Pakistan’s Punjab warns of rise in smog levels in coming days
Pakistan’s Punjab warns of rise in smog levels in coming days/node/2620065/pakistan
Pakistan’s Punjab warns of rise in smog levels in coming days
Employees of Environment Protection Agency monitor smog and air quality in a monitoring room, called the Smog Cell, in Lahore, Pakistan, on Oct. 23, 2025. (AP)
ISLAMABAD: The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) in Pakistan’s Punjab province has warned of a rise in smog levels in major cities in the coming days, citing stable and dry weather conditions.
Cold, heavy air traps pollutants, including vehicle emissions, industrial smoke and dust, from November to mid-December. The seasonal crisis is often exacerbated by crop residue burning and lasts until February.
Lahore, a city of around 14 million people and the capital of Pakistan’s most populous Punjab province, this month began using anti-smog guns for the first time in an effort to reduce airborne pollutants.
On Friday, the PDMA said calm wind pattern, lower temperatures and humidity may prevent pollutants from dispersing and causing thick layers of smog in Lahore, Gujranwala, Sheikhupura, Kasur, Nankana Sahib, Faisalabad, Multan, Bahawalpur, Rahim Yar Khan, Bahawalnagar and Khanpur districts.
“The rise in smog levels may trigger an increase in respiratory illnesses, asthma cases, and other pollution-related health problems,” the authority said.
“Vulnerable populations, including children, the elderly, and people with pre-existing health conditions, are at high risk.”
The statement came as Lahore ranked the most polluted city in the world at around 12pm on Friday, with an air quality index (AQI) of 217, according to air quality monitor IQ Air.
Poor air quality can cause reduced visibility on roads, leading to a surge in traffic accidents, according to the PDMA. Outdoor activities can also be disrupted.
“Clear any hindrances on road to ensure smooth traffic flow,” it directed district administrations.
“Ensure sufficient staffing round-the-clock in DEOCS (district emergency operations centers) for effective coordination and coordinate with PDMA and all relevant departments to ensure a unified prompt response. Ensure accurate and timely dissemination of information on safety measures and evacuation plans through electronic and social media.”
Over 1,000 Chinese, Indians, Pakistanis enter Thailand from Myanmar after scam hub raid
Sprawling cyberscam hubs, where fraudsters swindle victims through online cons, have flourished along Myanmar’s loosely governed border during years-long civil war
While some scammers are trafficked into the often-fortified compounds, experts say others work voluntarily in hopes to earn more in the multibillion-dollar illicit industry
Updated 24 October 2025
AFP
Bangkok: More than 1,000 people, mostly Chinese, have fled from Myanmar into Thailand this week, Thai authorities said on Friday, after the Myanmar military raided one of the country’s largest scam centers.
Sprawling cyberscam hubs, where fraudsters swindle victims through online cons, have flourished along Myanmar’s loosely governed border during its years-long civil war.
While some scammers are trafficked into the often-fortified compounds, experts say others work voluntarily, hoping to earn more in the multibillion-dollar illicit industry than they can at home.
Thailand’s Tak provincial office said 1,049 people had crossed from Myanmar into Mae Sot district from Wednesday to Friday morning — up from the 677 who had fled the KK Park scam compound as of Thursday morning.
Nationals from India, Pakistan, Vietnam, Myanmar, Thailand and more than a dozen other countries were among them, the office said in a statement.
Thailand’s Immigration Bureau said most of the arrivals were Chinese and men.
Myanmar’s junta said Monday it raided KK Park, located just across the border from Thailand, and seized Starlink satellite Internet devices.
An AFP investigation revealed last week that the use of the devices had grown rapidly at the compounds in recent months.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which operates Starlink, said Wednesday that it had disabled more than 2,500 Starlink Internet devices at Myanmar’s scam centers.
Sawanit Suriyakul Na Ayutthaya, deputy governor of Tak province, told AFP on Friday that authorities believed most of those who had entered Thailand were from KK Park, but they were still investigating.
He said Thursday that the arrivals would be screened to determine whether they were victims of human trafficking.
Otherwise, they could be prosecuted for illegal border crossing, he said.
Footage from public broadcaster Thai PBS on Thursday showed people using foam boxes to float across the river to Thailand.
“I was sleeping when I heard loud knocking and people shouting at us in Chinese,” a Thai woman told the broadcaster. “They were carrying guns.”
Authorities in Tak released an image showing a group of men sitting on the ground beside luggage and a line of Thai security personnel.
At UN, Pakistan voices concern over rising Islamophobia worldwide, urges respect for diversity
Pakistani representative says the ‘weaponization of religion’ and marginalization of minorities not only violate human rights but also endanger development and peace
The international community must act with solidarity and ‘moral clarity’ to counter these dangerous trends, hold perpetrators accountable, Counsellor Saima Saleem says
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Friday voiced concern over rising Islamophobia worldwide at an interactive dialogue at the United Nations (UN), demanding world action and urging respect for diversity.
The Interactive Dialogue with Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues is an event held within the UN General Assembly’s Third Committee, where states and experts discuss the rights and protections of minority groups.
Recent dialogues have featured discussions on rising Islamophobia, the impact of discriminatory policies for minorities in certain countries, and the need for greater protection and promotion of minority rights.
Speaking at the dialogue, Saima Saleem, a counsellor at Pakistan’s UN mission, said that respect for diversity and protection of minorities are indispensable for achieving peace, justice and inclusive development.
“We are gravely concerned over the rising tide of Islamophobia, intolerance and right-wing extremism targeting minorities, particularly Muslims worldwide,” she was quoted as saying by Pakistan’s UN mission.
“The weaponization of religion for political ends, the vilification of entire communities, and the systematic marginalization of Muslims in some regions are deeply alarming.”
Pakistan has played a leading role in raising global awareness about Islamophobia through its diplomatic efforts, particularly at the UN and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), highlighting that anti-Muslim sentiment not only undermines social harmony but also fuels extremism and hate crimes.
In 2022, the efforts by Islamabad, along with the OIC, led to the UN’s designation of March 15 as the International Day to Combat Islamophobia, marking a significant step toward global acknowledgment of this issue. Through these efforts, Pakistan continues to champion tolerance, coexistence and the right of Muslims everywhere to practice their faith without fear or prejudice.
Saleem said the “weaponization of religion” and systematic marginalization of minorities not only violate human rights but also endanger inclusive development and international peace.
The collective task of the international community is to transform diversity into strength, and difference into mutual respect, according to the Pakistani representative.
“The international community must act with solidarity and moral clarity to counter these dangerous trends, hold perpetrators accountable, and reaffirm that respect for diversity is a universal obligation, not a selective choice,” she said, pledging that
Islamabad would continue to play its role in promoting understanding, dialogue and peaceful coexistence among faiths and cultures.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Qatar have reaffirmed their commitment to deepening economic cooperation and translating shared trade and investment goals into “tangible outcomes,” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s office said on Friday.
The statement came after Sharif’s meeting with Qatari Commerce and Industry Minister Sheikh Faisal bin Thani bin Faisal Al-Thani, who is on a visit to Pakistan to co-chair the 6th session of Pakistan-Qatar Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC).
During the meeting, PM Sharif expressed satisfaction at the positive trajectory of Pakistan-Qatar relations, anchored in shared faith, values and mutual respect, appreciating Doha’s role as an important partner and an influential mediator.
The prime minister underscored the importance of enhancing bilateral trade and investment cooperation between the two countries, emphasizing opportunities in energy, agriculture, food security, information technology, tourism and infrastructure development.
“He highlighted Pakistan’s investor-friendly policies and invited Qatari investors to explore new avenues of collaboration,” Sharif’s office said.
“Both sides agreed to continue close coordination to translate shared understandings into tangible outcomes, including greater facilitation for business-to-business linkages and investment projects.”
The development came a day after Pakistan and Qatar have signed a protocol that commits both nations to realize Doha’s $3 billion investment in Pakistan’s key sectors, the Pakistani economic affairs ministry said.
In 2022, the Qatari emir’s office had said that the Qatar Investment Authority aims to invest $3 billion in Pakistan to support the South Asian nation’s cash-strapped economy, focusing on Pakistan’s transport, civil aviation, education, health, culture, media, communications, information technology and labor sectors.
The agreement was signed between Pakistan’s Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan and his Qatari counterpart, Sheikh Faisal bin Thani bin Faisal Al Thani, during the JMC meeting, the economic affairs ministry said.
Qatar will enhance cooperation in Pakistan’s public transport system including rail, bus and metro networks and support the adoption of electric vehicles in the country, according to the protocol. Pakistan and Qatar’s aviation authorities will meet early next year to further strengthen cooperation, it added. The protocol also included a memorandum of understanding between Pakistan and Qatar’s education ministries to enhance technical skills development.
Pakistan shares cordial ties with Qatar rooted in economic cooperation, defense, shared values, faith and culture. Qatar hosts a large Pakistani workforce and this month facilitated dialogue that resulted in a ceasefire with Afghanistan after days of skirmishes along their border.
During his meeting with PM Sharif, the Qatari commerce minister reaffirmed Doha’s commitment to further deepen economic engagement with Pakistan, according to the Pakistan PM’s office.
“He noted that the 6th session of the JMC provided an important platform to review existing cooperation and identify new initiatives to advance mutually beneficial partnerships,” Sharif’s office said.
“The prime minister conveyed Pakistan’s deep appreciation for Qatar’s consistent support on regional and global issues and reiterated Pakistan’s desire to strengthen collaboration at regional and multilateral fora.”
Pakistan, other Muslim states condemn Israel’s West Bank annexation bills, demand world action
Far-right politicians in the Israeli Knesset this week gave approval to bills applying Israeli law in the occupied West Bank and illegal colonial settlements
US President Donald Trump issues stark warning to Israel over annexing the West Bank, says ‘it won’t happen because I gave my word to the Arab countries’
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan, and more than a dozen other Muslim states on Thursday condemned a set of Israeli bills that called for the annexation of the occupied West Bank, they said in a joint statement, calling for world action over the Israeli unlawful measures.
The development came a day after far-right politicians in the Israeli Knesset gave preliminary approval to bills applying Israeli law in the occupied West Bank, which the Palestinians claim as part of a future independent state, and Israeli illegal colonial settlements.
Pakistan, , Jordan, Indonesia, Türkiye, Djibouti, Oman, Gambia, Palestine, Qatar, Kuwait, Libya, Malaysia, Egypt, Nigeria, the League of Arab States and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), condemned the Israeli move as a “blatant violation of international law.”
In a joint statement The Arab and Muslim states denounced all Israeli measures aimed at altering the demographic composition, character, and status of the occupied Palestinian territory since 1967, including East Jerusalem, citing an International Court of Justice’s advisory opinion that affirmed the illegality of the Israeli settlement construction and annexation measures.
“They reaffirm that Israel has no sovereignty over the occupied Palestinian territory,” read the joint statement shared by Pakistan’s foreign ministry.
The vote, which came a month after United States President Donald Trump stated he would not allow Israel to annex the occupied West Bank, was held during a visit by US Vice President JD Vance to Israel to shore up the ceasefire agreement in Gaza.
US President Donald Trump issued a stark warning to Israel over annexing the West Bank in an interview published Thursday. The remarks were made to Time magazine by telephone on October 15, days after the Gaza truce plan he spearheaded took effect.
“It won’t happen,” Trump said when asked about calls in Israel to annex the Palestinian West Bank, which has been occupied by Israel since 1967. “It won’t happen because I gave my word to the Arab countries.”
“Israel would lose all of its support from the United States if that happened,” he added.
In their joint statement, the Arab and Muslim states welcomed an advisory opinion of the ICJ of October 22, reaffirming Israel’s obligation under international humanitarian law to ensure that the population of the occupied Palestinian territories, including Gaza, has essential supplies of daily life, and to agree to and facilitate relief schemes, including through the United Nations and its entities, particularly the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).
Israel has not allowed UNRWA to bring in its supplies since March. But the agency continues to operate in Gaza, running health centers, mobile medical teams, sanitation services and school classes for children. It says it has 6,000 trucks of supplies waiting to get in.
The Arab and Muslim states warned against Israel’s unilateral actions and illegal policies and urged world powers to stop its “unlawful measures in the occupied Palestinian territory.”
“They warn against the continuation of Israel’s unilateral and illegal policies and practices and call on the international community to shoulder its legal and moral responsibilities and to compel Israel to cease its dangerous escalation and unlawful measures in the occupied Palestinian territory, and to uphold the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people to establish their independent and sovereign state on the lines of June 4, 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital,” the joint statement said.
ISLAMABAD: The wife of slain journalist Arshad Sharif and senior media personalities renewed their demand for a judicial commission to probe his killing this week, as they observed his third death anniversary in a solemn gathering at the National Press Club (NPC) in Islamabad.
Sharif, an outspoken critic of Pakistan’s government and its powerful military, was killed when police shot at his car on the outskirts of Kenya’s capital Nairobi in Oct. 23, 2022. Kenyan police later said the killing was a case of mistaken identity. However, a team of Pakistani investigators who probed his alleged murder, released a report in December 2022 saying that Sharif’s killing was a “planned, targeted assassination.”
Sharif, who hosted a current affairs show on a local television channel, had to leave the country after several cases related to charges of sedition and others were filed against him shortly before his killing. He was believed to have been in the United Arab Emirates since he left Pakistan and had traveled to Kenya where he was killed.
The late journalist’s mother had also written a letter to Pakistan’s then chief justice in November 2022, demanding a “high-powered judicial commission” probe Sharif’s killing. She had demanded the inclusion of senior Supreme Court judges in the commission.
“My demand is that there should be a judicial commission to probe Arshad Sharif’s murder,” Javeria Siddique, Sharif’s widow, spoke at a gathering held at the NPP on Thursday to pay tribute to Sharif on his third death anniversary.
“Because the constitutional bench is not taking up our case like the way it should be taken, I want the serving judges to hear this.”
Journalist Hamid Mir is addressing an event to pay tribute to slain fellow journalist Arshad Sharif in Islamabad, Pakistan, on October 23, 2025. (AN photo)
As per the Pakistan-based media and development sector watchdog, Freedom Network, around 151 journalists and media workers were killed in Pakistan from May 2000 and August 2024. Sharif’s killing also highlighted the dangers journalists in Pakistan face amid growing censorship and press freedom violations in the country.
Siddique urged Pakistani journalists and members of the civil society to stand united in seeking justice for Sharif’s killing. She called on all media stakeholders and journalists to meet the chief justice.
“They should demand that journalists, who form the fourth pillar of the state, should not be harassed,” she said. “Arshad Sharif should get justice immediately and those 14 journalists killed in the last two years should also get justice.”
’VERY HIGH-PROFILE MURDER’
Afzal Butt, president of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), said the complexity of the case required that it be probed internationally.
“This is a very high-profile murder. It happened in a foreign country,” Butt noted. “It cannot be probed by the police of Kenya or the police of Pakistan alone.”
Journalist Matiullah Jan is addressing an event to pay tribute to slain fellow journalist Arshad Sharif in Islamabad, Pakistan, on October 23, 2025. (AN photo)
He demanded a UN fact-finding commission be set up, one that can investigate Kenyan government officials and take statements from them and their Pakistani counterparts.
The PFUJ president urged the Supreme Court to take up Sharif’s killing with urgency.
“We request the chief justice of Pakistan, Justice Yahya Afridi and the head of the constitutional bench, Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan, to immediately investigate the suo motu case taken in connection with Arshad Sharif’s murder,” he added.
Siddique said she was also pursuing the case internationally, calling on journalists to pursue the UN and the European Union for a probe too.
“The case is going on in Kenya, and I have filed an appeal in the Supreme Court,” she said. “The issue is that the case is not being heard here in Pakistan.”
NPC President Azhar Jatoi echoed the family’s demand for a judicial commission and described the situation as “deeply concerning.”
“The requirement of justice is that the demand of his family should be met,” he said. “The demand is for the judicial commission.”
Jatoi noted that it was becoming increasingly unsafe for journalists to work in the country. He said some journalists were killed this year while others were intimidated and harassed, lamenting that Pakistan was among the “top 10 most dangerous countries for journalists.”
“It is a very difficult time. Journalists are in danger of losing their lives,” Jatoi noted. “They do not have the freedom to write. The use of pens is restricted.”
