Pakistan

Commander of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Naval Forces, Major General Humaid Abdulla Alremeithi, was on Monday awarded the Nishan-i-Imtiaz (Military) by President Asif Ali Zardari at a special investiture ceremony at the Presidency. A press release from the President’s Secretariat quoted Zardari as saying that the award was “in recognition of his outstanding services and contributions”. “He (President Zardari) added that the commander’s visit reflected the enduring fraternal ties between Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates, which stand as a testament to the two countries’ shared commitment to deepening cooperation in all fields,” the press release read. According to the press release, the president appreciated the confidence the UAE’s Navy placed in the professional expertise of the Pakistan Navy and expressed interest in further collaboration, stating that they remain ready to support their Emirati counterpart’s manpower requirements in the future. President Zardari also highlighted the extraordinary and...

Monday’s bus stop shooting in Jerusalem killed six people and injured several others, including a pregnant woman, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said at a press conference during a visit to Budapest. Earlier, emergency service and medical teams “pronounced the deaths of four victims, including a man about 50 years old and three men aged around 30”, a statement from Magen David Adom — Israel’s emergency service — said, adding it was providing medical treatment to several other people, with five evacuated to hospitals. The service received reports of more than a dozen people injured by gunfire on Monday at a road junction in east Jerusalem, with police saying the assailants had been “neutralised”. It later said paramedics and ambulance crews were providing medical treatment and evacuating five “seriously wounded people” who had been sent to hospitals in Jerusalem. “Several other victims, with varying degrees of injury, are also being treated at the scene,” it added. Two Israeli policemen speak to a border...

The Gilgit-Baltistan police chief on Monday banned the use of social media platform TikTok by personnel of the force for the purpose of maintaining “discipline”. A notification issued today from the office of the GB inspector general of police said: “In order to maintain discipline, uniformity and dignity of the force, it is hereby directed that no GB police officer/official shall use social media platform (TikTok).” It ordered all district police officers and unit heads to bring the direction to the notice of all personnel under their command, warning that any non-compliance would be “viewed seriously and cause disciplinary action”. In July, two constables from the Security Division Islamabad were suspended and facing an inquiry for allegedly violating the capital police’s social media policy by making and uploading TikTok videos in uniform. Sources had said that dozens of other lower-ranking officials had been warned and directed to remove their TikTok accounts to avoid further action. In March, the Punjab ...

The Embassy of Pakistan in Beijing on Monday commemorated the Defence and Martyrs Day of Pakistan with a solemn and dignified flag hoisting ceremony.

A local court has summoned Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to appear for cross-examination via video link on September 12 in the Rs10 billion defamation case filed against former prime minister Imran Khan.

Two people were killed and another was injured on Monday when a “minor dispute” escalated into a gun battle between two groups in Punjab’s Nankana Sahib, according to police. In a statement, Nankana police said that the incident took place in Sangla Hill and that two people were killed and one was injured; the latter was moved to the Allied Hospital in Faisalabad. “As soon as the incident was reported, Nankana DPO (District Police Officer) Faraz Ahmed reached the spot,” the statement read, quoting a police spokesperson. “The scene of the incident was inspected, and orders were issued for the immediate arrest of the suspects involved.” The statement added that the DPO visited the victims’ families and vowed that the suspects would “be arrested and brought to justice as per the law”. Later, another statement from Nankana Police confirmed that following an operation in Sangla Hill, two of the suspects were arrested. “A successful police operation was carried out under the leadership of DPO Faraz Ahmed,” the seco...

Saudi Arabia has dispatched 50 aid trucks to Syria as part of its ongoing humanitarian land bridge, carrying more than 670 tons of medical, food, and shelter supplies to support the Syrian people.

A Lahore court has summoned Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to appear via video link for cross-examination on September 12 in the Rs10 billion defamation case against former premier Imran Khan.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar on Monday said that unresolved disputes like Kashmir and Palestine continue to endanger regional and international peace, stressing that Pakistan remains committed to advocating negotiations and mediation for peaceful conflict resolution.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif chaired a high-level meeting on the country’s flood situation and ongoing rescue and relief operations, where he was briefed by the NDMA chairman on the rising water levels in rivers, flood surges, and assistance being provided to affected citizens.

The Punjab Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) has issued a detailed report outlining the devastation caused by recent floods in Punjab and the ongoing relief operations across the province.

On the instructions of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif, a large-scale evacuation operation has been carried out in Jalalpur Pirwala, where more than 1,500 people were safely moved to secure locations from flood-affected areas.

Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari has strongly condemned the recent incident in which an egg was hurled at PTI founder Imran Khan’s sister, Aleema Khan, during a media interaction in Rawalpindi, calling it “unfortunate and inappropriate.

Two policemen were killed and two others injured in a shooting attack on a police station near the Turkish city of Izmir on Monday, with a 16-year-old suspect arrested, a minister said. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said the “heinous” attack on the police station in Balcova, a district just west of the resort city, left two officers dead and a third “seriously injured”. “The suspect in the incident, 16-year-old E.B., has been arrested and an investigation has been opened,” he wrote on X. It was not immediately clear why the station was attacked, but footage posted by the Gercek Gundem news website showed mobile phone footage of a person in a balaclava, a black top and pale trousers jogging along the pavement carrying a rifle, then entering a building. Another clip broadcast by Turkish TV stations showed a group of civilians helping to manhandle the alleged attacker, wearing white trousers, into a police van. The DHA news agency said the assailant had used “a long-barrelled gun” while NTV television describe...

KARACHI: The city is bracing for heavy rainfall over the coming days as strong monsoon currents penetrate Sindh as a deep depression is expected to enter the southeastern parts of the province from India within the next 24 hours, the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) said on Sunday. While issuing a severe weather warning, the PMD highlighted the likelihood of torrential rains, gusty winds and possible urban flooding across Karachi and other parts of Sindh. “Thunderstorm and rains are expected tomorrow [Monday] in Karachi with possibility of heavy falls,” said PMD’s focal person Anjum Nazeer Zaigham. An advisory issued by the PMD stated that a depression over southwest Rajasthan and adjoining Guajrat has intensified further into a deep depression. “It is very likely to move westward and entered in southeastern Sindh during the next 24 hours causing widespread rains with strong winds.” During the day, Karachi experienced overcast and humid conditions, with dense cloud cover persisting throughout. Light r...

On the directives of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif, the provincial government has launched a comprehensive relief and rehabilitation programme for flood-affected families, with a joint survey scheduled to commence on September 12.

India on Monday released additional water into the Sutlej River, raising fears of another wave of flooding downstream.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has asked Taliban authorities to lift restrictions on Afghan female aid workers, allowing them to travel without male guardians and help women struggling to access care after a powerful earthquake killed 2,200 people in eastern Afghanistan. “A very big issue now is the increasing paucity of female staff in these places,” Dr Mukta Sharma, the deputy representative of WHO’s Afghanistan office, told Reuters. She estimated around 90 per cent of medical staff in the area were male, and the remaining 10pc were often midwives and nurses, rather than doctors, who could treat severe wounds. This was hampering care as women were uncomfortable or afraid to interact with male staff and travel alone to receive care. The September 1 magnitude-6 quake and its aftershocks injured more than 3,600 people and left thousands homeless in a country already dealing with severe aid cuts and a slew of humanitarian crises since the Taliban took over in 2021 as foreign forces left. The Afghan health ...

The Indus River’s water flow at Guddu Barrage has crossed 400,000 cusecs, with rising levels also being reported at Sukkur and Kotri barrages, submerging several parts of the katcha area, officials confirmed on Monday.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Kazakhstan Murat Nurtleu arrives in Pakistan today (Monday) on a two-day official visit, accompanied by a high-level 13-member delegation, including the Kazakh minister of transport.