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Dawn - 15:52 Nov 06, 2025
PPP Information Secretary Shazia Marri said on Thursday that the party would not support any rollback of the 18th Amendment or the NFC Award if the government sought its backing. Speaking to reporters in Karachi outside the Bilawal House, Marri said that her party will never take away the rights given to provinces. “When it comes to provinces, the PPP has a very clear stance […] the Pakistan Peoples Party wants to see the strengthening of the provinces, and it will never take away its rights or agree to proposals that may [compromise its rights],” she said. However, she added that if any constitutional amendments could improve Pakistan’s governance system, enhance institutional performance, and deliver greater relief to citizens, the PPP would be open to considering and supporting such proposals. “There are fears and speculations that there will be discussions [today] regarding the 18th Amendment or the NFC share. The PPP has a very clear stance on this — we will never step back. Rolling back the 18th Amendme... -
Dawn - 15:47 Nov 06, 2025
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi said on Thursday that he was unable to meet the chief justice of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) earlier today and was denied permission to meet PTI founder and ex-premier Imran Khan at Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail. Afridi has been seeking a meeting with the former premier, who is incarcerated at Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail, since he was sworn in as the KP CM on October 15. He has been denied access to the PTI founder at least four times since then, despite the IHC’s directives to implement its March order that reinstated a twice-a-week meeting schedule for Imran. Addressing reporters outside the prison, CM Afridi lamented that he was unable to meet the party founder and the chief justice of the IHC, the latter of whom he had waited 90 minutes to meet before leaving empty-handed. “As you all know, there have been continuous efforts through constitutional and legal means; this is the fifth time,” he said, referring to how frequently he was denied a meeting with the PTI f... -
Dawn - 15:40 Nov 06, 2025
The Foreign Office (FO) on Thursday rejected “unfounded and misleading” allegations that members of the Hindu community were denied entry into the country on religious grounds, clarifying the action was “purely administrative” and consistent with Islamabad’s sovereign right to regulate entry into its territory. Earlier this week, Pakistan welcomed Sikh pilgrims from India, with over 2,000 pilgrims granted visas to attend a 10-day festival marking the 556th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak, founder of the Sikh faith. However, Indian media claimed yesterday that an Indian national and six family members were reportedly denied entry into Pakistan, with officials allegedly citing their Hindu faith as the reason for refusal. In a statement today, FO said that these claims are “entirely baseless and represent yet another attempt to distort facts and politicise a matter that was purely administrative in nature”. “High Commission for Pakistan, New Delhi, had issued over 2,400 visas to Sikh pilgrims from India to parti... -
Dawn - 14:10 Nov 06, 2025
“Vibe coding”, a word that essentially means using artificial intelligence (AI) to tell a machine what you want instead of coding it yourself, was on Thursday named the Collins Word of the Year 2025. Coined by OpenAI co-founder Andrej Karpathy, the word refers to “an emerging software development that turns natural language into computer code using AI”, according to Collins Dictionary. “It’s programming by vibes, not variables,” said Collins. “While tech experts debate whether it’s revolutionary or reckless, the term has resonated far beyond Silicon Valley, speaking to a broader cultural shift towards AI-assisted everything in everyday life,” it added. Lexicographers at Collins Dictionary monitor the 24 billion-word Collins Corpus, which draws from a range of media sources, including social media, to create the annual list of new and notable words that reflect our ever-evolving language. The 2025 shortlist highlights a range of words that have emerged in the past year to pithily reflect the changing world aro... -
Dawn - 13:46 Nov 06, 2025
Society of Aircraft Engineers of Pakistan (SAEP) President Abdullah Jadoon and Secretary General Awais Jadoon were dismissed from service on Thursday amid an ongoing tiff with the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA). PIA spokesperson Abdullah Hafiz confirmed the development to Dawn. The national flag carrier also issued two dismissal notices to the engineers, copies of which are available with Dawn. Abdullah’s role was stated as an aircraft engineer (PG-VI), while Awais was an aircraft engineer (PG-VIII). The dismissal letters said that notices were issued to the SAEP president for conducting a press conference without prior authorisation and for disclosing official information to the media, and to the SAEP secretary general, for the unauthorised disclosure of confidential operational information and PIA images. “In order to enquire into the allegations/charges communicated to you via the aforesaid showcause notice, an enquiry was conducted wherein you failed to participate despite providing ample opportuni... -
Dawn - 13:16 Nov 06, 2025
Federal Minister for Frontier Affairs Amir Muqam announced on Thursday that the federal government would take part in the upcoming peace jirga called by the PTI. The announcement was made as Muqam held a joint press conference alongside PTI stalwart Asad Qaiser in Islamabad. Earlier this week, the PTI decided to convene a peace jirga in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly (KPA) on November 12 to discuss the volatile law and order situation in the province. “We have conveyed our requests to the federal government and are grateful that they accepted our invitation,” Qaiser said while jointly addressing reporters after the meeting. “We have come together and we know what policy we want. Whatever it is, the province’s people and leadership need to come together to create a concerted plan of action,” he added. In response to a question, Muqam said that the PTI presented “the reason why we are here” and that the government accepted it. “They said they wanted peace and that we are all one,” he added. Meanwhile, Qaiser w... -
Dawn - 13:16 Nov 06, 2025
The British Army’s Chief of the General Staff (CGS) Gen Sir Charles Roland Vincent Walker on Thursday met Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir in Rawalpindi, where the two discussed boosting bilateral defence cooperation. The meeting between the army chiefs took place at the General Headquarters (GHQ), a press release from the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said. “During the meeting, matters of mutual interest, regional security and measures to further enhance bilateral defence cooperation were discussed,” it said. “Both sides reiterated the need for continued collaboration to ensure peace and stability in the region,” the military’s media affairs wing added. The British Army’s Chief of the General Staff (CGS) Gen Sir Charles Roland Vincent Walker calls on Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir in Rawalpindi on Nov 6, 2025. — ISPR Gen Walker “appreciated Pakistan Army’s achievements and sacrifices in the fight against terrorism and its efforts for regional peace and stabili... -
Dawn - 13:05 Nov 06, 2025
Arshad Nadeem’s coach Salman Butt will travel with him for the upcoming Islamic Solidarity Games next week despite having been slapped with a lifetime ban by the Athletics Federation of Pakistan (AFP) which prohibits him from participating in any athletics activities. The ban, which the federation imposed on Salman on October 12 “for gross violations of the AFP Constitution”, barred Salman from participating in any athletics activity “whether as an athlete, coach, official, or office bearer, at both national and international levels, inside or outside Pakistan.” AFP cited “illegal and unconstitutional” elections held on August 31 by the Punjab Athletics Association — of which Salman was president till August 6 — as the primary reason for the ban. The ban came just days after AFP asked Salman to explain Arshad’s 10th-place finish at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo in September. The matter descended into the legal sphere when Salman approached the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) on Oct 14 to hear the cas... -
Dawn - 12:16 Nov 06, 2025
China has begun modest purchases of the United States’ farm products after the leaders of both countries met last week, but traders still await significant soybean buys after the White House said Beijing pledged to buy 12 million tonnes by year-end. The top market for US farmers, China has turned its vast appetite for crops into a powerful trade war bargaining chip, largely avoiding US wheat and soybeans in favour of other supplies, after rounds of tit-for-tat tariffs. Chinese buyers have booked two cargoes of US wheat, the first such purchases since October last year, two traders said on Thursday, while a sorghum shipment has been sent from the US to China, a US industry official said. The deals to import US agricultural goods come as Beijing confirmed on Wednesday that it suspended retaliatory tariffs on US imports, including duties on farm goods, although shipments of US soybeans still face a 13 per cent tariff. Soft white and spring wheat cargoes The purchases of about 120,000 tonnes for December shipment... -
Dawn - 11:55 Nov 06, 2025
Gunmen on motorbikes attacked a Bangladesh political rally, killing one person and wounding two others, including a candidate, officials said on Thursday, after parties began campaigning for landmark elections. Major parties opened their campaigns on Wednesday for the elections slated for February 2026, the first since a deadly uprising last year toppled the autocratic government of former ruler Sheikh Hasina. Campaigning turned violent almost immediately. The shooting took place at a rally on Wednesday for the powerful Bangladesh National Party (BNP) attended by hundreds in the port city of Chattogram, police said. Senior BNP leader Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury said, “It was an attempt to destabilise politics and disrupt the election”. Major parties have unveiled their candidate lists, with the BNP saying this week that 80-year-old leader and three-time prime minister Khaleda Zia will run again, as well as her son, Tarique Rahman. The BNP are widely seen as the frontrunner in the polls. Police said the gunme... -
Dawn - 10:38 Nov 06, 2025
Pakistan resumed talks with Afghan Taliban representatives in Istanbul today in a third round of engagement aimed at ending cross-border terrorism and consolidating a fragile ceasefire that was initially agreed upon after border clashes last month. Since the skirmishes between October 11 and 15, Pakistan and Afghan Taliban representatives have held two rounds of talks — first in Doha and then in Istanbul — but a final agreement has not yet been achieved. For the third round, under the joint mediation of Turkiye and Qatar, delegations from both sides arrived in Istanbul on Wednesday. The talks are expected to continue for two days. In this round, Pakistan’s delegation is being led by Lt Gen Asim Malik, director general of the Inter-Services Intelligence, and includes senior officials from the military, intelligence agencies, and the Foreign Office. The Afghan Taliban’s delegation, meanwhile, includes General Directorate of Intelligence (GDI) chief Abdul Haq Waseq, Deputy Interior Minister Rehmatullah Najib, Ta... -
Dawn - 10:24 Nov 06, 2025
An Islamabad court on Thursday withdrew non-bailable arrest warrants issued a day earlier against human rights activist and lawyer Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and her husband, Advocate Hadi Ali Chattha, in a social media posts case, a day after. The National Cybercrime Investigation Agency (NCIA) had registered a case against Mazari and Chattha, accusing the two of attempting to incite divisions on linguistic grounds through social media posts and of creating the impression that the armed forces were engaged in terrorism within the country. Additional District and Sessions Judge (ADSJ) Muhammad Afzal Majoka had indicted the two in the case last week, in which both denied the charges. At yesterday’s hearing, the court issued non-bailable arrest warrants to the couple over repeated non-appearance. However, the accused alleged that they had appeared in front of the court and termed the hearing a “sham trial”. Today’s hearing, presided over by ADSJ Majoka, was called twice in the morning —first at 8:45am and later ... -
Dawn - 10:09 Nov 06, 2025
Shafiullah Jan, the special assistant to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister on information and public relations, said on Thursday that only the provincial chief executive could make decisions for ensuring lasting peace in the province. “We have the mandate. Any decision for lasting peace in the province will be made by the chief minister, and the provincial government will implement it,” Jan said while addressing a news conference in Peshawar. He said law and order was the biggest challenge for the provincial government, adding that the KP government was making efforts to address the issue. Jan further said that a multiparty conference was scheduled to be held next week and that the finalised terms of reference (ToRs) would be presented to the chief minister for further discussion with the stakeholders, to decide a future course of action for lasting peace in the province. Meanwhile, PTI Provincial Secretary General Ali Asghar requested all the political parties to share their suggestions, adding that PTI ... -
Dawn - 09:21 Nov 06, 2025
Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah on Thursday stressed the need to digitalise processes as he inaugurated the Student Attendance Monitoring and Redress System (SAMRS) to keep track of pupils’ attendance. SAMRS, an initiative of the school education and literacy department (SELD), has been developed under the Sindh Early Learning Enhancement through Classroom Transformation (SELECT) project. It will be rolled out in 600 schools across 12 districts. In a statement on X, the Sindh information department said the initiative represented a “significant step toward greater transparency and the promotion of data-driven education across the province”. Addressing the launch ceremony in Karachi today, CM Murad stressed the need for Pakistan to have proper databases due to an increase in the population. “The numbers have become so large that you can’t just keep track.” Underscoring the need to utilise digital platforms, the chief minister said the SAMRS was the “perfect way of doing it”. “I have said that we will go to... -
Dawn - 08:30 Nov 06, 2025
State-owned Qatar Airways has decided to sell its entire stake in Cathay Pacific Airways for about $897 million (HK$6.97 billion), marking its complete exit from Hong Kong’s flagship airline after eight years. Cathay said late on Wednesday that the Doha-based carrier had approached it about selling its entire 9.7 per cent stake, and it would repurchase the shareholding through a buyback at HK$10.8374 per share, roughly a 4pc discount to its last closing share price. The Gulf carrier had bought the stake in November 2017, making it the third-largest shareholder in Cathay after Swire Pacific and Air China. Cathay is paying roughly a 35pc premium over the price Qatar Airways originally paid for the stake to buy it back. The Hong Kong carrier said it would fund the deal through internal resources and existing credit lines. “I don’t think there’s anything special to read into it [buying back from Qatar]. I think it’s more likely about Qatar Airways having their own cash needs,” said Kenny Ng Lai-yin, securities st... -
Dawn - 07:28 Nov 06, 2025
Trump continues to comment on Pakistan-India May conflict, now says ‘8 planes shot down essentially’
Continuing to comment on the brief military conflict between Pakistan and India earlier this year, US President Donald Trump has now stated that eight planes were “essentially” shot down. “In eight months I ended eight wars, including Kosovo and Serbia, the Congo and Rwanda … Pakistan and India,” he said during a speech at the American Business Forum in Miami late on Wednesday. “I was in the midst of a trade deal with both of them. And then I read on the front page of a certain newspaper — I won’t mention the newspaper because it’s usually fake news — but I heard they are going to war. Eight planes, seven planes were shot down — an eighth was really badly wounded [sic]. But eight planes were shot down essentially,” he said. He reiterated his previous claims that he threatened not to make trade deals unless the two countries agreed to peace. “I’m not trading with you; we are not making any deals with you if you are at war with each other,” he said. “A day later, I get a call, ‘We made peace’. They stopped. I s... -
Dawn - 06:32 Nov 06, 2025
US President Donald Trump’s administration has revoked around 80,000 non-immigrant visas since its inauguration on January 20 for offences ranging from driving under the influence to assault and theft, a senior State Department official said on Wednesday. The extent of the revocations, first reported by the Washington Examiner, reflects a broad immigration crackdown initiated when Trump came into office, deporting an unprecedented number of migrants, including some who held valid visas. The administration has also adopted a stricter policy on granting visas, with tightened social media vetting and expanded screening. Around 16,000 of the visa revocations were tied to cases of driving under the influence, while about 12,000 were for assault and another 8,000 for theft. “These three crimes accounted for almost half of revocations this year,” said the senior State Department official, speaking on the condition of anonymity. In August, a State Department spokesperson said Washington had revoked more than 6,000 st... -
Dawn - 05:28 Nov 06, 2025
India’s Maharashtra state, home to the financial hub Mumbai, will be the first to roll out Elon Musk’s Starlink internet service in the world’s most populous country, the state’s chief minister said. The launch of Starlink, which provides high-speed internet to remote locations using low-orbit satellites, has sparked fierce debate in India over issues ranging from predatory pricing to spectrum allocation. India — projected to have more than 900 million internet users by year’s end — granted Starlink a licence in June. Maharashtra was “poised to become the first Indian state to formally collaborate with Starlink”, the state’s Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said on the Musk-owned platform X late Wednesday. “This collaboration … will ensure the state leads India in satellite-enabled digital infrastructure.” In March, India’s biggest telecom service providers — Jio Platforms and its rival Bharti Airtel — announced deals with SpaceX to offer Starlink internet to their customers. Starlink’s business operations Vi... -
Dawn - 19:03 Nov 05, 2025
A couple of days after an inquiry report on alleged irregularities in awarding the Rs170 billion Central Asian Regional Economic Cooperation (Carec) Tranche-III project was submitted to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, National Highway Authority (NHA) Chairman Sherheryar Sultan was removed and directed to report to the Establishment Division. Member administration of NHA, Omar Saeed Chaudhri, has also been repatriated to his parent department, the Ministry of Defence. The Establishment Division issued two separate notifications regarding the removal of the NHA chairman and the repatriation of the member to the Ministry of Defence. When contacted, the NHA spokesman said no one in the NHA and the Ministry of Communication was aware of the reason behind the chairman’s sudden removal. “The chairman worked in the office today (Wednesday) till 6pm, and the decision came in the night that stunned all in the NHA,” he added. The removal of the chairman is believed to be the fall of the biggest wicket in the NHA amid the... -
Dawn - 17:56 Nov 05, 2025
Commuters returning home from work or heading towards the city centre on Wednesday evening suffered a prolonged traffic jam on Karachi’s MA Jinnah Road, according to officials and citizens. People were stuck in traffic jams for hours during the peak evening rush after the main thoroughfare of MA Jinnah road near Numaish Chowrangi was closed by police for security reasons. The city’s traffic police had announced different diversions after the closure of the route, leading to traffic chaos, prompting Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah to take notice. Karachi Traffic Police (KTP) Deputy Inspector General Pir Mohammed Shah told Dawn that all traffic officers were present on the roads. He said a portion of the main MA Jinnah road was closed for traffic, which had caused the traffic jam. The city traffic police chief admitted that the citizens were facing immense inconvenience due to gridlocks. He said the roads near Numaish Chowrangi were closed for traffic because of security reasons, and diversions were provide...
5467 items