Pakistan

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s elections commission on Friday disqualified former Prime Minister Imran Khan from holding public office for five years, after finding he had unlawfully sold state gifts and concealed assets as premier, officials said.

The move is likely to deepen lingering political turmoil in the impoverished Islamic country struggling with a spiraling economy, food shortages and the aftermath of unprecedented floods this summer that killed 1,725 people, displaced hundreds of thousands and triggered a surge in malaria and other flood-related disease.

ISLAMABAD, Oct 19 (APP): The Indian apathy towards the people of war-hit Afghanistan stood exposed as the Narendra Modi government revoked the visas of Afghan students enrolled in Indian universities.

According to the media reports, out of an estimated 14,000 Afghan students currently enrolled in 73 Indian universities, about 2,500 have been restrained from returning to India who were desperate to continue their education.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) — The Taliban captured, bound and shot to death 27 men in Afghanistan’s Panjshir Valley last month during an offensive against resistance fighters in the area, according to a report published Tuesday, refuting the group’s earlier claims that the men were killed in battle.

One video of the killings verified by the report shows five men, blindfolded with their hands tied behind their backs. Then, Taliban fighters spray them with gunfire for 20 seconds and cry out in celebration.

ISLAMABAD, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- Pakistan currently stands at a critical moment as it is embarking on a road to recovery in the aftermath of climate change-induced devastating floods, Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif said in marking World Food Day.

The day is observed to create awareness about global hunger, malnutrition and the need for collective actions to ensure food and nutritional security for all, the prime minister was quoted as saying in a statement on Sunday.

ISLAMABAD (AP) — More than half of the flood victims in Pakistan’s worst-hit Sindh province have returned to their homes over the past three weeks as the waters there gradually receded, officials said Monday.

The announcement came as Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif visited the district of Jaccobabad in Sindh, from where he was traveling to the town of Sohbatput in another flood-stricken province, Baluchistan, his office said.

KARACHI, Pakistan Oct 15 (Reuters) - Pakistan's foreign minister said on Saturday he had summoned the U.S. ambassador after President Joe Biden questioned the safety of Pakistan's nuclear programme.

In a speech on Thursday, Biden said Pakistan is "maybe one of the most dangerous nations in the world" as it has "nuclear weapons without any cohesion".

ISLAMABAD, Oct. 15 (Xinhua) -- In the wake of recent devastating floods in Pakistan, the response from the international community has been very forthcoming, the Pakistani Foreign Ministry said on Friday.

"The initial flash appeal of Aug. 30 was for 160.3 million U.S. dollars and within a couple of weeks a large portion of that had been pledged," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Asim Iftikhar Ahmad said during a weekly media briefing.

ISLAMABAD, Oct 14 (APP): A citizens committee comprising Indian judges, in its report on the 2020 Delhi riots, has flagged the failures of Indian state machinery, indicted the BJP leadership for provoking anti-Muslim sentiments during electioneering, and condemned media for vilifying Muslims.

The report, titled ‘Uncertain Justice: A Citizens Committee Report on the North East Delhi Violence 2020’ was authored by the committee chaired by Justice Madan B. Lokur, former Judge of the Supreme Court.

ISLAMABAD, Oct 12 (NNN-APP) – Remittances sent by overseas Pakistani workers decreased 10.5 percent in Sept, 2022, on a month-on-month basis, the State Bank of Pakistan said.

The workers’ remittances recorded an inflow of 2.4 billion U.S. dollars in Sept, as compared to the previous month’s figure of 2.7 billion dollars, the central bank said, in its official data yesterday, adding that, it decreased by 12.3 percent on a year-on-year basis.

ISLAMABAD, Oct 11 (APP): Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will participate in the 6th Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) being held in Astana, Kazakhstan, on 12-13 October. 

The prime minister will be accompanied by members of the cabinet and senior officials, Foreign Office Spokesperson said in a press release on Tuesday.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will address the plenary meeting of CICA on 13 October.