Author: Erdal Hingora

Afghanistan’s interim Taliban government has rejected a UN Security Council report claiming that several terrorist groups, including Daesh/ISIS, are present in the country and have access to weapons left by US-led foreign forces. “The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan once again rejects these baseless accusations and, while calling for transparent involvement in such issues, states that in the last two years, Afghan security forces have conducted hundreds of continuous operations against illegal weapons and ISIS,” government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on X, formerly Twitter, late on Saturday. “As a result, weapons and ammunition were captured and ISIS’ operational capabilities were destroyed,”…

Islamabad, Pakistan – Pakistan’s parliament has been dissolved to prepare for a national election without former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who has been jailed and barred from politics for five years. President Arif Alvi ordered the National Assembly, the lower house of parliament, dissolved late on Wednesday, on Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s advice. The dissolution marks the end of a chaotic tenure which began five years ago with Khan at the helm. Sharif, who assumed power in April 2022 after Khan lost a no-confidence vote in parliament, on Tuesday said he had asked President Alvi to dissolve the assembly three days before the schedule. “Tomorrow…

Pakistan’s foreign ministry has summoned the United States embassy’s deputy chief of mission to express concern over a statement last week by US President Joe Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi that called on Pakistan to ensure its territory was not used as a base for attacks by armed groups. The US-India statement was released after a meeting between Biden and Modi at the White House on Friday and received criticism from Pakistan, which called it contrary to diplomatic norms. “It was stressed that the United States should refrain from issuing statements that may be construed as an encouragement of India’s…

Not many teams come to Sri Lanka and manage a win in spin fortress Galle. Pakistan did just that and reversed the trend in the southern coastal town with a four-wicket win in the first test — with their fast bowlers contributing heavily — leaving the hosts fighting to level the two-test series. The tourists surprised the Sri Lankans with their attacking batting. Even when 101-5 in the first innings, the batters kept going at five runs an over. Speaking to reporters ahead of the second test starting Monday, Pakistan head coach Grant Bradburn said that Pakistan’s long-term target is…

A fire in a passenger van in eastern Pakistan Saturday killed seven people, including two children, a government official said. The dead included four members of the same family — a woman, her daughter and her two granddaughters. Eight passengers received burn injuries of various degrees. Official Nabeel Bhatti said the incident occurred in the Sargodha district of Punjab province after a liquefied petroleum gas cylinder fitted in the vehicle leaked and exploded. The van was immediately engulfed in flames. Five passengers died at the scene, while two others succumbed to their injuries at the hospital. Three of the bodies…

It was a Friday afternoon at Wagah- the first working day after Eid holidays. The group of travellers from Amritsar, tired and impatient, knew their journey was not yet over. It was lunch time and on a Friday it meant a longer break as officers had two devotional duties to perform- praying and eating. Fatigued by the April heat and an endless wait, their exasperation swelled a bit more as a rumour started doing the rounds that just one officer had showed up for the duty. With unwavering spirits, over fifty pairs of weary eyes kept looking at the unoccupied…

International institutions asked Pakistan to repeal the blasphemy laws. But the government now plans more anti-blasphemy repression rather than less. In 2021, “Bitter Winter” published a series of seven articles about Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan, the extremist Islamic party hailing international terrorism and violence against religious minorities at home that the government failed to suppress. We note how through its marches, which paralyze the traffic on main highways for days, the organization has been often able to compel the government to accept its demands. Until last Saturday, Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan was marching again, from Karachi to Islamabad. Last week, the government was digging trenches to…

The Suzuki Motor Company Ltd (PSMC) has decided to keep its car and bike plants in Pakistan closed from June 22 to July 8 due to import restrictions and its impact on parts and accessories, according to a media report on Tuesday. The move by the Japanese auto major comes merely a week after it started operations at its four-wheeler unit in Pakistan that was shut for over 75 days, it said. The company in a statement to the Pakistan Stock Exchange on Monday said it was suspending production due to a shortage of parts and accessories because of a…

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif issued instructions on Friday to increase the country’s exports during the next fiscal year while chairing a meeting to evaluate proposals related to the Public Sector Development Program (PSDP) ahead of the upcoming budget. Pakistan has recently experienced a decline in exports after commercial banks refused to open letters of credit (LCs) due to a dollar liquidity crunch triggered by a massive financial crisis in the country. Additionally, the government also limited imports due to rapidly declining forex reserves and a depreciating rupee, reducing the overall production potential of the industrial sector and further exacerbated the…

At the United Nations, Pakistan has called for further intensification of cooperation among developing countries to complement North-South cooperation. Deputy Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the UN in New York Aamir Khan , speaking at a session of the High-Level Committee also called it critical as the world contends with interlinked crises of finance, food and climate change. He said we are hopeful that the South-South partners will continue to promote collaboration based on equal footing, mutual benefits, and win-win outcomes.” He said Pakistan stands fully committed to replicating the successful templates of the South and sharing lessons that the…