Pakistan

Dense fog enveloped the plain areas of Punjab and Sindh during the night between Thursday and Friday, severely disrupting routine life and bringing road traffic to a halt due to extremely low visibility.

• Pak Institute for Peace Studies report counts 699 terrorist attacks in outgoing year • Burden of violence fell on security personnel, constituting over 42pc of fatalities ISLAMABAD: Despite record militant deaths, Pakistan saw a sharp escalation in militant violence in 2025, with terrorist attacks rising by 34 per cent and terrorism-related fatalities increasing by 21 per cent year on year. As many as 699 terrorist attacks were recorded countrywide during the year. This violence claimed at least 1,034 lives and left 1,366 injured, underscoring a rising trajectory of militancy that has persisted since the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan in 2021. These are the findings of the “Pakistan Security Report 2025,” released by the Islamabad-based Pak Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS) on Thursday. Besides rising border violence and militant resurgence, evolving militant tactics from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to Balochistan fuel a widening security challenge, the report says. The burden of this violence fell disproportion...

• FO says Islamabad advocating peace and diplomacy between allied Gulf states • Confirms Pakistan-India prisoner, nuclear list exchanges amid strained ties • Asks India to share details of Dulhasti-II project under Indus treaty ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office said on Thursday that Pakistan was seeking a diplomatic resolution of the dispute between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates over Yemen, underscoring Islamabad’s push for dialogue as tensions persisted between two of its closest Gulf partners. The comments, which were the most categorical since the start of the Saudi-UAE row about Pakis­tan’s role in defusing tensions, came during the weekly media briefing by FO spokesperson Tahir Andrabi, who said Islamabad was actively engaging both Riyadh and Abu Dhabi to encourage restraint and diplomacy. “We have been advocating peace and diplomacy to reach a solution. So, this is part of our exchanges that is taking place between our leadership and the leadership in Riyadh and Abu Dhabi,” Mr Andrabi said. Tens...

ISLAMABAD: Mismanagement at a musical concert organised as part of New Year celebrations at a private housing society turned violent when people were allegedly denied entry despite holding valid tickets. Police sources said tickets for the musical night were sold at Rs5,000 for families and Rs2,000 for individuals. However, tickets were allegedly sold beyond the venue’s capacity and adequate arrangements for spectators were not made. As a result, the area reserved for spectators became overcrowded. A large number of ticket-holders also gathered outside the venue in an attempt to gain entry. Security guards of the housing society stopped the gathering and did not allow them to enter the concert venue, prompting protests by the ticket-holders. It has yet to be established how the protest turned violent and which side took the first step in disrupting law and order. A police contingent was deployed at the venue for security and crowd control, but it reportedly remained a silent spectator until the situation wors...

Prime Minister’s Adviser on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah on Thursday said that “confidence-building measures” between the five major players in the country would improve the political situation. The PTI earlier said that it will not engage in negotiations with the federal government. Party Information Secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram said the stance was taken following the instructions of party founder Imran Khan. “Two of them are my leaders, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Nawaz Sharif. The third is President Asif Ali Zardari, the fourth is [incarcerated PTI leader] Imran Khan, and everyone knows who the fifth is,” Sanaullah said while speaking on Geo News Capital Talk on Thursday. He said the efforts at the level of leaders like him and PTI’s chief whip in the National Assembly, Malik Amir Dogar, would continue, but until confidence among the top leaders is established, the political situation would not see a breakthrough. Sanaullah added that confidence-building measures would be possible only when socia...

Both sides share details of N-sites, prisoners; Islamabad raises strong concerns over IWT violations

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Missing covers and faulty streetlights endanger commuters in Saddar Cantt

RDA DG says Ring Road project is expected to complete by April this year

Authorities say over 102,000 passengers used service in a day

Probe on to find out who sent threatening messages, orchestrated false kidnapping claim

Political interference, unlawful practices blamed for delays

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ISLAMABAD - The Supreme Court of Pakistan has settled an important constitutional question in a narcotics case, holding that awarding a harsher sentence under a provincial law in the presence of an applicable federal law violates Article 143 of the Constitution.

ISLAMABAD - Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar yesterday chaired a detailed preparatory briefing ahead of his forthcoming visit to China, where he will co-chair the 7th Pakistan-China Foreign Ministers’ Strategic Dialogue.

ISLAMABAD - As a large number of MPs have not submitted assets details, the top election regulatory authority warned to suspend the membership from the parliament.

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan and India on Thursday exchanged the lists of their respective nuclear installations and facilities.

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday calling the implementation of the government’s policies on economic governance inevitable, sought proposals from all relevant ministries suggesting practical measures and a comprehensive strategy involving minimal duration.

Sanaullah says Shehbaz, Nawaz, Zardari, Imran and another person should take confidence building measure Claims PTI will not be able to paralyse country on Feb 8 PTI’s Secretary says we have outrightly rejected negotiations.