ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday urged authorities to protect Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), and China's investments in the southwestern Balochistan province, crediting "friendly countries" for saving Pakistan from default.
Balochistan is Pakistan's largest province by size but is its least developed one. Since 2014 the province has become a hub for new investments from Pakistan's allies. After the administration in Beijing and authorities in Islamabad initiated the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) – an assortment of various energy, infrastructure, and other projects – Saudi Arabia followed suit by pledging to invest $11 billion to build an oil refinery and petrochemical complex in the Gwadar port of the province in 2019.
In 2018, the UAE and Pakistan signed a $200 million cooperation agreement for over 100 projects in Balochistan and Pakistan's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province that would focus on education and healthcare.
"You saw the IMF mess that we were in but thank God, we came out of the default [situation]," Sharif said during a ceremony in Gwadar. "China, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Qatar helped us."
Sharif praised Pakistan's allies, saying they had come to the South Asian country's aid without any conditions.
"Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE do not impose any conditions on us and always support us," Sharif said. "Hence, those who support us, it is our obligation to protect them as well."
The Pakistani prime minister said these same countries would provide Balochistan with machinery and technology.
"If someone invests in Loralai or Pishin or anywhere else in Balochistan, then why shouldn't we protect them, when it is also our obligation," Sharif asked. "If we don't protect them, no one would come to invest here."
Cash-strapped Pakistan also received $4.2 billion in funds this month, including $2 billion from Saudi Arabia, and $1 billion from the UAE after which the International Monetary Fund (IMF) agreed to unlock $1.2 billion in funds for Pakistan and approve its $3 billion standby agreement.
The funds were critical in helping the South Asian country escape a sovereign default amid an acute balance of payments crisis.
ISLAMABAD: The crescent for the Islamic month of Rabi Al-Awwal could not be sighted in Pakistan, the religious affairs ministry announced on Sunday, with the country now due to mark Eid Milad-un-Nabi on Sept. 6.
Rabi Al-Awwal is the third month in the Islamic calendar. The month holds special significance for Muslims around the world as they observe the 12th of the month as Mawlid Al-Nabi, the birthday of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). In Pakistan and some other countries in Asia, it is referred to as Eid Milad-un-Nabi.
On Sunday, the central moon-sighting committee held a session in the southern port city of Karachi, presided over by its chairman, Maulana Abdul Khabeer, to sight the Rabi Al-Awwal moon.
“The moon of Rabi Al-Awwal 1447 AH has not been sighted,” the religious affairs ministry said, citing a decision of the moon-sighting committee. “Therefore, the 1st Rabi Al-Awwal 1447 AH shall commence from Tuesday.”
Consequently, the 12th of Rabi Al-Awwal will fall on Saturday, Sept. 6.
In Pakistan, the day dawns with a 31-gun salute in the Pakistani federal capital of Islamabad and a 21-gun salute in all provincial capitals.
The religious affairs ministry organizes the annual Seerat-un-Nabi Conference on the day to encourage research and discussion on various aspects of the life of the Prophet (PBUH) and their application in modern times.
Various conferences and events are held across the country, at which religious scholars highlight the teachings of the Prophet (PBUH) to enlighten the daily lives and strengthen the moral fabric of society.
ISLAMABAD: Bahrain’s Interior Minister, Lt. Gen. Rashid bin Abdullah Al-Khalifa on Sunday held a telephonic conversation with his Pakistani counterpart Mohsin Naqvi and extended condolences over the loss of nearly 800 lives in Pakistan this monsoon season, Pakistani state media reported.
Deadly rains and floods have swept several parts of Pakistan, particularly its northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, killing 798 persons since Jun. 26, according to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).
KP has reported the highest number of deaths, 479, followed by Punjab with 165, Sindh with 54, GB with 45, Balochistan with 24 and Azad Kashmir with 23 casualties while Islamabad has reported eight deaths.
During his telephonic conversation with Naqvi, the Bahraini interior minister expressed sorrow over the devastation caused by monsoon rains and conveyed his heartfelt sympathies to the bereaved families, the Radio Pakistan broadcaster reported.
“Bahrain stands with the Pakistani brothers and sisters in this difficult hour and is ready to help the flood victims,” he was quoted as saying.
Naqvi thanked his Bahraini counterpart for expressing solidarity with flood victims, according to the report. He shared the devastation caused by floods, rains and cloudbursts could not be “expressed in words.”
Pakistani authorities have warned that monsoon showers, expected to last until Sept. 10, can trigger floods on the scale of those witnessed by the country in 2010.
“The prime minister directed all concerned authorities to be fully prepared for relief operations in the lower parts of the country in view of the flood situation in the coming days,” PM Shehbaz Sharif’s office said in a statement.
Pakistan ranks among the world’s most vulnerable nations to climate change, despite contributing less than 1 percent to global greenhouse gas emissions.
In 2022, unusually heavy rains and the melting of glaciers triggered flash floods that at one point inundated one-third of the country, killed over 1,700 people and inflicted losses of over $30 billion as per government estimates.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Bangladesh have resolved to revive their “old connections” and enhance trade and youth linkages, the Pakistani foreign office said on Sunday, following Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar’s meeting with Bangladesh’s chief adviser Muhammad Yunus in Dhaka.
Dar arrived in Bangladesh on a high-profile visit on Saturday in a bid to reset relations, which were scarred by the bloody 1971 conflict but have been reshaped by shifting regional power balances in recent months.
Pakistan’s Commerce Minister Jam Kamal has been in Dhaka this week, discussing trade and agricultural collaboration, while Pakistan’s foreign secretary Amna Baloch held in April the first bilateral consultations with Bangladesh in 15 years.
Dar met Yunus on Sunday and apprised the Bangladeshi chief adviser of his engagements in Dhaka and the key outcomes of his two-day visit, thanking for the “warm hospitality” extended to him and his delegation, according to the Pakistani foreign office.
“The discussion covered revival of old connections between the two countries, promoting youth linkages, enhancing connectivity, and augmenting trade and economic cooperation,” the foreign office said after the meeting.
“The recent developments in the region and the prospects of regional cooperation were also discussed.”
Pakistan and Bangladesh were once one nation, but they split in 1971 as a result of a bloody civil war, which saw the part previously referred to as East Pakistan seceding to form the independent nation of Bangladesh. In the years since, Bangladeshi leaders, particularly ex-PM Sheikh Hasina, chose to maintain close ties with India.
Ties between Pakistan and Bangladesh have warmed up since Hasina’s ouster as a result of a student-led uprising in August, witnessing a marked improvement. Both countries began sea trade last year, expanding government-to-government commerce in February.
Dar also met Khaleda Zia, a former Bangladeshi prime minister and head of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), at her residence in Dhaka. Zia, who ruled Bangladesh from 1991 to 1996 and again from 2001 to 2006, has liver disease, diabetes and heart problems, according to her doctors. She has largely remained away from politics for many years.
“The DPM/FM expressed his best wishes for her speedy recovery and well-being,” the foreign office said. “He also conveyed to Begum Sahibah the greetings from the Prime Minister of Pakistan. He lauded her services to Bangladesh as Prime Minister of the country.”
Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar (left) calls on former Bangladeshi prime minister and head of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Khaleda Zia, at her residence in Dhaka on August 24, 2025. (Pakistan's Foreign Office)
Earlier on Sunday, Dar held wide-ranging talks with Bangladesh Foreign Adviser Touhid Hossain during which both sides discussed bilateral ties, people-to-people contacts, and cooperation in education and capacity building as well as regional and global issues.
“Regional and international issues, including rejuvenation of SAARC [South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation] and resolution of Palestine and the Rohingya issues were also discussed,” the Pakistani foreign office said.
This handout photograph taken on August 24, 2025 and released by Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs shows Foreign Affairs Advisor of Bangladesh's interim government Mohammad Touhid Hossain (R) posing alongside Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar during a bilateral meeting in Dhaka. (AFP/Bangladesh's Ministry of Foreign Affair)
Following the delegation-level talks, the two sides signed six agreements relating to visa abolition for diplomatic and official passport holders, Joint Working Group on Trade, foreign services academies of Pakistan and Bangladesh, the Associated Press of Pakistan Corporation and Bangladesh Sangbad
Sangstha, the Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad and the Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies, and a cultural exchange program.
“These agreements will institutionalize and further strengthen the bilateral cooperation in trade and economics, training of diplomats, academic exchanges, media cooperation and cultural exchanges,” the Pakistani foreign office added.
Prior to that, the Pakistani deputy premier, along with Commerce Minister Jam Kamal, met Bangladesh’s Commerce Adviser Sheikh Bashir Uddin and other senior officials of Bangladesh’s state-owned institutions to discuss bilateral trade, investment and economic cooperation between the two sides.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, will travel to Saudi Arabia to attend an extraordinary meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Jeddah on Aug. 25-26, the Pakistani foreign ministry said on Sunday.
The statement comes as Israeli leaders vow to press on with a planned offensive in Gaza, with Israeli planes and tanks pounding the eastern and northern outskirts of Gaza City overnight Saturday to Sunday.
Israel approved a plan this month to seize control of Gaza City, describing it as Hamas’ last bastion. It is not expected to begin for a few weeks, leaving room for mediators Egypt and Qatar to try and resume ceasefire talks between the sides.
Dar, who is currently in Dhaka on a most high-profile visit by any Pakistani official to Bangladesh in recent years, will travel directly to Jeddah to attend the extraordinary session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers.
“The high-level meeting will bring together foreign ministers and senior officials from OIC member states to deliberate upon coordinated responses to the escalating developments in Palestine, resulting from ongoing
Israeli military aggression, its proposed plans for full military control over Gaza and the continued egregious violations of Palestinians’ rights,” the Pakistani foreign office said.
Headquartered in Jeddah, the OIC is the second-largest inter-governmental organization after the United Nations, with a membership of 57 states across four continents. It serves as a collective voice of the Muslim world to ensure and safeguard their interests in economic, social, and political spheres.
Pakistan, which does not have diplomatic ties with Israel, has consistently condemned Israel’s war on Gaza that has killed at least 62,000 Palestinians since Oct. 2023, left much of the territory in ruins and internally displaced nearly its entire population.
Dar will reaffirm Pakistan’s unwavering support for Palestine and reiterate its principled stance at the OIC meeting, according to the Pakistani foreign office.
“The DPM/FM will advocate for total withdrawal of Israel from all the Occupied Palestinian Territories; reject the outrageous Israeli plan for extending full military control over Gaza and further displacement of Palestinians; emphasize the urgent need of unhindered humanitarian assistance; and call for the restoration of the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people — most notably, the establishment of an independent, contiguous, and sovereign Palestinian state based on pre-June 1967 borders,” it said.
“On the sidelines of the OIC-CFM, the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister is expected to hold bilateral meetings with his counterparts from key OIC member states.”
Islamabad: Pakistan Railways has announced its plans to introduce a bullet train project between the provincial capitals of Lahore and Karachi, state-run media reported on Sunday, with the initiative to cut travel time from 20 hours to just five by 2030.
Quoting Railways Minister Hanis Abbasi, state broadcaster Radio Pakistan said the 1,215-kilometer-long high-speed rail line is part of the ML-1 project. The ML‑1, a $6.7 billion upgrade of Pakistan’s 1,687-kilometer Karachi–Peshawar rail artery first agreed upon in May 2017, is central to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project.
In its report, Radio Pakistan said the upgrade would be carried out under the CPEC project with Chinese support.
“The trains will run at speeds of up to 250 kilometers per hour, with major stops in Hyderabad, Multan, and Sahiwal,” Radio Pakistan reported.
The report said that the China Railway Construction Corporation will be part of the project, which would include upgrades such as new double tracks, rebuilt bridges and modern signaling systems.
“Beyond faster travel, the project is projected to create thousands of jobs during construction and operation, boost regional trade, and increase Pakistan’s freight rail share from 4 percent to 20 percent by 2030,” the report said.
Radio Pakistan said the project is also expected to reduce reliance on costly road transport, saving billions in fuel imports.
Rail transport remains a critical but underfunded part of Pakistan’s public infrastructure. The Pakistan Railways network stretches over 7,700 kilometers and connects major cities, yet it has struggled for decades with outdated technology, frequent delays and safety issues due to a lack of investment and mismanagement.
In recent years, successive governments have pledged to revitalize the sector. Recent initiatives have included track rehabilitation, procurement of new locomotives and the expansion of digital ticketing systems.
