The scenes from this Christmas in India were hard to ignore, and they point to a troubling shift under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In Uttar Pradesh, the country’s biggest state, crowds of Hindu activists showed up at churches right as Christmas Eve services got underway. They shouted “Death to Christian missionaries” and blasted Hindu chants to throw everything off. This wasn’t just some random flare-up; it fit into a larger wave of trouble for Christians, who make up only a sliver of the population.
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Four policemen martyred in motorcycle ambushes in troubled Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
PESHAWAR: Four police officers were killed in two separate ambushes by unidentified gunmen in the restive province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Sunday, officials said, adding to a grim toll of attacks on law enforcement amid a surge in militant violence that has plagued Pakistan’s border regions since the Taliban regained control in neighboring Afghanistan.
After player snub in India, Bangladesh presses for World Cup games in Sri Lanka
LAHORE: Bangladesh’s government said on Sunday that it would seek to have its team’s matches in next month’s T20 World Cup moved from India to Sri Lanka, escalating a diplomatic row over cricket that has deepened amid strained political ties between the two neighbors.
Former members of Imran Khan’s party seek national dialogue to break political deadlock
ISLAMABAD: A group of former leaders from the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party announced plans to convene a multi-party conference in the capital next week, aiming to foster dialogue among rival factions and chart a path out of the country’s deepening political divisions.
Pakistan’s top diplomat reaches Beijing for strategic talks with China
ISLAMABAD: Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar reached Beijing on Saturday for high-level talks with his Chinese counterpart, aiming to deepen the longstanding alliance between the two nations amid a backdrop of regional tensions and economic challenges.
A war of words resurfaces as Pakistan and India clash over terrorism and water treaty
ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office on Saturday sharply dismissed remarks by India’s external affairs minister, S. Jaishankar, as “irresponsible assertions,” accusing New Delhi of trying to shift blame for its own support of terrorism and its destabilising actions in the region.
Pakistan Air Force successfully tests indigenous cruise missile
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Air Force has successfully tested an indigenously developed air-launched cruise missile called Taimoor, military officials said on Saturday, hailing the achievement as a major step toward bolstering the nation’s defence capabilities amid rising regional tensions.
Pakistan grants Bangladesh carrier Karachi flight rights amid thawing ties
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has given Bangladesh’s national airline permission to start flights between Dhaka and Karachi, marking a fresh step in rebuilding relations between the two nations more than five decades after their bitter split.
Pakistan plans $5 billion Roosevelt Hotel redevelopment in New York joint venture
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is pushing ahead with plans to transform its shuttered Roosevelt Hotel in midtown Manhattan into a high-rise tower through a joint venture that could involve as much as $5 billion in equity and debt financing, according to a top government official.
Pakistan maps Rs472 billion in off-budget risks from public-private projects
ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Finance has rolled out its inaugural framework to monitor fiscal risks tied to public-private partnerships (PPP), revealing that contingent liabilities and guarantees from such projects expose the public sector to about Rs472.3 billion in potential payouts.