Author: admin

By Special CorrespondentIslamabad: The alarming uptick in blasphemy accusations across Pakistan underscores the urgency with which the draconian laws that enable abuse and risk lives must be repealed, Amnesty International said on Tuesday. The broad, vague and coercive nature of the blasphemy laws violate the rights to freedom of religion and belief and of opinion and expression. They have been used to target some of the most marginalized people in society, including children, individuals with mental disabilities, members of religious minorities, and poorer people. However, recent incidents in Pakistan indicate that the snare is widening to include artists, human rights…

By Our Special Correspondent Islamabad: Metafuture School has extended scholarships to five extraordinary Pakistani young scholars to develop their skills in Futures Studies and Transformative Foresight.The participants receiving the Global Futures Fellowship from Pakistan include Muhammad Muhammad Mudabbir Majid, Muhammad Moosa Hashim, Alina Salman, Hisham Sajid and Anum Qasim. All these young talented youth are between the ages of 18-35 years of age.The winners of the Fellowship were nominated by AGAHI for their dedication and hard work, while excelling in their professional careers, creating social dividends for the communities they work in.Sohail Inayatullah, Founder and Chief Instructor of the Metafuture…

BY KASWAR KLASRA ISLAMABAD: The man who lead Taliban in Qatar and signed a ‘peace deal’ with USA has arrived Islamabad along with a high-powered delegation to meet Pakistan’s military and civilian leadership to discuss the ongoing peace process ahead of intra-Afghan dialogue.The man leading high-powered Taliban delegation is Abdul Ghani Baradar who was the right-hand man of leader Mullah Omar and led many operations for the Taliban until he was captured in 2010.Arrival of Taliban delegation in Islamabad was confirmed by a spokesperson of Taliban on micro blogging site Twitter. “A high-level Islamic Emirate [Taliban] delegation led by deputy…

By Special Correspondent Islamabad: The big face of 2014 massacre at Army-run public school in Peshawar, which was claimed by the Pakistani Taliban, is writing a book to expose all those responsible for war.The former TTP spokesperson Ehsanullah Ehsan, who had been one of the major convicts in the massacre attack at the Army School, in an interview (through messaging) claims that a hit list was provided to him including big names and journalists. He said that the Pakistan Taliban still have the capability of carrying out attacks despite facing losses in the anti-terror operations in the country.The parent of…

By Zahid Baloch ISLAMABAD, Aug 21: The completion of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) would usher a new era of development and prosperity in Xinjiang, speakers at a webinar Thursday said. “Belt and Road Initiative infused hope for a brighter future in Xinjiang as it connects China with eight countries including Afghanistan, India, Kazakhstan, Kirghizstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Russia and Tajikistan,” they said. The webinar titled ‘The success of Chinese policy against extremism in Xinjiang’ was organized by the Pak-China Center for Friendship and Cooperation, Islamabad to highlight the economic development in Xinjiang due to effective policy of Chinese government. Xinjiang…

By Special CorrespondentIslamabad: In a unprecedented move, a former Spokesperson of TTP has reportedly claimed that some powerful individuals in Pakistan wanted him to be part of a “death squad” that comprised surrendered terrorists from various groups. Intelligence agencies in Pakistan are trying to verify authenticity of audio tape. Ehsan told The Sunday Guardian, an Indian publication, that he would be making the names of the individuals who were on this death list, public very soon. Many in Pakistan believe the audio tape must be fake and an attempt by Indian side to malign Pakistan army. “It’s absolutely a fake…

By special Correspondent Beijing: On Thursday, China and Pakistan’s foreign ministers will hold the second annual strategic dialog at Hainan’s island resort, during which they are likely to explore bilateral cooperation in various fields, including Phase II of the ambitious China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project.Chinese Foreign Minister and State Councillor Wang Yi and his Pakistan counterpart Shah Mehmood Qureshi would hold the strategic dialogue on August 20-21, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian announced at a media briefing here.A host of issues including the progress of the USD 60 billion CPEC and Islamabad’s request for USD one billion loan were…

Online DeskQUETTA: The father of Hayat Baloch, a student of the Karachi University who was allegedly killed by a soldier of Frontier Corps (FC), recognised the suspect during an identification parade in Turbat district jail on Wednesday, local media reported in Pakistan.In a move widely hailed by the people across Pakistan, the ‘FC’ had already handed over the suspect to police after conducting initial inquiry. The father of the victim had earlier said he could recognise the FC man if brought in front of him. Hayat was taken to a date orchard after a blast in the Absar area of…

Online Desk ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Uzbekistan have finalized arrangements regrding upcoming visit od Deputy Prime Minister of Uzbekistan to Pakistan.H.E. Mr. Sadullah Tashmatov, Charge’ D’affaires of Uzbekistan in Pakistan, called on the Advisor to the Prime Minister on Commerce and Investment, Mr. Abdul Razak Dawood, at Ministry of Commerce today. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the upcoming visit of Deputy Prime Minister of Uzbekistan, H.E. Mr. Sardor Umurzakov, to Pakistan. Earlier in May 2020, Mr. Razak Dawood invited the Deputy Prime Minister to visit Pakistan along with a delegation to discuss bilateral economic relations. During the meeting,…

Online DeskIslamabad: India and Pakistan have not played a bilateral test series since 2008 after the Mumbai terror attacks, although Pakistan made a short trip to India in 2012 to play white-ball cricket.Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan said in a statement on Monday that, despite the current strained relationship between the two nations, it would be a “terrible environment” to play a bilateral cricket series with India.Speaking on a Sky Sports documentary, former captain Khan, who is also the patron-in-chief of the country’s cricket board, said it will not be conducive to play bilateral cricket at present.“I just think playing…