Pakistan

Deserted railway station stands as ghostly reminder of neglect

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United States President Donald Trump on Sunday said he would defend Poland and the Baltic states in case of an escalation from Russia, following Moscow’s incursion into Estonia’s airspace. Asked whether he would help defend the EU members if Russia intensifies hostilities, Trump told reporters: “Yeah, I would. I would.” Estonia has requested an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on Monday following Friday’s incursion. Three Russian MiG-31 fighters violated Estonian airspace over the Gulf of Finland, triggering complaints of a dangerous new provocation from the European Union and Nato, but a denial from Moscow. Italian F-35 fighters attached to Nato’s air defence support mission in the Baltic states, along with Swedish and Finnish aircraft, were scrambled to intercept the Russian jets and warn them off. Asked whether he had been briefed on the situation in Estonia, Trump answered in the affirmative and added: “We don’t like it.” His statement came about two weeks after some 17 Russian drones violated...

Britain, Australia and Canada on Sunday recognised a Palestinian state in a seismic shift in decades of Western foreign policy, triggering swift Israeli anger. Portugal was also to recognise Palestinian statehood later on Sunday, as Israel came under huge international pressure over the conflict in Gaza triggered almost two years ago by the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack. “Today, to revive the hope of peace for the Palestinians and Israelis, and a two-state solution, the United Kingdom formally recognises the State of Palestine,” UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a message on X. Britain and Canada became the first G7 countries to take the step, with France and other nations expected to follow at the annual UN General Assembly, which opens Monday in New York. “Canada recognises the State of Palestine and offers our partnership in building the promise of a peaceful future for both the State of Palestine and the State of Israel,” Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney wrote on X. Meanwhile, Australia announced ...

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Azad Jammu and Kashmir Prime Minister Chaudhry Anwarul Haq on Sunday said India has been left “in mourning” following the signing of a historic defence agreement between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will be among the attendees of a meeting of “select” Muslim leaders with US President Donald Trump in the coming week on the sidelines of the 80th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session in New York, the Foreign Office (FO) said on Sunday. “The prime minister will also participate in a meeting of select Islamic leaders with US President Trump to exchange views on issues pertaining to regional and international peace and security,” a statement issued by the FO said. The meeting of Muslim leaders with Trump could be the first instance of PM Shehbaz directly interacting with the US president since the latter assumed the top office in his country in January. Earlier, he met Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal General Syed Asim Munir in June, marking the first time a US president has hosted Pakistan’s army chief at the White House unaccompanied by senior civilian officials. On his visit to New York, the PM would be leading Pakistan’s delegation to the “high-level segment” ...

Seven terrorists were killed, including three “Afghan nationals”, by security forces during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Dera Ismail Khan district, the military’s media wing said on Friday. In a statement, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said that the operation was carried out in the Kulachi area upon the presence of “khawarij”. The state uses the term Fitna al Khwarij to refer to terrorists belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). It has also designated Balochistan-based groups as Fitna al Hindustan to highlight India’s alleged role in terrorism and destabilisation across Pakistan. “During the conduct of [the] operation, own troops effectively engaged the khwarij location and [as a result], seven Indian sponsored khwarij, including three Afghan National khwarij and two suicide bombers, were sent to hell,” the ISPR said. The statement added that Pakistan expects the interim Afghan government, run by the Afghan Taliban, to uphold its responsibilities...

The spokesperson for the Taliban government in Afghanistan Zabiullah Mujahid has said that leaders should refrain from making “provocative” statements and that his country could not be held responsible for attacks taking place in Pakistan. Mujahid’s remarks come as Pakistan continues to raise alarm over terrorist outfits, particularly the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), using Afghan soil to carry out attacks across the border. Islamabad has repeatedly urged Kabul to choose between maintaining ties with its neighbour or harbouring terrorists, but Afghan authorities have consistently denied the allegations. He made these remarks during an interview with Imtiaz Gul, the executive director of Islamabad-based think tank Centre for Research and Security Studies. According to Gul, the interview — conducted in the Pushto language — was recorded during his recent visit to Afghanistan’s Kandahar province. During the interview, Gul sought proposals from Mujahid to address recurring problems, such as the issue o...

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a public address on Sunday, asked citizens to stop using foreign-made products and instead use local ones, pushing for a self-reliant campaign when trade ties with the United States have soured. After US President Donald Trump imposed a 50 per cent tariff on imported Indian goods, Modi has been urging the use of “Swadeshi”, or made-in-India goods. His supporters have started campaigns to boycott American brands, including McDonald’s, Pepsi and Apple, which are hugely popular in India. “A lot of products we use daily are foreign-made, we just don’t know … we will have to get rid of them,” Modi said in an address to the nation ahead of Monday’s implementation of widespread consumer tax cuts. “We should buy products that are made in India,” he added, without naming any country. India’s population of 1.4 billion is a major market for American consumer goods, often purchased from US online retailer Amazon. Over the years, the reach of US brands has expanded deep into smaller...

Security forces carried out an intelligence-based operation in the Kulachi area of Dera Ismail Khan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, killing seven terrorists linked to the Indian proxy group ‘Fitna al-Hindustan’.

An Afghan Taliban government official said on Sunday that a deal over Bagram air base was “not possible”, after US President Donald Trump said he wanted the former US base back. Trump threatened the country on Saturday with unspecified punishment, just days after he raised the idea of the United States retaking control of the base while on a state visit to the United Kingdom. “If Afghanistan doesn’t give Bagram Airbase back to those that built it, the United States of America, BAD THINGS ARE GOING TO HAPPEN!!!” the 79-year-old leader wrote on his Truth Social platform. Trump, who has previously said he wants the United States to acquire territories and sites ranging from the Panama Canal to Greenland, has appeared focused on Bagram for years. Asked on Saturday whether he would send in US troops to retake the base, Trump declined to give a direct answer, saying: “We won’t talk about that.” “We’re talking now to Afghanistan and we want it back and we want it back soon, right away. And if they don’t do it — if t...

Indian aerospace engineering student Sudhanva Kashyap thought he had mapped out everything it would take to get to the United States, only to have his plans upended by Washington’s sudden and expensive change to its skilled worker visas. Friday’s changes to the prized H-1B visas, which included a new $100,000 fee, rattled the tech industry and left US companies scrambling to figure out the implications. Hasty clarifications from the White House that the new charge would be a one-off payment rather than the annual fee announced by US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Friday only added to the uncertainty. The fee change rattled students like Kashyap, who hoped to get into an American university and from there into the US jobs market. Kashyap, a 21-year-old from the southern Indian tech hub of Bengaluru, had pictured himself going to a top-tier American university, with Stanford his goal. “Back when the fee was lower, it was still something that you could pin hopes on; it would be easier to convert the studen...

The bodies of three transgender individuals were recovered from Karachi’s Memon Goth on Sunday, police and rescue officials said. The bodies were discovered shortly after midnight on Sunday in the Memon Goth area of Karachi, according to Edhi Information Centre. “The bodies were found riddled with bullet holes,” the Edhi Centre said in its statement, adding that the deceased were taken to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre for medicolegal formalities. Police also confirmed the incident, with city police official Javed Ahmed Abro telling AFP, “We are still in the process of confirming their identities. It is too early to determine the motive behind the killings.” Malir’s Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Dr Abdul Khaliq Pirzada arrived on the scene and issued strict instructions to the concerned deputy superintendent of police and station house officer, issuing immediate orders to arrest the criminals, according to a spokesperson for the Malir District Police. “On the instructions of SSP Malir, special...

President Asif Ali Zardari on Sunday departed to Pakistan from Kashgar, China.

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif will lead Pakistan's delegation to the high-level segment of the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York from tomorrow.

Some of Europe’s biggest airports, including the region’s busiest Heathrow, raced on Sunday to restore normal operations to automatic check-in systems after disruption caused by hackers a day earlier. The hacking incident hit check-in and boarding systems provider Collins Aerospace, owned by RTX, disrupting operations on Saturday at London’s Heathrow, Berlin Airport and in Brussels, where passengers faced long queues, dozens of cancellations and delays. Disruption had eased significantly by early Sunday despite some continuing delays, airport officials and data showed, while regional regulators said they were investigating the origin of the hacking incident. The disruption is the latest in a string of hacks to hit sectors from healthcare to autos. A breach at carmaker Jaguar Land Rover halted production, while another caused Marks & Spencer losses in the hundreds of millions of pounds. RTX called the incident a “cyber-related disruption” and said it had impacted its MUSE software, which is used by several air...

Three sanitation workers died as they fell into a manhole while cleaning it in Karachi’s Usmanabad neighbourhood, Edhi officials said on Sunday. Deaths from falling into open gutters and manholes frequently occur in Pakistan, particularly in major cities like Karachi, where poorly managed drainage systems, missing or broken covers, and inadequate lighting in congested neighbourhoods often put pedestrians in danger. The gutters are filled with toxic sewage and lack oxygen, making it easy to suffocate or drown within minutes. “Four people fell into a drain near Siddique Wahab Road while cleaning it, three of whom lost their lives, while another remains unconscious,” the Edhi statement said. The deceased have been identified as 22-year-old Vishal, 19-year-old Shahir, and 42-year-old George. The fourth man — identified as 26-year-old Faisal — was rushed to the Civil Hospital’s Trauma Centre, while the bodies of the deceased have been shifted to an Edhi morgue. Police surgeon Sumaiya Syed told Dawn.com that the wo...

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has said that Saudi Arabia will stand alongside Pakistan in the event of any future aggression from India.

Flooding in the Sutlej River continues to devastate southern Punjab, destroying hundreds of homes, displacing families, and claiming lives across multiple districts.