Pakistan

ISLAMABAD - National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq on Thursday condemned Israel’s recent attack on Iran, called it a violation of international law and reiterated Pakistan’s support for the Iranian government and people during a meeting with Iranian Ambassador Reza Amiri Moghadam at Parliament House.

LAHORE: Ecotourism, the country’s pioneering initiative, led by the Punjab Wildlife and Parks Department, and developed in accordance with the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) criteria, marks the first structured effort that offers a unique blend of nature-based experiences, animal conservation, cultural immersion and education, ensuring sustainable tourism that benefits both biodiversity and local communities. Considering the ecological significance of Changa Manga, Uchali Lake and Chashma for their rich flora and fauna, these sites were strategically selected for ecotourism development, officials at the Forest, Wildlife and Fisheries Department told Dawn. Mentioning initiatives taken under the spotlight of ecotourism, the officials said the proposed ecotourism development. Changa Manga Forest Reserve, located 80km south of Lahore, spans over 12,500 acres and is one of the world’s largest man-made forests. It is home to a rich variety of native flora and fauna. With the proposed ecotourism developme...

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif chaired a special meeting on Monday to review progress on transport department projects, particularly the electric bus initiative under the Punjab Clean Air Program.

Pakistan on Friday welcomed the Supplemental Award issued by the Court of Arbitration in the Indus Waters Treaty dispute, reaffirming Islamabad’s longstanding position that India cannot unilaterally suspend the treaty or limit the court’s jurisdiction.

China has expanded the economic safeguards for segments of its population affected by flood control schemes in times of extreme rainfall, including pledges of direct compensation from the central government and payments for livestock losses. In China, diverting floodwaters to areas next to rivers is a major step in managing downstream flooding. As extreme rainfall grows in frequency, China is increasingly utilising such areas, some of which have been unused until now and have been populated by farms, croplands and even residential buildings, stoking social tensions. According to revised rules on compensation related to flood diversions released late on Friday, the central government will now bear 70 per cent of all compensation funds, with local governments responsible for the rest. Previously, the ratio was to be decided based on actual economic losses and the fiscal situation of local governments. Livestock and poultry that cannot be relocated in time before the arrival of diverted floodwaters will also be ...

ISLAMABAD - Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said yesterday that Pakistan and the United States were actively engaged in talks for a win-win conclusion.

QUETTA: The body of a 14-year-old student, Muhammad Musawir Kakar, who was kidnapped for ransom on November 15, 2024 has been recovered by the police, Quetta DIG Aitzaz Ahmed Goraya said on Friday. He revealed that Afghan nationals were involved in the kidnapping. They abducted the boy with the help of local accomplices and later handed him over to the extremist group Daesh, also known as IS, which demanded a ransom of $12m from the victim’s father. The DIG added that after killing the boy, the kidnappers buried his body in the Maro Isplinji area of Mastung district. The grave was located by the police. The body appeared to be over two months old, he said, adding the postmortem report revealed the boy was shot in the chest and head. His identity was confirmed through DNA testing. “We tracked down the kidnappers, raided multiple locations, and eliminated some of them, but unfortunately, we were unable to ensure the safe recovery of the boy, for which we are deeply sorry,” said DIG Goraya. He added that the inv...

ISLAMABAD - Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, NI (M), Chief of Army Staff (COAS), engaged with the probationary officers of the 52nd Common Training Program (CTP) of the Civil Services Academy during a session held at the Army Auditorium.

ISLAMABAD - The Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court Friday, by accepting the review petitions, ruled the former ruling Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) is ineligible for reserved seats for women and minorities in the national and provincial assemblies.

Speaker of the Punjab Assembly, Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan, on Friday suspended 26 members of the provincial assembly for 15 sessions over serious breaches of parliamentary rules and disorderly conduct during house proceedings.

NEW DELHI: India is vigilant of developments in its neighbourhood that “have a bearing” on its “interest and security”, the external affairs ministry said of a recent trilateral meeting between Pakistan, Bangladesh and China, adding that it factors in the “evolving context” in its bilateral relations with these countries. According to The Wire, during a trilateral meeting in Kunming, China, on June 19 involving Chinese vice foreign minister Sun Weidong, Bangladesh’s acting foreign secretary Ruhul Siddique and Pakistan’s additional foreign secretary Imran Siddiqui, the three sides agreed to explore cooperation in a number of sectors including trade, ‘maritime affairs’, health and the environment. Asked for comment on the meeting during the ministry’s weekly press briefing on Thursday, spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that “we maintain a constant watch on the developments in our neighbourhood that have a bearing on our interest and our security”. “Our relations with individual countries, while they stand on th...

ISLAMABAD - The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) on Friday called upon Provincial Disaster Management Authorities (PDMAs), district administrations, and relevant departments to remain on high alert and activate contingency plans as widespread rain and thunderstorms are expected to impact large parts of the country within.

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said that resolution of the Israel-Iran conflict will open the doors for peace and prosperity in the region.

ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Religious Affairs has been ordered to refund Rs36 billion to aspiring pilgrims who couldn’t perform Haj this year. The money would be returned to over 67,000 Pakistani pilgrims who were supposed to go on Haj through private tour operators but couldn’t over delays in payments. The sub-committee of Senate Standing Committee on Religious Affairs on Friday directed the ministry to fully reimburse the victims. The sub-committee’s convener, Senator Aon Abbas Buppi, announced that Rs36.43 billion held in Saudi Arabia must be refunded by August 15. There should be no deductions whatsoever, including currency exchange losses or service charges, Mr Bappi emphasised. Religious Affairs Secretary Dr Attaur Rehman informed the committee that Pakistan was allotted a quota of 179,210 pilgrims for the Haj in 2025 by the Saudi government. Of this quota, 90,830 slots were allocated to private Haj operators. However, the Saudi government later revised its policy to only allow operators with a group of ...

• CB’s ruling overturns SC’s July 12, 2024 majority judgement; restores Peshawar High Court’s original verdict • Seven judges accept review petitions by ECP, PML-N et al; three judges ‘partially allow’ them • 77 reserved seats in national and provincial assemblies will be distributed among other parties • Ruling coalition can now comfortably achieve two-thirds majority in NA ISLAMABAD: The Constit­utional Bench (CB) on Friday overturned the Supreme Court’s earlier judgement in the reserved seats case — effectively taking away reserved seats from the PTI and handing them to their rival parties in the national and provincial legislatures. The decision, handed down by a majority of seven judges, supersedes the July 12, 2024 majority judgement by eight judges, which had declared the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) eligible for reserved seats for women and non-Muslims in the assemblies. “[B]y majority of seven namely Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan, Justice Musarrat Hilali, Justice Naeem Akhter Afghan, Justice Shahid Bila...

• Losses of Rs342bn in six months seen as ‘Rs1.9bn daily drain’ on public finances • Circular debt crosses Rs4.9tr; unfunded pensions, weak governance deepen fiscal strain ISLAMABAD: With relentless financial haemorrhaging of nearly Rs342bn in just six months, the cumulative losses and unfunded pension liabilities of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) have crossed Rs7.5tr — almost three times the country’s defence allocation of Rs2.55tr for FY26, and over seven times the upcoming year’s Public Sector Develop­ment Programme (Rs1tr). The Ministry of Finance informed the Cabinet Commit­tee on State-Owned Enterprises (CCoSOEs) on Friday that total SOE losses now exceed Rs5.8tr — nearly one-third of the recently passed Rs17.5tr federal budget for 2025-26. Presided over by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurang­zeb, the meeting was briefed by the Central Monitoring Unit of the Finance Division on the biannual performance of federal SOEs for the period July to December 2024. The report outlined the worsening state of SOEs, in...

SWAT/PESHAWAR - Eleven tourists were swept away due to flash floods in the Khwaza Khela area of district Swat on Friday.

Lahore - Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz said on Friday that those who tried to minus Nawaz Sharif had themselves been marginalized.

ISLAMABAD - The opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Friday rejected the ruling of Supreme Court’s Constitutional Bench in reserved seats review case, describing it as a flagrant breach of the party’s constitutional rights, a murder of justice, and a direct assault on the Constitution and democracy.

• Reiterates firm support for two-state solution to Israel-Palestine conflict • Insists Trump’s Nobel nomination a joint civil-military decision • Dismisses claim Islamabad sought ceasefire ISLAMABAD: Foreign Mini­ster Ishaq Dar on Friday ruled out the possibility of Pakistan joining the Abraham Accords, stating that such a move would effectively mean abandoning the country’s longstanding support for a two-state solution to the Palestinian conflict and recognising Israel. Speaking at a news conference at the Foreign Office, Mr Dar, who also serves as deputy prime minister, reiterated Pakistan’s firm support for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. His comments came in response to recent remarks by US Special Envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff, who suggested that more countries, which were not previously “contemplated”, were preparing to join the US-brokered accords, which normalise ties with Israel. Witkoff had joined President Donald Trump at the White House lunch for Army Chief Fie...