Pakistan

ISLAMABAD - Coordinator to the Prime Minister on Commerce,Rana Ihsaan Afzal Khan, on Wednesday, called on Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of Foreign Trade of the United Arab Emirates During the meeting, both dignitaries reviewed the state of bilateral trade and economic cooperation between Pakistan and the UAE.

LAHORE - Punjab Minister for Information and Culture Azma Bokhari on Wednesday strongly refuted reports claiming the withdrawal of security from Bilawal House Lahore.

ISLAMABAD - Ilyas Mehmood Nizami, Pakistan’s Ambassador-designate to Romania, called on President Asif Ali Zardari at Aiwan-e-Sadr on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Auditor General of Pakistan, Maqbool Ahmad Gondal, also called on the President.

PESHAWAR - Sohail Afridi has taken oath as the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

ISLAMABAD - Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar Wednesday said that the constitutional bench can hear the 26th Amendment case and that judges from all the constitutional benches can be included if necessary.

ISLAMABAD - The Federal Government has slashed the prices of petrol and high-speed diesel by Rs 5.

ISLAMABAD - Incarcerated Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan on Wednesday sought his release on parole, claiming he can help Pakistan settle its all issues with Afghanistan amid border hostilities between the two countries.

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, said yesterday that Pakistan’s election as a member of the UN Human Rights Council with an overwhelming majority of votes reflects the international community’s recognition of Pakistan’s contribution to promoting human rights agenda.

Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research Rana Tanveer Hussain held a high-level meeting with Acting U.

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has emphasized the need for joint national and interna-tional efforts to ensure the availability of adequate, balanced, and nutritious food for all, particularly in the face of growing climate challenges.

President Asif Ali Zardari has emphasized that equal, safe, and affordable access to food is a fundamental human right, stressing that food security is a shared responsibility of all segments of society, not just the government.

Expressing grave concern over Indian military leadership’s irresponsible statements under immense political pressure, Pakistan Army on Wednesday warned that every act of ag-gression will be dealt with a swift, resolute and intense response that will be remembered by posterity.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has reached a staff-level agreement with the Pakistani authorities on the second review of the 37-month Extended Arrangement under the Ex-tended Fund Facility (EFF) and the first review of the 28-month arrangement under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF).

President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif have agreed to continue polit-ical consultations on matters of national importance.

Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban regime on Wednesday agreed to a temporary 48-hour easefire, effective from 6:00pm Wednesday, following days of intense cross-border fighting, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced.

At least 13 people, including women and children, were killed when a speeding truck overturned on the Swat Motorway on Thursday, according to motorway police officials.

The government has announced a reduction in petroleum product prices for the next fortnight, bringing relief to consumers across the country.

US President Donald Trump confirmed on Wednesday that he authorised the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to conduct covert operations in Venezuela, marking a sharp escalation in US efforts to pressure President Nicolas Maduro’s government. The New York Times first reported the classified directive, citing US officials familiar with the decision, saying the Trump administration’s Venezuela strategy aims to remove Maduro from power. The administration has offered $50 million for information leading to Maduro’s arrest and conviction on drug trafficking charges. The new authority would allow the CIA to carry out lethal operations in Venezuela and conduct a range of operations in the Caribbean, the Times reported. Asked why he authorised the CIA to operate in Venezuela, Trump told reporters his reasons were migration of Venezuelans to the United States and drug trafficking. “I authorised for two reasons really,” Trump said. “Number one, they have emptied their prisons into the United States of America…they came i...

ISLAMABAD: A judge of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) has surrendered his US permanent residency, commonly known as a green card, after the introduction of a stringent vacation and travel policy that requires judges to seek prior approval from the Chief Justice before travelling abroad. According to well-placed sources in the IHC, the judge has obtained a five-year visa on his official passport following the cancellation of his Green Card. The decision came in the wake of recently introduced amendments to the Presidential Order and a General Standing Order which make it mandatory for judges to obtain a no-objection certificate (NOC) from chief justices of their respective courts before leaving the country, even during holidays or vacations. The new standard operating procedures (SOPs) issued under the policy state that the entire time of a judge, including leave, vacations and holidays, is at the disposal of the state. The chief justice has been empowered to regulate such leave and may cancel it even after a j...