ISLAMABAD: Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said on Saturday that India wanted to keep Pakistan busy and engaged on the eastern and western fronts amid tensions with Kabul and New Delhi. Pakistan and Afghanistan agreed early on Friday morning to continue a ceasefire between the two countries following a rapid deterioration of ties and a brief conflict along their shared border …
ISLAMABAD: Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on Saturday that a fisherman from Pakistan was arrested by the Indian Coast Guard and was coerced into carrying out tasks for the neighbouring country’s intelligence agency. Addressing a press conference in Islamabad alongside Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhary, Tarar said that the Indian media was creating a false narrative in the …
GILGIT: President Asif Ali Zardari on Saturday said that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) had brought new opportunities to Gilgit-Baltistan (GB). “The CPEC has brought new opportunities for livelihood, trade and connectivity to GB. Our collective task is to ensure that these opportunities reach every valley and every village, creating shared prosperity for all,” he said, while speaking at a …
PESHAWAR: Officials from Pakistan and Afghanistan said on Saturday that the Torkham border crossing in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had been reopened for Afghan refugees returning to their country. Khyber Deputy Commissioner Bilal Rao confirmed that the Torkham border crossing had been reopened earlier today for the resumption of Afghan refugees’ repatriation. Khizer Shah, the spokesman of the Pakistani embassy in Kabul, …
KARACHI: Former PTI leader and ex-federal minister Ali Haider Zaidi on Saturday refuted reports of him “planning a political relaunch”, saying that he had no plans of doing so anytime soon. Zaidi was among the top PTI leadership who quit either the party or politics altogether amid a state crackdown on the party following the May 9, 2023 riots, which …
LAHORE/ISLAMABAD: With the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) expressing its inability to hold local government polls in the country’s most populous province until next year, the Punjab Assembly speaker has called for a constitutional amendment to protect the tenure of local bodies and strengthen the LG system across the country. Speaking at a press conference in Lahore on Friday, Speaker …
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has stressed that it does not wish to escalate tensions with Afghanistan and remains hopeful for a “positive outcome” from the next round of talks with the Afghan Taliban regime, scheduled to begin on November 6, the Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said on Friday at a press briefing. He recalled that the second round of talks between …
ISLAMABAD: Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand discussed the strengthening of bilateral trade and cooperation between the two countries, the Foreign Office (FO) said on Friday. In a statement, the FO said Dar received a call the previous evening from Anand. “The two leaders discussed strengthening bilateral trade and investment, including sectors …
PESHAWAR: A 13-member provincial cabinet picked by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi took the oath of office on Friday in Peshawar. According to a statement from the KP government, the cabinet’s swearing-in ceremony took place at the Governor’s House in Peshawar. “KP Governor Faisal Karim Kundi administered the oath,” the statement said. “Those sworn in as provincial ministers included …
LAHORE: The Punjab government is facing criticism and allegations of data manipulation after climate analysts and social media users accused the Environment Protection & Climate Change Department (EPCCD) of deliberately shutting down air quality monitoring stations in Lahore during peak pollution hours. The controversy erupted when climate and public policy analyst Dawar Hameed Butt posted a series of tweets on …