ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has brought back 250,000 nationals who were stranded in various countries across the world due to the coronavirus pandemic, with Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi commending the “extraordinary” efforts of the government and related organizations.
“I would like to acknowledge extraordinary efforts of all our officers, who, in addition to coordinating tirelessly across multiple (government) branches of Pakistan & host countries, went above & beyond call of duty, for their fellow countrymen,” he tweeted on Sunday.
According to the state-run news agency, Associated Press of Pakistan (APP), hundreds of thousands of Pakistanis were repatriated from more than 70 countries after they were left stranded there due to an international travel ban to limit the spread of coronavirus across the globe.
However, Pakistan began operating special flights for the repatriation process in April with Prime Minister Imran Khan saying last week that the government would “continue supporting overseas Pakistanis in every way possible.”
Meanwhile, a statement by Prime Minister’s Special Adviser on National Security, Moeed Yusuf, released on July 2, said that while some countries had stopped the flights of national carrier Pakistan International Airlines, other flights would continue to operate.
“Ninety percent of the stranded Pakistanis are in Gulf countries, and for them, special flights will continue,” the statement said.
250,000 Pakistanis repatriated from 70 countries so far – Qureshi
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250,000 Pakistanis repatriated from 70 countries so far – Qureshi
- Foreign minister says efforts part of PM Khan’s endeavours to support overseas nationals in “every way possible“
- Pakistan began operating select flights for the repatriation process from April
Trump aide Richard Grenell meets Imran Khan’s sons, urges release of jailed former PM
- Grenell has backed Khan in recent months, with his support seen as symbolically important by PTI followers
- Khan’s sons are expected to join a planned protest campaign early next month, calling for their father’s release
ISLAMABAD: Richard Grenell, the US Envoy for Special Missions under President Donald Trump, met with the jailed former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan’s sons in California on Wednesday and renewed calls for their father’s release, describing his imprisonment as “political prosecution.”
A close aide to the US president, Grenell has been a vocal supporter of Khan in recent months. His endorsement is seen as symbolically significant by supporters of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party who are seeking international attention on the issue.
In a post on social media platform X, Grenell shared a photo with Sulaiman and Kasim Khan, saying:
“You must stay strong. There are millions of people around the world who are sick of political prosecutions. You are not alone. #FreeImranKhan.”
The meeting comes as PTI prepares to launch a protest campaign in Pakistan demanding Khan’s release. The party has announced that Khan’s sons, who have largely avoided political engagement, will also participate in the campaign.
Khan, 71, has been jailed since August 2023 and is currently serving a sentence on a number of charges. PTI says he faces more than 100 legal cases, all of which he calls politically motivated.
PTI also remains under pressure, with several senior leaders behind bars and others in hiding or facing legal challenges. Rights groups have accused Pakistani authorities of cracking down on dissent and curbing space for political opposition.
In a rare social media post last month, Khan’s sons raised concerns about their father’s prison conditions and called for his release, saying they feared for his health and well-being.
The PTI has yet to finalize details of its planned protest campaign, expected to begin in early August to coincide with the second anniversary of Khan’s arrest.
The party has framed the movement as a democratic struggle for civil liberties and judicial independence.
Pakistan seeks UN Human Rights Council seat, pledges consensus-based engagement
- Pakistan has previously served multiple terms on the Geneva-based Human Rights Council
- Dar reaffirms support for UN reforms, multilateral diplomacy during Security Council presidency
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has this week formally announced its candidacy for a seat on the United Nations Human Rights Council for the 2026–2028 term, vowing to pursue a platform based on tolerance, universality and consensus-building.
The announcement was made by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Wednesday during a reception hosted by Pakistan’s Mission in New York as the country assumed the rotating presidency of the UN Security Council for the month of July.
Pakistan has previously served multiple terms on the Geneva-based Human Rights Council, which is composed of 47 member states elected for staggered three-year terms by the UN General Assembly. The next round of elections is scheduled for late 2025.
“Pakistan has also presented its candidature for election to the Human Rights Council for the term 2026–2028. Our engagement with the Human Rights Council is guided by the idea of truth, tolerance, respect, universality, consensus-building and engagement,” Dar said at the dinner.
“Pakistan’s candidature is endorsed by the Asia-Pacific Group, and we hope to count on your valuable support.”
The announcement coincides with Pakistan’s broader push for UN reform, its active participation in Security Council deliberations this month and its ongoing diplomatic efforts to strengthen the UN system’s focus on peace, development, and rights.
Dar also used the reception to reaffirm Pakistan’s commitment to multilateral diplomacy and UN Charter principles, especially the peaceful resolution of disputes and the non-use of force.
As part of its Security Council presidency, Pakistan has prioritized three areas: the peaceful settlement of disputes, multilateralism and enhanced cooperation between the UN and regional bodies such as the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Dar explained.
“These same guiding principles continue to shape our contributions to the Council’s work, including in our presidency this month, both in deliberations and in action,” the deputy prime minister said, noting that Pakistan continues to support “reform of the United Nations to make this organization stronger, more effective, and more responsive to the interest and priorities of the general membership.”
Pakistan, he added, has “championed strengthening of the three pillars of the United Nations — peace and security, development and human rights,” including across the General Assembly, ECOSOC, and other multilateral platforms.
On Tuesday, under Pakistan’s presidency, the UNSC unanimously adopted a resolution calling on member states to use peaceful means to resolve disputes.
The resolution encourages states to make full use of existing mechanisms such as “negotiation, mediation, arbitration, judicial settlement or other peaceful means,” in accordance with the UN Charter.
Deadly monsoon rains kill 245 in Pakistan as flood, landslide warnings escalate
- Monsoon rains have injured more than 600 since late June
- Pakistan ranks among world’s most climate-vulnerable nations
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s disaster agency on Wednesday warned of continued torrential rains, flash floods and landslides in the country’s northern and central regions, as the nationwide death toll from this monsoon season climbed to 245, with over 600 people injured.
The alert follows weeks of heavy rains that have triggered house collapses, urban flooding and glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs), phenomena linked to rapid glacier melt, with children making up nearly half of all fatalities.
“Heavy rains may generate flash floods in local streams of Chitral, Dir, Swat, Shangla, Mansehra, Kohistan, Abbottabad, Buner, Charsadda, Nowshera, Swabi, Mardan, Murree, Galliyat, Islamabad and Rawalpindi,” the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) said in a statement.
“Urban flooding is also likely in low-lying areas of major cities including Gujranwala, Lahore, Faisalabad, Sialkot, Nowshera and Peshawar.”
The PMD also warned that glacier lake outburst floods remained a growing threat in high-altitude areas, exacerbated by accelerated ice melt driven by global warming. It urged the public to avoid travel to mountainous regions, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Kashmir, and Murree, due to the heightened risk of landslides.
According to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), this monsoon season which began in late June, at least 135 deaths have occurred in Punjab, including 63 children, followed by 59 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 24 in Sindh, 16 in Balochistan, six in Islamabad, three in Gilgit-Baltistan, and two in Azad Kashmir.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed authorities to accelerate relief operations in flood-hit regions.
Local media reported that search efforts were still underway for a father and daughter whose car was swept away in a flash flood in Islamabad’s upscale Defense Housing Authority (DHA) neighborhood.
Earlier this week, key travel routes such as the Karakoram Highway and Babusar Top were closed due to heavy landslides, blocking access to northern Pakistan.
The monsoon typically delivers 70–80 percent of South Asia’s annual rainfall between June and September. While crucial for agriculture, the seasonal rains also bring destruction in countries like Pakistan where infrastructure is weak, drainage systems are poor and climate resilience remains underfunded.
Pakistan, home to more than 7,000 glaciers, ranks among the most climate-vulnerable countries despite contributing less than one percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. It has already experienced increasingly erratic weather in recent years, including record-breaking heatwaves, droughts, and severe storms.
In 2022, unprecedented monsoon rains combined with glacial melt submerged nearly a third of the country, killing more than 1,700 people and displacing over 8 million. The disaster inflicted $30 billion in damages and prompted global calls for climate reparations.
In May this year, at least 32 more people were killed during sudden rainfall and hailstorm incidents.
Pakistan moves closer to IMF target as tax-to-GDP ratio climbs to 10.6%
- Pakistan aims to meet 13% tax-to-GDP ratio under 37-month IMF program
- Income tax filers rise to 7.2 million, with $1.6 billion jump from retail sector
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s tax-to-GDP ratio rose by 1.5 percentage points in fiscal year 2024–25 to reach 10.6%, officials said on Wednesday, marking progress toward the government’s 13% target under a three-year International Monetary Fund (IMF) reform program.
The increase comes as part of fiscal commitments under a 37-month Extended Fund Facility (EFF) with the IMF approved last year. During a review meeting in Islamabad, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called for tighter oversight and accelerated digital reforms to expand the country’s tax base and bring more of the informal economy into the net.
The tax-to-GDP ratio had stood at 9.1% the previous year, and rose to 10.6% by the end of June 2025, according to a briefing at the meeting chaired by the prime minister.
The government aims to continue raising the ratio under a wider economic and structural reform agenda backed by the IMF, which includes digitization of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), to improve enforcement and increase compliance.
“Digitization at the FBR has helped meet targets, but steps must now be taken to ensure the system becomes sustainable,” the prime minister was quoted as saying in a statement released by his office. “Enforcement must be strengthened further to curb the informal economy.”
The meeting was told that total tax revenue collected in FY2024–25 crossed Rs20.4 trillion ($71.4 billion), while the number of income tax return filers jumped from 4.5 million in 2024 to over 7.2 million by June 2025.
Officials credited the increase to enhanced enforcement, including reforms in the retail sector, integration of point-of-sale systems, and an expanded digital footprint.
They said tax revenue from the retail sector alone rose by Rs455 billion ($1.6 billion) compared to the previous year.
The prime minister instructed FBR to fast-track the restructuring of its digital wing, set deadlines for implementation, and consult all stakeholders, including taxpayers and the business community, to ensure the reform process remains inclusive.
He also praised FBR officials and directed them to present actionable targets for the next phase of reforms within a week.
Balochistan says provincial action plan against separatists ready amid spike in violence
- Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti says ethnic insurgent groups are dragging the Baloch nation ‘into a futile war’
- He maintains security forces are operating in ‘grey zones’ where it is hard to distinguish between friend and foes
ISLAMABAD: Amid a renewed wave of separatist violence in Balochistan, Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti said Wednesday a provincial action plan for peace had been formulated, as he warned of the evolving and asymmetric nature of the security threat facing the province.
The statement came during the 16th National Workshop on Balochistan in Quetta, where Bugti addressed senior civil and military participants. His remarks followed a recent spike in attacks by ethnic Baloch insurgents, who have escalated their decades-long campaign by launching coordinated strikes on security forces, government officials and non-local workers.
The unrest continues despite repeated crackdowns and military operations, complicating stability efforts in a province critical to the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
“A provincial action plan for peace in Balochistan has been formed,” Bugti was quoted in an official statement circulated after the event. “Our response mechanisms have been strengthened, and terrorists cannot hold even an inch of ground permanently.”
While acknowledging that the province has long suffered from misgovernance and uneven development, Bugti rejected that unemployment and underdevelopment alone were driving unrest.
“Those who fight the state do so not because of jobs or education but because they dream of a separate state based on Baloch identity,” he continued. “This is an intelligence-driven drone war against Pakistan.”
He added that the insurgents were attempting to push the Baloch people into an unwinnable conflict.
“The Baloch nation is being dragged into a futile war,” he said, warning that acts of violence, whether in the name of nationalism or religion, would be treated the same.
“We will embrace those disillusioned with the state and address their grievances, but those who kill innocents and want to break the country cannot be engaged outside the constitution,” he added.
The chief minister described the provincial security landscape as increasingly opaque, saying Pakistani forces were operating in “grey zones” where it was difficult “to distinguish between friend and foe.”
On the issue of enforced disappearances, a deeply contentious point in Balochistan’s political discourse, Bugti said that comprehensive legislation had already been passed.
Families of missing persons and human rights groups accuse state institutions of arbitrary detentions and extrajudicial killings in Balochistan.
Pakistani authorities have frequently rejected these claims, calling them “baseless allegations.”
Reiterating that the fight against separatist violence is not just the state’s burden but “a war that concerns every Pakistani,” Bugti said the state would remain firm against any attempt to destabilize the province.
