Pakistan

A 19-year-old girl in Karachi’s Lyari succumbed to her injuries after an alleged marital rape at the hands of her husband, police said on Wednesday. Earlier this month, the newlywed girl was admitted to Civil Hospital Karachi in critical condition after allegedly enduring “brutal sexual violence” from her husband, who was arrested by the police. The victim was in a coma and her physical examination findings were “consistent with sexual violence”, police surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed had stated. “The rape victim, 19, passed away at the trauma centre of the Civil Hospital Karachi at 10:45am today,” Syed said today. She was admitted to the trauma centre in a “critical condition”, having undergone a surgical procedure at another hospital, she added. “Her initial findings were positive for sexual violence,” she said. The police surgeon told Dawn.com that the hospital informed police and family to conduct a post-mortem examination of the body and was waiting for their response. Baghdadi police Station House Officer Maji...

Swat District Police Officer (DPO) Muhammad Omar on Wednesday said that authorities sealed the madressah in Swat, where a student was killed earlier this week, and returned its other students to their parents. A young student was allegedly beaten to death by his madressah teachers on Monday evening in Swat’s Chaliyar village, according to the police. He was rushed to the nearest hospital by students and teachers, but doctors declared him dead upon arrival. Addressing a press conference in his office accompanied by Superintendent of Police (Investigation) Badshah Hazrat Khan, DPO Omar said: “When we came to know of this incident, we also thought to check with the other students studying in the madressah if there was any other case such as this or not. We sent our team to this madressah and when statements were taken from the children, it was found out that some others had been subjected to violence as well.” Omar said police detained all madressah staff upon receiving this information with nine more taken into...

In Pakistan’s fast-evolving urban mobility landscape, ride-hailing apps like Yango, InDrive, and Bykea have redefined how people move through chaotic cities like Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad.

Chairperson of Senate Standing Committee on Climate Change, Senator Sherry Rehman, convened the committee meeting on Wednesday to address the alarming scale of climate-induced disasters and Pakistan’s growing vulnerability to extreme weather events.

Six Frontier Constabulary (FC) personnel were injured on Wednesday in a terrorist attack targeting a security checkpoint in the border area of Takhti Khel, located in Bannu district.

Six Frontier Constabulary (FC) personnel were injured in a “terrorist attack” at a checkpoint in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Bannu district on Wednesday, a police spokesperson said. Bannu Police spokesperson Aamir Khan told Dawn.com: “Terrorists attacked a Frontier Constabulary checkpoint situated in the border area of Takhti Khel Wazir in Bannu. “As a result of the attack, six personnel of the FC were injured, but the immediate response of the constabulary forced the terrorists to flee.” Over a week ago, President Asif Ali Zardari promulgated an ordinance empowering the federal government to transform the FC, a border security force, into the Federal Constabulary. Aamir added that the injured constables have been taken to the Combined Military Hospital in Bannu for treatment. “Police teams have been sent to the area and have begun a search operation to track down the terrorists,” he said. Pakistan has witnessed a surge in terrorist attacks, especially in KP and Balochistan, predominantly targeting the police, law e...

Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry on Wednesday warned the public of a terrorist group using WhatsApp channels to “disseminate hateful content and harmful narratives”, urging the platform and the global community to help Pakistan combat terrorism. In a post on X, the state minister said the proscribed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) — designated as a terrorist organisation by the United Nations and the United States — was operating its WhatsApp channels and sending bulk messages to “proliferate its violent/hateful ideology, to spread its harmful narratives, and for glorification of its terror activities”. The state minister requested the international community and WhatsApp to “cooperate to help us fight this menace”. “These accounts must be blocked and necessary algorithms created to auto-detect and auto-suspend such handles/numbers,” he added. On Sept 1, 2010, the US designated the group as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation, while the UN imposed sanctions on the entity on July 29, 2011 due to it...

US President Donald Trump has announced a “massive” trade deal with Japan, as China said it will send its vice premier to US trade talks next week to secure its own agreement ahead of a looming deadline. In an attempt to slash his country’s colossal trade deficit, the US president has vowed to hit dozens of countries with punitive “reciprocal” tariffs if they do not hammer out a pact with Washington by August 1. The Japan agreement, along with another pact with the Philippines also announced on Tuesday, means Trump has now secured five agreements since his administration promised in April “90 deals in 90 days”. The others are with Britain, Vietnam and Indonesia, which the White House said Tuesday would ease critical mineral export restrictions. Negotiations are still ongoing with much larger US trading partners China, Canada, Mexico and the European Union. Representatives from China and the United States will meet next week in the Swedish capital Stockholm to try and hammer out a deal before an August 12 dead...

India will resume issuing tourist visas to Chinese citizens from July 24 this year, its embassy in China said on Wednesday, the first time in five years as both countries move to repair their rocky relationship. Tensions between the two countries escalated following a 2020 military clash along their disputed Himalayan border. In response, India imposed restrictions on Chinese investments, banned hundreds of popular Chinese apps and cut passenger routes. China suspended visas to Indian citizens and other foreigners around the same time due to the Covid-19 pandemic but lifted those restrictions in 2022, when it resumed issuing visas for students and business travellers. Tourist visas for Indian nationals remained restricted until March this year, when both countries agreed to resume direct air service. Relations have gradually improved, with several high-level meetings taking place last year, including talks between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Russia in October. China...

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday reaffirmed Pakistan’s willingness to engage in meaningful dialogue with India on all outstanding issues.

A young student named Farhan tragically lost his life after allegedly being beaten by teachers at an unregistered seminary in the Chilyar area of Khwazakhela tehsil, Swat district, sparking widespread outrage and grief in the local community.

The Sehat Card Plus (SCP) programme, introduced in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after the 2018 elections, has transformed the province's healthcare landscape, earning widespread appreciation for its inclusivity and accessibility.

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif chaired a high-level review meeting on Wednesday to assess the progress on the privatisation of state-owned enterprises (SOEs), emphasizing the need for an effective, transparent, and expeditious process.

Minister of State for Overseas Pakistanis Aun Saqlain Chaudhry was called on by Pakistan’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Dr.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar underscored that lasting peace can only be achieved through dialogue and respect for international law.

Rejecting Indian allegations of cross-border terrorism, Pakistan has asked India to change its behaviour, instead of resorting to its “tired narrative of victimhood and blame-shifting” during a UN Security Council debate on ‘Promoting International Peace and Security through Multilateralism and Peaceful Settlement of.

National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq has expressed deep sorrow over the passing of former Punjab Governor and sitting Member of the National Assembly, Mian Muhammad Azhar.

British High Commissioner to Pakistan, Ms.

Pakistan and Bangladesh have reached a mutual agreement to allow visa-free entry for holders of diplomatic and official passports, marking a step forward in strengthening bilateral relations.

Balochistan — Pakistan’s largest and most resource-rich province — rarely makes headlines, and when it does, it’s often for tragic reasons: bombings, attacks on passenger buses, targeted killings, enforced disappearances, arrest of activists, or political upheavals. In recent years, another deeply troubling issue has pushed its way into the spotlight — a rise in gender-based violence and ‘honour’ killings. While such violence has long haunted the province, the proliferation of smartphones, internet access, and social media have made it increasingly difficult to keep these crimes hidden. Over the weekend, one such incident sparked nationwide outrage: a harrowing video emerged online, showing a woman and a man being killed by a group of men in the outskirts of Quetta — reportedly in the name of honour. At a press conference on Monday evening, while sharing details of the so-called honour-based killing, Balochistan’s Chief Minister Sarfaraz Bugti disputed reports that the victims were a newly married couple. “Th...