ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s interior ministry said on Friday it had not made any decision on requests by provinces to suspend Internet service to ensure security in Muharram.
The proposals relate to Muharram’s Ashura processions, 10 days of mourning by minority Shiite Muslims. The event is the holiest in the Shiite calendar and commemorates the 7th century death of Imam Hussain and his companions.
Militant groups have often targeted Muharram processions and imambargahs and killed of hundreds of people in the past, but the Pakistani interior ministry said it had neither accepted nor rejected any request in this regard.
“The prime minister will make a final decision whether to suspend Internet or not,” the ministry said in a statement.
Pakistan’s largest Punjab province has also proposed a ban on all social media platforms for six days due to security concerns regarding thousands of religious processions which start next week, provincial information minister Azma Bukhari said on Friday.
The measure was aimed at protecting the minority from sectarian violence, the provincial government wrote in a letter to Pakistan’s interior ministry on Thursday.
The letter said social media platforms such as “Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and Tiktok be suspended across the province of Punjab ... in order to control hate material/misinformation.”
Pakistan has blocked access to X since its February election, which the interior ministry said in a court submission in April was due to national security concerns.
Civil and rights groups have criticized the ban as an “attack on freedom of speech and access to information” in a highly polarized country amid allegations of election fraud.
Pakistan says no decision yet on requests by provinces to suspend Internet in Muharram
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Pakistan says no decision yet on requests by provinces to suspend Internet in Muharram
- The proposals relate to Ashura processions in Muharram, 10 days of mourning by minority Shiite Muslims
- The event is holiest in Shiite calendar, commemorates 7th century death of Imam Hussain and companions
Pakistan denies UN refugee agency’s claim of suspending repatriation of ‘illegal’ foreign nationals
- Pakistan has so far deported over 620,000 Afghan nationals after launching a deportation drive last year
- Afghan envoy to Pakistan says the government lacks a clear policy over the issue, making refugees suffer
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s foreign office on Wednesday refuted a claim by the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) that the country had suspended its plan to repatriate illegal foreign immigrants, mostly Afghan nationals, following a deportation drive launched by the government last year.
The foreign office dismissed the assertion only a day after UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi concluded his three-day visit to Pakistan where he met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Minister for States and Frontier Regions Amir Muqam, among other senior officials.
The UN refugee agency said in a statement Grandi called for the timely extension of the Proof of Registration (PoR) cards, a critical identity document held by over 1.3 million Afghans that legalizes their status in the country.
The UN agency said its visiting official expressed appreciation that the repatriation plan for illegal foreigners had been “suspended,” seeking assurances it would remain on hold. When asked about the development, however, foreign office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch rejected the claim.
“That’s not true,” she said in a concize response.
The UN agency said its top official offered to work toward a dialogue over the issue later this year, promising to bring together key stakeholders to develop a package of solutions that could benefit both the Afghan refugees and the host country.
“In the meantime, as Pakistan continues to host some 3 million Afghans, all solutions need to be explored in addition to voluntary repatriation, including third-country resettlement and longer-term solutions within Pakistan,” the UNHCR added.
Meanwhile, the Afghan embassy said in a social media post that Kabul’s acting envoy in Islamabad, Sardar Ahmed Shakeeb, told Grandi in a meeting that refugees from his country were suffering due to a lack of a clear official policy over the issue in Pakistan.
“The Ambassador underscored that Afghan refugees should not be subjected to forced deportation but rather allowed to repatriate with dignity,” the post said, adding that Shakeeb called for the provision of a unified and valid card for all Afghan nationals residing in Pakistan.
The Pakistani government launched its deportation drive in November last year after a spike in suicide bombings which the officials blamed on Afghan nationals, without providing much evidence.
So far, over 620,000 Afghans have been deported to their country.
The government also says Afghans are involved in smuggling, militant violence and other crimes.
A cash-strapped Pakistan navigating record inflation, alongside a tough International Monetary Fund bailout program last year, also said undocumented migrants had remained a drain on its resources for decades.
Pakistan’s defense minister backs surveillance by spy agency, calls it necessary in ‘current circumstances’
- Khawaja Asif says the measure should be supported by everyone in the context of Pakistan’s war against militancy
- He dismisses the criticism by ex-PM Khan’s party, says its members supported phone tapping during their tenure
ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Defense Khawaja Asif said on Tuesday he supported the government’s decision to authorize Pakistan’s premier spy agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), to intercept phone calls, emphasizing it was essential “under the current circumstances” as the country strives to eradicate militant violence.
In a notification issued on Monday, Pakistan’s information technology ministry said the government had authorized the ISI to tap phone calls and messages “in the interest of national security,” adding to the already outsized role and powers of the shadowy military outfit.
The notification was described as a “black law” by the opposition parties, with former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) saying “national security” had no clear definition and could mean anything.
“In matters of national security, this measure becomes necessary and should be supported by everyone,” the minister said during a conversation with Independent Urdu. “At the very least, during the ongoing war against terrorism, this action is essential. I fully support it under the current circumstances.”
He dismissed criticism from the opposition, saying the PTI members should recall Khan’s statements over the issue who justified phone tapping during his own stint in power.
“Previously, they themselves advocated for phone tapping, both theirs and others’, and happily said it should be done,” he added.
Barrister Gohar Khan, the PTI chairman, told Independent Urdu the constitution guaranteed the privacy of all citizens, saying that only the people involved in criminal activities could be subjected to such surveillance.
“Such a blanket notification violates the constitution,” he added.
Asked about Khan’s own support to phone tapping while he was in power, the PTI leader said: “Whatever it is, it should be according to the constitution.”
Wahab Riaz, Abdul Razzaq sacked from Pakistan cricket’s selection committee after World Cup debacle
- The men’s national cricket team disappointed fans across the world after group stage exit from T20 World Cup
- PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has been consulting coaches, former players to improve the team’s performance
KARACHI: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Wednesday announced its decision to sack former pacers Wahab Riaz and Abdul Razzaq from the selection committee following the national team’s group stage exit from the T20 World Cup, disappointing fans across the world.
Pakistan crashed out of the tournament, co-hosted by the United States and West Indies, after losing two crucial matches: one against the amateur USA team and another in a narrow defeat to India despite being in a strong position to win.
In response to the debacle, PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has been holding meetings with coaches and former Pakistani cricket players amid mounting pressure to improve the team’s performance and address the issues that led to their early exit.
“The Pakistan Cricket Board today confirmed that it has notified Abdul Razzaq and Wahab Riaz that their services will no longer be required in the national selection committee setup,” the PCB said in a brief statement. “Abdul Razzaq was a member of the men’s and women’s selection committee, while Wahab was a member of the men’s selection committee.”
“The PCB will provide further updates on the selection committee’s composition in due course,” it continued.
The men’s national cricket team has faced a disappointing run since the Asia Cup last year, revealing significant gaps in their approach and consistency.
Internal divisions have been cited as a major issue, for which the PCB itself has faced criticism.
The PCB’s handling of leadership changes and team management decisions has also come under scrutiny, with many arguing that these factors contributed to the squad’s overall decline in performance.
Body of missing Japanese climber retrieved from mountain in northern Pakistan
- Hiroshi Onishi, 64, died after falling into a crevasse while descending the 7,027-meter Golden Peak
- Six volunteers retrieved his body after bad weather prevented helicopters from flying over the peak
PESHAWAR: A group of Pakistani volunteers found the body of a Japanese climber who died while trying to descend from one of the highest mountains in the country, officials said Tuesday.
The body of 64-year-old Hiroshi Onishi was brought down the previous day from the 7,027-meter (23,054 feet) Spantik Peak — also known as Golden Peak — where he died, a local police chief Mohammad Hanif told The Associated Press by phone.
He was the third Japanese climber to die in Pakistan in less than a month.
Onishi was coming down from the mountain with other Japanese climbers after successfully reaching the summit when he slipped and fell into a crevasse and died, police said.
The body of Onishi was being sent to Islamabad by an ambulance, according to Javed Ali Munwa, a local official told the AP. His family is expected to reach Pakistan later this week.
A six-member team of volunteers led by a Pakistani mountaineer Abbas Ali undertook the risky mission to retrieve the body after bad weather prevented helicopters from flying to the Spantik, Munwa said. He added that it took 6 days of arduous work to find and bring the body down.
Hiroshi’s death came after two other Japanese climbers, Atsushi Taguchi and Ryuseki Hiraoka, died while trying to scale the same mountain. They went missing on June 13, and Hiraoka’s body was found two days later after that incident.
His colleague was presumed dead after an unsuccessful weeklong search. Both had fallen into a deep crevasse.
Golden Peak is known for its distinct golden hue at sunrise and sunset, making it a popular destination for mountaineers.
Every year, hundreds of climbers try to scale mountains in northern Pakistan, including K2 and Nanga Parbat, and several die.
US urges journalist safety after Kenyan court rules Pakistani anchor’s killing unlawful
- Arshad Sharif was fatally shot by the Kenyan police in 2022 after he went into exile due to sedition charges against him
- Kenyan court asked authorities to launch criminal proceedings against officers who shot him after examining evidence
ISLAMABAD: US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller emphasized the safety of journalists “around the world” on Tuesday after being asked about a recent verdict issued by a Kenyan court declaring the 2022 police killing of Pakistani anchor Arshad Sharif unlawful.
Sharif, who was widely viewed as critical of Pakistan’s powerful military and a staunch supporter of the jailed former prime minister Imran Khan, left the country in August 2022 after sedition cases were filed against him.
He was fatally shot by the Kenyan police nearly two months later while traveling to Nairobi in a vehicle. The law enforcement officials in the African state described the shooting as a result of “mistaken identity.”
However, the Kenyan court ordered the authorities to launch criminal proceedings against the officers who shot the Pakistani journalist after examining the evidence in the case, according to the lawyer representing Sharif’s widow.
“I’m not aware of this case, so I’m not going to comment in any way specifically on it at all,” Miller said when asked about the Kenyan court’s verdict during his media briefing in Washington.
“But, of course, we support the work of journalists around the world,” he continued. “And we think that it’s important that they be able to do that job – their job safely.”
Sharif’s widow, Javeria Siddique, together with the Kenya Union of Journalists and Kenya Correspondents Association, filed a complaint last year against top Kenyan officials over the “arbitrary and unlawful killing” and their “failure to investigate.”
After a total of three hearings, the court reserved its verdict on May 8, which was subsequently announced on Monday.
