KARACHI: Despite mounting pressure on banks to go digital, the number of e-commerce transactions declined in the first half of the current fiscal year while the total e-banking value in the first quarter also dipped. The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Tuesday issued both the first and second quarterly reports on the Payment System for 2022-23. The reports reflect …

An Islamabad judicial magistrate on Tuesday remanded PTI leader Ali Amin Gandapur in police custody for two more days in a case pertaining to threatening government and national institutions. Gandapur, a former federal minister and the PTI’s central leader, was arrested on Thursday night outside the building of the Peshawar High Court’s Dera Ismail Khan bench — on charges of two criminal …

ISLAMABAD: Surprised at the social media uproar generated by his attendance of a convention held to mark 50 years of the promulgation of the Cons­titition, Justice Qazi Faez Isa on Tuesday said the golden jubilee was an occasion for all citizens to celebrate, not just for a particular political party or an institution. The perception of division and bitterness among SC judges …

A ban on Afghan women working for the United Nations was an internal issue, the country’s Taliban authorities said on Wednesday, adding that the decision “should be respected by all sides”. Taliban authorities triggered international outrage earlier this month after extending a December ban on Afghan women working for non-governmental organisations to the UN. “The Islamic Emirate does not want to create …

A Chinese woman has become the first person to die from a type of bird flu that is rare in humans, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said, but the strain does not appear to spread between people. The 56-year-old woman from the southern province of Guangdong was the third person known to have been infected with the H3N8 subtype of …

Billionaire Twitter owner Elon Musk has said that the legacy blue checkmarks would be removed from Twitter accounts verified under the company’s previous regime, with an April 20 deadline set for the enforcement. The blue checkmark — previously free for verified accounts of politicians, famous personalities, journalists and other public figures — is now open to anyone prepared to pay. The move …

BARCELONA: Title-ch­a­sing Barcelona exte­nded their lead at the top of LaLiga to 13 points despite being held to a goalless draw by mid-table Girona in their Catalan derby at the Camp Nou on Monday. Barca came closest to scoring but Ronald Araujo’s shot in the first half did not completely cross the goalline before Girona goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga clawed it …

A fire broke out in a factory located in Sector 16-B of Karachi’s Gabol Town on Wednesday morning, police and rescue officials said. According to a statement shared with the media by Gabol Town police, fire trucks have reached at the site and are busy extinguishing the fire. Police and Edhi Foundation teams are also present in the area, which …

SYDNEY: Women’s World Cup co-hosts Australia and New Zealand marked the 100-day countdown to the global football showpiece on Tuesday with a call for gender equity in sport and a rallying cry for fans to get behind the event. The 32-team tournament, the first Women’s World Cup in the southern hemisphere, will kick off in Sydney and Auckland on July …

HISOR (Tajikistan): In her side’s maiden qualifying campaign for the Olympics, Zahmena Malik ensured Pakistan’s women football team didn’t return winless. The England-based attacker scored in the 25th minute as Pakistan, already out of the race to advance to the second round of qualifying for next year’s Paris Olympics, ended their Group ‘E’ commitments with a 1-0 win over hosts …