ISLAMABAD: Pakistan LNG Limited has invited international suppliers to bid for three liquefied natural gas cargoes in its first spot tender since December 2023, as the country scrambles to address acute energy shortfalls triggered by the US-Israeli war on Iran and a resulting blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
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At least nine killed as militants storm copper-gold mining site in in restive Balochistan province
QUETTA: At least nine people were killed on Wednesday evening when dozens of armed militants stormed a copper and gold exploration site in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province, officials said, the latest strike by ethnic separatist groups against the region’s mining industry.
No PTI leaders arrive for court-approved visit with Imran Khan at Adiala jail, deepening talk of party divisions
ISLAMABAD: Not a single leader from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf turned up Thursday at Adiala jail outside the capital for a court-authorised meeting with the party’s founder and former prime minister, Imran Khan, in the latest sign of apparent disarray within the opposition movement.
Pakistan accuses India of reviving ‘false narrative’ over 2025 Kashmir attack on its anniversary
ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office on Thursday denounced what it called a renewed Indian campaign of “baseless allegations and propaganda” tying Islamabad to the terrorist attack that killed 26 people in the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir exactly one year earlier, describing the accusations as an attempt to distract from New Delhi’s own policies in the long-contested territory.
Trump orders US Navy to fire on Iranian boats laying mines in Strait of Hormuz, escalating tensions despite fragile truce
ISLAMABAD: President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he has directed the US Navy to “shoot and kill” any Iranian vessels attempting to lay mines in the Strait of Hormuz, a dramatic escalation that risks unraveling a tenuous cease-fire between the United States and Iran even as both sides maneuver for leverage in stalled peace talks.
A Risky Bet on Iranian Collapse
President Donald Trump’s decision to extend the US-Iran ceasefire indefinitely was presented as a gesture of strategic patience. Iran, he said, was “seriously fractured,” financially collapsing, and unable to produce a unified negotiating position. The naval blockade would stay in place as leverage. Vice President JD Vance’s bags were already packed for a second round of talks in Islamabad; the trip was quietly cancelled. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt was more blunt: Iran is in a “very weak position,” the cards are in Trump’s hands, and the president will decide when — or whether — the war ends. It is a high-risk gamble dressed up as strength. The ceasefire extension buys time, but it also entrenches a volatile limbo — no war, no peace, no talks — in which both sides are doubling down on postures that make compromise harder. Iran’s military parades, missile displays, and ship seizures in the Strait of Hormuz are not signs of a regime about to crumble. They are calculated signals that Tehran will not negotiate under the gun. Trump’s blockade and open-ended truce are not masterstrokes of leverage. They are a bet that economic pain will force Iranian pragmatists to override hardliners — a bet that history suggests often backfires.
Trump and Pakistani officials see possible US-Iran talks as soon as Friday, even as Tehran seizes ships in Hormuz
ISLAMABAD: President Donald Trump and Pakistani officials signaled on Wednesday that “good news” on a second round of direct US-Iran negotiations could emerge within 36 to 72 hours, potentially as soon as Friday, raising cautious hopes for a diplomatic off-ramp even as Iran’s Revolutionary Guard seized two container ships in the Strait of Hormuz and the United States maintained its naval blockade of Iranian ports.
Sindh scraps contractor for key stretch of Karachi’s long-delayed Red Line bus project, orders emergency rebid
KARACHI: The Sindh provincial government has terminated the construction contract for a crucial segment of the long-troubled Red Line Bus Rapid Transit project along University Road and will re-award the work on an emergency basis, Senior Minister Sharjeel Memon said on Wednesday.
Pakistan accuses India of staging Kashmir tourist massacre on anniversary of attack that nearly sparked war
ISLAMABAD: Information minister Ataullah Tarar accused India on Wednesday of still failing to produce any credible evidence linking Islamabad to last year’s deadliest attack in the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir, repeating Pakistan’s charge that the assault was a “false flag” operation orchestrated by New Delhi to justify military escalation against its neighbour.
Pakistan advances one-window airport system with e-gates to slash wait times
ISLAMABAD: The government is advancing plans for a unified “one-window” clearance system at its airports, combining immigration, security and customs checks into a single process powered by e-gates and advanced scanners in an effort to cut passenger wait times and ease chronic congestion.