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☆ Pakistan's Civil, Military Leaders to Review Iran Standoff -Minister
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-19 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

By Asif ShahzadISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan's top civilian and military leaders will carry out a security review on Friday regarding the standoff with neighbouring Iran, the information minister said, following their strikes on each other with drones and missiles. Pakistan's Thursday strikes on separatist militants inside Iran were a retaliatory attack two days after Tehran said it struck the bases of another group within Pakistani territory. Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar ul Haq Kakar will chair a meeting of the National Security Committee at which the review is to be done, with all the services chiefs in attendance. It aims at a "broad national security review in the aftermath of the Iran-Pakistan incidents," the minister, Murtaza Solangi, told Reuters by telephone. (Reporting by Asif Shahzad; Writing by Sudipto Ganguly; Editing by Christopher Cushing)

Persons: Asif Shahzad, Anwaar ul Haq, Murtaza Solangi, Sudipto Ganguly, Christopher Cushing Organizations: Caretaker, National Security, Reuters Locations: Asif Shahzad ISLAMABAD, Iran, Tehran, Pakistan, Israel

☆ Watch CNBC's full interview with Pakistan's caretaker prime minister ahead of elections in February
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailWatch CNBC's full interview with Pakistan's caretaker prime minister ahead of elections in FebruaryAnwaar-ul-Haq Kakar, Pakistan’s caretaker prime minister, speaks to CNBC’s Dan Murphy in a wide-ranging interview about the economic outlook for the country, the upcoming election and former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s charges.

Persons: Haq Kakar, CNBC’s Dan Murphy, Imran Khan’s

☆ Security in Pakistan requires a 'regional approach,' caretaker PM says
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-16 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailSecurity in Pakistan requires a 'regional approach,' caretaker PM saysAnwaar-ul-Haq Kakar, Pakistan’s caretaker prime minister, says there is a requirement of a regional approach for security in Pakistan.

Persons: Haq Kakar Organizations: Security Locations: Pakistan, regional

☆ Pakistan PM says expulsion of Afghans a response to Taliban non-cooperation
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Last month, Pakistan set a Nov. 1 start date for the expulsion of all undocumented immigrants, including hundreds of thousands of Afghans. Kakar said 15 suicide bombings in recent months had been carried out by Afghans, and dozens of Afghans had been killed in clashes with Pakistani security forces. A spokesman for the Taliban administration did not immediately respond to a request for comment. There has been a resurgence of attacks by Islamist militants in Pakistan since talks between Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the Pakistani state broke down in 2022. Kakar said that Pakistan had communicated to the Taliban administration that it had to "choose between Pakistan and the TTP".

Persons: Anwar ul Haq Kakar, Kakar, Gibran Peshimam, Alex Richardson Organizations: United Nations, Caretaker, Taliban, Thomson Locations: Afghan, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Balochistan Province, Chaman, ISLAMABAD, Western, Islamabad, U.S, Tehreek, Taliban Pakistan, Pakistani

☆ China Ready to Boost Pakistan Ties but Urges Security Guarantee -Xi
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-20 | by ( Oct. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

BEIJING (Reuters) - China is willing to strengthen co-operation and promote solidarity with Pakistan but has urged it to guarantee the safety of Chinese organisations and personnel working there, China's foreign ministry said, quoting President Xi Jinping. China is a major ally and investor in Pakistan but both separatist and Islamist militants have attacked Chinese projects over recent years, killing Chinese personnel. "We hope the Pakistani side will guarantee the safety of Chinese institutions and personnel in Pakistan," the ministry cited Xi as telling Kakar. Separatist insurgents in Pakistan's resource-rich Balochistan province say China has ignored warnings not to enter deals with the Pakistani government. China has also warned of the danger or Islamist militants in Pakistan.

Persons: Xi Jinping, Xi, Anwar ul Haq Kakar, Kakar, countries.China, Liz Lee, Robert Birsel Organizations: Initiative, Wednesday Pakistan, Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, Separatist Locations: BEIJING, China, Pakistan, Beijing, Pakistani, Balochistan

☆ Pakistan joins China's club of lunar base partners
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Pakistan has joined China's expanding club of partners in an ambitious project to build a research station on the moon's south pole. Jointly with Chinese Premier Li Qiang, Pakistan's caretaker Prime Minister Anwar ul Haq Kakar witnessed the signing of an initial cooperation agreement in Beijing on Wednesday. The China National Space Administration said on Friday cooperation would cover areas including the engineering and operational aspects of the Chinese lunar base programme. China, which aims to become a major space power by 2030, has already secured cooperation from Russia, Venezuela and South Africa. It has fixed a target to land its astronauts on the moon by the end of this decade.

Persons: Chinese Premier Li Qiang, Anwar ul Haq Kakar, Ryan Woo, Deborah Kyvrikosaios Organizations: Chinese Premier, China National Space Administration, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, Pakistan, Beijing, China, Russia, Venezuela, South Africa, U.S

Quetta, Pakistan CNN —At least 52 people were killed and dozens more wounded in what authorities believe was a suicide attack at a religious procession in southwest Pakistan Friday. Local police told CNN two explosions had occurred at the mosque in Hangu, causing its roof to collapse and potentially trapping worshipers inside. People gather outside the Mastung hospital, following the deadly attack, on September 29, 2023. One of the attackers then detonated an explosive close to the mosque’s entrance, while the other detonated one inside the building, local police officer Saaleh Muhammad told CNN. Muhammad told CNN that while most worshipers fled during the shootings, some had remained inside as the mosque’s roof collapsed.

Persons: Prophet Mohammed, Jan Achakzai, Shaheed Nawab Ghous Bakhsh, Atta Ul Munim, Abdul Rasheed, Ul Munim, Achakzai, Anwar, Haq Kakar, Arshad Butt, Saaleh Muhammad, Muhammad Organizations: Pakistan CNN —, CNN, Local, Reuters, ” Police Locations: Quetta, Pakistan, Mastung, restive Balochistan, Balochistan, Pakistan’s, Peshawar City, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Hangu, Karachi

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Pakistan’s interim prime minister said he expects parliamentary elections to take place in the new year, dismissing the possibility that the country’s powerful military would manipulate the results to ensure that jailed former premier Imran Khan’s party doesn’t win. Kakar resigned as a senator last month after outgoing Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and opposition leader Raza Riaz chose him as caretaker prime minister to oversee the elections and run the day-to-day affairs until a new government is elected. “The most important player in this dispute is the Kashmir people," Kakar said. “It is neither India or Pakistan,” but the Kashmiri people who "have to decide about their identity" and their future. It’s just a divine blessing.”By law, he can’t contest the elections when he’s interim prime minister, but Kakar said in the future he hopes “to play a constructive political role in my society.”

Persons: —, Imran Khan’s, Haq Kakar, Khan, Kakar, Shehbaz Sharif, Raza Riaz, ”, ” Kakar, Imran Khan, I’m, that’s, — Kakar, Karar, “ Organizations: UNITED NATIONS, Associated Press, United Nations, NATO, Taliban, Islamic Locations: Pakistan, Kashmir, India, “, Ukraine, Europe, North America, Afghanistan, Islamic State, Kabul, Pakistan's

[1/2] Lawyers, some of them look on television screen, dispaying the live broadcast of the proceeding from the Supreme Court of Pakistan, at the Sindh High Court Bar Association in Karachi, Pakistan September 18, 2023. The move marks the beginning of the tenure of new Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa as Pakistan's top judge. Isa's first move as the top judge was to open proceedings for live broadcast. "It is a majority consensus decision to telecast live," Isa said at the start of proceedings shown live by state-run broadcaster Pakistan Television. Previous attempts to broadcast proceedings live had been blocked by the court.

Persons: Akhtar Soomro, Qazi Faez Isa, Isa, Umar Ata Bandial, Isa's, Shehbaz Sharif, Anwar ul Haq Kakar, Imran Khan, Faiz Hameed, Asif Shahzad, Mark Potter Organizations: Court Bar Association, REUTERS, Rights, Pakistan Television, Inter - Services Intelligence, Former, Thomson Locations: Pakistan, Sindh, Karachi, Rights ISLAMABAD

☆ Pakistan's interim PM says Saudi Arabia to invest $25 bln over next five years
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-04 | by ( Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

There was no immediate response to a Reuters request to the Saudi Arabian government for comment on Kakar's remarks. If confirmed, a series of investments worth $25 billion would be the biggest ever by the kingdom in Pakistan. Pakistan's state owned enterprises have long been an area of concern with bleeding financials adding to financial stress. Recently Pakistan added struggling state-run Pakistan International Airlines to the privatisation list again. Reporting by Gibran Peshimam; Additional reporting by Aziz El Yaakoubi in Riyadh; Editing by William MacleanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Akhtar Soomro, Anwaar, Haq Kakar, Kakar, Gibran Peshimam, Aziz El Yaakoubi, William Maclean Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, International Monetary Fund, Barrick Gold Corp, Pakistan's, Barrick, Pakistan International Airlines, Thomson Locations: Karachi, Pakistan, Rights ISLAMABAD, Saudi Arabia, Saudi, Saudi Arabian, Riyadh, Balochistan

Children receive first aid after they were rescued from the stranded chairlift, in Battagram, Pakistan August 22, 2023. "I can't tell you what we experienced yesterday when one cable of the cable car suddenly snapped and we were stranded in the air," said Faraz, who at 20 years old was the only adult aboard, and the only person with a cell phone. The journey by cable car usually took just a matter of minutes, whereas travelling on the rough mountain roads and tracks takes hours. "Our first priority was to secure the children," caretaker Prime Minister Anwar ul Haq Kakar said, describing the feat as "near impossible". Those prayers were answered for Faraz and the children.

Persons: Gul Faraz, Faraz, Anwar ul Haq Kakar, Kakar, Mushtaq Ali n, Asif Shahzad, Simon Cameron, Moore, Andrew Heavens Organizations: REUTERS Acquire, Commandos, Geo, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Battagram, Pakistan, PESHAWAR, Jhangri, Battangi, Karachi, Mushtaq Ali n Peshawar, Islamabad

Islamabad, Pakistan CNN —Battling anxiety and nausea, they huddled together in the ruptured cable car, gripped by fear as they dangled precariously hundreds of feet in the air. A soldier slings down from a helicopter during a rescue mission to recover students stuck in a cable car in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan on August 22. As they waited to be rescued, two of the students in the cable car were slipping in and out of consciousness, one of the passengers told Pakistani outlet Geo News. Battagram district, where the cable car is located, is deeply impoverished and lacks infrastructure and development. Last December, 12 children were rescued from another cable car in eastern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Persons: Tanveer Ur Rehman, “, Anwaar ul Haq Kakar Organizations: Pakistan CNN, AFP, Geo, Battagram, Twitter, Cable Locations: Islamabad, Pakistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Batangi, Battagram, Battagram district

Islamabad, Pakistan CNN —An urgent rescue effort is underway in Pakistan for eight children and two adults trapped in a chairlift dangling 1,200 feet over a mountainous region in the country’s northwest. Tanveer Ur Rehman, a local Battagram district official, said rescue efforts were being conducted from the ground due to the height of the chairlift system. “The chairlift is hanging 1,200 feet (365 meters) above ground,” he said. The chairlift connects two communities in the region and runs on two cables, one of which snapped, Faizi said. Many children who live in remote and mountainous parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province rely on cable cars to ferry them to school and back.

Persons: Bilal Ahmad Faizi, Tanveer Ur Rehman, ”, Faizi, Anwar, Haq Kakar Organizations: Pakistan CNN, CNN Locations: Islamabad, Pakistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

☆ 'The fear is not going away': Christians in Pakistan afraid to return home
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( Charlotte Greenfield | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"Today was the first day of school after summer vacations but I did not send them because of fear," said their mother, Kiran. But community members and advocates say the trauma and fear will be tough to heal and their safety is not assured. Many are afraid to return home but, still in shock, do not know where to rebuild their lives. A few streets away about 240 people live in the makeshift shelter in the school along with Kanwal's family. The fear that has got embedded in my heart and my children's minds is just not going away."

Persons: Samuel, Kanwal, cradling Samuel, Kiran, Haq Kakar, Naseem Anthony, Anthony, Akmal Bhatti, Charlotte Greenfield, Mubasher Bukhari, Clarence Fernandez Organizations: Pakistan's, Police, Thomson Locations: Kanwal, Jaranwala, Faisalabad, Pakistan, Punjab, Provincial

☆ Pakistani rescuers try to free 6 kids and 2 men in a cable car dangling hundreds of feet in the air
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A cable car carrying six children and two adults dangled hundreds of meters (feet) above the ground in a remote part of Pakistan after it broke on Tuesday, trapping the occupants for hours before rescuers arrived in helicopters to try to free them. Army commandos could be seen on local TV trying to lower themselves on ropes from the choppers toward the cable car. An expert warned the rescue was incredibly delicate because the wind created by the helicopters' blades could further weaken cables holding the car aloft. "Let us pray that those trapped in the cable car are safely rescued," Sultan said. In 2017, 10 people were killed when a cable car fell into a ravine hundreds of meters (feet) deep in the popular mountain resort of Murree after its cable broke.

Persons: Taimoor Khan, Haq Kakar, Tipu Sultan, Khan, Sultan Organizations: Army, Helicopters, Twitter Locations: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, Battagram district, Murree

☆ Militant attack kills 11 labourers in Pakistan - caretaker PM
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-20 | by ( Jibran Ahmad | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PESHAWAR, Pakistan Aug 20 (Reuters) - Eleven labourers were killed in a militant attack in Northwestern Pakistan, caretaker prime minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar said on Sunday in a post on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. "They were working at an army post that is under construction ... an IED exploded under a vehicle carrying the labourers," deputy commissioner of North Waziristan, Rehan Khattak said. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the blast. Pakistan has seen a resurgence of attacks by Islamist militants since last year when a ceasefire between the Pakistani Taliban, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the government broke down. Reporting by Nilutpal Timsina and Jibran Ahmad; Writing by Charlotte Greenfield; Editing by Kim CoghillOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Haq Kakar, Rehan Khattak, Nilutpal Timsina, Jibran Ahmad, Charlotte Greenfield, Kim Coghill Organizations: Taliban, Thomson Locations: PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Northwestern Pakistan, Khyber Pakhtunkwa, Waziristan, North Waziristan, Taliban Pakistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi gestures as he speaks during an interview with Reuters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) office in Islamabad, Pakistan June 25, 2020. REUTERS/Salahuddin/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsKARACHI, Pakistan, Aug 19 (Reuters) - Pakistani opposition leader Shah Mehmood Qureshi was detained on Saturday, his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party said, just hours after he said it would challenge any delay to the country's election in the courts. Party spokesman Zulfi Bukhari told Reuters the specific reason for the detention of Qureshi, twice Pakistan's foreign minister, was not immediately clear. The outgoing government approved a new census in its final days, meaning new electoral boundaries must be drawn up by the Election Commission. IMF BAILOUTThe election commission said on Thursday that new constituencies would be finalised by Dec. 14, state television reported.

Persons: Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Salahuddin, Zulfi Bukhari, Qureshi, Bukhari, Imran Khan, Khan, Haq Kakar, Ariba Shahid, Toby Chopra, Alison Williams Organizations: Pakistan's, Reuters, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, REUTERS, Rights, PTI, IMF, Supreme, Monetary Fund, Thomson Locations: Islamabad, Pakistan, Rights KARACHI, Karachi

☆ Pakistan appoints new caretaker cabinet ahead of elections - GEO News
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

KARACHI, Aug 16 (Reuters) - Pakistan's caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar on Thursday appointed a new cabinet ahead of the national elections due in early November, broadcaster GEO News reported, citing sources. Former U.S. ambassador Jalil Abbas Jilani was named foreign minister and former central bank chief Shamshad Akhtar was appointed finance minister as part of the new caretaker cabinet, the report said. Reporting by Ariba Shahid, Writing by Blassy Boben; Editing by Toby ChopraOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Anwaar, Haq Kakar, Jalil Abbas Jilani, Shamshad Akhtar, Ariba Shahid, Blassy Boben, Toby Chopra Organizations: GEO, U.S, Thomson Locations: KARACHI

CNN —Authorities in Pakistan’s Punjab province have arrested more than 100 people after crowds descended on churches and set them on fire on Wednesday, raising concerns over the discrimination faced by religious minorities in the country. At least 17 churches have been vandalized since Wednesday, according to the National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR), a Pakistani government body. The attacks took place after a Christian man was accused of committing blasphemy and desecrating the Quran. “According to NCHR inquiry, 17 Churches in #Jaranwala have been targeted. 12 registered churches and 5 smaller, unregistered churches,” NCHR posted on X, previously known as Twitter, on Thursday.

Persons: ” NCHR, Anwaar, Haq Kakar, “, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, ” Baloch, Riina Kionka, Prophet Mohammed, Asia Bibi Organizations: CNN, Authorities, National Commission for Human Rights, ” Ministry of Foreign, ” Police, PM, European Union Locations: Pakistan’s Punjab, Pakistani, Jaranwala, Punjab, Islamabad, Faisalabad, Pakistan, EU, Lahore’s Badami Bagh

CNN —A crowd vandalized eight churches and several homes following accusations of blasphemy against Islam in Pakistan’s most populated province of Punjab on Wednesday, according to government authorities and residents, stoking tensions between local Muslim and minority Christian communities. Multiple churches including the town’s Catholic Church, the Salvation Army Church and the Pentecostal Church, as well as the local Christian colony, were also vandalized and set on fire, Talib told CNN. Religious minorities in Pakistan are vulnerable to persecution under the country's strict blasphemy laws. Pakistan is among the countries where blasphemy is a crime punishable by the death sentence. Three years earlier, a mother of five from Punjab was convicted of blasphemy and sentenced to hang, after she was accused of defiling the name of the Prophet Mohammed.

Persons: “, Prophet Mohammed, ”, Yasir Talib, Talib, Ghazanfar Majidi, ” Pakistan’s, Anwaar, Haq Kakar, Bishop, Church of Pakistan Azad Marshall, ” Marshall, ” Riina Kionka, Asia Bibi Organizations: CNN, National Commission for Human Rights, Centre for Social Justice, Catholic Church, Salvation Army Church, Pentecostal Church, Police, . District Police, AP People, Getty, Church of, European Union Locations: Pakistan’s, Punjab, Jaranwala, Pakistani, Faisalabad, Wednesday, Pakistan, AFP, Church of Pakistan, EU, Lahore’s Badami Bagh

The two Christians were accused of blasphemy, he said, adding they and family members had fled their homes. Blasphemy is punishable by death in Pakistan and though no one has ever been executed for it, numerous accused people have been lynched by outraged crowds. A Christian leader, Akmal Bhatti, said the crowd had "torched" at least five churches and looted valuables from houses that had been abandoned by their owners. Several social media posts showed some churches, houses and belongings on fire as police stood by. The mob was made up of thousands of people led by local clerics, mainly from an Islamist political party called Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan (TLP), a government source said.

Persons: Naveed Ahmad, Shakil Masih, Usman Anwar, Anwar ul Haq Kakar, Akmal Bhatti, Asif Shahzad, Angus MacSwan, Nick Macfie Organizations: Reuters, REUTERS, REUTERS Acquire, Caretaker, Thomson Locations: LAHORE, Pakistan, Jaranwala, Faisalabad, Islamabad

☆ Pakistan senator Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar named caretaker PM ahead of vote
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

A general view of the parliament building in Islamabad, Pakistan March 25, 2022. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro/File PhotoKARACHI, Pakistan Aug 12 (Reuters) - Pakistani senator Anwaar-ul-haq Kakar was named as caretaker prime minister to oversee national elections, the prime minister's office said on Saturday following a meeting between outgoing premier Shehbaz Sharif and opposition leader Raja Riaz. Reporting by Gibran Peshimam; Editing by Andrew HeavensOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Akhtar Soomro, Anwaar, haq Kakar, Sharif, Raja Riaz, Gibran Peshimam, Andrew Heavens Organizations: REUTERS, Thomson Locations: Islamabad, Pakistan, KARACHI

[1/2] A man reads a newspaper, a day after Pakistan's parliament was dissolved by the president on Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's advice, at a makeshift stall in Karachi, Pakistan August 10, 2023. As it stands, former prime minister Imran Khan, the main opposition leader, cannot fight this election. There are three main contenders to lead the next government: Khan's PTI, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) of Shehbaz Sharif and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). Three-time premier Nawaz Sharif, the brother of the outgoing prime minister and whose PML-N was the senior partner in the outgoing coalition government, is seeking a return from exile. Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, 34, the young chairman of the PPP and son of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, is another key candidate.

Persons: Shehbaz, Akhtar Soomro, Anwaar, Haq Kakar, IMRAN KHAN, Imran Khan, Khan, Nawaz Sharif, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Benazir Bhutto, Khan's jailing, Asif Shahzad, Gibran Peshimam, Raju Gopalakrishnan, Giles Elgood Organizations: REUTERS, BE, Monetary Fund, IMF, Balochistan Awami Party, WHO, PTI, Pakistan Muslim League, Nawaz, Pakistan Peoples Party, Constitutional, Thomson Locations: Karachi, Pakistan, Balochistan, Shehbaz Sharif

The Pakistani government named a caretaker prime minister on Saturday, a move that kicks off preparations for the country’s next general elections and comes amid a year of political turmoil. The close ties that the new leader, Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar, has to the country’s powerful military reinforces its dominance over Pakistan’s politics, sending a clear message: After a year of political turmoil that challenged the authority of military leaders, they have a firm hand on the wheel once more. “He is undoubtedly a choice of the establishment,” Khalid Mahmood Rasool, a political analyst and newspaper columnist, said, referring to the military establishment. The term of the outgoing government, led by Shehbaz Sharif, who is also close the military, ended on Thursday. In Pakistan, once a government’s term ends, a caretaker must be established to oversee the next general elections.

Persons: Anwar, Haq Kakar, ” Khalid Mahmood Rasool, Shehbaz Sharif Locations: Pakistan

☆ Pakistan senator picked as caretaker PM to oversee elections
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-12 | by ( Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

KARACHI, Pakistan, Aug 12 (Reuters) - Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and opposition leader Raja Riaz agreed on Saturday to name Senator Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar as caretaker premier to oversee elections, the Prime Minister's office said. "The prime minister (Sharif) and leader of opposition have jointly signed the advice which will be sent to the president for approval," the statement said. Under Pakistan's constitution, a neutral caretaker government oversees national elections, which must be held within 90 days of the dissolution of the parliament's lower house - which in this instance means early November. The choice of caretaker prime minister has assumed heightened importance this time because the candidate will have extra powers to make policy decisions on economic matters, and amid fears the elections may be delayed by as much as six months. Kakar has been serving a six-year term in Pakistan's Senate since 2018.

Persons: Shehbaz Sharif, Raja Riaz, Anwaar, Haq Kakar, Arif Alvi, Kakar, Gibran Peshimam, Raju Gopalakrishnan, Mark Potter Organizations: Pakistani, Geo News, Pakistan's Senate, Senate, Balochistan Awami Party, Thomson Locations: KARACHI, Pakistan, Balochistan, Pakistan's

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