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WARSAW: Unilateral action on trade by European Union member states is unacceptable, a European Commis­sion spokesperson said on Sunday, after Poland and Hungary announced bans on grain and other food imports from Ukraine to protect the local agricultural sector. After Russia’s invasion blocked some Black Sea ports, large quantities of Ukrainian grain, which is cheaper than that produced in the …

LAHORE: After more than a year of simmering political tensions between the ruling coalition led by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the opposition Pakis­tan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), it seems the ice has started melting with both parties forming panels to engage in indirect dialogue. The impasse between the two warring parties was broken by JI emir Sirajul Haq, who held separate …

ISLAMABAD: Days after an in-camera session of parliament attended by the top military leadership blamed the previous government for the rise in militancy, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Sunday tried to shift the blame for the rehabilitation of the TTP militants in tribal districts to all political parties. In an interview on Sunday, Mr Qureshi rejected …

Former prime minister Imran Khan on Monday told the Lahore High Court (LHC) that the authorities had planned another operation at his residence in Zaman Park during the Eid holidays, and requested the court to halt any action against his party. The PTI chief made this claim during the hearing of a plea filed by him seeking to halt “coercive …

A Chinese national, working at the Dasu Hydropower Project in Upper Kohistan, was taken into police custody on Sunday night after he was accused of blasphemy by labourers at the site. Komila SHO Naseeruddin, while confirming the arrest, said that a first information report (FIR) has been registered against the accused. The complaint, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, …

The fate of the Supreme Court’s deadline to issue Rs21 billion for elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa became more uncertain on Monday after National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue sent the poll funds issue back to the parliament. Last week, the apex court had directed the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to “allocate and release” Rs21 billion by April …

ISLAMABAD: The number of voters between the ages of 18 and 35 years has increased by over nine million, turning them into a significant force which could swing the results of upcoming elections if convinced to come to the polling booth. According to voter statistics released by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Saturday, the number of young voters …

LAHORE: Jamaat-i-Islami emir Sirajul Haq launched a “consensus offensive” on Saturday, holding meetings with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and PTI chief Imran Khan within a span of a few hours and reported “positive response” from both sides to his initiative, aimed at bringing the warring sides closer to holding talks on the issue of elections. Mr Haq first called on …

A day after Jamaat-i-Islami emir Sirajul Haq launched a “consensus offensive” aimed at bringing the government and opposition closer, the PTI on Sunday constituted a three-member committee to hold a dialogue “on the ongoing political crisis in the country”. According to a statement issued today, PTI leaders Pervaiz Khattak, Ejaz Chaudhry, and Mian Mehmoodur Rasheed will hold a dialogue with …

Religious Affairs Minister Mufti Abdul Shakoor, who had died last night in a road accident in Islamabad, was laid to rest on Sunday in Tajbi Khel area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Lakki Marwat district. The federal minister and Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) leader had died in a road accident in the capital’s Red Zone area on Saturday evening. According to the police, the …