PESHAWAR: The Afghan government named a career diplomat, Najibullah Alikhil, as its new ambassador to Pakistan on Thursday, the Afghan foreign ministry has said.
Alikhil takes charge at a time when key intra-Afghan talks between the Kabul government and the Afghan Taliban are about to begin. Pakistan is considered key in arranging the dialogue.
“The Afghan government appointed ambassadors to posts in 13 World capitals,” the foreign ministry said in a statement. “Najibullah Alikhil was nominated as the new Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to Islamabad, Pakistan.”
Alikhil, who is fluent in Dari, Pashto, English and Russian, brings with him 28 years of experience working with the Afghan ministry of foreign affairs and since March 2016 was Director General of Security Cooperation and Border Affairs at the ministry. He has served as Afghan envoy in Turkmenistan and Hungary and as a non-resident ambassador to Romania.
Alikhil replaces Atif Mashal who resigned in July this year, citing “personal reasons.”
“Unlike political appointees, Alikhil is a career diplomat with rich diplomatic experience,” said Hikmat Safi, a former adviser to Abdullah Abdullah who leads the High Council for National Reconciliation. “I believe his appointment will bring the two neighbors closer to mend their fraught ties.”
In recent months, Islamabad and Kabul have been involved in a diplomatic row over what both sides claim is harassment of diplomatic staff at their respective high commissions.
Last October, Afghanistan shut down its consulate in Peshawar over the removal of the Afghan national flag by Pakistani authorities from a disputed marketplace, which Kabul said belongs to Afghanistan.
Afghanistan appoints career diplomat Najibullah Alikhil as new ambassador to Pakistan
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Afghanistan appoints career diplomat Najibullah Alikhil as new ambassador to Pakistan
- Unlike political appointees in the past, Alikhil brings with him 28 years of experience working with the Afghan foreign ministry
- Takes charge at a time when key intra-Afghan talks between Kabul government and the Afghan Taliban are about to begin
‘Big lie,’ says Pakistan on New Delhi’s accusations it tried to strike inside India
- India says “neutralized” Islamabad’s attempts to strike military targets with drones, missiles on Thursday
- Pakistan army said it had downed 29 Israeli-manufactured Harop drones launched from India overnight
ISLAMABAD: Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar on Thursday described New Delhi’s accusations that Pakistan had tried to carry out strikes inside India overnight as a “big lie,” after India said it had “neutralized” Islamabad’s attempts to target military targets with drones and missiles.
Fighting has escalated between the nuclear-armed South Asian neighbors since Wednesday when India struck multiple locations in Pakistan in response to a deadly April 22 attack targeting tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir that New Delhi blames on its neighbor.
Pakistan, which denies any link to the Kashmir violence, said it had shot down five Indian fighter jets in retaliation. Thursday brought more violence as Pakistan said it had downed 29 Israeli-manufactured Harop drones launched from India overnight and New Delhi said Islamabad had launched an air attack using “drones and missiles” before it retaliated to destroy an air defense system in Lahore.
“Today, a politically based and motivated story was issued that last night Pakistan attacked different Indian military installations and military areas. It’s a big lie. It’s a very big lie,” Dar, who is also the country’s foreign minister, told reporters.
He said India had “concocted” the story to justify attempting to carry out waves of drone attacks inside Pakistan.
“What they did today [sending drones], from Islamabad to South Pakistan till Karachi, in at least two dozen places, is shameful, regretful and condemnable,” Dar added.
The foreign minister’s press conference followed a statement by India’s defense ministry that said Pakistan on Thursday morning “attempted to engage a number of military targets ... using drones and missiles,” which were “neutralized” by air defense systems.
New Delhi said areas targeted included sites in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir, and India’s Punjab state, including the key cities of Amritsar, Ludhiana, Chandigarh, as well as Bhuj in Gujarat state.
“The debris of these attacks is now being recovered from a number of locations,” it added.
The defense ministry said in retaliation, its military had “targeted air defense radars and systems at a number of locations in Pakistan,” saying the “response has been in the same domain, with the same intensity, as Pakistan.”
It added that it had been “reliably learnt that an air defense system at Lahore has been neutralized.”
Dar, and military spokesman Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, have both rejected the claim.
“29 drones so far have been neutralized,” Chaudhry said at the press conference alongside Dar.
“Only one managed to partially engage its target for which it came. Some equipment was damaged and four soldiers were injured.”
He said three civilians had been killed and four injured during the exchange.
The conflict between India and Pakistan has been confined in recent decades mostly to the disputed mountainous region of Kashmir. But the air strikes on Wednesday morning, which also hit the towns of Bahawalpur and Muridke in the heart of the country, and the drone incursions into some of the country’s largest cities on Thursday, were seen in Islamabad as a major escalation.
One drone was shot down over the garrison city of Rawalpindi, home to the Pakistan army’s heavily fortified headquarters.
One drone hit a military target near Lahore, the capital and largest city of the province of Punjab, and the second-largest city in Pakistan after Karachi.
Other places where drones were neutralized were Gujranwala, Chakwal, Attock, Bahawalpur, Miano, Chor and near Karachi, which the country’s largest city and commercial capital.
India has also accused Pakistan of having “increased the intensity of its unprovoked firing across the Line of Control using mortars and heavy caliber artillery” across the de facto border that divides Kashmir between the two nations.
India said the number of people who had been killed by Pakistani firing since the escalation of violence on Wednesday had risen to 16, including three women and five children.
Speaking in parliament, Pakistani Information Ministers said Pakistan had killed 40-50 Indian soldiers and destroyed a brigade headquarters along the Line of Control. The claims could not be independently verified and India has not commented on it.
India and Pakistan have fought three wars in the past, two of them over Kashmir, which they both claim in full but rule in part.
Since April 22, they have intensified firing and shelling across the Line of Control.
For decades India has accused Pakistan of supporting militants in attacks on Indian interests, especially in Indian-administered Kashmir. Pakistan denies such support and in turn accuses India of backing separatist and other insurgents in Pakistan, which New Delhi denies.
With inputs from AFP and Reuters
Pakistan advises Hajj pilgrims to verify approved private operators before bookings
- Private operators were allotted 89,801 slots initially but the final number was reduced to around 23,620 last month
- Due to non-compliance with Saudi regulations, private sector failed to secure accommodations by Feb. 14 deadline
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Ministry of Religious Affairs has advised all pilgrims performing Hajj through private tour operators to verify the authenticity and quota approval of a particular company before making bookings and payments, state-run APP news agency said on Thursday.
The total quota granted to Pakistan for Hajj 2025 was 179,210, which is usually divided equally between the government and the private schemes. This year, however, the private Hajj quota has been significantly reduced, impacting over 67,000 pilgrims.
Private operators were allotted 89,801 slots initially, but the final number was reduced to around 23,620 last month due to non-compliance of the private sector with Saudi booking regulations and deadlines.
In a report published by the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) on Thursday, Religious Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Muhammad Umar Butt issued guidelines for Hajj pilgrims, including verifying the authenticity and quota approval of private tour operators before making payments, visiting the ministry’s official website to confirm registration and avoiding reliance on unverified advertisements or information.
“The Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony has advised all prospective pilgrims intending to perform Hajj under the private Hajj scheme to exercise utmost caution when booking packages through private tour operators (Munazzameen),” APP said.
“The advisory comes after some private organizers failed to pay dues ... within the timeline set by the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah,” because of which they did not get permission to serve as Hajj operators.
Butt added that Hajj operators should not book pilgrims beyond their approved quotas.
While a precise number of worldwide pilgrims for Hajj 2025 is difficult to determine in advance, projections suggest it will be a record-breaking year, with over 2.5 million Muslims performing the pilgrimage.
PSX sees largest single-day decline in its history on escalation in India-Pakistan conflict
- Record-breaking 6,482-point plunge on Thursday stunned Pakistan Stock Exchange, which closed at 103,527
- Market crash followed as army said it had neutralized 25 drones launched by India, with four troopers injured
KARACHI: A record-breaking 6,482-point plunge on Thursday stunned the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), marking the largest single-day decline in the index’s history as investors feared escalation amid an ongoing standoff between India and Pakistan.
The bloodbath comes as Pakistan and India indulged in the worst fighting between them in decades this week, with India striking multiple locations in Pakistan on Wednesday after a deadly April 22 attack targeting tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir that New Delhi blames on its neighbor.
Pakistan, which denies any link to the Kashmir violence, said it had shot down five Indian fighter jets in retaliation. Thursday brought more violence as Pakistan said it had downed 25 drones from India overnight and New Delhi said it “neutralized” Pakistani attempts to strike military targets with drones and missiles.
“The market crash followed alarming geopolitical developments after ISPR Director General Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry announced that Pakistani forces had neutralized 25 drones sent by India,” Topline Securities said in its daily market review.
“He also confirmed that four army personnel were injured after one drone managed to partially strike a military target, despite the majority being intercepted.”
The statement sent shockwaves through financial markets, triggering widespread panic selling as investors rushed to offload positions, leading to a broad-based decline across sectors.
Pakistan’s benchmark KSE-100 Index started the day with a 1.7 percent rally but turned bearish and slumped as much as eight percent after reports of India’s drone strikes triggered panic selling at the bourse.
The stock gauge, bullish otherwise, ended the day with a 5.89 percent decline to 103,526, according to PSX data.
The selling pressure came largely from leveraged investors, Shahid Ali Habib, the chief executive officer at Arif Habib Ltd., told Arab News.
“Pakistan’s stocks are under pressure as it now seems that Pakistan will also go on to respond [to India] and that response will also escalate further,” he said.
“It’s not going to end actually soon and the escalation is happening.”
However, Habib said he expected a “sharp rebound” for Pakistan’s stocks once a third party like the US or longtime ally China mediated and defused the conflict.
The renewed geopolitical tension has caused Pakistan’s market to fall about 12 percent from April 23 to May 8.
The latest conflict with India is a setback for Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s effort to revive the country’s debt-ridden economy through increasing revenues and exports with the help of an International Monetary Fund’s $7 billion reforms-oriented loan program.
Pakistan postpones PSL match after Indian drone shot down near Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium
- Pakistan military said on Thursday it had shot down 25 Israeli-made Harop drones launched by India at multiple locations
- One drone was shot down over garrison city of Rawalpindi where Peshawar Zalmi And Karachi Kings match was to take place
KARACHI: The Pakistan Cricket Board has rescheduled the HBL PSL X match between Peshawar Zalmi and Karachi Kings after Pakistan shot down an Indian drone near the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium where the game was set to take place today, Thursday.
The Pakistan military said on Thursday it had shot down 25 Israeli-made Harop drones launched by India at multiple locations. One drone was shot down over the garrison city of Rawalpindi, military spokesman Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said in a televised statement. Rawalpindi is home to the Pakistan army’s heavily fortified headquarters.
The drone was shot down near the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.
“The PCB will announce the revised date in due course,” the cricket board said, saying VIP Gallery and enclosures ticket holders could obtain refunds from TCS Express Centers while tickets bought online would be automatically reimbursed in the accounts used at the time of booking.
The PCB’s statement did not mention the drone attacks, but the postponement comes in the wake of violence between neighbors India and Pakistan, who this week have engaged in the worst direct military confrontation in decades.
Fighting has escalated between the nuclear-armed neighbors since Wednesday when India said it struck nine “terrorist infrastructure” sites in Pakistan, some of them linked to an attack by militants that killed 26 in Indian-administered Kashmir on Apr. 22. Pakistan said 31 people were killed in the Indian strikes and vowed to retaliate, subsequently saying it had shot down five Indian aircraft and a combat drone.
On Thursday, the Pakistan army said India was “attacking Pakistan with Israeli-made Harop drones in panic” while India’s defense ministry said Islamabad had launched an overnight air attack using “drones and missiles” before New Delhi retaliated to destroy an air defense system in the eastern city of Lahore. The Pakistani defense minister has rejected India’s claims.
Flight operations shut at several Indian airports, IPL match moved amid Pakistan standoff
- Several airports in northern India have been closed after New Delhi launched strikes on neighboring Pakistan on Wednesday
- Match between Mumbai Indians and Punjab Kings was due to take place in Dharamsala, where the airport has closed
NEW DELHI: India’s IPL cricket match on Sunday between Mumbai and Punjab has been moved to Gujarat, local media reported on Thursday, while airlines suspended flight operations from more than two dozen airports across northern and western regions of the country amid heightened tensions with Pakistan.
The match between Mumbai Indians and Punjab Kings was due to take place in Dharamsala, where the airport has closed in the wake of violence between India and neighboring Pakistan.
But Thursday evening’s match between Punjab Kings and Delhi Capitals, which is also set to take place in Dharamsala, will proceed as planned, as will all other games in coming days.
Sunday’s match will now be played in the city of Ahmedabad in the western state of Gujarat, the state’s cricket association secretary Anil Patel told the Press Trust of India news agency on Thursday.
Several airports in northern India have been closed after New Delhi launched strikes on neighboring Pakistan on Wednesday.
In adviseries to passengers, key domestic airlines said their flights will remain suspended until Saturday from airports including Amritsar in northern Punjab and Srinagar in India-controlled Kashmir, bordering Pakistan.
India’s Civil Aviation Ministry hasn’t officially commented on the closure of airports after tensions flared up with Pakistan. A spokeswoman for the ministry, Beena Yadav, declined to comment on Thursday.
Indigo, the country’s biggest domestic carrier, on Wednesday canceled 165 flights, while Air India and Air India Express had a similar number of cancelations. Air India even diverted two of its international flights enroute from Amritsar, close to Lahore, to New Delhi, because of the sudden closure of the airport.
The strikes on Wednesday came two weeks after New Delhi blamed Islamabad for backing an attack on tourists in the Indian-administered side of disputed Kashmir, a charge Pakistan denies.
The arch-rivals have since exchanged fire across their contested border in Kashmir. The violence has raised fears of a wider conflict between the nuclear-armed neighbors.
