Pakistan

Mosharraf Zaidi, the prime minister’s spokesperson for foreign media, said on Tuesday said that the Afghan Taliban regime initiated unprovoked firing along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border in Torkham and Tirah. In a post on the social media platform X, he said, “Pakistan’s security forces responded immediately and effectively, silencing the Taliban aggression.” He said that any further provocation would be responded to “immediately and severely”. He said Pakistan would “continue to protect its citizens and guard its territorial integrity”. The development comes after Pakistan targeted terrorist camps and hideouts overnight in the Nangarhar and Paktika provinces of Afghanistan over the weekend, with an official saying that “more than 80” terrorists had been killed in the air strikes. The strikes were the most extensive military engagement between the two neighbours since border clashes broke out in October last year. According to an information ministry statement, issued in the early hours of Sunday, the strike...

Protections for women farm workers, Rs7b for Gul Plaza shopkeepers

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Following the arrival of the holy month, low-income families are unable to afford fundamental items for Sehri, Iftar

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Hyderabad residents' complaints fall on deaf ears; people forced to purchase water at high prices

CM urges citizens to avoid shops not displaying official rate lists

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Consumers to be billed under 2015 NEPRA regulations until 2026

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About 1m students to appear next month across Punjab

26 raids in eight days; 42 suspects arrested, 107 passports recovered

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ISLAMABAD: The PTI took exception to the government’s “secrecy” regarding ex-prime minister Imran Khan after it emerged that he underwent a follow-up treatment for his eye ailment at an Islamabad hospital in the early hours of Tuesday. According to a doctor at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims), Imran was brought to the hospital for a second dose of anti-VEGF intravitreal injection on February 24. Imran’s eye ailment — right central retinal vein occlusion (CRVO) — came to light in late January. His first medical procedure, which was carried out on January 24, was confirmed by the government five days later. Since then, the government and the opposition have also been engaged in a blame game, with the latter accusing the former of a lack of transparency on the matter, of not ensuring appropriate treatment for Imran, and of not allowing his personal physicians access to him. The government denies these allegations. Reacting to the development, the PTI’s official X account said: “The situation demands...

More than a dozen international humanitarian organisations have petitioned Israel’s Supreme Court to block an imminent order that would force 37 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to cease operations in Gaza, the West Bank and east Jerusalem, warning of catastrophic consequences for civilians. Organisations including Doctors Without Borders (MSF), Oxfam, the Norwegian Refugee Council and CARE were notified on December 30, 2025 that their Israeli registrations had expired and that they had 60 days to renew them by providing lists of their Palestinian staff. If they fail to do so, they will have to cease operations in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, including east Jerusalem, from March 1. The petition, described as unprecedented in its scale and joint nature, seeks an urgent interim injunction from Israel’s top court to suspend the closures pending full judicial review. The 17 petitioners, which include some of the NGOs hit by the ban, argue the Israeli measures are incompatible with an occupying power’s ob...

ISLAMABAD: The government on Tuesday notified amendments to the National Identity Card Rules, 2002 and the Pakistan Origin Card Rules, 2002 to modernise the country’s identity document framework by legally embedding QR-based verification, strengthening authentication controls across digital services, expanding biometric recognition, and updating card formats for key citizen categories. According to a handout by the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra), a core reform is the statutory introduction of the QR code — a scannable barcode containing horizontal and vertical lines, dots, and patterns — as a defined security and verification feature. The rules now legally define QR codes as a secure, machine-readable, two-dimensional barcode capable of storing encoded information and converting it into usable identity verification data when scanned. The amendments further authorise the use of a QR code or “any other technological feature,” in lieu of the current microchip, enabling Nadra to adopt evolvi...

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LOWER SOUTH WAZIRISTAN: A police constable was martyred after unidentified armed men opened fire in the Wana tehsil of Lower South Waziristan district, officials said on Tuesday. According to District Police Officer (DPO) Mohammad Tahir, the attackers carried out a sudden assault in Mughal Khel village, leaving a constable, identified as Attaullah, critically wounded. He succumbed to his injuries on the spot. His body was taken to the district headquarters hospital (DHQ) in Wana for legal formalities, the DPO said. Police officials said security in the area was tightened following the incident, while an investigation had been launched to trace those involved. “Efforts are underway to identify and apprehend the perpetrators,” DPO Tahir said, adding those responsible would be brought to justice. The funeral prayers for the martyred official were later offered at the Police Lines in Wana. Subsequently, the body of the martyred constable was transported to his native village, Doag, where he was laid to rest with ...

The UK government said on Tuesday it supported the release of documents on ex-prince Andrew’s past role as a trade envoy, hours after a veteran politician was quizzed by police in the widening Jeffrey Epstein scandal. US authorities last month published millions of files related to late sex offender Epstein, containing revelations which have rocked British political and royal circles. It has ramped up pressure on Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government to release its own vetting documents and sparked two separate, high-profile police investigations. The Liberal Democrats party tabled a motion in parliament on Tuesday to force the government to release vetting documents on Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s appointment as trade envoy, a post he held from 2001 to 2011. The former prince was arrested last week on suspicion of misconduct in public office, and his brother King Charles III has said the “law must take its course”. Liberal Democrats leader Ed Davey said Andrew’s association with Epstein, and that o...

PESHAWAR: Six law enforcement personnel, including a deputy superintendent of police (DSP), were martyred after a terrorist attack on a police vehicle in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Kohat district on Tuesday. A senior police officer told Dawn that six police personnel — the DSP, an inspector and four constables — were martyred when the vehicle, which was transporting two individuals for a court appearance, was attacked. He added that one of the two individuals was also killed in the attack. The attackers also torched the vehicle after the ambush. Earlier in the day, state-run APP reported that heavy firing by armed assailants targeted the DSP of Lachi police station near Shakardara Road. Following the attack, additional police contingents were dispatched to the area, and a search operation was launched to apprehend the attackers. Authorities have cordoned off the area, while investigations into the incident have begun. Condemnations In a statement, President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the terrorist attack. Paying tr...