Pakistan

The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) on Saturday reported that Cyclone Shakhti over the northeast Arabian Sea has further intensified into a severe cyclonic storm, moving westward during the past 12 hours.

Japan’s ruling party picked hardline conservative Sanae Takaichi as its head on Saturday, putting her on course to become the country’s first female prime minister in a move set to jolt investors and neighbours. The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which has ruled Japan for almost all of the postwar era, elected Takaichi, 64, to regain trust from a public angered by rising prices and drawn to opposition groups promising stimulus and clampdowns on migrants. A vote in parliament to choose a replacement for outgoing Shigeru Ishiba is expected on October 15. Takaichi is favoured as the ruling coalition has the largest number of seats. Inherits party in crisis Takaichi, the only woman among the five LDP candidates, beat a challenge from the more moderate Shinjiro Koizumi, 44, who was bidding to become the youngest modern leader. A former economic security and internal affairs minister with an expansionary fiscal agenda for the world’s fourth-largest economy, Takaichi takes over a party in crisis. Various other part...

Test skipper Shubman Gill has replaced Rohit Sharma as India’s ODI captain, the country’s cricket board said on Saturday, starting with the series in Australia. The 38-year-old batsman Rohit and fellow stalwart Virat Kohli, 36, were both however named in the squad for the three-match series beginning on October 19. Top-order batsman Gill, 26, is now Test and one-day skipper, and vice captain of India’s T20 side. He took over the Test captaincy from Rohit starting with the series in England in the summer, earning praise for both his leadership and batting. He led from the front, scoring 754 runs in five Tests to help India draw the keenly contested series 2-2. Gill also leads Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League. Rohit, one of India’s most successful limited-overs captains, led the side to a record third Champions Trophy title in Dubai earlier this year. He and Kohli have both retired from T20Is and Tests. Gill’s vice-captain for the Australia series will be Shreyas Iyer. India currently top both the OD...

Light to moderate rain was likely in parts of Sindh and Balochistan on Saturday as cyclonic storm ‘Shakhti’ over the Arabian Sea had moved westward during the past 12 hours and further intensified into a “severe cyclonic storm”, the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) said. “It is likely to move west-southwestwards and reach northwest and adjoining central north Arabian Sea by Oct 5, then it will recurve and move east-northeastwards during subsequent 24 hours and weaken gradually,” a notification issued by the PMD said. It said that under the influence of the storm, wind/thunderstorm and light to moderate rain was likely today in Sindh’s Badin, Thatta, Sujawal and Jamshoro districts, and Balochistan’s Hub, Lasbela, Awaran and Kech districts, as well as at isolated places in Karachi Division. The notification stated that sea conditions were likely to remain “rough to very rough” with squally winds gusting 55 kilometres/hour near the Sindh coast. It also advised fishermen not to venture into the deep sea t...

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday welcomed the agreement reached between the federal government’s negotiation committee and the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), calling it a major breakthrough in efforts to resolve all outstanding issues in the region.

The United States has announced a contribution of $1 million to support the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in delivering emergency assistance to families affected by the recent floods across Pakistan.

More rain is expected in the coming days across Punjab as surveys to assess the losses and damages from the recent floods are underway, Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Director General Irfan Ali Kathia said on Saturday. Since June, monsoon rains across Pakistan have killed at least 1,037 people, swelling major rivers and devastating rural communities along their banks. In Punjab only, over 4.7 million people have been affected across 4,700 villages, according to the PDMA. Addressing a media briefing in Lahore today, DG Kathia said showers were expected to begin early tomorrow morning across Punjab, and continue till October 7 (Tuesday) in the northern parts. The PDMA chief said the north and northeastern regions from Rawalpindi to Lahore were likely to receive 30 to 35 millimetres of rainfall on average, while the province’s southern parts could see 5 to 10mm. He warned that the intensity of the showers would increase on October 6 and 7, with 50 to 70mm of rain anticipated in northern and nort...

An impressive 47 researchers from the National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad, have been recognized among the world’s top 2% scientists for 2025, according to the latest global rankings jointly compiled by Stanford University and Elsevier.

KARACHI: The Sindh government has introduced a new system of traffic penalties, including fines and a demerit points system, by amending the Motor Vehicles Ordinance, 1965, to improve road safety across the province. Senior Sindh Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon said in a statement on Thursday that violations including overspeeding, driving without a license, signal violations, wrong-way driving, overloading, and reckless behaviour would now carry higher fines and demerit points. Under the revised penalty structure, overspeeding will result in fines of Rs5,000 for motorcycles, Rs15,000 for cars, and Rs20,000 for heavy vehicles, along with eight demerit points. Driving without a license will be penalised with a fine of up to Rs50,000 and six demerit points. Reckless driving will attract a fine of Rs25,000 and eight points. The new system also includes fines for one-wheeling, riding motorcycles without helmets, using tinted windows, driving in the wrong lane, and carrying passengers on vehicle roofs. “These measure...

Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, visited Kinnaird College for Women University, where he was warmly welcomed by faculty members and students.

Federal Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal announced on Friday that the government has reached a consensus agreement with the Awami Action Committee (AAC), marking a major breakthrough in efforts to resolve the ongoing issues in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) through dialogue.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday voiced optimism over the latest diplomatic progress in the Israel-Palestine conflict, calling it a “significant step” toward achieving a long-awaited ceasefire.

Peshawar - Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Faisal Karim Kundi on Friday visited Lady Reading Hospital (LRH) Peshawar to inquire about the police personnel injured in the Ghari Qamardin bomb blast.

A coalition of unions, employers and religious groups filed a lawsuit on Friday seeking to block US President Donald Trump’s bid to impose a $100,000 fee on new H-1B visas for highly-skilled foreign workers. The lawsuit filed in federal court in San Francisco is the first to challenge a proclamation Trump issued two weeks ago announcing the fee as the Republican president moves to further restrict immigration to the United States. Plaintiffs include the United Auto Workers union, the American Association of University Professors, a nurse recruitment agency and several religious organisations. They argued that Trump’s power to restrict the entry of certain foreign nationals does not allow him to override the law that created the H-1B visa programme. White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson in a statement said Trump’s administration engaged in lawful actions “discouraging companies from spamming the system and driving down American wages, while providing certainty to employers who need to bring the best talent f...

ISLAMABAD - Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Friday rejected the Middle East peace plan presented by former US president Donald Trump, terming it pro-Israel and unacceptable.

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Friday categorically said that Pakistan nei-ther recognizes the Israeli state nor maintains diplomatic ties with it.

MUZAFFARABAD - The government and the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) are close to reach-ing an agreement as both sides held a high-level second round of talks to resolve the unrest in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).

LAHORE - Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif Friday maintained that the province alone has the right to decide how its water resources are utilised, stating that she would not let anyone interfere in the internal affairs of Punjab.

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday expressed commitment to transform Pakistan into an attractive destination for investment in the region through transparency and by crafting economic policies aligned with global standards.

Foreign minister informs NA US made changes to peace plan proposed by Pakistan, other Muslim states No change in Pak stance over two-state solution of Palestine Pak-KSA defence agreement can become Eastern Nato if more nations join.