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illegal immigrants living here in Pakistan's biggest city are spending their days and nights in fear following the government's announcement that some 1.7 illegal Afghan refugees will be sent back to their country by the end of this month. For most of the Afghan men, women and children living in the Hijra Colony and Afghan Basti nestled on the northern outskirts of Karachi, life has become hell since the government announcement as, according to them, the police have started a witch-hunt against them.

China is spending billions of dollars annually on foreign information manipulation efforts including through China-Pakistan Media Corridor and Beijing uses false or biased information to promote positive views of the country and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) alleged a newly released US State Department Report. At the same time, China suppresses critical information that contradicts its desired narratives on issues such as Taiwan, its human rights practices, the South China Sea, its domestic economy, and international economic engagement, alleged the report titled ‘How the People’s Republic of China Seeks to Reshape the Global Information Environment.’ “More broadly, the PRC (People’s Republic of China) seeks to cultivate and uphold a global incentive structure that encourages foreign governments, elites, journalists, and civil society to accept its preferred narratives and avoid criticizing its conduct,” the State Department report claimed.

Afghanistan's Taliban representatives are in the Russian city of Kazan for talks on regional threats as Russia attempts to maintain its influence in Central Asia

Pakistan is seeking discounts in oil imports from Russia and has urged Moscow to strike a long-term oil deal while remaining within the price cap at USD 60 per barrel, a media report said on Friday. Pakistan, which is currently grappling with high external debt and a weak local currency, is hoping that snapping crude at discounted rates from Russia will stabilise oil prices in the country, The Express Tribune newspaper reported. «Pakistan wanted Russia to set a benchmark of USD 60 dollars per barrel 'free on board' (FOB) — the actual price charged at the port — to import crude oil on a long-term basis.

The Dawn newspaper reported that this information was part of a detailed policy statement issued by caretaker Finance Minister Shamshad Akhtar before the Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue, presided over by Senator Saleem Mandviwalla in Islamabad on Thursday. She said the government was currently working on an economic revival plan that would be presented to the caretaker prime minister Anwar ul Haq Kakar soon and shared with the Senate Standing Committee on Finance.

Pakistan amid its efforts to improve ties with the West, China has not agreed to further expand cooperation in areas of energy, water management, and climate change under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). At a bilateral meeting held to review progress of CPEC China has decided to drop cooperation in the areas of cross-border tourism in Giglit-Baltistan (G-B), Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) and PoK and cooperation for promotion of coastal tourism, ET has learnt. China also did not agree to Pakistan’s proposal for inclusion of Water Resources Management and Climate Change and Urban Infrastructure Development in the CPEC framework. The proposal for setting up a new joint working group on water resources management and climate change was also rejected by China, ET has further learnt. While the meeting was held in 2022 details of the meeting have only emerged now.

Also read: Nijjar killing row: ‘Canada has seen a lot of organized crime’, says Jaishankar She added, "We are also requesting a briefing on whether there are similar operations in the United States". Following Omar's remark MP Chaturvedi urged India's foreign ministry to start an enquiry into how an elected representative in the USA is interfering in the peace of Jammu & Kashmir via a Pakistan-funded PoK visit. Omar reportedly visited to Pakistan-occupied part of the disputed region of Kashmir or PoK in 2022.

S Jaishankar on Tuesday in a veiled message to Canada asserted that «political convenience» cannot be the basis for a response to terrorism or extremism while calling on the global community to respect the rules-based order and the UN Charter. Addressing the UN General Assembly in New York, the minister also called out nations (without naming any) for interfering with the internal affairs of other countries. Jaishankar's remarks — coming amid the India-Canada diplomatic row and continuing tension along the border with Pakistan — have been interpreted as a subtle swipe at both the countries. Last week, there were sharper words for Pakistan where India demanded Islamabad shut its «infrastructure of terrorism» and said that matters pertaining to Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh were its «internal affairs». «The power of markets should not be utilised to steer food and energy from the needy to the wealthy.

Pakistan cricket team's visas for the upcoming ODI World Cup in India have finally been approved. This news comes after the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) expressed concerns over delayed visa processing, saying it hampered the team's preparations for the cross-border event.

Pakistan Cricket Board on Monday raised serious concerns with the ICC over the delay in national team's travel to India for the World Cup due to visa issues and claimed the anxious wait has already impacted its preparation for the 50-over showpiece. The PCB wrote to the ICC as it continues to wait for visa clearance from the Indian High Commission in Islamabad. Pakistan were supposed to have a two-day team bonding session in Dubai before their scheduled arrival in Hyderabad on September 27 but it has been cancelled with uncertainty over Indian visa. The Babar Azam-led side plays two warm-up games and as many World Cup matches in Hyderabad starting with the practice fixture against New Zealand on September 29. In the letter addressed to ICC CEO Geoff Allardice, the PCB also claimed that its concerns over visa being granted to players, team officials, fans and journalists for the World Cup in India have not been addressed for more than three years.

Imran Khan from the Attock jail in Punjab province to high-security Adiala prison in the garrison city of Rawalpindi, according to media reports. In August, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) petitioned the Islamabad High Court (IHC) to transfer the deposed party chief to Adiala prison where A-class facilities are available, keeping in view Khan's affluent family background, social and political status. During the hearing, the IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq remarked, «Shift the PTI chairman to Adiala jail». A written ruling has yet to be issued in the case, the Dawn newspaper reported. «IHC Chief Justice has ordered moving PTI chairman Imran Khan from Attock Prison to Adiala Prison in Rawalpindi,» Khan's party said. IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq Farooq presided over the hearing, while Khan's lawyer Sher Afzal Marwat and Additional Attorney General Munawar Iqbal Dogal appeared before the court. Meanwhile, talking to the media outside the IHC, Marwat said they had «finally been granted justice from the IHC» on the matter of shifting Khan from Attock jail to Adiala jail.

Pakistan's caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar on Friday raised the issue of Jammu and Kashmir in his address to the UN General Assembly, saying that Kashmir is the key to peace between New Delhi and Islamabad. Pakistan consistently rakes up the issue of Jammu and Kashmir at various UN platforms, irrespective of the agenda and topic of discussion at the meetings. Addressing the General Debate of the 78th session of the UN General Assembly, Kakar said Pakistan desires peaceful and productive relations with all its neighbours, including India. «Kashmir is the key to peace between Pakistan and India,» he said. «Development depends on peace. Pakistan is situated in the least economically integrated region in the world.

Pakistan is reportedly courting the United States to seek financial support to boost its sagging economic fortunes while sidestepping commitments made to China on the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the flagship initiative under China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The Pakistani leadership that came to power after Imran Khan was paying lip service to China on the CPEC while engaging the US for a bailout, said people aware of the matter. Work on the CPEC has been delayed by several months and the India-Middle East Europe Corridor is expected to rival the BRI, they said. The current caretaker government in Pakistan is reportedly seeking the help of the West for a bailout instead of approaching its all-weather ally China despite the latter’s attempts at various international fora to back Pakistan.

Canada has triggered new diplomatic tensions between Ottawa and New Delhi, withCanada saying it suspects India's involvement in the killing and India calling the allegations «absurd». Here is what is known about Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the man at the centre of the row. — Nijjar was born in 1977 in Jalandhar district in India's northern state of Punjab and moved to Canada in 1997, where he worked as a plumber, according to the Khalistan Extremism Monitor of the New Delhi-based independent Institute for Conflict Management. — He was initially associated with the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) Sikh separatist group, according to India's counter-terrorist, National Investigation Agency.

The Intercept, an online American non-profit news organization. The arms sales were made for the purpose of supplying the Ukrainian military, signaling Pakistani involvement in a conflict it had faced US pressure to take sides on. The report stated that the revelation is a window into the kind of behind-the-scenes maneuvering between financial and political elites that rarely are exposed to the public, even as the public pays the price, ANI reported, citing The Intercept. Pakistan faced major protests in the face of harsh structural policy reforms demanded by the Washington-based financial body as terms for its recent bailout package.

According to the report, Pakistan's finance ministry has cited the exhaustion of the country's foreign exchange reserves as the reason for being unable to release salaries, extending the financial strain into September. This situation poses a significant challenge to officials working in costly cities like Washington, DC, and Hong Kong, as well as Singapore, as they face the prospect of going without salaries for yet another month. Top officials have confirmed, «The press attaches working in Washington, DC, and Hong Kong, as well as the press counsellor deputed in Singapore, continue to live without salary since June.» This is not the first time that Pakistan, facing financial constraints, has encountered difficulties in disbursing salaries.

Russia-Ukraine crisis, though it stopped short of direct condemnation. From a Karachi resident's perspective, India's effective hosting of the summit signals not only an honour for the nation but also a potentially significant economic boost. This sentiment contradicts the usual rivalry between the neighbouring countries and acknowledges India's growing importance on the world stage.

Mykhailo Podolyak has kicked up a controversy by saying India and China have “weak intellectual potential” and that they “do not analyse the consequences” of their actions. The comments, coming days after the G20 summit hosted by India, may dent bilateral ties which are currently are limited in nature. «What’s wrong with India, China, and so forth. The problem is that they are not analysing the consequences of their steps, these countries have weak intellectual potential, unfortunately,” Podolyak said in an interview to Ukrainian media on Tuesday. “Yes, they invest in science.

Pakistan has found itself embroidered in a border dispute with Afghanistan, with the Torkham crossing remaining closed for most of last week. Officials accuse the Taliban-led government of encroaching on Pakistani territory with the construction of an 'unlawful structure'. It also accused Afghan forces of targeting Pakistan military posts with “indiscriminate firing".

Afghanistan is now the world's fastest-growing maker of methamphetamine

By Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam