Pakistan

Pakistan has tested multiple missile types over the last few years to increase its defence capabilities and also to ensure credible deterrence. The missiles range from ground-launched cruise missiles to medium-range ballistic missiles. Fatah 4 cruise missile On September 30, the Pakistan Army successfully conducted a training launch of a newly inducted, indigenously-produced Fatah-4 cruise missile at a range of 750 kilometres, the military’s media wing said. “Equipped with advanced avionics and state-of-the-art navigational aids, this weapon system is capable of evading [the] enemy’s missile defence system due to terrain-hugging features and engaging targets with high precision,” the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement. An image of the newly inducted cruise missile Fatah-4. — Screengrab via X/@PTVNewsOfficial Fatah surface-to-surface missile On May 5, Pakistan conducted a successful training launch of a Fatah series surface-to-surface guided missile with a range of 120 kilometres, as pa...

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia on Tuesday launched the Economic Cooperation Framework, which is based on their shared economic interests and reaffirms their desire to strengthen trade and investment relations. The decision to launch the framework was taken during a Monday meeting between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on the sidelines of the Ninth Edition of the Future Investment Initiative (FII9) in Riyadh, according to a statement from the Foreign Office (FO). The FII9 convened global leaders, investors, policymakers, and innovators to explore the theme, ‘The Key to Prosperity: Unlocking New Frontiers of Growth’ and discuss key topics such as innovation, sustainability, economic inclusion, and geopolitical shifts. “As part of the framework, several strategic and high-impact projects will be discussed in the economic, trade, investment and development fields that will contribute to strengthening cooperation between the two governments, enhancing the pivotal role of the pr...

United States President Donald Trump on Tuesday again stated that seven aircraft were shot down during the brief military escalation between Pakistan and India in May. Addressing a dinner with business leaders during his trip to Japan, Trump claimed that a lot of the wars he stopped were because of his tariffs imposed on multiple countries, stating that he did “a great service to the world”. “If you look at India and Pakistan, they were going at it,” he said. “Seven brand-new, beautiful planes were shot down. “I said to [Indian] Prime Minister Modi and I said to the Prime Minister [Shehbaz Sharif], very nice man, a very good man and the Field Marshal [Asim Munir] over in Pakistan … I said, ‘look we’re not going to do any trade if you’re going to be fighting’,” Trump said. “We said ‘no, we’re not doing any deals if you’re going to fight’ and within 24 hours that was the end of that. It was amazing, actually,” he added. “I think trade is responsible for 70 per cent of the fact that we didn’t have wars.” The May...

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on Tuesday said that the Peshawar corps commander visited the CM Secretariat earlier to “congratulate” him. The CM shared this information while speaking to the media outside the Supreme Court, where he was also asked what the two had discussed during the meeting. “He came to congratulate me, and it was not an official [exchange]. The conversation was unofficial. And our stance is the same [everywhere], what we say inside is what we say outside,” Afridi replied. Responding to a follow-up question, he further explained that he was the chief executive of a province and even the inspector general of police and the chief secretary had visited his office. Similarly, he continued, “the corps commander will also come there, and the officers of all of our security institutions will also come. We will discuss matters pertaining to the province with them.” Apparently referring to security officials, he said they should visit the chief ministers and the prime minister’s of...

Amid recent tensions between Multan Sultans and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), the PSL franchise on Tuesday submitted a proposal to the PCB aimed at strengthening the Pakistan Super League “through better governance, transparency, and partnership”, according to a statement. The letter to PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi “acknowledges recent tensions but frames this as an opportunity to rebuild trust and put professional systems in place so the PSL can reach its full potential.” According to the statement, Multan Sultans owner Ali Khan Tareen reaffirmed the franchise’s long-standing commitment to the league. The letter notes concerns about ad hoc decision-making and limited management experience, and calls for institutional processes and accountability, the statement read. Four key reforms were proposed by Multan Sultans, beginning with franchise representation on PSL committees and working groups. “Formal inclusion of every franchise so policies reflect the league’s collective experience across scheduling, recrui...

Within just six hours of launching the new e-challan system, Karachi traffic police issued fines exceeding Rs12 million to citizens for various traffic violations.

The FIA Anti-Corruption Circle Lahore has registered a case against nine officers of the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA), including six who had been missing for several days, for allegedly misusing their authority and accepting bribes.

The Punjab Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced a province-wide ban on vehicles lacking green stickers, effective November 15.

Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal said on Tuesday that the joint decision of his party, PML-N and the PPP, to support a vote of no confidence (VONC) against the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) premier was a sign of “democratic maturity” to solve the region’s issues. The PML-N and PPP — coalition partners in the federal government — announced yesterday that they will jointly bring about a no-trust motion against AJK Prime Minister Haq. The PML-N has said it would support the no-trust motion against the AJK premier but would not become part of the government, and instead would be in the opposition. PPP’s Qamar Zaman Kaira said his party accepted that decision. Today, Iqbal chaired a meeting of the PML-N’s “political coordination committee” at his planning ministry in Islamabad on the directives of PM Shehbaz Sharif. Kashmir affairs minister Amir Muqam and Adviser to PM on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah were among the meeting’s participants, while PML-N’s AJK President Shah Ghulam Qadir was leading his parliamentary ...

Pakistan on Tuesday expressed solidarity with the people of Turkiye as 6.

Pakistan’s economy has expanded by three per cent in fiscal year 2025 (FY25), the World Bank said in a report on Tuesday, but cautioned that growth is likely to remain the same in the next fiscal year due to the impacts of the recent floods. Earlier this month, the WB had cut its growth forecast for Pakistan by half a per cent to 2.6pc for the current fiscal year due to the recent floods, which are also expected to push up inflation to 7.2pc. It had said that for FY 2025/26, real gross domestic product (GDP) growth was projected to remain around 2.6pc, as ongoing catastrophic floods had damped the forecast. It projected a 3.1pc growth rate for the country in its previous biannual outlook in April 2025. Pakistan has set 4.2pc growth target and has since been looking at 3.5pc as part of its engagements with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In the report released today, titled — Staying the Course for Growth and Jobs — WB predicted that the economy’s “growth is projected to remain at three per cent for the...

The World Bank, in its Pakistan Development Report 2025, has cautioned that inflation in Pakistan is likely to rise following the recent floods that caused extensive damage to the country’s economy.

A no-confidence motion is expected to be submitted today (Tuesday) against Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Prime Minister Chaudhry Anwar-ul-Haq, as political tensions rise in the region.

Lahore once again ranked as the world’s most polluted city, recording an alarming Air Quality Index (AQI) of 308, as smog continued to blanket Punjab and other parts of the country.

ISLAMABAD: Adviser to the Nuclear Command Authority Lt Gen (retd) Mazhar Jamil said Pakistan would continue to pursue its policy of ‘Quid Pro Quo Plus’ to reinforce strategic stability in South Asia, which has been undermined by great power politics and a technology bias in favour of India. Quid Pro Quo Plus is a military doctrine that entails a retaliatory response to Indian aggression exceeding the initial provocation in scale or severity. “Pakistan would continue to uphold its policy of ‘Quid Pro Quo Plus,’ thereby reinforcing strategic stability in South Asia,” Gen Jamil said while addressing the concluding session of a three-day workshop hosted by the Centre for International Strategic Studies (CISS) in Islamabad. “Pakistan,” he added, “stands fully prepared to respond to any act of aggression, strategic, operational, or tactical, with resolve and capability, ensuring the preservation of deterrence equilibrium in the region.” The statement follows an ongoing tense period this month, which revived brinkma...

United States President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi signed a framework agreement on Tuesday for securing the supply of rare earths, as both countries aim to reduce China’s dominance of some of the key electronic components. The leaders signed the documents, which included critical minerals, at the neo-Baroque-style Akasaka Palace in Tokyo, beneath three chandeliers decorated from top to bottom with gold ornamentation, as aides applauded. View this post on Instagram No direct mention was made publicly by the leaders about China, which processes over 90 per cent of the world’s rare earths, making it the source of each country’s concern about its mineral supply chain. Beijing has recently expanded export curbs. Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are set to meet on Thursday on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation in South Korea to discuss a deal that would pause steeper US tariffs and Chinese rare earths export controls. Japan and the US would use economic policy ...

• Former ISI chief claims it was his own countrymen, not Pakistan, that handed Afghan envoy Mullah Zaeef over to the Americans • Retired Gen Ehsanul Haq says Zaeef insisted on remaining in Islamabad, despite warnings from Pakistani officials ISLAMABAD: Over 20 years after his now-infamous handover to American forces following their invasion of Afghan­istan, a former Pakistani spymaster has claimed that it was his own countrymen, and not Pakistan, that handed over former Taliban ambassador Abdus Salam Zaeef to the US. The claim, which comes in the midst of an escalating fracas with a resurgent Taliban in Kabul, was made by retired Gen Ehsanul Haq, who took over the reins of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) following the September 11, 2001 attacks. For years, it was believed that Zaeef — who was the Afghan Taliban regime’s envoy to Islam­abad at the time of the 9/11 atta­cks — was handed over to the Americans in violation of international law. In his book, My Life With The Taliban, the former envoy had asserte...

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Monday ahead of the Ninth Edition of the Future Investment Initiative (FII9) in Riyadh. The premier, visiting Saudi Arabia at the invitation of the crown prince, is leading a high-level Pakistani delegation during the trip. The delegation includes Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar and PM’s aides Tariq Fatemi and Bilal Bin Saqib, according to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). A statement issued on X by state broadcaster PTV News said the meeting with the Saudi crown prince was held in a “cordial atmosphere”. “Matters of mutual interest were discussed in the meeting. The joint statement of the meeting regarding discussions on promoting trade, investment, and cooperation in various sectors between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia will be issued shortly,” the statement said, adding that the meeting was attended by FM Dar, COAS Munir an...

The Federal Investigation Agency has arrested six personnel of the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) on allegations of misusing their authority and taking bribes, their lawyer said on Monday. Barrister Mian Ali Ashfaq told Dawn.com the six were “taken into FIA custody and arrested on charges of misuse of authority and bribery”. He said they would be produced in a district court on Tuesday and he would represent them. Ashfaq said the six were Additional Director Chaudhry Sarfraz, In-charge Zawar, Sub-Inspector Ali Raza, Assistant Director Shoaib Riaz, Yasir Gujjar and Mujtaba Kamran. Chaudhry was reportedly removed over different controversies last month and asked to report to the NCCIA headquarters, Islamabad. He said he was transferred to the headquarters and he had sought a six-month leave. The three controversies were about laying hands on a number of YouTubers/social media influencers, including Saadur Rehman, popularly known as Ducky Bhai and Rajab Butt, for their alleged involvement in u...

ISLAMABAD - Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, NI (M), HJ, Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is on an official visit to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, called on King Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein, King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and the Supreme Commander of the Jordan Armed Forces.