Pakistan police arrest man for chopping off donkey’s legs in fresh animal brutality case 

A man travels on a donkey cart against the backdrop of the last sunset of 2022, in Lahore on December 31, 2022. (AFP/File)
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Updated 24 July 2024
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Pakistan police arrest man for chopping off donkey’s legs in fresh animal brutality case 

  • Donkey’s owner says local landlord punished animal for wandering into his property in Muzaffargarh city 
  • Animal abuse caught spotlight last month when landlord allegedly chopped off camel’s leg in Sanghar district

KARACHI: Police in Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province on Wednesday arrested a man on charges of chopping off a donkey’s legs after it strayed into his employer’s land, highlighting the latest case of animal brutality in the country. 

Animal abuse in Pakistan caught the spotlight last month when a local landlord in the southern Sanghar district was accused of chopping off a camel’s leg after it strayed into his fields for grazing. The story, which triggered uproar on mainstream and social media, led to the camel being transported to an animal shelter in Karachi for treatment. Six suspects were arrested by the police. In another incident in the southern Umerkot district last month, a camel was found dead with its legs amputated. 

Bashir Ahmed, a resident of Punjab’s Muzaffargarh city, said his donkey suffered severe leg injuries after wandering onto the property of local landlord Khalil Jatoi on Monday. Local police arrested Sajjad Hussain, Jatoi’s employee, in connection with the crime. 

“We have arrested Sajjad Hussain, who has been nominated in the case,” Muhammad Saleem, the investigating officer, told Arab News. “He will be produced before the court soon.”

Police filed a complaint against Hussain under Section 429 of the Pakistan Penal Code, which prescribes imprisonment of up to two years, or a fine or both, for anyone who “commits mischief by killing, poisoning, maiming, or rendering useless any animal or animals.”

However, Ahmed said the prime suspect was Jatoi, whom he said remains at large and was pressurizing him to drop the charges.

“While his employee Sajjad has been arrested, Khalil Jatoi has not yet been apprehended and he is threatening me to withdraw the case,” Ahmed alleged.

Ahmed said he used to sell fruits and vegetables on a cart that was pushed by the donkey.
 
Arab News could not independently verify whether Ahmed had received threats or not and Jatoi could not be reached for comment. The landlord has also not been nominated in the police complaint.

As per the complaint, Ahmed found the back legs of the donkey chopped off. The complaint also mentioned an eyewitness, Azfal Hussain, who informed police that Hussain had wounded the donkey.

Ahmed said the animal, which was undergoing medical treatment arranged by the provincial government, was the only source of his income for a family comprising five people. 

“I’m hurt not only financially but emotionally as well since I’ve been caring for the donkey,” Ahmed added.

Pakistan’s existing animal cruelty laws, rooted in the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act of 1890, prohibit various forms of animal cruelty, including beating, overdriving, and mutilation. The legislation also prescribes penalties for breaches of these anti-cruelty provisions, which can include fines and imprisonment, though these are not always effectively enforced.

And despite the laws, officials themselves poison hundreds of dogs yearly in an effort to curb a population of strays that attack thousands of people.


Six killed, one injured as family feud turns violent in Pakistan’s northwest — official

Updated 6 sec ago
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Six killed, one injured as family feud turns violent in Pakistan’s northwest — official

  • The deceased persons included three men and three women
  • Injured woman shifted to Peshawar’s Lady Reading Hospital

PESHAWAR: At least six persons were killed and a woman sustained gunshot wounds in a violent altercation between two families in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar, rescue officials said on Monday.

The incident took place near the Khatko Bridge area reportedly over domestic issues, according to District Emergency Officer Ghayoor Mushtaq Khan.

The deceased included three men and three women.

“As a result of the gunfire, one woman was critically injured, while six others died on the spot,” Khan said in a statement.

It added the Rescue 1122 service responded to the emergency, provided first aid to the injured woman and transferred her to Peshawar’s Lady Reading Hospital.

Family feuds are common in Pakistan and that often violent and last for long in parts of the country where tribal customs and laws are followed by residents.

In June last year, 10 members of a family, including a two-year-old, were killed in a late-night attack in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, police said.


Pakistani police search for suspect in killing of Ahmadi minority doctor

Updated 16 min 17 sec ago
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Pakistani police search for suspect in killing of Ahmadi minority doctor

  • Official says the motive behind the killing remains unclear and a probe is ongoing
  • There are about 500,000 Ahmadis in Pakistan, a nation of more than 240 million

LAHORE: Pakistani police stepped up their search Monday for the suspect in the killing of a doctor from the country’s Ahmadi minority, the latest in a string of deadly attacks targeting the community.

The physician was gunned down at a private hospital where he worked in the eastern city of Sargodha on Friday. The gunman fled the scene.

The Ahmadi faith was established in the Indian subcontinent in the 19th century by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad. Pakistan’s Parliament declared Ahmadis non-Muslims in 1974, with their homes and places of worship attacked over the decades by hard-liners who consider them heretics.

There are about 500,000 Ahmadis in Pakistan, a nation of more than 240 million.

No one claimed responsibility for Friday’s killing but supporters of Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan party have carried out many of the attacks on Ahmadis, accusing them of blasphemy.

Sargodha police official, Sikandar Ali, said the motive behind the killing of Dr. Sheikh Mahmood remains unclear. An investigation is ongoing, he said.

Mahmood’s killing was the third attack on Ahmadis in Pakistan since April, said Amir Mahmood, a spokesman for the Ahmadi community.

He urged the government to protect Ahmadis, whose places of worship and even graveyards are also often desecrated by extremist groups.


‘What if this were me?’: Pakistani-Dutch filmmaker amplifies Afghan voices challenging refugee stereotypes

Updated 21 min 40 sec ago
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‘What if this were me?’: Pakistani-Dutch filmmaker amplifies Afghan voices challenging refugee stereotypes

  • Anya Raza’s ‘On the Mountain’ captures the dilemma of an Afghan woman teacher, who is caught between love, family and unforgiving realities of the conflict
  • The filmmaker urges Pakistan to reconsider its decision to expel Afghan refugees, saying ‘it is very important that they have their basic human rights and dignity’

ISLAMABAD: Anya Raza was in Washington and watched with the whole world in disbelief as the Afghan capital of Kabul fell to the Taliban in August 2021, marking an end to two decades of United States-led intervention.

The chaos that unfolded moved the Pakistani-Dutch writer and filmmaker to reach out to the Afghans, who desperately sought to relocate to safety, as well as humanitarian and other workers involved in the process.

Their tales of love, loss, devastation and despair compelled Raza to document these heart-wrenching stories to humanize the Afghan refugee crisis for the world, which largely seemed to be indifferent to the chaos.

Her film, ‘On the Mountain,’ based on true stories Raza encountered during the interviews, challenges stereotypes and offers a deeply human perspective on the plight of Afghan refugees, according to the filmmaker.

“I interviewed a lot of refugees, people working with refugees, humanitarian workers, case workers, resettlement officers, and others involved. Time and again, I was struck by the sheer devastation, loss, and the immense decisions people had to make just to keep uprooting their families, to keep them safe,” Raza told Arab News, on the sidelines of the Women International Film Festival in Islamabad last week.

“After 20 years of war, the voices of Afghan people weren’t reaching the international stage, despite all the sacrifices they made, despite the destruction. It felt like a way for me to lend my voice as an artist, to break some of the silos.”

The 13-minute film captures the dilemma of an Afghan woman teacher who is caught between love, family and the unforgiving realities of the conflict, forced to make heartbreaking choices.

Set against the backdrop of a turbulent Kabul in 2021, Raza says the film is both a “social and political statement” that challenges stereotypes and biases relating to refugees and offers audiences a chance to reflect on the human characters behind headlines.

“There are a lot of prejudices, biases, and stereotypes when it comes to refugees — their role in communities, how they are perceived,” she said.

“This film is an invitation into an Afghan home, into the love and tough decisions that a family must make. It lets viewers ask, ‘What if this were me?’“

But for Raza, whose work has sparked discussions around identity, nationality and human rights, bringing the film to life was not without challenges.

“For artists, it’s always difficult to secure funding for projects. You might find money, but it’s harder to find people who align with your values,” she said.

The film continues to connect with audiences around the world and evokes powerful emotions and reflections from the attendees at the Islamabad festival.

But despite the effort, the reality has drastically changed for many Afghan refugees since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan and thousands of them fled to Pakistan to seek refuge there, according to the filmmaker.

Today, those same refugees face forced repatriation and are being driven back to the uncertainty they once escaped.

“It breaks my heart to see Afghans who have lived here their whole lives, who felt that Pakistan was their home, [are] now being forced to leave without any of their belongings,” Raza said.

Pakistan has repatriated approximately 1.3 million Afghan refugees in a deportation drive launched since Nov. 2023, according to officials. The drive was launched after Islamabad witnessed a surge in suicide attacks and militancy that it blamed on Afghan nationals, without providing evidence.

The government in Islamabad initially said it was focusing on expelling foreigners with no legal documentation and other categories, such as Afghan Citizen Card (ACC)-- a document launched in 2017 to grant temporary legal status to Afghan refugees— would be included later. This year, Pakistan’s interior ministry asked all ACC holders to leave the country by March and started deporting them from April 1.

In total, Pakistan has hosted over 2.8 million Afghan refugees who crossed the border during 40 years of conflict in their homeland.

Raza urged Islamabad to reconsider its decision to expel Afghan refugees: “It’s very important that they have their basic human rights, their dignity, that they’re safe.”


Pakistan deputy PM leaves for China to discuss situation after India standoff

Updated 19 May 2025
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Pakistan deputy PM leaves for China to discuss situation after India standoff

  • The development comes amid a truce between Pakistan, India after a four-day military conflict that killed around 70 people this month
  • India is seen as a key partner by the West as a counter-balance to China, while Pakistan shares an ‘all-weather partnership’ with Beijing

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, on Monday left for China on a three-day visit to discuss “evolving regional situation in South Asia,” the Pakistani foreign ministry said, days after India and Pakistan traded strikes on each other’s territory.

The development comes amid a ceasefire between Pakistan and India after a four-day military conflict between the nuclear-armed neighbors this month saw the use of fighter jets, missiles, drones and artillery, leaving around 70 people, including civilians, dead on both sides of the border.

In recent years, India has been seen as an important partner by Western powers as a counter-balance to China’s rising influence, while the strategic, cooperative relationship between Pakistan and Beijing has further strengthened over the last decade, with China rolling over loans and investing in mega infrastructure projects in Pakistan.

Dar will hold in-depth discussions with Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the evolving situation and its “implications for peace and stability” in South Asia, while the two sides will also review the entire spectrum of Pakistan-China bilateral relations, according to the Pakistani foreign ministry.

“Whatever matters are there, we [will] review and discuss them. These are political, local, regional, multilateral and even global issues,” Dar told reporters before leaving for Beijing.

This month’s military conflict between India and Pakistan was triggered by a gun attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir’s Pahalgam town, which killed 26 people on April 22. India blamed the assault on Pakistan. Islamabad denies the charge and has called for a credible, international probe into it.

The standoff began after India hit what it said were “terrorist camps” in multiple Pakistani cities with missiles on May 7. Pakistan responded swiftly and said it had downed six Indian fighter jets. The strikes continued over a course of four days, with both countries pounding the other’s defense installations and infrastructure.

“The entire world knows that all the allegations hurled against us were wrong,” Dar said. “Even China knows the entire world knows.”

Separately, PM Shehbaz Sharif has decided to send a high-level diplomatic delegation to important world capitals to expose ‘Indian propaganda’ against Islamabad, Pakistani state media reported.

“The delegation will visit London, Washington, Paris and Brussels to highlight India’s disinformation campaign and its attempts to destabilize regional peace,” the Radio Pakistan broadcaster said, adding Sharif has tasked ex-foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari with leading the body.

“It will also underscore Pakistan’s sincere efforts for peace and stability in the region.”

Bitter rivals India and Pakistan have fought three wars, including two over the disputed region of Kashmir, since gaining independence from British rule in 1947. Both claim the Himalayan territory in its entirety but rule it in part.

Analysts and diplomats have long feared that a conflict between the arch-foes could escalate into the use of nuclear weapons, in one of the world’s most dangerous and most populated nuclear flashpoint regions.

China, which borders both Pakistan and India, this month urged the arch-foes to exercise restraint as did other world powers and friendly nations.

Pakistan’s foreign ministry said Dar’s visit is part of the ongoing high-level exchanges between Pakistan and China

“It also underscores the two countries’ shared commitment to further strengthen the All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership,” it added.


Islamabad to launch nationwide polio campaign on May 26 to immunize 45 million children

Updated 19 May 2025
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Islamabad to launch nationwide polio campaign on May 26 to immunize 45 million children

  • Pakistan has reported seven polio cases this year, while 74 cases were confirmed in 2024
  • Pakistan, Afghanistan are the only countries in the world where polio remains an endemic

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will launch a third nationwide anti-polio vaccination campaign to immunize 45.4 million children under the age of five years, the Pakistani health ministry said on Monday.

The statement came after Health Minister Mustafa Kamal’s meeting with Dr. Chris Elias, president for global development at the Gates Foundation, to discuss Pakistan’s fight against the disease, according to the health ministry.

Polio is a paralyzing disease with no cure. Multiple doses of the oral polio vaccine, along with the completion of the routine immunization schedule for all children are essential to ensure strong immunity against the disease.

Pakistan has reported seven polio cases so far this year and has conducted two major vaccination campaigns in the first half of 2025. Last year, the South Asian country had reported 74 cases of the virus.

“The fight against polio has required tremendous sacrifice from all stakeholders including law enforcement personnel who have rendered invaluable services,” Kamal was quoted as saying by the ministry.

“This mission will continue until we reach complete eradication.”

The minister underscored the ongoing close cooperation between Pakistan and Afghanistan, including synchronized national immunization campaigns across both countries, as well as successful nationwide anti-polio campaigns carried out in February and April.

He shared that improved community engagement has led to a reduction in vaccine refusals among parents, expressing optimism that Pakistan is on track to achieve complete polio eradication by the end of 2025.

Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only two countries in the world where polio remains an endemic.

Dr. Elias commended Pakistan for its sustained efforts and reaffirmed the Gates Foundation’s commitment to supporting the country’s journey toward a polio-free future.

“He expressed hope that the 2025 eradication target would be successfully achieved.” the health ministry said.

In the early 1990s, Pakistan reported around 20,000 polio cases annually. However, by 2018, the number had dropped to just eight. In 2023, six cases were reported, and only one case was recorded in 2021.

Pakistan’s polio program began in 1994, but efforts to eradicate the virus have been repeatedly undermined by vaccine misinformation and resistance from some religious hard-liners who claim that immunization is a foreign plot to sterilize Muslim children or a cover for Western espionage.

Militant groups have also frequently targeted polio vaccination teams and the security personnel assigned to protect them, often resulting in deadly attacks.