ISLAMABAD, August 13(ABC): Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb Saturday said the journey of democracy would continue with same zeal and zest which had passed on numerous dividends to the nation under the leadership of previous democratic leaders. “The nation reaped dividends and fruits whenever there was a democracy in the country during the last 75 years,” the minister …

ISLAMABAD, August 13(ABC): President Dr Arif Alvi on Saturday phoned different members of bereaved families of Shuhada of North Waziristan suicide attack of August 8 and expressed his condolences. The president, on the occasion, paid tribute to the sacrifices of Shuhada and expressed sympathies with the bereaved families. He lauded the services and sacrifices of shuhada for the motherland and …

ISLAMABAD, August 13(ABC): Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan has distanced himself from Shahbaz Gill’s controversial remarks, which allegedly attempted to incite hatred within the military. Talking to a private news channel on August 12, he said there was an objectionable sentence in Shahbaz Gill’s statement. “He shouldn’t have said that,” he stressed while talking to journalists and showbiz personalities. …

PESHAWAR, August 13(ABC): Amid constant speculations regarding the heavy presence of militants in the Swat Valley, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police clarified that it is aware of the videos circulating on social media, reported Saturday. KP Police Central Office, in a press release issued a day earlier, said that police are also aware of the apprehensions of the general public that Swat …

WEB DESK, August 12(ABC): The Ministry of Interior has cancelled the no-objection certificate (NOC) of ARY Communications Private Ltd, citing “adverse reports from agencies” as the reason behind the decision, it emerged on Friday. The notification issued by the ministry, dated August 11, to the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) reads: “The NOC issued in favour of M/S ARY …

ISLAMABAD, August 12(ABC): In a major policy statement, Federal Finance Minister Miftah Ismail on Friday said that all businesses owned by the country’s powerful military are taxed as he suggested that the government plans to change the way how small traders are taxed. In a set of messages posted on microblogging social media network Twitter on Friday evening, Miftah responded …

WEB DESK, August 12(ABC): Arshad Nadeem Friday bagged a gold medal for Pakistan at the 2022 Islamic Solidarity Games in Konya, Turkey — the second one for the athlete in less than a week. In his first attempt, Nadeem was able to throw the javelin at a distance of 79.40 metres, followed by 88.55 metres, 75.50 metres, 82.40 metres, and 83.33 metres. …

ISLAMABAD, August 12(ABC): Pakistan and Turkiye on Friday inked the Preferential Trade Agreement aimed at boosting trade in goods between the two countries. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif witnessed the inking of the PTA at a ceremony held here at the PM Office, as the visiting Turkish Trade Minister Dr Mehmet Mus and Minister for Commerce Syed Naveed Qamar signed the …

ISLAMABAD, August 12(ABC): Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari Friday condemned India’s Supreme Court’s decision to provide former Bharatiya Janata Party spokesperson Nupur Sharma protection from getting arrested in the Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) case. Sharma was suspended following her derogatory and hateful remarks against Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). Her comments sparked many protests throughout India. Following the incident, 15 Muslim …

ISLAMABAD, August 12(ABC): Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Friday said the address of Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst of the United Kingdom was recognition of Pak-UK strategic partnership. “COAS Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa’s address at Royal Military Academy Sandhurst UK as chief guest is not just a matter of …

SANDHURST, August 12(ABC): Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Friday said no one was born with professional knowledge, it had to be acquired through constant pursuit as without it, one could not achieve professional competence, which in turn was the hallmark of successful military leadership. The Army Chief was addressing at the sovereign’s parade for commissioning …

ISLAMABAD, August 12(ABC): Days after Pakistan reached a staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Islamabad received the letter of intent (LOI) — a document declaring the preliminary commitment of one party to do business with another — from the global lender. The receipt of LOI shows that Pakistan’s deal with IMF to release two tranches worth $1.17 billion …

ISLAMABAD, August 12(ABC): The government may announce a major cut in the prices of petroleum products as the rates of oil decline in the international market and the dollar depreciates. The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has started working on a new summary which is likely to propose up to Rs15 drop in POL prices, Daily Jang reported. Sources …

ISLAMABAD, August 12(ABC): The federal cabinet on Friday approved gas and electricity rates for five export sectors. The government has announced to increase the price of gas for five export sectors, gas will be supplied to five sectors at $9 per mmbtu, earlier the price of gas was $6 and a half per mmbtu. The gas price has been fixed …

WEB DESK, August 12(ABC):  Floodwaters released by India into the Chenab River reached Khanki Barrage early on Friday, inundating thousands of acres of farmland located along the banks of the river in Wazirabad. Elsewhere, heavy rains have caused the flows in most major rivers to rise to dangerous levels causing widespread damage. A water war Pakistan’s eastern neighbor, which saw …

KARACHI, August 12(ABC): Pakistani rupee maintained its uptrend for the ninth successive working day, as it further gained Rs3.38 to trade at Rs215.50 against the US dollar in the interbank market during intra-day trade on Friday. Despite shrinking foreign exchange reserves, the rupee has continued to recover against the greenback as the supply of the foreign currency increased consistently compared to …

ISLAMABAD, August 11(ABC): A delegation of Japanese investors called on Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif here on Thursday and discussed matters related to investment in Pakistan. The delegation of BPS Investment Group led by founder Takaji Tsuji during the meeting expressed its interest to make an investment of $ one billion in the different sectors of the Pakistani economy. The prime …

GWADAR, August 11(ABC): The Pakistan Navy on Wednesday saved nine crew members of an Indian vessel after it drowned in the Arabian Sea near Gwadar, according to the Director-General Public Relations. “The navy immediately responded to the distress call and the Pakistan Maritime Information Centre requested a nearby merchant ship ‘MT KRUIBEKE’ to provide necessary assistance to the stranded crew …

ISLAMABAD, August 11(ABC): Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari Thursday proposed constituting a ‘Parliamentary Oversight Committee’ to resolve the issues related to minorities especially the forced conversion.  Addressing a Minority Convention organized by National Assembly here at National Assembly Hall, the foreign minister said that the forced conversion was not allowed in our constitution, besides Islam also prohibited conversion to Islam …

ISLAMABAD, August 11(ABC): Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Attaullah Tarar on Thursday said the ministers of Punjab cabinet and leadership of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) did not condemn the ‘seditious’ statements of Shahbaz Gill which reflected that it was in fact the true policy of the party. Addressing a press conference here, Tarar claimed that Shahbaz Gill had confessed during …

ISLAMABAD, Aug 11 (ABC): Ambassador of the European Union to Pakistan, Dr Riina Kionka and Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, Miftah Ismail here on Thursday discussed matters of mutual interest and cooperation including progress on Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) Plus. The discussion was made during a call on meeting of the ambassador with Miftah Ismail, according to press …

ISLAMABAD, Aug 11 (APP):Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb said on Thursday that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan was trying to divert public’s attention from his foreign funding and Tosha Khana case by playing a ‘toxic game’ against the state institutions which included a “despicable” social media campaign against the military martyrs. “Imran Khan cannot divert the attention …

ISLAMABAD, August 11(ABC): Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman and former prime minister Imran Khan on Thursday said that they will tell the nation in the August 13 rally in Lahore how to take Haqiqi Azadi (real independence). Addressing a convention in Islamabad organized in line with National Minorities Day, the ex-PM said that no society could progress unless people were granted …

ISLAMABAD: Former minister for information and broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry Thursday berated the coalition government, saying that it has “started a new episode of barbarism”. Speaking during a press conference, the PTI leader said that the government was “forcefully picking up women and children and inflicting violence upon them”. Earlier today, the Islamabad Police took the wife of Shahbaz Gill’s driver …

PESHAWAR/ ISLAMBAD, August 11(ABC): Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Wednesday said the law-and-order situation in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) was worsening because Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-led provincial government had previously welcomed the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Asif expressed these views on the floor of the National Assembly while responding to MNA Mohsin Dawar, who had voiced concern over the increase in incidences of terrorism …

ISLAMABAD, August 11(ABC): Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday said the sustained high-level exchanges between Pakistan and the European Union was vital to further strengthen the growing partnership. The prime minister, in a meeting with the newly appointed Ambassador of the European Union to Pakistan Dr. Riina Kionka who called on him here, said that Pakistan attached great importance to …

ISLAMABAD, August 11(ABC): The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has asked the political parties to submit their consolidated statement of accounts for the financial year 2021-22 by August 29. According to the ECP spokesman, political parties were required in terms of Section 210 of the Elections Act, 2017 read with Section 204 of the Act and rule 159 and 160 …

ISLAMABAD, August 11(ABC): President Dr. Arif Alvi and Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif have expressed the government s resolve to achieve the noble objective of building an inclusive society in line with the vision of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah. In their separate messages on the occasion of National Day of Minorities, they resolved to make all efforts to safeguard minorities  …

LAHORE, August 11(ABC): Pakistan has reported one death in the last 24 hours by novel coronavirus as the number of confirmed positive cases has surged to 1,561,055. The nationwide tally of fatalities has jumped to 30,509 on Thursday. According to the latest figures by the National Institute of Health (NIH), at least 353 persons were tested positive for COVID-19 across …

ISLAMABAD, August 11(ABC): An agreement on the letter of intent (LoI) appears likely to be received before the weekend, according to officials, as Pakistan’s deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for the release of two tranches worth $1.17 billion under a stalled loan facility trudges closer the finish line. The Fund is likely to send an LoI “anytime soon” …

KARACHI, August 11(ABC): After taking a battering last month, the Pakistan rupee continued its recovery against the US dollar on Thursday, with the local currency making gains against the greenback for the eighth consecutive session. As per the Exchange Companies Association Pakistan (ECAP), the dollar depreciated by Rs2.70 and is being traded at Rs 219.21 during intraday trade in the …

ISLAMABAD, , August 11(ABC): PTI chairperson and former prime minister Imran Khan Wednesday said that the coalition government has hatched a plan to create rifts between the PTI and the Pakistan Army. Addressing his supporters via a video link, the former prime minister said that the incumbent government has “conspired against the biggest party in Pakistan”. “They [government] had issues …

ISLAMABAD, August 11(ABC): The PTI leadership will also be arrested if an investigation proves that Shahbaz Gill’s anti-military narrative was determined by them, says Federal Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah. He also said that PTI Chairperson Imran Khan will be disqualified thanks to his misdeclaration in the Toshakhana case. On August 9, the Islamabad police officers arrested Shahbaz Gill for “inciting …

RAWALPINDI, August 11(ABC): Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa termed terrorism a “global threat” that has the “potential” to destabilise the region and called for a “well-coordinated response” to counter it. As per the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the COAS passed the remark in a meeting with Commander Iraqi Navy Lieutenant General Ahmed Jasim Maarij Abdullah Al …

WEB DESK, August 10(ABC): Meta-owned messaging app WhatsApp will roll out an updated feature of the message emoji reaction for the beta version of Windows, according to WABetaInfo. The latest update will allow web users to react to messages with any emoji, which is, at the moment, restricted to six messages. In the image of the web version’s beta update, …

WEB DESK, August 10(ABC): Snap, owner of the popular messaging app Snapchat, rolled out its first parental control tools on Tuesday, which will allow parents to see who their teens are talking to, but not the substance of their conversations. The new feature called Family Centre is launching at a time when social media companies have been criticised over a …

WEB DESK, August 10(ABC): Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg Tuesday revealed three new privacy features for WhatsApp, saying they will keep building new ways to protect the messages. The US billionaire announced the development on his official Facebook page. “New privacy features coming to WhatsApp: exit group chats without notifying everyone, control who can see when you’re online, and prevent screenshots …

ISLAMABAD, August 10(ABC): The PTI challenged on Wednesday the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) ruling in the Islamabad High Court (IHC), seeking annulment of the order in the prohibited funding case. In his petition filed with the IHC, PTI Additional Secretary-General Omar Ayub asked the court to not only nullify the August 2 ruling, but also revoke the ECP’s show-cause …

LAHORE, August 10(ABC): Punjab Chief Minister Pervez Elahi Wednesday advised the PTI leadership, including party chairperson Imran Khan, to distance itself from Shahbaz Gill’s statement, which allegedly attempted to incite hatred within the Pakistan Army’s ranks. “Tehreek-e-Insaf’s leadership should definitely distance itself from Shahbaz Gill’s statement. Even I issued a statement against it,” the chief minister said. Today, a court …

ISLAMABAD, August 10(ABC): Pakistan has logged 352 fresh cases of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours amid a slight countrywide uptick in the positivity ratio, the National Institute of Health, Islamabad (NIH) data showed Wednesday morning. As per the latest statistics, the new infections were detected after diagnostic testing on 13,325 samples by the national COVID regulating body. After the …