Observing World AIDS Awareness Day

World AIDS awareness Day is being observed today to let people know about HIV/AIDS and express solidarity with people living with the pandemic.

The day is an opportunity for public and private partners to spread awareness about the status of the pandemic and encourage progress in HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment and care around the world.

This year theme of World AIDS DAY is Communities make the difference, the Radio Pakistan reported.

In his message pertaining to the day, the UN Secretary General António Guterres said we need to harness the role of community-led organizations that advocate for their peers, deliver HIV services, defend human rights and provide support.

Opposition cooperation on Army Chief extension: Shah Mehmood

Mehmood Qureshi hoped that the opposition will cooperate with the government regarding the tenure extension of Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

“Whatever the government did regarding extension in the army chief’s tenure it did remaining within the ambit of constitution,” the minister told reporters in Multan.

He said the government would proceed with the matter after issuance of a detailed verdict by the Supreme Court. “It is hoped that the opposition will cooperate in legislation,” Qureshi added.

The comments by the foreign minister came days after the Supreme Court decided to extend General Bajwa’s tenure as the army chief for six months. The court had asked the government to submit an undertaking that the parliament would enact a law on this in six months.

Qureshi further said the government wanted to fix any imperfections in the procedure. The opposition would demonstrate responsibility by cooperating with the government, he added.

US Airplane crash killed nine people

In US South Dakota State, a plane crash killed nine people, including two children and three injured during a winter storm.

The Pilatus PC-12, a single-engine turboprop plane, crashed shortly after take-off approximately a mile from the Chamberlain airport and was carrying as many as 12 people, the Federal Aviation Administration said.

Among the dead was the plane’s pilot, NBC News reported, citing the Brule County state attorney’s office.

The National Transportation Safety Board said in a tweet that it was “investigating today’s crash of Pilatus PC-12 near Chamberlain, SD.”

Chairlift on Islamabad Margalla Hills

Chairlift may start on Islamabad Margalla Hills.

The wildlife ministry is considering installing a chairlift for tourists. The benefits of this will be twofold, according to the ministry: people will be able to visit the area and get a great view, and they’ll stop using so many cars.

Environmental experts have also endorsed this idea. Everyday, 5,000 cars cross the foothills of the Margalla. Officials want to protect the hills and Islamabad’s national parks.

Dr Aneesur Rehman, chairperson of the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board, said they hope to install a chairlift here, so that people stop using the road. People who want to see the Margalla National Park will get a better view too, he said.

As part of the proposal, a special bus service for tourists will be started ahead of Daman-e-Koh.

The ministry still needs to make a decision about how the National Park employees will get to the park. It will be made after discussing it with them.

IGP Sindh Syed Kaleem takes notice of honour killing in Dadu

Taking notice of killing 11-year-old girl in Dadu over honour, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Sindh Syed Kaleem Imam has sought report into the matter.

The IGP Sindh has directed Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Dadu to submit details of the incident. He also directed him to ensure the delivery of justice and stern punishment to those involved in the crime.

The incident occurred on November 21 in Johi, a small town in Dadu, where an 11-year-old girl was stoned to death in the name of honour and was later secretly buried.
The police responded to the reports and arrested parents of the victim and two other facilitators. A case was also registered with the Dadu police.

According to the FIR, the girl’s father, his relative, and four others had “hatched a conspiracy for the murder of the girl and killed her by stone-pelting”. They then bought a shroud and buried her near Lak graveyard.

The authorities were investigating the matter from different views to ascertain the facts.

PM Imran Khan supports CM Usman Buzdar to complete his term

In another meeting, PM Imran Khan once again made it clear that Punjab CM Usman Buzdar will complete his term.

Sources said that during one of the meetings with members of the Punjab cabinet and MPAs at the CM Secretariat, the PM said that he knew everyone sitting in the meeting wanted to become the chief minister, but he would continue standing with CM Buzdar.

“Those aspiring to replace Mr Buzdar should wait for the next four years,” asserted the prime minister.

He said Mr Buzdar was neither living in palatial houses nor spending Rs800 million per annum on his personal security.

“The reforms implemented during the PTI government’s tenure have never happened before in Punjab. We need to hold seminars and publicise the reforms implemented in Punjab,” he said.

During meetings with MPAs, senior government and police officials and at a press conference, Mr Khan said his government had fought with the “mafia” during the past 15 months and survived.

In separate meetings, Imran outlines decisions taken to fight pollution, assures bureaucrats their tenure of posting will be protected.

He said although the “mafia” and opposition parties were sure that the PTI government would not survive beyond a few months, but “Pakistan has come out of the crisis and good times are round the corner”.

The prime minister said the government in consultation with former bureaucrats had gone through a rigorous exercise for three weeks and posted bureaucrats at all positions on merit.

He hoped that the new team of bureaucrats would streamline governance affairs and bring about a positive change in Punjab.

The prime minister, however, parried a question that the bureaucracy had stopped taking bold decisions and launching new initiatives following his warning that anyone found involved in corruption would be taken to task.

Mr Khan, in his earlier days, had also held meetings with the bureaucracy in Lahore and Islamabad but his ministers and other top brass continue complaining against the bureaucracy’s inaction when it comes to taking decisions and launching initiatives that involved big finances.

In the meeting with senior government and police officials, the prime minister told them to focus on governance and law and order. “We need to discard the old system and mindset in Naya Pakistan,” he said.

Promising that the tenure of the new team would be protected, Mr Khan demanded that the bureaucracy take decisions without taking political pressure into account and bring about real change in Punjab.

“It is now the bureaucracy’s duty to take all decisions on merit and refuse any illegitimate order of any politician,” he said.

He said the bureaucrats’ good governance would eventually help the government to attain economic stability. Mr Khan also congratulated his economic team for steering the country out of the crisis and leading it towards economy stability.

The prime minister chaired a meeting on the issue of smog and environmental pollution. He later told a press conference that his government was giving priority to controlling the smog and measures “should have been taken decades ago as recommendations were always available”.

Lamenting that smog and environmental pollution is severely affecting the health of elderly persons and children, the prime minister explained that the cutting of 70 per cent trees in Lahore, traffic pollution, burning of crops’ residue in Indian Punjab as well as thick smoke emitted by oil furnaces and brick-kilns were contributing to environmental degradation.

Considering these life-threatening factors, the prime minister said five decisions had been taken to avert the pollution crisis gradually in the next three years.

He said the government had decided to import Euro 4 oil (instead of Euro 2 oil) that had much less chemicals and could guarantee lessen air pollution by 90 per cent. The government would convert buses on CNG from the beginning of the next calendar year.

Mr Khan said oil refineries would be given three years to improve their technologies to better refine crude oil and added duty on scrubber would also be abolished. He said brick-kiln owners would be offered loans on six per cent to convert kilns on the zigzag technology.

He said the government would import machinery at a cost of Rs300 million that would uproot the crops residue, which could later be sold.

The prime minister said trees serve as a major resistant to pollution and sapling would be planted on 60,000 kanal land in Lahore. “The people will see a clear-cut decline in environmental pollution in the next three years,” he said.

The prime minister said previous governments with experienced teams had increased the country’s debt by four times but the economic team of the PTI worked hard and steered the country out of the fiscal crisis.

Afraid for being held accountable for corruption and money laundering, Mr Khan said the opposition parties joined hands and marched on Islamabad under the leadership of JUI-F chief Maulana Fazalur Rehman. “The marchers did not even know why they were marching on Islamabad,” he said and alleged the Maulana was not going to “conquer” the capital but win a “diesel permit”.

The prime minister said the government had allowed former PM Nawaz Sharif to go abroad for treatment purely on humanitarian grounds since the medical reports presented to him explained that the patient was on the verge of death.

“Since the court has sought Mr Sharif’s medical reports every two weeks, let’s see what will come out,” the prime minister said.

Meanwhile, the PM attended a programme to sign a service level agreement between the Punjab Land Record Authority (PLRA) and major private commercial banks for rapid agri loans.

He said 95 per cent farmers had 12 acres of agriculture land and they would be facilitated to get loans by just getting their land record verified.

Firdous Awan congratulates Saudi King on 5th anniversary of his accession to throne

Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan has congratulated the Saudi King Salman Bin Abdul Aziz on the 5th anniversary of his accession to the throne.

In a tweet, she said Pakistan commends the huge projects that Saudi Arabia has witnessed in the past five years in various fields. 

نهنئ خادم الحرمين الشريفين صاحب الجلالة الملك سلمان بن عبد العزيز، بمناسبة #ذكرى_البيعة_الخامسة لتوليه زمام الحكم في #السعودية، ونشيد بالمشاريع الضخمة التي شهدتها المملكة العربية السعودية في السنوات الخمس الماضية في شتى المجالات.

— Firdous Ashiq Awan (@Dr_FirdousPTI) November 30, 2019

Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan said Pakistan-Saudi fraternal relations have been strengthened in economic, cultural, and defence fields and these unique relations will continue to expand and deepen for joint action on bilateral and regional issues.

Shahbaz Sharif Posts a Letter to PM Khan

As the government continues deliberations for the appointment of a new chief election commissioner (CEC), PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif has proposed three names for the post in a letter to Prime Minister Imran Khan. The incumbent CEC, Justice (retd) Sardar Muhammad Raza, is set to retire in December. In the letter, dated November 25, the opposition leader in the National Assembly, who is currently in London for the treatment of his brother and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, has proposed the names of Nasir Mehmood Khosa, Jalil Abbas Jillani and…

PM Khan to introduce innovative plan to crub air pollution

Prime Minister Imran Khan, in a press conference in Lahore on Saturday, announced the government’s plan to curb and reduce the impact of air pollution. He was in the Punjab capital on a day-long trip to meet party members, bureaucracy and police, two days after a bureaucratic reshuffle in the province. The premier said smog (fog or haze intensified by smoke or other atmospheric pollutants) had increased in Lahore owing to a 70 per cent reduction in tree cover, as well burning of paddy stubble in neighbouring India.Smog, he added,…

Banks agreed on sharing account holder details

Banks have now agreed on sharing of their account holders details to tax authorities.

An agreement was reached at meeting between Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) Chairman Syed Shabbar Zaidi and chief executives of commercial banks on November 27, 2019, at the Large Taxpayers Unit (LTU) Karachi.

“The PBA (Pakistan Banks Association) has agreed to withdraw its petitions from the high courts and also agreed to provide account holders information under section 165A (of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001),” a source said. “It would enable the tax department to access real-time information of transactions made through the banking system.”

Sources said banks have agreed to withdraw their petitions by next week. Section 165A was introduced to the main statute through Finance Act, 2013 but the implementation remained in litigation before the higher courts since then. Under Section 165A, banks are responsible to provide details of financial transactions made by their account holders to FBR.

Sources said FBR chairman, at the meeting, said section 165A was amended in 2014, 2018 and recently through Supplementary Finance Amendment Act, 2019 on PBA’s recommendations.

“Therefore, the PBA and its members should not have any objection on the implementation of section 165A of Income Tax Ordinance, 2001,” Zaidi was quoted as saying.

As per law, the banks are bound to provide details of account holders. Those details included a list of persons making a cash withdrawal of Rs50,000/day or over Rs1 million/month; deposits of Rs10 million/month; credit card payment of Rs250,000/month; and details of persons receiving profit on debt above Rs500,000/year.

The laws in Income Tax Ordinance, 2001 have superseded other laws, including Banking Companies Ordinance, 1962; the Protection of Economic Reforms Act, 1992; and Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, 1947, yet the banks were not providing the details on one pretext or the other.

It is worth noting that the government has also made arrangements to streamline laws to access bank deposits for identifying financial transactions.

Prime Minister Imran Khan in a meeting held last month had directed the ministry of law and justice and State Bank of Pakistan to propose necessary amendments in bank laws and regulations for ensuring real-time data sharing of financial transactions with FBR.

KPK: App for missing Children

KPK provisional government has launched an application for the recovery of the lost children and it is also linked to the Citizen's Portal.

The application, called ‘Mera Bacha Alert’, was launched by Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Chief Minister Mahmood Khan on Thursday at the Chief Minister Secretariat in Peshawar. Mahmood clicked a button to launch the application.

“It is the priority of this government to ensure the protection of children. The Mera Bacha Alert application is a golden step in this regard,” stated Mahmood, adding that the application will not only help recover missing children but will also help discourage unpleasant incidents involving innocent children in the province.
He hoped that the application will help address the issues of child abuse. He also assured that his government will provide all necessary support to manage all the tasks and functions of this application.

The application, which has been developed by the K-P Performance Management and Reforms Unit (K-P PMRU), will add to the K-P Citizen Portal and the Pakistan Citizen Portal.

Before inaugurating it, the chief minister was briefed about the premise for developing the application, the work that has gone into it, how it will work and the features it has.

He was told that the idea of developing the application came in reaction to various cases of child abuse which have been reported in the province and that one of the common themes in most of the cases was that the children went missing for a period.

The application, PMRU officials said, provide parents with the ability to file a missing person report with the police instantly if their child has gone missing. They will be able to add a picture of the missing child using the application along with their identifying attributes.

The application will generate an alert and a short text message (SMS) which will be sent to the district police officer (DPO), the regional police officer (RPO), the inspector general of K-P Police (IGP) and the Chief Secretary.

Parents lodging a complaint on the app will then be provided with complete information including details of the first information report (FIR) which has been registered, the status of the investigation, teams which have been dispatched and the evidence collected. The status of the investigation will also appear on a dashboard for the DPO.

Parents will be informed if the investigation has been completed. The chief minister and the chief secretary can also monitor the status of cases and see performance of police investigators in near real-time.

The application will also help develop a directory of all cases of missing children at the provincial level.

Moreover, the public web portal will also list a directory of all children who are either currently still missing and those who have been found. It will be accompanied by a directory of the relevant police station and Child Protection Centres.

Furthermore, the system will also be integrated with the police call centres and Safe City systems, with dedicated access to Edhi and other child protection centres.

Advisor to CM on Merged Districts and spokesperson for the provincial government Ajmal Wazir, IGP Naeem Khan, PMRU Director Muhammad Fawad and others attended the ceremony.

Online FIR in Balochistan

Online FIR registration system is about to be operational in Balochistan.

Minister of Balochistan for Home and Tribal Affairs Mir Zia Langove has promised to ensure relief for applicants at police stations through introduction of online FIR registration facility.

“The common man should feel ease while lodging complain at police station,” he said and urged Balochistan police to speed up work on introducing online FIR registration facility to lessen complainants’ burden. 

OGRA decides to lower petroleum prices

By December, the Oil & Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has calculated minor reductions in the prices of major petroleum products.

Meanwhile, Ogra has already notified an increase of 2.64 per cent in the price of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) for next month. Under the notification, the 11kg domestic cylinder would now cost Rs1,514 instead of current rate of Rs1,495.

A Petroleum Division official told Dawn that Ogra moved a summary on Friday to the government containing calculations on petroleum prices on the basis of existing rates of general sales tax and petroleum levy. He said the Ministry of Finance would announce the ex-depot prices of petroleum productions on November 30.

Based on the import parity price of Pakistan State Oil (PSO) for purchase in November, Ogra has worked out about Rs2.40 per litre decrease in the rate of high speed diesel (HSD), 25 paisa per liter in petrol, 83 paisa in kerosene and Rs2.90 for light diesel oil (LDO).

As such, the ex-depot rate of HSD has been calculated at Rs125.01 per litre instead of Rs127.41, showing a reduction of 1.9pc. Likewise, petrol price has been proposed to go down to Rs113.99 per litre from Rs114.24, down 0.2pc.

The ex-depot price of LDO has been worked out at Rs82.43 per litre instead of Rs85.33 per litre, showing a decrease of 3.4pc while kerosene is proposed to go down has been proposed to decline by 0.9pc to Rs96.35 per litre from Rs97.18.

The government has already increased general sales tax on all petroleum products to a standard rate of 17pc across the board to generate additional revenues. Until January this year, it was charging 0.5pc GST on LDO, 2pc on kerosene, 8pc on petrol and 13pc on HSD.

Besides the 17pc GST, the government has more than doubled the rate of petroleum levy on HSD in recent months to Rs18 per litre instead of Rs8, while levy on petrol had been raised by 50pc to Rs15per litre, up from Rs10. The petroleum levy on kerosene oil and LDO remains unchanged at Rs6 and Rs3 per litre, respectively.

Over the last few months, the government has started increasing petroleum levy rates to partially recoup a major revenue shortfall faced by the Federal Board of Revenue. The levy remains in the federal kitty unlike GST that goes to the divisible pool taxes and thus about 57pc cent share is grabbed by the provinces.

Petrol and HSD are two major products that generate most of the revenue for government because of their massive and yet growing consumption in the country. Total HSD sales are touching 700,000 tonnes per month versus 600,000 tonnes of petrol. On the other hand, sales of kerosene oil and LDO are generally less than 10,000 tonnes.

PM Imran Khan Reaches Lahore

Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has arrived in Lahore on one-day visit.

As per details, PM will meet Governor, Chief Minister, new chief secretary and IG Punjab in his short visit.

PM Imran will also chair joint meeting session with Chief Minister where provincial government will brief PM about the condition of smog in Punjab.

A shuffle might take place in Punjab cabinet as PM is expected to wipe out the ministers who have failed to deliver their respective tasks.

Earlier yesterday, Provincial Minister of Punjab for Information Mian Aslam Iqbal, while talking with AbbTakk news confirmed about the shuffling in bureaucracy.

Mian Aslam further said, Chief executive have right to change the team. Everything will get clear in coming two days.

Palestinian teenage boy killed by Israeli forces in Gaza Strip

A Palestinian teenage boy has been killed after Israeli forces attacked anti-occupation protests taking place in the besieged Gaza Strip.

According to the Gazan Health Ministry, the Israeli forces killed the boy and injured five people most of them children, east of Khan Yunis, in southern Gaza Strip.

The child was identified as 16-year-old Fahd Mohammed Walid al-Astal.

Local sources said that the Israeli forces opened fire on dozens of young men who staged a protest east of Khan Yunis, noting that the rally was held although the organizers announced the annulment of the rallies slated for Friday.

The organizers attributed the decision to their desire to safeguard the blood of the protesters, referring to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s attempts to “export his internal crisis to our besieged strip” after his failure to form a new government, deepening a political deadlock in the occupied territories.

The “Great March of Return” rallies have been held every week since March 30 last year. The Palestinians want the return of those driven out of their homeland by Israeli aggression.

Israeli troops have killed at least 307 Palestinians since the beginning of the rallies and wounded more than 18,000 others, according to the Gazan Health Ministry.

In March, a United Nations fact-finding mission found that Israeli forces committed rights violations during their crackdown against the Palestinian protesters in Gaza that may amount to war crimes.

Gaza has been under Israeli siege since June 2007, which has caused a decline in living standards.

Israel has also launched three major wars against the enclave since 2008, killing thousands of Gazans each time and shattering the impoverished territory’s already poor infrastructure.

NADRA launches ManPack Mobile Units country-wide

The National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) announced to launch ManPack Mobile Units country-wide to facilitate registration process at doorstep.

The service was aimed at facilitating the registering process for bed-ridden, seriously ill, special or handicapped persons at their door steps.

The authority said in its online post that the service was launched by the Chairman NADRA Usman Yousaf Mobin in line with the Prime Minister Imran Khan’s vision of facilitating the public and improvement in service delivery.

It said that the launching of the service has achieved another milestone in the domain of service delivery aiming at facilitating handicapped, mentally deranged, seriously ill and special person at their homes.

According to procedure of the service, anyone coming under this category could submit an application with NADRA authorities at regional, zonal or local offices.

NADRA launches ManPack Mobile Units all across Pakistan exclusively for registering bed-ridden/seriously ill, special or handicapped persons at their door steps.1/2 pic.twitter.com/HuVWrpWnUO

— NADRA (@NadraMedia) November 29, 2019

The ManPack Mobile unit would complete all formalities at the applicant’s doorstep and the National Identity Card (NIC) of the applicant would then be delivered at the address within stipulated time.

On November 18, the NADRA announced to facilitate women country-wide, reserving every Friday exclusively for women.

This was stated in a report submitted to the Prime Minister Office about initiatives taken by different Ministries and Departments regarding public welfare.

According to the report, 64 new initiatives have been started, out of which 35 have been implemented while 28 are under process.

The initiatives aimed at improvement in the lives of common men and to resolve their basic problems which were neglected in the past.

Pakistan Peoples' Party celebrates 52nd Foundation Day today

Pakistan Peoples' Party (PPP) is all set to celebrate its 52nd Foundation Day on Saturday (today).

The PPP, founded by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was on November 30th, 1967, ruled Pakistan five times since its foundation.

The central function of the 52nd Foundation Day of the PPP will be held in Muzaffarabad which will be attended by party leaders and workers from all over the country.

The stage has been set up and the venue has been decorated with party posters and flags with thousands of chairs. According to local administration, strict security arrangements have been made for the gathering.

The gathering will also be addressed party chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and other party leaders.

In his message, Bilawal reiterated commitment to founding principles and also vowed to set a new direction for the country. “Only a strong people’s agenda can pull Pakistan out of democratic, economic and governance crisis,” he said.

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) remains a consistent electoral player since its foundation in a convention in Lahore on November 30, 1967.

Since its formation, the PPP has won the general elections five times i.e. in 1970, 1977, 1988, 1993 and 2008.

PM Imran to visit Lahore today

Prime Minister Imran Khan will arrive in Lahore on a day-long visit today (Saturday). He is scheduled to chair a meeting of the parliamentary body of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf.

PM Imran will also take take PTI’s parliamentary body into confidence over the current political situation of the country. The reshuffle in the provincial cabinet will also during the meeting.

He will preside over a high-level meeting at the Chief Minister’s House. He will hold separate meetings with Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar and Governor Chaudhry Sarwar.

PM Imran appreciates Malaysia's principled position on Kashmir dispute

Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has invited Prime Minister Imran Khan for the KL Summit, being held in Kuala Lumpur from 18th to 20th of the next month.

The Deputy Foreign Minister of Malaysia Marzuki Bin Haji Yahya delivered an official invitation to Prime Minister in Islamabad.

The Prime Minister conveyed his thanks for the invitation and stated that he looked forward to participating in the KL Summit.

In the bilateral context, the Prime Minister reaffirmed his commitment to further deepening Pakistan-Malaysia relations in all fields.

Prime Minister Imran Khan appreciated Malaysia's principled position on the Jammu and Kashmir dispute. He also apprised the Special Envoy of the continuing inhuman lockdown of over eight million Kashmiris since India's illegal and unilateral actions of 5th August and the dire human rights and humanitarian situation resulting from it.

Imran Khan stressed the importance of the international community playing its role in the removal of curfew and other restrictions in Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir and peaceful resolution of the dispute.

Iraqi prime minister announces intention to resign following Sistani call

Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi says he intends to resign in response to a call by the country’s top Shia cleric, who urged Iraqi lawmakers to "reconsider" their options regarding the future of Iraq.

"In response to this call, and in order to facilitate it as quickly as possible, I will present to parliament a demand (to accept) my resignation from the leadership of the current government," a statement signed by Abdul Mahdi said on Friday.

The prime minster added that the measure would allow the parliamentarians to “reconsider their options.”

“Everyone knows that I had previously suggested this option (to resign) during public and formal statements.”

The statement did not elaborate on the time of an official resignation.

The parliament is to hold an emergency session on Sunday.

Abdul Mahdi’s statement came shortly after Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani addressed weekly Friday prayers in the holy city of Karbala.

The top cleric said the government "appears to have been unable to deal with the events of the past two months." Sistani called on the parliament, “which the current government originates from, to reconsider its options, given the difficult circumstances of the country.”

Also in his Friday remarks, Sistani called on protesters to “separate their ranks from non-peaceful individuals and cooperate on shunning saboteurs” abusing the peaceful protests.

The top cleric also urged security forces to avoid attacking demonstrations of peaceful nature.

Sistani warned that “enemies and their levers” are planning to “plunge the country into internal strife” and bring the country back to the "era of dictatorship" - in an apparent reference to the rule of Saddam Hussein.

Nearly two months of protests have rocked primarily the capital city of Baghdad and southern areas of Iraq.

The protesters have expressed frustration with the failing economy and have demanded political and anti-corruption reforms.

The rallies have, however, turned into violent confrontations in numerous occasions, with reports alleging that certain foreign-backed elements have been seeking to wreak havoc in the country.

Since October 1, more than 300 people have been killed in the country, according to the Iraqi parliament’s human rights commission.

Wajid Zia appointed DG FIA in federal bureaucracy overhaul

Federal government on Friday appointed a BPS-21 officer Wajid Zia, who led a joint investigation team (JIT) in Panama Leaks case that saw ouster of former premier Nawaz Sharif, as Director General (DG) Federal Investigation Authority (FIA).

Zia replaced another top official Bashir Memon, who led probe into benami accounts of Pakistan People’s Party Parliamentarian (PPPP) President Asif Zardari, currently in prison over the charges. Memon was directed to report to the establishment division.

The change was made during a reshuffle in the federal bureaucracy on Friday, that also witnessed appointment of BPS-22 officer from Police Service Mushtaq Mehar as Inspector General (IG) Pakistan Railways, a post held by Zia before the reshuffle.

The other changes in the federal bureaucracy include appointment of Ayub Chaudhry as additional secretary petroleum, vacating the post of additional secretary food.

Secretary Economic Affairs Division Noor Ahmed was directed to report to the establishment division.

Additional Secretary Information Technology and Telecommunication Jawad Paul was appointed addition secretary in the prime minister house, replacing Ali Shahzad, who was given charge of special secretary establishment division.

Secretary Industries Amir Ashraf Khwaja was appointed as secretary climate change while acting secretary National Health Services Allah Baksh Malik was elevated to the post of federal secretary health.

Yousaf Naseem Khokhar was appointed interior secretary while Ali Raza will assume charge of secretary poverty elevation.

Hasan Nasir Jami was posted as secretary aviation and Afzal Latif as secretary industries. The railways secretary was also changed with Habib ur Rehman Gilani assuming the new charge.

Bilawal lauds students’ ‘spirit of activism’ as ‘truly inspiring’

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari tweeted in support of the Students Solidarity March on Friday as thousands of students took to the streets and in campuses across the country to demand their rights.

The PPP chairman took to Twitter and praised the new generation of students for their "spirit of activism and yearning for peaceful democratic process".

"The PPP has always supported Student unions. The restoration of student unions by SMBB was purposely undone to depoliticize society. Today students are marching in the #StudentSolidarityMarch for the restoration of unions, implementation of right to education 1/1," he tweeted.

end to privatization of public universities, implementation of sexual harassment legislation, right to student housing & the demilitarization of campuses. The spirit of activism and yearning for peaceful democratic process from a new generation of students is truly inspiring. 2/2

— BilawalBhuttoZardari (@BBhuttoZardari) November 29, 2019

"End to privatization of public universities, implementation of sexual harassment legislation, right to student housing & the demilitarization of campuses. The spirit of activism and yearning for peaceful democratic process from a new generation of students is truly inspiring, 2/2."

Thousands of Pakistanis across the country are taking to the roads to demand reinstatement of student unions, demilitarization of campuses and increasing the education budget to 10 percent.

Ayatollah Sistani warns of enemy plot seeking to create civil strife, bring back 'era of dictatorship'

Iraq's top cleric has warned that enemies of Iraq and affiliated groups in the country are plotting to create internal strife and bring the country back to the "era of dictatorship", an apparent reference to the former rule of Saddam Hussein.

Addressing worshipers during Friday prayers in the holy city of Karbala, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani urged protesters to prevent attacks on people and their property and distance themselves from those committing such acts.

"It is imperative on peaceful demonstrators that they separate their ranks from non-peaceful individuals and cooperate on shunning saboteurs - whoever they are - and not allow them to abuse peaceful protests to damage and attack the property of citizens," a representative of Ayatollah Sistani said as he delivered the top cleric's sermon.

"The enemies and their levers, in order to achieve their malicious goals, plan to spread chaos and plunge the country into internal strife and then return it to dictatorship, so everyone must work together to take away this opportunity from them," he added.

The remarks come two days after rioters, who have been wreaking havoc in various parts of Iraq over the past weeks by infiltrating peaceful protests against corruption and poverty, stormed and set fire to Iran's diplomatic mission in Najaf.

Observers have expressed concern that the incident is part of a larger US-backed push to destabilize the country.

A few months ago, the Lebanese Arabic-language daily newspaper al-Akhbar reported that Iraqi security sources have uncovered a plan seeking to install a military strongman favored by the US by creating a power vacuum in the country.

The current provocations come amid two months of widespread economic protects and calls for political reform in Iraq.

Also during his statements on Friday, Ayatollah Sistani called on the country's lawmakers to reconsider their support for the country's ruling cabinet.

"The parliament, from which this current government is drawn, is asked to reconsider its choice in this regard and act according to Iraq's interest... (to) preserve the blood of its children," the top cleric said.

Ayatollah Sistani also reiterated his support for the people's demands and condemned the use of lethal force against protesters peacefully calling for reforms in the country.

Over 300 people have been killed in the Iraq unrest since October 1, according to the Iraqi parliament’s human rights commission.

Earlier this month, Iraqi Defense Minister Najah al-Shammari told France 24’s Arabic-language channel that a “third party” was behind shootings targeting demonstrators.

 

Facebook and Instagram back up after global outrage

Facebook’s family of apps including Instagram and Messenger after facing a global outage briefly have now been restored while the reason for the servers being down remained unknown.

Users in Pakistan and around the world once again faced an outage as they were not able to share content or even log into their accounts.

Reard More: Facebook and Instagram outrage users experience crash

The photo-sharing app took to its Twitter handle to announce that the app has been restored and should function normally.

Gobble gobble, we back. We apologize for the inconvenience and wish a #HappyThanksgiving to those who celebrate! pic.twitter.com/nUl0fq9bup

— Instagram (@instagram) November 28, 2019

PAF conducts command level Hawk-Eye Exercise

Pakistan Air Force (PAF) has conducted a command level operation exercise with participation of all Operational Bases across the three Regional Commands.

All types of PAF aircraft participated in the massive concurrent exercise to practice short-notice offensive employment concept involving fighter aircraft, force-multipliers and Special Forces.

Pakistan Air Force conducts Hawk-Eye Exercise https://t.co/vpK9LN61tx

— PAF Falcons (@PAF_Falcons) November 29, 2019

The concept validates PAF’s options for offensive employment of its various capabilities.

All types of PAF aircraft participated in the massive concurrent exercise to practice short-notice offensive employment concept involving fighter jets, force-multipliers and Special Forces. The concept validates PAF’s options for offensive employment of its various capabilities. pic.twitter.com/OyDHcdzO4v

— PAF Falcons (@PAF_Falcons) November 29, 2019

Spokesperson PAF said that “All types of PAF aircraft participated in the massive concurrent exercise to practice short-notice offensive employment concept involving fighter aircraft, force-multipliers, and Special Forces.”

The PAF said that this “validates PAF’s options for offensive employment of its various capabilities”.

“Mera Bacha Alert” app launched by KP govt to recover missing children

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mahmood Khan on Thursday launched the “Mera Bacha Alert”, a mobile phone application developed to help people and relevant departments in recovering missing children in the province.

The app was launched at a ceremony at the chief minister’s secretariat with advisor to the chief minister on merged districts and provincial government spokesperson Ajmal Wazir, IGP Naeem Khan, PMRU Director Muhammad Fawad and others in attendance at the ceremony.

The application is a recent addition to the already available Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Citizens Portal and would also be included in Pakistan Citizen Portal.

"میرا بچہ الرٹ" ایپ کا افتتاح

حکومت خیبر پختونخوا کا زیادتی کا شکار، اغواء اور لاپتہ بچوں کے حوالے سے اہم اقدام

جدید ٹیکنالوجی کے ذریعے زیادتی کا شکار، اغواء اور لاپتہ بچوں کے کیسز کے حوالے سے آن لائن ڈی پی او کو رپورٹ کرنے کے لئے “میرا بچہ الرٹ” ایپ متعارف#KPKUpdates pic.twitter.com/qT7SnJuyXA

— PTI (@PTIofficial) November 28, 2019

Speaking on the occasion, CM Khan appreciated the efforts of Performance Management and Reforms Unit Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in developing the application and said it would not only help recover the missing children but would also help discourage unpleasant incidents regarding children in the province.

“It is a priority of the government to ensure protection of children. ‘Mera Bacha Alert’ application is a golden step in this regard,” he said.

The chief minister was also briefed in details about the preparation of the application, its mechanism and features. It was told that the idea of the application came in reaction to various cases of child abuse.

The application will provide complete mechanism for parents to register a report if their child goes missing. They will be able to add a picture of missing child along with his/her attributes.

Groundbreaking of first SEZ to be performed in next month: Asad Umer

Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar has said the government is targeting the groundbreaking of first Special Economic Zone under China-Pakistan Economic Corridor by the end of next month.

In a tweet on Friday, he expressed the determination to open two more SEZs within current fiscal year.

He said under the first phase, one each Special Economic Zone is being established in Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab.

Asad Umar said the government is focusing on the development of SEZs under the CPEC to accelerate industrialization and job creation.

IHC extends suspension of Abrar Ul Haq’s appointment as Chairman PRCS

Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday extended suspension of appointment of Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf’s Abrar Ul Haq as Chairman Pakistan Red Crescent Society (PRCS) till the next hearing of the case.

Chief Justice IHC Athar Minallah had suspended appointment orders of Abrar Ul Haq in the previous hearing of the case.

The court was hearing a petition filed by the outgoing chairman Red Crescent Society Saeed Elahi who was an acting chairman of the body before his removal.

Justice Athar Minallah said that the law governing the body exists, which could not be violated by anyone.

Abrar ul Haq today appeared in the court hearing along with his lawyer. His counsel said in the court that the Red Crescent is a welfare body and the petition against appointment of its chairman is non-maintainable.

The federal government sought time for submission of its reply in the court over the matter.

The bench granted the government to submit its reply in the case by the coming Thursday.

Abrar ul Haq had been appointed as the new chairman of the Pakistan Red Crescent Society (PRCS) on November 15.

President Arif Alvi had approved the appointment for PRCS, also known as Hilal Ahmar. Ministry of National Health Services, Regulation and Coordination had also issued a notification regarding Abrar’s appointment.

Farogh Naseem takes oath as Law Minister

Barrister Farogh Naseem, who stepped down as Federal Minister for Law to represent Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa in the Supreme Court in a tenure extension case, rejoined the federal cabinet.

The oath ceremony was held in the federal capital Islamabad. President of Pakistan Dr, Arif Alvi took oath from Barrister Farogh Naseem.

Farogh Naseem  entrusted with the same portfolio of the law minister he held previously.

Direct Flights between Azerbaijan, Pakistan to start next year

Direct flights between Azerbaijan and Pakistan would start next year, which would help strengthen bilateral trade and economic relations as well as people-to-people contacts between the two countries, said Ambassador of Azerbaijan to Pakistan Ali Alizada.

“Investors in Azerbaijan are keen to invest in potential sectors of Pakistan,” he said while talking to the business community at the Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The ambassador pointed out that Azerbaijan attached immense importance to improvement in trade, economic and cultural relations with Pakistan.

The diplomat termed his country a lucrative destination for foreign investors and urged the business community of Pakistan to invest in information technology, software engineering, tourism and other potential sectors of Azerbaijan.

The meeting discussed investment opportunities in diverse sectors and possibilities of enhancing cooperation, launching joint ventures, exchange of business delegations and establishment of people-to-people contacts between the two countries.

Alizada highlighted that his country had supported Pakistan’s stance on the Kashmir issue. The core issue of Kashmir should be resolved as per UN resolutions ie to give the people of Kashmir the right of self-determination, he stressed.

Speaking on the occasion, Sarhad Chamber President Maqsood Anwar invited investment from Azerbaijan in hydroelectric power generation, oil and gas, liquefied petroleum gas, mines and mineral, gemstones and other potential sectors.

He also emphasised the need for deepening economic and trade relations between Pakistan and Azerbaijan. Both sides agreed to make joint efforts to give a boost to bilateral trade and economic ties.

Former Sarhad Chamber president Faiz Mohammad Faizi and other members of the business community gave a number of recommendations for improving trade and economic links between Pakistan and Azerbaijan.

Alizada agreed with some of the recommendations and assured the business community that his country would issue visas to them on a priority basis in a bid to enhance trade and economic ties.

Direct Flights between Azerbaijan, Pakistan to start next year

Direct flights between Azerbaijan and Pakistan would start next year, which would help strengthen bilateral trade and economic relations as well as people-to-people contacts between the two countries, said Ambassador of Azerbaijan to Pakistan Ali Alizada.

“Investors in Azerbaijan are keen to invest in potential sectors of Pakistan,” he said while talking to the business community at the Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The ambassador pointed out that Azerbaijan attached immense importance to improvement in trade, economic and cultural relations with Pakistan.

The diplomat termed his country a lucrative destination for foreign investors and urged the business community of Pakistan to invest in information technology, software engineering, tourism and other potential sectors of Azerbaijan.

The meeting discussed investment opportunities in diverse sectors and possibilities of enhancing cooperation, launching joint ventures, exchange of business delegations and establishment of people-to-people contacts between the two countries.

Alizada highlighted that his country had supported Pakistan’s stance on the Kashmir issue. The core issue of Kashmir should be resolved as per UN resolutions ie to give the people of Kashmir the right of self-determination, he stressed.

Speaking on the occasion, Sarhad Chamber President Maqsood Anwar invited investment from Azerbaijan in hydroelectric power generation, oil and gas, liquefied petroleum gas, mines and mineral, gemstones and other potential sectors.

He also emphasised the need for deepening economic and trade relations between Pakistan and Azerbaijan. Both sides agreed to make joint efforts to give a boost to bilateral trade and economic ties.

Former Sarhad Chamber president Faiz Mohammad Faizi and other members of the business community gave a number of recommendations for improving trade and economic links between Pakistan and Azerbaijan.

Alizada agreed with some of the recommendations and assured the business community that his country would issue visas to them on a priority basis in a bid to enhance trade and economic ties.

PM Imran to chair government, PTI's spokespersons meeting today

Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has called on a meeting of the government and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) spokespersons in Islamabad today (Friday).

The meeting will take place at the PM House around 5 pm today.

According to sources, the government legal team will brief the spokespersons on Supreme Court’s verdict in Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa’s extension in a tenure case.

Sources further said that Prime Minister Imran Khan will also give a guideline in this regard to the spokespersons.

President Trump makes Thanksgiving visit to Afghanistan

President United States Donald Trump made a surprise Thanksgiving visit to US troops in Afghanistan on Thursday and said he believed Taliban insurgents would agree to a ceasefire in America's longest war.

Trump's visit was his first to Afghanistan since becoming president and came a week after a prisoner swap between Washington and Kabul that has raised hopes for a long elusive peace deal.

“The Taliban wants to make a deal and we are meeting with them,” Trump told reporters after arriving in Afghanistan after an overnight flight from the United States, kept secret for security reasons.

“We say it has to be a ceasefire and they didn’t want to do a ceasefire and now they want to do a ceasefire, I believe. It will probably work out that way.”

Taliban leaders have told Reuters that the group has again been holding meetings with senior US officials in Doha since last weekend, adding they could soon resume formal peace talks.

The Air Force One presidential plane touched down at Bagram Airfield late in the evening on Thursday, with White House national security adviser Robert O’Brien, a small group of aides and Secret Service agents. Two surveillance blimps flew overhead.

Trump met with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and served turkey to some US troops before sitting down to eat Thanksgiving dinner with them. He chatted and had his picture taken with some of the US forces deployed there.

“What a great job you do. It’s an honor to be here,” he said.

Govt does not want any kind of conflict among institutions: AG Anwar Mansoor

Attorney General of Pakistan Anwar Mansoor Khan has said that opposition would be answerable to the court if it created any hurdle on the legislation on the extension of army chief's tenure.

Talking to a private news channel, he said the present government would implement the court orders in letter and spirit and legislate in the Parliament on the COAS's extension in due course of time.

About the extension of three-year duration, he said the Parliament would decide the length of the period.

He, however, said the government does not want any kind of conflict among the institutions.

Former Law Minister Farogh Naseem to take oath today: Source

Barrister Farogh Naseem, who stepped down as Federal Minister for Law to represent Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa in the Supreme Court in a tenure extension case, is likely to rejoin the federal cabinet.

Sources relayed Farogh Naseem will be entrusted with the same portfolio of the law minister he held previously.

He will likely to take oath of the office today (Friday).

Facebook and Instagram outrage users experience crash

Many Facebook and Instagram users across the globe complained on Thursday of the two social media websites not working. According to users around the world, Facebook stopped working along the same time as Instagram, which is also owned by the same company. The majority of users are reporting problems with their news feeds, while others are also experiencing problems logging into the app and accessing the Stories feature. 'My Instagram is dead. All photos and stories inaccessible. Keep getting "something went wrong" everytime I refresh. I logged out and tried…

Coke Studio all set to release the finale of season 12

Coke Studio’ will be releasing the sixth and final episode of Season 12 on 29th November 2019, featuring Bo Giyam by Kashif Din and Nimra Rafiq, Mundiya by Ali Sethi and Quratulain Balouch, Aaye Kuch Abr by Atif Aslam, and Tiri Pawanda by Harsakhiyan. Bo Giyam: Newcomer Kashif Din has traveled all the way to Coke Studio from Hunza with Bo Giyam, an original composition with Burushaski lyrics written by Nas Nafees, a poet who also hails from the same valley. Fusing the folk music of Hunza with contemporary colors,…

Balochistan Government to pursue partnership with foreign companies

QUETTA: The Baloch­istan government on Wednesday expressed its desire to partner up with private companies for investment in the province. In a meeting with MRDL Saindak President Wang Jicheng and Chairman HeXuping in Quetta, Chief Minister Balochistan Jam Kamal Khan Alyani said: "We are committed to inking agreements with private firms by leading bilateral matters in a conducive way as many international mining companies have been showing interest to do business with the provincial government." Furthermore, expansion of the Saindak project was discussed. He also briefed the Chinese regarding provincial…

Musharraf treason case: Special court says it is not bound to obey IHC orders

A special court in Islamabad on Wednesday allowed former president General (retd) Pervez Musharraf until Dec 5 to make his statement in the high treason case against him, but noted that it was not bound to follow the Islamabad High Court's (IHC) order to not announce the verdict.

On Wednesday, the high court, after hearing the petitions filed by Musharraf and the government, had stopped the special court from issuing the verdict, with instructions to hear out all the parties in order to ensure a fair trial.

A three-member bench of the special court, headed by Peshawar High Court Chief Justice Waqar Ahmed Seth, today remarked that the special court is only bound to obey the Supreme Court's directives and not the high court's.

Justice Waqar remarked that the bench will not comment on the IHC's order. The judge, however, allowed Musharraf to record his statement till Dec 5.

It is pertinent to mention here that the special court had said on Nov 19 that a verdict in the case would be announced on Nov 28 (today) before the high court stopped it from doing so.

Prime Minister Khan reacts to SC verdict on Gen Bajwa extension

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday said that the Supreme Court verdict ‘must be a great disappointment to those who expected the country to be destabilised by a clash of institutions’.

The premier was reacting to the apex court order that granted six-month conditional extension in the tenure of the army chief.

In a series of tweets after the SC order, the prime minister hit back at his rivals, who he said were waiting for clash of institutions.

Today must be a great disappointment to those who expected the country to be destabilised by a clash of institutions. That this did not happen must be of special disappointment to our external enemies & mafias within -

— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) November 28, 2019

“That this did not happen must be of special disappointment to our external enemies & mafias within mafias who have stashed their loot abroad and seek to protect this loot by destabilising the country,” he added.

The Supreme Court on Thursday allowed the federal government to grant a six-month extension to General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

In its short order the apex court directed the government to bring necessary legislation within six months' time.

I have the greatest respect for CJ Khosa: PM Imran

In a separate tweet, the prime minister praised Chief Justice Khosa and hailed him as "one of the greatest Jurists produced by Pakistan".

Also, for the record, I have the greatest respect for CJ Khosa, one of the greatest Jurists produced by Pakistan.

— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) November 28, 2019

He then tweeted that the PTI had been at the forefront of the movement for the independence of judiciary in 2007 and he was jailed for it. 

Pakistan committed to develop strong relationship with African countries: FM Qureshi

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has expressed the commitment to develop a strong relationship with the African countries.

Addressing the Envoys' Conference titled Engage Africa in Islamabad, he said the foreign office will fully facilitate and cooperate with the commerce ministry to achieve this objective.

Adviser on Commerce Razaq Dawood said our vision is to double trade with the African countries in the next five years which currently hovers between three and four billion dollars.

He said Pakistan's exports to Africa have risen to over one billion dollars. He said our locally manufactured tractors are making their way in several African countries including Mozambique and Angola.

Referring to the continent's potential, the Adviser said Pakistan is also holding a trade conference in Nairobi next year exploit the opportunities there.

Supreme Court To Resume Hearing of Army Chief’s Tenure Extension Case Today

The Supreme Court will resume hearing of the case regarding extension in tenure of the army chief.

A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice, Asif Saeed Khosa is hearing the matter.

Barrister Farogh Naseem, who resigned from his post as Law Minister to pursue the case is representing the army chief while Attorney General Anwar Mansoor Khan is representing the government.

General Nadeem Raza takes charge as CJCSC

General Nadeem Raza assumed charge of Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee at General Headquarters in Rawalpindi.

This was announced by Spokesperson of Pakistan Army, Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) Major General Asif Ghafoor through Twitter.

General Nadeem Raza, HI (M) assumed appointment of Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee at Joint Staff Headquarters today.

— DG ISPR (@OfficialDGISPR) November 27, 2019

According to an official press statement from the PM House, the prime minister had given his approval for the appointment.

 

Federal cabinet Approves Circulation Summary of Army Chief’s Tenure Extension

Federal cabinet gave approval to circulation summary of Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa s tenure extension.

According to sources, a new summary regarding the extension of Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa was formulated by the Federal Government after the Supreme Court heard a case into the matter.

Sources said that the summary was sent to cabinet members through special messenger for their opinion on the matter.

Lawyers' body announces countrywide strike on Thursday against govt's 'unconstitutional moves'

The Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) has announced that lawyers will observe a countrywide strike on Thursday to protest what it called the "unconstitutional moves" of the federal government regarding Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa's tenure extension and the high treason case against former military ruler Pervez Musharraf.

According to a press release issued by the body on Wednesday, lawyers will observe a full-day strike tomorrow when they will hold protest and condemnation meetings in their respective bar rooms against the government measures to grant an extension in service to the incumbent army chief and "rescue" Musharraf from punishment in the high treason case.

The PTI-led government is currently engaged in the Supreme Court where it is defending the procedure under which Prime Minister Imran Khan approved an extension in the tenure of Gen Bajwa. Also, the interior ministry earlier this week petitioned the Islamabad High Court to halt a special court from announcing its judgement in the high treason case against Musharraf. Its plea was accepted by the IHC today.

PBC Vice Chairman Syed Amjad Shah and the chairman of its executive committee, Sher Muhammad Khan, strongly condemned the "belated efforts and maneuverings of the federal government" after yesterday’s order of the Supreme Court in the case pertaining to Gen Bajwa's extension, according to the statement.

They said the government had rectified its mistakes and brought about amendments in some relevant laws in an attempt to "overcome their inefficiency" in the matter of granting extension to the army chief.

The PBC officials also condemned what they called the government's "unjustified and unprecedented move" to approach the IHC to restrain the special court from announcing its verdict in the case against Musharraf.

JUI-F's Mufti Kifayatullah wounded in attempt on life

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam’s (JUI-F) senior leader Mufti Kifayatullah was injured in an assassination attempt near Mansehra Interchange On Wednesday morning.

Kifayatullah along with his two sons and a companion were travelling to Mansehra from Islamabad when another vehicle hit their car from behind and stopped it near Mansehra Interchange.

The attackers tried to pull the JUI-F leader from his car and attacked them with iron rods, leaving all inhabitants of the car wounded.

Kifayatullah and the others were later shifted to the King Abdullah Teaching Hospital Mansehra for treatment.

Police have registered a case and launched an investigation into the attack.

IHC halts announcement of special court ruling in Musharraf treason case

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) On Wednesday halted a special court from issuing a ruling in the high treason case against former president Pervez Musharraf.

The special court was set to announce the ruling in the treason case tomorrow. The IHC was hearing petitions filed by former president General (retd) Pervez Musharraf and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government to postpone the announcement of the judgement.

In a hearing conducted today in Islamabad, a three member bench of the high court, comprising of IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah, Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani first heard the petition filed by the PTI government.

The court directed the special court hearing the Musharraf case to admit the arguments of all parties in the case before announcing the ruling. The IHC also asked the special court to ensure a fair trial in the case.

Additional Attorney General (AAG) Sajid Ilyas Bhatti represented the government in court. Former president Musharraf was represented by lawyer Salman Safdar. Justice Minallah first addressed the additional attorney-general in his remarks.

"Is there an official notification about the formation of the special court?" the judge asked, and was told by Bhatti that an official notification in this regard existed. The court also expressed displeasure over the absence of Law Secretary Muhammad Khashih-ur-Rehman from proceedings.

However, upon a second summon to appear in court, the law secretary arrived in court at around 1:30pm. The court reprimanded the bureaucrat for being late, suggested reports.

What happened in the hearing of the case on Tuesday?

During Tuesday’s hearing, IHC directed the submission of the complete record of Special Court in the case while the Lahore High Court (LHC) admitted Musharraf’s plea for regular hearing.

A three-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Athar Minallah and comprising Justice Aamir Farooq and Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani heard the case.

Justice Minallah during the hearing observed that only paragraph 16 was important in the petition filed by the interior ministry.

Additional Attorney General (AAG) Sajid Ilyas Bhatti informed the bench about the details of the constitution of the prosecution team in 2013.

“Do you know the Supreme Court orders?” Justice Minallah asked the attorney general.

To this, the AAG replied that he had received the case file and orders to appear before the court just 30 minutes before.

The bench remarked that he was representing the federal government and should be aware of facts about the case.

“How can you proceed without complete information?” asked Justice Minallah. The bench asked the AAG to call in someone who knew facts about the case. “A representative from the Ministry of Law and Justice, who knows the case,” he added.

Pervez Musharraf’s lawyer tried to argue but the bench stopped him and remarked that the court will first hear the petition of the interior ministry. “Pervez Musharraf has been declared a proclaimed offender as per the law,” Justice Minallah.

Later the IHC summoned secretary law and justice to appear before the court in person with complete records and adjourned the hearing.

A Special Court had reserved its verdict in the high-treason case against the former president, fixed to be announced on November 28.

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government had filed the treason case against Musharraf over the president's imposition of extra-constitutional emergency in November 2007.

Earlier this year, head of the prosecution, Mohammad Akram Sheikh, tendered his resignation. In his resignation letter sent to the interior secretary, Sheikh expressed his inability to proceed with the case after the imminent change of government at the centre.

Sheikh was appointed as the head of the prosecution in the case in November 2013, by the then-PML-N led government.

The former army chief was indicted in the case in March 2014 after he appeared before the court and rejected all charges.

On March 18, 2016, the former president left Pakistan for Dubai for medical treatment after his name was removed from the exit control list on the orders of the Supreme Court.

A few months later, the special court had declared him a proclaimed offender and ordered the confiscation of his property owing to his continuous inability to appear.

Later, his passport and identity card were also cancelled on orders of the apex court.

General Bajwa’s extension: SC adjourns hearing until Thursday morning

The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Wednesday adjourned the hearing of the case regarding the extension in service of Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

The three-member bench of the highest court is headed by Chief Justice Asif Saeed Khan Khosa, and includes Justice Mazhar Alam and Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah.

The federal law minister Farogh Naseem, who resigned from his post on Tuesday after the court took up the case, in order to represent the army chief, submitted his power of attorney on arrival to the courtroom today.

Chief Justice Khosa and the attorney general had an interesting conversation in court. The chief justice told the attorney general that according to him, the army chief will retire on Thursday.

"The attorney general says that a general never retires," remarked the chief justice. "The attorney general has interpreted Article 243 according to which even he can be made an army chief."

The court then told the attorney general that according to him, any retired general can be made the chief of army staff.

"An army chief is appointed by the president on the prime minister's advice," said Justice Mansoor. "If the government can't appoint an army chief, how can it extend his tenure?"

In response to a question from Justice Mansoor, the attorney general said that the army chief will retire tomorrow night (Thursday).

The chief justice told the attorney general that the president had not issued the notification on the prime minister's advice. He told the attorney general that the court was giving him one day to come up with a solution to the problem.

"You have made the army chief a shuttlecock," said Justice Khosa.

During Wednesday’s hearing, the chief justice asked Attorney General Anwar Mansoor Khan if the government had accepted the points raised by the court yesterday. To this, the attorney general replied that they have not accepted the mistake.

Commenting in the courtroom, the CJP remarked they will hear everyone as it is an important issue, adding that earlier this question was never raised and now that it has been brought forward, all the legal aspects of will be reviewed.

We are not in a hurry, the CJP observed.

Justice Khosa stated that in the past, five or six generals had their tenures extended by themselves and no one questioned them.

While commenting on the attorney general’s reliance on Article 255, the chief justice remarked that the rule applies to officers and not the army chief.

The chief justice further clarified that the media has understood the case incorrectly. “This is not a suo motu case. We are hearing the petition filed by Advocate Riaz Hanif,” Chief Justice Khosa said.

The chief justice then asked the attorney general to present the summary approved by the federal cabinet in its meeting on Tuesday, which he did.

“I informed the court yesterday as well that we are still waiting for some federal ministers to respond to the extension notification,” the attorney general replied.

“If there is no answer till now, should we assume the answer is yes?” the CJP asked.

To this AG Khan responded that as per the law, that would be correct.

The top judge then said that this course of action is only acceptable when the answer has to be given within a certain time period. “If this was an open mandate we would have let it go. The cabinet has accepted the mistakes that we pointed out,” he added.

The attorney general then submitted the documents pertaining to yesterday’s decisions by the federal cabinet to the court.

The court then adjourned the hearing till 1pm.

After the resumption of the hearing after the break, CJP Khosa remarked that it would be better if the court reviews the Army Act and rules to understand the legal point of view behind the appointment of the army chief.

Justice Mansoor Ali Shah asked if under Article 243 a retired individual can be appointed as the army chief. To this, the attorney general replied that the army chief has been appointed under the 1975 convention.

Justice Shah then stated that there was clarity that the prime minster has the right to appoint an army chief. He told the attorney general that the problem could be resolved if a clear answer was given whether a retired army chief can be re-appointed or not.

The CJP wondered that the Army act does not introduce a commissioned officer. To this, AG Khan responded that a high ranking officer was called a commissioned officer. The CJP then remarked that there was a problem somewhere and that they were trying to understand where the problem lay.

Justice Mansoor asked where it was written that a good officer could be given an extension. The attorney general replied that rule 176 had clarified this. However, the judge remarked that rule 176 only had rules and does not talk about giving extension to a good officer.

The CJP remarked that an army officer takes oath that he will give his life if it comes to it, adding that this was a big thing. He also said that the oath also says “I will not get myself involved in any political matters”, which is also a good thing if followed.

Justice Shah then inquired if there was mention of the years of service of any officer in the Army Act?

To this the attorney general told the court the terms for employment were mentioned in the rules, not in the Army Act.

Responding to the attorney general’s reply, Justice Khosa said there was no mention of the terms and reappointment in the Army Act, neither was there any mention of the extension of the army chief's term in the Army Act.

The top judge added that the government can retire any army officer, including a Field Marshal. “The government can voluntarily or forcibly retire,” he said.

To this the AG Khan said there was no mention of any period.

Justice Khosa further remarked that COAS is also an adviser to the government on military affairs. He is also responsible for discipline in the army. “We are looking into all the regulations,” he added.

The CJP asked General Bajwa’s lawyer, Farogh Naseem, if the army chief will retire tomorrow (on Thursday), adding that according to the AG’ a general never retires’.

“In your opinion, can a former army chief also be appointed as COAS?” the SC CJP said.

“As per the attorney general and the definition of article 243, even he [the AG] can appoint the army chief” Justice Mansoor Ali Shah remarked. If the federal government doesn’t appoint an army chief, how can it grant him an extension, Justice Shah opined.

“If the duration/tenure is over, does that mean that the army chief can be considered retired?” To which the attorney general replied that there was no age limit to a general’s retirement.

“That means that any retired military officer can be appointed army chief,” observed Justice Shah. “Where does it say that a COAS has to be from the army?”

The attorney general stated that General Bajwa will retire tomorrow night.

“Then this case must be decided on an urgent basis,” said the CJP.

On Tuesday, the federal cabinet met twice and reviewed the situation arising out of the Supreme Court’s order, which suspended the notification extending the tenure of the army chief.

The cabinet, in its second meeting, amended Rule 255 of the Army Regulation. It then prepared a new summary for the extension and sent it to President Arif Alvi for approval.

During today’s hearing, the court noted that the prime minister had on his own passed an order reappointing the current chief of army staff for a second term on August 19, whereas under Article 243 of the constitution, it is the president who is the appointing authority.

Suspension of the notification

The government on August 19 had reappointment General Bajwa, extending his tenure for three years, citing the “regional security environment”. However, on Tuesday, the supreme court suspended the notification and issued notices to the federal government, General Bajwa through the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Law.

The court made the army chief a respondent to the petition and held that the operation of the impugned order/notification in respect of extension/re-appointment of General Bajwa for another term in the said office will remain suspended.

The attorney general had admitted in court that according to Regulation No 255 of the Army Regulations (Rules), the retirement of an army officer can temporarily be suspended or limited. The court, however, observed that a bare perusal of Regulation No 255 prima facie shows that the said provision can be invoked after an officer has already retired from service.

The court also observed that after the approval of the cabinet, regarding extension/re-appointment of the incumbent chief of army staff, the matter was never sent to the prime minister or the president again for fresh advice.