Rescuers dug through heavy blocks of concrete with their bare hands on Saturday in a desperate search for survivors from a powerful earthquake that levelled buildings across Greece and Turkey, killing at least 26 people. The quake struck late on Friday afternoon, causing a mini-tsunami on the Aegean island of Samos and a sea surge that turned streets into rushing rivers in …

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday said Pakistan wants “even-handed treatment” from the United States with respect to India, especially on the Kashmir issue. In an interview with German weekly news magazine Der Spiegel, he warned that the region was a hotspot and could flare up at any time. “That’s why we expect the US, as the strongest country in the …

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau defended free speech on Friday, but added that it was “not without limits” and should not “arbitrarily and needlessly hurt” certain communities. “We will always defend freedom of expression,” Trudeau said in response to a question about the right to show caricatures deemed blasphemous, as France’s Charlie Hebdo magazine did. “But freedom of expression is …

India has complained to Saudi Arabia over a banknote that shows Kashmir as a separate country, in the latest protest over maps of the disputed region that have also targeted foreign media outlets and a social media giant. The foreign ministry in New Delhi said it expressed “serious concern” over a new 20 Riyal note issued to mark Saudi Arabia’s …

KARACHI: The per tola gold price witnessed an increase of Rs400 to Rs112,100 in the domestic market on Saturday. Likewise, the rate of 10 grams of the precious metal increased by Rs343 to Rs96,107, according to the All Pakistan Jewelers Association. In the international market, gold witnessed a decrease of $8 and was traded at $1880 per ounce on the …

LAHORE: The accountability court has served show-cause notices to the government and police officers over failing to produce Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) leader Hamza Shehbaz in the hearing of Ramzan Sugar Mills case. The show-cause notices have been served to secretary home department, Superintendent Central Jail, Lahore Capital City Police Officer (CCPO), Superintendent Police (SP) headquarters and other officers. …

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday extended condolences to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and the people of Turkey over the loss of precious lives in an earthquake in Izmir city. He tweeted: “We stand with the Turkish nation, offering every help we can give. We can never forget the way Turkey stood with us when the devastating earthquake …

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi telephoned his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu on Saturday and expressed deep sorrow and grief over the loss of lives and property in Friday’s earthquake in Turkey. He conveyed his condolences to the families of the deceased in the Izmir earthquake and prayed for early recovery of the injured. FM Qureshi said the Pakistan government …

KARACHI: The Sindh government has planned insurance of seasonal, cash and oilseed crops from commercial banks and private companies to prevent farmers from bearing financial losses in an emergency situation. However, the Sindh government has stepped back from its previous insurance plan by utilising its own funds and decided to get insurance of the crops from commercial banks and insurance …

KARACHI: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has expedited the investigation against money laundering and hawala-hundi and registered 94 inquiries after concluding its two-year probe into different complaints, citing sources. It is pertinent to mention here that Prime Minister Imran Khan had ordered crackdowns against money laundering and hawala-hundi, whereas, many business personalities, government officers and sectors were allegedly found involved …