Pakistan

24 Jan 2022; MEMO: Pakistani police have asked Iranian authorities to help arrest three Pakistani citizens suspected of killing a Saudi diplomat in Karachi in 2011. The suspects are thought to be hiding in Iran.

Hassan Al-Qahtani, an employee of the Saudi consulate in Karachi, was killed in 2011 when gunmen opened fire on his car in the city's Defence Housing Authority neighbourhood.

Islamabad, Jan 22 (PTI) In a move aimed at placating its all-weather ally China, Pakistan in a "goodwill gesture" will pay USD 11.6 million in compensation to the 36 Chinese nationals working on a major hydropower project who either died or were injured in a terrorist attack in the restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province last year.

ISLAMABAD, Jan 21 (NNN-APP) – Pakistan reported 7,678 new COVID-19 cases over the past 24 hours, the highest number of fresh cases in a day, since the pandemic started in the country in 2020, the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) said today.

The overall tally of the infected people climbed to 1,353,479 across the country, said the NCOC, the department leading Pakistan’s campaign against the pandemic.

LAHORE, Pakistan, Jan 21 (Reuters) - The deaths of 23 tourists in their cars during a blizzard in Pakistan earlier this month were caused by government failures including delays in moving snow ploughs and a lack of warnings to people that harsh weather was coming, an inquiry has found.

The tourists were stranded in the hill resort of Murree, 64 km (40 miles) northeast of the capital Islamabad, where thousands of families had flocked to enjoy the snow. 

ISLAMABAD, Jan 19 (APP): Pakistan’s High Commissioner in London Moazzam Ahmad Khan Wednesday held the 12th virtual ‘Khuli Katchehry’ with the British Pakistani community.

It was attended by a large number of diaspora members.

The high commissioner redressed the issues pertaining to the NICOPs, POCs, passports and property matters in Pakistan.

He also assured the community members that their complaints would be taken up with the authorities concerned in Pakistan.

ISLAMABAD, Jan 19 (NNN-APP) – Two terrorists were killed during an exchange of fire with security forces, in Pakistan’s north-west Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, an army statement said, yesterday.

The security forces conducted an intelligence-based operation, on the reported presence of terrorists in North Waziristan tribal district of the province, the military’s media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations said, in a statement.

Weapons and ammunition were also recovered from the killed terrorists, said the statement.

ISLAMABAD, Jan 18 (APP): Prime Minister Imran Khan Tuesday telephoned Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan and condemned the heinous terrorist attack by Houthi militia on civil facilities in the UAE.

The prime minister affirmed Pakistan’s solidarity with the UAE and rejection of any threat to the security and sovereignty of the Emirates, UAE’s official news agency WAM reported.

He also offered his condolences for the victims of these attacks and wished a speedy recovery for the injured.

Islamabad, Jan 13 (PTI) Pakistan's National Assembly Thursday passed the controversial Finance (Supplementary) Bill, also called the "mini-budget" despite stiff resistance by the opposition parties.

The bill aimed to raise more taxes and duties and to empower the central bank were tabled on December 30 by the government to fulfill a key condition by the International Monetary Fund to approve USD 1 billion under the USD 6 billion Extended Fund Facility.

ISLAMABAD, Jan 12 (APP): Pakistan on Wednesday strongly condemned the hijacking of the UAE-flagged cargo vessel “Rawabi” by the Houthis near the port city of Hodeidah, Yemen.

“Such blatant acts not only threaten the freedom of maritime navigation but also endanger international trade and security of the region,” the Foreign Office spokesperson said in a statement.

Expressing Pakistan’s solidarity with the UAE, the spokesperson called for the immediate release of the vessel and its crew.

06 Jan 2022; MEMO: The first train carrying goods from Pakistan to Turkey arrived in Istanbul yesterday, completing the first such journey in a decade.

The Islamabad-Tehran-Istanbul (ITI) cargo train – made up of eight wagons with a capacity of 22 tonnes – started its journey from Islamabad on 21 December and travelled 5,981 kilometres. It is hoped the new link will boost trade between the three countries.