Page 96 - Pakistan

'Neutral' person to be picked for interim premier post: Pakistan PM Sharif

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has ruled out the possibility of the appointment of Finance Minister Ishaq Dar as the caretaker prime minister, saying a "neutral person" will be selected to lead the interim government next month to make upcoming general elections transparent. Shehbaz Sharif, also the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party president indicated that Nawaz Sharif, three-time former prime minister and his elder brother, who has been living in self-imposed exile in London since 2019 will return to Pakistan in the next few weeks. The 73-year-old PML-N supremo will be the Prime Minister if the party wins the election, he said. He told Geo News that the notification of the dissolution of the National Assembly (NA) would be sent to President Arif Alvi a few days ahead of the completion of the tenure of the lower house of Parliament. He maintained that the NA will complete its tenure at 12 midnight on August 12. He said the caretaker set-up would be agreed upon

ISIS behind suicide blast at political meet that killed 44 in Pak: Police

Police in Pakistan's restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province said on Monday that an initial probe has suggested that the banned terrorist group ISIS is behind the suicide attack on a political convention of a hardline Islamist party that killed at least 44 people and injured over 100. The attack took place on Sunday when more than 400 members of the conservative Jamiat Ulema Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) party, known for its links to hardline political Islam, had gathered for a meeting under a canopy in the town of Khar, which borders Afghanistan. "We are still investigating and gathering information on the Bajaur blast. The Initial probe shows that banned outfit Daesh (ISIS) was involved," Geo News quoted police officials as saying. The police said they were gathering details of the suicide bomber, while the bomb disposal squad team was collecting evidence from the site. District Police Officer Nazir Khan said three suspects have been taken into custody. Provincial police chief Akhtar Hayat Kha

Death toll in Pakistan's suicide blast at JUI-F convention jumps to 42

The death toll in Bajaur bomb blast that took place in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Sunday has risen to 42, and at least 111 people are injured, ARY News reported.The blast that occurred in the Khar tehsil of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Bajaur targeted Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) workers convention.Rescue teams and police units descended on the area quickly to begin moving the injured people to a nearby hospital.It was, after the blast that the authorities got to know that close to 400 people were attending the JUI-F workers convention on Shanday Morr, close to the NADRA headquarters. The area was blocked off by law enforcement, according to ARY News.JUI-F Hamidullah and Khar Ameer Maulana Ziaullah Jan were slain in the incident.The deadly incident took place around 4 pm when the JUI-F leader was addressing the convention, according to Geo News. According to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Akhtar Hayat Khan, the blast was a suicide attack, adding that 10 kg of explosives were

Pak PM Sharif condemns Bajaur bomb blast, says culprits will be 'penalised'

Shehbaz Sharif condemned the Bajaur Blast and held a telephonic conversation with JUI-F supremo Maulana Fazlur Rehman and Federal Minister for Communications Maulana Asad Mehmood

35 people killed in suicide blast at political party's meeting in Pakistan

The explosion took place at 4 pm at the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) workers' convention in Khar, the capital of Bajaur tribal district

Pakistan Senate's chariman drops bill to prevent violent extremism

The Bill said that those calling on others to show or use force, propagating and publishing extremist material, using all kinds of media for radicalisation or manipulating people's beliefs

China's He Lifeng arrives in Pak to celebrate 10th anniversary of CPEC

Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng on Sunday arrived here to attend a ceremony marking 10 years of the ambitious multi-billion dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project. He, who is a member of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, during his visit from July 30 to August 1 will hold meetings with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Arif Alvi. He was received by Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah and Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal upon arrival here, ARY News reported. A statement issued by the Foreign Office (FO) earlier on Saturday said the Chinese vice premier, who is on a three-day visit to Pakistan at the federal government's invitation, played a prominent role in China's international economic relations and implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative, of which CPEC is a flagship project. As the Chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission, he also was instrumental in the planning and execution of multiple CPEC ...

Pak approves projects worth billions to Gulf countries for investment

In a major development, Pakistan has in principle approved 28 projects worth billions of dollars that would be offered to Gulf countries for investment with the long-term objective to reduce reliance on loans and imports. The newly established Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) -- a hybrid civil-military forum is leading the drive to fast-track economic development to address the financial woes of the country. The list of the approved projects suggests that if all the schemes are picked up by countries, including Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain, the quantum of investment under the SIFC banner can be greater than the USD 28 billion under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), The Express Tribune reported. The approved schemes are in the food, agriculture, information technology, mines and minerals, petroleum and power sectors. They include cattle farms; the USD 10 billion Saudi Aramco refinery; explorations of copper and gold in Chagai; and the Thar Coal .

Pak Foreign Minister Bhutto to visit UAE today, discuss bilateral ties

During the visit, the foreign minister will hold a meeting with his United Arab Emirates (UAE) counterpart Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Foreign Office Spokesperson said in a press statement

China's Vice Premier to visit Pak, attend 10th anniversary of CPEC

Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng will arrive here on Sunday on a three-day visit to participate in the 10th anniversary celebrations of the ambitious multi-billion dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the foreign office said on Saturday. The Vice Premier, who is a member of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, will visit Islamabad from July 30 to August 1 at the invitation of Pakistan, the statement from the FO said. Vice Premier He will attend the 10th-anniversary celebrations of CPEC and call on the President and the Prime Minister, FO said, adding that He will also be the chief guest at an event celebrating the decade of the CPEC. The CPEC is a collection of infrastructure and other projects under construction throughout Pakistan since 2013. The CPEC, which connects Gwadar Port in Pakistan's Balochistan with China's Xinjiang province, is the flagship project of China's ambitious multi-billion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). India has ..

Short-term inflation in Pak stays above 29% as electricity, LPG price hikes

The short-term inflation on a week-on-week basis measured by the Sensitive Price Index (SPI), rose 3.73 per cent which marks the highest increase in the past two months

Balochistan PM-in-exile seeks India's support at UN for freedom from Pak

Prime Minister of the Balochistan government-in-exile Naela Quadri has sought the support of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the United Nations (UN) for its freedom from Pakistan's illegal occupation. "Prime minister Narendra Modi and the BJP government have an opportunity today to rise in support of Balochistan at the UN, which they may not have tomorrow," Quadri told reporters on Friday, after performing a puja at the VIP ghat of the Ganga here in Uttarakhand, praying for Balochistan's freedom. "Balochistan, which was once an independent country, is under the illegal occupation of Pakistan, which is looting its mineral resources and subjecting its people to all sorts of atrocities. Baloch girls are being raped, houses and orchards are being set on fire," she said. "Pakistan is not doing it alone. It has also roped in China to perpetrate atrocities on the Baloch people," Quadri said. If India stands for Balochistan at the UN, "we will also stand in support of India when our countr

5 shortlisted for post of caretaker prime minister: Pak defence minister

Khawaja Asif also clarified that he had neither proposed the name of Finance Minister Ishaq Dar for the slot of caretaker prime minister nor expressed a desire at any stage

Pak made attempts to disrupt peace, but conspiracies defeated: J-K police

Jammu and Kashmir police chief Dilbag Singh said Friday Pakistan made all attempts including propagating a "venomous narrative" to disrupt peace in Jammu and Kashmir but all its conspiracies were defeated by the strenuous efforts of security forces and the support of people. Singh made these remarks during an interaction with a group of probationary IPS officers from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy, Hyderabad. Other senior Police officers of the J-K Police were also present at the interaction at the Police Headquarters here. The group of 22 IPS probationary officers including two women officers and two officers from Nepal and the Maldives are on a study-cum-cultural tour to J-K as a part of Bharat Darshan programme and of their basic training. While giving an overview of working of the JKP in different wings, the DGP said the J-K police has faced a huge share of problems over the last three decades. Appreciating the support of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, Singh

Saudi Arabia to build Pakistan's largest oil refinery at $10 billion

The complex shall have various components such as marine infrastructure, petrochemical complex, storage for crude oil and refines utilities

Smugglers using drones to send drugs across border into India: Pak official

Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan, the Special Assistant on Defence to Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif made these remarks to Hamid Mir, a journalist associated with Pakistan's Geo News

Pakistan's Senate approves Army Act amendment to impose 5-year jail

Pakistan's Senate on Thursday passed a bill to amend the Pakistan Army Act, 1952 which proposes up to five years in jail for anyone who discloses sensitive information about the country's security and army. Defence Minister Khawaja Asif moved the bill titled Pakistan Army (Amendment) Act, 2023 amidst the government's efforts to prosecute former prime minister Imran Khan on the 'cypher' issue. The proposed bill states that a person who makes an unauthorised disclosure of information obtained in an official capacity for the security and benefit of Pakistan will be punished with rigorous imprisonment for up to five years. A person making a disclosure with the permission of the chief of army staff or an authorised officer will not be punished, it said. It also stated that anyone who discloses information against the interests of the country and the Pakistan Army will be dealt with under the Official Secrets Act and the Army Act, the Express Tribune newspaper reported. Khan's ex-princi

Consider resumption of economic ties with Pakistan: Par panel urges Centre

A parliamentary panel has asked the government to consider resumption of economic ties with Pakistan and work towards broader people-to-people contacts given the "cultural commonalities and civilisational linkages" between the two countries. The Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs chaired by BJP leader P P Chaudhary, in its report on 'India's Neighbourhood First Policy' presented to the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, observed that the policy was dynamic and that it adjusts to the country's renewed interests in the region while evolving according to regional circumstances. The Committee urges the Government to consider the establishment of economic ties with Pakistan if they come forward and work towards broader people-to-people contacts in view of the cultural commonalities and civilisational linkages between our two countries and no feeling of enmity amongst citizens of both the countries, said the committee in its report. Being aware of China's Belt and Road vision and ...

Pak SC rejects Imran Khan's plea to stay criminal proceedings against him

Khan is accused of misusing his 2018 to 2022 premiership to buy and sell gifts in state possession that were received during visits abroad and worth more than Rs 140 million (USD 635,000)

Pakistan Cabinet approves National Adaptation Plan to combat climate change

Pakistan's Cabinet on Wednesday approved the National Adaptation Plan for building resilience to climate change, which Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif described as a national security issue after the last year's catastrophic floods. National Adaptation Plans are widely seen as one of the most important mechanisms for adapting to climate change. They aim to reduce vulnerabilities to climate impacts by creating comprehensive medium and long-term plans, including the integration of adaptation measures into national policy. "Climate change is redefining every human experience on the planet, especially in Pakistan. In the long journey to build resilience, our government is proud to pass our country's National Adaptation Plan, which will give Pakistan the essential tools to adapt to the risks of climate stress," Sharif tweeted. "As the last year's devastating floods showed, climate change is a development, economic, human and national security issue critical to the future of our people," h