Pakistan

Pakistan men’s Test captain Shan Masood said the challenge was to perform consistently after the Green Shirts’win against South Africa on Wednesday in the first Test. Left-arm spinner Noman Ali was South Africa’s chief tormentor as Pakistan won a gripping first Test by 93 runs at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium. Set a daunting 277-run target for victory, the visitors and World Test champions were bowled out for 183 on day four. Speaking at the post-match press conference, skipper Shan said: “The message is this — we are playing good cricket against quality oppostions. “But at the same time, the challenge is that we need to consistently perform and win matches against top teams.” He added that talk regarding the first and second divisions of teams in Test cricket would become moot as a result. Shan also said that mistakes were made, and although there was room to work around them in home conditions, there might not be similar chances in away conditions. South African left-armer Senuran Muthusamy took 11-174 in the ma...

Police on Wednesday launched an operation to demolish hundreds of houses vacated by Afghans in Karachi’s Afghan Camp in the Sohrab Goth area to prevent “illegal occupation by rogue elements,” officials said. The land belongs to the Malir Development Authority (MDA). It comprises 3,117 houses, including those of 200 to 250 Pakistani families. Around 15,680 Afghan nationals were previously residing in the camp. Of them, 14,296 have returned to Afghanistan, while the remaining 1,384 are still living there and are being repatriated in phases. West Zone Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Irfan Ali Baloch told Dawn.com, “The government-owned land was spread over 200 acres, with 3,000 houses built to accommodate Afghans.” DIG Baloch further said he had written a letter to police authorities to set up a special committee comprising representatives of the city administration, police and other relevant institutions to prevent illegal occupation of the vacated government land. “It was the biggest camp of displaced Afghans w...

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) on Wednesday announced that the October 15 deadline for filing income tax returns will now be extended to October 31. A notification issued by the revenue board read that the deadline was being extended following requests from trade bodies and tax bar associations, and was being implemented as per Section 214A of the 2001 Income Tax Ordinance. “The Federal Board of Revenue is pleased to communicate that the date of filing of Income Tax Return for Tax Year 2025, for the persons who were required to file their returns by September 30, 2025 and was extended up to October 15th, 2025 … is further extended to October 31, 2025, in view of the requests from various trade bodies and tax bar associations,” the notification read. This is the second time the FBR has extended the deadline for filing income tax returns despite an earlier stance that it would not do so, signalling that the tax authority yielded to pressure from various quarters and walked back on its firm commitment. At mi...

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday he would honour all past deals struck between his country and Moscow, a pledge suggesting Moscow’s two main military bases in Syria are safe. Sharaa, who once headed the Syrian branch of al Qaeda and who toppled predecessor Bashar al-Assad, a close Russian ally, late last year, was speaking at the start of Kremlin talks with Putin, his first visit to Russia since coming to power. “There are bilateral relations and shared interests that bind us with Russia, and we respect all agreements made with it. We are working on redefining the nature of relations with Russia,” Sharaa, who was speaking in Arabic, told Putin. Putin told him that Moscow was ready to do all it could to act on what he called “many interesting and useful beginnings” that had already been discussed between the two sides when it came to renewing relations. The Kremlin chief also congratulated Sharaa on the fact that parliamentary elections were held earlier this ...

The hearing of the Toshakhana-II case against PTI founder Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, was adjourned until tomorrow after six hours of proceedings inside Adiala Jail on Wednesday.

The delegation of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) led by the party’s Central Secretary General, Salman Akram Raja, called on Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Faisal Karim Kundi at the Governor House, Peshawar on Wednesday.

The Foreign Office (FO) announced on Wednesday that Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to a 48-hour temporary ceasefire following recent border clashes.

Spotify and FC Barcelona have announced their seventh jersey takeover, with global superstar Ed Sheeran as the featured artist — marking the first time a solo male pop artist has fronted the iconic blaugrana shirt.

Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari on Wednesday rejected the claims made by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) regarding the government “concealing information” about the Muridke operation carried out to disperse Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan’s (TLP) march they claimed was in solidarity for Palestinians. The TLP began protests in Lahore on Oct 9, announcing a march to the US embassy in Islamabad to oppose the US-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas after two years of conflict in Gaza. The demonstrations quickly turned violent, with police using baton charges and tear gas against stone-pelting protesters. The following day, clashes in Lahore’s Shahdara area left at least 40 officers injured, while the TLP claimed over 10 workers were killed. As the group attempted to move towards Islamabad, Punjab Rangers and police from five districts were deployed to Muridke, where trenches were dug and an operation launched to disperse them. Regarding the Mudrike Operation and the violence that broke o...

The Supreme Court’s constitutional bench on Wednesday reaffirmed its authority to hear petitions challenging the 26th Constitutional Amendment, with Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar stating that judges from all constitutional benches could be included if required.

The prosecution has filed an appeal in the Lahore High Court challenging the acquittal of senior PTI leader and former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi in the May 9 violence case.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi administered the oath to PTI MPA Sohail Afridi as the province’s chief minister on Wednesday. Footage of the event showed throngs of people surrounding the two amid the ceremony. View this post on Instagram Afridi also held up a portrait of PTI founder Imran Khan during the event. After his oath-taking, PTI leader Asad Qaiser extended “heartfelt congratulations” to Afridi. “I hope that, God willing, he will take effective measures to resolve the province’s issues and for the welfare and prosperity of the people […] And that he will also play a role in securing the release of all innocent prisoners, including Imran Khan, Bushra Bibi, and Shah Mahmood Qureshi,” Qaiser posted on X. The CM’s focal person on digital media Yar Muhammad Khan Niazi said that upon arrival at the CM’s secretariat, a well-equipped police contingent presented a guard of honour to Afridi. Afridi was elected the new KP chief executive on Monday during an assembly session marred by the oppositi...

Pakistan’s passport has further declined in global rankings, falling to 103rd place in the Henley Passport Index 2025, down from last year’s 96th spot.

The Pakistan Army carried out a successful intelligence-based operation in the Aba Khel area of North Waziristan on October 14, killing seven militants, security sources confirmed.

Chief of Army Staff, Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, NI (M), HJ, Wednesday, called on President Asif Ali Zardari at Aiwan-e-Sadr and briefed him on the overall internal and external security environment of the country.

Security forces repulsed an attack by the Afghan Taliban along the Balochistan border on Wednesday, killing around 15 to 20 Afghan Taliban, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said. According to a statement by the ISPR, Afghan Taliban “resorted to cowardly attack[s] at four locations in [the] Spin Boldak area” in the early hours of Wednesday. “The attack was effectively repulsed by Pakistani forces,” the statement said. It added that as Pakistani troops repelled the attack, 15 to 20 Afghan Taliban were killed and several others were injured. “The situation is still developing. There are reports of further buildup at staging points of Fitna-al-Khwarij and [the] Afghan Taliban,” the statement said. Fitna-al-Khwarij is the state-designated term for the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). The ISPR said that the attack from the Afghan side was “unfortunately […] orchestrated through divided villages in the area, with no regard for [the] civil population”. “The Afghan Taliban also destroyed the Pak-Afgh...

PPP leader and former speaker of the Sindh Assembly Agha Siraj Durrani passed away on Wednesday at the age of 72, according to a statement by Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah. In a statement issued by the Sindh CM House, Shah expressed deep sorrow and grief over Durrani’s passing. Murad called Durrani “a sincere, loyal and principled leader of the party, saying he played an important role in strengthening the Sindh Assembly and stabilising democracy. “Agha Siraj Durrani made public service the axis of his politics,” he said, expressing his condolences to the bereaved family. “The services of the late Agha Siraj Durrani will always be remembered,” he said. President Asif Ali Zardari also expressed “deep sorrow” over Durrani’s passing. “The president paid tribute to his political and public services, noting his role in strengthening democracy and serving the people of Sindh,” said a post by the Presidency on social media platform X. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also paid tribute to the late Durrani for his ...

The Boards of Intermediate and Secondary Education (BISEs) across Punjab announced the results for the 2025 Intermediate Part-I (11th grade) annual exams on Wednesday.

Chairman Senate of Pakistan, Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani Wednesday held a meeting with the Ambassador of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Emin Cohodrevica.

Pakistan is expanding its trade and investment footprint in Saudi Arabia, with over 100 Pakistani information technology (IT) firms now formally registered to operate in the Kingdom.