In northwest Pakistan, Eid celebrations so much sweeter with traditional 'Rajjar Methai'

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Updated 22 April 2023
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In northwest Pakistan, Eid celebrations so much sweeter with traditional 'Rajjar Methai'

  • The crispy, golden-brown sweetmeat is made of jaggery, refined wheat flour, soda and ghee
  • The delicacy is mainly sold in Rajjar Bazaar in Charsadda city and shipped across the country

PESHAWAR: Last week, Salahuddin Khan traveled over 160 kilometers from Lower Dir to Charsadda city to buy a special methai, or sweet, that is one of the most popular Eid treats in northwestern Pakistan: Rajjar Methai.




Sohail Khan takes the hot Rajjar Methai mixture and puts in a large pot for it to cool down before sending for packing in Charsadda, Pakistan on April 15, 2023. (AN photo)

The crisp, golden-brown sweetmeat made of jaggery, refined wheat flour and baking soda is named after the historic Rajjar Bazaar, which lies a kilometer north of Charsadda city. The majority of the businesses in the Bazaar, including of sweets, used to be owned by Hindus before the partition of British India, when millions of Hindus migrated to East Punjab.




A worker is busy filling boxes with Rajjar Methai in Charsadda, Pakistan on April 15, 2023. (AN photo)

Today, thousands of customers show up to the market in the run up to Eid to buy the traditional sweets for their own celebrations, or to present as gifts to friends and relatives. So popular is the methai in other parts of the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province that many travel far and wide to buy it and sell onwards in other cities.

“I have come from Timergara for this methai,” Khan told Arab News outside the "Chacha Israr-ud-Din Mithai" shop,’ the oldest Rajjar Methai shop in the Bazaar, established in 1930 and affectionately referred to as the "asli," or original, sweet shop in the market. 

“We come every year. We give them an order of around 300 to 400 kilograms of methai 2-3 days before we are coming to pick it up.”

“We take it to sell onwards. We also take orders from friends,” he added. “We take it because it doesn’t go bad for 10 to 15 days. It remains the same as it is when carried from here.”




Sohail Khan soaks Rajjar Methai dough in sugar syrup at his shop in Charsadda, Pakistan on April 15, 2023. (AN photo)

A special baking process gives the methai its unique flavor and longevity.

The first step involves kneading a mixture of refined wheat flour, baking soda, ghee and water. The dough, divided into small, irregular shapes that resemble jaggery, is left to dry and then baked. The final product is soaked in sugar syrup.  

"We add baking soda and water while preparing the dough and no chemicals are added," said Sharaf-ud-Din, 62, the owner of 'Asli Methai Wala.’ "The more ghee that we add in the kneading process, the more ghee is absorbed in the backing process. Due to this [process], our methai is soft and cooked from inside and outside.”




The traditional sweet is put into sugar syrup in Rajjar Bazar in Charsadda, Pakistan on April 15, 2023. (AN photo)

The process lends tenderness to the sweetmeat on the inside and slight crispness on the outside, said the shop owner whose father learnt the recipe from a Hindu confectioner who migrated to India after the partition of India in 1947.

Din’s father, Israr-ud-Din, established the shop in 1930 and the business has been run by the family since.

"In 1974, I took the business into my own hand," Din said as he supervised his staff. "You see all these workers, they all are my nephews. They all come from the [same] family."  




The Rajjar Methai is ready to be packed and delivered to customers waiting for it in Charsadda, Pakistan on April 15, 2023. (AN photo)

Din said methai sales spiked ahead of the three-day Eid holiday, so much so that he had to start taking orders 10 days ahead of Eid to prepare the huge orders in time for the festival that marks the end of Ramadan.

A kilogram of the traditional delicacy costs Rs450 ($1.5) but the price varies according to the variety. The type made with additional desi ghee costs up to Rs800 ($2.8) a kilogram.




The Rajjar Methai is ready to be packed and delivered to customers waiting for it in Charsadda, Pakistan on April 15, 2023. (AN photo)

Din's business remains open round the year, but sales increased in Ramadan, he said, with orders coming from around Pakistan and as well as other countries like Saudi Arabia, where a large Pakistani expat community lives.

“In Pakistan, with God's blessing, it is eaten across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa [province],” he told Arab News. "It is supplied to Punjab and Balochistan [provinces] too."


UN Security Council to meet on Iran as Russia, China and Pakistan push for ceasefire

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UN Security Council to meet on Iran as Russia, China and Pakistan push for ceasefire

  • Russia, China and Pakistan circulated a draft resolution text and asked members to share comments by Monday evening
  • A resolution needs at least nine votes in favor and no vetoes by the US, France, Britain, Russia or China to pass

UNITED NATIONS: The UN Security Council will meet Sunday to discuss US strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites as Russia, China and Pakistan proposed the 15-member body adopt a resolution calling for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in the Middle East.

It was not immediately clear when it could be put to a vote. The three countries circulated the draft text, said diplomats, and asked members to share their comments by Monday evening. A resolution needs at least nine votes in favor and no vetoes by the United States, France, Britain, Russia or China to pass.

The US is likely to oppose the draft resolution, seen by Reuters, which also condemns attacks on Iran’s nuclear sites and facilities. The text does not name the United States or Israel.

The world awaited Iran’s response on Sunday after President Donald Trump said the US had “obliterated” Tehran’s key nuclear sites, joining Israel in the biggest Western military action against the Islamic Republic since its 1979 revolution.

Iran requested the UN Security Council meeting, calling on the 15-member body “to address this blatant and unlawful act of aggression, to condemn it in the strongest possible terms.”

Israel’s UN Ambassador Danny Danon said in a statement on Sunday that the US and Israel “do not deserve any condemnation, but rather an expression of appreciation and gratitude for making the world a safer place.”

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Saturday branded the US strikes on Iran as a “dangerous escalation in a region already on the edge – and a direct threat to international peace and security.”

“At this perilous hour, it is critical to avoid a spiral of chaos. There is no military solution. The only path forward is diplomacy. The only hope is peace,” Guterres said in a statement.


Pakistan urges OIC to transform its pronouncements on Kashmir into ‘tangible actions’

Updated 22 June 2025
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Pakistan urges OIC to transform its pronouncements on Kashmir into ‘tangible actions’

  • Kashmir has been divided between Pakistan and India since their independence from Britain in 1947
  • Both countries claim the territory in full and have fought two of their four wars over the disputed region

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s deputy prime minister has urged the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to transform its pronouncements on the disputed Kashmir region into “tangible actions,” the Pakistani foreign office said on Sunday, following a meeting of the OIC Contact Group on Jammu and Kashmir.

The meeting took place on the sidelines of the 51st session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers in Istanbul, which came in the backdrop of Israeli military campaign against Iran and Pakistan’s recent military conflict with India.

While Pakistan’s brief standoff with India ended in a ceasefire last month, Israel’s attacks on Iran were followed by US airstrikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities, raising fears of further instability in an already volatile region.

Addressing envoys of OIC member states, Pakistan’s deputy premier and foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, described New Delhi’s actions in Indian-administered Kashmir as a replication of the Israeli designs in Palestine, referring to alleged human rights violations and attempts to change demographics of the disputed Himalayan territory.

“The OIC’s pronouncements on Jammu and Kashmir are a major source of support to the Kashmir cause,” Dar said. “However, in view of the mounting challenges to the Kashmiri struggle, the OIC should transform its pronouncements into tangible actions. The Organization should scale up its efforts for mitigation of the Kashmiri people’s sufferings and finding a just settlement of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute.”

Kashmir has been divided between Pakistan and India since their independence from Britain in 1947. Both countries have fought two of their four wars over the disputed region, which is ruled in part but claimed in its entirety by both India and Pakistan.

The latest conflict between the two neighbors was also triggered by a militant attack in Indian-administered Kashmir’s Pahalgam resort town, which killed 26 tourists on April 22. India blamed the attack on Pakistan, a charge Islamabad denies.

New Delhi has long accused Pakistan of fanning an insurgency on its side of Kashmir. Islamabad denies this and maintains that it only offers moral, political and diplomatic support to the Kashmiris.

Dar said Indian authorities exploited the Pahalgam attack to launch a massive crackdown in Kashmir.

“There are reports that over 2800 Kashmiris were arrested or questioned in the immediate aftermath of the attack,” he said. “The draconian Public Safety Act was slapped on at least 75 of them. The police carried out extensive searches at multiple residences of the locals. Around three dozen houses were razed to ground through the use of explosives.”

The Pakistani deputy PM said the disturbing developments in Indian-administered Kashmir have once again shown that a peaceful settlement of the Kashmir dispute is imperative for a lasting peace in South Asia.

“The region is home to over one-fifth of the world population. It could ill-afford the consequences of irresponsible Indian actions,” he said, urging the OIC and its members to use their influence to urge India to improve the human rights situation, release political prisoners and implement relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions in Indian-administered Kashmir.


Heavy rains, lightning strikes kill at least six people in Pakistan’s northwest

Updated 22 June 2025
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Heavy rains, lightning strikes kill at least six people in Pakistan’s northwest

  • A total of seven houses were damaged due to rains, strong winds and flash floods in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province
  • The Pakistan Meteorological Department this week forecast pre-monsoon rains across various parts on June 20-23

ISLAMABAD: Heavy rains and lightning strikes killed at least six people and injured five others in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province this week, the KP Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) said on Sunday.

A total of seven houses were damaged due to rains, strong winds and flash floods that have lashed the province since June 20, according to a PDMA report. The accidents occurred in Mansehra, Buner, Lower Dir, Upper Dir, Malakand and Kohistan districts of the province.

“The deceased include three men, one woman and two children, while the injured include three men and two women,” it said.

The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) this week forecast pre-monsoon rains in Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan and Punjab and KP from June 20 till June 23.

“The PDMA has already issued a letter to the district administrations to remain alert and take preventive measures,” it added.

Last month, rains and thunderstorms killed at least 26 people in KP and Punjab provinces, authorities said.

Pakistan has seen erratic changes in its weather patterns which have led to frequent heat waves, untimely rains, storms, cyclones and droughts in recent years. Scientists have blamed the events on human-driven climate change.

In 2022, devastating floods, blamed on human-driven climate change, killed more than 1,700 Pakistanis, affected another 33 million and caused the country over $30 billion in economic losses.


Pakistan says US strikes on Iran nuclear sites violate international law, IAEA statute

Updated 22 June 2025
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Pakistan says US strikes on Iran nuclear sites violate international law, IAEA statute

  • Experts warn the latest strikes could have ‘catastrophic’ economic and security implications for Pakistan
  • In phone call with Iran president, Pakistan premier offers Islamabad’s support to de-escalate the crisis

ISLAMABAD: The United States (US) airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities violate international law and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) statute, the Pakistan prime minister’s office said on Sunday, as experts warned of their economic and security implications for Islamabad.

The strikes, which targeted three Iranian nuclear sites at Fordow, Isfahan and Natanz early Sunday, came amid Israel’s ongoing campaign against Iran’s nuclear program, which Israeli officials claim is nearing weaponization, an allegation Iran denies, insisting its activities remain peaceful and under international safeguards.

While the amount of damage remained unclear, the strikes have fueled fears of a wider conflict, with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi saying the US had “crossed a very big red line,” the time for diplomacy was over and Iran had the right to defend itself. US President Donald Trump warned Tehran against retaliation.

Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif spoke with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Sunday afternoon and conveyed Pakistan’s condemnation of the US attacks, which targeted Iranian nuclear facilities that were under the safeguards of the IAEA, according to Sharif’s office.

“These attacks constituted a serious violation of international law and the IAEA Statute,” Sharif’s office said. “While noting Iran’s right to self-defense, as enshrined under Article 51 of the UN Charter, the prime minister stressed upon the need to immediately return to dialogue and diplomacy as the only viable path forward.”

Sharif called for urgent collective efforts to de-escalate the situation and reiterated Pakistan’s readiness to play a constructive role in this context, according to his office. President Pezeshkian conveyed his appreciation for Pakistan’s support to Iran.

Pakistan’s foreign office earlier said Islamabad condemned the strikes and was “gravely concerned” at the possible further escalation of tensions in the region.

“Any further escalation of tensions will have severely damaging implications for the region and beyond,” it said, adding that Iran had the right to defend itself under the United Nations (UN) Charter and urged all parties to respect international humanitarian law, protect civilian lives and “immediately bring the conflict to an end.”

“Recourse to dialogue, diplomacy, in line with the principles and purposes of the UN Charter remain the only viable pathway to resolve the crises in the region.”

Tensions flared on June 13 when Israel launched airstrikes against what it described as Iran’s military leadership and nuclear infrastructure. Iran, a signatory to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), has since retaliated with missile attacks on Israeli targets. The United States, Israel’s closest ally, has now directly joined the campaign.

Experts have warned that the latest US strikes could have “catastrophic” economic and security implications for Pakistan.

“The economic implications of a wider war would be catastrophic for Pakistan. First and foremost, if the Strait of Hormuz is closed, our major concern will be the import of oil, as most of our oil supplies come from the Middle East,” Shakeel Ramay, a Pakistani economist, told Arab News.

“This would severely impact our economy since a significant portion of our power grid is powered by imported oil and gas from the region. The disruption would affect electricity production and have far-reaching consequences for our transportation network as well. The government will need to manage rising prices in the short term.”

Lt. Gen. (retired) Naeem Lodhi, a former Pakistani defense secretary, said Pakistan had so far acted “wisely” by condemning the attacks on Iran and offering to mediate the crisis.

“At this point, Pakistan needs to remain alert and ensure that it does not get directly involved. It must not allow any country — on either side — to use its soil, airspace, or any other assets,” he told Arab News.

“Although staying completely uninvolved is difficult due to our geographic proximity, it is still the most desirable course of action.”

If the war expanded, Lodhi said, Pakistan would face “serious challenges.”

“Many Pakistanis believe that if Iran is defeated in this war, it could create long-term problems for Pakistan,” he said.

“A new regime in Iran might not be friendly toward Pakistan and could even become hostile, bringing yet another threat to our borders. That is a key concern Pakistan must keep in mind.”

The crisis also raises questions about how Islamabad will navigate its delicate balancing act between Iran, other Gulf partners, and the United States, which remains one of Pakistan’s largest trading partners and a critical source of military and economic assistance.

“Certain demands may be made that Pakistan will find hard to ignore. For instance, if Arab countries become involved — which is likely — there could be strong pressure on Pakistan to support them in some capacity, whether through logistics, access to airspace, or even bases,” Lodhi said.

“While it may be relatively easier to say no to the United States despite its influence, refusing multiple allied Arab countries will be much more difficult. Still, Pakistan’s current leadership, especially the military leadership, is well aware of these dangers and will likely try to keep the country out of the conflict.”


Cherry festival in northern Pakistan draws crowds amid growing exports to China

Updated 22 June 2025
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Cherry festival in northern Pakistan draws crowds amid growing exports to China

  • Gilgit-Baltistan, which produces 9,000 tons of cherries, exported over a quarter of the crop to China last year
  • Agricultural experts say the region’s cold climate is ideal for growing cherries, apricots and apples

SKARDU, Gilgit-Baltistan: As Pakistan begins to export cherries to neighboring China, a colorful one-day festival in Skardu this week drew hundreds of visitors, highlighting the potential of agri-tourism and cherry farming in the northern Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) region, officials and growers said.

Home to the Khunjerab Pass — the highest paved international border crossing in the world — GB is often described as Pakistan’s gateway to China.

The region’s cold climate is ideal for growing high-quality fruits such as cherries, apricots and apples.

“This is the 5th National Cherry Festival, and we are organizing Agri-Mela as part of the festival,” Zakir Hussain, deputy director at the GB agriculture department, told Arab News on Friday.

Visitors sample different verities of cherries displayed at a stall at the 5th National Cherry Festival in Skardu. Pakistan on June 20, 2025. (AN Photo)

 “The aim of this festival is to introduce cherry as a cash crop.”

He said the event, organized in collaboration with the State Bank of Pakistan, aimed to raise awareness about harvesting, marketing and the economic importance of cherries.

According to the GB agriculture department, the region produces 8,000 to 9,000 tons of cherries annually, with dried cherry marketing now also underway.

“Almost 3,000 tons of cherries had been exported to China in 2024,” Hussain said, adding that GB was the leading cherry-producing region in Pakistan.

Local farmers say the festival boosts their income and visibility.

A cherry farmer displays his produce at the 5th National Cherry Festival in Skardu. Pakistan on June 20, 2025. (AN Photo)

“We have been growing cherries for the last 12 to 13 years and we have 200 to 300 cherry trees in our orchard,” said Skinder Ali, a 40-year-old farmer. “Whenever the festival is held in Gilgit-Baltistan, we participate. And due to this event, we get access to the market at the national level.”

The festival also attracted tourists from other parts of the country.

“We especially came to Skardu to see the cherries, and we are from Islamabad,” Zohra Begum, a 52-year-old visitor, said. “We have been visiting [the stalls] for the last hour... The taste of cherries is very good ... So far we have purchased 10 kilograms. Let’s see how much we purchase later.”

“I am a traveler and biker from Lahore,” said Mohsin Abbas, another tourist. “We were in Shigar last night when we came to know about the festival. So we came here... We have tasted the cherries and they are very delicious.”

Ghulamullah Saqib, an agriculture expert and trainer, said the region’s climate is well suited for cherries, which require 800 to 1,000 chilling hours to bear fruit.

“There are 14 varieties of cherry that are found in Gilgit-Baltistan,” he added.