Pakistan police find bodies of three transgender women
Pakistan police find bodies of three transgender women/node/2616160/pakistan
Pakistan police find bodies of three transgender women
In this file photo, taken on February 8, 2024, policemen stand guard during Pakistan’s national elections in Karachi. (AFP/File)
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Updated 2 min 3 sec ago
AFP
Pakistan police find bodies of three transgender women
The bodies were discovered shortly after midnight on Sunday in Memon Goth area of Karachi
Rights groups say there has been a concerning rise in violence against trans people in Pakistan
Updated 2 min 3 sec ago
AFP
KARACHI: The bodies of three transgender women were found Sunday on a roadside in Pakistan’s largest city, Karachi, police said, in the latest violence against the community.
Although exact figures are not available due to severe underreporting, human rights groups such as Amnesty International say there has been a concerning rise in violence against trans people in Pakistan.
“The bullet-riddled bodies of three transgender women were found on a highway,” city police official Javed Ahmed Abro told AFP.
“We are still in the process of confirming their identities,” he said, adding that they had yet to determine a motive.
The bodies were discovered shortly after midnight on Sunday in the Memon Goth area of Karachi.
“Transgender persons are a vulnerable segment of society, and we must all give them dignity and respect,” said Sindh’s provincial chief minister Syed Murad Ali Shah in a statement.
Transgender women in Pakistan have faced a highly organized digital hate campaign in recent years, threatening their legal rights as well as their safety.
“When hate speech and campaigns are carried out so openly, outcomes like this are inevitable,” Shahzadi Rai, a trans activist and government-appointed local councillor in Karachi, told AFP.
“Even though the state and police are on our side, killings are still occurring, which indicates that deep-rooted hatred against transgender people persists in our society.”
Activists say there is a pattern of violence against transgender women who refuse advances of men.
“We have already pointed it out to the government that this is a coordinated assault on the lives of transgender people,” Mehrub Moiz, a trans activist, told AFP.
The landmark passing of a Transgender Rights Act in 2018 was regarded as highly progressive, lauded around the world for the protections it granted the community.
But religious groups said it was against Islamic law and “a conspiracy to destroy our family system,” and key sections were later revoked by a Sharia court.
Pakistan army says Afghans among seven suspected militants killed in northwest operation/node/2616157/pakistan
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani security forces have killed seven Pakistani Taliban militants in the country's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, the military said on Sunday, amid a surge in militancy in the region.
The militants were killed during an intelligence-based operation in Dera Ismail Khan district, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military's media wing. Three Afghan nationals and two suicide bombers were among the deceased.
The Pakistani Taliban and other militant groups have frequently targeted security forces convoys and check-posts in KP, besides targeted killings and kidnappings of law enforcers and government officials in recent months.
The ISPR said a sanitization operation was being conducted to eliminate any other "Indian-sponsored" militant in the area, adding that Pakistani security forces are determined to wipe out the menace militancy from the country.
"Pakistan expects the interim Afghan government to uphold its responsibilities and deny its soil for terrorists activities against Pakistan," it said in a statement.
There was no immediate comment from Afghanistan or India in response to the Pakistani military's statement.
It came days after 12 Pakistani soldiers and over 60 militants were killed in separate engagements in the restive region that borders Afghanistan, according to the ISPR.
Pakistan has struggled to contain a surge in militancy in KP since a fragile truce between the Pakistani Taliban and Islamabad broke down in November 2022.
Islamabad has frequently accused Afghanistan of allowing the use of its soil and India of backing militant groups for attacks against Pakistan. Kabul and New Delhi deny the allegation.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s government has the capacity to generate an annual revenue of $30-40 billion via tourism through its diverse landscape and various offerings, the Prime Minister’s Coordinator for Tourism Sardar Yasir Ilyas said on Sunday.
Pakistan is home to some of the tallest mountains in the world, picturesque valleys, historical monuments built by ancient civilizations and religious sites that attract thousands of tourists every year.
However, surging militancy and poor infrastructure have hampered Islamabad’s attempts to tap into its tourism potential and generate revenue enough to boost its economy.
In an exclusive interview with the state-run Associated Press of Pakistan (APP), Ilyas said Pakistan will host its first international “Tourism Road Expo” in November to showcase the country’s local attractions, traditional cuisine and cultural diversity.
“Prime Minister’s Coordinator for Tourism, Sardar Yasir Ilyas has said that Pakistan, with its natural beauty, historic monuments, rare cultural heritage, ancient festivals, and diverse religious sites, is a paradise for travelers and has the capacity to generate $30–40 billion annually through tourism,” APP reported.
He said the Tourism Road Expo will feature cooking competitions with international chefs, adding that similar expos were planned for London, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and .
Ilyas said tourism had long been neglected in Pakistan, especially after the 18th constitutional amendment, which granted autonomy to provinces on matters such as education, health, tourism and others.
“To ensure national-level coordination, the government is reviving and restructuring the National Tourism Coordination Board,” APP said.
Speaking about the government’s measures to attract investment, Ilyas revealed that “unused government properties” will be leased to local and foreign investors for 50–60 years. This would be done to establish modern tourist facilities.
He said digital e-portals are being developed to provide tourists with details of destinations, hotel bookings, weather updates and travel guidance.
However, the official cautioned that deforestation and climate change are major threats to tourism.
“Large-scale plantation drives and removal of encroachments along rivers and lakes are necessary to preserve our environment and protect tourism,” the official stressed.
On religious tourism, Ilyas said Pakistan is committed to providing more facilities for Sikh pilgrims, while gurdwaras and Buddhist heritage sites will be restored and handed over to the respective communities for their care and upkeep.
He regretted that Pakistan had never marketed its tourism potential effectively, pointing out that Central Asian states such as Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan attract millions of visitors annually despite offering less diversity.
“Pakistan, with its four seasons and greater geographical variety, has far more to offer,” he said.
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif reiterated Pakistan’s desire to improve relations with India on Sunday but said it was only possible through the resolution of the longstanding dispute between the two nations on the Kashmir territory.
India and Pakistan, who have fought two out of three wars over the disputed Himalayan territory since 1947, each administer parts of Kashmir but claim it in full. Ties between the two nuclear-armed neighbors hit their lowest in years in May after an attack in Indian-administered Kashmir in April triggered a brief military confrontation between the two.
Over 70 people were killed in both countries as India and Pakistan traded missiles, artillery fire and bombed each other with fighter jets and drones before Washington brokered a ceasefire on May 10.
Speaking to Pakistani expatriates at an event in London, Sharif said Pakistan desired peaceful relations with India, adding that it was for both nations to decide whether they wanted to live in peace or conflict.
“But for that to happen, the resolution of the Kashmir dispute is a basic pillar,” Sharif said. “If anyone thinks that without the resolution of the Kashmir dispute our bilateral relations can be restored, he is living in a fool’s paradise,” he added.
He praised the country’s military leadership for defending Pakistan successfully during the days-long military confrontation between the two neighbors in May.
Speaking on rising tensions in the Middle East, the Pakistani prime minister also condemned Israel’s war on Gaza. Sharif lamented that it had killed over 65,000 Palestinians since October 2023, noting that the world had neither seen nor heard of such atrocities before.
“I believe the time has come that we need peace in this region,” he said. “And the Islamic world must step forward and talk about peace.”
The fragile ceasefire between India and Pakistan, brokered by US President Donald Trump on May 10, continues to persist, but tensions remain high. India has vowed to hold in abeyance a 1960 water-sharing treaty that decides the use of the Indus River system between India and Pakistan.
However, Pakistan has warned that it will not allow India to divert or restrict the flow of its water. Islamabad has said it would treat India’s attempts to do so as an “act of war.”
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will join “select” Islamic leaders in a meeting with United States President Donald Trump at the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) next week, the Pakistani foreign office said on Sunday, elaborating that discussions will focus on regional and international peace and security.
Sharif will lead the Pakistan delegation, comprising senior ministers and officials including Deputy PM Ishaq Dar, at the 80th UNGA session from Sept. 22-26 in New York.
Pakistan’s foreign ministry said Sharif will urge the international community to resolve the situation of “prolonged occupation” of the people of the disputed Kashmir territory and Palestine.
“The Prime Minister will also participate in a meeting of select Islamic leaders with US President Trump to exchange views on issues pertaining to regional and international peace and security,” the foreign office said.
The foreign office did not share further details of the meeting but said Sharif will draw the international community’s attention toward the Gaza crisis at the UNGA and call for a “decisive action” to end the suffering of the Palestinians.
“He will also highlight Pakistan’s perspective on the regional security situation, as well as other issues of international concern, including climate change, terrorism, Islamophobia, and sustainable development,” the foreign office said.
It said the prime minister will attend several high-level events on the sidelines of the UNGA, including key meetings of the UN Security Council, a high-level meeting of the Global Development Initiative (GDI), and a Special High-Level Event on Climate Action, among others.
The foreign ministry said Sharif will meet world leaders and UN officials for bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the UNGA to exchange views on issues of mutual interest.
“He will also underline Pakistan’s resolve to work with all UN Member States to uphold the UN Charter, prevent conflict, foster peace and promote global prosperity in Pakistan’s current role as a member of the Security Council,” the statement said.
The meeting with Trump next week will take place days after Pakistan and entered into a defense pact, whereby the two countries pledged that any attack against one will be treated as an attack on both of them.
Sharif’s meeting with Trump, along with other Islamic leaders, also reflects Pakistan’s improving ties with the US. Islamabad and Washington have grown close over the months since Pakistan praised Trump for intervening in its conflict with India and brokering a ceasefire between the nuclear-armed neighbors in May.
KARACHI: On an ordinary double-carriage road on the outskirts of Karachi, the hum of traffic gives way each afternoon to the bustling chaos of a makeshift market. Refrigerators, washing machines, fans, wardrobes and other household items are offered at throwaway prices.
For their Afghan owners, the sale is a painful necessity — a distress liquidation forced by uncertainty over their future in Pakistan amid an ongoing deportation drive.
“All this household stuff is not just things,” Muhammad Khan, a 32-year-old Afghan refugee, said. “These were ... dreams we worked hard to fulfill. Now, we are being forced to sell them.”
Afghan refugees sell household belongings at a makeshift market on the outskirts of Karachi, Pakistan, on September 19, 2025. (AN)
Born to refugee parents in a neighborhood called Afghan Basti on the outskirts of the city, Khan, 32, is among nearly 30,000 residents set to leave for Afghanistan in the coming week.
Pakistan launched a crackdown against illegal immigrants, mostly Afghans, in 2023, when its administration ordered all foreign nationals without valid documents to leave or face deportation.
The decision followed a string of deadly militant attacks that killed hundreds of people, with officials blaming Afghan citizens for involvement in multiple cases without providing evidence.
The authorities in Kabul denied Afghan nationals were part of the militant attacks and objected to their forced repatriation. However, Pakistan not only continued the deportations but also expanded the drive to include people with officially recognized status as refugees.
According to the International Organization for Migration and UN agencies, more than 860,000 Afghan nationals have left Pakistan since the plan began.
Afghan women sit by a wall bearing a banner warning them to leave Pakistan, at a refugee camp on the outskirts of Karachi, September 19, 2025. (AN)
Khan lamented the frantic, low-cost sale of his family’s possessions.
“We bought this fridge for Rs70,000 [$245], but right now it is only fetching Rs10,000 [$35],” he said. “We ask the government to give us enough time so buyers at least purchase our things for half the value.”
Maulana Rehmanullah, an elder in the Afghan settlement, described the difficulty of liquidating possessions under official restrictions.
“This freezer was bought for Rs105,000 [$368] by this brother, which he is now ready to sell for Rs75,000 [$263],” he said while pointing at an Afghan national. “No one is willing to buy it. It will probably be sold for a maximum of Rs40,000-45,000 [$140-158].”
He added most of the refugees were born in Pakistan and were now being forced to leave for a country they have never seen.
“My wife, my children are all born in Pakistan,” he added. “My sons and daughters are not ready to go. They call Pakistan their country.”
An Afghan refugee (right) sells a split air conditioner at a makeshift market on the outskirts of Karachi, Pakistan, on September 19, 2025. (AN)
Residents like Noor Agha, whose family of 10 relied on a fries cart for daily income, said something his family lived with will be sold very cheaply.
“I bought this fries cart for Rs55,000 [$193],” he said. “The people in our area would purchase chips from me. It’s now lying here in the middle of the road and they are offering Rs17,000-18,000 [$60-63].”
Abdullah, another refugee born and raised in Karachi who goes by a single name, said he had invested heavily in property, vehicles and business ventures.
He spent Rs3.5 million [$12,280] to build a home. Yet, a board outside a nearby police check post prohibits refugees from selling immovable property. The few items they can sell fetch far less than half their value.
“If we go to Afghanistan now, there is no work, no employment,” he said.
For local buyers, the market offers an opportunity to acquire goods at discounted prices.
Zahihullah Khan, a painter from nearby Muslim Goth, purchased fans for Rs2,700 [$9], which would have cost him Rs7,000 [$25] in a retail shop.
“Our Afghan brothers who are leaving are selling their belongings at a low price because they are returning to their country. I came here so that I could buy some things and take them home,” he said.
For the sellers of these items, the economic and emotional toll is profound.
Families who have lived, worked and built communities in Pakistan for decades are now leaving under compulsion, with minimal compensation for years of effort and investment.
“Forty-five years of their hard work has gone to waste,” Rehmanullah said. “They came empty-handed from Afghanistan, and they will leave empty-handed.”
