KARACHI: Pakistan’s National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has filed a reference against real estate tycoon, Malik Riaz Hussain, and 32 other individuals over illegal transfer of government lands for a mega project in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi, a NAB spokesperson said on Saturday.
Hussain, who currently lives in Dubai, is one of Pakistan’s wealthiest and most influential businessmen and the country’s largest private employers. He is best known as the chairman of M/s Bahria Town, which claims to be Asia’s largest private real estate developer and has projects in Islamabad, Lahore, Karachi and other cities.
NAB filed the reference in an accountability court in Karachi nominating Hussain, his son Ahmed Ali Riaz, former Sindh chief minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah and Sharjeel Inaam Memon, then local body minister and now information minister of Sindh, among 33 people for illegally transferring government land to M/s Bahria Town for its Bahria Town Karachi project in 2013 and 2014.
“Accused persons in connivance with each other illegally transferred the government land, initialy admeasuring 7220 acres, to M/s Bahria Town,” the anti-graft body said in the reference. “The said illegal transfer of government land to Bahria Town was made under the garb of adjustment/exchange/consolidation.”
It said the accused persons acted as an “organized syndicate” to cause cumulative losses of Rs700 billion ($2.5 billion) to the national exchequer, requesting the court to try them for committing the “offenses of corruption and corrupt practices.”
The development came days after NAB said it had initiated the process to seek Hussain’s extradition from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), who was also charged in another land corruption case involving former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife.
A Pakistani court last month sentenced Khan to 14 years in prison and his wife, Bushra, to seven years, in the case in which they are accused of receiving land as a bribe from Hussain through the Al-Qadir charitable trust in exchange for illegal favors during Khan’s premiership from 2018 to 2022. Khan says he and his wife were trustees and did not benefit from the land transaction. Hussain too denies any wrongdoing relating to the case.
“We have written to the Federal Investigation Agency for the extradition,” a NAB spokesman told Arab News on Wednesday, adding that the FIA would now pursue the case.
Prior to that, Defense Minister Khawaja Asif confirmed that Pakistan would use its extradition treaty with the UAE to bring Hussain back.
Last month, NAB also cautioned people against investing in Hussain’s new real estate venture to build luxury apartments in Dubai.
“If the general public at large invests in the stated project, their actions would be tantamount to money laundering, for which they may face criminal and legal proceedings,” it said.
Hussain responded to NAB in a post on X, saying that “fake cases, blackmailing and greed of officers” had forced him to relocate from Pakistan because he was not willing to be a “political pawn.”
Pakistan anti-graft body files reference against property tycoon over illegal transfer of Karachi land
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Pakistan anti-graft body files reference against property tycoon over illegal transfer of Karachi land
- Malik Riaz Hussain and others are accused of having over 7,000 acres of government land transferred illegally to Bahria Town Karachi
- The development comes days after National Accountability Bureau said it had initiated process to seek Hussain’s extradition from UAE
Pakistan arrests suspects in visa fraud targeting job seekers hoping to reach Gulf, Europe
- All three suspects, including a woman, took large sums from people before going into hiding
- FIA arrested them from different cities after they failed to deliver on promised overseas jobs
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Saturday arrested three individuals, including a woman, for allegedly defrauding job seekers by promising employment in Gulf countries and Europe, state media reported.
The arrests were made during raids in Bahawalpur, Bahawalnagar, Multan, and Lodhran. The suspects, identified as Abid Hussain, Hira Noor and Ajmal, are accused of collecting large sums from citizens in exchange for fake overseas job arrangements.
“These suspects were arrested for their involvement in visa fraud and human smuggling,” the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) news agency said, adding all three went into hiding after failing to deliver on their promises.
The report further said Abid Hussain received Rs800,000 ($2,800) from one victim for a job in Saudi Arabia. Hira Noor allegedly took over Rs2.9 million ($10,150) from another individual, promising work in Europe. Ajmal is accused of charging Rs400,000 ($1,400) to arrange employment in Dubai.
The arrests come amid renewed efforts by Pakistan to crack down on human smuggling networks after a series of deadly boat tragedies in recent years involving Pakistani nationals trying to reach Europe as undocumented migrants.
Despite enforcement drives, criminal syndicates continue to exploit economically vulnerable individuals seeking better opportunities abroad.
Pakistan PM urges ‘credible’ global action to halt Israel’s war in call with Iran’s president
- President Masoud Pezeshkian calls for greater Muslim unity in the face of escalating regional threats
- Pakistan’s defense minister also urges Muslim countries to sever their diplomatic relations with Israel
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday urged the international community and the United Nations to take “urgent and credible steps” to end Israel’s war in Iran, during a phone call with a phone call with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, according to a statement from his office.
Israel launched surprise attacks on Iranian nuclear and military facilities in the early hours of Friday amid Tehran’s negotiations with Washington over its nuclear program. The strikes killed several senior military commanders and nuclear scientists, according to Iranian media, and also caused civilian casualties.
Israel, at war in the region since October 2023, initially launched a military campaign against Gaza following a Hamas assault, which the Palestinian group said was retaliation for decades of oppression. Since then, the Israeli government has expanded its military operations to neighboring Muslim states such as Syria and Lebanon before targeting Iran.
Sharif said Pakistan stood in “resolute solidarity” with Iranian people and government during his conversation with the Iranian president.
“The Prime Minster denounced Israel’s blatant provocations and adventurism as a grave threat to regional and global peace and stability,” said the statement released by his office after the phone call.
“He urged the international community and the United Nations to take urgent and credible steps to put an end to Israel’s aggressive behavior and its illegal actions,” it added. “He stated that Pakistan was fully committed to promoting peace in the region and stood ready to play its role in this context.”
Sharif also conveyed condolences over the loss of life in Friday’s Israeli strike and recalled Pakistan’s statement of support for Iran during an emergency session of the UN Security Council a day earlier.
The Iranian President thanked Pakistan for its solidarity and support and called for greater unity among Islamic countries in the face of escalating regional threats.
UNIFIED STRATEGY
Earlier in the day, Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif urged Muslim nations to adopt a unified strategy to counter Israel, warning that failure to act collectively would leave them vulnerable, as he expressed full diplomatic support to Iran in a speech to the National Assembly following Israeli strikes.
“Just as Israel is currently targeting Yemen, Iran, and Palestine, if the Muslim world does not unite today and continues to prioritize its own interests and agendas, then everyone’s turn will come,” he told lawmakers.
“An OIC meeting should be convened, and all Muslim countries must come together to devise a strategy through which Israel can be confronted collectively,” he continued. “There is a need for an initiative that reflects the unity of the Islamic world. Wherever there are diplomatic ties with Israel in the Muslim world, they should be severed.”
The Pakistani minister added the Muslim world remained “militarily vulnerable” and voiced what he described as Pakistan’s unwavering solidarity with Iran.
NO NUCLEAR TALKS
The Iranian foreign ministry also announced during the day it would no longer take part in planned nuclear negotiations with the United States in Oman, calling them “meaningless” while Israeli attacks continued.
“It is obvious that in such circumstances and until the Zionist regime’s aggression against the Iranian nation stops, it would be meaningless to participate in dialogue with a party that is the biggest supporter and accomplice of the aggressor,” an Iranian spokesperson said, according to international wire agencies.
Israel’s defense minister also warned “Tehran will burn” if Iran continued to launch missiles at Israeli cities. Iran had retaliated on Friday night by launching a barrage of missiles at Israel, with explosions lighting up the skies over Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
Just a day earlier, hours after Israel targeted Iran, Pakistan’s envoy to the UN, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, condemned the strike on Iran’s military and nuclear infrastructure, calling it a violation of international law.
“Iran has the right to self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter,” he said, urging all sides to avoid further escalation and emphasizing the need to resolve tensions through diplomacy.
Pakistan PM calls for quick EV policy with stakeholder input to promote clean transport
- Shehbaz Sharif seeks ‘priority measures’ to promote electric motorcycles, scooters, cars and buses
- He says charging stations and battery-swapping centers must be ensured to strengthen EV rollout
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s government on Saturday pledged to promote electric vehicles (EVs) across all segments of transport, with Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif calling for a national policy on the subject to be finalized in consultation with stakeholders.
The move comes amid a steady rise in EV adoption in a market long dominated by Japanese automakers such as Suzuki, Toyota and Honda. Increasingly, Chinese and Korean brands are entering the space, with electric vehicles becoming more and more visible in cities like Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi.
The government is hoping to ride this momentum to cut fuel imports and reduce emissions.
“Priority measures will be taken for the promotion of electric motorcycles, scooters, three-wheelers, cars and buses,” the prime minister said while chairing a meeting in Lahore to discuss the adoption of EVs.
The draft Electric Vehicles Policy 2025 was reviewed at the meeting, with Sharif calling for its urgent finalization “in consultation with all stakeholders” before being presented to the cabinet.
“Charging stations and battery-swapping stations must be ensured,” he said during the meeting. “Industries will also be facilitated to increase the manufacturing capacity of two- and three-wheelers.”
While EVs offer a way to reduce the country’s petroleum import bill and carbon footprint, the lack of infrastructure, frequent power outages and limited financing options remain key impediments to their widespread adoption and scale-up.
Yet industry experts believe existing players in Pakistan’s auto market will face stiff competition from various EV brands, with many seeing electric vehicles as poised to consolidate their place in the domestic market.
Pakistan delegation in Brussels says Islamabad can develop counterterror partnership with Delhi
- India blames Pakistan for supporting “terrorist” attacks in the part of disputed Kashmir it governs
- Islamabad, Washington thwarted attacks in Pakistan, US and Europe, says head of delegation
ISLAMABAD: The head of a delegation visiting Brussels to present Pakistan’s point of view regarding the country’s recent military standoff with India said on Saturday that Islamabad can develop a “phenomenal” counterterror partnership with Delhi, similar to the one it has with Washington.
India blames Pakistan for arming and funding militants who carry out subversive activities in the part of disputed Kashmir it governs, an allegation Islamabad has always denied. The two countries engaged in a military confrontation for four days last month after India accused Pakistan of supporting an attack at the Pahalgam tourist resort in Indian-administered Kashmir. Twenty-six people, mostly tourists, were killed in the attack.
Pakistan enjoys counterterror cooperation with several countries, including the US, which includes intelligence sharing and other forms of coordination to thwart militant attacks. The head of the United States Central Command (CENTCOM), General Michael Kurilla, this week praised Pakistan as a “phenomenal partner” in counterterrorism efforts during a testimony.
Speaking to reporters in Brussels, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, who is the head of the Pakistani delegation, pointed out that the US and Pakistan have thwarted “terrorist attacks” in Europe, the US and Pakistan through counter-terror coordination.
“Will we be more effectively able to combat terror if India and Pakistan sat together and coordinated, conducted intelligence sharing,” Bhutto Zardari asked in response to a question.
Citing Kurilla’s statement, Bhutto Zardari said Islamabad can develop a counter-terror partnership with New Delhi similar to the one it enjoyed with Washington.
“We can develop that phenomenal partnership with India as well,” he added.
He lamented that there was no cooperation or coordination between the two nuclear-armed nations on combating “terrorism,” adding that the two countries last had a dialogue on counter-terror in 2012.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced the nine-member diplomatic group last month, headed by Bhutto Zardari, who is a former foreign minister and the head of the Pakistan Peoples Party.
He has been leading a team to visits in New York, Washington DC, London and Brussels since June 2. Another delegation, led by Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Syed Tariq Fatemi, has visited Moscow.
While the ceasefire between the two countries continues to remain in place, tensions continue to simmer as India says it is holding in abeyance a decades-old water-sharing treaty with Pakistan.
Islamabad had said after India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty that it considered any attempt to stop or divert the flow of water belonging to Pakistan to be an “act of war.”
About 80 percent of Pakistani farms depend on the Indus system, as do nearly all hydropower projects serving the country of some 250 million.
Pakistan and India, bitter rivals, have fought two out of three wars over the disputed territory of Kashmir that they both claim in full but govern only parts of.
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.”
