Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Italy have signed an agreement to abolish visa requirements for holders of diplomatic passports. Pakistan’s Ambassador to Italy Ali Javed and Italian Foreign Affairs Secretary General Ambassador Riccardo Guariglia signed the accord at a ceremony hosted at the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Rome, according to an official handout. Ahead of the signing, the two diplomats held one-on-one talks and reviewed the full spectrum of bilateral engagement and cooperation at multilateral platforms including the United Nations and European Union. Both sides expressed satisfaction with the “substance, intensity and soaring trajectory” of their strategic cooperation, the statement said. The agreement, they said, would facilitate smooth exchanges of diplomatic delegations and strengthen bilateral engagement. Officials termed the accord a reflection of mutual trust and friendship and an “excellent addition” to existing mechanisms for cooperation, it added. Pakistan and Italy already have 15 gove...

The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has issued a nationwide weather advisory for the period from Tuesday to Friday, warning of intense heat, thunderstorms, flash floods, glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs), landslides and wildfire risks in various parts of the country.

SHANGLA: Six children from the same family were killed and another was injured when the roof of a mud house collapsed in Shangla district’s Alpuri tehsil, Rescue 1122 said on Tuesday. Rescue 1122 Shangla Spokesperson Rasool Khan Sharif told Dawn that seven children were buried under the debris when the roof of the house collapsed early morning in Rahimabad Bassi area. He said the rescue team responded immediately to the emergency call, began the operation, and recovered the bodies within an hour. According to Rescue 1122, all of the children were sleeping when the incident occurred. Six of them died, while the condition of the injured child was also critical. The deceased were identified as 14-year-old Nazira Bibi, 13-year-old Samira Bibi, five-year-old Rizwanullah, seven-year-old Nayab, five-year-old Haya Noor, and 12-year-old Umaira, while the injured was identified as 11-year-old Marwa. Last month, three children were killed, and a couple was seriously injured after the roof of a house collapsed in the Pra...

India and the United States are “about 99 per cent” done with the first tranche of a trade deal, the commerce minister said, as a US delegation began talks in New Delhi on Tuesday. The delegation, led by Assistant US Trade Representative for South and Central Asia Brendan Lynch, is holding three days of talks with Indian trade officials, as the two sides seek to close negotiations. “About 99 per cent of the issues have been settled,” Indian commerce minister Piyush Goyal told reporters in Delhi late on Monday. The two countries reached an initial understanding for the trade deal in February, but negotiations slowed after President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff measures were struck down by the US Supreme Court. After the court order, the Trump administration launched investigations into unfair trade practices against several countries, including India, while imposing a blanket 10pc tariff. Goyal said negotiators were examining how recent legal changes in the United States should be reflected in the final text...

Russian drones and missiles pounded Ukrainian cities such as Kyiv and Dnipro early on Tuesday, killing at least 10 people and wounding about 100, authorities said, following days of warnings about Moscow’s plans for a major assault. Russia has targeted Ukraine’s power supply and infrastructure in a war now more than four years old, while Ukraine has stepped up attacks this year on Russian oil facilities. Both deny targeting civilians. Last week, the Kremlin warned that it intended “systematic strikes” on targets in Kyiv in response to a drone attack on a dormitory in Ukraine’s Russian-held region of Luhansk, which killed 21. Ukraine denied the attack. Photographs showed large explosions and plumes of smoke billowing over high-rise buildings in Kyiv, where overnight strikes killed four people and wounded 58, including children, according to the capital’s mayor, Vitali Klitschko. An explosion over the city during a Russian missile and drone strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine June 2, 2026....

The changing character of warfare has transformed cyberspace into a decisive operational arena.

Peshawar - Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sohail Afridi, has accorded in-principle approval to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Youth Policy 2026.

Shehbaz Sharif meets businessmen, industrialists Says export-based economic development our mission Orders swift conversion of Pak-China MoUs into formal agreements.

Pakistan, EU agree to expand ties in all key areas PM highlights role of GSP+ in cementing Pak-EU trade ties In meeting with Kaja Kallas, Dar says terrorists using Afghan soil to launch attacks against Pakistan.

UNITED NATIONS: Pakistan on Monday renewed its call for restraint, de-escalation and a return to diplomacy in the ongoing Middle East crisis, saying that dialogue and mediation remain the only sustainable path to resolving conflicts. Addressing the UN General Assembly during a debate on strengthening mediation in conflict prevention and resolution, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, said Islamabad had consistently advocated diplomacy in the recent tensions involving Iran and the United States. “As a friendly neighbour of Iran, a brotherly partner of the Gulf countries, and a country with longstanding ties of amity with the United States, Pakistan continues to make sincere efforts to facilitate a durable solution for regional and global peace and stability,” he said. The Pakistani envoy used the occasion to press for a stronger role for mediation and preventive diplomacy in addressing international disputes before they escalate into crises. “Conflicts are...

SHIGAR/ISLAMABAD - Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari addressed a public gathering in Shigar ahead of Gilgit-Baltistan elections on Monday.

ISLAMABAD - In a significant step towards strengthening professional capacity within Pakistan’s justice sector, Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Yahya Afridi Monday launched the E-Course for Law Professionals – 2026 at a ceremony held at the Supreme Court of Pakistan.

LAHORE - Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has said that more than 30,000 kilometres of roads have been constructed, repaired or rehabilitated across the province under an ambitious programme aimed at modernising Punjab’s transport and road infrastructure.

ISLAMABAD - Federal Minister for Health Mustafa Kamal on Monday chaired a review meeting in Islamabad to assess progress on an ongoing pilot project aimed at the elimination of Hepatitis C, officials said.

• Country records 128 attacks in May, compared to 101 in April • Civilian deaths up by 92pc; casualties of security personnel increase by 143pc • Six suicide attacks witnessed, compared with one each in March and April • Balochistan emerges as worst-affected province once again ISLAMABAD: After two consecutive months of improvement, Pakistan’s security situation deteriorated sharply in May 2026, driven primarily by escalating terrorist violence in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, according to the monthly security assessment released by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS). The latest findings by PICSS suggest that militant and terror groups regained momentum during May after a brief period of relative decline, particularly in KP and Balochistan. The sharp increase in attacks, casualties, suicide bombings and kidnappings indicates that security challenges remain acute despite sustained counterterrorism efforts by the state. According to the report, the country witnessed 128 terro...

QUETTA: Police have registered a case against Opposition Leader in the National Assembly and PkMAP Chairman Mehmood Khan Achakzai, on charges of allegedly spreading hatred against state institutions and criticising the present government while addressing a public gathering. Other party leaders have also been named in the FIR. The charges relate to an allegedly provocative speech made against state institutions. The action was taken following a written complaint submitted by Abdul Wali Khan, son of Abdul Ghaffar Khan, a member of the Shinzai tribe and a resident of Gulistan Kari. According to the FIR registered at Gulistan Police Station, the complainant stated that, during a public meeting, Achakzai allegedly said that law and order in Balochistan continued to deteriorate and that the current government had completely failed to provide security to the public. He allegedly described the government as a “Form-47 fake government” and proposed the formation of an alternative force by recruiting people from variou...

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court has ruled that a father cannot escape his continuing legal, moral and religious obligation to maintain his minor child through a private settlement, holding that a minor’s right to maintenance cannot be permanently waived or extinguished. Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani dismissed a petition filed by Akhtar Hussain Awan against concurrent judgements of family and appellate courts. Those earlier judgements allowed a maintenance claim filed by a minor, Naseer Akhtar Awan, through his mother, Sadia Awan. The petitioner argued that an earlier maintenance suit was settled through a 2007 compromise, under which Rs60,000 was paid and parties agreed not to raise future claims. He contended a subsequent 2019 suit was barred by limitation and the principles of res judicata, a legal doctrine preventing a matter from being judged twice. Justice Kayani cites Islamic teachings to invalidate any private contracts waiving child maintenance Rejecting the contention, Justice Kayani ruled that agreemen...

• Only Rs1.13tr allocated to PSDP against Rs4.1tr requirement; minister terms shortfall ‘new circular debt crisis’ • Record Rs4.715tr development plan unveiled • APCC resolves to divert resources to ongoing projects ISLAMABAD: Under tight International Monetary Fund (IMF) oversight, the government has trimmed allocations for most sectors in the next federal development programme to create additional fiscal space for the PML-N’s trademark national highways, a new Rs87 billion share for coalition partners and a Rs70bn allocation for ruling party lawmakers’ schemes. Yet, the Annual Plan Coordination Committee, led by Planning and Development Minister Ahsan Iqbal, on Monday unveiled a record national development programme of Rs4.715 trillion, made possible by an unprecedented 27pc hike in development allocations by state-owned entities and a 10pc rise in provincial allocations to an all-time high of Rs3.138tr. The overall Rs4.715tr deve­l­opment portfolio comprises the largest share of provincial annual developme...

Director General of the Pakistan Hajj Mission, Abdul Wahab Soomro, has been honored with the ‘Labbaytum Excellence Award’ for the second consecutive year, recognizing his exemplary leadership and outstanding services during Hajj 2026.

LAHORE: Former prime minister and PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif will visit Gilgit-Baltistan on Tuesday to meet party ticket holders ahead of the June 7 elections. The GB Election Commission had announced that general elections in the region would be held on June 7 after a four-month delay. On Monday, Punjab Senior Provincial Minister Maryam Aurangzeb said on X that the PML-N president will visit GB on Tuesday for a one-day visit. During the visit, he will meet party leaders and ticket-holders. “He will also discuss the upcoming elections in Gilgit-Baltistan and matters related to the development and welfare of the people of the region,” she said. Nawaz has not been active in politics since the February 2024 general elections. However, he is serving as head of the Lahore Authority for Heritage Revival. The former prime minister often presides over its meetings and oversees measures for the protection of the city’s heritage. The PML-N supremo also acts as a political mentor to his daughter and Punjab Chief Ministe...