KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) is working with 25 banks to facilitate 50 cattle markets across the country for payment through QR codes that may attract up to Rs550 billion as the estimated price of sacrificial animals. A Quick Response (QR) code payment is a form of contactless payment. A QR code is a scannable barcode containing horizontal and …

BEIJING: China’s military carried out a second day of war games around Taiwan on Friday, with drills to test its ability to “seize power” and control key areas in exercises Beijing has said were launched to punish Taiwan’s new president, Lai Ching-te. The two days of drills around groups of Taiwan-controlled islands near the Chinese coast, which a Taiwanese official said included the …

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will visit China in the first week of next month to join formal launching of the second phase of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC-II). A source in the Prime Minister’s Office told that PM Shehbaz was scheduled to leave for China on June 4, but the date of visit could slightly be changed. Infrastructure and energy …

PARIS: The West wants to dig into Moscow’s pockets to provide aid to Ukraine, but tapping frozen Russian assets is not that simple. The complex issue is on the agenda at this week’s meeting of finance ministers of the Group of Seven wealthy democracies. The United States initially supported seizing the frozen Russian assets outright, but it now backs the European …

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Sri Lanka have agreed to take immediate steps to facilitate return of prisoners of each country to their homeland. The move, which would bring 43 Pakistani citizens back to their homes from Siri Lankan jails, was part of an understanding reached at a meeting of High Commissioner of Sri Lanka, Admiral (Retd) Ravindra Chandra Srivijay Gunaratne with …

YEREVAN: Armenia has returned to Azerbaijan four border villages it seized decades ago, the countries confirmed on Friday, a key step toward normalising ties between the historic rivals. The move, which has sparked protracted protests in Armenia, is an important step towards reaching a comprehensive peace agreement after years of fruitless talks mediated by Russia and Western countries. The Caucasus countries, both …

TEHRAN: Iran’s army has so far found no evidence of suspicious activity in a helicopter crash that killed the country’s president Ebrahim Raisi and seven others, state media reported. President Raisi, 63, along with his entourage died on Sunday after his helicopter went down in the country’s mountainous northwest while returning from a dam inauguration on the border with Azerbaijan. “No bullet …

CAIRO: Israeli forces stepped up military strikes on Gaza on Friday, with planes bombing targets in the southern city of Rafah even after the UN’s top court ordered Tel Aviv to halt its offensive there. Heavy fighting was also reported in Jabalia, in the north, where Israel’s military said it had recovered the bodies of three prisoners killed during the Hamas raids …

ISLAMABAD: Supporters of the Palestinian cause on Friday hailed the ICJ verdict ordering Israel to halt its military operation in Rafah, as Pakistan called on the international community to immediately implement the world court’s decision to stop Israeli aggression in Gaza. In a statement issued after the ruling, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif paid tribute to the courage of the 13 judges who …

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Friday rejected a fresh order by the Indian Sup­reme Court, which upheld its earlier ruling that endorsed the Modi government’s unilateral decision to revoke the special status of held Kashmir by abrogating Article 370 of the Constitution. “We reject the fresh order of the Indian Sup­reme Court just as we had rejected the earlier order of December …