KARACHI, Pakistan: A days-long intense heat wave has disrupted normal life in Pakistan, especially in its largest city, Karachi, where doctors treated thousands of victims of heatstroke at various hospitals, health officials said Tuesday.
Several people fell unconscious in the city and some of them later died, local media said.
Temperatures soared as high as 47 degrees Celsius (117 degrees Fahrenheit) in Sindh province on Tuesday. Authorities in Karachi, the provincial capital, are urging people to stay indoors, hydrate, and avoid unnecessary travel.
Weather forecasters say the heat wave, which began in May, will subside next week.
According to local media, the days-long heat wave also killed more than two dozen people in Karachi, but no government spokesman was available to confirm the number of heatstroke-related deaths.
On Tuesday, Faisal Edhi, the head of the Edhi Foundation, which runs the country’s largest ambulance service, said they received dozens of bodies of heatstroke victims in Karachi the previous day.
Imran Sarwar Sheikh, the head of the emergency ward at the state-run Civil Hospital in Karachi, told The Associated Press that they treated 120 victims of heatstroke the previous day. Eight of those patients later died, he said.
On Monday, more than 1,500 victims of heatstroke were treated at other hospitals in the city, according to local media.
Sardar Sarfaraz, the chief meteorologist in Karachi, said temperatures will continue to rise this week across Pakistan. “Today, the weather is dry. In such conditions, the temperature starts rising,” he said.
Pakistan’s climate is warming much faster than the global average, with a potential rise of 1.3 to 4.9 degrees Celsius (2.3 to 8.8 degrees Fahrenheit) by the 2090s over the 1986–2005 baseline, according to a World Bank expert panel on climate change.
The country, which is one of the most vulnerable in the world to climate change, also faces the risk of heavier monsoon rains, in part because of its immense northern glaciers, which are now melting as temperatures rise. Warmer air can hold more moisture, intensifying the monsoon.
This year’s monsoon will start in July, causing flash floods, according to a statement released by Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority. The warning from the agency comes less than two weeks after a top UN official said an estimated 200,000 people in Pakistan could be affected by the upcoming monsoon season.
However, officials say this year’s rains would not be as heavy as those in 2022 when devastating floods killed 1,739 people, destroyed 2 million homes, and covered as much as one-third of the country at one point.
The 2022 floods caused more than $30 billion in damage to Pakistan’s already cash-strapped economy.
Pakistan says despite contributing less than 1 percent to carbon emissions worldwide, it is bearing the brunt of global climate disasters.
The ongoing heat in recent months also had a large impact on agriculture, damaging crops and reducing yields, as well as on education, with school vacations having to be extended and schools closed in several countries, affecting thousands of students.
Climate experts say extreme heat in South Asia during the pre-monsoon season is becoming more frequent. The study found that extreme temperatures are now about 0.85 degrees Celsius (1.5 Fahrenheit) hotter in the region because of climate change, and this year Pakistan witnessed above-normal rains and heat.
Doctors treat thousands of heatstroke victims in southern Pakistan as temperatures soar
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Doctors treat thousands of heatstroke victims in southern Pakistan as temperatures soar
- World Bank expert panel on environment says Pakistan’s climate is warming much faster than global average
- The country, one of the most vulnerable in the world to climate change, faces the risk of heavier monsoon rains
Pakistan urges upgrading bilateral mechanisms for economic, defense cooperation with US
- Delegation-level talks held between Pakistan and the United States in Islamabad
- Trade, energy, security, health, climate change and counter-terrorism discussed
ISLAMABAD: Acting US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, John Bass, held delegation-level talks with Foreign Secretary Amna Baloch at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday, with Islamabad urging the upgradation of bilateral mechanisms for economic and defense cooperation.
Ties between Islamabad and Washington, once close allies, have just started to warm after some years of frosty relations, mostly due to concerns about Pakistan’s alleged support of the Taliban in Afghanistan. Pakistan denies this support.
Relations strained further under the government of former prime minister Imran Khan, who ruled from 2018-22 and antagonized Washington throughout his tenure, welcoming the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in 2021 and later accusing Washington of being behind attempts to oust him. Washington has dismissed the accusations.
The government of PM Shehbaz Sharif who took over after Khan and is now in its second term has tried to mend ties but analysts widely believe the United States will not seek a significant broadening of ties with Islamabad in the near future but remain mostly focused on security cooperation, especially on counterterrorism and Afghanistan.
“The two sides held wide ranging discussions on the entire spectrum of bilateral relations, including progress on the existing dialogue mechanisms on trade, energy, security, health, climate change and counter-terrorism,” the foreign office said in a statement after Baloch’s meeting with Bass.
“The Foreign Secretary noted the importance attached by Pakistan to its relations with the United States. She underlined the need to upgrade the bilateral mechanisms, especially in the economic and defense fields, and working toward building a broad based and meaningful bilateral relationship.”
The statement said Bass thanked Baloch for the opportunity to “engage substantively on issues of mutual interest.”
“He said the US desires to partner with Pakistan in its efforts to strengthen and stabilize the economy,” the foreign office said. “He expressed appreciation for the resilience shown by Pakistan in the face of recent challenges like floods and terrorist attacks.”
Pakistani pleads not guilty in alleged Iran plot to kill US official
- Asif Merchant is accused of assassination plot in retaliation for killing of Revolutionary Guards commander Qassem Soleiman
- Soleimani, the head of Iran’s foreign military operations, was killed in a US drone strike in Baghdad in January 2020
New York: A Pakistani man with alleged ties to Iran pleaded not guilty Monday to plotting to assassinate a US official in retaliation for the American military killing of Revolutionary Guards commander Qassem Soleimani, prosecutors said Wednesday.
Asif Raza Merchant, 46, allegedly sought to hire a hitman to assassinate a politician or a government official in the United States, the Justice Department and prosecutors said in a statement.
A court document showed that Merchant pleaded not guilty to all counts, with a next hearing scheduled for November 6, 2024.
Soleimani, the head of Iran’s foreign military operations, was killed in a US drone strike in Baghdad in January 2020. Iranian officials have repeatedly vowed to avenge his killing.
“As these terrorism and murder for hire charges against Asif Merchant demonstrate, we will continue to hold accountable those who would seek to carry out Iran’s lethal plotting against Americans,” US Attorney General Merrick Garland said previously.
The intended victim was not identified but Garland has previously said no evidence has emerged to link Merchant with the July 13 assassination attempt against former president Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania.
FBI Director Christopher Wray has said the Pakistani national had “close ties to Iran” and that the alleged murder-for-hire plot was “straight out of the Iranian playbook.”
Another FBI official said the assassins Merchant allegedly tried to hire were in fact undercover FBI agents.
“After spending time in Iran, Merchant arrived in the United States from Pakistan and contacted a person he believed could assist him with the scheme to kill a politician or government official,” the Justice Department said in a statement.
“That person reported Merchant’s conduct to law enforcement and became a confidential source.”
Merchant was arrested on July 12 as he planned to leave the country.
Iran’s mission to the United Nations said in August it had “not received any report on this from the American government.”
“But it is clear that this method is contrary to the Iranian government’s policy of pursuing Soleimani’s killer,” the mission said in a statement carried by Iran’s official IRNA news agency.
National Seerat Conference to be held in Islamabad today for Eid Milad-un-Nabi
- Birth anniversary of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is celebrated on 12th of the Islamic month of Rabi Al-Awwal
- Day dawned with a 31-gun salute in the federal capital of Islamabad and 21-gun salutes in all provincial capitals
ISLAMABAD: A National Seerat Conference organized by the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony is being held today, Tuesday, in Islamabad on the occasion of Eid Milad-un-Nabi, Radio Pakistan reported.
The eid to mark the birth anniversary of Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) is celebrated on the 12th of the Islamic month of Rabi Al-Awwal.
The day dawned with a 31-gun salute in the Pakistani federal capital of Islamabad and a 21-gun salute in all provincial capitals.
“President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif have urged the nation and the Muslim Ummah to follow teachings of Holy Prophet (pbuh) as a guiding light to overcome prevailing challenges,” Radio Pakistan reported.
In his message, Zardari called on Pakistanis to use the life of the prophet as a “source of guidance” and spread his message of love and compassion for all mankind. In a separate message, the PM said the “blessed life, noble character, and exemplary conduct of Holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) serves as a beacon of light for entire humanity.”
Streets, roads, buildings, mosques, and houses around the country were decorated with colorful lights on Monday night and milad processions will be taken out in all cities today, Tuesday.
Mehfil-e-Milad are also being organized in all small and major cities to highlight the life and teachings of the last prophet.
Pakistan and Indonesia conclude week-long, joint military exercise to counter militancy
- Pakistan routinely holds joint air, ground and sea exercises with friendly nations
- These military exercises help foster interoperability and joint deployment concepts
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Indonesia have concluded a week-long, joint military exercise, Elang Strike-II, to counter militancy, the Pakistani military said on Monday.
This was the second exercise between the two countries in the counter-terrorism domain, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the Pakistani military’s media wing.
It began on September 8 and continued for a week at the National Counter Terrorism Center (NCTC) in Pabbi town of Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province.
“The exercise was aimed at mutually beneficial sharing of experience and training methodology between the two armies which have strong brotherly relations,” the ISPR said in a statement.
Senior officials of Pakistan Army and Col. Budi Wirman, defense attaché of Indonesia, attended the closing ceremony.
Pakistan routinely holds joint air, ground and sea exercises with friendly nations. These drills help foster interoperability and joint deployment concepts to counter threats to regional and global peace.
The South Asian country, which has fought back militancy for decades, also hosts cadets from these brotherly nations each year to undergo specialized military training.
Pakistani man to appear in US court on assassination plot charges
- Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn say Asif Merchant, 46, spent time in Iran before traveling to the United States to recruit people for the plot
- Merchant told a confidential informant he also planned to steal documents from one target and organize protests in the US, prosecutors said
NEW YORK: A Pakistani man with alleged ties to Iran is set to appear in US court on Monday on charges of scheming to assassinate an American politician in retaliation for the killing of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards top commander Qassem Soleimani.
Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn say Asif Merchant, 46, spent time in Iran before traveling to the United States to recruit people for the plot.
Merchant told a confidential informant he also planned to steal documents from one target and organize protests in the United States, prosecutors said.
The defendant named Donald Trump as a potential target but had not conceived the scheme as a plan to assassinate the former president, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Court papers do not name the alleged targets, and no attacks were made. As president, Trump had in 2020 approved the drone strike on Soleimani.
There are no suggestions that Merchant was tied to an apparent assassination attempt on Trump at his Florida golf course on Sunday, or a separate shooting of the Republican presidential candidate at a rally in Pennsylvania in July.
Merchant faces one count of attempting to commit terrorism across national boundaries and one count of murder for hire.
He is expected to enter a plea before US Magistrate Judge Robert Levy in Brooklyn at 12 p.m. EDT (1600 GMT). Merchant was arrested in Texas on July 15.
Iran’s mission to the United Nations said in August that the “modus operandi” described in Merchant’s court papers ran contrary to Tehran’s policy of “legally prosecuting the murder of General Soleimani.”
