Pakistan

Russia targeted Ukraine with a record 728 drones overnight, shortly after US President Donald Trump pledged to send more defensive weapons to Kyiv and aimed unusually direct criticism at Russian President Vladimir Putin. Ukrainian air defence units destroyed almost all the drones, including through electronic jamming systems, Ukraine’s air force said on the Telegram messaging app. The attack, which follows a series of escalating air assaults on Ukraine in recent weeks, showed the need for “biting” sanctions on the sources of income Russia uses to finance the war, including on those who buy Russian oil, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Telegram. Trump said on Tuesday he was considering supporting a bill in the Senate that would impose steep sanctions on Russia, including 500 per cent tariffs on nations that buy Russian oil, gas, uranium and other exports. “We get a lot of ‘b******t’ thrown at us by Putin … He’s very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless,” Trump said at a cabinet m...

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) on Wednesday expressed concern over the recent court decision banning 27 YouTube channels as the government said the owners were expected to face criminal action. It emerged a day ago that an Islamabad court last month ordered YouTube to block 27 channels for disseminating “fake, misleading, and defamatory” content against the government and armed forces. Among the 27 sanctioned accounts — run by journalists, political commentators and social media in­­fluencers in Pakistan and overseas — are those of the PTI, Matiuallah Jan, Wajahat Khan, Ahmad Noorani and Asad Ali Toor, Imran Riaz, Orya Maqbool, Sabir Shakir, and Moeed Pirzada. In a statement on X, HRCP said that it was “greatly concerned” by the court’s directive. “The wholesale blocking of entire channels — rather than addressing specific instances of unlawful or hateful speech in accordance with due process — conflates dissent with criminal activity,” the statement said. “The constitutional right to freedom ...

The Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony on Wednesday announced a two-day extension in the deadline for Hajj 2026 registration, allowing prospective pilgrims to complete the process by Friday, July 11, 2025.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday nominated United States President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, the highest-profile international award given to an individual or organisation deemed to have done the most to “advance fellowship between nations”. In his letter to the Nobel Committee, which he shared online, Netanyahu said Trump had “demonstrated steadfast and exceptional dedication to promoting peace, security and stability around the world”. Trump, who is trying to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, has been nominated before. Pakistan said in June it would recommend Trump for the prize for his work in helping to resolve the conflict with India. Netanyahu’s nomination of Trump has generated scepticism in some quarters, including from former Swedish prime minister Carl Bildt, who said on X that Netanyahu was seeking to flatter Trump. If Trump won the prize, he would be the fifth US president to do so, after Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Jimmy Carter and Bara...

Audio recordings analysed by the BBC suggest Bangladesh’s fugitive ex-prime minister Sheikh Hasina ordered a deadly crackdown on protests last year, allegations for which she is on trial. Up to 1,400 people were killed between July and August 2024, according to the United Nations, when Hasina’s government ordered a crackdown on protesters in a failed bid to cling to power. Hasina, 77, fled to India at the culmination of the student-led uprising and has defied orders to return to Dhaka, where her trial in absentia for charges amounting to crimes against humanity opened on June 1. The BBC Eye Investigations team analysed audio alleged to be of Hasina — and which forms a key plank of the evidence for the prosecution — which was leaked online. In the recording, dated July 18, 2024, a voice alleged to be Hasina is heard authorising security forces to “use lethal weapons” against protesters and that “wherever they find [them], they will shoot”. The BBC said audio forensics experts had found no evidence that the spe...

Billionaire Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence startup on Wednesday removed posts made by its chatbot Grok on X after it came under fire for anti-Semitic content. Concerns over political bias, hate speech and factual inaccuracy in AI chatbots have mounted since the launch of OpenAI’s ChatGPT in 2022. “We are aware of recent posts made by Grok and are actively working to remove the inappropriate posts,” said a post attributed to the AI system on Musk’s social media platform X, where the bot can be accessed. “Since being made aware of the content, xAI has taken action to ban hate speech before Grok posts on X.” The firm said xAI was training the bot for “only truth-seeking” and thanked its users for helping the company identify the inappropriate posts. Screenshots posted on X showed several posts made by the bot in which it praised Adolf Hitler, and claimed Jews promoted “anti-white hate”. The chatbot, developed by Musk’s company xAI, was criticised by Jewish activist group Anti-Defamation League (ADL) for ans...

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has called for united global efforts to tackle shared challenges such as terrorism, climate change, and inequality.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday scheduled cases of former minister Chaudhry Fawad Hussain regarding May 9, for hearing after the petitioner appeared before the court of Chief Justice of Pakistan.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed his satisfaction on Wednesday as data showed that workers’ remittances increased by 26.6 per cent to hit a record $38.3 billion during the fiscal year 2025 as compared to the corresponding period of last year. The State Bank of Pakistan said remittances reached $38.3bn during July-June 2024-25, as compared to the $30.3bn in remittances received during the same period for FY2023-24. Similarly, on a year-by-year basis, the workers’ remittances went up by 7.9pc to $3.406bn in June 2025, compared to $3.158bn during the same month last year. Data showed that Saudi Arabia ($823.2m) and the United Arab Emirates ($717.2m) were the biggest sources of remittance inflows during June 2025, followed by the United Kingdom ($537.6m) and the United States ($281.2m). A statement from the Prime Minister’s Office said the premier was pleased at the development, saying that the government was committed to economic prosperity after bringing economic stability, the Associated Press of Pakist...

Indian forensic investigators have identified all 260 people killed in last month’s crash of a London-bound passenger plane, health authorities said on Wednesday, ahead of a hugely anticipated preliminary report into what went wrong. India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau is leading the probe into one of the deadliest air disasters in decades, with an initial report expected on Friday. All but one of the 242 people aboard the Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner were killed when it crashed on June 12. It ploughed into housing just after takeoff in the western city of Ahmedabad, and authorities have also identified 19 people killed on the ground. No details have been released about the probe, in which British and US air accident investigation agencies have also taken part. But specialist website The Air Current, citing multiple sources familiar with the investigation, reported it had “narrowed its focus to the movement of the engine fuel switches”, while noting that full analysis will “take months — if no...

State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Jameel Ahmad said on Wednesday the institution plans to launch a pilot for a digital currency and is finalising legislation to regulate virtual assets as the government ramps up efforts to modernise the country’s financial system. Central banks globally are exploring the use of digital currencies as interest in blockchain-based payments grows. Pakistan’s move follows similar steps by regulators in China, India, Nigeria and several Gulf states to test or issue digital currencies through controlled pilot programmes. At the Reuters NEXT Asia summit in Singapore, Ahmad said Pakistan was “building up our capacity on the central bank digital currency” and hoped to roll out a pilot soon. He was speaking on a panel alongside Sri Lanka’s central bank governor, P. Nandalal Weerasinghe, with both discussing monetary policy challenges in South Asia. Ahmad said a new law would “lay down the foundations for the licensing and regulation” of the virtual assets sector and that the central...

A drone attack in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Bannu district claimed the life of a woman and left three others injured, police confirmed on Wednesday.

Christian Horner was sacked on Wednesday by Red Bull after 20 years as team principal of the Formula One outfit. The 51-year-old has been in charge since the team was formed in 2005 and has led them to eight drivers’ titles and six constructors’ crowns. Dutchman Max Verstappen has won the past four drivers’ titles for Red Bull, matching the achievement of Sebastian Vettel, who dominated for the team from 2010 to 2013. Horner’s dismissal as CEO and team principal comes 17 months after he was accused by a female colleague of “inappropriate behaviour”. The Englishman was twice cleared over the claims by the Formula One team’s parent company, Red Bull GmbH, and his wife, former Spice Girl Geri Halliwell, stood by him. But there have been rumblings of discontent within the team, with several high-profile departures, while form on the track has nose-dived. “Red Bull has released Christian Horner from his operational duties with effect from today (Wednesday) and has appointed Laurent Mekies as CEO of Red Bull Racing...

Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry on Wednesday accused Indian National Security Adviser Ajit Doval of being the “chief architect” of terrorism in Pakistan. The interview comes amid tensions between the two nuclear-armed countries in the wake of their recent military confrontation, sparked by New Delhi’s baseless allegations against Islamabad over a deadly attack in occupied Kashmir’s Pahalgam. During an exclusive interview with Qatari broadcaster Al Jazeera, the military’s spokesperson branded Doval the “evil chief architect of India’s terror enterprise” and accused him of being responsible for not only acts of terrorism in Pakistan, but also terrorism within the region and transnational killings. “Do you think it’s happening on its own? This terror enterprise cannot be sustained without the sponsorship of India,” the DG ISPR said. “Who is the chief architect? Mr Ajit Doval.” According to the ISPR chief, India provided funding, planning, intelligence and tech...

The Parliamentary delegation led by Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq on Wednesday, met with the Prime Minister of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ali Asadov, in Baku.

The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has launched the second phase of its flagship initiative – Digitising Pakistan’s Oil supply chain.

Today is the final day for mandatory Hajj 2026 registration, the Ministry of Religious Affairs has announced.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Wednesday said Pakistan and Turkiye were pursuing the establishment of a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) for Turkish entrepreneurs in Karachi. The announcement came after Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan arrived in Islamabad earlier today on an official visit. Turkiye’s Minister of National Defence Yasar Guler is also visiting Pakistan. Pakistan and Turkiye enjoy strong bilateral ties built on shared cultural, religious and historical bonds, as well as mutual respect. In February, the two countries pledged to boost bilateral trade to $5 billion as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited Islamabad. “We are pursuing the establishment of a Special Economic Zone dedicated to Turkish entrepreneurs at Karachi,” Dar said, addressing a press conference alongside Fidan at the Foreign Office (FO). Dar also mentioned other engagements, including the revival of the Istanbul-Tehran-Islamabad train, saying, “Our delegations are meeting in the coming weeks to finalise t...

The Islamabad Excise and Taxation Department has set a new benchmark in revenue collection, surpassing previous records by a significant margin, collecting Rs 21.

The Rawalpindi Police on Wednesday said they arrested a man for allegedly killing his daughter for ‘honour’ over not deleting her account on social media platform TikTok. The first information report (FIR) of the case was registered at Rawat Police Station a day ago on the complaint of Head Constable Shahbaz Anjum Kayani under Section 302 (Punishment of qatl-i-amd), and Section 311 (Waiver or compounding of qisas) of the Pakistan Penal Code. Under Section 311, the state becomes the complainant, as this provision is non-compoundable, and the case must proceed to a logical conclusion. The punishment for ‘honour’ killings, under Sections 311 and 302, includes the death sentence or life imprisonment. The option for a 25-year sentence under Section 302C is not applicable when Section 311 is invoked. The FIR said the incident occurred at 11:30am a day ago in Dhok Chaudhrian, within the limits of the Rawat Police Station when Kayani received a tipoff from a source about the suspect asking his daughter to delete her ...