ISLAMABAD: The National Emergencies Operation Centre (NEOC) on Thursday forecasted that heavy rainfall, strong windstorms, thunderstorms, and isolated hailstorms were expected on Friday and Saturday evenings in various parts of the country, including Rawalpindi and Islamabad. At least three people were killed in Rawalpindi and Gujar Khan yesterday after an intense hailstorm, accompanied by heavy rain and gusty winds, battered …

ISLAMABAD: Hungary and Pakistan agreed on Thursday to mutually lift the visa requirement for diplomatic passport-holders in each other’s countries as its foreign minister visited Islamabad. According to the Foreign Office (FO), Hungary’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó was on a one-day visit to Pakistan on the invitation of his counterpart Ishaq Dar. He is accompanied by …

QUETTA: Sardar Akhtar Mengal, chief of his faction of the Balochistan National Party (BNP-M), announced on Wednesday an end to his party’s 20-day-long sit-in at the Lakpass area of Mastung district against the arrest of Baloch activists, adding that they would launch a public outreach movement instead. The BNP-M had begun a “long march” from Wadh to Quetta on March …

KABUL: Pakistan and Afghanistan are holding key talks on security and border issues in the 7th session of the Pakistan-Afghanistan Joint Coordination Committee (JCC), set to take place in Kabul, officials said on Wednesday. The meeting comes in the light of rising tensions between the two countries, with Afghan refugee deportations, skirmishes along the border, and the increased activity of …

ISLAMABAD: Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar of the Supreme Court’s constitutional bench has acknowledged the difficulty the bench faced in identifying any violation of due process in the conviction of civilians by military courts for their involvement in the arson attacks and violence on May 9, 2023. “Nothing is before the court to consider whether violation of due process of law …

LAHORE: The Punjab Police have failed at their primary duty of providing security to the international food chain businesses across the province as religious zealots attacked another international fast-food outlet franchise, this time in Sheikhupura, where they allegedly murdered its employee and vandalised the property. The unfortunate incident took place on April 14. Sheikhupura Regional Police Officer (RPO) Athar Ismail …

BAHAWALPUR: A training aircraft of the Pakistan Air Force crashed in the fields at Ratta Tibba in the suburbs of Vehari on Tuesday. Both the pilots had a miraculous escape as they ejected themselves and remained unhurt. Unconfirmed reports identified the pilots as Capt Yasir (45) and Zain (24). However, unofficial reports claimed both of them suffered minor injuries and …

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday announced a special package for overseas Pakistanis, including the establishment of special courts for the swift resolution of their legal cases and a five per cent quota in federal universities. Addressing the First Annual Overseas Pakistanis’ Convention in Islamabad, the PM paid tribute to the contributions of the diaspora, a day after the …

ISLAMABAD: National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq said on Tuesday that a visiting delegation of US lawmakers had made no mention of jailed Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founding chairman Imran Khan during their recent engagements in Islamabad. In a statement, Sadiq said the congressional delegation, which held a series of meetings with government officials and politicians on the sidelines of the Pakistan …

QUETTA: Three policemen were martyred and at least 16 others were injured on Tuesday morning as a blast targeted a vehicle of the Balochistan Constabulary on Mastung district’s Dasht Road, officials said. Militants in Balochistan, previously engaged in a low-level insurgency, have recently intensified their attacks. The banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) emerged as a key perpetrator of terrorist violence …