Page 62 - Pakistan

Pakistan eyes news IMF loan by early July: Finance Minister Aurangzeb

The country's current $3 billion arrangement with the fund -- which it secured last summer to avert a sovereign default -- runs out in late April

Pak rarely punished officials committing human rights abuses: US report

The US released a report "2023 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices" on Tuesday, highlighting the human rights abuses in various countries

Former Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif to 'undergo health checkup' in China

Three-time former Pakistan premier Nawaz Sharif will embark on Monday on a five-day personal visit to China, where he will undergo a medical checkup, according to a media report. This will be 74-year-old Sharif's first international visit after he returned to Pakistan in October last year following a four-year self-imposed exile in the UK. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo will be accompanied by Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on his "personal visit", Geo News reported on Monday. Sharif's visit is personal and during the trip, he will undergo a medical checkup, the report said, quoting party sources. The former prime minister would also hold meetings related to the development works of the Punjab province and will also meet the owners of Chinese companies, sources said. The PML-N leader was allowed by a high court in November 2019 to go abroad on health grounds after his medical reports revealed that he needed urgent treatment. He returned to Pakistan from London in Oct

Iranian President Raisi arrives in Pakistan on three-day official visit

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on Monday arrived in Pakistan on a three-day official visit to promote cooperation, months after the two neighbours carried out tit-for-tat airstrikes against alleged terrorist hideouts on rival lands. Raisi, the first head of state of any country to visit Pakistan after the February 8 general elections, was accorded a warm welcome at the Islamabad Airport and was received by Housing Minister Mian Riaz Hussain Pirzada and Pakistan's Ambassador to Iran Mudassir Tipu, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs posted on social media platform X. The Iranian president is accompanied by his spouse and a high-level delegation comprising the foreign minister and other members of the Cabinet and senior officials, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. President Raisi has an extensive programme in Pakistan and is scheduled to meet President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Senate Chairman Yusuf Raza Gilani and Speaker of the National Assembly Ayaz Sadiq.

Russia warns Pakistan it might ban rice imports over food safety concerns

The notification, numbered FS-SA-3/6592 and dated April 2, 2024, highlights the presence of a quarantine organism, "Megaselia scalaris (Loew)," in the rice consignment, Dawn reported

IMF team to visit Pak in May to negotiate new bailout package: Aurangzeb

Pakistan's Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has said that an IMF team is expected to visit Islamabad next month to negotiate a new long-term bailout package to secure a staff-level agreement for the cash-strapped country by mid-July. Speaking to the media after his week-long visit to Washington, the minister said the contours of the new International Monetary Fund programme will shape up later. "We will start getting into the granularity of the programme by mid-May, Dawn News quoted Aurangzeb as saying on Saturday. Cash-strapped Pakistan has made a formal request to the IMF to seek the next bailout package in the range of USD 6 to USD 8 billion with the possibility of augmentation through climate financing. Addressing journalists at the Pakistan Embassy in Washington, Aurangzeb expressed the hope that the global lender's board of governors would convene to consider the last tranche of the current programme by the end of this month, with the final instalment released shortly ...

Pak province issues flood alert, warns of heavy loss due to glacial melting

A Pakistani province has issued a flood alert due to glacial melting and warned of heavy loss of life, officials said Saturday. The country has witnessed days of extreme weather, killing scores of people and destroying property and farmland. Experts say Pakistan is experiencing heavier rains than normal in April because of climate change. In the mountainous northwest province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which has been hit particularly hard by the deluges, authorities issued a flood alert because of the melting of glaciers in several districts. They said the flood could worsen and that people should move to safer locations ahead of any danger. If timely safety measures are not taken, there is a possibility of heavy loss of life and property due to the expected flood situation, said Muhammad Qaiser Khan, from the local disaster management authority. Latest figures from the province said that 46 people, including 25 children, have died in the past five days due to rain-related incidents.

Pak PM Shehbaz Sharif set to visit Saudi to advance investment talks

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is expected to visit Saudi Arabia soon, his second trip this month to the friendly Gulf kingdom, to advance investment talks as his cash-strapped government has presented lucrative returns on Saudi investment. According to The Express Tribune, in addition to the enticing prospects of harvesting rich dividends on investment, Pakistan has assured priority in profits to Saudi investors without any hindrances. Sharif's government has presented returns ranging from an appealing 14 per cent to an astounding 50 per cent on Saudi investment, the report said. According to government sources involved in these discussions, the indicated returns on Saudi investment are expected to allow the Kingdom to recoup its invested capital within three to nine years, depending on the nature of the project. Pakistan aims to advance the Saudi Arabia investment initiative during the April 27-28 visit of Sharif, who will be accompanied by a team from the Special ...

Cash-strapped Pak makes formal request to IMF for another bailout

Pakistan has made a formal request to IMF for seeking the next bailout package in the range of USD 6 to USD 8 billion with the possibility of augmentation through climate financing, a media report said on Saturday. Cash-strapped Pakistan also requested to dispatch the International Monetary Fund (IMF) review mission next month to firm up details of the next bailout package for three years under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF). However, the exact size and timeframe of the new package will only be determined after evolving consensus on the major contours of the next programme in May 2024, Geo News reported from Washington. A high-level Pakistani delegation led by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb is currently visiting Washington to attend the annual spring meetings of the IMF/World Bank. Although Pakistani authorities are pitching a rosy picture of the economy, the IMF in its latest Regional Economic Outlook (REO) released by Middle East and Central Asia (ME and CA) said the ...

Supplier of 'aatank' now struggling to get 'aata': PM Modi on Pakistan

Referring to Pakistan's high inflation rate, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the nation which was a supplier of 'aatank' (terrorism) is now struggling to get 'aata' (flour)

Over 800 mn get free ration in India while Pak fights hunger: CM Adityanath

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath invoked Pakistan at a political rally on Friday and said while those in the neighbouring country are fighting hunger, "80 crore people in India are getting free ration". Addressing a poll rally in Amroha in western Uttar Pradesh, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader also said the "phir ek baar Modi sarkar" slogan of the saffron party is reverberating across the country. Adityanath spoke before Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the rally that was organised in support of Kanwar Singh Tanwar, the BJP candidate from the Amroha constituency in the ongoing Lok Sabha polls. "Pakistan, which has a population of hardly 23-24 crore, was formed after the partition in 1947 and is suffering from hunger today. This is also an example -- on one side, there is Pakistan, and on the other side, there is the promise of free ration to more than 80 crore people," the chief minister said. The BJP, in its Lok Sabha poll manifesto, has promised to continue to

Ready to support cash-strapped Pak to improve its economic situation: IMF

The International Monetary Fund is ready to support cash-strapped Pakistan in key reform to help the country improve and stabilise its economic situation. Currently, Pakistan has expressed interest in a new programme in order to help the country address some of the key challenges, Jihad Azour, Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the IMF told reporters here on the sidelines of the annual Spring Meetings of the IMF and the World Bank. The current programme that was initiated ten months ago allowed Pakistan to achieve a certain number of important milestones in terms of economic stability, he said. The last review was successful and will be put forward to the board, which will end a programme that helped Pakistan address acute economic imbalances and maintain its economic stabilities, the IMF official hoped. Those measures also allowed Pakistan to increase its buffers. Currently, the authorities have expressed interest in a new programme in order to help Pakista

Continue to 'work with Pakistan govt to understand its concerns', says X

A day after the Pakistan government told a high court that the popular microblogging website X has been banned in the country due to national security issues, the social media platform on Thursday for the first time said that it continues to work with the relevant authorities on their concerns. The Elon Musk-owned social media platform, formerly known as Twitter, was suspended in Pakistan on February 17 when former Rawalpindi commissioner Liaquat Chattha accused the chief election commissioner and the chief justice of being involved in rigging the February 8 general elections. In a brief statement, X's Global Government Affairs team said, We continue to work with the Pakistani Government to understand their concerns. On Wednesday, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) heard a petition by journalist Ehtisham Abbasi against the disruption in the access to X. Interior Secretary Khurram Agha, on behalf of his ministry, submitted a report on the IHC highlighting the failure of Twitter/X to adh

Pakistan security forces kill 7 terrorists in restive KP province

Pakistani security forces have killed seven terrorists trying to infiltrate the country's border with Afghanistan in the restive Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province on Wednesday, the military said. The security forces detected a movement of the seven terrorists near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border in the Spinkai area of Ghulam Khan in the tribal district of North Waziristan, the ISPR, the military's media wing, said. The infiltrators were surrounded, effectively engaged and after an intense fire exchange, all seven territories were killed, it added. A large quantity of weapons, ammunition, and explosives was also recovered from the killed terrorists. Pakistan has consistently been asking the Taliban-led interim Afghan government to ensure effective border management on their side of the border. After the killing of the seven terrorists, the military again urged the interim rulers to fulfil their obligations and deny the use of Afghan soil by terrorists for perpetrating acts of terrorism .

Yes, we blocked X over national security concerns: Pak govt tells the court

Pakistan's interior ministry also accused the social media company of showing reluctance to cooperate with Pakistani authorities in resolving 'critical' issues

Death toll from 4 days of rains rises to 63 in Pak, more rain likely

Lightning and heavy rains led to 14 deaths in Pakistan, officials said on Wednesday, bringing the death toll from four days of extreme weather to at least 63. Most of the deaths were reported in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, in Pakistan's northwest. Collapsing buildings have killed 32 people, including 15 children and five women, said Khursheed Anwar, a spokesman for the Disaster Management Authority. Dozens more were also injured in the northwest, where 1,370 houses were damaged, Anwar said. The eastern province of Punjab has reported 21 lighting- and collapse-related deaths, while Baluchistan, in the country's southwest, reported 10 dead as authorities declared a state of emergency following flash floods. On Wednesday, Baluchistan was bracing for more rains amid ongoing rescue and relief operations. Heavy rains also came down on the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir. Pakistan is seeing heavier rain in April due to climate change, said Zaheer Ahmed Babar, a senior official at th

Pak sustained its nuclear programme despite economic turmoil: US official

Pakistan sustained its nuclear modernisation efforts last year despite its economic turmoil as its contentious relationship with India continues to drive its defence policy, the top US intelligence official has told Congress. The remarks by Lt Gen Jeffrey Kruse, Director of the Defence Intelligence Agency came during a Congressional hearing on China on Monday???. Kruse told lawmakers that Pakistan has sought international support, including from the UN Security Council, to resolve its dispute with India about Kashmir. Separately, Islamabad and New Delhi have maintained an uneasy ceasefire along the shared Line of Control since February 2021, he said. Pakistan has sustained its nuclear modernisation efforts despite its economic turmoil. Terrorist violence against Pakistani security forces and civilians also rose last year, he said. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Pakistan is reported to have 170 nuclear warheads as of January 2023. Cash-strapped .

Pak needs up to three years for reforms suggested by IMF: Finance chief

Pakistan rebuilt trust with the IMF through the completion of its nine-month loan where an agreement was reached in March for the final disbursement, he said

Lightning, rains kill 49 in Pak, state of emergency declared in southwest

Lightning and heavy rains have killed at least 49 people across Pakistan in the past three days, officials said Monday, as authorities in the country's southwest declared a state of emergency. Some deaths occurred when lightning struck farmers harvesting wheat. Rains caused dozens of houses to collapse in the northwest and in eastern Punjab province. Arfan Kathia, a spokesman for the provincial disaster management authority, said 21 people had died in Punjab, where more rains were expected this week. Khursheed Anwar, a spokesman for the disaster management authority in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan, said 21 people died there. Rain also lashed the capital, Islamabad, and killed seven people in southwestern Baluchistan province. Streets flooded in the northwestern city of Peshawar and in Quetta, the Baluchistan capital. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said in televised remarks that he had ordered authorities to provide relief aid. Pakistan's water ...

Pakistan police claim Tamba who killed Sarabjit Singh is 'still alive'

A day after Amir Sarfaraz Tamba, an accused in the murder of Indian death row prisoner Sarabjit Singh inside a jail here in 2013, was killed by unidentified gunmen, a senior Punjab Police officer gave a spin to the incident claiming that he is "still alive. Tamba, a close associate of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terror outfit founder Hafiz Saeed, was attacked by motorcycle-borne assailants at his residence in Sanant Nagar here. He was rushed in critical condition to a hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. But Senior Superintendent Police (SSP) Operations Lahore Syed Ali Raza told the Dawn newspaper that Tamba is still alive but critically injured. However, when PTI confronted Lahore police spokesperson Farhan Shah about the SSP's statement on Monday, he declined to comment on the matter, terming it sensitive. Interestingly, SSP Raza did not reveal where Tamba was shifted for medical treatment if he is alive. Meanwhile, Pakistan's interior minister Mohsin Naqvi on Monday did not r