ISLAMABAD: The country observed its annual Pakistan Day on Monday with the patriotic fervor that has long defined the holiday, but this year’s ceremonies were deliberately modest, stripped of the usual military parade and large-scale pageantry in line with government austerity measures imposed because of the global oil crisis.
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PM Sharif urges Iran and Gulf neighbours to return to dialogue as US postpones strikes on Iranian power plants
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday pressed Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian for an immediate collective effort to de-escalate the widening Middle East conflict, warning that the fourth week of war had created a “grave situation” requiring urgent dialogue among neighbours and renewed unity across the Muslim world.
Archaeologists uncover evidence of developed city walls centuries earlier than thought at Mohenjo-daro
KARACHI: Fresh excavations at Mohenjo-daro, one of the largest and most enigmatic cities of the ancient Indus Valley Civilisation, have confirmed an earlier chapter of organised urban life there than scholars had previously established, Pakistani authorities said on Sunday.
Pakistan shifts to targeted fuel relief and demand curbs as Iran conflict threatens supplies through April
ISLAMABAD: The government is preparing to limit fuel subsidies to only the neediest while ramping up conservation and demand-management steps, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said, as global oil prices climb on supply risks from the US-Israeli war on Iran.
Jailed Imran Khan accuses judiciary of failing to deliver justice and decries wife’s isolation
ISLAMABAD: Imprisoned former prime minister Imran Khan has criticised the judiciary, saying it has failed to ensure justice despite multiple approaches by his party, according to a message relayed by his son after a phone call permitted during the Eid holiday.
Pakistan hikes premium gasoline levy by Rs200 a liter to raise Rs9 billion monthly for public relief
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif approved an immediate increase of Rs200 a litre in the levy on high-octane blending component, or HOBC, the premium gasoline used in luxury and high-performance vehicles, shifting more of the fiscal burden from the national budget to higher-income consumers as global oil prices surge.
PM Sharif rejects fresh fuel-price increase on Eid eve, govt to absorb Rs69 billion burden amid Gulf oil shock
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said his government will shoulder the full cost of a fresh surge in international oil prices rather than pass it on to consumers, absorbing an additional Rs69 billion in subsidies to prevent petrol and high-speed diesel from rising as much as Rs127 and Rs252 a liter respectively.
PM Sharif presses for de-escalation in widening Middle East war during Eid calls with leaders from Azerbaijan to Lebanon
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday held a series of telephone conversations with leaders across the Muslim world, using the occasion of Eid al-Fitr to exchange greetings while pressing for an immediate de-escalation of the escalating conflict in the Middle East.
Sindh arrests 5 members of banned Baloch group, foils plot to bomb Karachi railway tracks
KARACHI: Counterterrorism authorities in the southern Sindh province arrested five members of a banned Baloch separatist outfit on Friday, disrupting what officials described as an imminent attack on railway infrastructure in this major port city.
Pakistan rejects Afghan Taliban claims of Eid ceasefire violation, warns of swift resumption of strikes
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Friday dismissed as “frivolous” and “absolutely false” Afghan Taliban accusations that it had violated a temporary pause in cross-border hostilities during the Eid al-Fitr holiday, while issuing a blunt warning that any act of terrorism, cross-border attack or drone strike would immediately end the truce and trigger a resumption of military operations with “renewed intensity.”