Dawn
Source:
https://www.dawn.com
Found 10444 news
-
Dawn - 18:17 Aug 06, 2025
The Trump administration’s abrupt decision to terminate foreign aid, including funding through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), delivered a jolt to Pakistan’s social sector, forcing many organisations to halt projects, lay off staff, and scale back operations. Days after beginning his second term in January, Trump announced a pause in all foreign assistance under his “America First” policy. The move further deepened an already challenging funding environment in Pakistan, where donor fatigue and shifting priorities have chipped away at global aid streams in recent years. Still, the development sector has managed to absorb the initial shocks. Experts say a shift in strategy, bolstered by growing support from the Pakistani diaspora and government contributions, has helped NGOs keep their work alive. “Pakistan’s decades-old development sector, particularly the big NGOs, is deep-rooted and is pursuing a multi-sectoral and multi-donor approach to avoid dependence on one or a few donor... -
Dawn - 18:11 Aug 06, 2025
Coordinator to the Prime Minister on Commerce and Industries Rana Ihsan Afzal has said that the government would be able to consider a pardon for PTI founder Imran Khan if he were to issue an apology for his crimes. Imran, imprisoned since August 2023, is serving a sentence at the Adiala Jail in a £190 million corruption case and also faces pending trials under the Anti-Terrorism Act related to the protests of May 9, 2023. In an interview on DawnNewsTV show ‘Doosra Rukh’ a day ago, Afzal said Imran’s sentence could be commuted if he were to issue a written apology to the president. “If he writes some mercy petition or an apology to the head of state, then in my opinion, his sentence can definitely be forgiven,” Afzal said. “The scope available in the law can be used. Besides this, the government does not have any other power to forgive his sentence,” he said, adding that as the allegations against Imran had been proven, a pardon could be considered based on an apology. He emphasised that the sentencing in the... -
Dawn - 17:59 Aug 06, 2025
A search operation for a missing body continued for a second day after a couple from Karachi drowned in a boat capsize accident in Skardu, officials said on Wednesday. Skardu is a popular tourist destination for local and international visitors. However, accidents are quite common due to the difficult terrain and lack of modern infrastructure. A statement by Rescue 1122 said, “Two people went missing in a tragic boat capsizing incident in the beautiful Kachora area of Skardu. Rescue 1122 divers and rescue personnel of Skardu have recovered the body of a woman after taking immediate action, while the search for the other missing person is still ongoing. The search and rescue operation was ongoing under the supervision of Emergency Officer Islamuddin, it added. Baltistan Police Public Relations Officer Ghulam Muhammad told Dawn.com that a family from Karachi, who were visiting the Kachura Soq Valley in Skardu, had been rafting on a river when the raft capsized at 4pm on Tuesday. “Three operators and a 15-year-o... -
Dawn - 17:45 Aug 06, 2025
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) on Wednesday revealed that enforced disappearances and other issues were fuelling public alienation and political instability in Balochistan following a fact-finding mission to the province. According to the report, titled Balochistan’s Crisis of Trust, the HRCP undertook the mission from July 9-12 to respond to the “escalating concerns over the deteriorating state of fundamental rights and civic freedoms in the province”. The mission aimed to examine the state of fundamental freedoms in the province and the broader impact of conflict and militarisation on civilian life, the report said in its terms of reference. In a press release issued today, the HRCP said: “The mission’s findings reveal a disturbing pattern of continued enforced disappearances, shrinking civic space, erosion of provincial autonomy and unchecked impunity — conditions that continue to fuel public alienation and political instability.” The mission observed that the state’s framing of the issue “... -
Dawn - 17:20 Aug 06, 2025
The design and policy choices of X created fertile ground for inflammatory and racist narratives targeting Muslims and migrants following last year’s deadly Southport attack in the United Kingdom, a new analysis showed on Wednesday. According to research published by Amnesty International, social media platform X played a “central role” in the spread of false narratives and harmful content, which contributed to riots against Muslim and migrant communities in Britain. The technical analysis of X’s open-source code or publicly available software showed that its recommender system, also known as content-ranking algorithms, “systematically prioritises” content that sparks outrage, provokes heated exchanges, reactions and engagement, without adequate safeguards to prevent or mitigate harm. “Our analysis shows that X’s algorithmic design and policy choices contributed to heightened risks amid a wave of anti-Muslim and anti-migrant violence observed in several locations across the UK last year, and which continues t... -
Dawn - 17:18 Aug 06, 2025
United States envoy Steve Witkoff held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin on Wednesday, two days before the expiry of a deadline set by US President Donald Trump for Russia to agree to peace in Ukraine or face new sanctions. Witkoff flew to Moscow on a last-minute mission to seek a breakthrough in the three-and-a-half-year war that began with Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022. Russian state TV showed a brief clip of him shaking hands with Putin at the start of their meeting. Russian news agencies said the talks ended after about three hours, and Witkoff’s motor convoy was seen leaving the Kremlin. Russian investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev, who earlier greeted Witkoff on arrival and strolled with him in a park near the Kremlin, posted on social media: “Dialogue will prevail.” There was no immediate statement from either side on the substance of the talks. Later, Trump called the meeting “highly productive” in a post on Truth Social. “Great progress was made!” the US president wrote. “... -
Dawn - 16:39 Aug 06, 2025
Two individuals, including a police constable, were injured when the South Upper Waziristan deputy commissioner’s (DC) vehicle came under attack near the Habib Kot Adana area of the district’s Ladha tehsil on Wednesday. Upper South Waziristan Police spokesperson Shoaib Mehsood told Dawn.com: “According to the initial information, unknown assailants attacked DC Asmatullah Wazir’s vehicle when he was travelling to Maken area from Ladha.” He said the DC, additional DC (ADC) for planning and development, a police constable and an assistant to the ADC for finance and planning were aboard the vehicle. The police spokesperson said that DC Wazir and the ADC remained safe in the attack, but the assistant for the finance and planning ADC and Constable Gul Nawaz were injured. He said that the injured were taken to the district headquarters hospital for medical treatment. The spokesperson said a police team was sent to the area and was conducting a search to track down the armed assailants. Pakistan has witnessed an upti... -
Dawn - 16:14 Aug 06, 2025
The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Wednesday halted the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) from taking any action against PTI leaders Shibli Faraz and Omar Ayub. The ECP on Tuesday disqualified Faraz as the Senate opposition leader, Ayub as the National Assembly equivalent, then-MNAs Zartaj Gul, Sunni Ittehad Council chief Hamid Raza and other PTI lawmakers following their convictions in cases related to the May 9 riots. On May 9, 2023, PTI supporters, protesting the party founder Imran Khan’s arrest, staged violent protests throughout the country, vandalising military installations and state-owned buildings, while also attacking the Lahore corps commander’s residence. Following the riots, thousands of protesters, including party leaders, were arrested. An anti-terrorism court in Faisalabad last week sentenced over PTI 100 leaders and workers to jail terms of up to 10 years in connection with the riots. Faraz, Zartaj Gul and Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Omar Ayub Khan were among those awarded ... -
Dawn - 15:53 Aug 06, 2025
United States President Donald Trump on Wednesday issued an executive order imposing an additional 25 per cent tariff on Indian goods, citing New Delhi’s continued imports of Russian oil, sharply escalating tensions between the two countries after trade talks collapsed. The new measure raises tariffs on some Indian goods to as high as 50pc, among the steepest faced by any US trading partner. The move is expected to hit key Indian export sectors, including textiles, footwear, and gems and jewellery and marks the most serious downturn in US-India relations since Trump returned to office in January. In an executive order issued from the White House, Trump said: “I find that the Government of India is currently directly or indirectly importing Russian Federation oil. “Accordingly, and as consistent with applicable law, articles of India imported into the customs territory of the United States shall be subject to an additional ad valorem rate of duty of 25pc.” Trump said he determined it “necessary and appropriate... -
Dawn - 15:28 Aug 06, 2025
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar on Wednesday said that the government had found evidence that real estate tycoon Malik Riaz and Bahria Town had engaged in money laundering on a “grand” scale. The development adds to the legal woes of the property tycoon and his real estate company, with the former being an absconder in the Al-Qadir Trust case, while the National Accountability Bureau has announced a fresh auction of six properties of Bahria Town. Delivering a televised press statement, Tarar said: “An important development occurred a day ago in the investigation of the Bahria Town corruption case. The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) carried out a successful raid in which very important documents have surfaced that are incontrovertible proof of Malik Riaz and Bahria Town’s corruption.” He said the FIA had been conducting an ongoing investigation, with raids being carried out as well. “The documents that have surfaced reveal money laundering and corruption of a great amount by Malik Riaz and Bahria Town... -
Dawn - 12:49 Aug 06, 2025
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit China for the first time in over seven years, a government source said on Wednesday, in a further sign of a diplomatic thaw with Beijing as tensions with the United States rise. Modi will go to China for a summit of the multilateral Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) that begins on Augst 31, the government source, with direct knowledge of the matter, told Reuters. India’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. His trip will come at a time when India’s relationship with the US faces its most serious crisis in years after President Donald Trump imposed the highest tariffs among Asian peers on goods imported from India, and has threatened an unspecified further penalty for New Delhi’s purchases of Russian oil. Modi’s visit to the Chinese city of Tianjin for the summit of the SCO, a Eurasian political and security grouping that includes Russia, will be his first since June 2018. Subsequently, Sino-Indian ties deteriorated sharply ... -
Dawn - 12:43 Aug 06, 2025
The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) continued its record-setting rally for a fourth consecutive session on Wednesday on “strong” corporate results, soaring past 145,000 points. The benchmark KSE-100 index rose by 1,041.24 points (0.73 per cent) to reach 144,078.40 points at 1:29pm, from the previous close of 143,037.16 points. The market reached an intraday high of 145,187.17 points at 3:29pm, before closing at 145,088.49, gaining 2,051.33 points (1.43pc) from yesterday. Reacting to the development, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif noted that the “boom in business in the stock exchange is a reflection of investors’ confidence in government policies”. The premier said facilitating business and investment in the country was among the government’s top priorities, state-run Radio Pakistan reported. PM Shehbaz said reforms in the Federal Board of Revenue have “improved the tax system and facilitated the business community”. He asserted that the country’s economy was moving on a steady path to progress. Speaking on toda... -
Dawn - 11:07 Aug 06, 2025
Pakistan has started to deport documented Afghan refugees ahead of its deadline for them to leave, according to the United Nations, in a move that could see more than 1 million Afghans expelled from the country. The country’s decision follows the interior ministry’s announcement on July 31 that Proof of Registration (PoR) cardholders — the last category of Afghans legally residing in Pakistan without visas — became unlawful residents after their cards expired on June 30. However, the federal government has informed the provinces that the formal repatriation and deportation of over 1.3 million Afghan refugees holding PoR cards will begin on September 1. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said that it had received reports of arrests and expulsions of legally registered Afghans across the country before Pakistan’s September 1 deadline for them to leave. The UNHCR said that sending the Afghans back in this way was a breach of Pakistan’s international obligations. “UNHCR is calling on the go... -
Dawn - 10:48 Aug 06, 2025
A Pakistan Mart will be established in Dubai to boost the “global footprint” of exports, state media Radio Pakistan reported on Wednesday. Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates share close diplomatic, economic, and cultural ties. The UAE is one of Pakistan’s largest trading partners in the Middle East and a major source of remittances, with a large Pakistani expatriate population living and working there. Speaking to the media about the project, Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan called it a “game changer for Pakistani trade boost”. He was quoted as saying, “The Pakistan Mart will facilitate Pakistani traders, enabling them to export their products to regions across the world.” “The initiative is spearheaded by the National Logistics Corporation of Pakistan and the DP World company of UAE,” the report added. Last month, trade with the UAE showed an upward trend. Pakistan’s key export items to the UAE include rice, bovine meat, cotton garments, mangoes, and guavas. Exports increased 1.87 per cent to $2.121 billi... -
Dawn - 09:32 Aug 06, 2025
Four security personnel were among seven martyred in two separate incidents of firing in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Karak district and Peshawar city, officials said on Wednesday. Pakistan has witnessed an uptick in terror activities over the past year, especially in KP and Balochistan, after the proscribed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) ended its ceasefire with the government in November 2022. Four security personnel, including a driver, were martyred when unknown assailants attacked a Federal Constabulary (FC) vehicle in the Garagri area of Karak, which the chief minister and governor strongly condemned today. KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur directed relevant authorities to arrest those involved in the incident as he expressed condolences to the families of those martyred. “We salute the security personnel and their families who sacrificed their lives for the country and the nation,” said a statement from the office of KP CM’s press secretary. Governor Faisal Kundi also condemned the attack, saying: “The sac... -
Dawn - 09:23 Aug 06, 2025
At least 71 people have died — over half of them children — and another 86 have been injured in rain-related incidents across Khyber Paktunkhwa since the start of the monsoon season in late June, according to the latest figures by KP Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA). Monsoon rains, which fall across the region from June to September every year, continue to lash many parts of the country. Starting in late June, Monsoon rains have wreaked havoc across the country in the past month by triggering deadly floods, landslides and displacement, particularly in vulnerable, poorly drained, or densely populated areas. According to the latest data provided by KP PDMA, the total death toll from rain-related incidents this monsoon season stands at 71, out of which 40 are children, 17 men and 14 women. Swat district recorded the highest number of lives lost, at 22, during heavy rains. According to PDMA, most of the deaths occurred due to floods, landslides and infrastructure collapse. On June 27, 17 people, mo... -
Dawn - 08:03 Aug 06, 2025
Military spokesperson Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry has rubbished rumours of Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir becoming the president. His statement follows a similar rebuttal by Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi early in July, when he clarified that no idea existed “about the president being asked to resign or the COAS aspiring to assume the presidency”. Gen Chaudhry, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) director general, told The Economist that “talk of his boss becoming president is ‘nonsense’”. The Economist noted that COAS Munir’s popularity has surged since the May conflict with India. It added that the ruling coalition’s recently acquired two-thirds majority in the parliament needed for a Constitutional Amendment “ignited rumours that the army chief could become president too”. The government, as well as the military, have repeatedly warned about “fake news and propaganda” proliferating on social media, with Gen Chaudhry saying that not enough was being done against “digital terrori... -
Dawn - 07:15 Aug 06, 2025
Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal stressed Pakistan’s interest in benefitting from China’s technological progress for the development of electric vehicles (EVs), state-run Radio Pakistan reported on Wednesday. Pakistan and China share a longstanding strategic partnership rooted in mutual trust, economic cooperation and regional connectivity. Over the decades, ties have expanded across different sectors — including trade, energy, defence and infrastructure — with the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) symbolising a shared vision for development. Speaking to the media in Beijing during an official visit, the planning and development minister expressed Pakistan’s “desire to benefit from Chinese technological advancements”, according to Radio Pakistan. This includes the development of next-generation batteries, such as sodium-ion batteries, which offer advantages over traditional lithium technology. Iqbal also reaffirmed Pakistan’s interest in developing the EV sector in partnership with China, noting electric v... -
Dawn - 06:35 Aug 06, 2025
The Indian army brought in sniffer dogs, drones and heavy earth-moving equipment on Wednesday to search for scores missing a day after a deadly Himalayan flash flood. At least four people were killed and around 100 are unaccounted for — including 11 soldiers — after a wall of muddy water and debris tore down a narrow mountain valley, smashing into the town of Dharali in Uttarakhand state. “Additional army columns, along with army tracker dogs, drones, logistic drones, earthmoving equipment etc, have been moved… to hasten the efforts”, the army said today. Military helicopters were working to bring in “essential supplies, medicines and (for the) evacuation of the marooned”, it added. Uttarakhand State Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said the flood was caused by an intense “cloudburst” of rain, and that rescue teams had been deployed “on a war footing”. Videos broadcast on Indian media showed a terrifying surge of muddy water sweeping away multi-storey apartment blocks in the tourist region on Tuesday aftern... -
Dawn - 06:11 Aug 06, 2025
KHYBER: The leaders of banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) agreed on Tuesday that they would not use civilians as a human shield in their armed struggle against security forces, nor would they extort money from anyone in the name of Zakat and Ushr in the restive Tirah valley of Khyber tribal district. Written in Pastho on the letterhead of TTP and duly stamped by its ‘supreme council’ (Rahbari Shura), a Bar Qambarkhel elder read out the five-point agreement in front of a gathering of local tribesmen in response to their demand for ending hostilities against ordinary tribesmen and a pullout from Tirah to restore peace. There was, however, no mention of a pullout from Tirah in the agreement inked between local elders and TTP. The leaders banned TTP vowed to continue their armed resistance against security forces and also punish those, who supported forces or found guilty of spying against them. “Our sole purpose is an armed struggle (jihad) against anti-Islam forces and their collaborators for which we desp...
10444 items