Category: 1. Pakistan

DPM/FM Senator Ishaq Dar on Wednesday met with Thailand’s Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa on the sidelines of high-level events during Pakistan’s Presidency of the UN Security Council.

The two leaders expressed satisfaction at the positive momentum in bilateral ties, particularly in cultural and parliamentary exchanges, people-to-people contacts, trade, and tourism, a DPM’s Office news release said.

They agreed to broaden cooperation in a number of areas including food security, fisheries, defense, and regional connectivity.

FM Maris congratulated Pakistan on its UNSC Presidency, and appreciated its contributions to the Council’s work.

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has announce that two flood drains will be constructed in Nankana Sahib to protect local people from devastating torrents.

During a two-and-a-half-hour tour of the city and local villages to review the post-flood situation, she also ordered early completion of roads and other development projects in the district.

She sought a beautification plan for Nankana Sahib within two weeks and ordered the issuance of funds in this regard at the earliest.

The chief minister announced an increase in the number of electric buses for the district, reiterating her commitment to making Nankana Sahib a model city.

She directed local authorities to ensure making of zebra crossings and installation of signboards in front of a school and to control the bread prices.

She ordered deployment of more clinics-on-wheels for Nankana Sahib and improvement of the city’s entrance routes. She also ordered constriction of better service lanes along the city’s main road. She ordered inclusion of Dafar Khokhran and other villages in the Model Village Scheme.

The chief minister visited the flood-affected areas in Jaslani Mor and inspected houses and agricultural land.

Rawalpindi BISE has announced the results of the Matriculation first annual exam 2025 position holders.

The ceremony to announce the overall results will be held on July 24 at Fatima Jinnah Women University. The position holders will be awarded gold medals, silver medals and certificates. Board Chairman Adnan Khan and Controller of Examinations Tanveer Asghra Awan announced the results.

According to the results, Muhammad Usman, a student of Lawrence College Ghora Gali Murree, secured the first position in the board by scoring 1,188 marks out of 1,200. The second position was secured by Bisma Ali, a student of Punjab Secondary Girls School Tillagang, who scored 1,177 marks out of 1200. The third position was secured by Mariyam Shahzadi, a student of Bahria Foundation School Chakwal, who secured 1,175 marks out of 1,200. The three students stood first, second and third in the entire board and were awarded gold medals.

In the Science Group Boys category, Muhammad Usman stood first overall, while Saad Khan of Cadet College Hassan Abdal stood second with 1,172 marks and Ayan Khan of the same college stood third with 1,169 marks. In the Science Group Girls category, Bisma Ali of Punjab Girls Secondary School Talagang stood first with 1,177 marks, Mariyam Shahzadi stood second with 1,175 marks and Adila Ansar of Raja Darul Arqam High School Chakwal stood third with 1,173 marks.

In the General Group Boys category, M Hannan Saeedi of Al-Kausar Islamic Center Fateh Jang stood first with 1,031 marks, M Usman of Hadaibia Educational Complex Chakr Rawalpindi stood second with 983 marks and Muhammad Ahmad of Jamiaul Madina Dhok Kangal stood third with 982 marks.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday said his country was ready for a “meaningful dialogue” with India to resolve all outstanding issues. However, the statement follows a familiar and recurring pattern that has left India deeply sceptical. New Delhi views such peace overtures from Islamabad as part of a well-worn script, historically been followed by betrayal and hostile actions.

Sharif made the remarks during a meeting with British High Commissioner Jane Marriott in Islamabad, where the two discussed regional affairs and bilateral ties. According to an official statement, Sharif “expressed his appreciation for the UK’s role in de-escalation of tensions during the Pakistan-India standoff” and reiterated that “Pakistan was ready for a meaningful dialogue with India on all outstanding issues.”

The comments come in the wake of Operation Sindoor, launched by India on May 7 to target terror and military infrastructure in Pakistan’s territories following the deadly Pahalgam terror attack.  

However, India’s position remains firm: any dialogue must centre around Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and an end to cross-border terrorism. Indian officials have consistently warned against falling into the trap of rhetoric-driven diplomacy from Pakistan that lacks sincerity and follow-through.

A pattern of peace talk offers followed by betrayal

Pakistan’s leadership has a long history of extending olive branches publicly while permitting or orchestrating actions that sabotage the very idea of peace.

1999 Kargil War: Just months after then-Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee visited Lahore in a ground-breaking peace initiative with Nawaz Sharif, Pakistani troops and militants, under the guidance of General Pervez Musharraf infiltrated Indian territory in Kargil, triggering a bloody conflict that cost hundreds of lives.

2001 Agra Summit: After the Kargil betrayal, India cautiously resumed dialogue. But the summit collapsed and in December that year, terrorists from Pakistan attacked the Indian Parliament, a strike that nearly brought the two nations to the brink of war.

2008 Mumbai Attacks: Another major setback came after years of back-channel diplomacy and confidence-building measures. The 26/11 attacks, carried out by Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba operatives, left 166 people dead and shattered any remaining trust.

Post-Uri and Pulwama attacks: In more recent years, terror attacks in Uri (2016) and Pulwama (2019), again linked to Pakistan-based groups, were met with Indian military responses, surgical strikes and airstrikes in Balakot, respectively that further cementing India’s view that engagement with Pakistan has repeatedly been undermined by acts of terror.

India’s cautious stance

The Indian government has been saying unequivocally that talks cannot proceed under the shadow of terrorism. Without visible, verifiable action from Pakistan to dismantle terrorist networks operating from its soil, India remains unwilling to resume any substantive dialogue.

In this context, Sharif’s latest outreach is being viewed in New Delhi not as a genuine diplomatic move but as part of a familiar playbook, one where calls for peace serve as a smokescreen for strategic inaction or deception.

PESHAWAR (Dunya News) – Opposition parties in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have decided to boycott the All Parties Conference (APC) scheduled for tomorrow.

Leader of the Opposition in the Provincial Assembly, Dr Ibadullah Khan, said it is a unanimous decision by all opposition parties.

Dr Ibadullah further remarked that the time for mere statements is over, and practical actions are needed. He called the government’s attitude on every platform regrettably unserious, describing the APC as a mere showpiece event.

He stressed that the opposition remains united and will not compromise on public interests, urging the government to prove its commitment through actions, as an APC alone is insufficient. He added that opposition parties are aligned on a practical plan, with significant decisions expected soon, and political seriousness is essential to resolve public issues.

JUI-F spokesperson Abdul Jalil Jan confirmed that his party will not participate in the PTI’s APC. Following JUI-F’s decision, the Awami National Party (ANP) also refused to attend the conference called by Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, formally excusing themselves.

ANP’s provincial president, Mian Iftikhar Hussain, clarified that they would have participated if the APC was convened by PTI as a political party, but they will not attend a government-organised APC. He emphasised that ANP stands with the public and will not support actions against their aspirations.

Earlier, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) announced a boycott of the provincial government’s APC. PPP provincial president Syed Muhammad Ali Shah Bacha labeled the government as unserious, calling the APC a mere formality.

He noted that if the government were serious, previous discussions on law and order and other issues would have yielded results. Bacha urged the government to focus on public issues instead of protests and sit-ins, confirming that PPP will not attend tomorrow’s APC.

Meanwhile, KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur – who was clueless about why the opposition parties were boycotting it – said the PPP should have participated in the APC as the law and order situation is a problem concerning everyone.

Speaking to the media in Peshawar, Gandapur said that “APC is scheduled for tomorrow, emphasizing that the issue of law and order is a shared concern, and the opposition should not politicise everything.”

Gandapur further remarked that those who manipulated candidate lists for the Senate elections should apologise, noting that only a person of character seeks forgiveness.

QUETTA, Pakistan: A father has shot and killed his teenage daughter and nephew in a so-called “honor killing” in Quetta, the capital of Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province, police said on Wednesday, days after a similar killing sparked outrage across the country.

The incident took place Tuesday evening in the Lashar Abad area along Quetta’s Qambrani Road, and came just days after a viral video showed a young couple being executed in a separate honor killing in

Balochistan’s Digari area in Quetta district. That case, involving a tribal jirga ordering the deaths of a woman and man over an alleged illicit relationship, has drawn widespread condemnation and renewed calls for legal reform.

According to Abdul Majeed, the Station House Officer of Kechi Baig Police Station, the latest victims were identified as Ghulam Qadir, 19, and Nazneen, 18.

“The slain man and woman were cousins and the father, named Abdul Latif, shot and killed both his daughter and nephew inside his house,” Majeed told Arab News. “The girl was from the Lehri tribe and the boy hailed from the Rind tribe.”

The officer said the killings were motivated by accusations of an “illicit relationship” between the pair, adding that the case had been handed over to the Serious Crime Investigation Wing (SCIW) and a search was underway for the father, who was on the run.

The family of the male victim had retrieved his body for burial, but no one from the girl’s family had come forward to claim her, Majeed added. 

Rights groups say honor killings – the murder of individuals, often women, by relatives for allegedly tarnishing family “honor” – remain widespread in Pakistan, particularly in tribal and rural regions. Activists estimate as many as 1,000 deaths a year in the name of so-called honor.

Although Pakistan passed a landmark law in 2016 to close loopholes that once allowed families to “forgive” perpetrators, conviction rates remain extremely low, often below 2 percent, according to UN estimates. 

The recent video from Balochistan, showing the execution-style killing of a couple in the Digari area in Quetta district, reignited public debate over jirga justice and the state’s failure to prevent such crimes.

Police said 11 suspects had been arrested in the Digari case, including two men named in the first information report (FIR) filed by police after the killing.

That attack, caught on video, appeared to show the victims being shot in a mountainous area on the orders of a tribal council.