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Heavy rains in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa till Aug. 24 as downpours kill 220 since July

Women displaced by flood, carry their belongings as they wade through floodwaters after heavy monsoon rains at Sohbatpur in Jaffarabad district, Balochistan province on August 19, 2024. (AFP/File)
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Updated 21 August 2024
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Heavy rains in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa till Aug. 24 as downpours kill 220 since July

  • Monsoon rains have killed 89 people in Punjab and 65 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province since July 1, says disaster management body 
  • NDMA says heavy monsoon rains can increase flows in local nullahs and tributaries, causing flash floods in many parts of country
Updated 21 August 2024
Shahjahan Khurram

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) on Wednesday forecast heavy monsoon rains in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Punjab province till Aug. 24, with the downpours killing 220 and injured 416 across the country since July.

Heavy monsoon rains have triggered rains and flash floods in many parts of Pakistan since July, particularly KP and Punjab. As per the latest NDMA report, Punjab has reported the highest number of casualties from rain-related incidents with 89 deaths followed by KP with 65 casualties since July 1. 

The southern provinces of Sindh and Balochistan have reported 39 and 18 deaths from rain-related incidents, respectively, while Azad Kashmir has reported five deaths and the northern Gilgit-Baltistan region four deaths since July. 

“National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC) of NDMA anticipated more rain wind/thunderstorms and heavy downpours in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and isolated rainfall in Punjab from 21st to 24th August 2024,” the NDMA said in its latest advisory. 

It cautioned that rains may cause increased flows in local nullahs and river tributaries. The disaster management body said Increased flows may cause flash floods in Abbottabad, Parachinar, Charbagh, Charsadda, Chitral, Dir, Haripur, Hazara, Malakand, Mansehra, Mardan, Peshawar, and Swabi districts of KP. 

Meanwhile, it said heavy rainfall is expected in the Potohar region, twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi, Bahawalpur, DG Khan, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Gujrat, Hafizabad, Jhelum, Lahore, Layyah, Mianwali, Multan, Narowal, Rahimyar Khan, Sialkot and Sargodha districts of Punjab. 

NDMA warned authorities and the public to take all necessary precautions to mitigate the potential impacts of flooding and landslides.

“NDMA issued instructions to all relevant departments to alert Emergency Response Teams and mobilized resources to ensure a swift response to any arising situations,” the advisory said. “Tourists are advised to avoid traveling to these areas during the forecasted period.”

Pakistan is recognized as one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change effects. This year, the South Asian country recorded its “wettest April since 1961,” with 59.3 millimeters of rainfall while some areas of the country faced a severe heat wave in May and June.
In 2022, unusually heavy rains triggered flash floods in many parts of Pakistan, killing over 1,700 people, inflicting losses of around $30 billion, and affecting at least 30 million people. Scientists have attributed Pakistan’s erratic weather patterns to climate change effects and called on countries around the world to take urgent steps to tackle the crisis

Topics: pakistan monsoon

Pakistan says keen to explore trade avenues among Shanghai Cooperation Organization members

Updated 7 sec ago
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Pakistan says keen to explore trade avenues among Shanghai Cooperation Organization members

  • The statement came as Pakistan hosted 23rd meeting of ministers of SCO member states responsible for foreign, economic and trade activities
  • During the meeting, the South Asian country highlighted its geographical location as a natural hub for trade and investment collaboration 
Updated 7 sec ago
SAIMA SHABBIR

ISLAMABAD: Commerce Minister Jam Kamal on Thursday said Pakistan was keen to explore trade avenues among the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member countries, highlighting his country’s geographical location as a natural hub for trade and investment collaboration.

The minister expressed these views while presiding over in Islamabad the 23rd meeting of ministers of SCO member states responsible for foreign, economic and trade activities. The SCO represents a major cross-regional bloc, accounting for nearly half of the world’s population and a substantial portion of global gross domestic product (GDP).

Pakistan hosted the meeting in its capacity as the incumbent chair of the SCO Council of Heads of Government, the second highest SCO forum, which deals with all economic, trade, social, cultural and humanitarian issues as well as personnel and budgetary matters of the organization.

During his inaugural address, Khan noted that the SCO region was home to some of the world’s fastest-growing economies and a significant portion of the global population that presented immense potential for trade and economic collaboration.

“Pakistan’s geographical location at the crossroads of South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East positions it as a natural hub for trade and investment,” he said. “Pakistan is keen to leverage this strategic advantage to contribute to the collective growth of the SCO region.”

The minister said trade not only drives economic growth but also serves as a bridge to encourage mutual understanding, peace and prosperity among peoples of SCO countries.

“Pakistan welcomes and remains committed to deepening trade ties among the SCO member states in line with the national laws and policies of the member states,” he said. “We believe that by leveraging our collective strengths, we can create a more integrated and prosperous region.”

Citing the intra-SCO trade data, Khan said the overall trade between SCO member states remained 16 percent of their total foreign trade last year.

“Member countries imported 19 percent of their total imports from within SCO, while for export this was about 14 percent,” he added.

He said Pakistan envisions a robust and interconnected SCO region where trade flows seamlessly across the borders, where businesses thrive, and where innovation and entrepreneurship are nurtured, within the national laws and policies of member states.

Participating in the meeting virtually from New Delhi, India’s Deputy Commerce Minister Sunil Bharatwal highlighted the significance of the SCO region in the world economy.

“We see trade as an engine of growth and driver of economic development,” he said, adding that it was “mutual trust, inclusiveness as well as transparency” that were key to preserving the fundamental principles and objectives of the multilateral trading system and sustaining global supply chains. India’s priorities in SCO were shaped by the development of the global economy, he added.

“SCO stands for security, economic development, connectivity, unity, respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, and humanitarian protection,” he said.

Ling Ji, Vice Minister for Commerce and Deputy China International Trade Representative, emphasized that SCO member states must take the “right steps” to participate in the global economic and social reforms.

“To strengthen the various aspects of cooperation, one is to stick to the original intention of promoting trade and investment, liberalization and convenience between the member states,” he added.

In their country-wise statements, the SCO ministers also shared their views on the prospects and measures to deepen the economic and trade cooperation among SCO countries.
Adoption of SCO ministerial statement

The Pakistani commerce ministry said the collective vision of the SCO ministers on these issues was articulately summarized in the ministerial statement adopted by the meeting, which among other things underscored the importance of fair-trade practices and the pursuit of sustainability in economic development.

“The statement also emphasized the need to counter the protectionist trade measures, promote innovation and cooperation in digital technologies as well as to strengthen trade ties within the SCO region,” the ministry said, adding that to this end, members underscored the role of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and called for strengthening a WTO-based, non-discriminatory multilateral trading system.

“One of the key outcomes of the meeting was the approval of the Pakistani proposal on cooperation between the Trade Promotion Organizations (TPOs) of the SCO region.”

The commerce ministry said the implementation of this Pakistani proposal would meaningfully enhance collaboration between trade promotion bodies of SCO member states, facilitate greater trade integration and create new economic opportunities across the region.

The statement added that the meeting also approved the Kazakh proposal for the creation of a database of economic preferences for the SCO region, which will act as a comprehensive resource for member states to access information on economic incentives and preferences within the bloc, fostering a more cohesive business environment.

“Additionally, the ministerial meeting approved the Russian proposal on the promotion of the creative economy within the region, highlighting the importance of innovation-driven economic growth,” the ministry added.

Founded in 2001, the SCO is a major trans-regional organization spanning South and Central Asia, with China, Russia, Pakistan, India, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan as its permanent members. The SCO member states collectively represent nearly half of the world’s population and a quarter of global economic output.

The organization’s agenda of promoting peace and stability, and seeking enhanced linkages in infrastructure, economic, trade and cultural spheres, is aligned with Pakistan’s own vision of enhancing economic connectivity as well as peace and stability in the region.

Topics: SCO meeting Islamabad Shanghai Cooperation Organization Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO)

Pakistan central bank cuts key rate by 200 bps to 17.5%

Updated 12 September 2024
Reuters
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Pakistan central bank cuts key rate by 200 bps to 17.5%

  • Thursday’s move follows cuts of 150 bps in June, 100 bps in July that brought down the rate from an all-time high of 22% to 17.5%
  • Pakistan’s annual consumer price inflation rate slowed to 9.6% in August from a high of nearly 40% in May last year
Updated 12 September 2024
Reuters

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s central bank cut its key policy rate by 200 basis points to 17.5% on Thursday, it said in a statement, making it the third straight reduction since June as the country looks to spur growth as inflation eases.

Most respondents in a Reuters poll this week expected a cut of 150 basis points after inflation fell to single digits in August for the first time in nearly three years.

Thursday’s move follows cuts of 150 bps in June and 100 bps in July that have taken the rate from an all-time high of 22% — set in June 2023 and left unchanged for a year — to the current 17.5 percent.
Pakistan’s annual consumer price inflation rate slowed to 9.6 percent in August from a high of nearly 40 percent in May 2023.
Economic indicators have stabilized in the South Asian nation since last summer when the country came close to a default before a last-gasp bailout from the International Monetary Fund.
But concerns have risen once again with the global lender’s board yet to approve a staff level agreement struck in June for a new, $7 billion, three-year program.
The government initially said it expected the board approval in August, and later said it was likely in September. The issue is yet to be placed on the IMF board’s agenda.

Topics: Pakistan State Bank of Pakistan Interest Rate

Ten arrested ex-PM Khan party MPs produced in Pakistan National Assembly

Updated 12 September 2024
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Ten arrested ex-PM Khan party MPs produced in Pakistan National Assembly

  • Islamabad High Court suspends eight-day physical remand of PTI MPs till Friday
  • MPs were arrested on Monday on charges of violating a law on public gatherings 
Updated 12 September 2024
Hasaan Ali Khan

ISLAMABAD: Ten lawmakers from former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, who the PTI says were arrested from inside the parliament building earlier this week, were produced at the National Assembly on Thursday on the orders of the Speaker, the party said. 
Pakistani police arrested several PTI MPs late on Monday night and early on Tuesday after the party held a rally in the capital on Sunday to demand the release of ex-PM Khan, who has been in prison since August last year, facing a slew of cases. The PTI said a number of the MPs were detained while they were inside the parliament building. The National Assembly speaker on Tuesday opened an inquiry into the arrests, citing that under Pakistani law, legislators cannot be detained from within the precincts of the parliament without the speaker’s permission.
According to the National Assembly Secretariat, production orders were issued on Wednesday for PTI party MPs Sher Afzal Khan, Malik Muhammad Aamir Dogar, Muhammad Ahmad Chattha, Makhdoom Zain Hussain Qureshi, Waqas Akram, Zubair Khan Wazir, Awais Haider Jakhar, Syed Shah Ahad Ali Shah, Nasim Ali Shah, and Yousaf Khan. 
Upon arriving at the Parliament House, all the lawmakers were handed over to the sergeant-at-arms.
“Slogans of former prime minister Imran Khan chanted on the arrival of PTI members at the Parliament House,” the PTI party said on Thursday in a social media post on X. 

Videos shared by the PTI with journalists showed the arrested lawmakers arriving at the National Assembly in a white van surrounded by police personnel amid pro-Khan sloganeering. One video showed Marwat meeting his son while one had Dogar speaking against what he described as the “fascism” of the incumbent government. Qureshi told reporters none of the arrested PTI leaders were tortured while in custody. 
On Wednesday, the PTI had announced its lawmakers would boycott parliament sessions until it was “satisfied” with the result of an investigation into the arrests.
Separately, a two-member bench of the Islamabad High Court bench suspended the physical remand of the arrested PTI party lawmakers till the next hearing, which is scheduled for tomorrow, Friday. An anti-terrorism court on Tuesday allowed the eight-day physical remand of the politicians. 
Following uproar over the arrests, the National Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution on Wednesday to constitute an 18-member committee to resolve issues related to the House. The PTI is represented in the body by its chairman, Gohar Ali Khan.
SUNDAY RALLY
Sunday’s PTI rally was mostly peaceful, but there were clashes between police and some PTI supporters en route to the rally venue, in which one police officer was injured. The rally also went on longer than the 7pm deadline given by the district administration, a violation under the recently passed Peaceful Assembly and Public Order Act, 2024, which allows authorities to set time limits for public gatherings and designate special areas to hold them. 
The Islamabad administration had allowed the PTI to hold Sunday’s rally from 4pm till 7pm but the gathering went on until nearly 11pm. Police have said the PTI MPs were detained over violations of the new law.
On Wednesday, Information Minister Ataullah Tarar rejected PTI party claims that the lawmakers were arrested from inside the National Assembly building. 
The PTI says it has faced an over year-long crackdown since protesters allegedly linked to the party attacked and damaged government and military installations on May 9, 2023, after Khan’s brief arrest that day in a land graft case. Hundreds of PTI followers and leaders were arrested following the riots and many remain behind bars as they await trial. The military, which says Khan and his party were behind the attacks, has also initiated army court trials of at least 103 people accused of involvement in the violence.
The party says it was not allowed to campaign freely ahead of the Feb. 9 general election, a vote marred by a mobile Internet shutdown on election day and unusually delayed results, leading to accusations that it was rigged and drawing concern from rights groups and foreign governments.
The PTI says it won the most seats, but its mandate was “stolen” by PM Shebaz Sharif’s coalition government which formed the government with the backing of the all-powerful military. Both deny the claim.
Khan, jailed since last August, was ousted from the PM’s office in 2022 in a parliamentary vote of no confidence after what is widely believed to be a falling out with Pakistan’s powerful military, which denies being involved in politics. Since his removal, Khan and his party have waged an unprecedented campaign of defiance against the military and now the PTI is aiming to mobilize the public through public rallies to call for their leader’s release from jail in “politically motivated” cases. 
The ex-PM faces a range of legal charges and was convicted in four cases since he was first taken into custody, all of which have been either suspended or overturned by the courts. He remains in jail, however, on new charges brought by Pakistan’s national accountability watchdog regarding the illegal sale of gifts from a state repository while Khan was prime minister from 2018 to 2022.

 

Topics: National Assembly of Pakistan

Policeman shoots and kills blasphemy suspect held at Pakistan police station

Updated 12 September 2024
AP
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Policeman shoots and kills blasphemy suspect held at Pakistan police station

  • Syed Khan was arrested on Wednesday after officers snatched him from an enraged mob that claimed he had committed blasphemy 
  • Accusations of blasphemy are common in Pakistan, often spark rioting and rampage by mobs that escalate into lynching and killings
Updated 12 September 2024
AP

QUETTA: A policeman opened fire inside a police station in the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta on Thursday, killing a suspect held on accusations of blasphemy, a local official said.
The slain man was identified as Syed Khan. Police said he had been arrested the day before, after officers snatched him from an enraged mob that claimed he had insulted Islam’s Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).
According to police official Mohammad Khurram, the officer involved in the fatal shooting has been arrested. Khurram did not provide further details.
Killings of suspects while in police custody are rare in Pakistan, where accusations of blasphemy — sometimes even just rumors — are common and often spark rioting and rampage by mobs that can escalate into lynching and killings.
Under Pakistan’s controversial blasphemy laws, anyone found guilty of insulting Islam or Islamic religious figures can be sentenced to death, though authorities have yet to carry out a death sentences for blasphemy.
In the case of Khan, the man killed on Thursday, local residents claimed he had used derogatory remarks against the prophet and went after him. After he was arrested, the mob surrounded the station, demanding police hand Khan back to them so they could kill him.
At one point, a man hurled a grenade at the station on Wednesday while a group of religious hard-liners briefly blocked a key road in the city, demanding punishment for Khan. The crowd dispersed later in the day after officials managed to calm them down.
Pakistan has witnessed a surge in attacks on blasphemy suspects in recent years.
In June, a mob broke into a police station in the northwestern town of Madyan, snatched a man who was held there and then lynched him over allegations that he had desecrated Islam’s holy book, the Qur’an. The attackers also torched the station and burned police vehicles parked there. The slain man was a tourist staying at a hotel in town when the locals turned on him and accused him of blasphemy.
Last year, a mob in the eastern Punjab province attacked churches and homes of Christians after claiming they saw a local Christian and his friend desecrating pages from a Qur’an. The attack in the district of Jaranwala drew nationwide condemnation, but Christians say the men linked to the violence are yet to be put on trial.
In 2021, a mob of factory employees in eastern Pakistan tortured and burned a Sri Lankan manager over apparent blasphemy.
A policeman in 2011 killed a former governor of Punjab province after accusing him of blasphemy. That officer, Mumtaz Qadri, was later sentenced to death and hanged. However, support for him grew after his hanging, with tens of thousands attending his funeral in the garrison city of Rawalpindi. Many in Punjab still today considered him a martyr.
Quetta, a conservative city in southwestern Pakistan, is also the capital of the restive Balochistan province, where militant groups stage near daily attacks and where separatists have waged a decades-long insurgency against the government in Islamabad.

Topics: Quetta Pakistan blasphemy

Gunmen kill cop guarding polio vaccinators as Pakistan police protests against militancy grow

Updated 12 September 2024
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Gunmen kill cop guarding polio vaccinators as Pakistan police protests against militancy grow

  • Police sit-in against surge in militancy, assassinations of officers entered fourth day in Lakki Marwat
  • At least 77 policemen have been killed in ambushes and target killings in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in 2024
Updated 12 September 2024
REHMAT MEHSUD

DERA ISMAIL KHAN: A sit-in by police in the Lakki Marwat district of the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province against a surge in militancy and the targeted assassinations of officers entered its fourth day on Thursday, with seven people killed in attacks in the region in the last 24 hours, police said.
Security officials, policemen and polio vaccinators were among the seven fatalities. In a latest attack in Bannu, a southern district in KP, unidentified gunmen opened fire on police guards escorting a polio vaccination team on Thursday morning, killing a policeman. 
Pakistan has seen a number of militant attacks in recent months, with most of them taking place in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa where religiously motivated groups like the Pakistani Taliban (TTP) have stepped up assaults, daily targeting security forces convoys and check posts, and carrying out targeted killings and kidnappings of security and government officials.
At least 77 policemen have been killed in ambushes and target killings in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in 2024, according to police figures. 
“Unfortunately, another brave colleague, police officer Noor Alam Jan, lost his life in a targeted attack by unidentified gunmen when he was guarding a polio team this [Thursday] morning in Domail,” Matiullah Khan, a police officer with Bannu police, told Arab News. 
The killing comes a day after police in the Bajaur tribal district announced a boycott of polio security duties following the killing of a cop by unknown gunmen. 
Last week, 13 people were wounded when a roadside bomb targeted a police vehicle escorting an anti-polio team in Pakistan’s South Waziristan tribal district, officials said. 
On Tuesday this week, Bajaur police said a security official was killed and four were injured when their vehicle was hit by a planted bomb near the Niamat Khan village of the volatile district.
On Thursday, police officer Zabihullah Wazir said two laborers and a Frontier Corps paramilitary soldier were killed during an exchange of gunfire between security officials and suspected militants in Angoor Adda, an area bordering Afghanistan in Pakistan’s South Waziristan tribal district.
The Pakistan army has a heavy presence in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which borders Afghanistan, where it has been battling militants from the Al-Qaeda, Pakistani Taliban and other groups for nearly two decades.
There have been protests in several districts of KP since July, when Pakistan’s cabinet announced that a new military operation would be launched amid a surge in terror attacks across the country. People in the northwestern region have rejected plans for an armed operation and demand that civilian agencies like the provincial police and the counter-terrorism department be better equipped.
PROTESTS GROW
Police in Lakki Marwat have been staging a sit-in for the last four days after unidentified gunmen attacked a police van in the district, killing an officer. Two brothers of a serving police man in the district were separately gunned down. 
Police and local elders in Lakki Marwat are demanding the military’s complete withdrawal from KP and the transfer of power to civilian law enforcers to restore peace and stability in the region.
Lakki Marwat police spokesman Shahid Marwat told Arab News the protests had “gained momentum” on Thursday, with more and more people and policemen joining the protest camp and loudspeaker announcements asking businesses to remain shut. 
Marwat said police officials from other districts like Bannu were also arriving in Lakki Marwat to join the sit-in in solidarity with their colleagues. 
“Today, protesters closed down all main arteries linking Peshawar-Karachi and Lakki Marwat-Punjab on the Indus Highway,” he said. 
The sit-in by policemen has also been joined by representatives of civil society and political parties as well as tribal elders and members of the public, the spokesman added. 
KP government Spokesman Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif did not return phone calls and text messages on Thursday inquiring about the government’s plans to deal with the protests in Lakki Marwat. 
Islamabad says militants mainly associated with the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban-e-Pakistan frequently launch attacks from hideouts in neighboring Afghanistan, targeting police and other security forces. 
Islamabad has even blamed Kabul’s Afghan Taliban rulers for facilitating anti-Pakistan militants. Kabul denies the charges. 
Ali Amin Gandapur, the chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said this week he would hold direct talks with the rulers in Kabul to take action against Afghanistan-based militant groups.
“My [Khyber Pakhtunkhwa] police has lost trust, my people have lost trust, where are you [federal government, army] taking my youth, my people?” Gandapur said as he addressed a ceremony on Wednesday evening.
“I am saying let me send a representative to Afghanistan to talk to them. Afghanistan is our neighbor, we speak the same language, we have a longer than 1,200 km border. Let me talk to them that what is happening in Afghanistan.
“I announce here … I will talk to Afghanistan myself, I will talk to them as a province. I am telling you as the representative of this province, I will send an emissary and arrange a meeting, I will sit with them and talk and Inshallah I will solve this issue through talks.”
Islamabad says it has consistently taken up the issue of cross-border attacks with the Taliban administration. The issue has also led to clashes between the border forces of the two countries on multiple occasions in recent months, including on Sunday when security forces in Pakistan said they had killed eight Afghan Taliban fighters in a border clash following what Islamabad described as “unprovoked firing” on its checkpoints.

Topics: Pakistan Polio Service Bannu attack bannu protest

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