Pakistan in talks to swap Saudi loans for JF-17 jets, report

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are negotiating to convert roughly $2 billion in Saudi loans into a deal for JF-17 fighter jets, according to two Pakistani sources with knowledge of the matter, a move that would further cement military ties between the allies just months after they sealed a mutual defence pact, Reuter reported on Wednesday.

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Sindh police, Rangers plan massive operation against riverine bandits

SUKKUR: The provincial Sindh government announced on Wednesday a sweeping offensive against the heavily armed criminal gangs that have long terrorized the marshy riverine areas along the Indus River, vowing to deploy all available resources in a bid to dismantle the networks responsible for kidnappings, extortion and violent assaults.

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Bangladesh in talks with ICC over moving T20 World Cup games from India

LAHORE: The Bangladesh Cricket Board said on Wednesday that it was engaged in discussions with the International Cricket Council to find a “practical” resolution to its request to relocate the country’s group-stage matches in the upcoming T20 World Cup out of India, citing heightened security concerns amid strained diplomatic relations between the two nations.

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Rights lawyer asks Islamabad court to summon military spokesman in social media case

ISLAMABAD: A prominent human rights lawyer and her husband, facing charges of inciting linguistic divisions and maligning the armed forces through social media posts, asked a court in Islamabad on Wednesday to summon the military’s top public relations official as a witness, citing a recent press conference that they said directly touched on their case.

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CM Afridi says secretive security policies deepened suffering in militant-hit KP, seeks voice in counterterrorism strategy

PESHAWAR: The chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province pressed the federal government on Wednesday to overhaul its strategy against militants, insisting that his administration and local leaders be included in policy decisions against militancy to to avoid repeating the hardships endured by residents over the past 17 years.

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