Pakistan

The Ministry of Energy’s Power Division on Friday warned electricity consumers against fraudulent activities being carried out by hackers and criminal elements under the guise of a government subsidy scheme. In an advisory issued for consumers, the Power Division spokesperson said certain elements were attempting to steal users’ personal information through fake QR codes and suspicious online links related to electricity bill subsidies. The spokesperson said consumers were being asked to click on a specific link and share personal information through a four-step process. After entering the details, users were further asked to provide a six-digit verification code on the same link. The spokesperson cautioned that such methods were illegal and fraudulent, adding that some elements were using QR codes to achieve malicious objectives. The Power Division urged consumers not to enter their personal information either digitally or on paper for obtaining electricity subsidies. The spokesperson further said law enforc...

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday imposed a permanent ban on the poisoning, shooting, and indiscriminate killing of stray dogs in the federal capital, directing authorities to implement a “catch, neuter, vaccinate and release” programme for controlling the population. In a 24-page detailed judgment, Justice Khadim Hussain Soomro disposed of two constitutional petitions challenging the alleged non-implementation of the Stray Dog Population Control Policy for the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT). The petitions were filed by an Islamabad resident named Niloofar and others. The court ordered the Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad, the Capital Development Authority (CDA), the ICT administration and other relevant bodies to ensure that no arbitrary, ad hoc or inhumane action was taken against stray dogs. The judgement noted with concern photographic evidence produced during proceedings showing dead dogs in a CDA vehicle, observing that the respondents could not furnish any satisfactory explanatio...

Financial discipline is often misunderstood as a restrictive behaviour, an exercise in limitation, austerity, or delayed gratification alone.

Oil prices climbed on Friday but were on track for a weekly loss as investors doubted the prospects of a breakthrough in US-Iran peace talks. Brent crude futures rose $1.66, or 1.6 per cent, to $104.24 a barrel by 0405 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate futures were up $1.11, or 1.2pc, at $97.46. On a weekly basis, Brent was 4.6pc lower and WTI was down 7.6pc, with prices fluctuating sharply as expectations for a peace deal shifted. A senior Iranian source told Reuters gaps with the US have narrowed and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke of “some good signs” in talks, but the countries are still divided on Tehran’s uranium stockpile and controls on the Strait of Hormuz. “Oil prices would only trend lower when oil market fundamentals materially improve, which looks destined to stretch into 2027,” said David Oxley, chief commodities economist at Capital Economics. Six weeks since a fragile ceasefire took effect, efforts to end the war have shown little progress, while elevated oil prices have fuelled co...

Islamabad - Investiture ceremony to confer military awards to officers and soldiers of Pakistan Army was held at General Headquarters Rawalpindi on Thursday.

Islamabad - President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif reaffirmed Pakistan’s unwavering commitment to its strategic partnership with China, describing bilateral relationship as a time-tested friendship rooted in mutual trust, shared aspirations, and steadfast support through every challenge.

ISLAMABAD - Member National Assembly (MNA) Sher Afzal Marwat Thursday approached the Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) and filed a petition seeking restoration of Ali Amin Gandapur as the chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).

ISLAMABAD - Poland’s Ambassador to Pakistan, Maciej Pisarski, on Thursday emphasized the importance of diplomacy, dialogue and regional cooperation while praising Pakistan’s role in promoting peace and mediation amid ongoing international tensions.

ISLAMABAD - The Supreme Judicial Council has unanimously dis­missed five complaints filed against Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Yahya Afridi.

ISLAMABAD - The Supreme Court of Pakistan has ruled that if a wife failed to prove allegations of cruelty against her husband but remained unwilling to maintain marital relationship, a family court was obligated to ob­tain the woman’s clear, informed, and voluntary consent before is­suing a decree of ‘Khula’.

• Minister says no proof of Pakistanis being singled out in Gulf state • Reveals 3,494 Pakistani nationals deported between January and April, describes reports of victimisation as ‘propaganda’ ISLAMABAD: Parliamentary Affairs Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry on Thursday told the Senate that around 3,494 Pakistanis had been deported from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) between January and April this year, but claimed there was no evidence suggesting that Pakistani nationals were being specifically targeted in the Gulf state. Responding to a calling attention notice moved by upper house opposition leader Raja Nasir Abbas, Samina Mumtaz Zehri and Azam Swati on the issue, the minister said those deported included individuals involved in various criminal cases, while some had been sent back under administrative actions taken by the UAE authorities. These deportations, he continued, could not be linked to any discriminatory policy against Pakistani nationals, noting that over two million Pakistanis were residing in th...

WASHINGTON: Professor Rayaz Malik, a British-Pakistani scientist based in Qatar, says a simple AI-powered eye scan lasting just two to three minutes may soon help doctors detect dementia and diabetic nerve damage years before symptoms appear. Professor Malik, a leading researcher in diabetic neuropathy and neurodegenerative diseases at Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar, told Dawn that the technology could transform early diagnosis and treatment, particularly in countries with soaring diabetes rates such as Pakistan. Speaking to Dawn, he explained how researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine are using this technology, known as corneal confocal microscopy (CCM), to identify nerve damage years before patients begin showing symptoms. “The cornea has the richest sensory innervation in the body,” he said, explaining why the eye offers a unique window into diseases affecting the nervous system. “We evolved to protect vision, so the cornea contains a dense network of nerves that can reveal damage occurring elsewhere in the b...

LAHORE: A high-level inquiry committee has been constituted at Multan’s Nishtar Hospital to investigate allegations of medical negligence after a patient reportedly underwent surgery without mandatory HIV screening and later tested positive for the virus. The incident has triggered concern among healthcare staff over possible exposure and lapses in infection-control protocols. According to an order issued by the hospital’s medical superintendent, a four-member inquiry committee will investigate the incident and submit its findings within two days. Dr Riwad Noor, a member of the inquiry committee and in-charge of infectious diseases, told Dawn that they would conduct the inquiry on Friday and submit the report on Saturday. He said the situation was under control and that preventive measures had been taken to disinfect all surgical instruments. Hospital sources said the surgery was performed on Tuesday, May 19, in the hospital’s operating theatre. A junior doctor had reportedly flagged during pre-operative file...

MUZAFFARABAD: A young Kashmiri educationist who had earlier fled occupied Kashmir was critically wounded in a targeted daylight attack in Muzaffarabad on Thursday. The attacker, however, was arrested within half an hour after fleeing through a residential locality along a ravine. The weapon used in the attack was also recovered, police and witnesses said. The victim, Arjumand Gulzar Dar, was the principal and managing director of Allama Iqbal Memorial School, an educational institution operating in a rented building along Muzaffarabad’s Western Bypass. Originally hailing from Indian-occupied Kashmir’s Pulwama district, he had arrived in Pakistan in January 2018 for higher studies. He had reportedly married into the family of a post-1989 migrant from his home district around three years earlier and was the father of a young son, family sources said. Hospital sources said Dar sustained three bullet wounds and remained on a ventilator in critical condition. Police sources said Dar, whose social media activity op...

NAROWAL: A warning was issued on Thursday stating that the water level in the Chenab River will rise by more than three metres due to the opening of the spillway gates of the Indian Salal Dam, with a risk of silt flushing at the Marala Barrage. Sialkot Deputy Commissioner Saba Asghar has deployed the Punjab Enforcement and Regulatory Authority to monitor the river. She told Dawn that an important advisory had been issued by India in view of possible emergency silt flushing at the Salal Dam on the Chenab River from May 21 to May 30. Asghar added that in view of the rising water level, a high alert had been issued at the Marala Barrage and adjacent areas, especially Bajwat. She also appealed to citizens to avoid unnecessary visits to rivers and canals and advised them to take precautionary measures. Additionally, the District Emergency Control Room has been activated, and citizens can contact 0529250011 for more information and guidance, Asghar said. The DC directed all relevant departments to monitor the Chena...

Israel said on Thursday it had deported all the foreign activists seized by Israeli forces from a Gaza-bound flotilla, following global outcry over their treatment in custody. Israel’s foreign ministry spokesman, Oren Marmorstein, said that “all foreign activists from the PR flotilla have been deported from Israel”. “Israel will not permit any breach of the lawful naval blockade on Gaza,” he added. Earlier, the legal centre and rights groups representing the activists, Adalah, said all detained activists from the Gaza-bound Global Sumud Flotilla and Freedom Flotilla Coalition had been released from Israel’s Ktziot prison ahead of deportation. Adalah said it had received “official confirmation” from the Israeli Prison Service and state officials that the detainees had been released. “The majority of the participants are being transferred to Ramon Airport to be flown out of the country,” the group said. One of the organisers of the Freedom Flotilla mission, Thiago Avila, in a post on X, said, “Zohar, one of our...

Higher Education Department Punjab has announced summer vacations for colleges across the province, according to an official notification issued on Thursday.

Security forces have killed 23 terrorists in multiple intelligence-based operations conducted in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) in a statement released on Thursday. The military’s media wing said the operations were conducted over the last 48 hours in the areas of Datta Khel, Spinwam and Bannu. “Over the last 48 hours, during the conduct of these series of operations, own troops effectively engaged multiple khwarij locations. Following intense and fierce exchanges of fire, twenty three more khwarij belonging to Indian-sponsored Fitna-al-Khwarij,” said the ISPR. Fitna al Khawarij is a term the state uses for terrorists belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), while Fitna al Hindustan is a term designated by the state for terrorist organisations in Balochistan. Among those killed was ring leader Jan Meer alias Toor Saqib, said the ISPR, adding that the ring leader’s death will give “a significant blow to the khwarij networks operating in these areas”. Meer w...

Provincial Disaster Management Authority, Punjab, has issued a heatwave alert forecasting significantly above-normal temperatures across most districts of Punjab from May 25 to May 31.

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