Pakistan says no new polio case reported in over two months

This photograph taken on October 5, 2024 shows health workers walking during a door-to-door poliovirus vaccination campaign for children on the outskirts of Peshawar. (AFP/File)
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Updated 17 April 2025
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Pakistan says no new polio case reported in over two months

  • Total of 74 cases were reported in 2024, six cases confirmed this year
  • Pakistan and Afghanistan are last polio-endemic countries in the world

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has not reported a new case of polio since Feb. 10, Radio Pakistan reported on Thursday, after the country confirmed a total of 74 cases of the virus in 2024 and six this year. 
Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan are the last polio-endemic countries in the world. In the early 1990s, Pakistan reported around 20,000 cases annually but in 2018 the number dropped to eight cases. Six cases were reported in 2023 and only one in 2021.
But Pakistan’s polio program, launched in 1994, has faced persistent challenges including vaccine misinformation and resistance from some religious hard-liners who claim immunization is a foreign conspiracy to sterilize Muslim children or a guise for Western espionage. Militant groups have also repeatedly targeted and killed polio vaccination workers, including earlier this week when gunmen attacked a vehicle and abducted two polio workers in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
“It must be ensured that every child under five years of age is administered the polio vaccine during the anti-polio campaign starting from April 21,” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was quoted by Radio Pakistan as saying after he chaired a review meeting on polio eradication in which he was informed that “not a single case of polio had been reported in the country since February 10, 2025.”
Sharif directed authorities to ensure awareness and community mobilization regarding the upcoming nationwide anti-polio campaign from Apr. 21-27, during which the vaccine will be administered to 45 million children by over 415,000 vaccinators.
“Despite challenging conditions, the workers participating in the anti-polio campaign are playing a frontline role in the fight against this disease,” the prime minister added.
Polio is a paralyzing disease with no cure and multiple doses of the oral polio vaccine — along with completing the routine immunization schedule for children under five — are crucial to building immunity against the virus.
Pakistan has planned three major vaccination campaigns in the first half of the year.


Trump says settled Pakistan-India standoff through trade deals

Updated 4 sec ago
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Trump says settled Pakistan-India standoff through trade deals

  • Trump has repeatedly said he offered to help both nations with trade if they agreed to de-escalate
  • India has previously rejected that trade concessions were discussed in ceasefire discussions

ISLAMABAD: President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he had used US trade ties to persuade nuclear-armed neighbors India and Pakistan to back off from their worst military confrontation in decades earlier this month, a claim New Delhi has previously rejected. 

Following a May 10 understanding reached between India and Pakistan in what was a US-mediated ceasefire to stop military action on land, in the air and at sea, Trump has repeatedly said he had offered to help both the nations with trade if they agreed to de-escalate.

Pakistan has not commented specifically on the trade-related claim though it has repeatedly thanked Trump for his role in the de-escalation efforts. The Indian government has, however, said trade concessions did not come up in discussions to secure the ceasefire. 

“If you take a look at what we just did with Pakistan and India, we settled that whole thing, and I think I settled it through trade,” Trump said in televised comments during a meeting at the White House with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. 

“We’re doing a big deal with India. We’re doing a big deal with Pakistan,” the US president added, without giving details of what agreements he was referring to. 

Before the ceasefire, the militaries of India and Pakistan were engaged in one of their most serious confrontations in decades since May 7, when India struck targets inside Pakistan it said were affiliated with militants responsible for the killing of 26 tourists last month in Indian-administered Kashmir.

After India’s strikes in Pakistan, both sides exchanged heavy fire along their de facto border, followed by missile and drone strikes into each other’s territories, mainly targeting military installations and air bases.

The escalating hostilities threatened regional peace, leading to calls by world leaders to cool down tempers.

Trump has said he not only helped mediate the ceasefire but also offered mediation over the simmering dispute in Kashmir, a Himalayan region that both India and Pakistan claim in entirety but govern in part. The two nations have fought two wars over Kashmir, which has long been described as the regional nuclear flashpoint.

New Delhi has rejected Trump’s offer for mediation, saying Kashmir was a bilateral issue, while Pakistan has welcomed the offer. 

With inputs from AP


Pakistan recalls fast bowler Hasan Ali for T20 series against Bangladesh

Updated 39 min 51 sec ago
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Pakistan recalls fast bowler Hasan Ali for T20 series against Bangladesh

  • Hasan played just one T20 international in nearly three years when he returned against Ireland in Dublin in 2024
  • Fast bowler has forced his way back into the squad with a rich haul of 15 wickets in the Pakistan Super League

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has recalled fast bowler Hasan Ali for this month’s Twenty20 home matches against Bangladesh but overlooked senior batters Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam for the third successive series.

Hasan played just one T20 international in nearly three years when he returned with expensive figures of 0-42 in three overs against Ireland in Dublin in 2024.

However, the right-arm fast bowler has forced his way back into the squad with a rich haul of 15 wickets in the Pakistan Super League while representing the Karachi Kings.

Rizwan and Babar were dropped for the last two series in Zimbabwe and New Zealand as Pakistan continued to reshape its top-order ahead of next year’s T20 World Cup.

Rizwan scored 367 runs at a strike rate of 139.54 in the PSL this season as his franchise, the Multan Sultans, suffered nine defeats in 10 games.

Babar’s Peshawar Zalmi also missed out on the playoffs for the first time in PSL history as he finished the season with 288 runs and a strike rate of 128.57.

Salman Ali Agha, who was appointed captain ahead of the T20 series in Australia last year, will continue to lead the side with Shadab Khan as his deputy.

The series will be the first assignment for Pakistan’s newly appointed white-ball coach Mike Hesson, who is currently in charge of Islamabad United in the PSL.

The selectors have made eight changes to the squad which lost the series in New Zealand 4-1.

Fast bowlers Shaheen Shah Afridi, Jahandad Khan and Abbas Afridi were replaced by Hasan, Naseem Shah and Mohammad Wasim while another pace bowler Mohammad Ali was also dropped.

Opening batter Sahibzada Farhan, who leads the PSL charts with 394 runs in 10 games, Saim Ayub and Fakhar Zaman were recalled, with all-rounders Faheem Ashraf and Hussain Talat also making their way back into the squad.

The three-match series will be played at the Qaddafi Stadium in Lahore on May 28, May 30 and June 1.

Pakistan squad: Salman Ali Agha (captain), Shadab Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Hassan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Wasim, Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan and Saim Ayub.


JS Investments launches Pakistan’s ‘first’ Shariah-compliant real estate investment trust

Updated 54 min 29 sec ago
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JS Investments launches Pakistan’s ‘first’ Shariah-compliant real estate investment trust

  • JS Investments partners with real estate developer Gohar Group of Companies to establish JS Hotel REIT in Hyderabad
  • REIT is a regulated investment vehicle that pools capital from investors to finance income-generating real estate

KARACHI: A Pakistani investment firm on Wednesday announced the launch of what it described as the country’s first Shariah-compliant real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on the hospitality sector.

A REIT is a regulated investment vehicle that pools capital from investors to finance income-generating real estate, offering returns through rent or capital gains. It provides exposure to the property market without direct ownership of assets.

JS Investments Limited, one of Pakistan’s oldest private-sector asset and REIT managers, has partnered with real estate developer Gohar Group of Companies to establish the JS Hotel REIT in Hyderabad district, located in the southeastern Sindh province.

“As the manager of Pakistan’s first hotel REIT, we are pleased to offer investors a professionally managed and regulated investment vehicle backed by international hospitality standards,” the statement quoted Iffat Zehra Mankani, CEO of JS Investments Limited, as saying.

The REIT will finance the development of a 139-room hotel in Hyderabad under a franchise agreement with an international hospitality brand. The fund is currently open to accredited local and foreign investors through private placement.

The statement added the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) had granted regulatory approval for the fund, which is not being offered to the general public at this stage.

Pakistan’s REIT market remains small, though regulatory reforms in recent years have aimed to draw institutional investment into real estate through both conventional and Islamic finance structures.

The project will also feature environmentally responsible construction, according to the statement.


Pakistan PM directs task force to propose budget plan for low-cost housing

Updated 21 May 2025
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Pakistan PM directs task force to propose budget plan for low-cost housing

  • Pakistan faces a housing crisis, with the shortage particularly acute in urban areas
  • PM says ahead of the budget low-cost housing is his administration’s top priority

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Wednesday his administration is prioritizing the development of low-cost housing while directing a task force to present financing recommendations to include the facility in the upcoming budget.

Pakistan has been facing a housing crisis, with the World Bank suggesting two years ago it was short of an estimated 10 million housing units. The shortage is particularly acute in urban areas due to rapid population growth, unregulated expansion and high land and construction prices.

The federal budget, which will be presented to the National Assembly next month, is expected to outline measures to tackle the crisis as the new fiscal year begins in July.

“The government’s foremost priority is to facilitate access to housing through low-cost schemes,” Sharif said during a task force meeting to address the issue.

“Such projects will not only make residential units accessible to the common man but also stimulate economic growth and create employment opportunities,” he continued.

The prime minister instructed the task force to work with the finance ministry and banks to prepare detailed financing proposals for affordable housing, with the aim of making them part of the upcoming budget.

He also emphasized that developing the construction sector was key to sustainable economic growth.

Officials briefed the prime minister on ongoing reforms to the Condominium Act 2025 and Foreclosure Law, saying they were in their final stages and were expected to ease access to housing loans under the new schemes.


Pakistan says India using ‘terrorism’ as foreign policy tool after school bus attack in Balochistan

Updated 21 May 2025
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Pakistan says India using ‘terrorism’ as foreign policy tool after school bus attack in Balochistan

  • New Delhi rejects Pakistan’s allegation, calls it an attempt to deflect responsibility for internal failures
  • PM Sharif visits Balochistan after school bus bombing kills three children, leaves eight critically wounded

KARACHI: Pakistan urged the international community on Wednesday to condemn what it called India’s use of “terrorism” as a foreign policy tool, after a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device targeted a school bus in the southwestern Balochistan province, killing at least three children and injuring 39 others, including eight critically.

Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest province by landmass and rich in mineral resources, has long faced an insurgency led by separatist groups who accuse Islamabad of exploiting local resources while neglecting the population. The government denies the claims, citing investments in health, education and infrastructure.

In recent months, the insurgency has intensified, with groups like the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) carrying out high-casualty attacks on civilians and security forces, including taking hostages at a passenger train. Pakistan says it has evidence linking India to these attacks, though New Delhi has denied involvement and distanced itself from the Khuzdar school bombing.

However, Islamabad described the attack as a “sequel” to India’s missile and drone strikes earlier this month, accusing New Delhi of deploying militant proxies to destabilize the country, as Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir visited the region to meet injured children in hospital.

“These terrorist groups — masquerading under ethnic pretenses — are not only being exploited by India as instruments of state policy, but also stand as a stain on the honor and values of the Baloch and Pashtun people, who have long rejected violence and extremism,” said a statement issued by the PM Office after Sharif’s visit to Quetta.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir being briefed on the Khuzdar school bus attack, in Quetta on May 21, 2025. (Photo courtesy: Handout/PMO)

“India’s reliance on such morally indefensible tactics, particularly the deliberate targeting of children, demands urgent attention from the international community,” it added. “The use of terrorism as a tool of foreign policy must be unequivocally condemned and confronted.”

The prime minister and the accompanying delegation was briefed by Balochistan’s Chief Minister Sardar Sarfraz Bugti and local military officials on the attack, which also killed two soldiers and injured 53 people in total.

The official statement said Pakistan’s security forces and law enforcement agencies “will relentlessly pursue all those involved in this barbaric act,” vowing to bring “the architects, abettors and enablers of this crime” to justice.

It added the incident had exposed India’s “cunning role” to the world, revealing how it orchestrated militant violence while simultaneously portraying itself as a victim.

 

 

India’s Ministry of External Affairs earlier in the day rejected Pakistan’s allegations, describing them as Islamabad’s attempt to deflect responsibility for its own failings and internal issues.

The latest attack follows a brief military standoff between the two countries earlier this month, which ended in a ceasefire on May 10.

While hostilities along the border have subsided, both sides continue to trade diplomatic barbs, accusing each other of sponsoring terrorism and destabilizing the region.

School bus targeted in a suicide blast in pictured in Pakistan's southwestern Khuzdar district on May 21, 2025. (Jawad Yousafzai)

The attack in Khuzdar, which targeted children en route to an army-run school, was condemned by US Chargé d’Affaires Natalie Baker and UNICEF in separate statements.

It was also reminiscent of one of the deadliest militant attacks in Pakistan’s history when over 130 children were killed in a military school in the northern city of Peshawar in 2014. That attack was claimed by the Pakistani Taliban group.