Dawn
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Dawn - 17:47 Nov 05, 2025
As the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD) opens for business at COP30 later this month with money grossly insufficient to address damage caused by climate change, Pakistan is expected to submit proposals to the tune of $10-20 million to the FRLD board despite reservations. Three years after its operationalisation at COP27 in Egypt, the fund has about $300 million in total and pledges of $700m by the Global North countries. Intended as a rapid response fund, the fund, with its interim secretariat based in the World Bank, has failed to disburse even a single penny to the affected countries, said civil society leaders spearheading the ‘Fill the Fund’ campaign. Climate minister Musadik Malik also confirmed that Pakistan did not receive a single dollar from the loss and damage fund despite the catastrophic losses it has faced due to global warming. Speaking to Dawn, Malik said the fund decided to operationalise $250m for its call for proposals at COP30 in Belem and 50 per cent of this amount was exclusi... -
Dawn - 17:33 Nov 05, 2025
Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his top officials on Wednesday to draft proposals for a possible test of nuclear weapons, something Moscow has not done since the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union. The order — responding to President Donald Trump’s announcement last week that the United States would resume testing — was a further signal that the two countries with the world’s largest nuclear arsenals are rapidly nearing a step that could sharply escalate geopolitical tensions. “I am instructing the Foreign Ministry, the Defence Ministry … the special services and relevant civilian agencies to do everything possible to collect additional information on the issue, analyse it at the Security Council and make agreed proposals on the possible start of work on the preparation of nuclear weapons tests,” Putin said in televised remarks. Russia-US relations have deteriorated sharply in the past few weeks as Trump, frustrated with a lack of progress towards ending the war in Ukraine, has cancelled a planned sum... -
Dawn - 16:30 Nov 05, 2025
Defence Minister Khawaja Asif confirms delegation’s departure for Istanbul talks with Afghan Taliban
Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Wednesday confirmed that Pakistan’s delegation had departed for tomorrow’s talks with the Afghan Taliban in Istanbul to find a solution to the current tensions between the two neighbours. A second round of discussions between Pakistani and Afghan Taliban delegations had begun in Istanbul on October 25, following days of border hostilities, but Islamabad’s long-standing concern over terror attacks emanating from Kabul remained a major point of contention, resulting in a stalemate. A breakthrough came after Turkiye and Qatar salvaged the dialogue process for the second time in less than a week, following Pakistan’s announcement on Oct 29 that the talks had “failed” and that its negotiators were preparing to return home. The talks produced a three-point understanding — the continuation of the ceasefire, the establishment of a monitoring and verification mechanism to ensure peace, and penalties for violations. The operational details of that mechanism are expected to be finalised ... -
Dawn - 16:23 Nov 05, 2025
PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan on Wednesday termed the proposed 27th amendment an “attack on the House” and said that he and his party would continue to raise their voices against it. According to PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, proposals for this new amendment include setting up constitutional courts, restoring executive magistrates, ending protection for provincial shares under the National Finance Commission (NFC) and amendments to Article 243 of the Constitution, which pertains to the command of armed forces. Addressing the National Assembly today, the PTI chairman spoke about the proposed amendment, remarking that when the 26th Amendment was being passed, the PTI “made great efforts” with Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman. “Maybe this time we won’t need to visit his (Fazl) home, or sit with you in committee,” Gohar said, directly addressing the deputy speaker, who was chairing today’s session. “We will raise our voice against it as it is an attack on the House.” Gohar adde... -
Dawn - 15:48 Nov 05, 2025
An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Islamabad on Wednesday issued arrest warrants for eight PTI leaders, including Asad Qaiser, Shibli Faraz, Omar Ayub and Ali Nawaz Awan, in a case registered under terrorism provisions. Today’s hearing was presided over by ATC Judge Tahir Abbas Sipra, with none of the PTI leaders appearing before the court despite being repeatedly summoned. Expressing displeasure over their continued absence, the judge ordered their arrest and directed authorities to produce them before November 11. The hearing was subsequently adjourned until the next date. The case was registered by the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) against the PTI leaders under relevant sections of the anti-terrorism act with charges of involvement in activities falling within the ambit of terrorism-related offences. Non-bailable arrest warrants for Gandapur In a separate development, Additional District and Sessions Judge Nasruminallah Baloch issued non-bailable arrest warrants for former Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minis... -
Dawn - 14:58 Nov 05, 2025
President Asif Ali Zardari met with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani in Doha on Wednesday and offered to expand bilateral cooperation in the areas of defence and defence production between Pakistan and Qatar, a statement issued by the Presidency said. According to the statement, the Qatari emir “responded positively” to the offer and said he would instruct the relevant authorities to initiate discussions with Pakistan in this regard immediately. The bilateral meeting was held on sidelines of the Second World Summit for Social Development, which is being held in Qatari capital Doha from November 4 to 6. President Zardari is representing Pakistan at the moot. The Presidency’s statement said that the Qatari leader also “expressed satisfaction at the recent Pakistan-Saudi Arabia defence agreement”. “It was a welcome and timely step that should have happened earlier,” the statement quoted al-Thani as saying. He also noted Pakistan’s “unique position as a country maintaining strategic ties with China, th... -
Dawn - 14:56 Nov 05, 2025
Gaza’s Nasser Hospital in the southern city of Khan Yunis on Wednesday said it had received the bodies of 15 Palestinian prisoners under the US-brokered ceasefire exchange deal. “The tenth batch of the bodies of Palestinian martyrs has arrived at Nasser Medical Complex in the Gaza Strip, numbering 15 martyrs,” the hospital said in a statement, noting that 285 bodies were received under the agreement in total. They were returned in exchange for the latest hostage body handed back from Gaza on Tuesday, that of Israeli-American soldier Itay Chen. Under the terms of the US-brokered agreement in effect since October 10, Israel returns 15 bodies of Palestinians for every body it receives of an Israeli hostage who had been held in Gaza. At the start of the truce, Hamas held 48 hostages in Gaza — 20 alive and 28 deceased. The militants have since released all the surviving captives, as well as 21 of the deceased’s remains. Israel has accused Hamas of dragging its feet in returning the bodies of deceased hostages, whi... -
Dawn - 14:03 Nov 05, 2025
A man has been arrested for allegedly groping and trying to kiss Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum as she greeted supporters in the country’s capital. The incident occurred on Tuesday as Sheinbaum walked to an event near the presidential palace, shaking hands and taking pictures with people along the way, videos on social media showed. The man approached Sheinbaum, put his arm around her shoulder and with the other hand, touched her hip and chest while attempting to kiss her neck. A member of the presidential security detail pulled away the man, who appeared to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Despite his behaviour, Sheinbaum treated the man politely, agreeing to take a picture with him, then patting him on the back. Security authorities later reported that the man had been arrested. The head of Mexico’s Ministry of Women — a department created by Sheinbaum – commented on the incident. “We condemn the act that our president experienced today,” Minister Citlali Hernandez said in a post on X that a... -
Dawn - 13:57 Nov 05, 2025
Sikh devotees on Wednesday gathered to celebrate the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev, the founder of Sikhism, in Punjab’s Nankana Sahib. On Tuesday, Pakistan had welcomed dozens of pilgrims from India in the first major crossing since deadly clashes in May closed the Wagah-Attari border in Punjab between the nuclear-armed neighbours. More than 2,100 pilgrims were granted visas to attend a 10-day festival marking the 556th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak, Pakistan’s High Commission (embassy) in New Delhi said last week. Sikh devotees gather around a bus carrying the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh holy book, during a religious procession on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev, the founder of Sikhism, in Nankana Sahib, in Punjab. — AFP Sikh devotees gather around a bus carrying the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh holy book, during a religious procession on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev, the founder of Sikhism, in Nankana Sahib, in Punjab. — AFP Sikh pilgrims pay respect... -
Dawn - 13:23 Nov 05, 2025
The United States Supreme Court is due on Wednesday to hear arguments over the legality of Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs in a case with implications for the global economy that marks a major test of the Republican president’s powers and the willingness of the justices to let him push the limits of his authority. The arguments are set to begin at 10am EST (1500 GMT) after lower courts ruled that Trump’s unprecedented use of a 1977 federal law meant for national emergencies to impose the tariffs exceeded his authority. The challenge involves three lawsuits brought by businesses affected by the tariffs and 12 US states, most of them Democratic-led. Trump has heaped pressure on the Supreme Court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority, to preserve tariffs that he has leveraged as a key economic and foreign policy tool. The tariffs could add up to trillions of dollars for the US over the next decade. If the justices strike them down, “we would be defenceless, leading perhaps even to the ruination of our nation”, ... -
Dawn - 13:15 Nov 05, 2025
The Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) on Wednesday demanded that local governments (LGs) be given autonomy in the proposed 27th Constitutional Amendment. After the PPP revealed key features of the proposed amendment for which the government sought its support, Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar said yesterday that the legislation for the tweaks will soon be tabled in Parliament. MQM-P leader Farooq Sattar presented his party’s demand today while addressing a press conference in Islamabad, alongside party leader Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui. Sattar asserted that after provincial autonomy had been granted under the 18th Amendment of 2010, the “next step naturally is local autonomy, so it’s turn must come”. “The important thing that we also said at the time of the 26th Amendment, that our constitutional amendment package be included,” he said, referring to its agreement with the PML-N to empower local governments. “But it did not happen,” Sattar lamented, calling for the matter to be included in the 27th Amendme... -
Dawn - 13:10 Nov 05, 2025
The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) on Wednesday issued a notification announcing that the deadline for taxpayers filing returns using manual forms rather than its web portal has been extended until November 30. According to the notification, the tax body stated that it is discontinuing the use of manual forms to file returns in favour of digitising all of its data. However, it recognised that until last year, a “small fraction of people” were still filing tax returns manually. “As a special dispensation, it has been decided that a cell in each tax office of Pakistan dealing with such taxpayers (manual filers) will provide all legal and technical support to such taxpayers,” the notification read. “Such taxpayer’s return filing date is hereby extended till [November 30], in exercise of the powers conferred under Section 214A of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001, for smooth completion of the process.” The notification requested that taxpayers filing manually contact their respective tax offices, where they would re... -
Dawn - 12:48 Nov 05, 2025
An Islamabad court issued non-bailable arrest warrants for human rights activist and lawyer Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and her husband, Advocate Hadi Ali Chattha, in a case related to controversial social media posts. The National Cybercrime Investigation Agency 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. Both had denied the charges. The court had summoned all prosecution witnesses for today’s hearing. The judge presided over the hearing today in which Chattha expressed a lack of confidence in the court, to which ADSJ Majoka said the case could have been transferred if the lack of confidence had been expressed before the couple’s indictment. He added that only the high court could transfer the case ... -
Dawn - 12:16 Nov 05, 2025
After years of captivity at the Karachi Zoo, 24-year-old female brown bear Rano was flown to Islamabad on Wednesday, where she was moved to a sanctuary for a second chance at life. According to Sindh Wildlife Conservator Javed Ahmed Mahar, Rano was transported to the capital on a Pakistan Air Force C-130 aircraft, which took off at 8:30am and landed at the Nur Khan Airbase a little after 11:30am. From the Karachi Zoo, the bear was first taken to Faisal Base in a wooden brown crate on a cargo pickup truck, which Islamabad Wildlife Management Board (IWMB) officials said she entered willingly and without having to be sedated. “At just three calls, she walked from the sleeping area in her enclosure and into the crate,” said Sana Raja of the IWMB in a video. She added that Rano did not show any signs of distress and was also eating well. The wooden crate in which Rano is being transferred. Meanwhile, Mahar said that the team continuously monitored the bear on the flight, while Rano, despite the roar of the C-130 e... -
Dawn - 11:36 Nov 05, 2025
Zohran Mamdani, a 34-year-old Democratic socialist, won the New York City mayoral race on Tuesday, capping a meteoric rise from a little-known state lawmaker to one of the United State’s most visible Democratic figures. According to CBS, Mamdani received 1,035,645 votes (50.4 per cent) against 854,783 (41.6pc) for former New York governor Andrew Cuomo and 146,127 (7.1pc) for Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa. Mamdani will become the first Muslim mayor of the largest US city. He defeated Democratic former Governor Andrew Cuomo, 67, who ran as an independent after losing the nomination to Mamdani in the primary election. The campaign served as an ideological and generational contest that could have national implications for the Democratic Party. Democrats won two key state governor races, sending an early warning signal to Republican President Donald Trump ahead of the 2026 midterms. The clean sweep among several ballots nationwide has boosted morale among Democrats bruised by Trump’s return to the White House ... -
Dawn - 10:53 Nov 05, 2025
Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Wednesday termed population and climate change as “existential issues” that Pakistan must address to realise its potential. Pakistan is home to a vast population of over 251 million, according to the World Bank. The Bank states the annual population growth rate for 2024 at 1.5 per cent, with the government’s 2023 census showing that the population grew by 2.55pc from 207.7m in 2017 to 241.5m in 2023. “I am very clear: we cannot realise the potential of this country unless we address two existential issues — population and climate change,” Aurangzeb said while addressing a gathering of the business community in Karachi. “Only saying that we do not make emissions but have to adapt, so demonstrate it,” he said, referring to Pakistan’s oft-repeated argument that the country contributes less than 1pc to global carbon emissions but faces catastrophic climate change-induced events. “We have funding. First utilise the funding we have,” the finance minister stressed as he respond... -
Dawn - 10:13 Nov 05, 2025
Awami Muslim League (AML) chief Sheikh Rashid Ahmed was barred from travelling to Saudi Arabia for Umrah on Wednesday, despite directives from the Lahore High Court (LHC) allowing him to travel abroad. According to an October 30 court order — a copy of which is available with Dawn — the AML leader’s name had been removed from the Exit Control List (ECL), following involvement in several May 9 cases. The court had directed relevant authorities to allow him to travel. However, in a video message posted on the social media platform X, Rashid alleged: “Today, I was stopped from going to Saudi Arabia for Umrah, despite having permission from LHC’s Rawalpindi bench under Justice Sadaqat Ali Khan.” The AML leader recalled that the “court had directed relevant authorities — who were present in the hearing — to comply and strictly adhere to the directives, yet I have been told that I can not go.” Rashid alleged that two airport officers told him he “could not go and refused to obey the court order”. Rashid vowed to fi... -
Dawn - 08:19 Nov 05, 2025
United States President Donald Trump speaks often with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and trade teams from both countries continue to hold talks, the White House said on Tuesday. “The president and his trade team continue to be in very serious discussions with India,” White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told reporters. “I know the president has great respect for Prime Minister Modi, and they speak pretty frequently.” Trump said last week in South Korea that he wanted to reach a trade deal with India — signalling a thaw in relations that soured to their lowest point in decades after the US president doubled tariffs on Indian imports to 50 per cent as punishment for India’s purchases of Russian oil. Indian refiners cut Russian oil imports after Washington imposed sanctions last week on Moscow’s top two crude exporters, Rosneft and Lukoil. Earlier this month, Trump claimed that Modi has agreed to cut Russian oil imports — something New Delhi has not commented on. A White House official said New Delhi h... -
Dawn - 07:38 Nov 05, 2025
The Trump administration is considering a Saudi Arabian request to buy as many as 48 F-35 fighter jets, a potential multi-billion-dollar deal that has cleared a key Pentagon hurdle ahead of a visit by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, two sources familiar with the matter said. A sale would mark a significant policy shift, potentially altering the military balance in the Middle East and testing Washington’s definition of maintaining Israel’s “qualitative military edge.” Saudi Arabia made a direct appeal earlier this year to US President Donald Trump and has long been interested in Lockheed Martin’s fighter, one of the people and a US official said. The Pentagon is now weighing a potential sale of 48 of the advanced aircraft, the US official and the person familiar with the talks told Reuters. The size of the request and its status have not been previously reported. The US official and a second US official, who acknowledged the weapons deal was moving through the system, said no final decision has been made and... -
Dawn - 07:37 Nov 05, 2025
Karachi police said on Wednesday that a man had been arrested for allegedly firing on citizens who had torched a heavy vehicle that had struck a young man and injured his wife a day earlier. Angered citizens on Tuesday had set a dumper truck on fire in the city’s Garden area after it crashed into a couple on a motorcycle, killing 23-year-old Shahzeb Shahid and injuring his wife Misbah. A case was also registered against Liaquat Mehsud, the Sindh president of the All Dumper Truck Owners Association, and other suspects for firing on the enraged protesters at the scene. South Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Syed Asad Raza on Wednesday said that police had arrested one suspect, identified as one of Mehsud’s gunmen, on charges of firing on the protesters. The weapon used in the incident was also recovered, he said in a statement. “Raids are being conducted to arrest the president of the dumpers association, Liaquat Mehsud,” he added. Ex-MQM-P lawmaker booked under Peca for threatening Mehsud Separately, Garden poli...
5467 items