Pakistan

A 6.0 magnitude earthquake jolted parts of the country on Thursday, according to the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD). DawnNewsTV reported that tremors were felt in Islamabad, Lahore and its surrounding areas, and parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The department said the 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck at 2:20pm in the Hindu Kush region, Afghanistan at a depth of 213km. It had a longitude …

A lab at the Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH) on Wednesday said that it had detected the JN.1 Covid-19 variant, currently a cause of concern in several countries, in six out of a total of 15 samples from Karachi. Classified as a variant of interest by the World Health Organisation (WHO), JN.1 is a sub-lineage of the Omicron variant and has been …

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday withdrew its stay order on former premier Imran Khan’s in-camera cipher trial after the state counsel assured that the witnesses’ statements would be recorded afresh. The cipher case pertains to a diplomatic document that the Federal Investigation Agency’s charge sheet alleges was never returned by Imran. The PTI has long held that the document contained a threat from the United States to oust …

CHAKWAL: The embattled Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) got a blow in Talagang’s NA-59 and PP-23 constituencies after its president, Chaudhry Parvez Elahi, and his front man in the area Hafiz Ammar Yasir lost their appeals against the decisions of returning officers (ROs). Hafiz Ammar Yasir’s appeal was dismissed by the appellate tribunal of the Lahore High Court’s Rawalpindi bench on Tuesday …

RAWALPINDI: The Senate Standing Committee on Anti-Narcotics has revealed a plan to establish a rehabilitation centre in Lahore for the treatment of drug addicts. A meeting of the Senate panel, convened by Senator Gurdeep Singh, was held at Parliament House on Tuesday. During the session, Senator Falak Naz expressed concern over the availability of drugs in the Adiala jail as …

ISLAMABAD: As private medical colleges have started charging their fees as per the revised structure, caretaker Health Minister Dr Nadeem Jan has said that the unprecedented increase in the fees is illegal and the ministry will ensure that the decision is reversed. Speaking at a press conference along with caretaker Information Minister Murtaza Solangi at the Press Information Department on …

ISLAMABAD: As a potential candidate of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) went ‘missing’ from Islamabad International Airport after his arrival from abroad on Tuesday, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) issued direction to trace him with the help of CCTV footage. Abdullah Mumtaz Kahloon had filed nomination papers to contest election from PP-76 Sargodha. He was allegedly picked up from the airport despite …

ISLAMABAD: Only seven per cent of the production orders for missing people issued by the Co­mmission of Inquiry on Enfor­ced Disappearances have been implemented, a report submitted by the body to the Supreme Court revealed on Tuesday, even though the commission consumes at least Rs2.2 million in monthly salaries alone. The commission’s report came in response to Jan 3 directions by the …

PTI founder Imran Khan’s appeals against the rejection of his nomination papers for two National Assembly seats, NA-122 (Lahore) and NA-89 (Mianwali), were dismissed on Wednesday. Two separate appellate tribunals upheld the returning officers’ (RO) decision to reject the ex-premier’s nomination papers. The development came on the last day to dispose of appeals filed against acceptance or rejection of nomination …

In a major relief ahead of the February 8 general elections, the Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Wednesday declared “illegal” the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) decision to revoke the PTI’s ‘bat’ electoral symbol and reject its intra-party polls. In the short order, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, the PHC said that the ECP order was “illegal, without any lawful …