ISLAMABAD: Brushing aside criticism over a proposed increase in their salaries, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has approved a major raise for parliamentarians. Although the raise amounts to an around 300 per cent increase, the government has justified it by comparing it with the salaries being drawn by federal secretaries. A source in the National Assembly Secretariat told Dawn that National …
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Omar Ayub has criticised Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, accusing him of only being ready for negotiations when an ‘order’ arrives. Speaking to the media outside an Anti-Terrorism Court in Sargodha on Friday, he described the PM’s role as that of a “servant or clerk,” claiming he holds no real power. Ayub stated that PTI came …
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chinese Ambassador Jiang Zaidong discussed economic and security ties between their countries during a meeting in Islamabad on Friday, state-run Radio Pakistan reports. Their meeting follows the occasion of the Chinese New Year, which was celebrated by millions across Asia on January 29, when PM Shehbaz and President Zardari issued special greetings. Ambassador Zaidong …
ISLAMABAD: Islamabad High Court (IHC) judges on Friday penned a letter to the chief justices (CJ) of the Supreme Court and high courts, urging them to take a stand against reports of a transferred judge being appointed to the IHC’s top seat and to resist such a development. It is reported last month that the judicial bureaucracy is reportedly planning …
RAWALPINDI: Security forces have killed 10 terrorists during multiple operations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the military’s media wing said on Friday. A statement from the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said the operations took place a day ago and today with the first encounter in Dera Ismail Khan district’s general area of Khulachi where an intelligence-based operation (IBO) was carried out on …
ISLAMABAD: The European Union (EU) on Friday reminded Pakistan that trade benefits enjoyed by the country under the Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) depend on the progress made in addressing a list of issues, including human rights, and tangible reforms remain essential, a statement by the mission said. The EU is Pakistan’s second-largest trading partner, with the GSP+ status …
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) on Friday called for further expansion of its nationwide protests against amendments to the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016 which were recently passed into law. The new provisions introduce harsher penalties for what the government considers “fake news”, the expansion of state oversight of digital platforms, and the creation of new …
ISLAMABAD: Prime minister’s aide on political affairs Rana Sanaullah said on Friday that the government was ready to accept PTI’s demands given that “they could convince us,” as the two sides continue to be at loggerheads regarding the talks. After more than a year of heightened tensions between the government and the PTI, the two sides commenced negotiations in the …
RAWALPINDI: Two Pakistan army personnel, including a major, were martyred in a gun battle with terrorists in the Mir Ali area of North Waziristan, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Thursday. The clash occurred during an intelligence-based operation conducted by security forces on the night of January 29-30. According to the military’s media wing, during the operation, Pakistani troops …
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday said that the government was ready to form a parliamentary committee to continue talks with the PTI as against the party’s demand to constitute a judicial commission to probe the protests of May 9, 2023, and November 26, 2024. After more than a year of heightened tensions between the government and the PTI, …