In partnership with
Profit
Bugti denies PM REITERATES STANCE ON PALESTINIAN STATEHOOD CM insurgency in WITH PRE-1967 BORDERS, AL QUDS AS CAPITAL Balochistan, blames Wednesday, 15 October, 2025 | 21 Rabius Sani, 1447
g
g
PREMIER SHEHBAZ SAYS PALESTINIAN PEOPLE’S FREEDOM AND DIGNITY REMAIN A PRIMARY CONCERN OF PAKISTAN’S MIDDLE EAST POLICY
g
HIGHLIGHTS PAKISTAN’S ACTIVE DIPLOMATIC ROLE ALONGSIDE BROTHERLY NATIONS FOR PEACE AND HUMANITARIAN RELIEF IN GAZA
Rs 20.00 | Vol XVI No 98 | 8 Pages | Karachi Edition
CALLS FOR IMMEDIATE CESSATION OF THE ‘GENOCIDAL CAMPAIGN’ IN GAZA FOLLOWING GAZA PEACE SUMMIT IN EGYPT
CONDEMNS TERRORIST ATTACK IN SWAT’S MATTA AREA, WHERE LEVIES OFFICIAL ABDUL KABEER EMBRACED MARTYRDOM
g
– directs complete transparency, timely execution of Jinnah Medical Complex project ISLAMABAD
staff report
P
ISLAMABAD
staff report
RIME Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday reaffirmed Pakistan’s unwavering support for the establishment of a strong and viable Palestinian state with pre-1967 borders and Al Quds Al Sharif as its capital, calling it the cornerstone of Pakistan’s Middle East policy. He also strongly condemned a terrorist attack on a polio vaccination team in Swat’s Matta area, in which a security official was martyred, vowing that the government’s resolve to eradicate
polio would remain unshaken. In a post on X (formerly Twitter) while returning from Egypt after attending the Gaza Peace Summit in Sharm el Sheikh, the prime minister said that the freedom, dignity, and prosperity of the Palestinian people remained a primary concern for Pakistan. “The establishment of a strong and viable Palestinian state with pre-1967 borders and Al Quds Al Sharif as its capital remains the bedrock of Pakistan’s Middle East policy and will remain so,” the prime minister wrote. Reflecting on what he described as the “potentially transformational nature”
Bilawal welcomes Gaza ceasefire, warns truce may not hold KARACHI
Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday directed the authorities concerned to ensure complete transparency and strict adherence to timelines at every stage of the construction of the Jinnah Medical Complex (JMC), describing it as a flagship healthcare initiative aimed at providing world-class medical services to the people. Chairing a high-level review meeting on the Jinnah Medical Complex and Research Centre, the prime minister emphasized that the project must be executed with the “highest professional standards” and free of any procedural lapses. He said the government was determined to deliver a state-of-the-art medical and research facility that would set new benchof the summit, Shehbaz Sharif said Pakistan’s foremost priority was the immediate cessation of the genocidal campaign in Gaza. He added that Pakistan was deeply en-
marks in healthcare delivery and medical education. The meeting was informed that the design consultant for the JMC project had been selected, while the contract process with the Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC) was currently in progress. The federal cabinet, it was noted, had already approved the appointment of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for the complex to ensure timely initiation of operational planning. Officials further apprised the meeting that the geotechnical study of the project site had been completed, while hydrology and seismic studies were expected to be finalized by next month. The advertisements for the selection of experts for third-party validation of the project would also be issued soon to ensure transparency and quality assurance at all stages.
gaged in the diplomatic process and, alongside other brotherly nations, continued to advocate for a durable ceasefire and humanitarian relief for the people of Gaza.
Pakistan slams India at UN for reneging on Kashmir pledges, violating international law NEW YORK
staff report
staff report
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal BhuttoZardari on Monday described the ceasefire in Gaza as a welcome development, saying the world had witnessed the “genocide of Palestinians” during the conflict. Speaking at a ceremony in Karachi, Bilawal said while the truce was commendable, there were concerns it might not last. “Doctors and journalists in Gaza were deliberately targeted. The world has seen the brutal reality,” he said. The PPP chairman said that during his time as foreign minister, he had consistently raised Pakistan’s position on Palestine in meetings with his counterparts across the world. Turning to domestic matters, Bilawal credited the Sindh government for launching the province’s economic zone during Qaim Ali Shah’s tenure, calling it an initiative that has gained international attention. “This is not a competition with other provinces — it’s a Sindh government achievement that has been recognised globally,” he said. He also noted that Sindh’s public-private partnership model had been praised internationally and urged unity instead of internal division. “Our focus should be on competing globally, not among ourselves,” he added. Referring to Pakistan’s healthcare system, Bilawal said cancer treatment in Karachi was being provided free of charge, calling it a major success for the country. He highlighted the global recognition of the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), saying foreign officials often cite it as a model for social protection. “Even the PTI founder relied on BISP during COVID-19 relief efforts, only changing its name,” he claimed.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 03
Pakistan on Monday strongly criticized India at the United Nations for reneging on its commitments under the UN Security Council resolutions that guarantee the people of Jammu and Kashmir the right to self-determination, saying New Delhi’s ongoing settler-colonial project in the disputed territory blatantly violates international law. Exercising the right of reply in the UN General Assembly’s Special Political and Decolonization Committee, Pakistan’s delegate Asif Khan asserted that “Jammu and Kashmir is not, and has never been, an integral part of India,” countering the Indian representative N.K. Premachandran’s claim that the region was and would “always remain an integral and inalienable part of India.” Premachandran, an Indian MP, had also described Pakistan as a “fountainhead of terror” and commented on its internal affairs. In response, Asif Khan, a minister at Pakistan’s UN Mission, rejected the accusation, calling India “the world’s
largest producer of disinformation.” Kashmir, he said, remains an internationally recognized disputed territory whose final status must be decided through a free and impartial plebiscite under UN auspices. He cited the UN Declaration of 1960, which decrees that all peoples under alien subjugation have the right to self-determination — a principle also enshrined in the UN Charter. “For long, India has tried to sell a false narrative, branding the just struggle of the people of Jammu and Kashmir as terrorism,” the Pakistani delegate said, adding that India’s refusal to grant Kashmiris their basic rights and its record of extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, mass incar-
cerations, sexual violence, and demographic engineering are the real drivers of the indigenous resistance movement. While portraying itself as a victim, he said, India was in fact “the principal sponsor of state terrorism in the region,” financing and directing terrorist proxies such as the TTP, BLA and Majeed Brigade, whose attacks had killed thousands of civilians in Pakistan. Asif Khan described India’s claim of being the world’s largest democracy as “hollow,” saying the RSS-BJP ideology had institutionalized Islamophobia and turned the persecution of minorities into state policy, a trend widely documented by international human rights organizations. Recalling India’s “unprovoked aggression” against Pakistan in May, he said the attack targeted civilians, including women and children, but was “responded to in a measured manner aimed solely at military targets.” India, he added, “suffered significant losses, including multiple aircraft downed,” and it was Pakistan’s “responsible posture and international facilitation” that prevented escalation.
India-backed groups QUETTA
news Desk
Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti on Tuesday rejected the notion that an insurgency exists in the province, saying the violence was being fuelled by “India-backed so-called separatist movements” aimed at destabilising Pakistan. Speaking at the 17th National Workshop in Quetta, the chief minister said the ongoing violence in Balochistan was the result of external interference rather than a local uprising. “There is no insurgency in Balochistan — only so-called separatist movements,” he told participants. “The purpose of these anti-state elements is to harm and divide Pakistan,” Bugti said, accusing India’s Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) of playing a “clear role” in worsening the province’s security situation. “Separatists are pleased with India but seek to damage Pakistan,” he added. Balochistan has seen a surge in militant attacks in recent months, with groups such as the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) adopting more sophisticated tactics and increasingly targeting security forces. Bugti stressed that the fight against terrorism was not limited to the country’s armed forces. “This war is the collective responsibility of the entire nation,” he said. He argued that narratives of “uneven development” were being deliberately spread to create divisions within the province. “The term ‘disgruntled Baloch’ was coined to justify terrorism,” the chief minister said. “Anyone who picks up arms against the state is not an angry citizen — he is a terrorist.” Bugti also said that social media had been used to drive a wedge between the youth and the state, adding that the provincial government was engaging with students across universities to listen to their concerns. To strengthen counterterrorism efforts, Bugti said the province had allocated Rs100 million to enhance the capacity of the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD). “Security forces are conducting operations in areas where it is often difficult to distinguish between friends and foes,” he said. Reports from the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS) and the Centre for Research and Security Studies (CRSS) show that Pakistan has witnessed nearly as much violence in the first three quarters of 2025 as in all of 2024. Last year, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa recorded the highest number of terrorist attacks with 295 incidents. Meanwhile, violence in Balochistan surged by 119 per cent, with the BLA and the Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF) accounting for 171 incidents, according to the reports.
Court orders Aleema Khan’s non-bailable arrest over D-Chowk protest ISLAMABAD
Monitoring report
An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Rawalpindi on Tuesday issued a non-bailable arrest warrant for Aleema Khan, sister of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan, after she failed to appear before the court despite repeated summons. Judge Amjad Ali Shah of the ATC passed the order while dismissing her exemption plea, observing that “consistent absence from proceedings amounts to obstructing the course of justice.” According to police officials, a team is expected to reach Adiala Jail, where Aleema Khan was attending a separate hearing in the Toshakhana-II reference, to execute the warrant once her court appearance there concludes. The ATC had earlier granted her interim bail in September in connection with a case registered at Sadiqabad Police Station over the November 26 DChowk protest. The case includes allegations of rioting, vandalism, stone-pelting and chanting anti-government slogans. At the time, the court had noted that there was no substantial evidence against her and ordered her to submit surety bonds of Rs50,000. The D-Chowk protest traces back to Imran Khan’s call on November 13 for nationwide demonstrations demanding the restoration of PTI’s electoral mandate, the release of detained party leaders, and the reversal of the 26th Amendment.
Pakistan Army destroys Afghan Taliban posts in retaliatory strikes near Kurram border RAWALPINDI agencies
Days after a brief period of calm along the Pak-Afghan border, fresh clashes erupted in the Kurram sector as Pakistani security forces retaliated against unprovoked firing by the Afghan Taliban regime and Tehreeke-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), security sources confirmed on Tuesday. According to sources, Afghan Taliban fighters, along with TTP militants — referred to by the government as ‘Fitna al-Khawarij’ — opened indiscriminate fire on Pakistani positions, prompting a strong and decisive response from the Pakistan Army. The retaliatory strikes reportedly inflicted significant damage on multiple Taliban posts, with fires breaking out across the border. Security officials said a Taliban regime tank was destroyed, and fighters were seen fleeing their positions, leaving behind several bodies of their fallen comrades. In another engagement within the Kurram sector, a moving tank was precisely targeted and destroyed — described by sources as a “highly professional and skillful strike.” Footage of the destroyed tank is reportedly available.
The latest exchange followed a two-day lull, with sources confirming that another Taliban post and tank position were eliminated in the ongoing operations. In an intense engagement at the Shamshad post, the Army destroyed a fourth tank position within an hour, underscoring the pace and intensity of the response. Security sources further confirmed that in Afghanistan’s Khost province, a fifth tank position at Nargasar Post was also destroyed along with the tank and its crew. According to the sources, Pakistani forces also targeted and destroyed a sixth Taliban tank along with its crew during an operation at Turkmanzai Top. Visuals captured through night-vision devices showed flames rising from the destroyed tank, the sources added. Security officials said that members of the occupying Taliban group abandoned their posts and fled amid the intense response by Pakistani forces. In reaction to Pakistan’s heavy counterattack, Taliban fighters reportedly raised a white flag at one of their border posts, indicating surrender. Following the display of the white flag, the Taliban regime’s operatives vacated the posi-
tion and escaped, security sources confirmed. Pakistan’s security forces also reportedly killed a key commander of Fitna al-Khawarij during the ongoing action. The militant fighters — both Taliban regime and their affiliates — were said to be in a state of panic and disarray, abandoning their posts in haste. According to security officials, military operations against the Afghan Taliban and Fitna al-Khawarij are continuing with full force, focusing on eliminating hostile threats near the border and ensuring regional security. The renewed fighting follows last week’s confrontation on the night of October 11–12, when Afghan Taliban forces, supported by “Indian-sponsored elements of Fitna al-Khawarij,” launched an unprovoked attack along the border. Responding to what it termed a “cowardly action,” the Pakistan Army said more than 200 Afghan Taliban fighters were killed in overnight clashes, while 23 Pakistani soldiers were martyred, according to the InterServices Public Relations (ISPR). The statement noted that the skirmishes caused significant infrastructural damage to Taliban posts, camps, headquarters, and support networks “ranging from tactical to op-
erational depth along the border.” “In the interest of regional peace and security, Pakistan urges the Taliban government to take swift and verifiable measures to dismantle terrorist groups — including FAK,
FAH, and ISKP/Daesh — operating from Afghan soil,” the ISPR added. Pakistan closed border crossings with Afghanistan on Sunday after exchanges of fire between forces on both sides.