Pakistan

Former climate change minister, PPP Vice President Senator Sherry Rehman, assailed the federal government on Wednesday for slashing funds for environment protection in the upcoming budget for fiscal year 2025-2026. The federal government has earmarked a major chunk of next year’s budget for climate-resilient development, but its failure to set a clear course of action and policy contradictions weigh heavily on financial allocations that amount to hundreds of billions. The budget under the head of ‘environment protection’ has also reduced from Rs7.2billion to Rs3.1bn, with funds for ‘pollution abatement’ going down from Rs6.29bn to Rs3.1bn. “As far as climate is concerned, I am disappointed to share that in the environment protection budget, which used to be Rs7.2bn — which was already quite low — has now been slashed by more than half to Rs3.1bn. What will we do with this money? We will start depending more and more on international money. There have already been aid cuts in climate funding internationally,“ ...

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi maintained in a conversation with US President Donald Trump late on Tuesday that a ceasefire between India and Pakistan after a four-day conflict in May was achieved through talks between the two militaries and not US mediation, India’s senior-most diplomat said. Trump had said last month that the nuclear-armed South Asian neighbours agreed to a ceasefire after talks mediated by the US, and that the hostilities ended after he urged the countries to focus on trade instead of war. “PM Modi told President Trump clearly that during this period, there was no talk at any stage on subjects like India-US trade deal or US mediation between India and Pakistan,” Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said in a press statement. “Talks for ceasing military action happened directly between India and Pakistan through existing military channels, and on the insistence of Pakistan. Prime Minister Modi emphasised that India has not accepted mediation in the past and will never do,” he said. M...

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Adviser on Information, Barrister Dr.

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)-led federal government has successfully addressed key concerns raised by its coalition partner, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), regarding the federal budget for 2025-26, paving the way for a finalized agreement.

The German Embassy in Islamabad has introduced a new Consular Services Portal aimed at simplifying and accelerating the application process for Pakistani citizens seeking work visas.

The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) has released a new patriotic song to commemorate the historic success of Operation Bunyan-um-Marsoos, paying tribute to the courage and professionalism of Pakistan’s armed forces.

LAHORE: The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Tuesday unveiled the schedule for the ICC Women’s World Cup, to be jointly hosted by India and Sri Lanka from September 30 to November 2. Pakistan will commence their campaign on October 2 against Bangladesh at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, where all their group-stage matches are set to be played. This arrangement is in line with the hybrid model announced by the ICC last year. Led by all-rounder Fatima Sana, Pakistan qualified for the eight-team event after an unbeaten run in the ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifier, held in here earlier this year. Pakistan’s highly anticipated clash with arch-rivals India is scheduled for October 5, followed by encounters against defending champions Australia on October 8 and 2017 champions England on October 15. The national side will then face New Zealand (October 18), South Africa (October 21), and co-hosts Sri Lanka (October 24) to conclude their round-robin stage. If Pakistan secure a semi-final berth, they will play...

Pakistan has called the ongoing crisis in Gaza a "stain on the collective conscience of humanity," citing the death toll of over 55,000 Palestinians including 18,000 children and 28,000 women and widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) has pushed the families of several of its most dedicated Central Secretariat staff members to the verge of starvation. Well-placed sources said PTI had neither reversed the 50pc salary cuts imposed on Central Secretariat staff since October last year, nor had it cleared overdue dues despite repeated promises, leaving the employees in deep distress. The affected staffers said the party leadership broke its promise by neither restoring reduced salaries nor releasing any of the withheld half-pay despite nine months having passed. They said the leadership’s callousness was evident in dismissing several loyal employees who endured detention and torture, instead of recognising their sacrifices. Sources said that while the party leadership continued to enjoy all perks and privileges, they were unwilling to spend a single penny on the party, only doing so when their leader Imran Khan was present to witness it. They lamented that PTI lawmakers, who once branded treasury legisl...

PESHAWAR - Adviser to the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Information and Public Relations, Barrister Saif, has accused the federal government of “dropping a petrol bomb” on the public ahead of the new fiscal year.

Peshawar - Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Ali Amin Gandapur, stated that the province’s own revenue currently stands at Rs.

ISLAMABAD - The National Day of Portugal was celebrated here at a ceremony that also marked the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Pakistan and Portugal.

ISLAMABAD: Lawmakers belonging to the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), a major partner in the ruling coalition, on Tuesday continued their criticism of the federal budget for the next fiscal year, lambasting the federal government over its alleged discriminatory policies towards the party-ruled Sindh province. Taking part in the general debate on the federal budget in the National Assembly, almost every PPP member delivered a similar speech in which they highlighted the “injustices and excesses” being committed by the Centre with the Sindh province by denying its due share in the development plans. Members of MQM-Pakistan, another key partner in the ruling coalition, also expressed their reservations on meagre allocations for various projects in Sindh, but at the same time they also targeted the PPP-led Sindh government, accusing it of ignoring Karachi. PPP lawmakers mainly protested over “failure” of the federal government in handing over the projects which were being carried out by now-defunct Public Works Dep...

• Members of parliamentary committees say protectionist measures unnecessary as no one producing solar panels locally • Omar Ayub insists tariff structure altered under IMF pressure • Nafisa Shah slams ‘martial law-style’ FBR enforcement measures ISLAMABAD: In a rare show of unity, parliamentary committees on Tues­day unanimously rejected the proposed 18 per cent sales tax on imported solar panels and recommended lowering tax rates on sma­ller cars to ease the burden on low-income groups. The Senate and Natio­nal Assembly Standing Co­m­m­ittees on Finance and Revenue held parallel sessions at Parlia­ment House to conduct a clause-by-clause review of the Finance Bill 2025-26. Both panels, chaired by Senator Saleem Mandvi­walla and MNA Naveed Qamar, respectively, proposed amendments and rejected several measures outright. Federal Board of Rev­enue (FBR) Chairman Rashid Mahmood Lan­grial defended the solar tax, arguing it would protect domestic manufacturers. However, lawmakers pointed out that solar panels are ...

US President Donald Trump is set to host Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff, Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, for a lunch meeting on Wednesday, according to a White House spokesperson and the president's official itinerary.

ISLAMABAD - Amid rising tensions between Iran and Israel, Pakistan has begun withdrawing non-essential staff from its diplomatic missions in the region, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed on Tuesday.

QUETTA - The Balochistan government on Tuesday unveiled its surplus, relief-oriented and pro-people budget for the upcoming fiscal year 2025-26, with a total outlay of Rs 1028 billion with a surplus of Rs 42 billion.

WASHINGTON: Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, COAS, interacts with Over-seas Pakistani community during his official visit to United States.

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called on President Asif Ali Zardari at Aiwan-e-Sadr on Tuesday.

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Tuesday directed the relevant authorities to link the Rekodiq with the Pakistan railway line network by 2028 to meet the requirements of future transportation and cargo services.