ISLAMABAD: Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen (MWM) chief Allama Raja Nasir Abbas was appointed as the opposition leader in the Senate on Tuesday. Abbas — vice chairman of Tehreek-i-Tahafuz-i-Ayin-i-Pakistan (TTAP) — had been chosen by PTI founder Imran Khan as the opposition’s choice for the seat, which had been vacant since August 2025. “In pursuance of sub-rule (3) of Rule 16 of the …
ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly on Tuesday echoed with calls for empowering local governments (LGs) as lawmakers stressed the need for reforms in the wake of the Gul Plaza fire. Besides members of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), PML-N’s Khawaja Asif also favoured strengthening LGs for better city administration. Speaking on the floor of the NA today, MQM-P leader Dr Farooq …
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday said Pakistan was “forced” to halt all trade with Afghanistan due to Kabul’s inaction against terrorists operating from its soil. The Pak-Afghan border has been closed for trade since mid-October 2025, when border clashes erupted. Successive rounds of talks on counter-terrorism mechanisms failed to produce a workable solution despite mediation by Turkiye and …
ISLAMABAD: Chief of Defence Force (CDF) and Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir emphasised that a strong, professional, and people-centric police force is indispensable for ensuring internal security and the rule of law, according to an Inter-Service Public Relations (ISPR) statement issued on Tuesday. The army chief made these remarks during a visit to the National …
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will lead a high-level delegation to the annual summit of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Switzerland, the Foreign Office (FO) said on Tuesday. According to a statement by the FO, the annual WEF meeting will be held in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland from January 20-22. PM Shehbaz will be accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign …
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and China are set to sign multiple memorandums of understanding (MoUs) for private-sector joint venture investments worth millions of dollars across 10 key sectors of agriculture, it emerged from the Pakistan-China Agricultural Investment Conference held in Islamabad on Monday. The sectors in which agreements are expected to be signed include agriculture, food processing, livestock, fisheries, agri-inputs, farm machinery, …
PESHAWAR: Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on Monday vowed that the provincial government would not abandon families displaced from Tirah due to military operations, saying tribal people had made immense sacrifices for the country. Addressing a jirga of elders and notables from Khyber district in Peshawar, Afridi said there was an organised mindset that did not want Pashtuns, particularly tribal …
KARACHI: As the death toll from the Gul Plaza blaze rose to at least 21 on Monday, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah noted dozens were still reported missing and announced Rs10 million in compensation for the victims’ families. While the fire at the mall located on M.A Jinnah Road was said to be doused after more than 24 hours …
LAHORE: Mubashra Khawar Maneka, the daughter of Bushra Bibi, withdrew her plea filed in the Lahore High Court (LHC) seeking meetings with her incarcerated mother. Maneka had filed the plea on January 16, seeking meetings with her mother, who is the wife of jailed PTI founder Imran Khan. The court registrar’s office had, however, objected to the maintainability of the …
KARACHI: National Assembly Opposition Leader Mehmood Khan Achakzai on Monday called for a “new Pakistan”, which is democratic, where there is rule of law, and where there is no cruelty. Achakzai — who is on a four-day visit to Sindh along with a delegation of opposition alliance Tehreek-i-Tahafuz-i-Ayin-i-Pakistan (TTAP) to mobilise the masses for a nationwide strike and protest rallies …