Pakistan

KARACHI: Salman Mirza, the left-arm pacer who burst onto the international scene last year, has set his sights firmly on representing Pakistan at the 2027 ODI World Cup. Having broken into the national T20I setup just last year at the age of 31, Salman has never looked back, transforming himself from a late-blooming domestic grinder into a reliable performer for the green jersey. In his short international career, Salman has already made a strong impression. He made his T20I debut against Bangladesh in July 2025 and quickly showcased his accuracy and variations. A standout moment came later that year when he was selected ahead of Shaheen Shah Afridi and delivered a match-winning spell of 3-14 against South Africa in Lahore. By the time the 2026 T20 World Cup concluded, he had featured in 17 T20Is, claiming 23 wickets at an impressive average of 16.13 and a strike rate of 15.04. His economy hovered around 6.43, underlining his ability to control proceedings with late swing, in-swingers and stump-to-stump accur...

RAWALPINDI: As the Rawalpindi Ring Road is set to be completed by the end of May, the provincial government has decided not to start work on the Thalian interchange on the motorway and instead make the road functional with a two-way carriageway. A senior official of the divisional administration told Dawn that work on the Ring Road had entered its final phase, as the road had taken shape and horticulture work had started along the main corridor. He said work had begun to widen the Thalian section, where the Ring Road merges with the motorway, as more than 18,000 vehicles will enter the motorway from the Ring Road. At this point, it is necessary to widen the road to avoid long queues of vehicles. Official says work on Rs5 billion Thalian interchange project will not start immediately Talking to Dawn, Deputy Project Director of Rawalpindi Ring Road Ashfaq Sulheri said that the Rs5 billion Thalian interchange project would not start immediately. To make the Ring Road functional, authorities have decided to use a...

LAHORE: Police claimed on Saturday to have arrested the prime suspect involved in snatching a mobile phone from a girl riding a scooty. According to police, suspect Adnan Yousaf was arrested from the Chung area after being injured. The suspect was involved in snatching a mobile phone from a girl two days ago. The social media users criticised the government for failing to ensure the security of women. Earlier, Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz also took notice of the incident and directed police to arrest the suspect. Police spokesperson said Adnan was riding a motorcycle with an accomplice at the time of the crime. Using geofencing and human intelligence, police tracked his movements and set up checkpoints across multiple locations. According to the DIG Operations spokesperson, when police signalled the suspects to stop at a checkpoint, they attempted to flee and opened fire on the police party. During the exchange, Adnan was struck by a bullet fired by his own accomplice, leaving him injured. The accomplice manag...

GUJRAT: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Saturday arrested a group of four persons, including three women, at Sialkot airport for being involved in beggary in Saudi Arabia. A senior FIA official said the group of passengers, namely Shah Nawaz, Shahzia, Sonia and Farzana Bibi, all residents of Islamabad, arrived at the Sialkot International Airport from Saudi Arabia via Oman.They were questioned by immigration officials due to suspicious travel history and upon inquiry, they admitted to engaging in organised beggary in Saudi Arabia. These passengers had obtained visas and tickets through an agent, Muhammad Siddique Akbar, a resident of Saudi Arabia, who arranged their travel for Rs250,000 per person. The amount was paid to the agent through the money earned from begging. FIA Gujranwala zone Director Muhammad Bin Ashraf told Dawn these beggars had travelled to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) on umrah visas. He added that the FIA would approach the authorities at the KSA Embassy for deportation of the...

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court has said that no provision exists in the general and special laws in the province about blocking of computerised national identity card (CNIC) of any person in civil litigation. A single-judge bench of the SHC headed by Justice Muhammad Hasan Akber also noted that after the enactment of 18th Constitutional Amendment, the Civil Procedure Code (CPC) has become a provincial subject, whereas no such provision was available in the CPC enforceable in the province of Sindh. The bench made these observations while deciding two civil miscellaneous applications (CMAs) filed by Malik Ali Zain, one of the judgement debtors in a decree, against an order of the civil court concerned for directing the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) to block his CNIC. The civil court had issued directive to Nadra in May last year on an application filed by the decree holder under Section 51 of the CPC for execution of the decree and impugned order was passed over non-service of notice or pu...

QUETTA: Security forces have arrested the wife of an alleged facilitator of the female suicide attacker who targeted the Frontier Corps (FC) headquarters in Nokundi last year, officials said on Saturday, claiming that her husband had taken a woman and her our children to Afghanistan for suicide bombing training. Speaking at a press conference, Additional Chief Secretary Home Hamza Shafqaat said extremist networks were increasingly using women and children as tools to carry out attacks, calling the trend inhumane and contrary to local traditions. “Evidence of cross-border infiltration and terrorism from Afghanistan exi­sts, and terrorists escape across the border after carrying out attacks,” said Mr Shafqaat, flanked by DIG Counter-Terrorism Depa­r­tment (CTD) Baloc­histan and aide of home department affairs Babar Khan Yousafzai. Officials said the Nov 30 attack on the FC headquarters involved a female suicide bomber linked to a banned outfit (Balochistan Liberation Front), adding that the arrest of Rahima Bib...

• Jameel Ahmad says macroeconomic indicators improved faster than expected at start of fiscal year • Claims prudent monetary, fiscal policies stabilised inflation, strengthened buffers KARACHI: State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Jameel Ahmad has said the country’s key macroeconomic indicators have improved faster than anticipated at the start of the fiscal year, owing to a prudent mix of monetary and fiscal policies that helped stabilise inflation and strengthen external positions. While the ongoing conflict in the Middle East has introduced new risks and heightened uncertainty about the macroeconomic outlook, he said, the economy is relatively better positioned than during previous crises to manage these challenges. The SBP governor was speaking at meetings with senior executives of leading global financial and investment institutions, including JP Morgan, Barclays, Citibank, Jefferies and Franklin Templeton, as well as major credit rating agencies such as Fitch, Moody’s and S&P Global. These engagements ...

LAHORE: After the conclusion of their Baisakhi visit to Pakistan on Saturday, Sikh pilgrims from India will leave today for their homeland via the Wagah Border after a week of religious and cultural events. Around 2,238 Sikh pilgrims arrived on April 10 to participate in Baisakhi festivities. Pakistan had issued around 2,800 visas to Sikh pilgrims this year, while approximately 600 pilgrims were unable to travel. At the end of their visit, a cultural night was hosted by the Punjab government at Hazuri Bagh for Indian Sikh pilgrims, besides a special ceremony at the Dayal Singh Trust Library under the World Centre for Punjabi. The Hazuri Bagh event featured colourful cultural performances, traditional music, and a lively atmosphere, wherein Sikh pilgrims enthusiastically participated. Many were seen enjoying the music and performing bhangra to the beat of drums, reflecting the spirit of joy and unity. Over 2,000 visitors arrived in Pakistan last week to join Baisakhi celebrations “The cultural night at Hazuri ...

WASHINGTON: Pakistan’s liquidity pressures are expected to ease as the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Executive Board is set to consider approval of a Staff-Level Agreement (SLA) next month, potentially paving the way for a fresh disbursement of about $1.2 billion under the two programmes. The SLA was reached on March 28 on the successful third review of the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and the second review under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF). Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and his delegation held a series of meetings with IMF and World Bank officials in Washington this week during the Spring Meetings of the Bretton Woods institutions. The talks focused on Pakistan’s macroeconomic stabilisation, reform agenda, and external financing outlook. In a conversation with Dawn, the minister said the IMF Executive Board is expected to meet in mid-May in Washington to review the SLA, which would unlock the next tranche under Pakistan’s programme. Liquidity pressures to ease as IMF’s board ...

ISLAMABAD: Mari­time Affairs Minister Muhammad Junaid Anwar Chaudhry annou­n­c­ed on Saturday that construction has begun on an eco-friendly floating jetty at the Korangi Fisheries Harbour Authority (KoFHA). The project, costing Rs120 million, aims to facilitate the offloading of export-quality fish. The minister chaired a meeting of the KoFHA board, attended by its Director General, Dr Shahid Aslam, Chairman Abrar Asim, and other members. He described the project as a significant step towards improving facilities for small-scale fisherfolk, adding that the jetty was expected to be completed by June. He said the initiative would ensure safer, more reliable access to water and facilitate the smooth landing and unloading of the fish catch. He noted that the project aimed to improve operational efficiency and create new economic opportunities for coastal communities. The meeting was informed that, unlike fixed structures, the floating jetty would adjust to tidal variations, reducing dependence on water levels an...

Rawalpindi police on Saturday denied reports regarding the closure of markets across the city until further notice, terming them baseless. A statement posted on the social media platform X quoted City Police Officer (CPO) Syed Khalid Mahmood Hamdani as saying that no directives had been issued by Rawalpindi police regarding the closure of markets. He said that all markets and businesses were open as usual till 8pm as per the government’s policy. He added that effective security arrangements were being ensured in view of the “movement of foreign delegations”. He said police teams were actively conducting search, sweep, and combing operations in different parts of the city to maintain law and order. He said police were working day and night to ensure foolproof security at all times. Separately, Rawalpindi Deputy Commissioner Hassan Waqar Cheema also shared visuals regarding reports of hotels and markets being closed until further notice. “This news is fake and not issued by the district administration. The publ...

Six people were killed in Kyiv on Saturday after a gunman opened fire and took hostages at a supermarket in the Ukrainian capital before being killed during an arrest attempt, officials said. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that at least 14 people were hospitalised with wounds and trauma after the shooting and hostage-taking, which took place in a residential district in the city’s south. “He was holding hostages and, unfortunately, killed one of them. He killed four people right on the street. Another woman died in the hospital from severe injuries,” Zelensky said on social media, adding that four hostages from the supermarket “have been rescued”. Footage posted by the UNIAN news agency, which AFP was unable to immediately verify, showed a man carrying a gun and shooting at a person from close range near a block of flats. The suspect then entered a supermarket where gunshots were heard, Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said. Four hostages from the supermarket “have been rescued”, Zelensky said on soci...

ISLAMABAD - Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar and Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov, on Saturday, held a productive discussion on regional developments.

LAHORE - Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif expressed satisfaction over the performance of six flagship health initiatives, as more than 21 million patients were provided treatment and medical facilities in a short span of time through field hospitals and the “Clinic on Wheels” programme.

RAWALPINDI - Passing out parade of cadets of 153rd PMA Long Course,38th Technical Graduate Course, 72nd Integrated Course, 15th Mujahid Course and 27th Lady Cadet Course was held at Pakistan Military Academy (PMA) Kakul on Saturday.

RAWALPINDI - Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Chief, Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir wrapped up separate diplomatic visits aimed at advancing efforts to end the United States-Iran conflict, with Field Marshal Asim Munir leaving Tehran and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif returning from Turkiye on Saturday.

Peshawar - Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Muhammad Sohail Afridi, on Saturday chaired a high-level meeting to review proposals for the Annual Development Programme (ADP) 2026–27, with a focus on water infrastructure, flood resilience, and road connectivity.

Twelve countries, including Pakistan, on Saturday expressed “their strongest condemnation” at Israel’s announcement of appointing a diplomatic representative to Somalia’s breakaway region of Somaliland, according to a joint statement shared by the Foreign Office (FO). The statement was issued by the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Somalia, Sudan, Libya, Bangladesh, Algeria, Palestine, Türkiye, Indonesia, Pakistan and Kuwait. Israel appointed on Wednesday its first ambassador to Somalia’s breakaway region of Somaliland. Michael Lotem was appointed as a non-resident ambassador to Somaliland, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The statement issued on Saturday by the FO said that Israel’s action was “considered a flagrant violation of the sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity of the Federal Republic of Somalia”. According to the statement, the ministers reaffirmed their “unequivocal rejection of all unilateral measures that undermine the unity of states or infringe upon their sove...

Pope Leo sought to downplay his feud with US President Donald Trump on Saturday, saying reporting about comments he has made so far during his Africa tour “has not been accurate in all its aspects”. Speaking to reporters in English aboard his flight to Angola for the third leg of his ambitious 10-day Africa tour, the first American pope said comments he made two days earlier in Cameroon, decrying that the world was being “ravaged by a handful of tyrants”, were not aimed at Trump. That speech, said Leo, “was prepared two weeks ago, well before the president ever commented on myself and on the message of peace that I am promoting”. On Sunday, as the pontiff prepared to embark on his tour, Trump called him “weak on crime, and terrible for foreign policy” in a post on Truth Social. Trump also posted an AI-generated image of himself as a Jesus-like figure, drawing widespread criticism even from some religious conservatives who typically support him. The post was removed on Monday morning. Trump appeared to be resp...

New Delhi on Saturday summoned Iran’s ambassador to convey the country’s “deep concern” after two Indian-flagged vessels were shot at near the Strait of Hormuz, India’s foreign ministry said. In a statement, India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said Iran’s Ambassador to India Dr Mohammad Fathali was summoned “for a meeting with [the] foreign secretary this evening”. During the meeting, the foreign secretary “conveyed India’s deep concern at the shooting incident earlier today involving two Indian-flagged ships in the Strait of Hormuz”, the MEA said. “He noted the importance that India attached to the safety of merchant shipping and mariners and recalled that Iran had earlier facilitated the safe passage of several ships bound for India.” Reiterating his concern at “this serious incident of firing on merchant ships”, the foreign secretary urged the ambassador to convey India’s views to the authorities in Iran and “resume at the earliest the process of facilitating India-bound ships across the strait”. Th...