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The parliament's five-year term is due to expire on Aug. 12, but this move would dissolve it three days earlier. "I will tonight advise the president to dissolve the parliament," the premier told parliament. He said he would start discussions with the opposition leader on Thursday to pick a name from candidate lists of both sides to nominate as caretaker prime minister. The vote, however, could be delayed several months with the election commission set to start redrawing hundreds of constituencies based on a fresh census. The last general election in July 2018 was won by the party of cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan, who was sworn in days later as prime minister for the first time.

Persons: Shehbaz Sharif, Arif Alvi, Imran Khan, Khan, Sharif, Asif Shahzad, Gibran Peshimam, Andrew Heavens, Bernadette Baum Organizations: Pakistan, International Monetary Fund, Thomson Locations: ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Islamabad, Karachi

[1/2] Rescue workers and other people transport an injured person to the hospital, after a blast in Bajaur district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan July 30, 2023. Rescue 1122/Handout via REUTERSDERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan, July 30 (Reuters) - At least 40 people were killed and over 130 injured when a suicide bomber set off explosives at a political rally in Pakistan's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Sunday, police said. The provincial police chief Akhtar Hayat told Reuters the explosion was caused by a suicide bomb. "The JUI-F organised a workers convention in Khar town of Bajaur in which 40 people lost their lives and more than 130 were injured," Khan said. Pakistan has seen a resurgence of attacks by Islamist militants since last year when a ceasefire between the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Islamabad broke down.

Persons: DERA ISMAIL, Fazl, Akhtar Hayat, Nazir Khan, Khan, Zabihullah Mujahid, Shehbaz Sharif, Saud Mehsud, Dera Ismail Khan, Jibran Ahmad, Nilutpal, Gibran Peshimam, Andrew Cawthorne, Christina Fincher Organizations: Sunday, Ulema, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Bajaur district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Bajaur, Afghanistan, Peshawar, Khar, Taliban Pakistan, Islamabad, Islamic State

☆ IMF board approves Pakistan bailout programme
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

July 12 (Reuters) - The board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved a $3 billion, nine-month bailout programme for Pakistan on Wednesday, the IMF said. Pakistan and the Fund had reached a staff level agreement late last month, securing much-needed funding for the cash-strapped country. Reporting by Gibran Peshimam and Juby Babu; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan and Chizu NomiyamaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Gibran Peshimam, Juby Babu, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: International Monetary Fund, Pakistan, Fund, Thomson Locations: Pakistan

☆ Pakistan's Imran Khan expresses support for bailout deal in IMF meeting
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Hammad Azhar, a former finance minister under Khan, who attended the meeting virtually, said in a post on Twitter that the former premier and his economic team had discussed last week's staff-level deal between the IMF and Pakistan's government. The new deal, which will be vital to help stabilise Pakistan's struggling $350 billion economy, will be taken up for approval by the IMF board on July 12. Khan's government deviated from agreements under an earlier IMF programme days before he was ousted in a parliamentary vote last year, leading to a delay in the implementation of the programme and increased economic uncertainty. The meeting is the highest profile engagement for Khan and his the PTI since he was ousted from power less than four years into his five-year term. Many of Khan's key aides remain under arrest and many others, like Azhar, are in hiding.

Persons: Khan, Imran Khan, Hammad Azhar, Azhar, Nathan Porter, Esther Perez Ruiz, Shehbaz Sharif, Gibran Peshimam, William Maclean, David Holmes Organizations: International Monetary Fund, IMF, Twitter, Mission, Khan's, PTI, Thomson Locations: KARACHI, Pakistan, Lahore

☆ Families of missing in Greece migrant boat disaster plead for recovery of bodies
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( Karolina Tagaris | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/4] Adil Hussain, 44, from Pakistan, whose brother Matloob, 43, went missing after a deadly migrant shipwreck off the coast of Greece last month, cries during an interview with Reuters in Athens, Greece, July 4, 2023. If they are dead, take them out," Adil Hussain said, urging Greece to hire a vessel to recover them. Lawyers representing families of the missing plan on Thursday to ask judicial authorities investigating the case for the boat to be retrieved. Survivors have said that the ship capsized after a disastrous towing attempt by the Greek coast guard, which Greece denies. A spokeswoman for Pakistan's Foreign Office, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, said bodies would be transported to Pakistan upon verification and release by the Greek authorities.

Persons: Adil Hussain, Matloob, Stelios Misinas, Matloob Hussain, Adil, Hussain, we'll, Takis Zotos, Zotos, Alam Shinwari, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, Muhammad Ayub, Muhammad Yasin, Lefteris Papadimas, Renee Maltezou, Gibran Peshimam, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: Reuters, REUTERS, Titanic, Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency, FIA, Pakistan's Foreign, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: Pakistan, Greece, Athens, Stelios Misinas ATHENS, Syria, Egypt, Libya, Italy, Pylos, Turkey, Islamabad

☆ Hague court rejects India's objections over water treaty arbitration
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

AMSTERDAM/NEW DELHI, July 6 (Reuters) - The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in the Hague rejected on Thursday India's objections to a Pakistan-initiated procedure over water use in the Indus River basin, reopening a procedure that had been blocked for many years. India called the arbitration proceeding illegal as a neutral expert was also looking at the issue and the World Bank-brokered treaty prohibits parallel proceedings. India has boycotted The Hague court proceedings and questioned the competence of the court. A spokesperson for India's foreign ministry, Arindam Bagchi, said India's "consistent and principled position has been that the constitution of this so-called court of arbitration is in contravention of the clear letter and spirit of the Indus Water Treaty". Pakistan's Foreign Office said that it remained fully committed to the implementation of the Indus Water Treaty and its settlement mechanism, which it termed a "foundational agreement" between the two countries.

Persons: Hague, Arindam Bagchi, Bagchi, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, Krishn Kaushik, Gibran Peshimam, Richard Chang, Kim Coghill Organizations: AMSTERDAM, World Bank, Ratle Hydro, GV De, Thomson Locations: DELHI, Pakistan, India, Hague, Pakistan's, Amsterdam, New Delhi, Karachi

☆ Pakistan expects heavy monsoon rain raising risk of floods
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ISLAMABAD, July 3 (Reuters) - Heavy monsoon rain is expected to hit Pakistan on Monday and last for several days, the weather office said, raising the risk of flooding in areas still recovering from a devastating deluge last year. Heavy thunder and rain was expected from Monday evening in the capital, Islamabad, as well as in the cities of Lahore and Peshawar, spreading to other areas until Saturday, the Pakistan Meteorological Department said. The weather office warned that flooding was possible in low-lying areas of Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Peshawar, Gujranwala, and Lahore, with the risk of flash floods in hilly western areas late this week. Pakistan has received commitments of more than $9 billion from international donors to help recover from last year's floods with rebuilding efforts estimated to cost about $16.3 billion. Reporting by Asif Shahzad, Gibran Peshimam; writing by Shivam Patel; editing by Robert BirselOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Asif Shahzad, Gibran Peshimam, Shivam Patel, Robert Birsel Organizations: Pakistan, Pakistan Meteorological Department, Thomson Locations: ISLAMABAD, Islamabad, Lahore, Peshawar, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Pakistan

☆ Factbox: What Pakistan needs to do under the IMF programme
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

KARACHI, Pakistan, June 30 (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund and Pakistan have struck a staff-level agreement for the provision on $3 billion in bailout funds under a stand-by arrangement (SBA). The deal comes under an SBA instead of Pakistan's Extended Fund Facility (EFF) programme that the country entered in 2019 and which was set to expire on Friday. MORE FUNDING- Despite the larger than expected IMF bailout, the agreement stressed that Pakistan will have to continue to mobilise multilateral and bilateral financial support. Over $9 billion in climate-related pledges were made to help Pakistan recover from devastating floods in 2022. - Pakistan needs $22 billion to fund its external payment obligations, including international debt servicing, in the financial year 2024, that starts on Saturday, July 1, and ends on June 30, 2024.

Persons: Gibran Peshimam, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Monetary Fund, SBA, IMF, EFF, United Arab Emirates, Thomson Locations: KARACHI, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, China

☆ Pakistan's economic meltdown spurs more people to risk lives to reach Europe
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +9 min

He is missing and presumed dead, according to his brother, highlighting the perils faced by people who seek to enter Europe illegally. Cash-strapped Pakistan's $350 billion economy is in a meltdown, with inflation at a record 38%. Pakistan's information ministry did not respond to questions from Reuters about economic factors fuelling migration. 3 nationality registered in Italy coming from Libya, after Egyptians and Bangladeshis, a Frontex spokesperson told Reuters in an email. At least 209 Pakistanis were believed to be on board, according to official data based on information provided by relatives.

Persons: Muhammad Sarwar Bhatti, Hameed Iqbal Bhatti, Salahuddin, Bhatti, Hafeez Pasha, Muhammad Nadeem, Nadeem, Kosar Bibi, Bibi, Sarwar Warraich, Muhammad Zubair, Muhammad Nazim, Nazim, Muhammad Ali, Anish Raza, Haji Ilyas, Ilyas, puffing, Israr Mirza, Mirza, Gibran Peshimam, Ariba Shahid, David Crawshaw Organizations: Reuters, REUTERS, Cash, Federal Investigation Agency, FIA, OF, International Monetary Fund, Migrant Resource Centre, College, Thomson Locations: Greece, Khuiratta, Pakistan, Kashmir, Saudi Arabia, Europe, Libya, Italy, Gujrat, Italian, Ferrara, Turkey, Bhojpur, Gujrat district, Spain, EU, Lahore, Islamabad

In Pakistan, authorities said more than 300 of its nationals died in the tragedy, but did not specify how they received the information. The Federal Investigation Agency of Pakistan in a statement Tuesday said that 88 people have officially been registered as missing by family members. Last week, Greek authorities denied claims that the boat had capsized after the coast guard attempted to tow it to shore. Migrants rest in a shelter, following a rescue operation, after their boat capsized at open sea, in Kalamata, Greece, June 14, 2023. “This is what they’re doing and it’s absolutely necessary to prevent it.”Migrants arrive at the port of Kalamata, following a rescue operation, after their boat capsized at open sea, in Kalamata, Greece, June 14, 2023.

Persons: Adriana, Saeed Anwar, Abdul Jabbar, selfie, Gibran Peshimam, Jabbar, Anwar, ” Anwar, “, ”, Tarek Aldroobi, Stelios Misinas, Raja Aqeel, Aqeel, Home Affairs Ylva Johansson, Johansson Organizations: Kashmir CNN, Federal Investigation Agency of Pakistan, Union, CNN, United Nations Migration Agency, Authorities, Reuters, Home Affairs, ”, Eurokinissi, Reuters Authorities, Human Rights Locations: Bandali, Pakistan, Kashmir, Greece, Europe, Khuiratta, Italy, Libya, East, Asia, Africa, Kalamata, Islamabad, Lahore, Gujrat, Gujranwala, Rawalpindi

KARACHI, June 14 (Reuters) - Shell Pakistan (SHEL.PSX) said on Wednesday that its parent company, Shell (SHEL.L) unit Shell Petroleum Company, would be exiting Pakistan with the sale of its 77% shareholding in the in the local business. The move came after Shell Pakistan (SPL) suffered losses in 2022 due to exchange rates, the devaluation of the Pakistani rupee, and overdue receivables, and as the country faces a financial crisis and economic slowdown. "To support its intention to high-grade and simplify its portfolio, Shell Petroleum Company Ltd... has initiated a sales process to sell its 77.42% shareholding in Shell Pakistan Ltd," a spokesperson for Shell Pakistan said in an email to Reuters. That includes "all of SPL’s Downstream businesses and SPL’s 26% ownership of Pak-Arab Pipeline Company Ltd (PAPCO)," the spokesperson added. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl/File PhotoIt said in the notice that Shell Petroleum Company had notified its board of directors of its intention to sell the holding in a meeting on June 14.

Persons: Morteza, Shell, Wael Sawan, Ariba Shahid, Sakshi Dayal, Gibran Peshimam, David Evans, Jan Harvey, Kirsten Donovan Organizations: Shell Pakistan, Shell, Shell Petroleum Company, Shell Petroleum Company Ltd, Shell Pakistan Ltd, Reuters, Arab Pipeline Company, Pakistan Stock Exchange, REUTERS, Thomson Locations: KARACHI, Pakistan, Nowshera, Pakistan's, Khyber, Pakhtunkhwa Province, Bukom, Jurong, Singapore

Discounted crude offers respite as Pakistan faces an acute balance of payments crisis, risking a default on its debt obligations. The first cargo of discounted Russian crude oil arranged under a new deal struck between Islamabad and Moscow earlier this year arrived in Karachi on Sunday. Pakistan's Refinery Limited (PRL) will initially refine the Russian crude, the minister said. Malik on Monday played down concerns around the financial viability and concerns about the ability of local refineries to process Russian crude given the South Asian country's historical importation of Middle Eastern petroleum products. "No adjustments (were) needed at the refinery to refine the Russian crude," the minister told Reuters.

Persons: Florence Lo, Malik Says, Musadik Malik, Pakistan's, Malik, Ariba Shahid, Asif Shahzad, Shilpa Jamkhandikar, Gibran, Philippa Fletcher, Toby Chopra Organizations: REUTERS, ., Karachi . Petroleum, Pakistan, Moscow, Pakistan's Refinery, Monday, Reuters, Energy, United, United Arab Emirates, Thomson Locations: Moscow, Islamabad, ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Karachi, Russia, India, China, Ukraine, Saudi Arabia, United Arab

☆ Watched by IMF, Pakistan to present budget amid economic, political crises
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/4] A labourer waits for work while sitting beside push trollies outside a market in Karachi, Pakistan June 8, 2023. Against the backcloth of this political drama, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar is set to deliver his budget speech to parliament after 4:00 pm (1100 GMT) on Friday. Some budget figures were announced earlier this week, including development spending of 1,150 billion Pakistani rupees ($4 billion), and an economic growth target of 3.5% for the coming fiscal year. On Thursday, the International Monetary Fund said that it has been discussing the budget with Pakistan. Pakistan missed almost all of its economic targets set in the last budget, most notably its growth target, which was initially set at 5%, revised down to 2% earlier this year.

Persons: Akhtar Soomro, Shehbaz, Imran Khan, Ishaq Dar, Esther Perez Ruiz, Khan, Gibran Peshimam, Simon Cameron, Moore Organizations: REUTERS, IMF, Reuters, International Monetary Fund, Pakistan, Thomson Locations: Karachi, Pakistan, Akhtar Soomro ISLAMABAD

Finance Minister Ishaq Dar announced the target during his budget speech to the national legislature. The deficit target for the fiscal year ending this month had been revised higher, from a previous projection of 4.9%. The government had prepared "a responsible budget, not an election budget", Dar said. The total spending target would be 14.46 trillion rupees ($50.45 billion), Dar said, with 1.8 trillion rupees going to defence. It would target net external financing of 2,527 billion rupees for the fiscal year ending in June 2024 of which 1,601 billion rupees would come via commercial and Eurobond borrowing.

Persons: Akhtar Soomro, Ishaq Dar, Dar, Shehbaz Sharif, Shahbaz Ashraf, Mustafa Pasha, Asif Shahzad, Gibran Peshimam, Shahid, Charlotte Greenfield, Louise Heavens, Mark Heinrich, Mark Potter, Sriraj Organizations: REUTERS, IMF, Finance, Pakistan, FRIM Ventures, Lakson Investments, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Karachi, Pakistan, IMF ISLAMABAD

June 8 (Reuters) - Pakistan is likely to post GDP growth of 0.29% in the fiscal year ending June 2023, the country's economic survey released on Thursday said, well below the target of 5% set last year. Finance Minister Ishaq Dar told a news conference on the annual report that 0.29% GDP growth was a "realistic achievement" and anything higher was not achievable. Average year-on-year inflation rate for the period up to May 2023 was recorded at 29.2%, the survey found. In April and May, the country's inflation hit record levels, which were also the highest in Asia. Remittances of money sent from relatives abroad were down 13% for the FY23 until April, to $22.7 billion.

Persons: Ishaq Dar, Ariba Shahid, Asif Shahzad, Gibran Peshimam, Sakshi Dayal, Sudipto Ganguly, Barbara Lewis Organizations: International Monetary Fund . Finance, Thomson Locations: Pakistan, Asia

☆ Pakistan's embattled Imran Khan faces blackout on local media
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) asked television licensees to ensure that "hate mongers, rioters, their facilitators and perpetrators" are "completely screened out from media". Khan has long been the most televised politician in Pakistan, with his speeches and gatherings getting wall-to-wall coverage and widespread viewership. The military has not responded to a request for comment on that allegation by Khan. Khan himself was arrested on charges of graft but released two days later after courts deemed the manner of his detention illegal. "We cannot be mentioned on television," said Khan, who now regularly speaks through his party's YouTube channel.

Persons: Imran Khan, Khan, Dissanayake, Gibran Peshimam, Charlotte Greenfield, Alex Richardson Organizations: Reuters, Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority, YouTube, South, Amnesty International, Thomson Locations: ISLAMABAD, Pakistan

☆ Pakistan's Imran Khan openly accuses military of trying to destroy his party
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/5] Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan pauses as he speaks with Reuters during an interview, in Lahore, Pakistan March 17, 2023. A bruising year-long standoff between Khan, Pakistan's most popular leader according to polls, and the army came to a head when military buildings and property were ransacked last month, allegedly by his supporters. "I have absolutely no doubt that the military courts are meant for me," said Khan, who is out on bail. Amnesty International says Pakistan's military courts have previously shown disregard for due process, lack of transparency, coerced confessions and executions after unfair trials. Munir was later selected as the country's top general by Khan's successor and political rival, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Persons: Imran Khan, Akhtar Soomro, Khan, Asim Munir, Munir, Pakistan's, Shehbaz Sharif, who's, Gibran Peshimam, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Pakistani, Reuters, REUTERS, Authorities, Amnesty, military's Inter Services Intelligence, PTI, ISI, Thomson Locations: Lahore, Pakistan, LAHORE

ISLAMABAD, May 18 (Reuters) - Pakistan's powerful anti-corruption agency has summoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan for questioning on Thursday into the graft charges that led to his arrest on May 9. It was not clear if Khan, who denies the charges, would heed the summons. A spokesman for Khan's party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, was not immediately available for a comment. The Supreme Court ordered Khan's release on bail last Friday, and another court on Wednesday extended his protective bail until May 31. Punjab's information minister Amir Mir said the government did not have any plans to arrest Khan as he had been given bail by court.

☆ Pakistan court grants bail to former PM Imran Khan's wife in graft case - lawyer
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Mubasher Bukhari | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LAHORE, Pakistan, May 15 (Reuters) - A Pakistani court in the eastern city of Lahore on Monday granted bail until May 23 to former Prime Minister Imran Khan's wife in a graft case, a lawyer in their legal team said. He was later released and received bail from a court in Islamabad for two weeks. Khan's wife, Bushra Bibi, was co-accused along with Khan in the case, which pertained to the alleged receiving of financial help from a land developer in the setting-up of Al Qadir University of which the former premier and his spouse are trustees. "We had requested for a protective bail for Bushra Bibi in Al Qadir Trust Case and a two-judge bench of LHC has granted the bail till May 23," Bibi's lawyer, Intizar Hussain Panjutha, told Reuters. The government denies being behind the case and says the anti-graft agency, the National Accountability Bureau, is working independently.

☆ Pakistan's external financing requirements for IMF deal unchanged - IMF
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-14 | by ( Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

KARACHI, May 14 (Reuters) - Pakistan's external financing requirements have not been changed in talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) over bailout funds, the IMF Resident Representative in Pakistan said, denying local media reports that the Fund was seeking fresh financing. Pérez Ruiz said that external funding requirements had not changed throughout the discussions, under a review that would unlock $1.1 billion in financing for the cash-strapped South Asian nation as part of a $6.5 billion IMF package. On Thursday, the Fund reiterated that obtaining commitments on external financing from friendly countries would be essential before the IMF approves the release of bailout funds. IMF Resident Representative Pérez Ruiz said that Pakistani authorities committed to the IMF during last month's spring meetings that they would not introduce the cross-subsidy scheme in fiscal year 2023 or beyond. "The announced fuel cross-subsidy scheme raises new quasi-fiscal and balance of payments risks, and it is amenable to fraud," she said, in a separate text message to Reuters.

☆ Supporters of Pakistan ex-PM Khan plan march to capital to protest arrest
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Khan was arrested from the Islamabad High Court on Tuesday by Pakistan's anti-corruption agency. Police said a court hearing would take place at the police guest house where he is being held. Supporters in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province were asked to gather early on Wednesday in Swabi city to leave for Islamabad as part of a convoy, the party wrote on Twitter. Party leaders asked workers to continue protests but not take the "law in their hands", according to messages shared on Twitter by on Wednesday. Reporting by Gibran Peshimam and Shivam Patel; Editing by Raju GopalakrishnanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Factbox: Imran Khan's arrest adds to Pakistan's economic, political challenges
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

May 9 (Reuters) - The arrest of former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and the call from his party for nationwide protests present another blow to the nuclear-armed country struggling with an economic crisis. The South Asian nation of 220 million people is running out of dollars, inflation is running at over 36% and an expected IMF bailout has been delayed by months. POLITICAL PRESSUREKhan, arrested for alleged corruption and ousted as prime minister last year, had been ratcheting up pressure on the government through a sustained political campaign as he vied to return to power. Authorities had made several attempts to arrest Khan since March, which had resulted in clashes between his supporters and law enforcement personnel. Khan's arrest came a day after the military issued a rare statement denouncing him for making allegations against a serving officer.

☆ Elephant in Pakistan zoo dies, reviving concern over animal treatment
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

KARACHI, Pakistan, April 22 (Reuters) - Noor Jehan, an elephant in Pakistan's Karachi Zoo whose illness revived criticisms of the nation's zoos, died on Saturday despite frantic efforts to treat her, officials said. The critically ill 17-year-old elephant had fallen into a pond this month and been unable to get up without help. The director of the Karachi Zoo was removed this month over complaints of negligence. A court in 2020 ordered the closure of the Islamabad Zoo, where the elephant Kaavan was kept. Khalil said Karachi Zoo did not meet international standards and urged that Madhubala, the healthy elephant remaining at the zoo, be relocated to a more species-appropriate place to give her a chance at a better life.

☆ Four killed in blast targeting police vehicle in Pakistan's Quetta
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Gul Yousafzai | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

QUETTA, Pakistan, April 10 (Reuters) - Four people were killed and fifteen injured in a bombing targeting a police vehicle in a marketplace in the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta on Monday, a hospital official said. "The injured numbers reached fifteen, and four dead,” Wasim Baig, a spokesperson for the Quetta hospital, told Reuters. He said initial reports showed an improvised explosive device was planted in a motorcycle parked behind the vehicle. Two police officers who were sitting in the vehicle were among the dead, SSP operations Zohaib Mohsin Baloch said. Reporting by Gul Yousafzai in Quetta, Gibran Peshimam; Writing by Sakshi Dayal and Gibran Peshimam; Editing by Toby Chopra and Jan HarveyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Pakistan fin min: canceled trip to Washington on prime minister's orders
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

KARACHI, Pakistan, April 8 (Reuters) - Pakistan Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Saturday said he had canceled his trip to Washington for the spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank on the orders of the prime minister due to the political situation in the country. Dar said he would attend important attend bilateral and multilateral meetings virtually and a Pakistani delegation would be present in Washington. The minister played down reports of the canceled trip being linked to a holdup in Pakistan's IMF bailout programme. Reporting by Gibran Peshimam; Editing by Toby ChopraOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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