ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari assented to the much-debated changes to the country’s cybercrime laws on Wednesday despite calls by journalists and media bodies to not sign off on the law. The development comes a day after the Senate passed amendments to the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca) 2016, triggering protests across the country by media workers. Journalists have …
ISLAMABAD: The government has decided to give one more chance to the PTI to rejoin the dialogue after the opposition party did not turn up for the fourth round of talks on Tuesday, in which the government had promised to share its response to its charter of demands. Senator Irfan Siddiqui, the spokesperson for the government negotiation team, said they …
ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday reaffirmed Pakistan’s “iron ties” with China in their greetings to the Chinese people on Chinese New Year. The Chinese New Year falls on the second new moon after the winter solstice on December 21. Each year the new year in China falls on a different date than on …
ISLAMABAD: The government removed Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Director General Ahmed Ishaq Jahangir from his position on Wednesday amid ongoing action against other officials of the watchdog. According to a notification by the Cabinet Secretariat, Jahangir, a BS-21 officer of the Interior Division was transferred and posted as an Officer on Special Duty (OSD) in the Establishment Division “with immediate …
LAKKI MARWAT / QUETTA: Three terrorists were killed and nine others injured in an intelligence-based operation in Janikhel town of Bannu district, the army’s media wing said on Tuesday. In a statement, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said the operation was launched following reports of the presence of ‘khwarij’ (an official term used for banned outfits) in the area. It …
ISLAMABAD: The senior puisne judge of the Islamabad High Court (IHC), Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, said on Tuesday that the government hurriedly brought the 26th Amendment in response to a “letter” and hoped that the case related to this constitutional change would be heard by a full court of the Supreme Court. Though the judge did not specify the letter, …
ISLAMABAD: The Constitutional Bench (CB) of the Supreme Court, on Tuesday, declared the Jan 13 and Jan 16 orders of a two-member bench ‘non-est’, meaning that it was invalid, nonexistent, or without legal effect. On the other hand, the federal government informed the seven-judge CB of its intention to challenge the Jan 27 judgement of the two-judge regular bench, citing …
ISLAMABAD: The Senate approved the Prevention of Electronic Crimes (PECA) (Amendment) Bill 2025 and the Digital Nation Pakistan Bill 2024 on Tuesday, amid a walkout from journalists and protests from opposition members. The bill was presented by Minister for Industries and Production, Rana Tanveer Hussain, on behalf of Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi. The PECA Act was already approved by the …
ISLAMABAD: The Chief Justice of the Islamabad High Court, Aamir Farooq, heard the petition regarding the personal doctor of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan, his meeting with his wife, and a request to allow phone calls with his children. After statements from the Superintendent of Adiala Jail, the Islamabad High Court dismissed the petition with directions. Imran Khan’s lawyer, …
ISLAMABAD: PML-N Senator Irfan Siddiqui said on Tuesday that the negotiation process with the PTI was “practically” at an end after the opposition party skipped today’s fourth round of meetings. Talks between the government and the PTI commenced in the last week of December to bring down political temperatures, but despite weeks of negotiations, the dialogue process stalled on major …