ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s opposition on Wednesday called on the government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to hold a national debate on Balochistan, a day after a veteran politician announced his resignation from parliament over the deteriorating situation in the southwestern Pakistani province.
Sardar Akhtar Mengal, leader of the Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M), announced his resignation from Pakistan’s National Assembly on Tuesday, saying the people of the Balochistan province had been “consistently marginalized” and “pushed to the wall.”
Mengal’s announcement came after over 50 people were killed in Balochistan when separatist militants attacked police stations, railway lines and highways on August 25, prompting security forces to launch retaliatory operations.
The assaults were the most widespread in years by ethnic militants fighting a decades-long insurgency to win secession of the resource-rich southwestern province, home to major China-led projects such as a port, and a gold and copper mine.
On Wednesday, Asad Qaiser, a member of the opposition from former PM Imran Khan’s party, said the opposition alliance had expressed “grave concern” over the Balochistan situation and decided to request the National Assembly speaker to initiate a debate on it.
“The government must come and inform parliament what policies it has regarding Balochistan,” he told reporters after an opposition meeting late Wednesday. “We have formed a special committee as we believe there should be an all-party conference on Balochistan, with all political parties and stakeholders on board and a collective decision made to address the concerns of our disgruntled Baloch brothers.”
He criticized the government for “not taking Balochistan seriously,” referring to the announcement of resignation by Mengal, a former Balochistan chief minister.
“He tendered resignation after being disappointed with the present situation,” Qaiser said. “This is a very alarming thing. If your political figures are discouraged this way, they feel that they have lost respect in their [native] area because of this parliament, then this parliament has no value.”
In his resignation letter, Mengal had said the attempts by the people of Balochistan to speak up for their rights or protest were met with “hostility.”
“Our people are either silenced, labeled as traitors, or worse, killed,” he said. “Under such circumstances, I find it impossible to continue in this capacity, as my presence here no longer serves any purpose for the people I represent.”
Balochistan, which borders Iran and Afghanistan, is Pakistan’s most economically backward province, lagging behind the rest of the country by nearly all social and economic indicators. The province has been the site of a decades-long separatist insurgency by ethnic Baloch militants. The separatists say they are fighting what they see as unfair exploitation of the province’s mineral wealth by the federation. The state denies it.
In recent weeks, the province has also witnessed several protests by Baloch people and rights groups against what they describe as a pattern of enforced disappearances and other human rights abuses by security forces, who deny the charge.
Pakistan’s military has recently repeatedly referred to the ethnic rights movement in Balochistan being led by young people, many of them educated women, a “terrorist proxy.”
The decades-old insurgency has continued to keep the mineral-rich province of some 15 million people poor and unstable and created security concerns around Pakistan’s plans to access untapped resources under Balochistan’s desert and mountainous terrain.
The province is home to key mining projects, including Reko Diq, run by Canadian mining giant Barrick Gold and believed to be one of the world’s largest gold and copper mines. Balochistan is an important part of China’s $65 billion investment in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a wing of President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road initiative.
The province also has a long Arabian Sea coastline in the south, not far from the Gulf’s Strait of Hormuz oil shipping lane.
Pakistan opposition calls on government to hold national debate on Balochistan
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Pakistan opposition calls on government to hold national debate on Balochistan
- The demand came a day after a veteran politician from Balochistan announced his resignation from parliament
- His resignation followed deadly separatist attacks that killed more than 50 people in Balochistan late last month
ICC team discusses security arrangements with Karachi police ahead of ICC Champions Trophy
- ICC delegation is on four-day visit to Pakistan ahead of tournament from Feb.19 to Mar. 9, 2025
- Pakistan is continuing with final preparations to host their first multi-team event since 2008
KARACHI: A delegation from the International Cricket Council (ICC) on Thursday visited a special unit of the Sindh police in Karachi to discuss security arrangements for the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy, which will be hosted by Pakistan from February 19 to March 9 next year.
In addition to Karachi where it reviewed security arrangements at the National Stadium on Wednesday, the ICC team, which is on a four-day visit to Pakistan, will visit key cricket venues in Islamabad, Rawalpindi, and Lahore to ensure they are in top condition to host the tournament next year. The delegation’s visit follows a previous inspection conducted by a three-member ICC team in April of this year.
On Thursday, the ICC delegation headed by Security Head of ICC Recce Team, David Masker, visited the Special Security Unit (SSU) Headquarters in Karachi.
“The visit aimed to strengthen collaboration between law enforcement agencies and the ICC to ensure a safe and secure environment for players, officials, and fans during the prestigious event,” the SSU said in a statement.
Commandant SSU Anwar Khetran briefed the ICC on security arrangements to be implemented during matches scheduled at the National Bank Stadium in Karachi.
“He emphasized the importance of a coordinated approach to security, which includes crowd management, emergency response plans, and collaboration with various stakeholders,” the statement added.
DIG Security & Emergency Services Division Dr. Maqsood Ahmed also met with delegation and “encouraged all stakeholders to maintain high performance standards and to communicate any resource needs to management promptly, ensuring that all necessary support is in place for a successful tournament.”
The ICC delegation, according to the statement, reaffirmed the Council’s commitment to working closely with local authorities to enhance security measures for the event.
The ICC delegation is scheduled to depart for Dubai on September 21 as Pakistan continues final preparations to host their first multi-team event since 2008.
Last week, ICC Chief Executive Geoff Allardice confirmed there were currently no plans to relocate the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 from Pakistan.
‘Particularly worried’ about penetration of militants from Afghanistan into Pakistan — UN chief
- Pakistan has seen rise in attacks in recent weeks which it blames on militants operating from Afghanistan
- Afghan Taliban say they do not allow Afghanistan’s territory to be used by militants against other nations
ISLAMABAD: UN Secretary-General António Guterres said on Wednesday the international body was “particularly worried” about the penetration of militants from Afghanistan into Pakistan, calling on Kabul not to allow its soil to be used by terror groups.
Pakistan has seen a rise in militant attacks in recent weeks, with many of them taking place in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan where Islamabad says groups like the outlawed Pakistani Taliban, or TTP, are hiding and from where they daily target security forces convoys and check posts, and carry out targeted killings and kidnappings of law enforcers and government officials.
Militants, particularly from separatist groups, have also repeatedly struck in the southwestern Balochistan province, which borders Afghanistan and Iran.
“We are particularly worried… when we look into the neighboring countries, we are particularly worried with the fact that there is a penetration of terrorists from Afghanistan into Pakistan and that that is creating, of course, many innocent victims and being a threat to Pakistani security,” Guterres told reporters in response to a question about what the UN planned to do about militants using safe havens in Afghanistan to launch attacks in Pakistan.
“So, one of the things that is absolutely essential is that Afghanistan controls its territory and doesn’t allow terrorist groups from any other country to operate from Afghanistan.”
Islamabad says militants mainly associated with the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) frequently launch attacks from Afghanistan and has even blamed Kabul’s Afghan Taliban rulers of facilitating anti-Pakistan militants. Kabul denies the charges.
Over 80 policemen have been killed in ambushes and target killings in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in 2024, according to police figures.
Shan Foods, Pakistan’s top spice mix maker, eyes Middle East expansion
- Co-chairperson of one of Pakistan’s largest producers of packaged spices speaks to Arab News in exclusive interview
- Says Middle East “key focus area” for company, claims business in the region has grown exponentially in 20 years
KARACHI: Shan Foods (Private) Limited, one of Pakistan’s largest producers of packaged spice mixes, says Saudi Arabia and the Middle East are a “key focus area” for expansion, a top official at the company said this week, adding that it had already captured 65 percent of the market in the United Arab Emirates.
Shan Foods has a presence in more than 75 countries currently. It was founded in 1981 by Sikander Sultan who along with his wife started making spice mixes at home. The spices became popular and formed a loyal fan-base both at home and with Pakistanis who had moved to Arab countries, Europe, US and Canada.
“So, it [Middle East] is one of our key focus areas, it’s a key focus market for us because there is a huge South Asian population that lives in Saudi Arabia and then the Arab consumers are also familiar with our food and the kind of food that we eat,” Sammer Sultan, the co-chairperson of Shan Foods, said in an interview to Arab News.
“They’re very exposed to it. So, it’s definitely one of the core areas of focus for us, and we want to grow our business there. UAE specifically is one of our biggest regions already in terms of our sales values.”
When asked about the size of Shan Foods in the Middle Eastern market, she replied:
“It would be difficult for me to give you a number like that, but we’ve had exponential growth. If I were to compare from 20 years ago, it’s probably 100x by now. So, what we were selling maybe 20 years ago, we’re selling 100 times that now. So it’s been phenomenal.”
PARTNERSHIP WITH SYMRISE
Shan Foods last year partnered with Symrise AG, a German manufacturer of food flavorings, to establish Symrise’s first-ever production facility in Pakistan, aiming to localize Shan’s supply chain and strengthen its position within the local and global food industries.
Since 2005, Symrise has seen double-digit growth year on year with its partners across the Middle East and Pakistan region.
Sultan said the joint venture would not only facilitate Shan Foods and Symrise but also benefit businesses and consumers within the larger framework.
“The whole objective of import substitution is that you are trying to bring in something that is locally available instead of trying to import it to the country,” she said, pointing out that many of Shan Foods’ raw materials were currently sourced from abroad.
“We are not fully local in the sense that a lot of our inputs are coming in from abroad and that’s the process that we are working collaboratively with Symrise to figure out, how do we localize all our supply to Pakistan,” Sultan added.
“That is something that ties in with Shaan’s sustainability goals as well because we also want to localize the top 10 raw materials that we’re using in our spices because, you see, logistics, wars, there’s so many factors that come into play when the global supply chain gets affected.”
Also, with rising inflation and cost pressures on businesses, localizing key raw materials decreased prices and benefited consumers, Sultan said.
“They get to pay a lower price,” she explained, “or at least every year the price doesn’t go up as much because we are localizing the raw materials and input.”
Pakistan condemns Israel’s use of communications devices to commit ‘terrorism’ in Lebanon
- On Wednesday, hand-held radios used by Hezbollah detonated across Lebanon’s south, with 20 people killed
- Wednesday’s blasts came a day after pagers used by Hezbollah members exploded simultaneously, killing 12
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday “strongly” condemned and called “reprehensible” the use of electronic devices by Israel to attack Lebanon amid spiraling tensions following mass assaults on Hezbollah communications devices this week.
On Wednesday, hand-held radios used by Hezbollah detonated across Lebanon’s south, with 20 killed, according to Lebanon’s health ministry. Wednesday’s blasts came just a day after pagers exploded simultaneously, killing least 12 and leaving nearly 3,000 others injured on Tuesday.
Hezbollah has vowed to retaliate against Israel, which has declined to comment on the explosions, believed to have been carried out by its spy agency Mossad.
“Pakistan strongly condemns this week’s attacks in Lebanon carried through detonation of electronic equipments,” Foreign Office Spokeswoman Mumtaz Zahra Baloch told reporters.
“Use of cyber and electronic means to commit terrorism in foreign countries is reprehensible.”
She said the attacks showed “Israel’s alarming adventurism in the region,” which was endangering regional peace and security.
“Pakistan reaffirms its support for Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and calls upon the international community to take urgent steps to hold Israel to account on its act of international terrorism and violations of international law,” Baloch added.
This week’s operations, which have appeared to throw Hezbollah into disarray, played out alongside Israel’s 11-month-old war in Gaza and heightened fears of an escalation on its Lebanese border and the risk of a full-blown regional war.
“We are opening a new phase in the war. It requires courage, determination and perseverance from us,” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said in remarks at an air force base.
The US, which has denied any involvement in the blasts, says it is pursuing intensive diplomacy to avert an escalation of the conflict.
The United Nations Security Council will meet on Friday about the pager blasts after a request by Arab states.
Pakistan PM seeks enhanced trade, climate change cooperation with United Kingdom
- Shehbaz Sharif highlights Pakistan’s economic challenges in a meeting with British High Commissioner
- The Pakistan PM will attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Samoa next month
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif urged cooperation on trade and climate change between Pakistan and the United Kingdom during a meeting with British High Commissioner Jane Marriott on Wednesday, reiterating his administration’s commitment to working closely with the British leadership.
Pakistan and the UK have a long and multifaceted relationship, with the latter hosting a large Pakistani diaspora community. Earlier this month, Pakistan’s deputy premier Ishaq Dar embarked on a five-day official visit to London where he held wide-ranging discussions with the new British administration.
The Pakistani premier also accepted an invitation by King Charles III over a telephone call on Wednesday to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Samoa next month.
“The PM emphasized the need to promote coordination and cooperation on trade and investment, climate change, social connectivity as well as regional and multilateral issues of mutual interest,” the PM Office said in a statement after the meeting.
The prime minister said Pakistan and the UK shared “long and historic” relations that could be expanded through cooperation in various fields. He also highlighted the economic challenges faced by the country and hoped the overseas Pakistanis in Britain would play a key role in strengthening relations between the two sides.
Sharif will attend the Commonwealth meeting from October 21-26.
This will also be the first time King Charles will head the meeting of the global association since his coronation.
Pakistan is a member of the Commonwealth, a voluntary association of 56 countries out of which the vast majority are former British territories.
