PAKISTAN BREAKING NEWS

At least three people suffered minor injuries from smoke inhalation after a blaze ripped through a clothing factory in Karachi’s Landhi Export Processing Zone (EPZ) on Monday, Rescue 1122 said. The blaze caused part of the factory to collapse and spread to an adjacent factory, confirmed the Rescue…

Pakistan are at the “very start” of rebuilding their Test side, bowling coach Ashley Noffke said on Monday, as the team attempts to move past a tumultuous week that has seen sweeping changes to the squad and a shake-up of its coaching staff. “Every nation has a life cycle, and there’ll be moments…

ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on Interior on Monday passed a series of key criminal law amendments, including a bill proposing the death penalty for acid attacks, as it moved to strengthen protections for vulnerable groups and public safety. Chaired by Senator Faisal Saleem Rehman, the…

ISLAMABAD: The federal government on Monday decided to urgently address the shortage of engineering and technical staff at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) as part of efforts to improve efficiency in the health system following a tragic fire incident that killed 14 infants . The…

KARACHI: Some family members of Pakistani sailors, who have been held hostage by Somali pirates aboard the MT Honour 25 for more than four months, were briefly detained on Monday morning while they were staging a sit-in at Karachi’s Sharea Faisal. The MT Honour 25, a Palau-flagged oil tanker, was…

Pakistan captain Fatima Sana has been fined 10 per cent of her match fee for breaching the ICC Code of Conduct during the team’s Women’s Asia Cup match against India, according to an International Cricket Council media release published on Monday. The offence occurred in the Women’s Asia Cup clash…

The Foreign Office (FO) on Monday rejected Indian claims about the status of occupied Kashmir, saying that New Delhi’s “unilateral claims of sovereignty have no bearing on the internationally recognised disputed status of the territory”. The statement came after the United Nations voted on Friday…

PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan on Monday cautioned against making any “hasty decision” regarding the creation of new provinces, saying it would weaken the federation. Speaking to reporters in Islamabad, Gohar said that dividing any of the four provinces, if done against the will of their…

KARACHI: A judicial commission on Monday summoned the Karachi police surgeon and another member included in the medical board that oversaw the exhumation of Mir Raza Ali’s body — which was found with a gunshot wound in July in Karachi’s Gulistan-i-Jauhar — at the next hearing. The murder case has…

A planned US-Saudi atomic deal does not include Riyadh signing the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) Additional Protocol that gives the UN nuclear watchdog sweeping inspection powers, but something close to it on some points is in the works, the agency’s chief said on Monday. The US and…

In the summer of 2022, monsoon rains combined with glacial melt to produce one of the worst flooding disasters in Pakistan’s history. In this flood, roughly two million homes were damaged, and thirty-three million people were affected. Nearly 8m people are reportedly displaced. The World Bank’s…

LAHORE: An anti-terrorism court (ATC) granted police a 21-day physical remand of PTI leader Hammad Azhar in a case pertaining to the attack on Jinnah House during the May 9 riots. Earlier in the day, his mother had filed a habeas corpus petition in the Lahore High Court (LHC) seeking Azhar’s…

As the unofficial start of the campaign sprint kicks off on Labour Day Monday, United States President Donald Trump’s deep unpopularity is imperilling Republican chances of maintaining their narrow majorities in Congress with just two months before November’s midterm elections . Midterm elections,…

A top official within the US-backed Board of Peace said on Monday that a failure to move forward in Gaza paired with rising violence in the West Bank are making a two-state solution “impossible”. Nickolay Mladenov, the high representative for Gaza under the US-backed Board of Peace tasked with…

ISLAMABAD: A judicial magistrate in Islamabad on Monday granted the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) three-day physical remand of journalist Bilal Ghauri in a case registered under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca). According to the first information report, seen by…

The United Nations rights chief warned on Monday that artificial intelligence could pose an “existential threat to humanity”, demanding immediate action to reduce the risks. Speaking before the UN Human Rights Council, Volker Turk warned that humans currently faced “unfamiliar, even unprecedented”…

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Monday confirmed that it had initiated an internal disciplinary inquiry following reports “concerning discipline and conduct” as the media alleged that investigations involving former Test players Imamul Haq and Mohammad Rizwan have been widened. In a statement,…

Huawei launched a new version of its flagship foldable smartphone on Monday as it seeks to defend its lead in the Chinese market for premium handsets against Apple and Xiaomi, both of which are also unveiling new products. The new Mate XT2 folds out twice to open into a tablet-sized screen and…

ISLAMABAD: An anti-terrorism court (ATC) on Monday granted post-arrest bail to all 96 people, including former senator Mushtaq Ahmad, arrested in connection with a case registered over a protest held against unrest in Azad Jammu and Kashmir. The first information report (FIR) was registered at…

Nepal held a national day of mourning on Monday for victims of devastating glacial floods, as families of missing hydropower workers feared trapped in tunnels prayed rescuers might yet find them alive. The August 26 glacial and mountain collapse on the China-Nepal border killed at least 1,398…

BANNU: No casualties were reported after a fire broke out in the urology ward of Khalifa Gul Nawaz Teaching Hospital on Monday. All patients in the ward were evacuated to a safe location, Rescue 1122 said in a statement, adding that its personnel reached the hospital within approximately five…

• As Islamabad negotiates its reapplication for critical trading scheme, EU envoy says GSP+ benefits ‘can’t be taken for granted’ • Country may continue to receive benefits until 2028-end, but this doesn’t mean automatic rollover into new scheme • Islamabad remains engaged with bloc on ‘effective…

US President Donald Trump’s name-changing spree found an unlikely new target on Sunday when he suggested the state of New Mexico could become “New America”. His proposal, which was immediately dismissed by the state’s governor, comes days after he signed an order to rename Lake Ontario as “Lake…

HYDERABAD: Mutta­hida Qaumi Move­ment-Pakistan (MQM-P) has reiterated its stance that new administrative units will become the ‘destiny of Pakistan’, where such restructuring has now been inevitable to make external successes, achieved last year, sustainable. Speaking at a Defence Day programme…

ISLAMABAD: Amid the ongoing debate over the creation of new provinces and the PPP’s outright rejection of the proposal, President Asif Ali Zardari’s extended presence in London has raised questions about the political dimensions of the tour, particularly when Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, who had…

• Afridi asks Punjab CM to ‘apologise’ over controversial remarks against other provinces • PTI shifts rally venue from Mazar-i-Quaid to Toll Plaza amid restrictions; youth asked to join Sept 27 campaign • Karachi mayor says PTI free to come to city if it follows the law KARACHI/HYDERABAD: After a…