Muslim and Christian residents of Mosul told Pope Francis of their lives under the brutal rule of Islamic State (IS) on Sunday as the pontiff blessed their vow to rise up from ashes, telling them that “fraternity is more durable than fratricide.” Francis, on a historic trip to Iraq, flew into Mosul by helicopter to encourage the binding of sectarian wounds …

KARACHI: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has sought from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) details of bank accounts of 150 police officers of Sindh police, mainly SHOs, it emerged on Saturday. Sources told Dawn that NAB had written a letter titled ‘request for general search of bank accounts-inquiry against Sindh police officers and others’ to the SBP on Feb 25. The …

ISLAMABAD: Punjab Employees Social Security Institution (PESSI) will deliver health cards to 300,000 labourers at their doorstep, said commissioner PESSI Dr Syed Bilal Haider. During a meeting with the representatives of All Rawalpindi Restaurant Association (ARRA), Mr Haider said the labourers who were registered with the PESSI would be issued cards after verification of their credentials from National Database and …

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) on Saturday filed a petition in the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), asking it not to issue the notification about former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani’s victory on a general seat from Islamabad in the recently held Senate elections. The petition has been filed on the basis of a leaked audio clip of Sindh Minister …

ISLAMABAD: The three-day Islamabad Tourism Festival ITF21, which opened on Friday, brought with it excitement of paragliding, vintage car show, music and plenty of food. While paragliding, accuracy landing and wingsuit flying will be the regular features of the festival, Aima Baig’s concert and digital fireworks were the main highlights on Saturday night. The festival is designed to showcase different …

At least one person was killed and 30 others injured when several coaches of the Lahore-bound Karachi Express derailed between Mando Dero and Sanghi railway stations near Rohri late on Saturday night, district and rescue officials said. Railways officials said that all people travelling on the train have been rescued and work is now being carried out to clear the …

KARACHI: The Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) has approached the foreign ministry to share the joint interrogation team (JIT) report of a suspect, said to be associated with the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-London, with Belgium since he possessed dual nationality. DIG-CTD Omar Shahid Hamid wrote a letter to the ministry of foreign affairs about the JIT report of suspect Wahid Husain alias Guddu. …

LAHORE: A sessions court on Saturday was requested to permit cross-examination of singer Meesha Shafi and her husband through a video link in a defamation suit by actor-cum-singer Ali Zafar as the couple was unable to travel to Pakistan from Canada due to Covid-19 pandemic. Advocate Saqib Jillani, the counsel for Shafi, made the request before the court in the …

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Information Commission (PIC) has asked the establishment division to make public the details of assets owned by civil servants, particularly officers of powerful service cadres such as Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS) and Police Service of Pakistan (PSP). The commission is an independent and autonomous enforcement body established under Section 18 of the Right of Access to Information …

ISLAMABAD: The capital city reported the highest number of Covid-19 cases since December 18 while the positivity rate also increased. Officials of the district administration said 251 cases were reported in the capital on Saturday. On Dec 18, as many as 259 positive cases had emerged in the city. The positivity rate also increased to 6.18 per cent. District Health …