Pakistan

The next chapter in Pakistani tennis began with the close of another as top-ranked player Aisamul Haq Qureshi announced his retirement from professional tennis at the opening ceremony of the ATP Challenger Pakistan in Islamabad on Monday night. Bringing the international event to home soil was a dream come true, Aisam, who is president of the Pakistan Tennis Federation (PTF), said at a press conference for the event earlier this month. “I don’t know if my tears are for my career or hosting the challenger cup as president,” the visibly emotional 45-year-old joked as he addressed the audience on a chilly evening. PTF described his retirement as the “conclusion of an era”. “His legacy will continue to inspire upcoming players and contribute to the growth and recognition of tennis across the nation,” the federation said in a post on social media. View this post on Instagram The right-hander turned pro in 1998 and was the only Pakistani tennis player to have played in a Grand Slam final at the 2010 US Open in both...

United States President Donald Trump issued an executive order on Monday evening, directing agencies to initiate the formal process for designating certain chapters of the Muslim Brotherhood as terrorist organisations. The Muslim Brotherhood is already outlawed as a terrorist group in some countries, such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia. More recently, Jordan banned it in April of this year. Signed at the White House on November 24, the order specifically mentioned its chapters in Lebanon, Jordan, and Egypt. It stated that it “sets in motion a process by which certain chapters or other subdivisions of the Muslim Brotherhood shall be considered for designation” as both foreign terrorist organisations (FTOs) and specially designated global terrorists (SDGTs) under US counterterrorism laws. The directive described the Brotherhood as having developed into a “transnational network” since its founding in Egypt in 1928, with chapters across the Middle East that, according to the order, “engage in or facilitate and support...

Rawalpindi police have stated that three suspects have been arrested after a harrowing video of a girl’s hair being forcibly cut went viral on social media. The video, which has been making the rounds on social media since Tuesday, shows a man standing over what appears to be a young girl and cutting her hair with a pair of scissors while others in the background watch. Subsequently, another video also surfaced on social media, purportedly of the victim, in which she alleged that the incident occurred one-and-a-half months ago in Rawalpindi’s Christian Colony. She also alleged that she was beaten and threatened, adding that four men were involved in the incident. In a statement early on Tuesday, Rawalpindi police commented on the incident. The statement referred to the victim as a “girl”. “A video of a girl being beaten and her hair being cut has come forward, after which a video statement also came forward,” the statement said. The incident took place in Rawalpindi and Islamabad a month and a half ago, the s...

Noreen Niazi, the sister of PTI founder Imran Khan, has submitted a formal complaint to Punjab Inspector General of Police Dr Usman Anwar against the “brutal assault” of PTI protesters outside Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail last week. Last week, Imran’s sisters had camped outside Adiala Jail, where the PTI founder is currently incarcerated, along with other PTI members after being denied a meeting. According to the PTI, Aleema Khan, Dr Uzma Khan and Noreen were “sitting peacefully” outside the jail when they were manhandled and “violently detained” by police. Videos shared by the party on social media platform X showed workers, Aleema and Uzma gathered around Noreen, who appeared visibly shaken. “Those women were dragging [her] on the road,” Aleema said as Noreen’s hands trembled. In a post on X on Monday, the PTI said Noreen had filed a formal complaint with the Punjab IG over the “brutal assault and unlawful detention of peaceful citizens”. The party also shared the two-page letter, in which Noreen called the inc...

Germany has launched the Opportunity Card, a new residence permit that allows non-EU citizens including Pakistanis to stay in the country for up to one year while searching for a job, without requiring a pre-arranged employment offer.

Punjab’s Agriculture Department has issued an important advisory for farmers using the Kisan Card, especially those who have misplaced their card or wish to have it reissued.

Twenty-two India-sponsored terrorists were killed in an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Bannu, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Tuesday. A statement by the ISPR said that security forces conducted the IBO on Monday, based on the reported presence of khawarij belonging to Indian proxy Fitna al Khawarij. Fitna al Khawarij is a term the state uses for terrorists belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). “During the conduct of the operation, own troops effectively engaged the khawarij location and after an intense fire exchange, 22 khawarij were sent to hell,” the statement said. It added that a sanitisation operation was being conducted to eliminate any other terrorists in the area. The ISPR also said that the counter-terrorism campaign by security forces and law enforcement agencies would continue with full pace to “wipe out the menace of foreign-sponsored and supported terrorism from the country”. Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif paid tribute t...

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has strongly condemned the suicide attack on the Federal Constabulary (FC) headquarters in Peshawar, which claimed the lives of three FC personnel on Monday.

Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan Engineer Amir Muqam has emphasized the need for collective efforts to steer Pakistan toward rapid progress and development.

A LOT of money could be moving around unchecked. According to Chainalysis’s 2025 Global Adoption Index, Pakistan ranks third globally in crypto adoption, with most activity driven by small investors. Likewise, a 2020-21 report by the FPCCI estimated that Pakistanis collectively held around $20bn in cryptocurrencies. Research indicates that outside of Binance, a popular crypto exchange platform, much of the trading in cryptocurrencies occurs on local peer-to-peer platforms. These platforms enable direct transactions without Know-Your-Customer checks, allowing significant sums to move across borders with no oversight. The situation should trigger concern. The chairman of the Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan recently warned that people are buying dollars from foreign exchange companies and using them to purchase crypto. This, he believes, has resulted in roughly $600m ‘disappearing’ from the formal system. If true, it could get Pakistan into trouble with the FATF yet again. Crypto can create openings f...

United Nations experts on Monday sounded the alarm over “serious human rights violations” in Indian-occupied Kashmir by the Indian government, issuing the warning in the aftermath of the Pahalgam attack. Pahalgam is the site where gunmen on April 22 killed 26 mostly Hindu tourists. New Delhi blamed the attack on Pakistan, which strongly denied the allegations while calling for a neutral investigation, triggering a series of tit-for-tat diplomatic measures that escalated into a four-day conflict. In the aftermath of the Pahalgam attack, Indian forces arrested more than 2,000 Kashmiris and demolished several homes in a sweeping crackdown. The arrests were carried out across multiple districts, including Srinagar, Ganderbal, Bandipora, Kupwara, Baramulla, Budgam, Islamabad, Pulwama, Shopian and Kulgam. “We unequivocally condemn the brutal terrorist attack on a tourist area and extend our condolences to the victims, their families, and the Government of India. However, all governments must respect international h...

A Pakistani diplomat in Afghanistan met a key Afghan governor amid tensions over rising terror incidents in Pakistan, saying efforts were underway to thaw bilateral ties, according to Afghan state media and Pakistani sources who spoke to Dawn. The meeting was held hours after three Federal Constabulary men were martyred in a suicide attack on the force’s headquarters in Peshawar’s Saddar area this morning. Security forces quickly neutralised the attackers. This was the first high-level contact in months between the Pakistani Consul General in Jalalabad, Shafqatullah Khan and Nangarhar Governor Mullah Muhammad Naeem Akhund. Akhund is an important Taliban leader and is considered a confidant of Taliban Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada. Governor Akhund has previously served as deputy minister of Borders and Tribal Affairs and deputy minister of Civil Aviation during the Taliban’s first government from 1996-2001. He had played a key role in the Taliban’s military commission during the 20-year war against the ...

Islamabad - Federal Health Minister, Mustafa Kamal, began a high-profile official visit to Türkiye on Monday, using the platform of the 11th Turkish Medical World Congress to strengthen bilateral cooperation in health, medical research, and humanitarian services.

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan’s Ambassador-designate to the Russian Federation Faisal Niaz Tirmizi, called on President Asif Ali Zardari at Aiwan-e-Sadr on Monday and discussed matters of mutual interest.

ISLAMABAD - Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) General Sahir Shamshad Mirza called on President Asif Ali Zardari for his farewell meeting at Aiwan-e-Sadr on Monday.

ISLAMABAD - Iranian National Security Advisor Dr.

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) chief Bilawal Bhutto Zardari yesterday said that the PPP has always condemned all forms of violence against women, including digital abuse, and remains committed to ending such injustices.

KARACHI - Governor of Sindh Kamran Khan Tessori strongly condemned the recent provocative statement by the Indian Defence Minister, describing it as a serious threat to peace and stability in the region.

ISLAMABAD - Federal Minister for Climate Change and Environmental Coordination Dr Musadik Malik on Monday met a delegation of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) led by Lifeng Li, Director of the Land and Water Division, to discuss avenues of cooperation in sustainable land use, water management and climate-resilient.

LAHORE - Unlike the National Assembly where the PML-N has secured a simple majority after securing six national seats in Sunday’s by-election, an equal number of provincial seats grabbed by the ruling party makes no real difference to its position in the Punjab Assembly.