Pakistan, Malaysia ties to further broaden under leadership of Mahathir — PM
The unprecedented victory of Pakatan Harapan is a clear trust in Mahathir's dynamic and inspirational leadership, says Abbasi
He said the relationship between the two brotherly Muslim countries have grown from strength to strength over decades
Updated 11 May 2018
RADIO PAKISTAN
Prime Minister has expressed confidence that relations between Pakistan and Malaysia will further broaden under the leadership of Dr. Mahathir Mohamad.
Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has expressed the confidence that bilateral relations between Pakistan and Malaysia will be further broadened in diverse fields under Prime Minister Mahathir Muhammad.
In a felicitation message to Dr. Mahathir Muhammad on assumption as Prime Minister of Malaysia, he said the unprecedented victory of Pakatan Harapan is a clear trust in his dynamic and inspirational leadership.
Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said the relationship between the two brotherly Muslim countries have grown from strength to strength over decades.
KARACHI: Pakistan has recorded the world’s sharpest decline in sovereign default risk over the past year, topping Bloomberg Intelligence’s Global Emerging Market (EM) Rankings for credit risk improvement, according to new data cited by a senior finance official on Saturday.
The data, published by Bloomberg’s research arm, showed that Pakistan’s credit default swap-implied probability of default fell from 59 percent to 47 percent over the past 12 months, a drop of 11 percentage points. The change marks the biggest reduction among tracked emerging markets, outpacing countries like Argentina, Tunisia and Nigeria, as default risk rose in others such as Egypt, Gabon and Turkiye.
Credit default swaps (CDS) are insurance-like financial contracts that allow investors to hedge against the risk of a government failing to repay its debt. Issued and traded by large financial institutions, these contracts pay out in the event of a default. The higher the cost of a CDS, the greater the perceived risk. Bloomberg Intelligence uses CDS pricing to assess a country’s sovereign risk in its Global EM Rankings.
“Pakistan stands out globally as the most improved economy in terms of reduction in sovereign default risk,” said Khurram Schehzad, adviser to the finance minister, in a social media post. “This is a resounding signal to global investors: Pakistan is not only back on the map— it is moving forward with stability, credibility, and reform at its core,” he added.
Bloomberg Intelligence is a highly regarded financial data and media company widely used by global investors, analysts and institutions.
The improvement in Pakistan’s risk profile comes after the South Asian nation narrowly avoided a sovereign default in 2023. With dwindling reserves and mounting debt repayments, Islamabad secured a short-term bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) with the support of key allies including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and China.
Since then, Pakistan has undertaken a series of IMF-recommended structural reforms and fiscal adjustments aimed at stabilizing the economy.
Credit rating agencies such as Standard & Poor’s and Fitch have acknowledged the progress with improved outlooks, while the government has prioritized timely debt servicing and macroeconomic discipline.
Schehzad attributed the improved outlook to “macroeconomic stabilization, structural reforms, successful IMF engagement and timely debt repayments,” noting that investor confidence had begun to return.
PESHAWAR/KARACHI: At least 11 people have been killed in flash floods in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, while heavy rains have claimed another 12 lives in the most populous Punjab province, provincial rescue and disaster authorities said on Saturday.
Flooding in the Swat river swept away 17 people early Friday, of which three were rescued and bodies of 11 others were recovered.
Shah Fahad, director-general of the provincial rescue service, said a search operation to find the three missing persons was still underway.
“Rescue 1122 operation is currently underway in different areas of Swat, including Khwaza Khela, Kabal Bypass and Barikot,” Fahad said in a statement. “More than 120 personnel of Rescue 1122 are engaged in relief activities.”
A rescue worker rows a raft while searching for survivors, after tourists, who were on a picnic, were swept away by overflowing floodwaters in the Swat River, in Swat Valley in Pakistan on June 27, 2025. (REUTERS)
Flooding in the province has also damaged 56 houses, six of which were destroyed, the KP Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) said on Friday.
The ongoing spell of rains, which began on June 25, has killed a dozen people in the eastern Punjab province and delayed the arrival and departure of trains in Sindh province in the south.
“Twelve people died and 39 were injured in various accidents,” the Punjab PDMA said in a statement. “Majority of deaths were caused by the collapse of roofs and walls.”
Punjab PDMA chief Irfan Ali Kathia urged citizens to avoid unnecessary travel and not to stay in dilapidated homes in bad weather conditions.
The Pakistan Meteorological Department has warned that the risk of heavy rains and possible flash floods will remain high until at least Tuesday.
Babar Raza, a spokesperson for Pakistan Railways, told Arab News the weather conditions had affected the railway signaling system, while the speed of trains had also been deliberately reduced for the sake of passenger safety.
“As a result, some trains are reaching their destinations with a delay of three to four hours,” he said. “No trains have been canceled so far.”
Pakistan is one of the world’s most vulnerable countries to the effects of climate change, and its 240 million inhabitants are facing extreme weather events with increasing frequency.
Last month, at least 24 people were killed in severe storms in the South Asian nation, which experienced several extreme weather events in the spring, including strong hailstorms.
Commuters make their way through a flooded street following heavy rainfall in Hyderabad, in Sindh province on June 27, 2025. (AFP)
KARACHI: Pakistani authorities have arrested two men accused of human smuggling after they defrauded citizens with false promises of jobs in Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom, officials said on Saturday, as the country intensifies its crackdown on trafficking networks following a series of deadly migrant boat disasters.
The arrests, made by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) in Multan, come amid Pakistan’s broader campaign to curb human smuggling. The issue has drawn significant attention following recent tragedies in the Mediterranean, including shipwrecks off Greece, Libya and Morocco involving scores of Pakistani nationals.
“The accused, Muhammad Muzammil and Sher Khan, extorted large sums of money from citizens by falsely promising overseas employment opportunities,” the FIA said in a statement. “Muzammil took Rs852,000 [$2,982] from a victim under the pretense of securing a job in Saudi Arabia, while Sher Khan collected Rs2 million [$7,000] by offering fake employment in the UK,” it continued. “Both failed to deliver and went into hiding after collecting the money.”
The statement noted that the suspects were also involved in visa fraud.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has vowed to crack down on the criminal networks exploiting vulnerable people with false hopes of better lives abroad. His administration began focusing on the issue after more than 200 Pakistanis were presumed dead in a shipwreck off Greece among hundreds of other illegal migrants trying to reach European shores.
Earlier this year, over 40 Pakistanis were feared drowned near Morocco’s coast, while the International Organization for Migration said at least 60 migrants, including Pakistanis, were feared dead after a pair of shipwrecks off the coast of Libya in June.
The FIA said on Saturday that both suspects were arrested from separate locations in Multan and have been taken into custody for further investigation. It added that its crackdown on human smugglers remains ongoing.
PESHAWAR: Authorities in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province are probing the alleged sale of soap bars, which were provided by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) for the country’s campaign against polio, at a market in Peshawar, officials said on Friday.
The comments came after the seizure of over 200 soap bars at the Faqeerabad market in the provincial capital, which bore the “not-for-sale” marking, according to Additional Assistant Commissioner Azimullah Mehsud.
The local administration acted on a tip-off about UNICEF-tagged soap bars being “diverted” to the open market. A preliminary investigation suggested the consignment originated in the southern Sindh province.
Authorities arrested a shopkeeper on June 25, who was selling these soap bars on Facebook and in the local market in the northwestern Pakistani city.
“According to initial investigations, he [the suspect] told us that they got this supply [of soaps] from Sindh,” Mehsud told Arab News. “The person we have arrested told us he gives this [to people] on Facebook marketplace and said, ‘I’m an Afghan national’.”
This handout photo, released by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governor’s focal person for polio Tariq Habib, shows UNICEF-tagged soap bars allegedly recovered after a raid at the Faqeerabad market in Peshawar, Pakistan on June 25, 2025. (Handout)
Mehsud said the authorities recovered three cartons during the raid, with a total of 216 soap bars. He said the suspect claimed to have additional stock.
“Here people used to buy [a soap bar] from him at a cost of Rs40 or Rs45 and then used to change its packaging at Rs3, and then [they were] being supplied to Jalalabad, Afghanistan and here in Pakistan, I think, including D.I. Khan and many other places,” he said.
“When we contacted him, he [suspect] told us to come tomorrow and he will arrange 3,000 more [soap bars] for us. Then we told the anti-corruption to locate the link to his network.”
Arab News reached out to UNICEF’s communication specialist, Zia-ur-Rehman, but did not receive a response to its queries seeking comment on the matter.
Polio is a paralyzing disease with no cure, making prevention through vaccination critical. After a significant decline over the past decades, Pakistan witnessed an intense resurgence of the poliovirus in 2024, with 74 cases reported. According to Pakistan’s polio program, the country has reported 13 cases of the virus so far this year.
This handout photo, released by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governor’s focal person for polio Tariq Habib, shows UNICEF-tagged soap bars allegedly recovered after a raid at the Faqeerabad market in Peshawar, Pakistan on June 25, 2025. (Handout)
The KP anti-corruption department plans to send an open letter to UNICEF and the Sindh provincial administration to further investigate the matter.
Humayun Khan, the Peshawar circle officer of the anti-corruption department, confirmed to Arab News that his department had launched an investigation into the case.
“It [investigation] will go ahead properly with a procedure,” he said. “It will take time.”
Suicide attack kills 13 soldiers in Pakistan’s northwest — officials
The attack injured 29 others, including civilians, in North Waziristan district
Hafiz Gul Bahadur group of the Pakistan Taliban claimed the suicide attack
Updated 28 June 2025
AFP
PESHAWAR: A suicide attack claimed by the Pakistani Taliban killed 13 soldiers and wounded 29 people, including civilians, local government officials and police officers told AFP.
“A suicide bomber rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into a military convoy. The blast killed 13 soldiers, injured 10 army personnel and 19 civilians,” said a local government official in North Waziristan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, who asked not to be named because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
“The explosion also caused the roofs of two houses to collapse, injuring six children,” a police officer posted in the district told AFP.
The condition of four injured soldiers is critical, an administrative official added.
The attack was claimed by the suicide bomber wing of the Hafiz Gul Bahadur armed group, a faction of the Pakistan Taliban.
Pakistan has witnessed a sharp rise in violence in its regions bordering Afghanistan since the Taliban returned to power in Kabul in 2021, with Islamabad accusing its western neighbor of allowing its soil to be used for attacks against Pakistan — a claim the Taliban deny.
Around 290 people, mostly security officials, have been killed in attacks since the start of the year by armed groups fighting the government in both Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, according to an AFP tally.
