ISLAMABAD: For a fixture that nobody particularly wants to play and even fewer particularly want to watch, England and France contrived something that will be remembered long after the World Cup final has faded from view. The third-place play-off, that unloved coda to the tournament, produced 10 goals, two contrasting halves and a finish so breathless that both benches seemed almost relieved when the referee finally blew for time.
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US reports first combat deaths; Iran says ceasefire over as war enters seventh night
ISLAMABAD: For the seventh straight night, American warplanes and warships struck targets across Iran on Saturday, and Iran struck back at US allies across the Persian Gulf, as the region’s fragile ceasefire dissolved further into what officials on both sides now describe as a return to open war.
Pakistan defends daily fuel pricing, says formula-based system will curb windfall gains
ISLAMABAD: The petroleum minister defended a shift to daily fuel-price adjustments at a meeting with industry stakeholders Saturday, a day after diesel prices jumped by more than 31 rupees a liter and provincial authorities in Sindh warned of fuel hoarding tied to the volatility.
Pakistan warns Iran Houthi attacks on Saudi are ‘red line’ – report
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s civilian and military leadership has delivered a blunt warning to Iran at the highest levels of government: Any further Houthi missile strikes on Saudi Arabia will be treated as an attack on Pakistan itself, Reuters reported on Saturday.
Families of 27 slain police officers end Quetta sit-in after Balochistan agrees to judicial probe
QUETTA: The families of 27 police officers slaughtered by militants in one of the deadliest attacks on the security forces in years ended a 10-day sit-in here on Saturday, after the Balochistan government agreed to their central demand: an independent judicial inquiry into how the ambush was allowed to happen.
Security forces foil Wana suicide bombing, kill wanted TTP commander in DI Khan
WANA: Security forces destroyed an explosives-laden vehicle bound for a suicide attack in this South Waziristan town Saturday, killing one militant and wounding five others in an operation officials said prevented what could have been a mass-casualty bombing.
Lawyer accuses judicial commission of rigged appointments, names veteran advocate to lead new movement
ISLAMABAD: A committee representing legal profession on Saturday accused the country’s top judicial appointment body of running what it called a “horse trading” operation, and named a veteran advocate who once led a landmark 2007 protest movement to head a fresh campaign against the practice.
Pakistan renews airspace ban, extending India flight restrictions to Aug. 24
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has once again extended its ban on Indian aircraft entering its airspace, aviation officials said on Saturday, keeping in place a restriction that has now stretched, with monthly renewals, across more than a year of strained relations between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.
Pakistan’s foreign financing nears $27 billion as economy stays dependent on rollovers
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan took on $16.2 billion in fresh foreign loans in the fiscal year through June, more than the government borrowed a year earlier, as a widening trade gap and weak foreign investment left Islamabad reliant on Gulf and Chinese creditors to keep its finances afloat.
Czech climber dies in fall during expedition in Karakoram range, second fatality of season
ISLAMABAD: A 46-year-old Czech mountaineer died on Thursday during an expedition in Pakistan’s Karakoram range, the Czech Foreign Ministry confirmed, becoming the second climber to die this season in the mountains that draw hundreds of foreign expeditions each summer.