ISLAMABAD: The election authorities ordered local government polls in the country’s most populous province to be held in the last week of December, ending a yearslong delay marked by repeated changes to provincial laws and requests for more time.
Lead
Pakistan revises FY2025 GDP growth Up to 3.04 percent on stronger industry, farming
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s economy expanded faster than previously estimated in the fiscal year through June, driven by upward revisions in industrial and agricultural output, according to official data released on Wednesday.
Military warns India of ‘swift retributive response’ to any aggression
ISLAMABAD The military leadership warned India on Wednesday that any “imaginary new normal” in their fraught bilateral relations would be met with a “new normal of swift retributive response,” escalating tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbors in a fresh exchange of bellicose rhetoric.
Imran Khan orders KP CM Gandapur to resign as PTI rift deepens and terror attacks rise
ISLAMABAD: Ali Amin Gandapur, the chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, said on Wednesday he would resign from his post on the orders of Imran Khan, the imprisoned founder of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, who has tapped provincial assembly member Sohail Afridi as his successor.
Army says 19 militants killed, 11 soldiers martyred in northwest gunbattle
ISLAMABAD: Security forces killed 19 militants in an overnight raid in the restive northwestern district of Orakzai, but the operation came at a heavy cost, with 11 soldiers, including a lieutenant colonel and a major, losing their lives in the fierce exchange of fire, the military said on Wednesday.
Pakistan launches major upgrade to flood warning system as climate threats grow
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Meteorological Department has initiated a sweeping overhaul of its weather forecasting and flood warning infrastructure, aiming to bolster the country’s defences against increasingly severe climate events, state media APP reported on Tuesday.
Regional powers urge no foreign military presence in Afghanistan after US talk of reclaiming Bagram base
ISLAMABAD: Major regional powers including Pakistan, China, Russia, Iran and India issued a joint statement, calling for “no foreign military presence” in Afghanistan, emphasising the need to respect the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity as part of broader efforts to stabilise the region.
US adds Pakistan, Saudi Arabia to new air-to-air missile contract
ISLAMABAD: The US Department of War has included Pakistan and Saudi Arabia in a new contract for the supply of US-made air-to-air missiles, and separately approved a deal to upgrade communications systems on Saudi fighter jets, according to an official statement on its website.
Pakistan to weigh flood impact, IMF review before rate cuts – central bank chief
ISLAMABAD: Further policy rate cuts by Pakistan’s central bank will hinge on the economic impact of recent floods and the results of an ongoing International Monetary Fund review, State Bank of Pakistan Governor Jameel Ahmad said.
Zardari asks Naqvi to defuse rift between PML-N and PPP as coalition strain grows
ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has directed Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi to mediate between the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and its key ally, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), amid a deepening rift that threatens the stability of the coalition government, local media reported on Tuesday.
