ISLAMABAD: A recent Transparency International report that places Pakistan on 120th number on the Corruption Perception Index (CPI) has sparked a fierce debate in the country on the subject.
Islamabad slipped three spots from its previous ranking despite the increased anti-corruption efforts of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government. Last year, it occupied 117th slot on the index that was developed by the organization after it surveyed 180 countries.
The three-spot dip in the rating has provided an opportunity to the opposition to grill the government for its failure to curb the menace. The opposition parties have termed the report a “charge sheet” against the ruling administration, saying the report has exposed Prime Minister Imran Khan’s claims of eliminating corruption.
Khan came to power in August 2018, promising a drive against corruption in Pakistan and claiming that the phenomenon was eating away the country’s resources. Some major opposition leaders, including former president Asif Ali Zardari and ex-premier Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, were also arrested on graft charges in recent months, though nothing has so far been recovered from them.
“We have serious reservations over the authenticity of the report, but even if it is true who was responsible for putting the country on the 117th number on Transparency International’s corruption index for the last so many years,” Ahmad Jawad, secretary-information of the ruling party, asked Arab News on Saturday.
He said that his party had come into power for the first time and was “fully committed” to eradicating corruption from the society. “Opposition parties should first see their own track record before criticizing us,” he said.
Opposition factions claimed, however, that the corruption committed by the PTI government in the last 16 months was way more than any government in the past decade.
“This government only believes in political victimization of their rivals on the pretext of fighting corruption,” Mushahidullah Khan, senior lawmaker of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party, told Arab News. “They have totally failed to ensure transparency and openness in all their projects, and the TI report is a certificate of their incompetence.”
However, independent analysts said the report was not a reflection on the performance of any single government in Pakistan since Pakistan had been historically ranked among “the most corrupt” countries in the world.
“It is the collective responsibility of all political forces to eradicate corruption from the society,” Ahmed Bilal Mehboob, president of an Islamabad-based think tank, the Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency, told Arab News.
Explaining the widespread media debate on the issue, he said this was the first Transparency International report during the current administration’s tenure, adding it had generated some criticism since the government had been claiming it was fighting against corruption in the country.
Asked about the authenticity of the report, Mehboob said that it was “credible” since many international organizations like the World Bank and others scrutinized and used it for different purposes.
“Our political parties and governments need to be transparent in political financing, if they want to improve Pakistan’s position on the corruption index,” he added.
Transparency International report sparks debate over corruption in Pakistan
https://arab.news/g929g
Transparency International report sparks debate over corruption in Pakistan
- Islamabad slipped three spots on the Corruption Perception Index, making the opposition criticize the government
- Analysts say political parties need to be transparent in their financing to improve the country’s position on the index
One paramilitary soldier, 12 militants killed during attack in northwestern Pakistan
- Militants carry out suicide blast at Frontier Corps headquarters in northwestern Tank district
- No group has claimed responsibility for attack but suspicion likely to fall on Pakistani Taliban
PESHAWAR: One paramilitary soldier and 12 militants were killed during a gunbattle in Pakistan’s northwestern Tank district on Thursday after militants carried out a suicide blast at the Frontier Corps (FC) headquarters in the area, a police official with direct knowledge of the development said.
The attack took place in district Tank’s Tehsil Jandola, located in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province bordering Afghanistan.
No group has claimed responsibility for the incident but suspicion is likely to fall on the Pakistani Taliban or the Tehreek-e-Talban Pakistan (TTP).
“An officer on duty shot the suicide bomber driver of an explosive-laden vehicle which detonated the blast,” the Tank district police officer told Arab News on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak to media.
“One soldier was martyred, twelve terrorists were killed, two FC personnel injured while four civilians have sustained normal injuries during the clearance operation,” he added.
The police officer said the situation was “under control” following the FC’s clearance operation.
The attack takes place amid rising militant attacks in Pakistan, especially in KP province bordering Afghanistan. KP has suffered a surge in militant attacks since November 2022 when a fragile truce between the state and the TTP collapsed.
Pakistan says the takeover of Kabul by the Afghan Taliban in 2021 has emboldened the group as it is able to operate out of and launch attacks from safe havens in neighboring Afghanistan, whose government denies the charges.
The TTP has carried out some of the deadliest attacks against Pakistan’s security forces and civilians since 2007 in its bid to impose its strict version of Islamic law in the country.
Karachi man arrested in child pornography case involving US minors — Pakistani investigators
- Suspect Agha Sarwar Abbas was arrested on Mar. 11 on complaint of US Consulate in Karachi
- Court in Karachi has granted Federal Investigation Agency five-day physical remand of Abbas
KARACHI: A Pakistani man has been arrested in Karachi on charges of possession of child pornography and blackmailing minors in the United States following a complaint from the American consulate in the port city this week, a Pakistani official said on Thursday
The suspect, Agha Sarwar Abbas, was arrested on Mar. 11 following a complaint filed by a special agent of the US Department of State that alleged he was in possession of child pornography and was extorting US minors by using material obtained through various online platforms, the First Information Report (FIR) filed by police said. After a request from the US Consulate in Karachi, a case was registered under Sections 16, 22 and 24 of Pakistan’s Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) 2016, which criminalizes offenses related to child pornography and online exploitation.
“Agha Sarwar Abbas has been arrested on a complaint from the US consulate for his alleged involvement in child pornography and blackmailing minors in the US,” Ameer Ali, an investigation officer with the cybercrime wing of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), told Arab News. “The court granted us a five-day physical remand for further questioning.”
The US Consulate said it could not comment on an ongoing legal case.
On Wednesday, FIA informed Judicial Magistrate East Karachi that Abbas had admitted to creating a fake online identity and was pretending to be a US citizen named Brandon Liechier to gain the trust of minors.
According to the FIR, the suspect has confessed during interrogation “to using personal data for the purposes of blackmail and threats based on recorded videos of US minor citizens.”
The agency said it had raided Abbas’s residence in Karachi’s New Rizwia Society and seized multiple devices, including a laptop and an iPad, that allegedly contained child pornographic material. Investigators said they had also identified several online platforms, including Whereby.com, Google Meet, Snapchat, and 411.com, that the suspect was using to establish contact with victims. Through these platforms, he engaged in video calls and text chats, allegedly forcing minors to share personal and objectionable content.
According to the police report, the investigation had so far revealed that Abbas used personal data, including home addresses, to threaten victims with the release of “compromising material” unless they complied with his demands. Abbas also allegedly accessed adult websites to facilitate his activities, with a digital forensic analysis confirming the presence of child pornographic content and extortion messages on his seized devices.
On Wednesday, the FIA sought a 14-day police remand for Abbas from a local magistrate who only granted five days, until Mar. 18.
Child pornography is illegal in Pakistan. Suspects convicted in child pornography cases can be subject to up to 20 years in prison and large fines.
Pakistan dismisses US travel ban reports as ‘speculative’
- Foreign Office says Pakistan has not received any such indication in this regard so far
- A media report said last week a travel ban by Trump could prevent Pakistanis from entering the US
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Foreign Office spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan on Thursday rejected reports of a US travel ban on Pakistani nationals as “speculative,” saying that Islamabad had received no such indication so far.
A Reuters report last week, citing sources, suggested that a new travel ban under US President Donald Trump could bar travelers from Afghanistan and Pakistan based on a government review of security and vetting risks.
Amid the speculation, Pakistani Ambassador to Turkmenistan K.K. Ahsan Wagan was detained and denied entry into the US this week. However, the Foreign Office clarified that he was traveling for personal reasons, was not eligible for diplomatic immunity and that officials were looking into the matter.
“As of now, this is all speculative and hence does not warrant a response,” Khan said in response to a question at the weekly media briefing.
“So far we have not been given any indication of such a ban on the Pakistan nation.”
He added the foreign ministry and Pakistan’s mission in Washington were in constant contact with relevant US authorities to obtain further details on the matter.
On Jan. 20, Trump issued an executive order mandating intensified security vetting for foreigners seeking admission to the US.
The order instructed US cabinet members to submit a list by March 12 of countries from which travel should be partially or fully suspended due to inadequate vetting and screening information.
The Reuters report also said the new ban could affect tens of thousands of Afghans who had been cleared for resettlement in the US as refugees or on Special Immigrant Visas, adding these people were at risk of Taliban retribution for working for the US during a 20-year war in their home country.
Pakistan urges Afghanistan to bring militant masterminds to justice after deadly train attack
- Separatist militants took over 200 passengers hostage in Balochistan after targeting a passenger train
- Pakistan says it is taking a ‘multifaceted approach’ involving diplomacy, military action to deal with the threat
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday called on the interim administration in Afghanistan to bring to justice the masterminds behind a militant attack on a passenger train in Balochistan, asking Afghan authorities to take action against those responsible for orchestrating the assault since they were based on its soil.
The attack, which took place in the southwestern Bolan region, saw separatist Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) militants bomb a railway track and storm the Jaffar Express, taking over 200 passengers hostage.
This was followed by a security forces rescue operation, which led to the killing of 33 BLA fighters who had stationed suicide bombers near civilians to prolong the standoff.
The separatist group accuses the government of exploiting Balochistan’s natural resources while leaving its people in poverty. Government officials deny the allegation and say they are developing the province through multibillion-dollar projects, including those backed by China.
“Terrorists were in direct communication with Afghanistan-based planners throughout the incident,” foreign office spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan said during his weekly news briefing. “Pakistan has repeatedly asked the interim Afghan government to deny the use of its soil for a terrorist group like BLA to attack Pakistan.”
“We urge Afghanistan to hold perpetrators, organizers and financiers of this reprehensible act of terrorism accountable and cooperate with the government of Pakistan to bring all those who are concerned with this attack, including the real sponsors of terrorism, to justice,” he added.
Pakistan has frequently attributed the recent surge in militant violence in the country to cross-border attacks originating from Afghanistan, alleging that such incursions are “facilitated” by authorities in Kabul. The Afghan government has denied these allegations.
The foreign office spokesperson said Pakistan was addressing the threat through a multifaceted approach, combining military action, intelligence-based operations and diplomatic efforts to expose foreign sponsors of terrorism.
“So it’s a complex and multifaceted approach,” he said. “This is not a one-track approach.”
Pakistan urges global action to stop Israel’s ‘genocidal campaign’ in Gaza, calls for accountability
Pakistan urges global action to stop Israel’s ‘genocidal campaign’ in Gaza, calls for accountability
- The foreign office says Israel is ‘weaponizing humanitarian aid’ by stopping global agencies to operate in Gaza
- Gaza war began in October 2023 and continued until an uneasy ceasefire was brokered in January 2025
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan urged the international community on Thursday to bring an end to Israel’s “genocidal campaign” against Palestinians in Gaza while calling for it to be held accountable for its “war crimes.”
Israel’s war in Gaza began on October 7, 2023, and continued until an uneasy ceasefire was brokered earlier this year in January. The war completely devastated the Palestinian territory, with Israeli military attacks destroying houses, schools and hospitals, leading to more than 48,000 deaths.
Pakistan is among the countries that have raised concerns about the potential resumption of hostilities between Hamas and Israel.
“The international community must step in to end Israel’s genocidal campaign against Palestinians in Gaza,” foreign office spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan said during his weekly press briefing.
“We also urge the international community to hold Israel accountable for its war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
Khan condemned Israel’s blockade of humanitarian aid, the disruption of Gaza’s electricity supply and the ongoing assault, which has led to the tragic loss of lives, including women and children.
Calling Israel’s actions to dismantle humanitarian agencies “unacceptable,” he said preventing aid agencies from carrying out their tasks was a “manifestation of Israel’s systematic campaign to weaponize humanitarian aid and dehumanize Palestinians.”
Earlier this month, Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar attended the extraordinary session of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in Jeddah, where he reiterated his country’s support for the Palestinian cause and condemned a recent American proposal to permanently displace the residents of Gaza, stressing the need for a two-state solution for lasting peace.
Israeli officials confirmed on Sunday they had cut off Gaza’s electricity, impacting a desalination plant that provides drinking water, with Hamas denouncing it as part of Israel’s “starvation policy.”
Pakistan, which does not maintain diplomatic relations with Israel, has consistently called on the United Nations to enforce resolutions supporting a two-state solution in the Middle East.
Pakistan advocates for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state based on the pre-1967 borders, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.
