Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday the US military must fix “decades of decay” as he addressed a rare gathering of hundreds of senior officers summoned from around the world to hear him speak near Washington. The wide-ranging 45-minute speech comes as the military has faced controversy both at home and abroad, with US President Donald Trump deploying troops in two Democratic-run cities and ordering lethal strikes on small, alleged drug boats in the Caribbean. Trump, who has overseen a rare purge of senior officers after taking office, has also ordered strikes on Iranian nuclear sites and Tehran-backed Yemeni…
Author: Raja Zahid Khanzada
ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN: The rift between coalition partners, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), escalated dramatically on Tuesday as PPP lawmakers staged a walkout from the National Assembly. The protest was triggered by critical comments made a day earlier by Punjab Chief Minister and PML-N leader Maryam Nawaz. The verbal conflict, which initially centered on flood compensation via the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), broadened to include water rights on the Indus River. At a Faisalabad event on Monday, Maryam Nawaz defended a controversial canal project, dismissed Sindh’s objections, and warned the PPP leadership to refrain…
ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) parliamentary party on Monday urged the military to immediately cease widespread action in the tribal districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, instead recommending that forces limit themselves to targeted Intelligence-Based Operations (IBOs). PTI leader Asad Qaiser, speaking after the meeting, stated, “The parliamentary party urged the decision makers to immediately stop operations in tribal areas as it will not be beneficial. So far, 21 operations have been conducted, but issues could not be resolved. We have suggested that the IBOs should be conducted.” Judicial Support and Internal Autonomy Mr. Qaiser also informed the press that Imran…
QUETTA, PAKISTAN: Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfaraz Bugti has mandated that all provincial departments complete their approved Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) schemes by January 2026. The directive was issued during a meeting at the Chief Minister’s Secretariat to review the progress of the development projects. Mr. Bugti praised officials whose departments had made swift progress but expressed strong dissatisfaction with those who were lagging behind. He warned that the Chief Minister’s Inspection Team would be tasked with overseeing the prompt execution and ensuring the quality assurance of all projects. “Reducing difficulties of the common man in Balochistan is the government’s…
ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN: The Federal Health Minister, Syed Mustafa Kamal, has announced major structural reforms aimed at modernizing and restoring the credibility of the nursing profession in Pakistan. Chairing a meeting on the affairs of the Pakistan Nursing Council (PNC), the Minister directed the complete digitalization of the institution to ensure efficiency, merit, and transparency across all its operations. The Federal Health Secretary and an Additional Secretary were in attendance. The Minister vowed a complete overhaul, stating: “We will restore the lost credibility of the nursing profession and transform the Pakistan Nursing Council into a modern, effective, and internationally recognised institution.”…
ISLAMABAD/LAHORE, PAKISTAN: The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has issued a grim warning regarding the extensive flood damages in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, cautioning that the destruction will severely impact the upcoming Rabi cultivation. The agency’s preliminary assessment highlights an immediate threat to the availability of wheat seed for the 2025-26 season, potentially deepening Pakistan’s food security challenges. Agricultural Sector Faces Devastating Blow In its report released on Monday, the FAO stated that the recent floods inundated over 1.3 million hectares of land, including more than 0.93 million hectares of standing crops and critical agricultural infrastructure. Punjab has been the…
ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN: An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission, led by Iva Petrova, has commenced formal negotiations with Pakistan’s economic team, headed by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, to review the implementation of the $7 billion Extended Financing Facility (EFF) and the $1.1 billion Resilience & Sustainability Facility (RSF). The review, covering performance through end-June 2025, presents a mixed record. While benchmarks for the critical power sector were met, revenue collection emerged as a significant weak point, falling short by approximately Rs1.2 trillion—nearly 1 percent of GDP—in the last fiscal year. Similar shortfalls have been noted in the first two months of…
THARPARKAR, PAKISTAN: While the livestock sector contributes a substantial 23 percent to Pakistan’s GDP and employs over 37 percent of its labour force, its role in the arid expanse of Thar is far more profound. Here, where crop failure is a frequent reality, livestock is not just an asset—it is the primary safety net, the central pillar of survival, and the only source of food security and income for millions of families. The region’s livestock population is immense, exceeding six million, nearly four times the human population, according to official data. Yet, the absence of basic veterinary services and modern…
ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN: The Supreme Court (SC) of Pakistan on Tuesday delivered a significant ruling, declaring the Islamabad High Court’s (IHC) September 16 decision to restrain Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri from judicial work “null and void.” The ruling came a day after the apex court had already ordered the suspension of the IHC’s interim measure. The matter centers on a controversy over a letter circulated last year regarding the validity of the judge’s law degree from the University of Karachi. Resuming the hearing, the five-member Constitutional Bench (CB), led by Justice Aminuddin Khan, took up Justice Jahangiri’s petition challenging the restraining…
KARACHI, PAKISTAN: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) achieved a significant historic milestone on Tuesday, with its benchmark KSE-100 index breaching the 166,000-point threshold for the first time. This sustained upward trajectory signals the growing confidence of the business community in the government’s economic policies and broader signs of national economic recovery. The KSE-100 index soared to an intraday peak of 166,556.29 points, marking a substantial gain of 2,708.61 points, or 1.65 percent. Despite fluctuations, the index concluded the day at 165,493.58 points, securing a net gain of 1,645.90 points (1%). This was the third consecutive day of record-setting activity, fueled…
