Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: An event held to mark the International Day of Enforced Disappearances on Tuesday rang out with calls to introduce legislation to ensure that limits were imposed on state institutions, and former lawmakers and activists demanded that laws that lay down boundaries for the functioning of intelligence agencies should be introduced. A large number of human rights activists, politicians and …

QUETTA / SWAT: Hund­reds of people were stran­ded on Quetta-Sukkur N-65 Highway after two vital bridges were closed due to damage to their structure. Up north, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa, who visited the flood-hit areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Swat district on Tuesday, blamed constructions along river banks for the devastation caused by floods. The Bibi …

ISLAMABAD: After spending $7.5 million and reaching out to 777,667 people to provide a humanitarian response, international non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have been facing restrictions in carrying out relief activities in affected districts. While Pakistan has asked the United Nations to launch a global appeal to cope with devastating floods, the authorities are still not giving permission to INGOs already operating …

ISLAMABAD: The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), a sexual and reproductive health agency, has painted a bleak picture of women affected by the unprecedented floods as it said that at least 650,000 pregnant women, of whom 73,000 are expected to deliver next month, in the flood-affected areas are in dire need of maternal health service. The UN agency also warned …

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday granted PTI chairman Imran Khan another chance to submit a “well-considered” response in the contempt proceedings initiated against him for his controversial remarks about district and sessions judge Zeba Chaudhry, who had approved his chief of staff, Shahbaz Gill’s physical remand in a sedition case. The former prime minister was summoned by the court in …

The death toll from the devastating floods soared to 1,162 on Wednesday as flood waters which came from the north began to breach banks and affected more than a million people in Sindh’s Dadu district. According to the daily report by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), more than 3,500 people have been injured so far since June 14. Around …

The United Nations and the Pakistani government issued a flash appeal on Tuesday for $160 million on Tuesday to help the country cope with catastrophic floods that have killed more than 1,100 people, destroyed infrastructure and crops, and affected 33 million people. The funds will provide 5.2 million people with food, water, sanitation, emergency education, protection and health support, UN …

KARACHI: Leader of the Opposition in the Sindh Assembly Haleem Adil Sheikh was taken into custody by the Anti-Encroachment Force (AEF) minutes after he was released on bail by prison authorities in a terrorism case. Mr Sheikh, also a leader of the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf, was shown arrested in a second land grabbing case by AEF authorities. Mr Sheikh’s dramatic …

ISLAMABAD: The Islam­abad High Court (IHC) on Monday lifted a ban on the live coverage of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Chair­man Imran Khan’s spee­ches, observing that the Pak­is­tan Electronic Media Regula­tory Authority (Pemra) invo­ked wrong sections of the law while prohibiting the broadcast. On Aug 20, while addressing a public gathering in Islamabad to express solidarity with party leader Shahbaz Gill, who is …

QUETTA: Taking strict notice of misinformation on social media regarding the breach of a dam near Quetta, Balochistan Chief Minister Abdul Qudoos Bizenjo has ordered an inquiry to identify the source of the news that panicked citizens late Saturday night. Upon the chief minister’s orders, the Home and Tribal Affairs Department has constituted a fact-finding committee headed by a Quetta …