Ex-PM Khan announces resumption of protest march to Islamabad on Tuesday from Wazirabad

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan speaks to media in Shaukat Khanum hospital, where he is being treated for a gunshot wound in Lahore, Pakistan, on November 6, 2022. (Screen grab of the video shared by PTI)
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Updated 06 November 2022
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Ex-PM Khan announces resumption of protest march to Islamabad on Tuesday from Wazirabad

  • Khan, who launched the march last month, said he would join his workers in Rawalpindi after 10 to 14 days, lead them to the capital
  • He welcomed the judicial commission while seeking resignation of top officials for transparent inquiry into the shooting incident

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s former prime minister Imran Khan announced on Sunday his party would resume its protest march to Islamabad on Tuesday from the same spot in Wazirabad city where he survived an apparent bid on his life last Thursday.

Khan suspended his long march after he was wounded in a gun attack that killed one of his supporters and injured about 10 other people. He was rushed to the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital in Lahore, which he built in his mother’s name in 1994, for treatment. He received four bullets, two each in his legs, when his convoy was sprayed with bullets, according to his doctors.

Addressing a news conference from the hospital with his legs bandaged, Khan said the protest march would reach Rawalpindi city in the next 10 to 14 days, depending on the speed of the caravan.

“We have decided that our march will resume on Tuesday from Wazirabad where I and eleven others were shot,” he announced, adding that he would be addressing the march daily from Lahore.

Khan said he would join the march in Rawalpindi and take it to the federal capital.

“I’ll reach Rawalpindi and lead [the rally] from there onward,” he continued.

Since his ouster from office in April in a parliamentary no-confidence vote, Khan has held massive rallies in different parts of the country to mobilize the public against the government led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. He has also been trying to force the government to announce early elections, though the government says the polls will be held on time in October next year.

Talking about the registration of case related to the shooting incident against him, he reiterated that he held three men – Prime Minister Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah and ISI official Maj. Gen. Faisal Naseer – responsible for the attack and he had every right to nominated them in the First Information Report (FIR).

“I fully believe that these three have done this,” he said while lamenting that the Punjab police had not been registering the case on one pretext or the other.

“The Punjab police comes up with one reason or the other [for not registering the FIR],” he said. “They say, ‘You can remove us and appoint another person who can register the FIR.’”

“If I cannot get his [ISI official’s] name in the FIR, then I ask what happens to the common man here,” he continued.

Khan said he was surprised at a recent statement issued by the military media wing, ISPR, in which his statements against the ISI official were described as “unacceptable and uncalled for” in the absence of any substantial evidence. He maintained it was in the interest of the army to take action against such people.

“Have you noticed what you are saying,” Khan said. “Is there any logic to it?”

Judicial commission

Khan cautiously welcomed Prime Minister Sharif’s decision to approach the country’s top court for a judicial investigation into the gun attack, though he questioned if a “fair and transparent” probe was possible without the resignation of three people named by him who he said had hatched the assassination plot.

“I welcome this, but the first point is what will it do,” he asked. “When all the agencies come under the three men I have named, how can we have a transparent investigation.”

He recalled there was a “complete pattern” behind the attack as Sharif’s party leaders already held press conferences, saying that “I was insulting the religion.”

Khan urged the chief justice of Supreme Court to conduct judicial inquiry into the killing of journalist Arshad Sharif, the diplomatic cypher which Khan’s says was part of the foreign conspiracy to oust him from power, and the obscene video of his party’s senator Azam Swati.

“Swati has told me he would stage a sit-in outside the supreme court and other PTI senators would also follow him,” he said. “This is a defining moment. Credibility of our justice system is at stake. We will have to implement the rule of law.”

The former prime minister’s close aide, Chaudhry Fawad Hussain, later confirmed that Khan had been discharged from the hospital and was going to his residence.


PM Sharif pledges to preserve peace in Pakistan’s restive northwestern province ‘at all costs’

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PM Sharif pledges to preserve peace in Pakistan’s restive northwestern province ‘at all costs’

  • The prime minister addresses a jirga in Peshawar, praising the sacrifices of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s people in the fight against militancy
  • He says a committee has been formed to address the province’s financial concerns, with its first meeting scheduled for August

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday vowed to preserve peace in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province “at all costs,” praising the sacrifices of its people and calling for unity against what he described as Indian-backed militant threats.

Sharif made the remarks during a visit to Peshawar, where he addressed a Grand Jirga of tribal elders alongside the country’s army chief and top federal ministers. The visit took place amid a resurgence in militant attacks in the region bordering Afghanistan and growing concern over cross-border threats.

“The sacrifices rendered by the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are indelibly inscribed in the annals of our national history,” the prime minister said during his address. “The entire nation salutes your courage, resolve and unwavering commitment.”

He urged tribal elders to stand firm against what he called the “Indian-sponsored Fitna-ul-Khawarij,” a term used by Pakistani authorities for Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants who they believe are ideologically extremist and backed by foreign actors.

“Peace in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa shall be preserved at all costs,” he said. “The Pakistan Army, in unison with all security institutions and the valiant people of the province, stands firmly united against the Fitna-ul-Khawarij and its foreign abettors.”

Sharif also called for improved bilateral cooperation with Afghanistan and said Afghan soil must not be used by Indian proxies to carry out terrorist activities in Pakistan.

During the jirga, Sharif also addressed financial concerns raised by provincial authorities regarding development funding. He confirmed that a committee had already been formed to review the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award, a constitutional mechanism for the distribution of financial resources between the federal government and provinces.

“The chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had raised the matter of revisiting the NFC around six weeks ago in Islamabad,” Sharif said. “We immediately formed a committee and provincial nominees have been finalized. The first meeting will be held in August.”

Sharif also praised the youth of the province, calling them a vital national asset and encouraging them to contribute to peace and national cohesion.


Pakistan says India mimicking Israeli aggression, urges Modi to avoid ‘worst examples’

Updated 24 min 33 sec ago
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Pakistan says India mimicking Israeli aggression, urges Modi to avoid ‘worst examples’

  • Bhutto-Zardari calls Modi a ‘poor copy’ of Netanyahu who thinks he can justify attacks on Muslim states by invoking ‘terrorism’
  • He says India, Pakistan are heirs to the Indus Valley Civilization, which was not known for weapons but for urban advancement

ISLAMABAD: The head of Pakistan’s parliamentary delegation constituted to visit key world capitals and present Islamabad’s stance on last month’s military standoff with India said on Tuesday New Delhi was emulating Israel’s belligerence in the region, urging Prime Minister Narendra Modi not to be guided by “the worst examples possible.”

The remarks were made by former Pakistani foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari during a media interaction at the United Nations Correspondents Association.

The Pakistani delegation arrived in New York on Monday as part of Islamabad’s diplomatic outreach amid heightened tensions with India, despite a recent ceasefire. It has held a series of meetings with top international diplomats, urging the global community to help the two nuclear-armed South Asian neighbors enter a comprehensive dialogue to peacefully resolve their differences.

Responding to a question during the news conference, Bhutto-Zardari drew parallels between the Israeli settler program in the West Bank and India’s post-2019 demographic changes in Kashmir, describing Modi as a “poor copy” of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“As far as India being inspired by the Israeli government, unfortunately, it’s being inspired in all the wrong ways,” he said. “Its conduct outside of international law, its violation of international governance, the United Nations Charter, the arrogance with which it thought it could get away with this — that you can just scream terrorism and it justifies that you can attack any Muslim country at whim.”

“In short, it’s based on this building of precedents that we’ve seen over time — be it in the context of the Iraq War, and obviously the actions within Gaza recently have inspired some of the actions by the Indian government,” he added. “But Mr. Modi is sort of the Temu version of Netanyahu — sort of a poor copy — and we call upon the Indian government to not be inspired by the worst examples possible.”

Bhutto-Zardari, who chairs the Pakistan Peoples Party, called on both India and Pakistan to reclaim their shared heritage as heirs of the ancient Indus Valley Civilization and reflect that in their conduct.

“One of the most incredible things about the Indus Valley Civilization is that with all the archaeology that’s gone on, we’ve not found a single weapon at all,” he said. “They had great advancements — urban planning, agriculture, water distribution, even sewage systems — but not a single weapon.”

“How far we’ve come from our roots,” he continued. “That grand Indus Valley Civilization, which didn’t have a single weapon, is now armed to the teeth.”

The former Pakistani foreign minister said Modi could either pursue peace and become a true heir of the Indus Valley Civilization or continue down a path of conflict.

“Mr. Modi started off as being perceived as the Butcher of Gujarat,” he said, referring to the 2002 anti-Muslim riots in the Indian state where Modi was chief minister. “He went on to become the Butcher of Kashmir, and he aspires to be the Butcher of the Indus Valley Civilization with his assault on the Indus Waters Treaty.”

The Pakistani delegation also met with United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres at UN Headquarters on Tuesday.

Bhutto-Zardari delivered a letter from Pakistan’s prime minister and briefed the UN chief on Islamabad’s position in the aftermath of the April 22 Pahalgam attack in Indian-administered Kashmir on tourists, which New Delhi had blamed on Pakistan.

He rejected India’s allegations against Islamabad as “baseless and premature,” and criticized its unilateral military actions, civilian casualties and the suspension of the Indus Water Treaty — calling these actions a dangerous escalation with potentially destabilizing consequences for the region.

Bhutto-Zardari said Pakistan remained committed to international law and the principles of the UN Charter, while warning against what he called India’s attempt to establish a “dangerous new normal” marked by unilateralism and the use of force in a nuclear environment.

According to an official readout, Secretary-General Guterres assured the delegation the UN would fully engage in promoting peace and stability in South Asia and continue to support all efforts to reduce tensions and resolve disputes.
 


Pilgrims arrive at Mina as annual Hajj rituals begin

Updated 04 June 2025
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Pilgrims arrive at Mina as annual Hajj rituals begin

  • The devotees will remain at Mina until Fajr prayers on Thursday, 9th of Dhul Hijjah
  • The Pakistan Hajj Mission urges pilgrims to follow their scheduled departure time

ISLAMABAD: Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims, including Pakistanis, have started arriving at Mina, marking the beginning of annual Hajj rituals in the Saudi holy city of Makkah.

Nearly 89,000 Pakistanis have traveled to Saudi Arabia under the government’s Hajj scheme and over 23,620 Pakistanis are performing Hajj through private tour operators.

Pakistan’s Hajj Mission has completed all arrangements for the transportation of pilgrims to the world’s largest tent valley at Mina, the state-run Radio Pakistan broadcaster reported.

“Over 88,000 pilgrims under government Hajj scheme will reach Mina via 932 buses before Zuhr prayer tomorrow,” the broadcaster said on Tuesday.

“Pilgrims will remain at Mina until Fajr next morning (Thursday), the 9th Dhul Hijjah. Then, the Hujjaj will proceed to the valley of Arafat to perform ‘Waqoof-e-Arafa,’ the main ritual of Hajj and offer Zuhr and Asr prayers there.”

The Pakistan Hajj Mission has urged the pilgrims to follow their scheduled departure time to avoid the risk of overcrowding amid hot weather conditions, according to the report.

The mission earlier advised Pakistani pilgrims to follow the directives issued by Saudi Arabia concerning the stoning of the devil or “Rami Al-Jamarat’ and animal sacrifice rituals during the annual Islamic pilgrimage.

Each ‘Maktab’ will have designated timings for the act of stoning the devil on the 10th of Dhul Hijjah, Radio Pakistan reported.

“Every ‘Nazim’ [administrator] is bound to ensure that the intending pilgrims perform this ritual as per their allocated time slot,” it said, citing the Pakistani Hajj Mission.

“Therefore, all pilgrims are advised to proceed in groups under the supervision of their ‘Nazim’ as per schedule.”

The state broadcaster also reported that the Saudi authorities have set the time for sacrificing animals for Pakistani pilgrims on the night between the 10th and 11th of Dhul Hijjah at 12:30am.

“Hence, all pilgrims are urged to complete the ‘Rami’ of the first day before midnight,” the Pakistani mission said.

The annual pilgrimage will conclude on Monday, June 9.


‘Our hands are clean,’ Pakistan briefs UNCA about conflict with India over Kashmir attack

Updated 03 June 2025
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‘Our hands are clean,’ Pakistan briefs UNCA about conflict with India over Kashmir attack

  • The attack sparked a four-day India-Pakistan military standoff that killed 70 people last month in their worst fighting in decades
  • A Pakistani delegation, led by ex-FM Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, is currently visiting key capitals to present Islamabad’s stance on conflict

ISLAMABAD: A top Pakistani representative on Tuesday told journalists at the United Nations (UN) that Pakistan had nothing to do with an April attack in Indian-administered Kashmir that sparked a four-day military conflict between the neighbors, reiterating Islamabad’s offer to cooperate with New Delhi on militancy and other issues under a “comprehensive dialogue.”

Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, a former Pakistani foreign minister, has been leading a nine-member parliamentary delegation, constituted by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, to New York, Washington DC, London and Brussels to present Pakistan’s stance on last month’s standoff with India.

The conflict, in which the two countries traded missile, drones and artillery fire, was triggered after India accused Pakistan of supporting militants who killed over two dozen tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir’s Pahalgam resort town on April 22. Islamabad denies involvement.

Speaking to United Nations Correspondents Association (UNCA), Bhutto-Zardari noted that immediately after the April 22 incident, Islamabad had offered its cooperation to New Delhi and the international community in investigating the assault.

“The prime minister of Pakistan, Shehbaz Sharif, offered publicly to India, the international community that Pakistan was ready to be part of any impartial, international investigation into this terrorist attack,” he said.

“We did so because we were confident that our hands are clean, and we had nothing to do with this terrorist attack. The Indian government refused Pakistan’s offer and chose instead to conduct their illegal strikes.”

He said Pakistan only ever acted in “self-defense” after India attacked multiple Pakistani cities on May 7, but the difference between 2019 India-Pakistan cross-border airstrikes and the 2025 military standoff was that they were now in a more “precarious position.”

“It’s not a question of if, but when the next war is fought,” Bhutto-Zardari said.

Nuclear-armed Pakistan and India have a history of bitter relations. Both countries have fought three wars, including two of them over the disputed region of Kashmir which either of the two claims in its entirety, since gaining independence from British rule in 1947.

The latest conflict, the worst between the neighbors in decades, killed around 70 people on both sides and came to a halt with a United States-brokered ceasefire on May 10. 

“I must emphasize that the global community today is less safe, post this ceasefire, post this conflict with India, then we were before,” Bhutto-Zardari said. “And it’s simply because that threshold for full-blown military conflict between the two nuclear-armed nations has come down.”

Asking New Delhi to not use militancy as a “political tool,” the former Pakistani foreign minister once again urged India to hold a dialogue with Pakistan to resolve all outstanding issues, including the Kashmir dispute.

“Pakistan’s position today is that we would like to have a comprehensive dialogue with India,” he said. “Pakistan would still like to cooperate with India to combat terrorism. We can’t leave the fate of 1.5, 1.7 billion people in the hands of non-state actors and terrorists for them to decide at a whim that two nuclear-armed powers will go to war.”

The Bhutto-Zardari-led Pakistani delegation arrived in New York on Monday as part of Islamabad’s diplomatic outreach, amid heightened tensions with India despite the ceasefire between the two countries. Another delegation, led by Special Assistant to Pakistan Premier Syed Tariq Fatemi, is set to visit Moscow.

In a meeting with US Acting Permanent Representative to the UN Dorothy Shea in New York, the Pakistani delegates urged Washington to play its role in ensuring a dialogue between Pakistan and India to address all outstanding issues, Pakistani state media reported earlier on Tuesday.

Bhutto-Zardari expressed “deep concern” over India’s immediate attribution of blame to Pakistan without any “credible investigation or verifiable evidence.”

“Such premature and baseless allegations exacerbate tensions and undermine prospects for constructive dialogue and peace,” he told the US envoy.

On Monday, the Pakistani delegates held a meeting with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) envoys at the UN, wherein they reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to peace, restraint, and diplomacy, and called for the restoration of the Indus Waters Treaty by India, Pakistan’s Permanent Mission to the UN said.

India suspended the decades-old Indus Waters Treaty with Pakistan a day after the attack at the Pahalgam resort town. The move drew a sharp response from Islamabad, which said any attempts to divert or stop the flow of its waters by India would be considered an “act of war.”

About 80 percent of Pakistani farms depend on the Indus system, as do nearly all hydropower projects serving the country of some 250 million.

“Bhutto-Zardari expressed grave concern at the unilateral suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty — a move that Pakistan considers a blatant act of weaponizing water and a violation of international and treaty obligations,” the Pakistani mission said.

The delegation also urged the UN Security Council to play a “proactive role” in promoting de-escalation, ensuring respect for international law and treaties and facilitating peaceful resolution of disputes.


Pakistan, Uzbekistan to devise joint strategy for completion of UAP rail connectivity project

Updated 03 June 2025
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Pakistan, Uzbekistan to devise joint strategy for completion of UAP rail connectivity project

  • The $4.8 billion project aims to enhance regional trade and logistics movement by connecting the three countries
  • It is part of Pakistan’s efforts to position itself as a key transit hub, connecting landlocked Central Asia to the world

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Uzbekistan have agreed to formulate a joint strategy for the completion of the Uzbekistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (UAP) railway project, Pakistani state media reported, amid Islamabad’s efforts to open new regional trade avenues.

The development followed a meeting between Pakistan’s Railways Minister Hanif Abbasi and Uzbek Ambassador to Islamabad, during which the two figures held detailed discussions on the approximately 850-kilometer-long railway connectivity project, which includes a 647-kilometer rail track passing through Afghanistan.

The trilateral initiative was launched in 2021 to enhance regional connectivity by linking Central Asia with Pakistan’s southern ports of Gwadar and Karachi through Afghanistan. The project aims to improve trade access for landlocked countries and strengthen economic integration across the region.

“Upon completion of this project, Pakistan will gain the shortest and most efficient route to Central Asia, which will not only increase trade volumes but also strengthen the region’s economy on a solid footing,” Abbasi was quoted as saying by the APP news agency.

“This railway corridor will significantly reduce transit time and transportation costs, benefiting all stakeholders.”

Pakistan is seeking to leverage its strategic position as a key trade and transit hub to connect Central Asia with global markets and since last year, there has been a flurry of high-level visits, investment discussions and other economic engagements between Islamabad and Central Asian republics.

Abbasi highlighted that the corridor is expected to handle an annual freight capacity of 15 million tons, which could help boost exports and imports across the region, according to the report.

“This project will not only reinforce economic ties but will also play a pivotal role in promoting regional peace and stability,” he said.

On the occasion, Ambassador Tukhtaev acknowledged investment opportunities in Pakistan’s railway sector and emphasized the importance of collaborative efforts to foster economic prosperity and create employment for both peoples, according to the APP report.

Both officials also acknowledged the positive impact of the UAP project in promoting peace and stability in Afghanistan.

Last week, Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar also held a phone call with his Uzbek counterpart, Saidov Bakhtiyor Odilovich, to discuss steps to advance the UAP railway project, including the framework agreement and its signing mechanism.

Over the years, the project has faced significant challenges, including security concerns in Afghanistan, and the need to reconcile differing railway gauges across the three countries.

“Emphasizing the importance of the Uzbekistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (UAP) Railway Line Project for regional connectivity, both leaders agreed to work closely for an early finalization of the framework agreement,” the Pakistani foreign office said.