Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: While the federal government on Thursday decided to establish Covid-19 vaccine administration cells across the country, pharmaceutical companies suggested that licences should be issued for local manufacturing of the vaccine as it may take years to import jabs for the entire population of Pakistan. Meanwhile, 2,475 new Covid-19 cases and eight deaths were reported in a single day as …

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court on Thursday issued notices to the provincial and jail authorities on a petition seeking contempt proceedings against them for not releasing four men after their conviction order was set aside in the abduction and murder case of US journalist Daniel Pearl. Petitioners Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib and Sheikh Adil through their …

QUETTA: An accountability court here has is­sued bailable arrest warrants of former Balochistan chief minister Aslam Raisani and others accused for not appearing during the hearing of a reference against misuse of powers. NAB Balochistan had filed the reference agai­nst Mr Raisani, his younger brother ex-senator Lashkari Raisani, ex-secretary fina­n­ce Dostain Jamal­dini and five others last month. The reference alleged …

Indian troops committed more than 2900 ceasefire violations across the restive Line of Control (LoC) in 2020, leaving as many as 33 innocent civilians martyred and another 260 wounded in different parts of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), a cabinet member said on Friday — the first day of the new year. “Even though the whole world was hit hard …

KARAK: Police arrested 31 people including district leaders of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) here on Thursday for vandalising and demolishing the shrine of a Hindu saint in Teri area of the district. Police officials told Dawn that JUI-F senior leader Rehmat Salam Khattak was also among the arrested persons. He was arrested from his residence in Chokara area of Takht-i-Nusrati tehsil. …

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday said the new year will be a year of economic growth for Pakistan, adding that the country was already moving in the right direction with essential industries increasing output. Speaking at an event in Islamabad, the prime minister said the construction industry was already on its way up, which was evident from rising cement …

MUZAFFARABAD: Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) government on Wednesday eased off restrictions it had imposed in the wake of the spike in Covid-19 cases in the territory, particularly in the state capital Muzaffarabad and the lakeside city of Mirpur. The government had imposed complete lockdown from Nov 22 until Dec 8, almost on the previous pattern with the exception of …

MULTAN: The district administration has started seeking details of properties owned by Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman and his family in its jurisdiction on the request of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chapter, in connection with a probe being conducted by the bureau. NAB’s KP director general office, through a letter (No 1/34/(1079-32-332)IW-I/NAB(KP)/697) written to the …

KARACHI: Three female patients, who were recently tested positive for the potentially more contagious Covid-19 variant, are stable and under home isolation, health department sources told Dawn on Wednesday. The patients are aged between 19 and 37. According to the sources, the areas where they lived in are under ‘micro smart lockdown’ whereas their houses are under police surveillance. Upon contact, a …

ISLAMABAD: In a clear indication that the government is in no mood to renew the diplomatic passport of Nawaz Sharif that is close to expiry date, Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed on Wednesday said the former prime minister’s passport would be cancelled on Feb 16 next year. He was talking to reporters during his second visit to the Capital Development …