Dawn
Source:
https://www.dawn.com
Found 8064 news
-
Dawn - 07:01 Jan 14, 2026
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) killed three terrorists belonging to Fitna-al-Khawarij in a successful intelligence-based operation (IBO) in Dera Ismail Khan on Wednesday, said a statement by the department. Fitna-al-Khawarij is a term the state uses for terrorists belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). “On the special instructions of the inspector general of Police Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, targeted operations against Fitna-al-Khawarij have been intensified in response to the attacks on the police,” the CTD said. It added that this morning, DI Khan’s CTD successfully carried out an operation on a confirmed intelligence report. “CTD teams reached the spot and surrounded the terrorists, who opened fire to avoid arrest. CTD teams also retaliated in self-defence, as a result of which the khawariji terrorists were killed,” said the statement. During the search operation, it said, the bodies of three terrorists were recovered and identified. According to the CTD, the slain te... -
Dawn - 05:17 Jan 14, 2026
The planet logged its third hottest year on record in 2025, extending a run of unprecedented heat, with no relief expected in 2026, US researchers and EU climate monitors said Wednesday. The last 11 years have now been the warmest ever recorded, with 2024 topping the podium and 2023 in second place, according to the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service and Berkeley Earth, a California-based non-profit research organisation. For the first time, global temperatures exceeded 1.5C relative to pre-industrial times on average over the last three years, Copernicus said in its annual report. “The warming spike observed from 2023-2025 has been extreme, and suggests an acceleration in the rate of the Earth’s warming,” Berkeley Earth said in a separate report. The landmark 2015 Paris Agreement commits the world to limiting warming to well below 2C and pursuing efforts to hold it at 1.5C – a long-term target scientists say would help avoid the worst consequences of climate change. UN chief Antonio Guterres warned in Oc... -
Dawn - 03:31 Jan 14, 2026
THE Defence Department has spent more than a year testing a device purchased in an undercover operation that some investigators think could be the cause of a series of mysterious ailments impacting US spies, diplomats and troops that are colloquially known as Havana Syndrome, according to four sources briefed on the matter. According to CNN, a division of the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, purchased the device for millions of dollars in the waning days of the Biden administration, using funding provided by the Defence Department, according to two of the sources. Officials paid “eight figures” for the device, these people said, declining to offer a more specific number. The device is still being studied and there is ongoing debate — and in some quarters of government, scepticism — over its link to the roughly dozens of anomalous health incidents that remain officially unexplained. CNN has asked the Pentagon, HSI and the DHS for comment. The CIA declined to comment. The devic... -
Dawn - 02:34 Jan 14, 2026
ISLAMABAD: The government has allowed the re-export of transit cargo stuck at Pakistani ports to save Afghan importers from rising demurrage charges. At a time when there is no indication that the border with Afghanistan will reopen soon, importers engaged in Afghan Transit Trade (ATT) have requested that the Ministry of Commerce grant a one-time waiver for the re-export of over 6,500 containers stuck at Karachi ports, as they are incurring rising demurrage charges. The need for re-export arose after the border crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan was closed on Oct 11, 2025 leading to a near-complete halt of bilateral trade and movement of transit cargo. Pakistan-Afghanistan relations have deteriorated amid tensions over the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). After successive rounds, Pakistan declared the talks effectively over on Nov 7, after which Afghanistan suspended trade ties. Pakistan had already closed its border following the October clashes. Over 6,500 containers stuck at Karachi ports si... -
Dawn - 18:23 Jan 13, 2026
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said Iranians should continue nationwide protests and take over the country’s institutions. “Iranian Patriots, KEEP PROTESTING - TAKE OVER YOUR INSTITUTIONS!!!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. “Save the names of the killers and abusers. They will pay a big price. I have cancelled all meetings with Iranian Officials until the senseless killing of protesters STOPS. HELP IS ON ITS WAY.” Later, when asked what he meant by saying “help is on its way” to protesters in Iran, Trump told reporters that they would have to figure it out. “You’re going to have to figure that one out. I’m sorry,” Trump said in response to a question. On Monday, his Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that a channel for diplomacy with Tehran remained open, saying that Iran was taking a “far different tone” in private discussions with Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff. Trump on Monday also announced a 25 per cent tariff on any country doing business with Iran. Following the US pre... -
Dawn - 18:08 Jan 13, 2026
President Asif Ali Zardari on Tuesday arrived in Bahrain’s capital Manama on a four-day official visit. In a post on X, the Presidency said President Zardari was received by Bahrain National Guard Commander Sheikh Mohammed bin Isa Al Khalifa and Foreign Minister Sheikh Dr Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani upon their arrival. The video shared with the post showed that First Lady Aseefa Bhutto-Zardari was also accompanying the president. State broadcaster PTV said on X that in addition to meeting Bahrain’s king and crown prince, President Zardari will also address a reception held at the headquarters of the Economic Development Board in Manama. Shortly after arriving, President Zardari met with the commander of Bahrain’s National Guard. The Foreign Office said earlier this week that during the visit, the president will hold meetings with Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, and Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, who is also the prime minister. “The discussions will focus on bilateral, regional, and int... -
Dawn - 17:44 Jan 13, 2026
Four terrorists were killed by security forces during an intelligence-based operation in Balochistan‘s Kalat district, the military’s media affairs wing said on Tuesday. In a statement, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said that on January 12 (Monday) security forces conducted an IBO on the reported presence of terrorists belonging to Indian proxy Fitna al Hindustan. The state has designated Balochistan-based terrorist groups as Fitna al Hindustan to highlight India’s alleged role in terrorism and destabilisation across Pakistan. During the operation, security forces effectively engaged the terrorists’ location, it said, adding that four terrorists were killed after an “intense fire exchange”. “Weapons and ammunition were also recovered from the terrorists, who remained actively involved in numerous terrorist activities in the area,” the statement added. It stated that sanitisation operations were being conducted to eliminate any other Indian-sponsored terrorists found in the area. It added that the cou... -
Dawn - 17:27 Jan 13, 2026
RAWALPINDI: Incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan’s sisters and party workers staged a sit-in at Rawalpindi’s Factory Naka on Tuesday after they were again barred from meeting the former prime minister. Sit-ins at Factory Naka — which is a short distance away from the Adiala jail — on Tuesdays and Thursdays by PTI workers and supporters, as well as Imran’s sisters, have become a usual occurrence as they continue to be restricted from meeting the ex-premier for the past several weeks. A court order issued by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on March 24, 2025 mandated that meetings with Imran would be permitted twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Despite the IHC’s order, Imran’s sisters — Aleema Khan, Uzma Khan and Noreen Khan Niazi — along with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, have tried and failed to meet Imran. Routes to the Adiala jail were blocked on Tuesday, including at Factory Naka and Dahgal Naka, amid a large police presence. PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan was stopped at Dahgal... -
Dawn - 16:57 Jan 13, 2026
WWF-Pakistan on Tuesday disputed Islamabad authorities’ stance that paper mulberry trees were removed in the capital for causing allergies, stating that the action was also linked to infrastructure development. Recently, large-scale tree removal took place in at least three locations in the federal capital, including acres of tree cover around Shakarparian. Islamabad’s Capital Development Authority (CDA) has maintained that only paper mulberry trees were removed as they had been causing pollen allergies, and earlier on Tuesday Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry assured lawmakers that more trees would be planted in the coming months. “WWF-Pakistan’s field assessments indicate that vegetation loss in the capital is not limited to Paper Mulberry management alone, but is also linked to infrastructure development in multiple locations,” the environmental body said on social media. “Beyond pollen and allergies, Islamabad’s recent tree removal reflects broader challenges in urban planning,” it added. Soc... -
Dawn - 16:40 Jan 13, 2026
ISLAMABAD: The PTI on Tuesday formally requested the appointment of Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) chief Mehmood Khan Achakzai as the National Assembly (NA) opposition leader. PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan confirmed the submission of Achakzai’s nomination papers to NA Speaker Ayaz Sadiq. This is the second time that the party has formally proposed his name for the opposition leader’s post in the lower house of Parliament. The development comes a day after Sadiq began afresh the process for the appointment of the opposition leader — a slot that has been lying vacant for almost five months since the disqualification of PTI’s Omar Ayub in August 2025. Addressing the NA speaker, the written proposal for Achakzai’s nomination — seen by Dawn and dated January 12 — stated: “We, the undersigned members of the National Assembly belonging to the opposition benches, have the honour to nominate Mehmood Khan Achakzai MNA (NA-266) for appointment as the leader of the opposition in the National Assembly of Pa... -
Dawn - 16:40 Jan 13, 2026
Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said on Tuesday that Pakistan was at an early but important stage in shaping its digital asset ecosystem. He expressed the views during a meeting with a visiting delegation from Icoin Technology Inc, a Silicon Valley-based blockchain infrastructure company. The delegation was led by the company’s Chief Executive Officer Chet Silvestri, the finance ministry said in a press release. According to the press release, the minister said Pakistan was at an early but important stage in shaping its digital asset ecosystem and welcomed knowledge-sharing and responsible investment aligned with national priorities. During the meeting, Aurangzeb briefed the delegation on Pakistan’s ongoing efforts to develop a “structured and responsible” framework for digital assets and apprised it of the progress made toward the establishment of a Pakistan Crypto Council and the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) “The minister highlighted Pakistan’s growing participation in global dig... -
Dawn - 16:07 Jan 13, 2026
An X outage eased on Tuesday after thousands of users worldwide reported issues with accessing the social media platform, according to Downdetector. The outage began around 9 am ET, peaking at more than 28,300 logged issues with Elon Musk’s platform in the US before cooling to about 700 reports, according to Downdetector. In the UK, reports fell to roughly 130 from a high of more than 8,000, while Canada saw issues decline after topping 3,200 earlier in the day, according to the website that tracks outages by collating status reports from a number of sources. In Pakistan, complaints peaked at 93 at 7:38pm, falling to four by 8:23pm. This image shows X outages reported by Pakistani users. — Photo courtesy Downdetector The company did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on what caused the outage. The actual number of affected users may differ from what is shown on Downdetector, as the reports are submitted by users. In November 2025, a Cloudflare outage had briefly prevented access to X aft... -
Dawn - 14:38 Jan 13, 2026
ISLAMABAD: The tally of polio cases for 2025 reached 31 on Tuesday after a sample collected last year in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s North Waziristan district tested positive. Pakistan’s Polio Eradication Programme said in a statement that the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH), Islamabad, had confirmed a case of wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) in North Waziristan. “This is the fifth case reported from North Waziristan in 2025, bringing the total number of polio cases in Pakistan for the past year to 31,” it said. Meanwhile, an official from the lab said that the case was included in the list for 2025 as the sample was collected last year. “It takes up to three weeks to confirm that a child has been affected. There are some more samples in the lab which are being analysed and, in case of confirmation, the tally for 2025 may further increase,” he said. He added that wild poliovirus was detected in a four-month-old girl from Union Council Spinwam-2 in North Wazi... -
Dawn - 14:21 Jan 13, 2026
Hate speech against minorities, including Muslims and Christians, in India rose by 13 per cent in 2025, with most incidents occurring in states governed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), a Washington-based research group said on Tuesday. India Hate Lab documented 1,318 instances of what it called hate speech in 2025, up from 1,165 in 2024 and 668 in 2023, at events such as political rallies, religious processions, protest marches and cultural gatherings. Of that number, 1,164 incidents occurred in states and union territories governed by the BJP, either directly or with coalition political parties, the group said. The Indian embassy in Washington did not respond immediately to a request for comment. Modi and his party deny being discriminatory and say their policies, including food subsidy programs and electrification drives, benefit all communities. April recorded the highest monthly spike, 158 events, with nearly 100 occurring between April 22, after a deadly ... -
Dawn - 13:09 Jan 13, 2026
US President Donald Trump announced a 25 per cent tariff on any country doing business with Iran, ramping up pressure as a crackdown on protests continues. Trump, who has repeatedly threatened Iran with military intervention, said in a social media post on Monday that the new levies would “immediately” hit the Islamic republic’s trading partners who also do business with the United States. “This Order is final and conclusive,” he wrote, without specifying who they will affect. Iran’s main trading partners are China, Turkiye, the United Arab Emirates and Iraq, according to economic database Trading Economics. Trump has been mulling his options on Iran, which has been roiled by more than two weeks of demonstrations that have defied a near-total internet blackout and lethal force. Sparked by economic grievances, the nationwide protests have grown into one of the biggest challenges yet to the theocratic system that has ruled Iran since the 1979 Islamic revolution ousted the shah. Iranian authorities have blamed f... -
Dawn - 12:58 Jan 13, 2026
Sindh Senior Minister Sharjeel Memon on Tuesday assailed the PTI for not honouring commitments made in preparation for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi’s recent Sindh visit. Memon’s comments come a day after the KP CM concluded his visit to the province. On Monday, the chief minister decried the treatment of him and his entourage in Karachi, saying that the provincial government had “desecrated” the honour of the Sindhi ajrak and topi. Addressing a press conference in Karachi, Memon expressed his view that the PTI “did not care for the respect they had been accorded during the visit”. “We do not care about their speeches; however, violations were committed, and all they did was blame the Sindh government.” Addressing the events that transpired during the KP CM’s visit, Memon said that the Sindh government was in contact with representatives from the KP government, and the two had “chalked out” the schedule for the visit. Memon maintained that the PTI “violated every commitment they made earlier... -
Dawn - 12:33 Jan 13, 2026
Bangladesh’s cricket board said on Tuesday it had repeated its refusal to travel to India for next month’s T20 World Cup during talks with the International Cricket Council (ICC). Bangladesh announced on Jan 4 that it would not play its T20 World Cup matches in India after its player Mustafizur Rahman was released by his Indian Premier League (IPL) team amid growing tensions between the two countries. Subsequently, Bangladesh “formally requested” the ICC to shift their games to Sri Lanka. The World Cup begins on February 7, with Bangladesh scheduled to play their four group matches in India. On Tuesday, during a video conference with the ICC, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) said it had “reiterated its request for the ICC to consider relocating Bangladesh’s matches outside India”. “The BCB reaffirmed its position regarding the decision not to travel to India, citing security concerns,” the board said in a statement. “While the ICC highlighted that the tournament itinerary has already been announced and requ... -
Dawn - 12:32 Jan 13, 2026
Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) announced on Tuesday that it had partnered with rail companies in Canada and the United Kingdom (UK) in a bid to facilitate its passengers. In a press release, the national flag carrier’s spokesperson said that for the convenience of its passengers travelling to Toronto and destinations in the UK, special arrangements had been made to provide access to rail facilities. “PIA has launched an ‘air-to-rail’ partnership with renowned rail services in Canada and the UK, providing passengers with extensive travel facilities,” he said. Under the agreement, PIA passengers can now, after their air travel, reach their final destination by train on a single ticket without the hassle of booking separately, he said. “PIA passengers will now be able to book their rail tickets along with air tickets to reach their final destination via rail, saving time and effort in booking trains separately,” he added. “Passengers arriving in Toronto on PIA can connect to eight major cities in Canada t... -
Dawn - 12:22 Jan 13, 2026
The Sindh government on Tuesday announced that all public and private educational institutions will remain closed on January 17 (Saturday) on account of Shab-i-Meraj. Shab-i-Meraj is observed on the 27th of Rajab to commemorate the Holy Prophet’s (Peace Be Upon Him) Night of Ascent. The notification, a copy of which is available with Dawn, said, “In pursuance of the decision taken in the sub-committee meeting of the Steering Committee on Education held on November 28, 2024, all public and private educational institutions under the administrative control of Sindh School Education and Literacy Department, Government on Sindh, shall remain closed on Saturday, January 17 on account of Shab-i-Meraj.” Earlier this week, the Sindh government had decided to change school opening timings across the province for a period of two weeks. The decision was made after Education Minister Sardar Ali Shah consulted with Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, keeping in view the intensity of the cold spell in various parts of the provin... -
Dawn - 12:11 Jan 13, 2026
Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry has stated that unity and consensus on matters of national security and narrative is the need of the hour, Radio Pakistan reported on Tuesday. According to the report, he made the remarks as a delegation of the National Paigham-i-Aman Committee (NPAC), led by its Chairman Hafiz Tahir Mahmood Ashrafi, met with the DG ISPR in Rawalpindi. “Speaking on the occasion, the DG ISPR emphasised that unity and consensus on matters of national security and narrative were the need of the hour,” it said. He said a comprehensive discussion was held on internal security challenges in the context of Fitna al Khawarij, Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan and Tehreek-i-Taliban Afghanistan, which further strengthened the shared stance of all stakeholders, it said. “Reiterating Islamabad’s principled position on Kashmir and Gaza, DG ISPR said supporting oppressed peoples is Pakistan’s moral responsibility, ” it added. He stressed that public a...
8064 items