Press "Enter" to skip to content

Posts published in “Pakistan”

Chaman border protest escalates over passport, visa policy

by Saleem Shahid in Dawn, October 23th, 2023QUETTA: Workers, supporters and members of all party traders’ alliance continued their sit-in in Chaman for the second consecutive day on Sun­day, protesting against the government’s decision to make valid pass­ports and visas mandatory for crossing Pak-Afghan border. The Pakistani government has decided to restrict border crossing to only those with valid passports and visas, effective from November 1. After October 31, no one will be allowed to…

Iran’s ambassador lists issues marring trade with Pakistan:

Report in Dawn, October 23rd, 2023LAHORE: Iranian Ambassador Dr Reza Amiri Moghaddam has identified a lack of banking channel, behaviour of some bureaucrats both in Pakistan and Iran, and an international currency, as major hurdles to the promotion of trade between Tehran and Islamabad. “Besides the currency problem, other issues that need immediate attention are establishing a formal banking channel, the main trade infrastructure, for business transactions between Pakistan and Iran, and bringing a change…

With Nawaz back at the helm, ‘N’ looks to placate allies

by Amjad Mahmood in Dawn, October 23rd, 2023LAHORE: In a bid to bring the political temperature down and focus on securing relief for Nawaz Sharif in graft cases, the PML-N has decided to re-establish “close coordination” with its allies in the former coalition government. This decision was made during a meeting at Jati Umra on Sunday, also attended by legal experts in addition to the Sharif family members. Sources told Dawn that Nawaz Sharif would…

new party is in the offing, but timing is everything

by Atika Rehman IN Dawn, Oct 23, 2023The room for a new political party in Pakistan certainly exists, but proponents of any new association will need an aggressive governance reform agenda, that can be sold well to people in order to capture their imagination. A move towards that end has already been made; however, its patrons appear unsure of whether the launch date should be before or after the January elections. It is no secret…

PPP assails political parties wishing for further election delay

Report in Dawn, October 23rd, 2023KARACHI: The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), which has been consistently vocal against attempts to delay the polls beyond the January timeline set by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), on Sunday took issue with the demand — coming from the PML-N and JUI-F — to postpone the elections even further. In a statement, PPP leader and former deputy NA speaker Faisal Karim Kundi said the ECP was bound by the…

PTI says Nawaz returned to Pakistan under a deal

report in Daily Times, Oct 23, 2023Terming Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif a “fugitive and criminal”, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Sunday claimed that the three-time former prime minister returned to the country under a “deal” and after changing his “narrative”. A day earlier, the PML-N supremo landed in Pakistan – ending a four-year self-imposed exile in London – and addressed a massive power show at the Minar-e-Pakistan in Lahore. During his maiden…

Nawaz, Imran to converge on capital tomorrow

by Rizwan Shehzad in The Express Tribune, Oct 23, 2023ISLAMABAD: n Tuesday, two former prime ministers, Nawaz Sharif and Imran Khan, will be in Islamabad, using Constitution Avenue as they separately appear before the Islamabad High Court (IHC) and the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) as accused individuals. Constitution Avenue, situated in the capital’s Red Zone, is adorned with various key buildings, including Parliament, the Prime Minister’s House, the Supreme Court, the Foreign Office, the…

Imran, Qureshi indicted in cypher case

by Qaiser Sherazi in The Express Tribune, Oct 23, 2023ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan and ex-foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi pleaded ‘not guilty’ on Monday as the two Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders were indicted in the cypher case. The indictment came as the court rejected another one of Imran’s plea seeking deferment in the process. Judge Abul Hasnaat Zulqarnaian of the special court – formed to hear cases under the Official Secrets Act –…

Security for churches enhanced

Report in Dawn, October 23rd, 2023LAHORE: On the instructions of Inspector General of Police (IGP) Dr Usman Anwar, the police ensured foolproof security arrangements for Christian prayer programmes in churches across the province on Sunday. The police remained on high alert and performed their duties diligently, allowing Christian citizens to conduct their prayers in a peaceful environment and participate in their holy prayer ceremonies. Earlier, Mr Anwar directed regional police officers and district police officers…

Pakistan’s changes in gas pipeline irk Russians

by Zafar Bhutta in The Express Tribune, Oct 28, 2023ISLAMABAD: Moscow is disappointed and frustrated over the response of Islamabad towards the Pakistan Stream Gas Pipeline because of the latter changing the project’s structure several times and not making any progress on the commercial deal amid US sanctions on Russian entities. The project was meant to build a liquefied natural gas (LNG) pipeline from Karachi to Lahore to overcome the gas shortage in the Punjab…

UN urges Pakistan to halt Afghan deportations

by Amin Ahmed in Dawn, October 28th, 2023ISLAMABAD: The Of­­fice of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) called on the Pakistani government to “suspend forcible returns of Afghan nationals before it is too late to avoid a human rights catastrophe”. “We call on them to continue providing protection to those in need and ensure that any fut­ure returns are safe, dignified and voluntary, and fully consistent with int­ernational law,” OHCHR spokesperson Ravina…