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• Next 48 hours critical; PDMA warns of ‘exceptionally high flood’ levels at Sutlej, Chenab through Sept 3 • Death toll rises to 33 in Punjab; monsoon claims 850 lives nationwide • UN envoy visits flood-hit Sialkot • Sindh preparing for ‘super flood’, CM Murad fears 200,000 people may be affected • Woman, two daughters killed in roof collapse in South Waziristan LAHORE: The overflowing Che­nab, Ravi and Sutlej rivers have displaced more than two million people across 2,200 villages since Aug 23, while Sindh braces for what officials warn could be a “super flood” as mas­sive inflows from Punjab move downstream. Rescue and relief operations are underway on an unprecedented scale in Punjab, where the Provincial Disa­ster Management Authority (PDMA) has warned that the next 48 hours are critical. In Sindh, Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah has cautioned that inflows of nearly one million cusecs could threaten barrages and inundate vast swathes of land, endangering more than 200,000 pe...

Tremors from a 6.0 magnitude earthquake were felt across several districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab in the early hours of Monday, according to the authorities but no casualties or damage were reported. According to the state-run PTV which cited the Pakistan Meteorological Department, the earthquake was recorded at 12:18am. It added that the tremors were felt in Peshawar, Manshera, Abbottabad, Hangu, Malakand, Swat, Chitral, Rawalpindi, and Islamabad. A Punjab Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) spokesperson said the quake was recorded at a depth of 10 kilometres with its epicentre located southwest of Asadabad, Afghanistan. Shocks were also felt in India and Tajikistan. Following the tremors, district administrations across Punjab began inspections of buildings to assess structural safety. “However, no casualties or damage have been reported so far,” PDMA Director General Irfan Ali Kathia confirmed. The PDMA stated that its provincial control room and a...

The Oil and Gas Regulatory (Ogra) on Sunday notified the new price of liquified petroleum gas (LPG) at Rs214.19 per kilogramme for the month of September, according to a notification available with Dawn.com . Last month, the price of LPG was set at Rs215.37 per kg for August, down from Rs233.10 in July — a decrease of Rs17.73 per kg. Consequently, the price of an 11.8kg domestic cylinder was fixed at Rs2,541.36. According to today’s notification, Ogra set the per kg price of LPG at Rs214.19, down from Rs215.37 — a decrease of Rs1.18 per kg since last month. The price for an 11.8kg cylinder was set at Rs2,527.47 — making a cylinder Rs13.89 cheaper than the month prior. These prices are effective from September 1 onwards. “The LPG producer price is linked with Saudi Aramco-CP and US dollar exchange rate,” a separate Ogra press release read. “As compared to [the] previous month, Saudi Aramco-CP remains unchanged. The average dollar exchange rate has slightly decreased by 0.69pc resu...

• Observers say move reminiscent of 2022 resignations, will strengthen treasury benches • Lawmakers of ruling parties vie for coveted slots left vacant after over 40 opposition members quit standing committees AS more than 40 PTI lawmakers quit parliamentary committees, including the apex Public Accounts Committee, in line with the order of their chief Imran Khan, the decision has been described by analysts as a “political blunder”, which will play into the government’s hands. More PTI legislators are expected to submit their resignations to the National Assembly Secretariat on Monday — a move that will likely strengthen the treasury benches in parliament. According to observers, Imran Khan’s move to exit the committees was similar to his decision in 2022 when he decided to quit parliament after the 2022 no-trust vote instead of choosing to become a “heavyweight opposition” after his ouster from power. According to the National Assembly Secretariat (NAS) officials, the decision t...

Pakistan won their Twenty20 International tri-series match against the United Arab Emirates at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium by 31 runs on Saturday. The tri-series of Twenty20 international matches is to tune up for the Asia Cup and features Pakistan, the UAE and Afghanistan. Each team will play the others twice, giving all sides at least four matches before the top two teams qualify for the final, scheduled on September 7. Pakistan batted first after skipper Salman Agha won the toss and set a target of 208 for the UAE. The UAE only managed to make 176 runs. Salman had hit an unbeaten half-century and fast bowler Haris Rauf grabbed four wickets as Pakistan upstaged Afghanistan by 39 runs in the tri-series opener on Friday. Salman hit a 36-ball 53 not out with three sixes and as many boundaries, which lifted Pakistan to a solid 182-7 in their 20 overs. Haris took 4-31 while fellow pacer Shaheen Afridi claimed 2-21, while spinners Mohammad Nawaz (2-23) and Sufiyan Muq­eem (2-25)...

A massive cloud of smoke rises after Israeli bombardment of Gaza City.—AFP GAZA CITY: UN Secretary-Ge­neral Antonio Guterres has condemned the “endless catalogue of horrors” in Gaza, as the ter­ritory’s civil defence reported at least 31 killed by Israeli forces since dawn. Israel, whose military is preparing to conquer Gaza City, is under mounting pressure at home and abroad to end its offensive in the Palestinian territory, where the UN has declared a famine. “Gaza is piled with rubble, piled with bodies and piled with examples of what may be serious violations of international law,” Guter­res told journalists, calling for accountability. Aya Daher, who was displaced from Gaza City’s Zeitoun district, said she had no shelter and was sitting outside a local hospital “just waiting for God’s mercy”. “There were explosions all night. I was injured, my husband was injured by shrapnel, and my son was also wounded in the head. Thank God we survived, but there were martyrs,” she said...

• Chenab, Ravi, Sutlej overflow simultaneously for the first time • Over 429,000 residents evacuated, 20 lives lost across three rivers • Ninth spell of monsoon rains begins • 855,000 cusecs expected at Head Trimmu within 24 hours • Bunds breached to protect Jhang city, explosives deployed on embankments to save Multan • Worst Sutlej flooding since 1955 compounded by Indian dam breach LAHORE: In an unprecedented flood crisis , the Punjab government has initiated controlled breaches of key flood bunds to divert surging waters from the Chenab, Ravi and Sutlej rivers, as all three major rivers overflowed simultaneously for the first time in the country’s history. With 855,000 cusecs expected to reach Head Trimmu within 24 hours, authorities have evacuated over 429,000 residents, deploying explosives and breaching embankments to protect urban centres from catastrophic flooding. Torrential monsoon rains ravaged both Pakistan and India this week, with further heavy downpours forecas...

Skipper Salman Agha hit an unbeaten half-century and fast bowler Haris Rauf grabbed four wickets as Pakistan upstaged Afghanistan by 39 runs in the tri-series opener in Sharjah on Friday. Agha hit a 36-ball 53 not out with three sixes and as many boundaries, which lifted Pakistan to 182-7 in their 20 overs. Pacers Rauf took 4-31 and Shaheen Afridi 2-21, while spinners Mohammad Nawaz (2-23) and Sufiyan Muqeem (2-25) dismissed Afghanistan for 143 in 19.5 overs before a noisy capacity 16,000 crowd at the Sharjah stadium. Afghanistan matched Pakistan with opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz, 27-ball 38 with a six and three boundaries, adding 51 for the second wicket with Sediqullah Atal, who made 23. It was Rauf who changed the game with a two-wicket 12th over, sending Atal and Karim Janat back without conceding a run. Afghanistan skipper Rashid Khan smashed five sixes and a four in his whirlwind 16-ball 39 but fell to Rauf to end his team’s fight. Earlier, Pakistan was lifted by Agha’s fourth...

LAHORE: The floodwater in the River finally entered Lahore’s five residential localities on Thursday morning, inundating roads and damaging houses and other infrastructure. However, the timely evacuation saved the residents, as none of them was found stranded in the floodwater, it is learnt. The localities suffered due to flood included Shafiqabad, Farrakhabad and Tallat Park near Shahdara bridge and Theme Park, near Chuhng (Multan Road) and Park View. “At the moment, the Ravi is full of floodwater having flows of nearly 220,000 cusecs whereas the designed capacity of the river is 250,000 cusecs,” revealed Lahore Deputy Commissioner Syed Musa Raza while talking to Dawn on Thursday. According to him, Lahore witnessed worst-ever floods in 1988 after Ravi received 345,000 cusecs flows - around 100,000 cusecs more than the designed capacity - and caused massive destruction in Shahdara and adjoining localities. “After the 1988 floods, the water flows measuring 220,000 in the Ravi at...

Iga Swiatek survived a second-set scare to beat the Netherlands’ Suzan Lamens 6-1, 4-6, 6-4 on Thursday, as the 2022 champion battled back on Arthur Ashe Stadium to reach the US Open third round. The second seed has looked like a top contender after picking up her sixth major at Wimbledon and clinching the Cincinnati tune-up tournament and she cleaned up some mid-match errors to keep her campaign on track. She will play 29th seed Anna Kalinskaya in the third round. Swiatek was in control as she broke in the second game when her opponent hit the ball long and she saved a break point in the third game with an unreturnable serve. The Pole broke her opponent from the baseline again in the sixth game, as Lamens was unable to fire off a single winner in the first set. It looked as though it would be a similar story when Lamens went down an early break in the second set, but the Dutchwoman showed signs of life when she hit a backhand winner that just hit the baseline to level it in the...

When officials warn of a “medium”, “high”, “very high” or “exceptionally high” flood, what does that actually mean? Over the past week, as Punjab’s rivers have swollen , these technical terms have dominated official updates. Behind these terms lies a simple story about water, river capacity and the limits of infrastructure. What is a cusec? Flood levels are measured in cusecs — short for “cubic feet per second“. One cusec equals the flow of one cubic foot of water every second, or about 28 litres. Put simply, a flow of 100,000 cusecs means nearly 283,000 litres of water rushing past in just one second. On Wednesday, the Ravi at Jassar was recorded at 229,000 cusecs at one point — enough to overwhelm the river’s safe capacity. How flood levels are decided However, flood intensity is not judged by one number alone. It depends on the size of each river and how much water it can normally carry. Smaller rivers such as the Ravi and Sutlej reach critical levels quickly — 200,000 cusecs...

THE back-and-forth continues within the PTI. To resign or not to resign. To contest or not to contest by-elections . A majority decision was taken by the party’s political committee on Monday that it would contest polls for seats that have fallen vacant due to the disqualification of its lawmakers. However, this had immediately invited the ire of Imran Khan’s sisters, who saw it as a betrayal of the PTI founder’s express instructions not to. But on Tuesday, when the decision was placed before Mr Khan for ratification, he merely returned it for further consideration. The PTI’s political committee was directed to hold another debate on Tuesday evening on participation in by-elections. There was also the matter of the party’s secretary general Salman Akram Raja’s surprise resignation , the reason for which was never fully given. That, too, was presented to Mr Khan, but he asked Mr Raja to continue as usual. The political committee had not taken another decision when these words were...

• Calls on lawmakers to quit parliamentary bodies, including PAC; party’s political committee also endorses his opinion • Jailed founder refuses to accept Salman Akram Raja’s resignation; throws his weight behind Achakzai as potential replacement for NA opposition leader ISLAMABAD: Changing its mind once again, the PTI has decided to boycott the upcoming by-elections for national and provincial assemblies, in line with the opinion of its incarcerated leader, Imran Khan. The decision was taken by the party’s political committee, which met to consider Mr Khan’s input following a meeting with his legal team at Adiala Jail on Tuesday. Earlier in the day, Mr Khan’s message was relayed to the media by his sister, Aleema Khan, who also met Mr Khan in prison. She was flanked by PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja — whose resignation was reportedly turned down by the incarcerated former PM. Denying reports of a bitter exchange with Mr Raja, she said the lawyer was “like family” to th...

At least 25 countries have decided to suspend package deliveries to the United States, as concern grows over the impact of President Donald Trump’s looming tariffs, a UN body said on Tuesday. The Trump administration said late last month that it would abolish a tax exemption on small packages entering the US from August 29. The move has sparked a flurry of announcements from postal services, including in France, Britain, Germany, Italy, India, Australia and Japan, that most US-bound packages would no longer be accepted. The United Nations’ Universal Postal Union (UPU) said it had already been advised by 25 member countries that their postal operators “have suspended their outbound postal services to the US, citing uncertainties specifically related to transit services”. It said the suspensions would remain in place until there was more clarity on how US authorities planned to implement the announced measures. The UPU did not provide a list of postal services it had heard from. ‘C...

MOSCOW: The Iranian and Russian presidents discussed Tehran’s nuclear programme on Monday as European powers threaten to reimpose sanctions on Iran over the moribund 2015 deal. Britain, France and Germany have threatened to trigger a “snapback mechanism” to reintroduce UN sanctions that were lifted under the agreement unless Iran agrees to curb its uranium enrichment and restore cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) inspectors. Iran will hold talks with the European trio in Geneva on Tuesday, Iranian state media reported. “On Tuesday, Iran and the three European parties to the 2015 nuclear deal, along with the European Union, will hold a new round of talks at the level of deputy foreign ministers in Geneva,” the state television said. The meeting will be the second since Iran’s 12-day war with Israel in mid-June, during which the United States carried out strikes against Tehran’s nuclear facilities. The previous round of talks was held in Istanbul on Jul...

• Authorities see high risks as Chenab, Ravi and Sutlej filled to brim; Indus at ‘low flood’ • At least 10 districts on high alert as more than 24,000 relocated amid flooding of low-lying areas; heavy rain likely in next two days • GB villagers await govt help to ease their suffering; three locals rewarded for timely Glof warning; PM likely to visit region tomorrow LAHORE/GILGIT: As Punjab braces for a “high flood” in almost all eastern rivers prompting mass evacuations, thousands of people affected by glacial and flash floods in Gilgit-Baltistan earlier this month await government’s help amid a shortage of essentials. Rescue 1122 spokesperson Farooq Ahmad said that more than 24,000 people had been relocated from the low-lying areas of the Indus, Chenab, Ravi, and Sutlej rivers since Saturday. These rivers were experiencing low to high flooding due to torrential monsoon rains in the catchment areas and more rain was expected over the next 48 hours. The evacuation operation was con...

United States President Donald Trump said on Monday that he expects to visit China this year or shortly afterwards, noting that economic ties between the two countries have improved — even as he kept the door open to steeper tariffs. Speaking to reporters as he met South Korean President Lee Jae Myung in Washington, Trump pointed to recent talks with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping: “At some point, probably during this year or shortly thereafter, we’ll go to China. “We’re going to have a great relationship with China,” Trump vowed. The US leader added: “They have some cards. We have incredible cards, but I don’t want to play those cards. If I played those cards, that would destroy China.” Tensions between the world’s two biggest economies have been simmering this year, but have significantly cooled since April, when both countries slapped escalating tariffs on each other’s exports. At one point, the tit-for-tat duties reached triple digits on both sides, snarling supply chains ...

• First meeting of 11th NFC scheduled for Friday • PTI’s Muzammil Aslam says KP will seek disincentivising population, propose prosperity and forestation as criteria for resource distribution • KP minister rues imbalance in Centre’s approach to smaller provinces NATHIA GALI: For a change, the federal government led by the PML-N and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government headed by the PTI seem to be in agreement on changes to the oversized population factor in determining the share of the federation and its federating units under the new National Finance Commission (NFC), set to hold its introductory meeting later this week. “We will demand that population and backwardness should be disincentivised for resource distribution among the provinces,” said KP Mini­ster for Finance Muzammil Aslam while speaking at the first two-day ‘Prosper Pakistan’ conference organised by the FPCCI Regional Office Peshawar in collaboration with KP’s Board of Investment and Trade. The federal ministers, parti...

Emma Raducanu bagged her first US Open victory since her fairytale 2021 title triumph on Sunday with a straight-sets demolition of Japanese qualifier Ena Shibahara. The Briton was in complete control throughout, breaking Shibahara’s serve routinely on her way to a 6-1, 6-2 drubbing on the Louis Armstrong Stadium showcourt. The win was Raducanu’s first at the US Open since she made history four years ago, winning the championship as a little-known qualifier at the age of 18. She was knocked out in the US Open first round in 2022, missed the 2023 tournament due to injury, and exited in the first round again in 2024. “I’m very pleased to have come through that match,” Raducanu said afterwards. “First rounds are very challenging always, the nerves, and I wanted to win a match here really bad.” Raducanu admitted that her failure to win in New York since her memorable title triumph four years ago had begun to weigh on her. “It has been on my mind,” she said. “It’s been four years, an...

• Party leaders say legal options to restore Ayub, Shibli to be exhausted first • Omar says PkMAP chief’s nomination to boost opposition alliance ISLAMABAD: Amid controversy surrounding the nomination of Mahmood Khan Achakzai — the head of the Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party — and Senator Azam Swati as opposition leaders, PTI insiders have said these appointments will only proceed if former leaders Omar Ayub and Shibli Faraz remain barred from parliament. The party plans to avail all legal options to reverse the disqualification of National Assembly Oppo­s­ition Leader Omar Ayub and Senate opposition leader Shibli Faraz, who were disqualified by the Election Commission of Pakis­tan in light of the May 9 sentences. Against this backdrop, the PTI chief earlier this week named Mr Achakzai, who also heads the PTI-led opposition alliance Tehreek Tahafuz Ayeen-i-Pakistan, and Senator Swati for these coveted roles. The decision, however, upset many in the party, and a debate ensued over w...

Supreme Court Justice Athar Minallah on Saturday elaborated on the difficulties judges faced regarding cases of missing persons and enforced disappearances in the face of non-cooperation by the state and lawmakers. The judge was attending a documentary screening organised by rights group Defence for Human Rights Pakistan, where he delivered remarks to attendees and noted that cases regarding missing persons and disappearances were the most difficult he had come across. Addressing the gathering, Justice Minallah said that when he ordered that disappearances be investigated or missing people be found, “the authorities would come and they would all say that we don’t know where they are.” At this, the judge pointed out: “The judge and the court cannot do anything when you don’t have independent investigators.” Minallah added: “Every judge of the Supreme Court is responsible personally for every violation of fundamental rights that takes place in Pakistan.” The judge recounted an inst...

ISLAMABAD: An audit report has raised serious concerns over the financial affairs of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), including the unauthorised increase in salary packages for its chairman and commissioners, amounting to over Rs156 million annually. The report, compiled by the Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP), said that under the law, the SECP must obtain approval from the Ministry of Finance for salary hikes. However, the SECP management proceeded with a pay raise for its employees during a Policy Board meeting on Oct 17, 2024, with effect from July 1, 2023. The audit found that the salary package of SECP Chairman Akif Saeed reached Rs41.53m for the fiscal year 2023-24, while each commissioner received Rs35.8m due to the backdated salary increases. Additio­nally, the report revealed that SECP illegally distributed Rs110m for entertainment allowances to its commissioners and staff. The AGP’s findings highlight that while the SECP Policy Board approved the...