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‘Talks over hostility’

THE recent appeal endorsed by civil society members from Pakistan and India, urging the prime ministers of both states to take “meaningful and sustained” steps for peace is well-intentioned. No rational mind will disagree with the need for peace in the subcontinent, and an end to the toxicity that has marked bilateral ties for nearly eight decades. Yet it takes two to tango, and while Pakistan has on numerous occasions tried to restart the dialogue process in the last few years, India has shown little enthusiasm for talks. Over 100 individuals have now signed the appeal, coordinated by a New Delhi think tank. It includes former diplomats, academics, politicians and peaceniks from both states. The signatories have called for taking CBMs, and restoring full diplomatic relations. Ties were first downgraded by Pakistan after India’s 2019 revocation of occupied Kashmir’s special constitutional status , while diplomatic relations went further south after Ind...
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No Supreme Court judge in JCP panels for high court judge vetting

ISLAMABAD: In a significant development signaling a marked departure from the established judicial hierarchy, the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) has formally notified separate interview committees to vet candidates for appointment as additional judges in four high courts, with not a single Supreme Court judge included in any of the panels. The notification, issued on Wednesday and obtained by Dawn , invokes Rule 10A of the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (Appointment of Judges) Rules, 2024, and bears the approval of the JCP chairperson — the chief justice of Pakistan. The committees have been tasked with interviewing candidates nominated until July 4, 2026, for the Lahore High Court (LHC), Islamabad High Court (IHC), Sindh High Court (SHC), and Balochistan High Court (BHC). Interestingly, the composition of the four committees, while varying slightly in their judicial members, uniformly draws its judicial strength from either the Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) or the resp...
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PIA’s privatisation

THE management control of PIA has finally been transferred to a consortium comprising private investors and the Fauji Foundation. The development marks a new chapter in the history of the airline whose fortunes declined over the past two decades. According to an official statement, the transfer follows the completion of all local and international regulatory approvals, including permissions from global lenders and specialised tax concessions. The privatisation authorities believe the takeover will breathe new life into the airline. The consortium has paid the government Rs10bn upfront and committed to injecting another Rs125bn as fresh equity to fund restructuring, fleet renewal, route expansion and service improvement. PIA has long suffered massive financial losses, political interference and years of managerial drift. The promised capital injection could provide it with the resources it has lacked. The new PIA chairman’s emphasis on heritage, trust ...
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Haaland scores winner to send Norway into last-16 Brazil clash

Erling Haaland scored a late winner as Norway set up a last-16 showdown with Brazil at the World Cup after taming the Ivory Coast 2-1 in Texas on Tuesday. The Manchester City striker prodded in from close range, the ball dribbling in on 86 minutes for his fifth goal of the tournament. It was the first time that Norway had won a knockout game in the history of the competition. After an even first half that was slow to get going, Antonio Nusa fired Norway into the lead six minutes before the break with one of the goals of the tournament. Manchester United’s Amad Diallo was sent on for the Ivory Coast after an hour and was immediately in the thick of it, stopping a certain second Norway goal and then grabbing a terrific equaliser on 74 minutes. With extra time looming, predator supreme Haaland got on the end of a cross by Patrick Berg to make some Norwegian history. They face five-time champions Brazil on Sunday in New Jersey with the quarter-finals at stake. A match between two ph...
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Resurgent threat

THE message from Islamabad to Kabul seems to be clear: any act of terrorism inside Pakistan found to be linked to Afghanistan will invite a kinetic cross-border response. After the attack on a Rangers facility in Karachi on Saturday, the state said it had launched strikes at targets both inside Afghanistan and along the border, eliminating at least 29 terrorists, including a militant ‘commander’. The Karachi attack, in which three security men were martyred, has been linked to the Jamaatul Ahrar group, a banned outfit with ties to the proscribed TTP. This is the first major terrorist attack in Karachi this year, and marks a return to ‘action’ of the hitherto silent JuA. A detained suspect involved in the assault said he came from Jalalabad and prepared for the attack in South Waziristan. The government has reissued an order for the arrest of Afghans without valid visas from July 10, while the Foreign Office has issued a demarche to the Afghan chargé d’affaires over the Rangers attack...
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Martinelli scores in 95th minute to send Brazil into World Cup last 16

Substitute Gabriel Martinelli scored deep in injury time as Brazil beat a stubborn Japan 2-1 on Monday to roll into the World Cup last 16. Arsenal winger Martinelli struck in the 95th minute in Houston to break Japanese hearts in the most dramatic fashion. The five-time champions will face either the Ivory Coast or Norway in New Jersey on Sunday after edging a captivating knockout encounter. Japan midfielder Kaishu Sano scored a classy solo goal after 29 minutes following a Brazil mistake to stun the huge numbers of fans decked out in yellow. Carlo Ancelotti’s men hit back 11 minutes after half-time with a header from veteran Casemiro as Brazil dominated the second period. Then up popped Martinelli right at the death to settle it and send the Brazil fans wild. History was against Japan: they had never won a knockout game at the World Cup while Brazil were record five-time champions. But this is not a vintage Brazil side, even with Ancelotti at the helm, while Japan have been tal...
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Interior ministry issues directive to arrest Afghan nationals without valid visas from July 10

The Ministry of Interior on Sunday issued a directive to immediately arrest any Afghan national “found residing in Pakistan without a valid visa” from July 10, 2026. In a notification addressing the chief secretaries of all provinces, as well as those of Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and the chief commissioner of Islamabad Capital Territory, the ministry said that the directive referred to the decisions taken during a review meeting on the Illegal Foreigners’ Repatriation Plan (IFRP) on June 1, 2026. It said that during the meeting, “all provincial governments, special area governments and the ICT Administration were directed to expedite the repatriation/deportation of Afghan nationals, including visa overstay cases, and to ensure strict implementation of the IFRP”. “With effect from July 10, 2026, any Afghan national found residing in Pakistan without a valid visa shall be arrested immediately,” the notification said. It added that the necessary directions might, th...
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