UNITED NATIONS: The UN aid coordination office (OCHA) warned on Tuesday that Israel’s invasion of the densely populated southern city of Rafah would constitute a war crime. “We, as the UN and member states, can bear witness,” OCHA spokesperson Jens Laerke told journalists. “We can make it clear that under international humanitarian law, indiscriminate bombing of densely populated areas may …

ISLAMABAD: The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet on Wednesday approved Rs10 billion additional funds for cybersecurity and an increase in gas price for two Punjab-based fertiliser plants. A meeting of the ECC, presided over by caretaker Finance Minister Dr Shamshad Akhtar, also asked the defaulting Cnergyico Petroleum Limited (CPL) to clear around Rs50bn unpaid petroleum levy in three …

The death toll in a firework factory explosion in India has risen to 11 and the two owners have been arrested, police said on Wednesday, a day after the devastating blast. District police chief Sanjeev Kumar Kanchan confirmed 11 deaths, while more than 150 people were injured. The fiery blast sent chunks of rock and metal flying far from the destroyed factory …

ISLAMABAD: As many as 3 out of 4 Pakistanis will accept the election results as they would emerge, only seven per cent are not likely to accept the results and 17pc will remain unsure, claims a survey of Ipsos Pakistan Pulse. Titled, Acceptability of 2024 General Elections Results, the survey says that acceptability increases with age and rurality. Sindh and …

ISLAMABAD: The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is scaling up recovery and resilience-building support in order to respond to the acute needs of people affected by the 2022 floods. With the support of the Japanese government and collaboration of Islamic Relief Pakistan, UNDP’s new intervention will support more than 15,000 people in Sindh. “Millions of people in need are left …

KARACHI: Three persons, including a suspected attacker, were killed in a grenade explosion in Haji Leemu Goth in Gulshan-i-Iqbal on Wednesday evening, police said. SSP-East Irfan Bahadur told Dawn that the suspect, identified as 25-year-old Farooq Mirani, was carrying a grenade that exploded in his hand near a shop, killing him, an infant boy and a 16-year-old girl. However, the police were …

ISLAMABAD/RAWALPINDI: On the eve of the general elections, the security in Islamabad and Rawalpindi was further increased to counter any untoward incidents, with additional police officials deployed at entry and exit points of the twin cities. In Islamabad, the threat alert level rose to ‘amber’ on Wednesday, the police said. Their spokesperson added there were five types of security alerts: …

ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has expedited probe against Ghauri Town – the largest illegal housing society in the capital – and has approached the Capital Development Authority (CDA) for details in this regard. Through a letter, NAB sought details from the relevant CDA officials who failed to stop the unauthorised growth of the housing scheme. The letter dated …

LAHORE: Pakistan is witnessing a surge in online child sexual abuse material (CSAM) as it has been among the top three countries in the world in recent years regarding the number of reports on such material online that leads to the rise in the number of child abuse cases in the country. According to the data of the National Center …

PESHAWAR: As Khyber Pakhtunkhwa goes to the polls today (Thursday) following a surge in terrorist attacks, over 100,000 personnel of law-enforcement agencies have been deployed at polling stations across the province, reveal official documents. Election will be held for 44 national and 113 provincial assembly seats in KP as polling has been put off by the Election Commission of Pakistan …