ISLAMABAD: Opposition parties led by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) backed Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) on Saturday opposed a National Assembly resolution denouncing a US House of Representatives resolution that has called for a probe into alleged voting irregularities in the South Asian nation’s general election.
Earlier this week, a US congressional resolution called for “the full and independent investigation of claims of interference or irregularities” in Pakistan’s Feb. 8 national election, drawing a strong reaction from Islamabad. The resolution was seen as a boost for the PTI party of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan, which has insisted that its victory was converted into a defeat by the country’s election commission, which denies this. Other than widespread allegations of rigging, the vote was also marred by violence and communication blackouts throughout the country.
The government “did not show us the text of the resolution it passed in the National Assembly condemning the resolution passed by the US House of Representatives pointing out rigging in the 8th February 2024 elections,” Omar Ayub Khan, the leader of the opposition in the National Assembly, said on X on Saturday.
“The resolution passed by the US House of Representatives is based on the reports of multiple election observers and points out the facts. It points out the interference of intelligence agencies, lack of proper procedures followed, and a tainted electoral process.”
On Friday, when the resolution was tabled and passed, opposition lawmakers chanted “shame- shame” and tore up copies of the document.
In a televised speech, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz lawmaker Shaista Pervaiz Malik, who tabled the resolution, said the US resolution was “completely against the facts” and Pakistan would not tolerate any such interference in its internal affairs.
“The House further regrets that the US resolution does not acknowledge the free and enthusiastic exercise of the right to vote by millions of Pakistanis in the recently held General Election,” the resolution read. “An independent and sovereign country like Pakistan will not accept any interference in its internal affairs and the subject resolution is an attempt to undermine the state.”
Addressing a weekly news briefing earlier this week, Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch separately said Pakistan “deeply regretted” the resolution, saying it stemmed from an “inadequate and erroneous understanding of the political and electoral processes of Pakistan.”
“It is also an unsolicited interference in Pakistan’s domestic affairs,” she said. “We believe that bilateral relations between countries should be based on mutual respect and sovereign equality … The unsolicited interference from the US Congress is therefore neither welcome nor accepted.”
Baloch said Pakistan wanted relations with the United States “on the basis of mutual trust and confidence and non-interference in each other’s domestic affairs.”
“We also hope that the US Congress would play a more constructive role in strengthening Pakistan-US bilateral relations by focusing on avenues of collaboration for mutual benefit of the relations,” the spokesperson concluded.
Khan’s party won the most seats in general elections but fell short of a simple majority to form a government, paving the way for Khan’s political rivals led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to form a coalition government.
Opposition rejects parliamentary resolution denouncing US congressional motion on probe into Pakistan polls
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Opposition rejects parliamentary resolution denouncing US congressional motion on probe into Pakistan polls
- National Assembly adopts resolution despite objections from Imran Khan party lawmakers
- February 8 vote was marred by violence, communication blackouts and allegations of rigging
Low-cost airline flydubai starts flights to Islamabad, Lahore
- Flydubai started Pakistan operations in 2010 with launch of flights to Karachi
- Carrier also serves Pakistani cities of Faisalabad, Multan, Quetta and Sialkot
KARACHI: Dubai-based low-cost airline flydubai has started flights to Islamabad and Lahore, the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority said on Monday, with the first flights in both cities greeted with water cannon salutes.
Flydubai first started operating in Pakistan in 2010 with the launch of flights to the southern port city of Karachi. The carrier also serves the cities of Faisalabad, Multan, Quetta and Sialkot.
“Flydubai has also started flights to Islamabad,” CAA said in a statement. “Inaugural flight FZ 353 arrived in Islamabad from Dubai at 1:55am.”
A small dinner ceremony was organized on the occasion, CAA said, and the inaugural flight carrying 153 passengers was given a water cannon salute by the Rescue and Fire Fighting Service.
The flight returned to Dubai at 220pm on Monday with 162 passengers on board.
Separately, the CAA said flydubai’s Flight FZ 359 arrived in Lahore at 429am.
“A cake cutting ceremony was organized on this occasion and gifts were presented to the passengers,” CAA said. “Flydubai’s inaugural flight to Lahore was presented with a water cannon salute.”
In a press release last month when flydubai announced it would start flights to Lahore and Islamabad, Hamad Obaidalla, chief commercial officer of the airline, said Pakistan had long been an important market for the carrier:
“Since 2010 when we first started operations to the market, we have seen sustained demand for travel and with the start of our daily services to Islamabad and Lahore, we look forward to offering passengers more opportunities to explore Dubai, the GCC region and beyond on the flydubai network.”
As per the airline, the return business class fares from DXB to ISB start from AED 5,500 ($1497) and economy class fares from AED 1,300 ($353). Return business class fares from ISB to DXB start from Rs400,000 ($1436) and economy class fares from Rs120,000 ($430).
Pakistan sets up National Emergencies Operation Center as monsoon begins
- Public advised to download “Pak NDMA Disaster Alert” mobile app for timely alerts
- Disaster authority issues precautionary measures against urban flooding in cities
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s top disaster management authority has established a National Emergencies Operation Center (NEOC) in anticipation of intense cloud bursts and moderate to heavy rainfall expected to start tomorrow, Tuesday, as the country enters the monsoon season.
A statement from the PM office said on Monday the NEOC would use latest tools and technologies, including real-time satellite feeds, to anticipate disasters up to three months in advance and was run by a multidisciplinary team of experts employing the power of geographic information systems (GIS), remote sensing, climatology, meteorology, seismology, hydrology, and data sciences to monitor and analyze global and local hazards.
“NEOC has been reported a significant activity from the eastern Indian side, indicating intense cloud bursts that may hit Pakistani areas,” the PM Office said on Monday.
“Repeated early warnings have been shared with all provinces, and rainfall is likely to start over the upper catchments of all major rivers particularly Sutlej, Ravi and Chenab from July 2, 2024.”
The disaster management authority had also issued an alert regarding lightning expected in different cities of Punjab and the federal capital, Islamabad, during July 5-7, which could lead to rapid rises in water levels, flash flooding events, and urban flooding in metropolitan areas, the statement said.
” NDMA warns that the anticipated rainfall poses a significant risk of low to medium level flooding in River Sutlej, with water levels expected to reach low flood levels (approximately 50,000 cusecs) by July 5 and high flood levels (approximately 120,000 cusecs) by July 10,” the PM Office added.
The disaster management authority has been working closely with the federal and provincial departments to ensure preparedness and response to any potential emergency, the statement said, advising the public to remain vigilant and follow instructions from local authorities as well as download the “Pak NDMA Disaster Alert” for timely alerts, weather reports and flood updates.
“Protect yourself from floodwater, avoid contact with it, which may be contaminated or contain debris or electrical wires,” it added. “Develop an evacuation plan with your family, identify a safe location, and create an emergency kit with essential supplies.”
The disaster management authority also advised travelers to avoid unnecessary travel in case of heavy rainfalls and likely floods.
Pakistan is consistently ranked among the world’s worst-affected countries from climate change. Unprecedented rainfall and melting of glaciers in June 2022 triggered massive floods across the country that killed nearly 1,700 people and inflicted damages worth $3 billion. Scientists and experts attributed the floods to the adverse effects of climate change.
Pakistan also went through a severe heat wave in May and June, which saw temperatures in some regions rise to above 50 degrees Celsius.
Dispute over death toll as Karachi’s second-longest heat wave ends after eight days
- Government reports 45 deaths, relief agencies claim morgues received three times more bodies than usual during heat wave
- Chief Meteorologist says this year’s heat wave the longest since June 2015 when 2,000 people died from heat-induced causes
KARACHI: Pakistan’s Chief Meteorologist Dr. Sardar Sarfaraz said on Monday an eight-day heat wave in Pakistan’s largest city of Karachi was over with at least 45 dead, while relief agencies and health experts said the death toll was likely much higher.
Pakistan has been in the grips of a heat wave since May, with temperatures rising above 52 degrees Celsius (125.6 degrees Fahrenheit) in the southern province of Sindh, of which the port city of Karachi is the capital. For over a week now, Karachi has seen an unusual spike in temperatures, with the mercury rising above 40 °C (104 °F) throughout last weekend and reaching 47.2 °C (117 °F) on June 25.
“As of today, the sea breeze has been restored and the heat wave is over,” Dr. Sarfaraz told Arab News. “During four of the eight heat wave days, temperatures reached up to 42°C but felt like 54°C due to low-pressure formation over southeast Karachi.”
Dr. Sarfaraz noted that this heat wave was the longest in Karachi since June 2015 when a “killer” episode claimed over 2,000 lives. He said 45 people had died in Karachi during this heat wave.
However, Muhammad Amin from the Edhi Foundation charity, one of the largest in Pakistan, estimated that the death toll from heat-induced causes was much higher given the number of bodies received at morgues.
“We have received 1,309 dead bodies since June 19, which is a significant increase, almost three times higher, than our average during this period,” Amin said, although he was unable to confirm if all the bodies received by Edhi were of people who had died due to complications from the heat wave.
Dr. Irfan Siddiqui, the head of emergency services at Jinnah Hospital, one of the biggest government-operated hospitals in Karachi, said the figures compiled by the government were authentic.
“We have reported these figures [45] after ascertaining the cause of death. One cannot attribute a death to a certain condition on mere speculations,” he said about the Edhi estimates.
However, Dr. Siddiqui acknowledged that some heat wave deaths may have gone unreported.
“While one cannot rely solely on figures from rescue services, the government’s data may also be inaccurate,” Dr. Abdullah Muttaqi, a senior health practitioner, told Arab News. “If morgues are receiving a large number of bodies during this period, heat likely played a role, but without medical confirmation of the cause, these figures cannot be cited.
“In the case of the government, figures are likely underreported, not properly documented, and inaccurately presented.”
Dr. Qaiser Sajjad, former general secretary of the Pakistan Medical Association, also said morgues had been receiving more bodies than usual and advised that the “government should sit with rescue services and rationalize its data.”
Pakistan is one of the countries most vulnerable to climate change. In 2022, devastating rains and floods killed 1,739 people, destroyed 2 million homes, and submerged as much as one-third of the country under water. The deluges also caused more than $30 billion in damages to Pakistan’s already cash-strapped economy.
Three security officials, doctor killed in gun attacks, snooker club set on fire in northwest Pakistan
- Islamabad blames ongoing surge in militant attacks on Pakistani Taliban militants it says are operating from Afghanistan
- Afghan Taliban rulers in Kabul say violence in Pakistan is a domestic issue, it does not allow militants to operate on its territory
PESHAWAR: Three security personnel were killed by unidentified gunmen in northwestern Pakistan in the last two days, police said on Monday, while a doctor was shot dead and a snooker club set on fire.
Islamabad blames an ongoing surge in militant attacks on neighboring Afghanistan, saying Pakistani Taliban, or TTP, leaders have taken refuge there and run camps to train insurgents to launch attacks inside Pakistan. The Afghan Taliban rulers in Kabul say rising violence in Pakistan is a domestic issue for Islamabad and it does not allow militants to operate on its territory.
The TTP pledges allegiance to, and gets its name from, the Afghan Taliban, but is not directly a part of the group. Its stated aim is to impose Islamic religious law in Pakistan, as the Taliban have done in Afghanistan.
Police officer Naheed Khan said on Monday “well-armed” militants mounted an overnight attack on the Takhta Baig check post in the northwestern Khyber district, leaving a Frontier Constabulary (FC) paramilitary soldier and a police official dead.
“The security personnel deputed on the check post repulsed the attack after an intense exchange of fire, forcing the militants to flee,” he added.
In a separate incident, Rohanzeb Khan, District Police Officer (DPO) in the North Waziristan district, said unidentified gunmen shot dead a police officer of the Special Branch department late on Sunday night.
“Masked gunmen riding two motorbikes shot dead a police officer of the Special Branch in Eidak, a town on the outskirts of Miran Shah, the headquarters of the [North Waziristan] district,” Khan said.
Dr. Abdul Rasheed, who worked at the District Hospital Khar in the Bajaur tribal district, was separately gunned down by unidentified gunmen on Sunday, police said.
“The incident of the doctor’s killing took place in Mohmand,” police officer Ajab Khan told Arab News.
In the Sultankhel Market of Khyber district, police said on Monday a snooker club was set on fire and a warning note left that it should not be rebuilt. The club had been built by journalist Khalil Jibran who was gunned down by unidentified gunmen last month.
While no group has claimed responsibility for the latest violence, officials widely suspect the TTP.
Attacks against security targets and the assassination of police and government officials have been on the rise in recent months in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, with most assaults claimed by the TTP.
Last week, unidentified gunmen abducted 13 laborers in the northwestern district of Tank but released nine, police said. Separately last month, two soldiers from Pakistan’s paramilitary Frontier Corps were killed in clashes between security forces and militants who had allegedly infiltrated from neighboring Afghanistan into Pakistan’s northwestern border regions.
Pakistani forces were able to effectively dismantle the TTP and kill most of its top leadership in a string of military operations from 2014 onwards in the tribal areas, driving most of the fighters into neighboring Afghanistan, where Islamabad says they have regrouped. Kabul denies this.
Last month, the federal government announced it would launch a new counter-terrorism operation, Azm-e-Istehkam, but the campaign has so far been opposed by opposition parties.
Pakistan says 38 defense personnel missing since 1965 believed to be in Indian custody
- Pakistan, India exchange list of prisoners through diplomatic channels on Jan 1 and July 1 each year
- Repatriation of 62 Pakistani prisoners in 2023, four this year secured so far, foreign office says
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and India on Monday exchanged lists of prisoners in each other’s jails, the foreign office said, with Islamabad saying 38 defense personnel missing since the wars of 1965 and 1971 were believed to be in New Delhi’s custody.
Pakistan and India exchange such lists through diplomatic channels on Jan 1 and July 1 each year in pursuance of the Consular Access Agreement of 2008.
“Pakistan handed over a list of 254 Indian or believed-to-be-Indian civilian prisoners and fishermen in Pakistani jails. India shared a list of 452 Pakistani or believed-to-be-Pakistani civilian prisoners and fishermen in Indian jails,” the foreign office said.
“A list of 38 missing Pakistani defense personnel, believed to be in India’s custody since the wars of 1965 and 1971, was also handed over by Pakistan.”
The government has called for the immediate release and repatriation of all Pakistani prisoners who had completed their sentences in India.
“A request for special consular access to various believed-to-be-Pakistani prisoners, including the physically- and mentally challenged prisoners, has been made and for expeditious confirmation of their national status,” the foreign office said.
“The government of Pakistan has also urged India to ensure safety, security, and well-being of all Pakistani or believed-to-be-Pakistani prisoners, awaiting their release and repatriation.”
The repatriation of 62 Pakistani prisoners in 2023, and four in the current year, has also so far been secured, the foreign office added.
The Indo-Pakistani war of 1965, also known as the second India–Pakistan war, was an armed conflict between Pakistan and India that took place from August 1965 to September 1965. Hostilities ended after a ceasefire was declared through UNSC Resolution 211 following diplomatic intervention by the Soviet Union and the United States, and the subsequent issuance of the Tashkent Declaration.
The war of 1971, also known as the third India-Pakistan war, was a military confrontation between India and Pakistan that ended with the fall of Dhaka and the creation of Bangladesh.
