Pakistan

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Imports soar to $980 million annually

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Israeli Olympic officials have disqualified Israel’s four-man bobsleigh team from finishing their event today, Times of Israel reported on Sunday. The Olympic Committee of Israel told the publication that it has prevented the country’s four-man bobsleigh team from taking part in today’s competition after one athlete provided false information to officials to let teammate Ward Fawarseh compete in his place. Per the report, Israel had raced on Saturday with Adam Edelman, Menachem Chen, Uri Zisman, and Omer Katz. Although the team was originally scheduled to compete this morning with Edelman, Chen, Fawarseh, and Katz, the disqualification has halted their participation. Fawarseh would have become Israel’s first Druze Olympian had he competed, but he arrived at the Games as an alternate and was only permitted to race if another team member was unwell. “The bobsleigh team asked to include Ward, the substitute, in the competition. According to the rules, this is only permitted if one of the athletes is injured or i...

The US Secret Service said on Sunday that its agents had shot and killed an armed man who breached the security perimeter of President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. Trump was in Washington at the time of the incident, which officials said happened around 1:30 am (11:30am PKT). Secret Service agents fired at a man after they saw him “unlawfully entering the secure perimeter at Mar-a-Lago early this morning,” agency spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a post on X. The suspect, a man in his early 20s, “was observed by the north gate of the Mar-a-Lago property carrying what appeared to be a shotgun and a fuel can,” the agency said in a statement. Agents confronted the man and fired shots. No US officers were injured, the agency said that no “Secret Service protectees” were present in Mar-a-Lago at the time. The individual was pronounced deceased. “The only words that we said to him were drop the items, which means the gas can and the shotgun,” Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw told reporters. ...

Festival will feature handicrafts, art exhibits, music and film screenings

Concerns grow over joint actions and whether inspections fairly cover all food sectors

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The Ministry of Finance on Sunday dismissed claims that Pakistan was paying up to eight per cent interest on external loans as “misleading,” clarifying that public external debt interest outflows rose by 80.4 per cent between fiscal years 2022 and 2025, not 84pc. The ministry issued a clarification in response to “recent press commentary” on Pakistan’s external debt, saying the figures cited needed context to provide an “accurate and comprehensive understanding” of the country’s debt and interest payments. “Pakistan’s total external debt and liabilities currently stand at $138 billion. This figure, however, encompasses a broad range of obligations, including public and publicly guaranteed debt, debt of public sector enterprises (both guaranteed and non-guaranteed), bank borrowings, private-sector external debt, and intercompany liabilities to direct investors,” the statement said. “It is therefore important to distinguish this aggregate figure from external public (government) debt, which amounts to approxima...

ISLAMABAD: Leaders of the opposition alliance Tehreek Tahafuz Ayeen-i-Pakistan (TTAP) on Sunday launched a broadside against the government, terming its national and foreign policies “flawed”, criticising its economic performance and governance decisions, and warning that the country was facing irreversible damage. The leaders, including Taimur Khan Jhagra, Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar, Akhunzada Hussain Yousafzai and others, were speaking at a press conference in Islamabad. Jhagra alleged that the government’s claims of economic recovery were incorrect and claimed that the government “lacked a plan to improve the country’s economic situation.” Referring to recently released national poverty statistics, he said that in 2018, as much as 22 per cent of the population was living below the poverty line, but that figure had now risen to 29pc. “Over the past 11 years, not only has poverty increased, but the gap between the rich and the poor has further widened, reaching a poverty level of 32.7pc,” he said. Jhagra alleged ...

The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) in Bannu said on Sunday it had thwarted a militant attack, adding that a detained commander of a banned outfit was killed in an exchange of fire, according to a press release. The investigation team was transporting a “recently arrested, highly wanted terrorist commander, Osama alias Baghi”, to identify the site of the attack on Assistant Commissioner Miranshah Shah Wali Khan, when his accomplices opened indiscriminate fire on the convoy, attempting to release him, the release said. “A fierce exchange of fire followed, during which Osama was killed by gunfire from his own associates,” it added. The CTD team’s armoured personnel carrier (APC) was also hit, but no personnel were injured. The gun battle reportedly lasted around 40 minutes, it added. It stated that the assault was aimed at freeing the detained commander during a crime-scene visit. “In the retaliatory action by CTD’s Special Weapons and Tactical (SWAT) team, another terrorist was also killed. He was identifie...

Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) on Sunday assailed the PPP-led Sindh government for moving a resolution in the provincial assembly against the creation of any new province, terming it “unconstitutional”. On Saturday, the Sindh Assembly on Saturday passed a resolution declaring Karachi an “inseparable part” of the province and opposing any move that suggested otherwise. Subsequently, on Sunday, MQM-P Convener Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui — flanked by Farooq Sattar, Mustafa Kamal and Senator Faisal Subzwari — addressed a press conference in Karachi on the development. “Yesterday, a resolution against the Constitution of Pakistan was passed by one assembly of Pakistan,” Siddiqui said at the outset of his speech. “A province had carried itself as if it were a separate country,” Siddiqui, also the federal education minister, said while referring to Sindh. The MQM-P leader asked the public and the “intellectuals” of Sindh whether any province could pass a resolution that “went against the Constitution”. “This ...

The National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) announced that it would issue Computerised National Identity Cards (CNICs) to those seeking first-time registration without a birth certificate, a statement said on Sunday. The time-bound facility for first-time registration would be valid until December 31, 2026, and would be subject to strict verification conditions. “This facilitation has been approved under Section 5(1)(b) and Section 20 of the Nadra Ordinance, 2000, read with Rule 8 of the Nadra NIC Rules, 2002, which permit alternative verification mechanisms in specified categories”, the statement said. It added that the CNIC issuance under this framework would be allowed only where identity was established through NADRA’s existing records and mandatory biometric verification of already registered immediate family members. Per the statement, for a married woman aged 18 years or above, a valid local government Nikah Nama, a valid CNIC or National Identity Card for Overseas Pakistanis (NICOP) of ei...

King Charles III has been left wrestling with a new test after the arrest of his brother Andrew, the latest in a series of painful personal shocks to mar his reign. “Charles has, since coming to the throne in September 2022, been battered by a succession of difficulties and crises, whether it’s in relation to his second son, Harry … his health, the health of Catherine, or the very disruptive figure of Andrew,” royal commentator Ed Owens told AFP. After decades waiting in the wings, Charles became king in September 2022 on the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, who had reigned for 70 years and commanded deep public affection and respect. His coronation on May 6, 2023 was rich in pageantry, projecting continuity and tradition. Yet trouble stirred even before the crown was placed on his head. In January 2023, his youngest son Harry released his explosive memoir Spare, launching repeated attacks on the royal family and airing private disputes lapped up by a global audience. Living in California with his wif...

Greenland does not need medical assistance from other countries, Denmark’s defence minister said on Sunday, after United States President Donald Trump claimed he was sending a hospital ship to the autonomous Danish territory that he covets. “The Greenlandic population receives the healthcare it needs. They receive it either in Greenland, or, if they require specialised treatment, they receive it in Denmark. So it’s not as if there’s a need for a special healthcare initiative in Greenland,” Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen told Danish broadcaster DR. Lund Poulsen told DR he was not aware of the hospital ship’s possible arrival. “Trump is constantly tweeting about Greenland. So this is undoubtedly an expression of the new normal that has taken hold in international politics,” he said. In a social media post, Trump had said the boat would treat many “sick” people in Greenland, without providing any details on who he was referring to or the number of people the vessel would help. “We are going to send a great...

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz formally inaugurated Phase III of the CM Green Tractor Program in Lahore today.

KARACHI: Central Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Dr Imran Khan on Sunday ordered the suspension of five cops for their alleged involvement in the custodial torture of a man at the city’s Sharifabad police station. According to a statement issued by the Sindh Police’s Central District branch, SSP Imran took serious notice of the alleged incident and issued directives for the five cops to be suspended. The statement noted that an initial inquiry was conducted by the Liaquatabad sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) on the orders of the Central SSP. According to the probe, four personnel of Sindh Police’s Shaheen Force and a sentry of the Sharifabad police station were found to be involved in the torture. “All five personnel were immediately suspended and the [case] was closed, while further departmental inquiry is under way,” the Central District police statement read. “Further departmental action will be taken after the inquiry has been completed,” it added. SSP Imran warned, “Unlawful and unethical behav...

Somalia is in advanced talks with Pakistan to purchase up to 24 JF-17 Thunder Block III fighter jets, in a defence deal valued at approximately Rs2.

KARACHI: A 15-year-old boy lost his life while four people were injured after a fire erupted following an explosion in a residential building in Karachi’s North Nazimabad area on Sunday, according to police and rescue officials. Rescue-1122 spokesperson Hassaanul Haseeb Khan told Dawn that the explosion took place on the top floor of Bismillah Residency near Hyderi Market in Block-E of North Nazimabad at Sehri time. The sound of the explosion was heard miles away. He said that two flats caught fire as a result of the explosion, leading to the death of a 15-year-old, while another four people were injured. As per the spokesperson, the fire was brought under control, and the team had completed cooling operations. Earlier, the spokesperson said that four fire tenders were being employed to extinguish the fire, while a snorkel had also been called. He added that the exact nature of the explosion would be ascertained after the fire was brought under control, but said that it could be a gas-related explosion. Meanw...

US envoy Steve Witkoff said on Saturday that President Donald Trump is questioning why Iran has not “capitulated” in the face of Washington’s military build-up aimed at pressuring them into a nuclear deal. The United States and Iran this week resumed Oman-mediated talks in Geneva aimed at averting the possibility of military action, after Washington dispatched two aircraft carriers, jets and weaponry to the region to back its warnings. In a Fox News interview with Trump’s daughter-in-law Lara, Witkoff said the president was “curious” about Iran’s position after he had warned them of severe consequences in the event they failed to strike a deal. “I don’t want to use the word ‘frustrated’, because he understands he has plenty of alternatives, but he’s curious as to why they haven’t… I don’t want to use the word ‘capitulated’, but why they haven’t capitulated,” he said. “Why, under this pressure, with the amount of seapower and naval power over there, why haven’t they come to us and said, ‘We profess we don’t wa...