Pakistan

GILGIT: Hundreds of Chinese nationals, foreign tourists and students remained stranded on the second day on Tuesday at Sost as protesters blocked Khunjerab Pass Immigration Office’s entry and exit points on the Pakistan-China border. Officials said a large number of Chinese nationals, students, foreign tourists couldn’t travel to China through Khunjerab Pass on the second day as the GB protesters did not allow travel at KKH between the two countries. The stranded Chinese nationals and foreign tourists protested with local police for not arranging their departure to China. Officials said a large number of Chinese nationals protested and exchanged hot words with officials. The GB people and traders have been staging a protest sit-in and blocking the Karakoram Highway for the last 51 days against collection of Sales Tax, Income Tax and Excise Tax by the federal government from the GB people. They say that collection of any tax from the GB people by the federal government is illegal as they have no representation...

PPP leader says people in flood-hit districts waiting for help for last two weeks.

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday directed the Federal Board of Revenue to utilise its own workforce and engage private sector to identify tax-evading individuals and companies.

ISLAMABAD - Funeral prayers of Major Adnan Aslam Shaheed (age: 31 years, resident of Rawalpindi) who embraced martyrdom while undergoing treatment at Combined Military Hospital were held at Chaklala, Rawalpindi on Tuesday.

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday said that Pakistan was keen to enhance bilateral trade, investment, people-to-people exchanges and connectivity through air, rail and road with Kazakhstan.

LAHORE - A special court (central) on Tuesday sought arguments from the prosecution on former chief minister Punjab Chaudhry Parvez Elahi’s plea for acquittal in a money laundering case.

ISLAMABAD - The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has directed all political parties’ elected members to submit their consolidated statements of accounts for the financial year 2024-25 by December 31, 2025.

ISLAMABAD - President Asif Ali Zardari on Tuesday directed the Ministry of National Food Security to take urgent measures to safeguard food security in the country in the wake of the ongoing floods.

KARACHI: In a significant development for Pakistan’s organised auto sector, Yamaha Motor Pakistan Ltd (YMPL) has announced the discontinuation of its motorcycle assembly operations. The decision comes as part of a change in the company’s business strategy. According to a letter posted on the company’s website and sent to its authorised dealers, Yamaha will continue to supply spare parts through its authorised network, ensuring adequate stock to meet dealer requirements. The company also reiterated its commitment to providing warranty services and customer support under the existing warranty scheme. YMPL had been producing four models with prices ranging from Rs429,500 to Rs493,500. The Yamaha YBR125, initially launched at Rs129,400, saw its price rise to Rs471,500 due to the devaluation of the rupee and escalating production costs. In 2012, Yamaha announced plans to invest $150 million in a new assembly plant at Bin Qasim Industrial Park in Karachi. The plant was initially expected to produce 45,000 units ann...

The District and Sessions Court Islamabad on Wednesday issued arrest warrants against Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur in a liquor and arms recovery case.

Torrential rains wreaked havoc across Hyderabad and Karachi over the past 24 hours, inundating low-lying areas, damaging infrastructure, and triggering emergency conditions in several localities.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s strategic ports are attracting increasing international attention, with both the United States and Kazakhstan expressing keen interest in investing and enhancing regional connectivity. Following a recent agreement to harness natural resources, a US delegation visited the Ministry of Maritime Affairs on Tuesday. Federal Secretary Syed Zafar Ali Shah briefed the delegation on Pakistan’s port facilities, operational capacities, and investment opportunities. The delegation was informed that Karachi Port handles 54pc of Pakistan’s trade, with an annual capacity of 125 million tonnes. The port’s infrastructure includes three private container terminals, bulk and liquid cargo facilities, and dry cargo berths. It has recently improved its global ranking to 61st among 405 container ports, and successfully managed the country’s largest vessel, measuring 400 metres. Discussions also centred on investment prospects at Port Qasim, particularly in bulk, break-bulk, containerised cargo handling, and of...

The National Elec­t­ric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) on Tuesday notified a negative fuel cost adjustment (FCA) of Rs1.79 per unit for consumers in September’s bills for power consumed in the month of July. According to a notification issued by Nepra today, the authority “decided to allow a negative FCA of Rs1.7859/kWh for July 2025, to be passed on to the consumers in the billing month of September 2025”. Nepra said the negative FCA would apply to all consumer categories of K-Electric and XWDiscos (ex-Wapda distribution companies) “except lifeline consumers, domestic protected consumers, Electric Vehicle Charging Stations (EVCS) and prepaid electricity consumers of all categories who opted for pre-paid tariff”. The adjustment would be shown separately in the consumers’ bills on the basis of units billed to the consumers in the respective month to which the adjustment pertains, it said. “In case any bills of September 2025 are issued before the notification of this decision, the same may be applied in th...

Azmatullah Omarzai hammered a 20-ball fifty as Afghanistan thrashed Hong Kong by 94 runs in the opening match of the men’s T20 Asia Cup on Tuesday. The 17th edition of the Asia Cup kicked off with the Group ‘B’ match between the two teams which have six-time Asia Cup champions Sri Lanka and Bangladesh as the other teams in their group Afghanistan elected to bat first in Abu Dhabi and posted 188-6 with opener Sediqullah Atal playing the anchor role with an unbeaten 73. His fifth-wicket partnership of 82 with Omarzai, who hit 53 off 21 balls, including two fours and five sixes, proved key for Afghanistan in the Group B fixture. Afghanistan’s bowlers then combined to keep Hong Kong down to 94-9. Temperatures early on touched 40 degrees Celsius, but it was the humidity in the evening that tested the fitness of the players who took regular drinks breaks. Hong Kong bowlers struck two early blows, but Atal stood firm to put on 51 runs with veteran Mohammad Nabi, who made 33, as the two counter-attacked. Off-spinner ...

International condemnation and criticism followed Israel’s targeting of Hamas leaders in Doha on Tuesday — the first of its kind on Qatari territory. Qatar, which has been a key mediator in efforts to broker a truce in Gaza, said Israeli strikes targeted the residential headquarters of Hamas’s political bureau residing in the Gulf country, where the group’s senior leadership is based. A senior Hamas source told Al Jazeera that leaders of the group were targeted while discussing United States President Donald Trump’s proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza. The strikes were carried out jointly by the military and the Shin Bet security agency, the two bodies said in a statement. Neither Israeli officials, nor domestic media have confirmed whether the strikes hit their intended targets. Hamas has also not commented on the fate of its leaders. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he ordered the strikes in response to a Monday shooting in Jerusalem that killed six people and was later claimed by Hamas. Among th...

Khalil Al-Hayya, a senior Hamas official targeted by Israel in Qatar on Tuesday, has become an increasingly central figure in the leadership of the Palestinian group since both Ismail Haniyeh and Yahya Sinwar were killed last year. Israeli officials told Reuters the attack was aimed at top Hamas leaders, including Hayya, its exiled Gaza chief and top negotiator. Two Hamas sources told Reuters the group’s ceasefire negotiation delegation in Doha survived the attack. At the heart of ceasefire negotiations during the fighting that erupted two years ago, Hayya has been widely seen as the group’s most influential figure abroad since Haniyeh was killed by Israel in Iran in July 2024. He is part of a five-man leadership council that has led Hamas since Sinwar was killed by Israel last October in Gaza. Hailing from the Gaza Strip, Hayya has lost several close relatives, including his eldest son, to Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip, and is a veteran member of the group. Regarded as having good ties with Iran, he has ...

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