Pakistan

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Hunting migratory birds in Pakistan's 20 protected wetlands is punishable by up to two years, Rs50,000 fine

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Continuous discharge of sewage poisons river water

With Combined Effluent Treatment Plant project delayed for over 20 years, sewage water is dumped into the sea

Khoso ran out of bullets fighting assailants who had come to take back their girl

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The Jaffar Express, which has been targeted multiple times in the recent past, escaped a bomb attack in Balochistan’s Nasirabad district on Sunday, police and railway officials said. According to police officials, unidentified attackers had planted an explosive device on the railway track in the Shaheed Abdul Aziz Bullo area to target the Peshawar-bound train that was travelling from Quetta and later detonated it. However, the train passed the area safely, and no loss of life was reported, the officials said. Nasirabad Senior Superintendent of Police Ghulam Sarwar told Dawn that police and other security forces had reached the site soon after the blast, cordoned off the area and initiated an investigation. “A search operation has also been launched to trace the elements involved in the bomb attack,” he said. Separately, railway officials told Dawn a portion of the track was damaged due to the blast, as a result of which railway traffic between Quetta and the rest of the country was suspended. Meanwhile, the o...

Minister of State for Interior Senator Talal Chaudhry on Sunday said that constitutional amendments are solely the prerogative of Parliament, asserting that recent judges’ resignations were “political” in nature.

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah on Sunday visited the Karimabad Underpass to review ongoing construction work and directed authorities to expedite the project, warning that further delays would not be tolerated.

Indian authorities claimed on Sunday that a deadly car blast in New Delhi earlier this week was an attack carried out by a “suicide bomber”, announcing the arrest of an accomplice. The National Investigation Agency (NIA), the country’s counter-terrorism body, said the attacker and the second suspect were both from India-occupied Kashmir, where police have carried out sweeping raids in recent days. Announcing “a breakthrough” in the investigation, the NIA said it had arrested Amir Rashid Ali, describing him as an accomplice of the “suicide bomber” under whose name “the car involved in the attack was registered”. He had come to Delhi to “facilitate the purchase of the car which was eventually used as a vehicle-borne Improvised Explosive Device (IED) to trigger the blast”, the counter-terrorism agency said in a statement. It identified the car’s driver as Umarun Nabi, a resident of occupied Kashmir who was an assistant professor in general medicine at a university in the northern state of Haryana. The explosion ...

Franchises demand more double-headers at weekends

US House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson said on Sunday that he believed the approaching vote on releasing Justice Department files related to Jeffrey Epstein should help put to rest allegations that President Donald Trump had any connection to the late sex offender’s abuse and trafficking of underage girls. “They’re doing this to go after President Trump on this theory that he has something to do with it. He does not,” Johnson, the Republican leader in the House, said on the ‘Fox News Sunday’ programme. “Epstein is their entire game plan, so we’re going to take that weapon out of their hands,” Johnson said of Democrats. “Let’s just get this done and move it on. There’s nothing to hide.” Though Trump and Epstein were photographed together decades ago, the president has said the two men fell out prior to Epstein’s convictions. Emails released last week by a House committee showed Epstein believed Trump “knew about the girls,” though it was not clear what that phrase meant. Trump has since instructed th...

From heroic cops to innocent bystanders, tragedy highlights both loss and bravery

Prices of vegetables, meat, other essentials remain unchecked in Rawalpindi

Event showcases Pakistan's rich cultural diversity, featuring vibrant performances

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Accountability watchdog introduces digital systems

Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir reiterated on Sunday Pakistan’s commitment to further enhancing military-to-military cooperation with Jordan and jointly realising the mutual vision of a stable and peaceful region, according to the military’s media affairs wing. The army chief also underscored the “strong defence partnership” between Pakistan and the Hashemite Kingdom — the royal family of Jordan — during a visit of Jordan’s King Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein at the Tilla Field Firing Ranges near Jhelum, a statement by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said. The Jordanian king, who arrived in Pakistan for a two-day official visit on Saturday, also visited Global Industrial and Defence Solutions, the state-owned conglomerate involved in the export and marketing of military, industrial and technological products and services. He was accompanied by Princess Salma bint Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein and a delegation of Jordanian civil and military officials and was received by Field Marshal Munir an...

Lahore’s walled city features some of Pakistan’s most iconic landmarks and monuments, from the imposing Alamgiri Gate to the Lahore Fort and Badshahi Masjid. The Mughal-era architecture has drawn visitors from across the country and the world, who can now tour the monuments at night. Dawn offers a glance at Lahore’s walled city as visitors enjoy views of brightly illuminated structures lighting up the dark of the night. A visitor walks through a section of the Lahore Fort during a night tour on November 15. — White Star/Murtaza Ali Visitors look upon the Hazuri Bagh pavilion during a night tour of Lahore’s walled city on November 15. — White Star/Murtaza Ali An image of Allama Iqbal’s mausoleum in Lahore’s walled city from November 15. — White Star/Murtaza Ali Visitors look at a view from the Lahore Fort, with Badshahi Masjid and the Minar-i-Pakistan visible in the background, during a night tour on November 15. — White Star/Murtaza Ali A view of the Lahore Fort and Badshahi Masjid during a night tour on Nove...