narrative after suffering a crushing blow... -
Dawn - 12:18 Jun 05, 2025
Russian President Vladimir Putin is ready to “help resolve” the standoff between Iran and the United States over Tehran’s nuclear programme, the Kremlin said on Thursday. “We have a close partnership with Tehran. And President Putin said that he was ready to use this partnership to help resolve the Iranian nuclear issue,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. After a call between the leaders on Wednesday, US President Donald Trump said Putin had offered to “participate” in talks on Tehran’s nuclear programme, as Trump accused Iran of “slow-walking” its response to Washington’s offer of a deal. Washington and Tehran have held five rounds of talks since April to thrash out a new accord to replace the nuclear deal that Trump abandoned during his first term in 2018. Trump said on Monday that his administration would not allow “any” enrichment of uranium, despite Tehran’s insistence that it has the right under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said earlier... -
Dawn - 12:04 Jun 05, 2025
Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Omar Ayub Khan on Thursday submitted a request to National Assembly (NA) Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq to constitute a committee to appoint a new chief election commissioner (CEC) and two new members of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). The constitutional deadline for the appointment of a new chief election commissioner and two members of the ECP expired on March 12, with no action from the government. On Wednesday, it emerged that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif wrote a letter to Ayub inviting him to join consultations to appoint a new CEC. No exact date for a meeting was given, nor were any names released about prospective CECs in the letter, dated May 16. In today’s letter to the NA speaker — seen by Dawn.com — Ayub recalled a previous letter written on January 15 in which he requested that the parliamentary process to appoint a new CEC be initiated. “I am writing once again to remind you that a considerable period has passed since the expiry of the Chief Ele... -
Dawn - 11:30 Jun 05, 2025
The man charged with fire-bombing a Colorado march by people who wanted to raise awareness of Israeli hostages in Gaza is scheduled to be formally charged in state court on Thursday, as those he targeted vowed to carry on their efforts. State prosecutors say Mohamed Soliman, 45, faces nearly 400 years in prison on attempted murder charges in state court. He also faces other state charges. Prosecutors on Wednesday said the number of people injured in the attack rose to 15 ranging in age from 25 to 88. A dog also was injured. Soliman also faces federal hate crimes charges that carry a life sentence. A federal court appearance is scheduled for Friday. The Boulder public defenders office, listed in court documents as representing Soliman, did not respond to a request for comment. Prosecutors say that Soliman, an Egyptian national, on Sunday tossed Molotov cocktails and yelled “Free Palestine” at people taking part in an event organised by Run for Their Lives, an organisation devoted to drawing attention to the ho... -
Dawn - 11:05 Jun 05, 2025
With the heatwave in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa likely to intensify from June 7 to 12, the provincial disaster management authority (PDMA) on Thursday issued an advisory cautioning the public. Day temperatures are likely to remain 5 to 7°C above normal from June 7-12 in Peshawar, Swabi, Mardan, Charsadda, Nowshera, Kohat, Hangu, Bannu, Karak, Lakki Marwat, Khyber, Kurram, Orakzai, Waziristan, Tank, Dera Ismail Khan, Chitral, Dir, Swat, Kohistan, Shangla, Battagram, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Haripur, Buner, Malakand, Bajaur and Mohmand, according to a PDMA advisory dated June 5, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com. “Additionally, dust storm/rain-thunderstorm associated with gusty winds are expected over the province,” PDMA said. It noted that rising temperatures in upper areas may enhance the snowmelt rate during the forecasted period, and advised precautionary measures be taken to avoid any loss of life, damages to crops/ infrastructure and livestock. The general public, especially senior citizens and children, sh... -
Dawn - 09:55 Jun 05, 2025
A Karachi resident who was assaulted in the Defence Housing Authority earlier this week says he has forgiven the suspect and does not want to take the case to court, even as a judge rejected the suspect’s bail in a separate hearing. On Monday, Karachi police arrested a main suspect along with two of his employees over charges of beating a citizen named Dheeraj. The suspect, identified as Salman Farooqi, was arrested from DHA and his vehicle was impounded. Farooqi, who was travelling in a luxury car, allegedly assaulted a motorcyclist accompanied by a woman on the Khayaban-i-Ittehad Road following a minor accident. A judicial magistrate on Tuesday remanded Farooqi and his guard, Owais Hashmi in police custody in the case. They were produced in court today by the police following the completion of their two-day remand. Today, Dheeraj appeared in court and identified the suspect. “I was not aware that the court had summoned me,” he said. “The lawyer told me today, so I appeared.” The judicial magistrate asked Dh... -
Dawn - 08:33 Jun 05, 2025
KARACHI: A man attempted suicide after killing his wife and a minor son in Surjani Town on Wednesday, police said. They added that Faisal Sagheer, 45, allegedly killed his wife Sana, 35, and 10-year-old son Mohammed Ali. Later on, he attempted suicide by cutting his throat and got injured. Surjani Town police SHO Mohammed Ali Shah told Dawn that Faisal owned a hardware shop in the area but on the day of the incident, he did not open it. His children study the Quran at the home of his sister in the vicinity of the same area, but on that day they did not attend the class as well. It triggered suspicion among his relatives. Faisal’s sister made calls on the cell phone of her sister-in-law, which was on, but no one responded. Ultimately, she visited the residence of her brother in Yusuf Goth near Karimi Chowrangi, knocked at the door but did not get any response. Then she saw from a window that both her brother and sister-in-law were struggling for their lives. She raised alarm, alerting neighbours who entered th... -
Dawn - 05:46 Jun 05, 2025
ISLAMABAD: A local court on Wednesday approved a 14-day judicial remand for Omar Hayat, the prime suspect in the murder of social media influencer Sana Yousaf, to facilitate his identification parade. The accused was presented before Judicial Magistrate Ahmed Shehzad Gondal by the federal police. Tensions rose in the courtroom when the magistrate noticed the absence of both the prosecutor and the district public prosecutor. Expressing his displeasure, Magistrate Gondal said: “Where are the prosecutors of my court? Usually, no one shows up, but today the courtroom is full.” Upon being informed by the duty prosecutor that the regular prosecutor was on leave, the magistrate ordered the presence of the district prosecutor before the proceedings could continue. The hearing was briefly adjourned, and the accused was taken back into police custody while awaiting the district prosecutor’s arrival. Identification parade to be conducted once victim’s mother, aunt return from Chitral Senator Falak Naz was also present i... -
Dawn - 05:28 Jun 05, 2025
• Ordinance promulgated to empower CM to post PSP officers in Sindh jails in place of officials from prisons service • 105 rearrested out of 216 escapees so far • Meetings between families, inmates resume KARACHI: Police and allied agencies are taking all-out efforts to recapture over a hundred prisoners who escaped from District Prison Malir on Monday night and are still at large, officials said on Wednesday. The jailbreak began on Monday night and continued into the early hours of Tuesday after hundreds of prisoners — spooked by low-intensity quakes — were allowed into the prison courtyard. Later, the prisoners snatched guns from prison staff and forced open the main gate after a shootout and fled. Officials said that 216 inmates had managed to break out of the prison and by Tuesday night 83 of them had been rounded up and police teams were carrying out raids to bring in those still at large. On Wednesday, jail officials accompanying Sindh Prisons Minister Ali Hasan Zardari during his visit to the Malir jai... -
Dawn - 04:58 Jun 05, 2025
• Delay in submission of response to challenges irks court • Fear has gripped media industry, judge told ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday issued a final deadline to the federal government to respond to the identical petitions filed against “controversial amendments” in the cybercrimes law, and hinted at deciding the matter ex parte if replies to the challenges were not received. Justice Raja Inaam Ameen Minhas issued final notices to the Ministry of Law and Justice, Ministry of Information Technology, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA, and the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to submit their replies to the petitions filed against controversial amendments to the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca). The judge made it clear that the hearing will proceed even if responses were not filed. The petitions filed by the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists, anchorpersons, and various journalist organisations have challenged the expanded scope of Peca, which, th... -
Dawn - 04:46 Jun 05, 2025
US President Donald Trump signed a new travel ban on Wednesday targeting 12 countries — including Afghanistan, Iran and Yemen — reviving one of the most controversial measures from his first term. Trump said the measure was spurred by a makeshift flamethrower attack on a Jewish protest in Colorado that US authorities blamed on a man they said was in the country illegally. The move bans all travel to the United States by nationals of Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. Trump also imposed a partial ban on travellers from seven countries: Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela. Some temporary work visas from these countries will be allowed. The bans go into effect on Monday, the White House said. “The recent terror attack in Boulder, Colorado has underscored the extreme dangers posed to our country by the entry of foreign nationals who are not properly vetted,” Trump said in a video message from ... -
Dawn - 04:32 Jun 05, 2025
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has approved a reduction in duties on over 7,066 tariff lines, which include raw materials, intermediate and capital goods aimed at stimulating industrial growth in the country. The premier green-lit the proposals for a formal announcement in the budget speech, which had received earlier approval from the Tariff Policy Board and Steering Committee. However, the premier asked that the implementation committee identify any irritants before the budget announcement. Official sources told Dawn on Wednesday that the government will announce the abolishing of 2 per cent additional customs duty (ACD) on 4,294 tariff lines in the upcoming budget. These are mostly raw materials, which will reduce the industries’ input cost. It was also decided that the ACD will be reduced from 4pc to 2pc on 545 tariff lines, from 6pc to 4pc on 2,227 tariff lines, and from 7pc to 6pc for all products currently subject to a customs duty above 20pc. Orders committee to consult sectors enjoying 1... -
Dawn - 03:05 Jun 05, 2025
• Lender wants agri tax enforced, takes exception to plan to sell surplus power at cheaper rates • Fund calls for strategy to stop tax evasion, financial leakage; opposes provincial energy subsidises ISLAMABAD: Amid final consultations on the budget, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) wants strict compliance with programme requirements, including the coverage of agriculture income tax in provincial budgets to ensure effective collection starting no later than September 2025. The Fund also does not agree with a plan for incentivising enhanced power consumption desired by the federal government to absorb surplus capacity. Informed sources said the IMF wanted a strong commitment from the provinces for expenditure control, notwithstanding expansionary development plans presented by the provinces and approved by the National Economic Council (NEC). The four provinces have already exceeded their development allocations for next year by almost Rs850 billion than the IMF’s estimates. The provinces, on the other ha... -
Dawn - 18:58 Jun 04, 2025
US President Donald Trump said he spoke to Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Wednesday about Ukraine and Iran, warning that the Kremlin leader had “very strongly” pledged to respond to Kyiv’s stunning drone attack on Russian bombers. Trump said that there was no “immediate peace” on the horizon in Ukraine — which Russia invaded in 2022 — following what he described as a one-hour and 15-minute call with the Russian president. On Iran, Trump said that Putin had offered to “participate” in talks on Tehran’s nuclear programme, as Trump accused the Islamic republic of “slow walking” its response to Washington’s offer of a deal. The call came three days after Ukraine conducted a massive, daring drone attack against Russian military airbases, saying it had destroyed several Russian nuclear-capable bombers worth billions of dollars. Trump said that he and Putin had “discussed the attack on Russia’s docked airplanes, by Ukraine and also various other attacks that have been taking place by both sides”. “It was a go... -
Dawn - 18:24 Jun 04, 2025
Pakistan was appointed as the vice chair of the UN Security Council’s (UNSC) Counter-Terrorism Committee on Wednesday. The committee was established by UNSC resolution 1373 (2001), adopted unanimously on September 28, 2001, after the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States. The committee, comprising all 15 UNSC members, is tasked with monitoring implementation of the above resolution, which requested countries to implement several measures intended to enhance their legal and institutional ability to counter terrorist activities at home, in their regions and around the world. Pakistan was also appointed head of the UNSC committee established pursuant to resolution 1988 (2011), which oversees the implementation of the sanctions measures on the Afghan Taliban. In a press release, the Pakistan Mission to the UN called the appointments a “significant diplomatic development”. It added that Pakistan was also appointed as the co-chair of the UNSC’s Informal Working Group (IWG) on documentation (working me...
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