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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Former allies of Imran Khan call for government-opposition talks to ease political crisis

ISLAMABAD: A band of onetime leaders from former prime minister Imran Khan’s party joined with other figures on Wednesday to press for face-to-face discussions between the government and opposition to ease the sharp divisions roiling Pakistan’s politics, starting with the freeing of jailed activists as a gesture of good faith.

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Opposition PTI fires back at military over claims of fostering terrorism in key province

ISLAMABAD: The main opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party fired back on Tuesday at accusations from the military’s chief spokesman that its policies in the restive Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province had fostered a surge in terrorism, dismissing the claims as politically motivated and a threat to democratic norms.

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Defence Minister Asif says arms exports tested in India conflict could cut reliance on IMF bailouts

ISLAMABAD: Defence minister Khawaja Asif said on Tuesday that a surge in orders for the country’s fighter jets, spurred by its military performance in a brief but intense conflict with India last year, could soon make international bailouts unnecessary, potentially allowing Islamabad to break free from its longstanding dependence on the International Monetary Fund.

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Imran Khan looms over talks as PTI rejects govt’s call for negotiation among top five leaders

RAWALPINDI: Leaders of the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party on Tuesday dismissed a government proposal for negotiations involving the country’s most powerful figures, insisting that no meaningful dialogue could occur without the direct involvement of their jailed founder, Imran Khan, the former prime minister.

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