Pakistan

India’s Supreme Court has ordered an investigation into a wildlife rescue centre run by the philanthropic arm of billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s group, although it said the evidence did not support allegations of unlawful animal acquisitions and mistreatment. Vantara is a marquee project of the Reliance Foundation and the Ambani family. Located in western Gujarat state and led by the billionaire’s son, Anant Ambani, it has rescued and treated thousands of animals, and built the largest elephant hospital. It was also one of the venues for Anant’s pre-wedding celebrations last year, with the global celebrities who attended advised to don “jungle fever” outfits when visiting Vantara. The Supreme Court late on Monday ordered an inquiry as it ruled on public interest litigations that referred to complaints by non-profit and wildlife groups alleging mistreatment of animals at Vantara and questioning how the animals ended up at the rescue centre. They also alleged the Central Zoo Authority, the regulatory agency, failed...

Posts from PTI supporters on multiple social media platforms since Sunday were sharing a video showing PTI founder Imran Khan with a beard. However, the video is doctored. Imran has remained incarcerated for over two years since August 2023 due to ongoing legal proceedings, despite several acquittals and suspended sentences. In January 2025, he was handed a 14-year prison sentence in a corruption case linked to the Al-Qadir University Project Trust. On Aug 23 this year, a TikTok user — who appeared to be a PTI supporter based on his past posts — shared a video showing Imran with a beard. The user did not provide any details about when or where the video was recorded. The video amassed over 21.3 million views and more than 2.3m likes. The same video was also shared by other PTI supporters on TikTok, here and here, where it gained 4.1m and 2.2m views, respectively. Other users also circulated the clip on various other platforms, which can be seen here, here, here, here, here and here. In addition, an image of I...

Northern areas are reeling from devastating climate-induced flash floods that killed hundreds earlier this month, destroying homes, infrastructure and livelihoods in scenes many compared to the catastrophic 2022 deluges. Pakistan ranks among the world’s 10 most climate-vulnerable countries, despite contributing less than 1 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions. Experts warn that such floods and other calamities are no longer “rare disasters” and are becoming routine shocks in a country ill-prepared to withstand them. The focus, according to these experts, must now be on adaptation, not emissions cuts. “Floods are no longer rare disasters in Pakistan. They are becoming routine shocks that people brace for every monsoon. Calling them the ‘new normal’ is not an exaggeration,” said Karachi-based ecologist Rafi-ul-Haq. Since mid-August, torrential rains, flash floods and cloudbursts have killed more than 460 people across the country, including in Azad Jammu and Kashmir and the Gilgit-Baltistan region. Khybe...

The National Highway Authority (NHA) has announced revised toll charges for the Lahore-Islamabad Motorway (M2), which will come into effect from August 26 and remain applicable until August 25, 2026.

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday directed the relevant authorities to ensure transparency by integrating the customs inspection and assessment system with modern technology and making it faceless.

Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar vowed to strengthen Pakistan’s ties with the North African countries of Egypt and Algeria as he met their foreign ministers on Tuesday in Saudi Arabia. Dar arrived in Jeddah on a two-day visit yesterday, where he spoke on Israel’s ongoing Gaza onslaught during the 21st extraordinary session of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s (OIC) Council of Foreign Ministers. Today, on the sidelines of the OIC meeting, Dar met with Egypt’s Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and Algeria’s FM Ahmed Attaf. Terming his discussion as a “meaningful interaction”, Dar said: “I reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to further strengthening ties with our brotherly countries in North Africa, Algeria and Egypt, through enhanced connectivity and broader cooperation across diverse fields.” The foreign ministers discussed the “grave situation in Palestine”, Dar said on X. The trio stressed the “urgent need for humanitarian access, a ceasefire, and lasting peace, while underscoring the importance of unity w...

The Rescue 1122 sources on Tuesday said the water flow level in the Sutlej River was increasing, and a warning for high-level flood had been issued.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday directed the National Disaster Management Authority to expedite the rescue operation in the districts of Punjab province affected by the flooding in the Sutlej River The prime minister instructed the NDMA chairman to take immediate steps for the evacuation of people stranded in flood-affected areas and to.

The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) is expected to approve a special financial package worth Rs27 billion for employees of the Utility Stores Corporation (USC) in its meeting scheduled for Tuesday.

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday chaired a high-level review meeting on reforms in the customs assessment and examination system, directing that the process be made faceless through modern technology to ensure transparency.

Chinese President Xi Jinping will gather more than 20 world leaders at a regional security forum in China next week in a powerful show of Global South solidarity in the age of Donald Trump while also helping sanctions-hit Russia pull off another diplomatic coup. Aside from Russian President Vladimir Putin, leaders from Central Asia, the Middle East, South Asia and Southeast Asia have been invited to the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, to be held in the northern port city of Tianjin from August 31 to September 1. The summit will feature Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first visit to China in more than seven years as the two neighbours work on further defusing tensions roiled by deadly border clashes in 2020. Modi last shared the same stage with Xi and Putin at last year’s Brics summit in Kazan, Russia, even as Western leaders turned their backs on the Russian leader amid the war in Ukraine. Russian embassy officials in New Delhi last week said Moscow hopes trilateral talks with China and ...

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has asked the country’s lenders to increase scrutiny over funds flowing indirectly from Pakistan, according to a letter seen by Reuters that cited a “high risk” of such money being used to buy arms. Direct flows of funds from Pakistan to India are largely prohibited, with every transaction requiring the central bank’s approval. The directive, dated August 6, follows investigations by Indian agencies after the two neighbouring countries engaged in a fierce military conflict in May, triggered by India blaming Pakistan, without evidence, for the April 22 Pehalgam attack in occupied Kashmir. The RBI named Pakistan a “high risk” jurisdiction from an arms financing perspective and cited Indian investigations into arms financing, but did not go into detail about their findings. According to a government source with direct knowledge of the matter, Indian investigative authorities found that some Pakistani nationals had sent funds to India via other countries. India’s banking channels a...

The Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) has purchased an initial 30,000 tonnes of white sugar in an international tender seeking around 200,000 tonnes, European traders said on Tuesday. On July 8, the government had approved plans to import 500,000 tonnes of sugar to help maintain price stability. Market analysts said that retail sugar prices in the country have risen sharply since January. The validity of other price offers submitted in the tender, which closed last week, has been extended until tomorrow, so more purchases are seen as possible, traders said. The initial 30,000-tonne purchase was believed to have been made from Al Khaleej Sugar for medium-grade sugar at an estimated $582.50 a ton, cost and freight (c&f) included, they said. Reports reflect assessments from traders, and further estimates of prices and volumes are still possible later. The tender sought sugar from worldwide origins, excluding India and Israel. The TCP is believed to have purchased about 55,000 tonnes of white sugar in a previ...

The Sindh government and the World Bank have agreed to strengthen collaboration across multiple sectors, with a particular focus on health and education.

India on Tuesday released additional water into the Sutlej River, prompting a flood alert in Punjab as water levels continue to rise.

Two human traffickers were arrested in Balochistan’s Gwadar for attempting to send citizens to Iran via illegal sea routes, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) said in a statement on Tuesday. Human smuggling from Pakistan to Iran has been a persistent issue, with many migrants attempting to cross through perilous land and sea routes in search of better economic opportunities or to reach onward destinations in the Middle East and Europe, according to a report by the National Initiative against Organised Crime. Gwadar and other parts of Balochistan are frequently used as key transit points, where traffickers exploit vulnerable citizens by charging hefty sums for the dangerous journeys. Per the FIA’s statement, “major operations” were carried out by the agency’s Composite Circle Gwadar, through which the suspects were arrested from different areas of the district. “The arrested suspects are involved in sending citizens from Pakistan to Iran through illegal sea routes,” it said. “The suspect extorted Rs10,000 ...

Two more poliovirus cases were confirmed in the southern parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, bringing Pakistan’s total count this year to 23, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) said on Tuesday. Pakistan is one of the last two countries in the world, alongside Afghanistan, where polio remains endemic. Despite global efforts to eradicate the virus, challenges such as security issues, vaccine hesitancy, and misinformation have slowed progress. A statement from the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at Islamabad’s NIH said the latest cases include a 16-month-old girl from Union Council Mullazai in Tank district and a 24-month-old girl from Union Council Miran Shah-3 in North Waziristan district. “With these detections, the total number of polio cases in Pakistan in 2025 has reached 23, including 15 cases from KP, six from Sindh, and one each from Punjab and Gilgit-Baltistan,” the statement noted. “Polio is a highly infectious and incurable disease that can cause lifelong paralysis. The only effecti...

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has announced the arrival of 100 additional state-of-the-art electric buses for the province, as part of her government’s effort to provide affordable and modern transport facilities to the public.

The absent Alexander Isak dominated the build-up to Newcastle United’s clash at home to Liverpool but the Swede was temporarily forgotten in a rip-roaring contest that ended 3-2 to the reigning champions thanks to a stoppage-time winner by teenaged Premier League debutant Rio Ngumoha. Isak’s desire to leave Newcastle, with Liverpool his destination of choice, guaranteed a boisterous St James’ Park atmosphere and it seemed Arne Slot’s visitors had buckled as they threw away a flattering 2-0 lead against a side reduced to 10 men by Anthony Gordon’s red card in first-half stoppage time. But 16-year-old Ngumoha broke Newcastle’s hearts shortly after coming off the bench, thrashing in the winner with a first-time right-foot shot in the 10th minute of stoppage time to become Liverpool’s youngest ever scorer and the fourth youngest in Premier League history. View this post on Instagram It was a sickening blow for Newcastle who were again without outcast striker Isak, but who began the game in superb fashion. Even wh...

The Punjab government is set to launch the second phase of its free laptop distribution scheme, aimed at enhancing digital learning opportunities for students across the province.