QUETTA: Pakistan’s foreign office spokesperson on Thursday rejected reports that Islamabad and Tehran launched a joint military operation in the country’s southwestern border area this week to kill 12 militants, describing it as “fake news” despite a banned militant group claiming the action took place.
The spokesperson’s remarks followed militant outfit Jaish Al-Adl’s statement this week in which it claimed Pakistan and Iran’s forces on Tuesday carried out airstrikes against its fighters in the Iranian border city of Saravan, near Pakistan’s Panjgur district in Balochistan. It said the strikes killed 12 of its members and injured four others.
Iranian rights organization Halvash had also confirmed the development on social media platform X.
“First, I would like to state that this information is not correct. This is fake news,” Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, Pakistan’s foreign office spokesperson, said during her weekly press briefing.
“Statement by terror groups should not be taken seriously.”
Baloch, however, confirmed Pakistani security forces had conducted an operation west of Panjgur to root out smugglers in southwestern Balochistan province.
“The operation took place 30 kilometers within our territory against smugglers, and this was undertaken by Pakistani security forces alone,” she disclosed.
Balochistan Levies, a paramilitary force responsible for law and order in the restive province, confirmed they received reports of an attack in Koh e Sabz area located 70 kilometers from Panjgur city on Tuesday.
“Three people were injured in the attack but we don’t know who carried out the attack in the remotest bordering area,” Shakeel Ahmed, a Levies soldier in Panjgur, told Arab News.
Ahmed said the paramilitary force did not know how many people were killed in the attack since Levies did not receive any bodies in Panjgur.
A local journalist in Panjgur said three persons injured in the alleged attack on Tuesday belonged to Peshawar, Karachi and Washuk cities of Pakistan. He said they were brought to Panjgur for medical treatment.
“The government officials in the district did not confirm the attack yet,” he told Arab News, speaking on condition of anonymity.
HISTORY OF ROCKY RELATIONS
Pakistan and Iran have had a history of rocky relations despite a number of commercial pacts between the two countries, with Islamabad being historically closer to Washington.
One of Iran’s poorest regions, Sistan-Baluchestan on the border with Pakistan has long been plagued by unrest involving drug-smuggling gangs, rebels from the Baloch minority and religiously motivated militants.
Jaish Al-Adl or “Army of Justice” has claimed responsibility for several attacks on Iranian forces in Sistan and Baluchestan over the years, straining ties between the two Muslim-majority countries.
Pakistan and Iran came to the brink of war in January this year after both countries launched cross-border strikes against armed groups and their hideouts operating in border villages.
Regarding this week’s visit by Iran’s foreign minister to Islamabad, Baloch said both sides had agreed to strengthen coordination on border areas.
“Both sides agreed that we will cooperate to ensure that the border between Pakistan and Iran will be a border of peace and amity, and we will strengthen coordination on all aspects of border security,” she said.
Pakistan rejects reports of joint military operation with Iran against Baloch militant group
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Pakistan rejects reports of joint military operation with Iran against Baloch militant group
- Militant outfit Jaish Al-Adl claimed Pakistani, Iranian forces killed 12 of its members in joint operation in Saravan on Tuesday
- Pakistani security forces conducted operation alone within its territory this week against smugglers, says FO spokesperson
Pakistan says 700 army personnel killed in militant attacks in last 2 years
- Pakistan has suffered a surge in militant attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces recently
- Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif blames New Delhi for supporting militant outfits in Pakistan
ISLAMABAD: Around 700 army personnel have been killed in various militant attacks over the past two years, Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif said on Saturday, accusing India of supporting terror outfits in the country.
Pakistan has witnessed a surge in militant attacks since November 2022 in its northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and southwestern Balochistan provinces bordering Iran and Afghanistan. In KP, the Pakistani Taliban or Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) outfit has carried out some of the deadliest attacks against law enforcers.
In Balochistan, separatist ethnic Baloch militant groups demand independence from the state, accusing Islamabad of denying locals a share in the province’s mineral resources. Islamabad denies the allegations.
“In the past two years, 700 of our soldiers have been martyred,” Asif told lawmakers during a televised parliamentary session. “Our civilians have been martyred. Several districts of a province of ours are being targeted by terrorism.”
The minister said that militant outfits such as the TTP or the separatist Baloch Liberation Army are “agents of India,” alleging that they were fighting New Delhi’s war on Pakistani soil.
“Any person who even has a speck of sympathy toward them is not a Pakistani,” Asif said, vowing that Islamabad would win its war against militancy.
India and Pakistan have traded allegations of supporting militant groups for years. New Delhi blames Islamabad for supporting militant outfits who carry out attacks in Indian-administered Kashmir, an allegation that Pakistan has always rejected.
The two countries engaged in a military confrontation for days last month after India attacked Pakistan with missiles, accusing it of supporting an April 22 attack in the Pahalgam tourist resort in Indian-administered Kashmir.
Pakistan denied the allegations and called for an international, credible probe into the incident.
The defense minister expressed solidarity with Iran over Israel’s recent attacks against it, vowing to extend support to the neighboring country.
“In this hour of trial, we are with them in every way,” Asif said. “Whatever help they need at the international level, at the United Nations or any other institution or at the Islamic conference, we will defend their interests there.”
Pakistan calls for enhancing aid, educational assistance for Palestinians
- Pakistan’s foreign minister chairs meeting to review status of ongoing assistance for Palestinians
- Palestinian death toll from 20-month Israel-Hamas war has passed 55,000, official figures say
ISLAMABAD: Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Saturday stressed the need to enhance humanitarian relief and educational assistance for Palestinians bearing the brunt of Israel’s military operations in Gaza and the West Bank, the Pakistani foreign office said in a statement.
The Palestinian death toll from the 20-month Israel-Hamas war has passed 55,000, the Gaza Health Ministry said this week. Israeli forces have destroyed vast areas of Gaza, displaced about 90 percent of its population and in recent weeks have transformed more than half of the coastal territory into a military buffer zone that includes the now mostly uninhabited southern city of Rafah.
Pakistan has dispatched several aid consignments for the people of Palestine since last year and also granted scholarships and admissions to hundreds of Palestinian students in Pakistani universities since the war began in 2023.
“Reaffirming Pakistan’s unwavering moral, political, and diplomatic support for the Palestinian cause, the DPM/FM emphasized the need to enhance the provision of humanitarian relief to the Palestinian people as well as to extend educational assistance to the Palestinian students,” the foreign office said.
The statement was issued after Dar chaired a meeting to review the status of the ongoing assistance provided by Pakistan to the people of Palestine.
“The DPM/FM expressed deep concern over the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza & West Bank, resulting from Israel’s blatant violations of human rights,” the statement said.
The war between the two sides began when Hamas fighters killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the Oct. 7, 2023 attack in Israel and abducted 251 hostages. More than half the captives have been released in ceasefires or other deals. Israeli forces have rescued eight and recovered the remains of dozens more.
Israel’s military campaign, one of the deadliest and most destructive since World War II, has transformed large parts of cities into mounds of rubble. Hundreds of thousands of people are living in squalid tent camps and unused schools, and the health system has been gutted, even as it copes with waves of wounded from Israeli strikes.
OIC’s COMSTECH eyes enhanced academic collaboration between Pakistan, Bangladesh
- COMSTECH to organize visit by Bangladeshi delegation of universities to Pakistan from June 16-21
- Visit to explore partnerships in higher education, science and technology, says COMSTECH
ISLAMABAD: The OIC Ministerial Standing Committee on Scientific and Technological Cooperation (COMSTECH) is organizing an upcoming visit by a high-level delegation of Bangladeshi universities to Pakistan next week, the global body said this week, as it aims to enhance academic collaboration between the two countries.
The 10-member delegation will comprise vice-chancellors and senior officials from leading public and private sector universities of Bangladesh, COMSTECH said in a statement on Friday. The delegation is set to visit Pakistan from June 16 to 21.
The visit is being organized at COMSTECH’s invitation and is being facilitated by the Bangladesh High Commission in Islamabad, it said.
“The primary objective of the visit is to explore and enhance avenues of academic collaboration and institutional partnerships in the fields of higher education, science, and technology,” COMSTECH said in a press release.
“The delegation will participate in a series of high-level meetings, discussions, and interactive sessions with top Pakistani universities in Lahore and Islamabad.”
It said that these Pakistani institutions are members of COMSTECH’s Consortium of Excellence (CCoE), a collaborative network of premier universities dedicated to advancing scientific cooperation and educational excellence among OIC member states.
“This initiative reflects COMSTECH’s continued commitment to fostering inter-university cooperation and strengthening academic ties across the Muslim world, particularly between Bangladesh and Pakistan,” the statement concluded.
Ties between Pakistan and Bangladesh have improved recently. Once one nation, Bangladesh split from Pakistan after a brutal 1971 war with Dhaka drawing closer to Islamabad’s arch-rival New Delhi over the years.
However, long-time Bangladeshi prime minister Sheikh Hasina was ousted in August 2024 after her government was overthrown by a student-led protest. She fled via helicopter to India, with Dhaka attempting to extradite her.
Relations between India and Bangladesh’s interim government have been frosty since then, allowing Islamabad and Dhaka to rebuild ties slowly.
Pakistan, EU discuss global security in fifth round of disarmament talks
- Discussions focus on disarmament, non-proliferation of biological and chemical weapons, says Pakistani foreign office
- Pakistan, European Union agree to hold sixth round of disarmament, non-proliferation talks in Brussels next year
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the European Union this week held the fifth round of non-proliferation and disarmament talks in Islamabad this week, where the two sides discussed enhanced cooperation and implications of emerging technologies on global and regional security, Pakistan’s foreign office said.
The talks between the two sides were held on June 12. The Pakistani delegation was led by Ambassador Tahir Andrabi, the additional foreign secretary for arms control, disarmament and international security. The EU delegation was headed by Ambassador Stephan Klement, the bloc’s special envoy for disarmament and non-proliferation.
The annual dialogue between both sides seeks to ensure global peace and regional stability through non-proliferation of weapons.
“Both sides engaged in a comprehensive exchange of views on issues related to international and regional peace, security, and strategic stability,” a statement from Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) said.
“Pakistan side briefed their EU interlocutors on developments in the wake of recent Pakistan-India conflict.”
India and Pakistan both engaged in the worst fighting between the nuclear-armed neighbors in decades last month before Washington brokered a truce on May 10. India accused Pakistan of deploying its nuclear-capable missile against it, a charge Islamabad denied.
The discussions also focused on various dimensions of disarmament and non-proliferation, with particular reference to the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) and the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), the statement said.
“In addition, the Dialogue reviewed recent trends in Multilateral Export Control Regimes (MECRs) and assessed the implications of Emerging Technologies on global security,” MoFA said. “The avenues for enhanced cooperation in the domain of Science Diplomacy were explored as well.”
The two sides agreed to hold the sixth round of the dialogue in Brussels in 2026.
The Pakistan–EU Dialogue on Non-Proliferation and Disarmament is a key part of the broader strategic engagement between Pakistan and the European Union, which has been institutionalized since 2012.
Pakistan says it attaches high importance to the dialogue, recognizing it as a vital platform for engagement on global and regional security, as well as on disarmament and non-proliferation issues.
IMF-backed tariff reforms raise concerns for Pakistan’s auto industry despite rising car sales
- Government aims to cut overall tariffs by 4% over five years to promote export-led growth
- Industry stakeholders warn removing regulatory duties could hurt local manufacturers
KARACHI: While Pakistan’s automobile manufacturers are still parsing the government’s new financial plan, industry experts on Friday said proposed International Monetary Fund (IMF)-mandated reforms, such as the rationalization of trade tariffs, could erode long-standing protections for local industry.
Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said the government plans to reduce the overall tariff regime by more than four percent over the next five years to steer the country toward an export-led growth model in line with the IMF program.
Under the National Tariff Policy 2025-30, the government aims to abolish additional customs duties (ACDs), regulatory duties (RDs) and provisions under the Fifth Schedule of the Customs Act, 1969. The goal is to simplify Pakistan’s tariff structure by reducing it to four duty slabs ranging from 0 to 15%.
The IMF-backed reforms are expected to lower Pakistan’s weighted average tariff by 3.2% points to 7.4%, said Shafiq Ahmed Shaikh, an automobile industry expert and former general manager of Pak Suzuki Motor Company Ltd.
“These tariff cuts will reduce protection to the auto industry along with reduction of the cost of vehicles,” he said. “It is a very sensitive point for industry… [and] must be discussed with the stakeholders for good, long-term and acceptable solutions.”
PARA-TARIFFS
Abdul Waheed Khan, spokesperson for the Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association (PAMA), said regulatory duties are designed to protect local industry and discourage unnecessary imports.
“The ACD too should gradually be abolished because such para-tariffs are not good,” he told Arab News.
Para-tariffs are taxes and duties levied in addition to standard customs tariffs, such as ACDs and RDs. While often introduced to curb imports or raise revenues, they are controversial because they can create complexity, raise costs and distort trade policy.
Pakistan’s federal budget also proposes raising the sales tax on 850cc small vehicles to 18% to bring parity between petrol or diesel-powered cars and hybrids.
“This would increase the cost of vehicles for middle income groups,” said Khan of PAMA, which represents the local operations of Honda, Suzuki, Toyota and 16 other manufacturers.
“This is not good for our Made-in-Pakistan policy as small vehicles will go costlier at a time when people’s disposable incomes are already not so good,” he continued, declining further comment on the budget.
CARBON LEVY
Pakistan’s automobile market, long dominated by Japanese firms like Honda, Toyota and Suzuki, has recently seen new entrants, particularly Chinese and Korean electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers like BYD, SAIC and Kia, operating through joint ventures.
“The existing industry will face good competition from EV and as we know, the future is of Electric Vehicles specially from China,” Shaikh, the automobile industry expert, told Arab News.
As one of the countries most affected by climate change, Pakistan also plans to introduce a carbon levy of up to Rs10 ($0.04) per liter on petrol, diesel and furnace oil over the next two years.
The move is intended “to discourage excessive use of fossil fuels and provide financial resources for climate change and green energy programs,” Finance Minister Aurangzeb said in his budget speech earlier this week.
Shaikh dismissed suggestions that the levy would raise car prices, arguing that consumers would instead begin shifting to EVs.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also announced plans to impose differential taxes on the sale and import of vehicles based on engine size to promote the adoption of two- and three-wheeled EVs and reduce oil imports and pollution.
Syed Asif Ahmed, general manager of marketing at MG Motors, said the “industry is seeking clarity on recent budget.”
He noted that while the finance bill was silent on hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), social media was abuzz with reports that the government may raise the sales tax from eight % to 18 % next year.
“If true, this will jeopardize the huge investment done by almost all automakers on HEV,” Ahmed said.
The MG Motors executive also warned against reduced regulatory duties on used cars and commercial imports under schemes meant for returning expatriates.
“[The] used cars importers are abusing the gift, baggage and transfer of residence scheme for commercial trading,” Ahmed said.
CAR SALES
While stakeholders have voiced concerns over policy shifts, vehicle sales continue to show signs of recovery.
Passenger car sales rose 31% in May to 11,119 units, while cumulative sales from July to May in the outgoing fiscal year increased 32% year-on-year to 94,388 units, according to PAMA data.
“[The] growth is supported by a more stable macroeconomic environment, lower interest rates, easing inflation and improving consumer sentiment,” said Myesha Sohail, an analyst at Topline Securities Ltd., in a recent research note.
Sohail expects this momentum to continue into the next fiscal year, driven by lower interest rates and a pipeline of new models across combustion, hybrid and plug-in hybrid categories.
