KARACHI: Pakistan authorities blamed a mystery months-long Internet slowdown that has drawn backlash from activists and business leaders on damaged underwater cables.
Digital rights experts believe the state is testing a firewall — a security system that monitors network traffic but can also be used to control online spaces.
The government has previously blamed a surge in VPN use for the slowdown whilst also admitting that the country was “undergoing a transition.”
“The ongoing Internet slowdown across the country is mainly due to (a) fault in two of the seven international submarine cables connecting Pakistan internationally,” Pakistan’s Telecommunications Authority said in a statement on Wednesday, adding that the fault would be repaired by early October.
Internet networks have been up to 40 percent slower than normal since July, according to one IT association, while WhatsApp and VPN connections are severely disrupted.
The government and PTA for weeks refused to comment on the slowdown.
At the start of the month, defense minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif said the country was “undergoing a transition.”
He added that “there will be some controls to prevent threatening and defamatory content against the state and individuals.”
IT minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja later denied that the government was behind the Internet slowdown, blaming it on a surge in VPN use.
It comes as Pakistan’s military — the country’s most powerful institution — says it is battling so-called “digital terrorism.”
Analysts say the main target of the digital disruption is the party of jailed opposition leader Imran Khan, still wildly popular and boosted by a young, tech-savvy voter base.
Global rights watchdog Amnesty International urged Pakistan authorities to be transparent.
“The opacity of the Pakistani authorities regarding the use of monitoring and surveillance technologies that block content, slow down and control Internet speeds is an alarming concern,” said the organization’s technology expert Jurre Van Bergen.
Pakistan is banking on its nascent but growing Information Technology industry to increase its exports and generate critical foreign exchange revenue for a cash-strapped country.
“Without immediate and decisive action, the country risks deeper economic fallout and a prolonged digital divide,” Shahzad Arshad, the chairman of the Wireless Internet Service Providers Association of Pakistan, said in a statement.
Pakistan blames mystery Internet slowdown on underwater cables
https://arab.news/2pfzp
Pakistan blames mystery Internet slowdown on underwater cables
- Government previously blamed a surge in VPN use for the slowdown whilst also admitting that the country was ‘undergoing a transition’
- Digital rights experts believe the state is testing a firewall that monitors network traffic but can also be used to control online spaces
Pakistan approves 10 percent gas price hike for industry, power plants under IMF conditions
- ECC spares households in gas price hike, with only fixed charges adjusted to recover costs
- It also approves grant for defense ministry to cover shortfall in salaries, allowances and dues
KARACHI: Pakistan on Friday approved a 10 percent increase in natural gas prices for industrial users and power plants starting next month, in line with reforms mandated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to ensure cost recovery and tariff rationalization, an official statement said.
The decision was taken by the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet, chaired by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb.
While prices for bulk consumers and gas-fired power plants will rise, household consumers will be shielded from the increase.
“To protect household consumers, gas prices will remain unchanged, with only fixed charges revised,” the Finance Division said in a statement released after the meeting. “However, prices for bulk consumers, industrial units and power plants will be increased by an average of 10 percent.”
The statement said the revised pricing structure, submitted by the Petroleum Division, complies with regulatory obligations under the OGRA Ordinance and meets structural benchmarks under Pakistan’s ongoing loan program with the IMF.
It also supports a shift from cross-subsidies to direct, targeted assistance for low-income consumers.
DEFENSE GRANT
The ECC also approved a Rs15.8 billion ($55.3 million) supplementary grant for the Ministry of Defense to cover a shortfall in salaries, allowances and pending dues.
The funding includes disbursements under the prime minister’s compensation package for martyrs of the recent Pakistan-India war fought last month.
In a separate decision, the committee gave in-principle approval to launch a risk coverage scheme for small farmers and underserved regions by August 14.
The program is expected to bring 750,000 new borrowers into the formal credit system and unlock a Rs300 billion ($1.05 billion) agricultural loan portfolio over three years (FY2026-28).
The statement said the total budgetary support for the scheme, covering risk coverage and bank operating costs, is estimated at Rs37.5 billion ($131.25 million), to be disbursed between FY2027 and FY2031.
The government has directed relevant ministries to incorporate additional safeguards before the official rollout.
Pakistan naval chief calls for tech-driven forces to tackle future conflicts
- Admiral Naveed Ashraf says recent conflicts in South Asia and the Middle East show how modern warfare has evolved
- He warns that new geopolitical shifts and power rivalries are affecting security environment in the Indian Ocean Region
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Naval Chief Admiral Naveed Ashraf on Friday said future wars will be won not just through firepower but by forces that are intellectually and technologically superior, urging a strategic shift in how militaries prepare for evolving threats.
Speaking at the Pakistan Navy War College in Lahore, he pointed to recent Iran-Israel and Pakistan-India conflicts as examples of how warfare has changed.
Traditional dogfights and infantry movements were notably absent from these military standoffs, replaced by precision strikes, electronic and cyber warfare.
The shifting nature of these engagements, he said, underscores the need to rethink legacy doctrines and build forces fit for the future.
“The conventional, one-dimensional study of warfare is now outdated,” Ashraf told graduating officers of the 54th Pakistan Navy Staff Course. “Winning future wars demands not only a re-evaluation of legacy warfighting strategies, but also the development and maintenance of a future-ready workforce that is intellectually astute and technologically proficient.”
Discussing the maritime challenges facing Pakistan, the naval chief said the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) was “fluid and contested.”
He also highlighted that new geopolitical realignments and ongoing power rivalries in the region, saying they were affecting the security environment in the IOR.
Ashraf congratulated the graduates while encouraging them to be more analytical and innovative in their upcoming assignments.
British Council, Sindh government to train 30,000 teachers, impact two million students
- The initiative aims to improve language teaching through inclusive and multilingual methods
- It builds on the success of a similar program in Punjab, which benefited over 140,000 teachers
ISLAMABAD: The British Council and the Government of Sindh have signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) to improve English language teaching in public schools, aiming to train 30,000 teachers and indirectly benefit over two million students, according to a statement issued on Friday.
English is a compulsory subject in Pakistan’s schools and colleges and remains the dominant language in government, academia and the corporate sector. Despite years of formal exposure, however, many students struggle to use the language effectively, raising concerns about the quality and methods of instruction.
The new initiative aims to address these challenges by equipping teachers with inclusive and multilingual approaches that support more effective language acquisition.
“This agreement renews our partnership with and commitment to the people and Government of Sindh,” said James Hampson, Country Director, British Council Pakistan. “Our ambition of supporting 30,000 teachers and 2 million children is a great next step.”
Under the agreement, the British Council will deliver its “English as a Subject for Teachers and Educators” (EaSTE) program to newly inducted primary and early childhood teachers.
The collaboration also includes training 1,000 in-service teachers as mentors and deploying a scalable digital Learning Management System (LMS) to facilitate continuous professional support.
“Our focus is not just on access but on quality,” said Sindh Education Minister Sardar Ali Shah at the occasion. “Through this initiative, we are equipping our teachers with the tools they need to teach English more effectively, in ways that reflect the linguistic and cultural realities of our classrooms.”
The program builds on the British Council’s long-standing work in education in Pakistan and replicates a successful model from Punjab, where EaSTE reached more than 140,000 teachers.
From pavement to passion: Islamabad’s young skateboarders push for recognition
- As nation where nearly 64% population is under 30, Pakistan is fertile ground for growth of youth sport like skateboarding
- Skateboarding remains unrecognized in Pakistan, there are no dedicated skate parks and shops and few coaches available
ISLAMABAD: On a hot summer afternoon in Islamabad’s F-9 Park, laughter echoed across the cracked concrete as teenagers cruised over curbs and kick-flipped their boards with casual defiance.
For this small but growing community of skateboarders in the Pakistani capital, the pavement is a playground — and a protest.
Globally, skateboarding has long been associated with youth culture. It is a sport that thrives in urban settings and offers young people a sense of identity, freedom, and creative expression. Since its rise in the United States in the 1960s, it has evolved into a global movement, now part of the Olympic Games and supported by thriving communities from Brazil to Japan.
In this context, Pakistan is fertile ground for the growth of skateboarding — a nation of over 240 million people where nearly 64% of the population is under the age of 30. But the country does not officially recognize skateboarding as a sport. Its official game is field hockey but cricket dominates pitches, TV screens and public discourse. Other sports like football, badminton and volleyball enjoy some government support but skateboarding remains entirely on the fringes.
“There’s not even one dedicated skate shop in Pakistan,” said Ali Hamza, a 21-year-old engineering student who founded Skate Pakistan, a grassroots movement using Instagram to grow and connect the local skate scene. “It’s still seen by many as a toy.”
Hamza’s Instagram page, started in 2021 “just to see if anyone else was skating,” soon connected him to others across Islamabad and beyond. Today, Skate Pakistan meetups attract 12–15 regulars, with larger competitions drawing dozens. Most participants are teenagers with limited access to professional training or gear, and the initiative is driven entirely by volunteers and enthusiasts, growing into a fledgling community of teens and young adults passionate about the sport and eager to see it taken seriously.
Hamza’s own introduction to skateboarding came through Hollywood films as a child. At the time, he assumed the aerial tricks were camera tricks.
“Honestly, I used to think it was fake,” he said, laughing. “Like, how can a board that’s not even attached to your feet fly up like that?”
Curious, he bought a cheap board from a local sports shop in 2019. With no coaches or skateparks in Islamabad, Hamza turned to YouTube tutorials and online courses to learn the basics.
“My first day on the board, my father was holding one arm and my brother held the other. I was just praying I wouldn’t fall,” he said.
Fall he did and repeatedly. But with each tumble, he said, the fear wore off.
“The more I fell, the more this fear lessened.”
While Pakistan has a few modest skateparks — including one in Skardu, Gilgit-Baltistan, and another set up with German NGO support in Karachi in 2020 — most skateboarders still ride on sidewalks, underpasses, or abandoned lots.
Security guards at parks often ask them to leave. Potholes, rough terrain, and broken pavement pose daily hazards.
But the lack of infrastructure and support hasn’t stopped the community from growing.
“I mean, it’s fun, it’s something physical, you’re out with your friends, so why not?” said Hasaan Khan, 16, a regular at the sessions held in Islamabad’s F-9 park.
“Skateboarding builds up your endurance, since you keep falling over and over again,” added Rija Mughal, also 16. “It’s pretty good for your physical health too.”
BUILDING A MOVEMENT
For many, skateboarding took off during COVID-19, when lockdowns closed schools and sports grounds.
“I found an old skateboard at home during COVID, had nothing else to do, so I started riding around,” said Ahmed Ali Rana, who was 13 at the time. “It just clicked.”
Rana said he was nervous at his first Skate Pakistan competition but was surprised by how welcoming everyone was.
“That’s the best part. It’s not just about the sport, it’s about the friends and the community.”
Zayan Nadir, another teen skater, said skating gave him a mental escape:
“It helps people get away from their problems. But to build a bigger community in Pakistan, you need more skate shops, more skate parks, and more freedom for skaters.”
Currently, there’s no national or provincial skateboarding federation, and the Pakistan Sports Board does not include the sport in its list of recognized disciplines. In contrast, neighboring India has had multiple international skateboarding events and boasts over two dozen skateparks, including some that cater to underprivileged youth.
The inclusion of skateboarding in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games also helped raise its profile globally, particularly among younger audiences. Yet, in Pakistan, there is little official recognition, funding, or visibility.
Hamza said public perception also remained a big hurdle.
“There’s still this idea that a skateboard is a toy, not a sport,” he said. “That’s what we are trying to change through social media.”
At a recent meetup, teenagers practiced ollies and kick turns on a concrete ramp while others filmed slow-motion footage for Instagram reels. There were no referees, no medals — just scratched boards, scraped knees, and smiles.
Hamza said the goal now was to push for formal recognition and better infrastructure so more young people across Pakistan could skate without obstacles — literal or social.
“We just want people to see that this is serious,” he said. “It deserves space, support and respect.”
At least nine dead, four missing after flash flooding in Pakistan’s Swat River
- Heavy rains caused river levels to rise dangerously, triggering the flash floods
- Rescuers saved three people, as search continues for those who are still missing
PESHAWAR: At least nine people drowned and four others were missing in the wake of flash flooding in the Swat river in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, the KP Rescue 1122 service said on Friday.
The perennial river originates in the high glacial valleys of the Hindu Kush mountains, from where it flows into the Kalam area before forming the spine of the wider Swat valley.
The flash floods resulted from heavy rain, rapidly raising river water to dangerous levels at several locations across the Swat valley, according to the rescue service.
Bilal Faizi, a KP Rescue 1122 spokesman, said rescue teams had so far recovered nine bodies from different areas of Swat as floods continued to ravage parts of the valley.
“Rescuers in Swat have recovered the bodies of nine people who were swept away in the floodwaters,” he told Arab News. “A search operation is still ongoing to locate four other missing individuals.”
Earlier, Faizi had said a total of 16 people had been trapped in the floods, adding that three of them had been rescued.
The development came a day after Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) warned of heavy rains and flash floods in several parts of the country from June 26 till June 28.
It advised residents in flood-prone areas, particularly near nullahs, low-lying zones and slopes, to remain alert and avoid unnecessary movement, calling on emergency services to ensure readiness for any potential incidents.
“A total of 120 rescue personnel are taking part in the rescue operations [in Swat],” Faizi said.
Pakistan is currently bracing for another extreme monsoon season and ramping up efforts to deal with any potential calamity.
In 2022, deadly floods brought by record monsoon rains and glacial melt killed over 1,700 people and impacted 33 million people in Pakistan. Raging currents swept away homes, vehicles, crops and livestock in damages estimated at $30 billion.
