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  • Processions underway across Pakistan amid tight security as mobile services remains disabled

    Processions underway across Pakistan amid tight security as mobile services remains disabled

    Ashura Muharram processions are being held nationwide today to commemorate the great sacrifice of Hazrat Imam Hussain (RA) and Karbala martyrs.

    On the day of Hazrat Hussain’s (RA) martyrdom in Karbala by the Yazidi army, funeral gatherings are being organised in various cities, and processions are being conducted.

    Stringent security arrangements have been implemented across the country, with mobile phone services also shut down in many cities.

    Karachi:

    The main procession of 10th Muharram started from Nishtar Park in Karachi and is proceeding along its traditional route, passing through MA Jinnah Road, Tibet Center, and concluding at Hussainia Iranian Kharadar.

    Mobile phone services are disrupted in several areas of the city today, and there is a prohibition on double riding of motorcycles, display of weapons, use of helicams, and flying drones in the city.

    Lahore:

    The main Ashura Day procession in Lahore commenced from Nisar Haveli within Mochi Gate and will culminate at Karbala Game Shah this evening.

    Mobile phone services will remain suspended today only in procession and assembly areas throughout Punjab.

    Peshawar:

    Twelve processions have been initiated from different Imam Bargahs in Peshawar, with the first procession commencing from Imam Bargah Syed Ali Shah Rizvi.

    Security for the processions involves 14,000 deployed police officers, bomb disposal units clearing procession routes, and closure of cellular and mobile phone services along all procession routes.

    Quetta:

    In Quetta, mobile phone services are suspended, and double riding of motorcycles is prohibited. The main procession will follow designated routes and conclude at Imam Bargah Hazara Nasirabad before Maghrib prayer.

    Islamabad:

    The main Ashura Day procession in Islamabad began from Imambargah Colonel Maqbool and will conclude at Imambargah Al-Padiq following designated routes.

    In Rawalpindi, the Ashura Day procession started from Imambargah Ashiq Hussain Teli Mohalla, with partial suspension of mobile phone services in surrounding areas.

    Mobile phone and internet services have been shut down in Muzaffarabad on Ashura Day.

  • Pakistan will visit New Zealand next year for white ball series

    Pakistan will visit New Zealand next year for white ball series

    The Pakistan cricket team will visit New Zealand next year for a white-ball series, during which they will play 5 T20Is and 3 ODIs.

    New Zealand Cricket has released the white ball series schedule against Pakistan.

    The white ball series between Pakistan and New Zealand will occur from March 16 to April 5 2025. The first T20 of the series will be played in Christchurch on March 16, followed by the second in Dunedin on March 18.

    The third T20I will be played in Auckland on March 21, the fourth in Tauranga on March 23 and the fifth T20I in Wellington on March 26.

    The ODI series will be played in Napier, Hamilton and Tauranga on March 29, April 2 and April 5.

    Cricket New Zealand also confirmed they are playing the Champions Trophy in Pakistan in their season schedule.

    Apart from this, New Zealand also confirmed the tri-nation tournament in Multan before the Champions Trophy.

  • Five detectives, two dogs get abducted while searching for thief

    Five detectives, two dogs get abducted while searching for thief

    Five detectives searching for a thief were abducted in Tank district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa along with two sniffer dogs.

    According to the police, the abduction occurred in Malazai, a suburb of Tank. The kidnappers have demanded a ransom of 100 million rupees for the release of the hostages.

    DPO Tank Abdul Salam Khalid told Geo News that a person named Noor Ali had hired a private company from Kohat to investigate a petty robbery incident at a house.

    The team, along with two Khoji dogs, were abducted by unknown armed men when they were on their way to Kohat after the investigation.

    Among the hostages, Shoaib Khan, Rafiullah, and Rais Khan belong to Kirk, while Shahid Aziz Bhatti and Majid Ali Okara are residents of Punjab.

    According to the DPO, the investigation team was called without informing the police, who have now started investigating the incident.

  • BBC slammed for misleading headline about Israeli army dogs attacking Palestinian man

    BBC slammed for misleading headline about Israeli army dogs attacking Palestinian man

    British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), known for its support of Israeli war crimes, is yet again under fire for a misleading headline that portrayed the killing of a Palestinian man with Down’s Syndrome as a “lonely death”.” In contrast, he died after being attacked by a dog trained by the Israeli Defence Forces.

    The details of the report outline Mohammed Bhar’s killing. His mother told BBC that he was left to die by Israeli soldiers after being brutally attacked by the IDF’s dog. His parents later found his decomposed body on the street.

    However, the caption on X said, “The lonely death of Gaza man with Down’s Syndrome.”

    Netizens lambasted the choice of words, morphing the whole incident into a mere lonely death instead of a murder.

    A user quoted Middle East Eye for its appropriate headline, saying, “Gaza: Palestinian with Down syndrome ‘left to die ‘ by Israeli soldiers after combat dog attack.” The tweet read, “This is the headline a real news organisation would write. Why would you try to sanitise a brutal attack on a disabled man?”

    Another user stressed that BBC is not a credible source anymore because it avoids at all cost to hold Israel accountable. “An embarrassment for a national broadcaster,” he asserted.

    This is not a lonely death; it is a violent murder, another user emphasized.

    “You mean he was separated from his family, deliberately mauled by an IDF attack dog within earshot of them and left to die. His parents found his decomposing body later. That’s called murder,” a user named Natalie Holme Elsberg tweeted.

    In one of the responses, BBC was criticised for the choice of words. “Lonely? Strange adjective to describe the death of someone who was murdered by an armed gang.”

  • Man cuts buffalo’s tongue for eating his fodder

    Man cuts buffalo’s tongue for eating his fodder

    An owner of a loader rickshaw cut off a buffalo’s tongue for eating fodder from his rickshaw, reports Geo.

    The incident took place on July 15 in a village near Shahpur City. The culprit has been identified as Bilal.

    As per the details shared by the police, Bilal was putting fodder in his loader rickshaw when a buffalo started eating it. He got enraged and cut its tongue off.
    A case has been registered against the suspect at the request of the buffalo owner. Bilal has been arrested. Meanwhile, DPO Sargodha has ordered an investigation and sought a report.

    The Livestock Department also conducted a medical examination of the buffalo, which confirmed that its tongue had been bitten.

  • World’s rarest whale washes up on New Zealand beach

    World’s rarest whale washes up on New Zealand beach

    The remains of the obscure, five-metre (16.4 foot) long, beaked creature were found near a river mouth in southern Otago province on July 4, government researchers said.

    It was identified by marine-mammal experts from New Zealand’s Department of Conservation and the national museum, Te Papa, as a male spade-toothed whale.

    A DNA investigation has been launched to confirm its classification, the scientists said.

    “Spade-toothed whales are one of the most poorly known large mammalian species of modern times,” said the conservation department’s coastal Otago operations manager, Gabe Davies.

    “Since the 1800s, only six samples have ever been documented worldwide, and all but one of these was from New Zealand,” Davies said in a statement Monday.

    “From a scientific and conservation point of view, this is huge.”

    The find was fresh enough to offer the first opportunity for a spade-toothed whale to be dissected, the conservation department said.

    The species is “so rare next to nothing is known about them”, it said.

    Since the spade-toothed whale was first described in 1874, just six samples have been documented worldwide © Handout / New Zealand Department of Conservation/AFP

    ‘International importance’

    The body of the whale has been placed in cold storage and genetic samples have been sent to the University of Auckland as curators of the New Zealand Cetacean Tissue Archive.

    It may take several weeks or months for the DNA to be processed and a final identification confirmed.

    “The rarity of the whale means conversations around what to do next will take more time because it is a conversation of international importance,” the conservation department said.

    The species was first described in 1874 from just a lower jaw and two teeth collected from the Chatham Islands off the east coast of New Zealand.

    That sample, along with skeletal remains of two other specimens found in New Zealand and Chile, enabled scientists to confirm a new species.

    Marine scientist Vanessa Pirotta said researchers would study the whale’s stomach contents, genetics, and how this sample compared to previous ones.

    This could shine light on the whales’ behaviour, their population and why they are so rare, Pirotta told AFP, describing the discovery as “like hitting the jackpot”.

    Because so few specimens have been found and there have been no live sightings, little is known about the spade-toothed whale and it is classified as “data deficient” under New Zealand’s Threat Classification System.

    The first intact specimen was from a mother and calf stranding in Bay of Plenty in 2010, the New Zealand conservation department said.

    A further stranding in 2017 in Gisborne added one more specimen to the collection.

  • Meera wants to work with Fawad Khan again?

    Meera wants to work with Fawad Khan again?

    Meera, our absolute favourite Lollywood diva, never fails to shock and intrigue with her revelations and attention grabbing behavior.  

    During the interview the host Ambreen Fatima asked, “When will we get to see Meera alongside Fawad Khan?”

    Meera said, “There’s a lot of talk going on about Fawad Khan, but it depends on the director’s decision. If I’m alive, I’ll definitely work with him if the opportunity arises.”

    Fawad Khan has starred in dramas like Humsafar, Zindagi Gulzar Hai, and Dastaan. He also worked in films like The Legend of Maula Jatt, Khoobsurat, Ae Dil Mukshil, and Money Back Guarantee. Fawad’s upcoming series Barzakh will air on Zee Zindagi on July 19.

  • IMF deal to improve Pakistan’s financial outlook, but continuous reforms are essential: Moody’s

    IMF deal to improve Pakistan’s financial outlook, but continuous reforms are essential: Moody’s

    Moody’s Investors Service has stated that Pakistan’s recent staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) enhances the nation’s funding prospects.

    However, the global rating agency stressed the necessity of sustained reforms to mitigate liquidity risks.

    On 12 July, Pakistani authorities and the IMF reached a staff-level agreement on a 37-month Extended Fund Facility (EFF) worth approximately $7 billion. This agreement still awaits approval from the IMF Executive Board, with no specific date set for the vote.

    Moody’s commented that once the loan deal is approved, which is highly anticipated, it will significantly boost Pakistan’s funding prospects. The new IMF program is expected to provide reliable financing from the IMF and attract additional funding from other bilateral and multilateral partners, addressing Pakistan’s external financing needs.

    Nonetheless, Moody’s cautioned that the government’s ability to consistently implement reforms will be crucial to maintaining continuous financial support throughout the IMF program, ultimately reducing liquidity risks.

    The new IMF EFF requires Pakistan to undertake extensive reforms, including broadening the tax base, eliminating exemptions, timely managing and privatising energy enterprises, phasing out agricultural support prices and related subsidies, advancing anti-corruption measures, enhancing governance and transparency, and gradually liberalising trade policy.

    Moody’s also warned that rising social tensions, driven by the high cost of living—which could be exacerbated by increased taxes and future energy tariff adjustments—might hinder reform implementation. Furthermore, the coalition government may struggle to maintain sufficient electoral support to implement these challenging reforms consistently.

    An IMF report published in May highlighted Pakistan’s external financing needs, estimated at $21 billion for fiscal year 2025 (ending June 2025) and approximately $23 billion for fiscal years 2026-2027.

    Moody’s noted that Pakistan’s external position remains precarious, with substantial external financing requirements over the next three to five years.

    The country remains vulnerable to policy slippages, weak governance, and high social tensions, which could impair the government’s ability to advance reforms, complete IMF program reviews, and secure external financing.

  • PTI’s Sanam Javed moved to KP House on Gandapur’s orders

    PTI’s Sanam Javed moved to KP House on Gandapur’s orders

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) loyalist Sanam Javed who was arrest last year in cases related to May 9 riots, has been shifted to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa House in Islamabad on KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur’s orders, the CM’s spokesperson confirmed on Tuesday.

    Javed was recently released from prison but was soon arrested by Islamabad Police in yet another case again. Morever, a new case has been lodged against in Balochistan.

    Yar Muhammad Khan Niazi, the focal person to CM KP, stated, “KP CM was in touch with Javaid’s father and husband,” adding that the PTI activist along with her family would remain at the KP House in the federal capital.

    His remarks came after Sanam got relief in her months-long legal problems after the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday ordered her release and stopped the police from arresting her.

  • 8 soldies martyred in Bannu Cantonment attack; 10 terrorists eliminated

    8 soldies martyred in Bannu Cantonment attack; 10 terrorists eliminated

    Pakistan military’s media wing Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) released a statement today about a foiled terroist attack at Bannu Cantonment in which at least eight Pakistan Army soldiers embraced martyrdom.

    The ISPR said that the terrorists attacked the Bannu Cantonment in the early hours of July 15, but their attempt to enter the facility was effectively thwarted by the security forces personnel.

    Following their failure to enter the premises, the militants rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into the perimeter wall of the cantonment, said the ISPR.

    Ten militants were killed in the attack while the attack was carried out by the Hafiz Gul Bahadur group of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) operating from Afghanistan, according to military’s media wing.