Daily News Pakistan

Pakistan has reported 6 deaths in the last 24 hours by novel coronavirus as the number of positive cases has surged to 1,273,560. The nationwide tally of fatalities has jumped to 28,456 on Monday. According to the latest figures by the National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) 482 persons tested positive for COVID-19 in the past 24 hours. Punjab remains the worst-hit province in terms of deaths followed by Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Till now 12,918 individuals have lost their lives to the epidemic in Punjab 7,568 in Sindh 5,748 in KP, 940 in Islamabad, 740 in Azad Kashmir, 356 in Balochistan, and 186 in GB.

Life in the city began returning to normality on Sunday night when the City Traffic Police started removing containers, concrete blocks and barricades from Murree Road and its arteries after the government and the proscribed Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) reached an agreement. The traffic police in a press statement said containers were being removed from roads that were blocked. The district administration of the twin cities on Tuesday had blocked Faizabad intersection while law enforcement agencies began sealing areas and roads with containers to prevent TLP protesters from entering the federal capital territory. “All the containers from Murree Road are being removed with the help of heavy cranes and diversions from Saddar to adjoining roads are also being removed,” the statement said, adding the road from 9th Avenue signal is being opened to traffic on Stadium Road.   Not only residents of the city but also police personnel, who had been called from other districts for d...

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia had historically enjoyed long-standing fraternal ties, rooted deep in common faith," Prime Minister Imran Khan said in a conversation with Saudi Arabia’s Al-Riyadh newspaper published Sunday. The premier said that owing to their complementarities in the socio-economic fundamentals, Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 provided opportunities to Pakistan to engage with the Kingdom in realizing Naya Pakistan’s ambitious plan. “I must say that there are significant complementarities in the socio-economic fundamentals of the “Naya Pakistan” and the Saudi Vision 2030. Both emphasised economic opportunity and diversity, domestic growth,…

Afghanistan's new Taliban regime urged international donors to resume full support for green projects in the country on Sunday, marking the start of the COP26 summit. The movement seized power in Afghanistan in August after overthrowing the former US-backed regime, but has not yet been recognised by the international community. As such, the new Islamic Emirate will not be represented in Glasgow when world leaders gather on Sunday to renew plans to tackle the global climate crisis. But senior Taliban leader Suhail Shaheen said that climate programmes in Afghanistan that…

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Sunday in Rome and raised concerns over human rights, in only their second face-to-face session as tensions between the two superpowers run high. Blinken expressed opposition to actions by China “that run counter to our values and interests... including actions related to human rights, Xinjiang, Tibet, Hong Kong, the East and South China Seas, and Taiwan,” State Department spokesperson Ned Price said in a statement. Blinken also noted areas where he said the US and China's interests…

Prime Minister Imran Khan has thanked Saudi Arabia for its $3 billion financial support to Pakistan announced earlier this week, saying "the budgetary support will help the balance of payment of Pakistan in the backdrop of rising commodity prices globally." Saudi Arabia had agreed to revive its financial support to Pakistan, including about $3 billion in safe deposits and $1.2bn to $1.5bn worth of oil supplies on deferred payments; an agreement to this effect was reached during the premier's three-day visit to the kingdom earlier this week, “I am extremely…

Opposition alliance Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) is all set to hold a rally in Dera Ghazi Khan today (Sunday), with a focus on protesting the rising inflation in the country. PDM chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif and other opposition leaders will address the rally. Senior PML-N leader Rana Sanaullah has said that the government has failed and that it has made it difficult for the poor and middle class to live. Sanaullah said that inflation is likely to increase even more in the coming days. On October 22, the opposition alliance had kicked off its protest drives against the recent price hikes in the country. Protest rallies were held in major cities like Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar and others. Ahead of the anti-government alliance's DG Khan rally, PML-N spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb said it will be a "public referendum against the tyrannical government". In her statement, Aurangzeb said that the people of Pakistan have understood th...

Government officials and Mufti Muneebur Rehman are currently addressing a press conference in Islamabad on negotiations with the proscribed Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP). Mufti Muneeb, the first to speak from the line-up also featuring TLP members Mufti Ghulam Abbas Faizi and Mufti Mohammad Ameer, announced that negotiations between the government and TLP have been "successful". "The agreement was reached after sense prevailed over aggression. Rationality prevailed over sentiments, and all the participants demonstrated patience," he said. "I want to urge the entire nation that this is not the victory of any individual, but it is the victory of Islam, patriotism, and protection of human lives. "I want to tell the nation that these dialogues were never not held under any duress. They were held in a serious, responsible and independent environment, [in which] everyone made their contribution. Everyone deserves to be thanked for it." According t...

The negotiations between the government and the banned organisation have finally reached a positive conclusion. According to sources, the talks have been successful. “Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, National Assembly speaker Asad Qaiser, and other leaders will reveal all the details at a press conference at 11:15am. Initial reports suggest that the government’s top priority was to put an end to the protests.  banned organisation supporters at the GT Road near Gujranwala will head back home. Other agreements reached in the talks will be revealed in the media briefing. The development comes after Prime Minister Imran Khan made a key offer to banned organisation leaders during a meeting with ulemas Saturday as he sought their help in defusing the ongoing tensions between the two groups. He said his government will not oppose the release of  banned organisation Chief Saad Rizvi if courts make a decision, but he would not issue an executive order in this regard. ...

An explosion near the entrance to the international airport of Yemen's southern port city of Aden on Saturday resulted in casualties, witnesses and security sources told Reuters, but it was not clear whether the incident was an attack. An airport official said a small truck blew up at an outer gate to the airport, while a local official and two security sources said the vehicle was carrying petroleum products. The blast was strong and was heard across the city. Nearby residents' windows were smashed. Aden is the temporary home of Yemen's internationally-recognised government. But tensions have also for years simmered within Aden itself between the government and southern separatist groups. The government and the Southern Transitional Council (STC) are nominal allies under the Saudi-led coalition. Earlier this month a car bomb in Aden targeting a convoy carrying the city's governor - an STC member - killed at least six people and wounded others. The governor surv...

No country has the right to speak or comment on the Islamic Republic’s defense capabilities, says Iran’s deputy foreign minister, amid the imposition of a new round of US sanctions on Tehran targeting the country’s drone program. “Iran’s defense capability is a matter of national decision that is intertwined with its national interests and security; therefore, no country has the right to speak or comment on this,” Ali Baqeri-Kani told the Newsmaker program of Russia Today’s Arabic service in an interview published on Friday. Baqeri-Kani said the same is the case for other countries as well. “Each country’s defense capability is [only] that country’s business, and each country acts in accordance with its national interests and within the framework of its capabilities to ensure its security and gain adequate deterrent power,” he said. “No other country has the right to talk about the capabilities and the things (military equipment) that another country possesses to defend its natio...

The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) has decided to roll back all COVID-19 related restrictions from cities where at least 60% of the population has gotten itself vaccinated against the disease, it emerged on Saturday. The decision was made in an NCOC meeting headed by Federal Minister for Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives Asad Umar after reviewing progress in vaccination campaigns in various cities. In its statement, the NCOC declared Islamabad, Mandi Bahauddin, Gilgit and Mirpur as “Best Cities” for achieving vaccination of 60% of their population. Rawalpindi, Skardu, Hunza, Peshawar, Jhelum and other cities have been declared “vaccinated” as 40% to 60% of the population in the cities has gotten the coronavirus shot. All virus-related curbs have been abolished from marriage ceremonies, social gatherings, businesses, indoor dining and sports activities in cities with a 60% vaccination rate. All public transport will be allowed to function with an occupan...

Pakistan reported 733 more COVID-19 infections during the last 24 hours, pushing the nationwide tally of confirmed cases to 1,273,078, the National Command and Operation Centre’s (NCOC) data showed Sunday morning. According to the NCOC's latest statistics, 733 people tested positive for the virus after 48,192 COVID-19 tests were taken across the country during the last 24 hours. This brings the positivity rate to 1.52%. Meanwhile, the coronavirus claimed another 11 lives in Pakistan during the same period, taking the national death toll from the virus to 28,449. The number of active cases now stands at 23,094. The country has reported a daily case count of less than 1,000 for the 14th consecutive day today (Sunday). Moreover, the country reported a positivity rate below 2% for the 14th straight day today as well. Pakistan is reporting 628 new infections on average each day, 11% of the peak — the highest daily average reported on June 17. Pakistan has administered at least 10...

Military forces shot dead three people during nationwide protests in Sudan on Saturday, medics said, as tens of thousands of people demanded the restoration of a civilian-led government after a military coup. Sudan’s Central Doctors Committee said the three protesters were killed by troops in the capital Khartoum’s twin city of Omdurman during the nationwide protests after a military coup. But Sudanese police denied shooting the protesters, saying on state TV that one policeman sustained gunshot wounds. People carried Sudanese flags and chanted “Military rule can’t be praised” and “This country is ours, and our government is civilian” as they marched in neighbourhoods across the capital. The protesters have called for a return to a path to democracy and rejected military measures and demanded the release of detainees. According to Sudan TV, Sudanese security forces closed the majority of main roads and bridges in Khartoum, with the exception of the Halfaya and Soba bridges. Peo...

In a bid to comply with the Supreme Court’s (SC) orders within the stipulated timeframe, the Karachi commissioner has constituted an eight-member committee to finalize the companies to raze the 15-storey Nasla Tower. The committee will evaluate and select the tenders submitted by different companies regarding the demolition of the Nasla Tower through controlled blasting. According to a notification issued by the Karachi Commissioner Office on Friday, the Supreme Court of Pakistan issued an order on October 25 regarding the demolition of Nasla Tower measuring 1,121 square yards on plot 193-A at the Sindhi Muslim Cooperative Housing Society (SMCHS) on Shareae Faisal. To comply with the apex court’s order, the statement said the Commissioner Office had already published an advertisement for the expression of interest in leading daily newspapers. The expressions of interest would be assessed and evaluated technically as per the protocol and the committee constituted for the evaluation...

President of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Shehbaz Sharif and his son Hamza Shahbaz on Saturday have appeared before Lahore’s accountability court in money laundering and Ramzan Sugar Mills cases. During the proceedings, the court has extended the interim bail of PML-N leaders till November 20. It’s been a year, National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has failed to prove corruption of even a single penny against us, said Shehbaz Sharif. Earlier in August 2020, accountability court had indicted Shehbaz Sharif and his son Hamza Shahbaz in Ramzan Sugar Mills reference. During the hearing headed by judge Amjad Nazir Chaudhry, both the accused pleaded not guilty in the reference and their lawyer requested time for case preparation which was rejected by the court. NAB had claimed that a drain was constructed out of public money in Chiniot to facilitate the Ramzan Sugar Mills when Shehbaz Sharif, the co-accused in the case, was Punjab’s chief minister.

Pakistan has reported 10 deaths in the last 24 hours by novel coronavirus as the number of positive cases has surged to 1,272,345. The nationwide tally of fatalities has jumped to 28,439 on Saturday. According to the latest figures by the National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) 658 persons tested positive for COVID-19 in the past 24 hours. Province-wise Details Punjab remains the worst-hit province in terms of deaths followed by Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Till now 12,915 individuals have lost their lives to the epidemic in Punjab 7,563 in Sindh 5,740 in KP, 939 in Islamabad, 740 in Azad Kashmir, 356 in Balochistan, and 186 in GB.