ISLAMABAD: The special court formed to hear cases under the Official Secrets Act appointed on Saturday state counsels for former premier Imran Khan and former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi. The decision was announced by special court Judge Abul Hasnat Muhammad Zulqarnain after the counsels representing the accused were absent from court proceedings on Friday. The hearing a day earlier was marred …
BEIJING: China firmly opposes the Philippine side conducting any form of construction activity on the islands and reefs of China’s Nansha Islands that it invaded and illegally occupied, a spokesperson for China’s Defense Ministry said Thursday. “China has indisputable sovereignty over the Nansha Islands and the adjacent waters, which is fully backed by historical and legal evidence,” Wu Qian, a …
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, will hold a new round of meetings with U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan in Bangkok, Thailand, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin announced on Friday. Wang will also visit Thailand from January 26 to 29, at the invitation of …
RAWALPINDI: An accountability court could not indict former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, in the £190m corruption case due to the latter’s indisposition. The court is now scheduled to charge-sheet the couple next week, on January 30. The accountability court, presided over by Judge Muhammad Bashir, resumed hearing the corruption reference—filed by the National Accountability Bureau …
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court (SC) overturned the rejection on Friday of PTI central president Chaudhry Parvez Elahi’s nomination papers, permitting him to contest in the upcoming general elections. The court instructed the inclusion of Elahi’s name and electoral symbol on the ballot paper for PP-32, Gujarat, while he withdrew from all other constituencies. An appeal against the rejection of nomination papers was …
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) claimed on Friday that its websites were “blocked” within Pakistan ahead of general elections scheduled for February 8. The party also demanded an explanation from the authorities. Facing the absence of its signature ‘bat’ electoral symbol for the upcoming polls, the PTI has nominated its candidates as independents with various electoral symbols. To address potential confusion …
UNITED NATIONS: Following religious clashes sparked by the opening this week of a controversial Hindu temple in India, Pakistan has urged the United Nations to take action for the protection of Islamic sites in the country. Pakistan’s UN envoy Munir Akram shared the plea during an OIC ambassadorial meeting at the UN headquarters in New York on Wednesday, condemning the recent consecration of the …
PESHAWAR: Peshawar High Court on Thursday declared as not maintainable and rejected plea of a Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf leader, challenging the last month Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) notifications of appointing executive officers as district returning officers and returning officers. A bench consisting of PHC Chief Justice Mohammad Ibrahim Khan and Justice Shakeel Ahmad referred to an order of Supreme Court …
ISLAMABAD: Foreign Secretary Muhammad Syrus Sajjad Qazi on Thursday said Islamabad had “credible evidence” of links between Indian agents and the assassination of two Pakistani nationals in Sialkot and Rawalakot. At a press briefing in Islamabad, he said India was running a “sophisticated and sinister” campaign of “extra-territorial and extra-judicial killings” inside Pakistan. Qazi stated that these were “killing-for-hire cases” …
BEIJING: China and Nauru on Wednesday opened a new chapter in relations as the two countries reestablished diplomatic relations at the ambassadorial level, according to Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks during talks with Nauru’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Lionel …