Short News

ISLAMABAD: In a move to provide relief to the general public, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday directed the Ministry of Finance to cut the price of petrol by Rs 15.4 per liter, ARY News reported. According to the details, the Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif in a statement directed the finance minister to further slash the price of petrol by Rs 15.4 per liter and that of diesel by Rs 7.9 per liter. Earlier on May 15, the federal government slashed petrol prices by Rs15.39 per liter for the next fortnight. According to the details, the Finance Ministry reduced prices of petroleum products after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s approval. According to a notification issued here, after a reduction of Rs15.39, the new petrol price has been fixed at Rs 273.1 per liter. The price of high-speed diesel (HSD) has been decreased by Rs7.88 to Rs 274.8 per litre. The price of light diesel has been reduced by Rs 7.54 per liter, making the new price Rs 161.17 per liter. The price of th

At least 50 people, mostly children, received burn injuries in a major blast at a liquid petroleum gas cylinder filling shop in Hyderabad’s Preetabad area on Thursday, health officials said. According to Liaquat University Hospital’s (LUH) burn ward registrar, Dr Shahzad Memon, the blast occurred in the jurisdiction of the Pinyari police station, injuring at least 50 people. The blast took place in a ground-floor shop located in Zacha Bacha hospital area on Mir Nabi Bux Town road in UC-8 of Neerunkot town. Rescue 1122 teams and firefighters arrived in the area along with ambulances and began moving patients. Firefighters brought the fire under control in the shop that had begun to spread to the building’s upper floors where the property owner’s family resided. Residents on the upper floor of a building owned by one Babuddin Qureshi were moved to other areas. “The shop is owned by Akram Arain and he himself is injured. Arain is a tenant of Babuddin Qureshi, who is also seriously in

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder has been advised to give key roles in the party affairs to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa leadership, ARY News reported citing sources. The sources revealed that party founder Imran Khan is ‘not happy’ with central leadership in the current situation. Imran Khan has started consultation with senior leaders in this regard. The sources privy to the development said that one of the key roles might be assigned to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur without appointing him to central position in the party. The sources said that Imran Khan is quite pleased with the performance of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s media team. Earlier, PTI spokesman Raoof Hassan said that efforts were being made to keep the PTI founder in jail, lamenting the delay in the ruling on iddat case against former premier Imran Khan and his spouse Bushra Bibi. Hasan also claimed that the PTI founder is being targeted through false cases and efforts were being made

Avengers’ actor Jeremy Renner joined the cast of Netflix’s Knives Out 3 in first movie role post his snowplow accident. While the actor filmed Mayor of Kingstown a year after the accident, Knives Out: Wake Up Dead Man will be his first movie project, Variety reported. Daniel Craig is reprising his role of detective Benoit Blanc from the first two movies while new cast members include Glenn Close, Andrew Scott, Kerry Washington, Josh O’Connor and Cailee Spaeny. Directed by Rian Johnson, Knives Out 3 is set for release in 2025. Read more: Andrew Scott, Kerry Washington join Knives Out 3 cast Last week, Johnson announced that the movie is set to begin production soon. Written and directed by Rian Johnson, the plot and details of Knives Out 3: Wake Up Dead Man have been kept in secret by Netflix, however, Daniel Craig has teased that the movie will see Blanc trying to solve “most dangerous case yet.” The first Knives Out movie released in 2019 was a massive hit grossing $312 millio

KARACHI: Sindh Energy Minister Syed Nasir Hussain Shah said that K-Electric has overbilled the provincial government by billions of rupees over the past 10 years, ARY News reported In a statement issued here, the energy minister said that K-Electric has charged the Sindh government’s departments an additional Rs 20 billion during the last 10 years. “An audit conducted revealed an overbilling of over Rs 2 billion during last year alone,” Syed Nasir Hussain Shah added. The energy minister went on to say that to prevent overbilling, the provincial government had also billions of rupees to the KE for the installation of smart meters but to no avail. “The KE has yet to install smart meters at Sindh government’s departments despite receiving billions of rupees,” Syed Nasir Hussain Shah said. The minister said that smart meters would have provided real-time data and prevented overbilling. “What will be the state of citizens when government institutions are overcharged for billions of r

MUSCAT: The government of Oman government announced granting visas to citizens of Bangladesh in 12 categories including family visas, local media reported citing Chairman of Bangladesh Social Club Oman Sirajul Haque. An Oman media outlet reported that the arrivals of Bangladeshi nationals in the country decreased by more than half since October 31, 2023. The government of Oman forbade the issuing of visas for Bangladesh citizens in any capacity in October 2023. The Royal Oman Police had halted the issuing of visas for citizens of Bangladesh in all categories via a circular that was released on October 31. The Royal Oman Police in a recent statement said, “The ROP, within its review of the policies for obtaining some types of visas, announces the suspension of the conversion of all types of tourist and visit visas to work visas for all nationalities coming to the Sultanate of Oman, as well as the issuance of all types of new visas for Bangladeshi citizens, effective Tuesday (October

King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques passed directives to host 2,322 Hajj pilgrims including 1,000 family members of the martyrs, prisoners, and wounded Palestinians, local media reported. According to a kingdom media outlet, 22 family members of conjoined twins who were separated in the Kingdom will also be hosted by the Ministry of Islamic Affairs. The other 1300 pilgrims are from 88 countries around the globe. The hosting is part of King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud’s Guests Program for Hajj, Umrah and Visit, which is being implemented by the Ministry of Islamic Affairs. The program has hosted over 60,000 pilgrims since it began 26 years ago. Minister of Islamic Affairs and General Supervisor of the Program Sheikh Abdullatif Al-Sheikh said that the hosting is a continuation of the excellent job that the astute leadership has been doing for Islam and Muslims. He said that the program also  highlights the Kingdom’s distinguished role in the I

The PTI on Tuesday distanced party founder Imran Khan from a controversial social media post on the 1971 civil war and the Hamoodur Rahman Com­mission Report, saying that the post was not aimed towards the military and should be seen in a “political context”. “The context and comparison that we drew with 1971 was in a political context and not otherwise — nothing about the army,” PTI leader and MNA Barrister Gohar Ali Khan categorically said today in an interview with digital news outlet Azaad Urdu . In a post on social media platform X dated May 26, Imran’s account, which is managed by his social media team due to him being incarcerated in Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail serving sentences in multiple cases, shared a video along with a quote attributed to him: “Every Pakistani should study the Hamoodur Rahman Commission Report and get to know who was the true traitor, General Yahya Khan or Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.” The video argued that the former military dictator was the one actually resp

Sharmin Segal, the ‘Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar’ actress, who is being criticisied on social media for her acting in the series, is once again slammed by the netizens but this time for calling her co-star a ‘school girl’. In her interview shared on Reddit, Sharmin Segal called Aditi Rao Hydari, her colleague actress in the series, a ‘school girl’, local media reported. Sharmin Segal is heard saying in the interview, ” Aditi Rao is a good schoolgirl, please understand that”. She went on to say that if a teacher asks Aditi Rao to submit homework at a certain time, she would do that. The actress added that her colleague co-star would only follow instructions given and wouldn’t do anything extra. “Aditi Rao will do that but not one word more than the word count limit. That’s Aditi for you. So, in her view, everyone else is late and she is always on time,” Sharmin Segal. Her remarks however did not please the netizens who took a jibe at her. A social media user commented, “I just

BUNER: PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan on Monday said that his party was in talks with Maulana Fazlur Rehman-led JUI-F, but an alliance has not been formed yet, ARY News reported. Speaking to journalists here, the PTI chairman said that both parties have formed negotiating teams to discuss issues and explore possibilities of an alliance. The May 23 meeting between delegations of PTI and JUI-F ended without any breakthrough, with Fazlur Rehman emphasising that the priorities of political parties on national issues should be the same. Today, Barrister Gohar reiterated the party’s commitment to dialogue, saying that it has been their stance from day one. “Dialogue is essential in politics, but it should be with those who have the authority to make decisions,” he said. He also praised the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government’s budget, calling it a “historic” achievement despite challenging circumstances. “The KP budget has prioritised development projects, health cards, educatio

KARACHI: Following the government announcement to observe a public holiday on May 28, 2024, all banks remain closed for public dealing on Tuesday across the country, ARY News reported on Monday. On the occasion of “Youm-e-Takbeer”, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) issued a statement announcing the closure of banks across the country as declared by the government. Earlier in the day, the incumbent government announced a public holiday on May 28 (Tuesday) to mark the historic day, ‘Youm-e-Takbeer’, when Pakistan emerged as an atomic power. In a statement, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said that the ‘Youm-e-Takbeer’ is a reminder of the country’s unshakeable commitment to its defense and sovereignty. “On this day, we unite under the green and white flag to celebrate our nation’s unwavering resolve,” the prime minister added. He highlighted the significance of May 28, 1998, when Pakistan successfully conducted nuclear tests, making its defense invincible. “We will continue to work t

ISLAMABAD: Former National Assembly (NA) speaker Asad Qaiser on Sunday lamented the political victimisation of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, saying that PTI will only hold talks when its concerns are addressed, ARY News reported. Speaking at ARY News programme ‘Sawwal Ye Hai’, the PTI leader demanded that the incumbent government take concrete steps to restore the party’s mandate, which he claimed was stolen in the recently-held general elections. Asad Qaiser said that the government is talking about negotiations, but it needs to take trust-building measures first. He added that the PTI will only hold talks when its concerns are addressed first. He termed the government’s offer of negotiations ‘a public stunt’, saying that the PML-N was instead using force to suppress his party’s voice. He also demanded that the issue of Form 45 be discussed in a joint session of parliament, noting that this was the only way to move forward and ensure the legitimacy of the electoral process. “[Prime

Singer Nicki Minaj issued an apology after her concert was postponed following her arrest in Amsterdam for allegedly carrying drugs. Her concert scheduled for Manchester in England was postponed after the Anaconda rapper, 41, was detained in Amsterdam for allegedly carrying drugs, Deadline reported on Sunday. Later, Minaj in a post on X thanked “everyone who prayed for me today. May God cover you & all that is connected to you. May you be blessed beyond your imagination.” “Please please please accept my deepest & most sincere apologies,” she wrote. According to Nicki Minaj , she sat “in a jail cell for 5-6 hours,” adding that at the time of posting, she had just arrived in Manchester a little over an hour earlier. Read more: Woman arrested for supplying drugs in Islamabad educational institutes She was scheduled to perform in Manchester as part of her Pink Friday 2 World Tour, however, a day earlier, Minaj went live on Instagram and broadcast footage that appeared to sho

DG KHAN: A doctor in Dera Ghazi (DG) Khan allegedly botched circumcision of a one-year-old boy, leaving his life in danger, ARY News reported on Saturday, quoting family members. The boy, who is the only son of his parents and has three sisters, has been left with severe pain after the ‘botched-up’ circumcision. In a statement, the victim’s father said the doctor –  who performed the procedure – has been issuing threats of severe consequences. He urged the police to arrest the doctor and bring him to justice. In a similar incident in 2022, a quack has allegedly damaged the genitals of two brothers during circumcision at a private hospital in Sialkot. Muhammad Bilal, a resident of Kushny wali Kothy, a village on the outskirts of Sialkot, went to Ali Hussain Hospital, Ora Chowk, on May 15 to get his eight-month-old son Muhammad Muneeb circumcised. Bilal said Dr Zameerul Hasan Naqvi, Sameer Habib, Muhammad Asim, Haris Khan, nurses Miss Soha, Miss Ramsha, Miss Zainab and four unident

KARACHI: Maripur police of Karachi on Saturday successfully foiled the smuggling attempt involving Iranian dry milk worth more than Rs 3 million, ARY News reported. The Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Keamari, Faizan Ali, stated that a truck carrying a total of 100 sacks, weighing 2,500 kilograms, of smuggled dry milk was seized. Earlier this month, the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) while conducting seven operations across the country managed to recover 47 kg of drugs and arrested 12 suspects. He informed that 600 grams of heroin was recovered from a parcel booked for the UK at a courier office in Sialkot. 13 kg heroin was recovered from two suspects arrested near M-1 Motorway Islamabad. 10 kg opium and 320 grams weed were recovered from three accused netted on M-8 Gwadar. 10 kg of Ice was recovered from three Afghans held in the Torkham area while 8 kg of heroin was recovered from two suspects rounded up near Divine Garden Lahore. 4 kg of heroin was recovered from an accused

Furiosa star Chris Hemsworth has revealed that his kids were present throughout the filming of the Mad Max prequel. “They’re like, ‘Give me a shot! I want to jump in there, jump in the truck and the bike,’ and so on,” he said during an interview on Friday. The Thor actor and his wife Elsa Pataky share three children named India Rose Hemsworth, 12, and twin boys Sasha Hemsworth and Tristan Hemsworth, both 10. “They were there on the set… I know it’s not a kid’s movie, but they’ve seen it all,” said Hemsworth. “It’s sort of like the smoke and mirrors of it all. It’s a complete illusion, it’s like a Halloween party for them. They were laughing through the bits that they’re supposed to be terrified in.” Chris Hemsworth’s children were also given seats in the front row to Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, a prequel to 2015’s Mad Max: Fury Road. Read more: Anya Taylor-Joy reveals shocking details about filming Furiosa The actor’s costar Anya Taylor-Joy said that Hemsworth’s kids were future st

Singer Casandra Ventura, also known as Cassie, thanked her family and fans for their support after a video emerged showing rapper Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs assaulting her. “The outpouring of love has created a place for my younger self to settle and feel safe now, but this is only the beginning. Domestic Violence is THE issue. It broke me down to someone I never thought I would become,” she said in a statement on Thursday. According to Casandra Ventura, she is doing better, however, she said that she will always be recovering from her past. “Thank you to everyone that has taken the time to take this matter seriously,” Cassie said after the release of the 2016 video showing Combs thrashing her. Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs has since admitted to have assaulted his then girlfriend and issued an apology. Read more: Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs admits beating ex-girlfriend Casandra Ventura “It’s so difficult to reflect on the darkest times in your life, but sometimes you gotta do that,” Combs said in an Instag

Punjab Governor Sardar Saleem Haider on Thursday raised the possibility of sending the Punjab Defamation Bill, 2024, back to the assembly for further consultation and review amid uproar over its passing. The Punjab Assembly had passed the defamation bill on Monday, rejecting all amendments proposed by the opposition amid protests by the PTI-backed Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) and journalists covering parliamentary proceedings. The SIC members tore apart copies of the bill after the House passed it through a voice vote. Subsequently, more than 80 civil society organisations registered their protest on Tuesday, outrightly rejecting the bill which was a “gross infringement on the fundamental rights of freedom of expression and press freedom”. The Judicial Activism Panel (JAP) — a self-styled public interest forum based in Lahore — had also urged the Punjab government to reconsider the bill, calling it “draconian”, “illogical” and a “violation of the judgments of the superior courts.”

ISLAMABAD: In a major reshuffling, the federal government transferred and posted several top officers of the federal bureaucracy. According to notifications issued by the Establishment Division, Hasanat Qureshi has been appointed as Managing Director (MD) of the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PEPRA). A 21-grade officer Hasanat Qureshi was serving as the financial advisor at the Pakistan Ordnance Factories. Secretary National Heritage Hassan Nasir has been given additional charge of Secretary Information. Similarly, the services of Hasan Raza, a Police Service officer of Grade 20, have been given to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government. Mian Saeed Ahmed, a Police Service officer, has also been directed to report to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government. As per the notification, the services of Asif Iqbal Mehmood have been handed over to the Gilgit-Baltistan government. Saudur Rehman, a Police Service officer, has been transferred to the Balochistan government. Earlier on March

A member of Bangladesh’s ruling party was found murdered in the Indian city of Kolkata on Wednesday morning, more than a week after he went missing, Bangladeshi Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan said. Anwarul Azim Anar, 56, who won his third consecutive term in a constituency in the border district of Jhenaidah from the Awami League party, went missing on May 13, a day after going to India for medical treatment, according to his relatives. Khan told reporters that three Bangladeshis were arrested over the lawmaker’s death. Bangladesh police and Kolkata police were conducting a joint probe and could not “disclose all information at the moment for the sake of the investigation”, he said. Indian police told Reuters on Wednesday that a murder case had been registered in the matter and the lawmaker’s body was yet to be recovered. “We have secured video footage from the housing complex where he was staying during the visit … some blood stains were also seen during the investigation,” said

DHAKA: A member of Bangladesh’s ruling party was found murdered in India’s city of Kolkata on Wednesday morning, more than a week after the lawmaker went missing, Bangladeshi Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan said. Anwarul Azim Anar, 56, who won his third consecutive term in a constituency in the border district of Jhenaidah from the Awami League party, went missing on May 13, a day after going to India for medical treatment, according to his relatives. Khan told reporters that three Bangladeshis were arrested over the lawmaker’s death. Bangladesh police and Kolkata police were conducting a joint probe and could not “disclose all information at the moment for the sake of the investigation,” he said. Indian police told Reuters on Wednesday that a murder case had been registered in the matter and the lawmaker’s body was yet to be recovered. “We have secured video footage from the housing complex where he was staying during the visit…some blood stains were also seen during the investig

ISLAMABAD: Incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan on Wednesday moved Supreme Court (SC), seeking permission to appear in ‘personal capacity’ in the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) amendment case. Sources told ARY News that the deposed prime minister has sent a written request to the Chief Justice, seeking permission to appear before SC in person in the case. The request has been forwarded to the Supreme Court through the Adiala jail administration. The apex court has fixed May 30 for the hearing of the NAB amendment case. In the last hearing, PTI founder Imran Khan appeared before the Supreme Court (SC) bench via video link after a five-member bench okayed his appearance. in the National Accountability (NAB) Ordinance 1999 amendment case. Review petitions The federal government filed the review plea in the NAB amendments case under the SC Practice and Procedure Law and made the Federation of Pakistan, National Accountability Bureau and PTI founder respondents. Read more:  Ju

KABUL: Afghanistan Tuesday roped in former West Indian allrounder and the leading wicket taker in Twenty20 cricket Dwayne Bravo as their bowling consultant for next month’s ICC T20 World Cup 2024. The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) said Bravo will be an asset for the team. “West Indian World Cup winner Bravo has been appointed as bowling consultant and will join the squad during the preparation camp ahead of the marquee event,” the ACB release said. Most members of the Afghanistan team have reached the Caribbean for a 10-day preparatory camp where Bravo will also join them. The 40-year-old is currently the leading wicket-taker in T20 cricket with 625 wickets in 573 games and was regarded as one of the pioneers of bowling in the shortest format. Afghanistan will play warm-up games against Oman on May 29 and Scotland two days later. They are in a tough Group C with co-hosts West Indies, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and Uganda in ICC T20 World Cup 2024. Their first World Cup mat

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian along with other senior officials were killed after their helicopter crashed on May 19. President Ebrahim Raisi, FM Amirabdollahian and other high officials were killed after the helicopter crashed as it was flying in a mountainous terrain amid dense fog in East Azerbaijan province. Iran’s State TV reported that images from the site showed the aircraft slammed into a mountain peak. Later, Iran’s Mehr news agency confirmed the deaths of all on board the helicopter, reporting that “all passengers of the helicopter carrying the Iranian president and foreign minister were martyred”. An Iranian official earlier told Reuters the helicopter carrying Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian was completely burned in the crash on Sunday. Read more: Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi killed in helicopter crash, official says According to Iran’s state media, East Azarbaijan Province’s Governor Malek Rah

LAHORE: Amid strong protest from the opposition benches, the Punjab Assembly on Monday passed the ‘controversial’ Defamation Bill 2024, aimed at curbing the spread of fake news across print, electronic, and social media platforms, ARY News reported. The assembly witnessed a ruckus when Punjab’s Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Mujtaba Shuja-ur-Rehman tabled the ‘controversial’ bill, while the journalists boycotted the proceedings to register their protest. The bill addresses the pervasive issue of misinformation on social media platforms, including YouTube, TikTok, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Under the bill, defamation case can be filed on those spreading ‘fake news’. The bill also proposes a fine of up to Rs3 million and special tribunals to hear defamation cases, which will be required to deliver verdicts within six months. It also mentioned that in cases of allegations against individuals holding constitutional posts, the high court will hear the cases. According to the

ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Sardar Tanveer Ilyas Khan, has been arrested in a case related to an attack on a company’s office, ARY News reported. Sources told ARY News that the former AJK premier was arrested in the case registered at Margalla Police Station. According to sources, Sardar Tanveer Ilyas is accused of trying to seize the central offices and important documents of Centaurus Mall. The First Information Report (FIR) was filed by Colonel (retd) Tipu Sultan, Deputy Security In-charge of The Centaurus Mall, naming Sardar Tanveer Ilyas, Muhammad Ali, Anil Sultan, Rizwan, and other unknown individuals as accused. As per the FIR, Sardar Tanveer, accompanied by an armed group of 20 to 25 individuals, entered office 1708 of Centaurus Mall by breaking the lock, with intentions to take control of the premises. However, their attempt was thwarted by the vigilant security guards. Sardar Tanveer allegedly issued threats to kill Sardar Yasir Ily

The cricket fans are hoping that the clash against Royal Challengers Bengaluru isn’t the last match of MS Dhoni in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The match set up for MS Dhoni to finish, especially after he smashed the first ball of the final over for six, the RCB’s Yash Dayal managed to dismissed the former CSK captain on second delivery, turning the match in RCB’s favor. However, a demoralizing video has emerged on social media, showcasing post-match scenes where Dhoni skipped shaking hands with RCB players and returned to the dressing room. On his way back, he did shake hands with some members of RCB’s support staff and a few bench players. Dhoni didn’t come on ground for handshake Then kohli goes in the csk camp to meet him pic.twitter.com/FkEfHhJzrD — Vir8 (@wronggfooted) May 19, 2024 Critics suggested that Dhoni should learn to handle loss with grace, pointing out that if Virat Kohli had done the same, many would have called him egoistic. It remains unclear if Dho

A 26-year-old man has been arrested in Navi Mumbai, India for allegedly printing and distributing counterfeit currency, local police confirmed. According to the Central Unit of the Crime Branch of Navi Mumbai police, a suspect named Praful Govind Patil was for his ‘involvement’ in producing fake currency notes currency. He allegedly discovered on YouTube how to create counterfeit banknotes by viewing instructional videos. The Central Unit of the Crime Branch seized 1,443 counterfeit currency notes valued at INR 200,000 from Patil’s residence. The police reports indicated that Patil had already disseminated over INR 100,000 into the market within the past six weeks. The Central Unit of the Crime Branch seized 1,443 counterfeit notes worth INR 200,000 from Praful Govind Patil’s apartment. The recovered currency notes included 574 of Rs 50, 33 of Rs 100, and 856 of Rs 200. The police said that in order to overcome the financial crisis, the suspect discovered on YouTube how to create

KABUL: A firing incident was reported from the central Afghanistan, resulted in the deaths of four people, including three foreigners, ARY News reported on Friday. The Taliban officials released an official statement, confirming the death of three foreigners, including a women, along with an Afghan citizen in the gun attack. A spokesman for the Taliban’s interior ministry disclosed that seven other people, including four foreign nationals were wounded in the attack. The attacker managed to flee from the scene, meanwhile, the law enforcers arrested four suspects at the scene in Bamyan province, for their alleged involvement in the attack. However, no one claimed responsibility for the attack. The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021 as U.S. and NATO forces were in the final weeks of their withdrawal from the country after 20 years of war. from ARY NEWS https://ift.tt/MmWo9Uh https://ift.tt/MhJnrjK

BHAKKAR: Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) Chief Maulana Fazalur Rehman once again lambasted over alleged rigging and said that those who had no role in the polls ‘played’ a key part in the general elections 2024, ARY News reported. In a statement, Maulana Fazalur Rehman said that the general elections 2024 were ‘rigged’. “Those who had a role in holding the elections did nothing and the ones who have nothing to do with the polls played a key role,” he added. He said that the JUI-F is a big political party and was defeated with a ‘massive’ rigging in the general elections held on February 8. Maulana Fazalur Rehman said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and the JUI-F are different political parties and have own narratives. “When we (JUI-F and PTI) sit together, only then we could decide whether or not we can form an alliance,” he added. Maulana Fazalur Rehman said that if the country is to be run well, the ‘political government’ ‘should be formed. He said that Pakistan has a constitut

PTI MNA Zartaj Gul said that Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) lawmaker Tariq Bashir Cheema tendered an “unconditional apology” to her following misconduct in the National Assembly session on Thursday. According to a Dawn.com correspondent, Cheema delivered a speech in the assembly during which he was interrupted by Gul who jibed that he should talk about the Bahawalpur University case instead. Last year, police had arrested officials of the Islamia University of Bahawalpur (IUB) on drug charges for possessing crystal meth, along with “objectionable” videos and images of IUB students and staff members. Cheema had denied involvement of his son in the scam. After his speech, the PML-Q leader walked up to the PTI leaders and shook hands with Barrister Gohar Khan and Ali Muhammad Khan, behind whom Gul was seated. He then allegedly hurled abuses at her which resulted in an uproar by the PTI leadership that moved to attack the PML-Q leader and caused a commotion in the assembly, ac

RAWALPINDI: Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) General Sahir Shamshad Mirza on Thursday visited Pakistan Navy War College Lahore and addressed the participants of the 53rd PN Staff Course. According to a press statement issued by the Inter-Service Public Relations (ISPR), the CJCSC expressed his views on the armed forces’ efforts in confronting the multifaceted conventional and non-conventional challenges. General Sahir Shamshad Mirza said that the Pakistan Navy has always fulfilled the expectations for the protection of maritime borders. “The Pakistan Navy has a proud history of bravery and sacrifices for the motherland,” the CJCSC added. Earlier upon arrival, General Sahir Shamshad Mirzaki was welcomed by Commander Rear Admiral Azhar Mahmood. On the occasion, the CJCSC also laid floral wreaths and offered Fateha at the martyr’s monument. Read More: CJCSC, Turkish Army chief reaffirm expanding strategic ties Earlier on April 18, Chief of the Turkish General Staff

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Thursday conducted an operation in Gujranwala and arrested a human trafficker involved in the abduction of Pakistani nationals in Iran, ARY News reported. The FIA spokesperson in a statement asserted that the facilitator, named Atif Bilal, of the international human trafficker gang has been arrested from Hafizabad area of Gujranwala. The arrested accused used to receive ransom money from the family members of the abducted Pakistani citizens and transferred it to Iran through hawala/hundi channels. The spokesperson added that the aforementioned gang was being operated from Iran. While recounting the operations of the gang, the FIA spokesperson revealed that the gang used to deceive citizens by promising employment opportunities in Iraq. The FIA representative further added that the citizens trapped by the said gang were abducted in Iran. The human trafficker gang also used to make videos of torture abducted citizens to received ransom mon