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Interior ministry issues directive to arrest Afghan nationals without valid visas from July 10

The Ministry of Interior on Sunday issued a directive to immediately arrest any Afghan national “found residing in Pakistan without a valid visa” from July 10, 2026. In a notification addressing the chief secretaries of all provinces, as well as those of Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and the chief commissioner of Islamabad Capital Territory, the ministry said that the directive referred to the decisions taken during a review meeting on the Illegal Foreigners’ Repatriation Plan (IFRP) on June 1, 2026. It said that during the meeting, “all provincial governments, special area governments and the ICT Administration were directed to expedite the repatriation/deportation of Afghan nationals, including visa overstay cases, and to ensure strict implementation of the IFRP”. “With effect from July 10, 2026, any Afghan national found residing in Pakistan without a valid visa shall be arrested immediately,” the notification said. It added that the necessary directions might, th...
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Punjab Assembly speaker surprised by committee's approval of anti-social behaviour bill, says not aware it was laid

LAHORE: Punjab Assembly Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan was surprised on Sunday when an opposition member informed him that the Punjab Control of Habitual Offenders and Anti-Social Behaviour Bill, 2026 had been approved by the PA Standing Committee on Law. “It has been laid?” he questioned when PTI’s Rana Aftab Ahmad Khan clarified that the standing committee had given its nod to the legislation. The bill proposes a regime in which the executive can freeze a person’s bank account, seize their property, remove their online presence, confiscate their phone, and place them under electronic surveillance, all on the basis of an intelligence committee’s assessment of their conduct. MPA Rana initiated the conversation on the legislation in the House, which had met to discuss the province’s supplementary budget. He said the bill was against human rights and warned that if enacted, it would affect the coming generations. The ruling PML-N could also become ...
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Tremors felt across most parts of Pakistan

QUETTA / ISLAMABAD: A 5.9- ma­gnitude earthquake originating in Afg­hanistan’s Hindu Kush region sent light to moderate tremors across Paki­stan on Saturday, while a series of quakes in Balo­chistan damaged homes and injured several people over two days. The Hindu Kush earthq­uake struck at 6:35pm, sha­king Abbottabad, Har­ipur, Mansehra, Shangla, Swat in Khyber Pakhtu­nkhwa, Rawalpindi, Chakwal and the Pothohar region in Punjab as well as Islamabad and Azad Jammu and Kashmir. “It was very huge here in Swat and it lasted for quite a long time,” Daniyal Ahmad, a resident of Swat district, said. “People came out of their houses and women and children were seen crying in panic.” The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) reported no immediate casualties or major infrastructure damage. The NDMA said the earthquake originated at a considerable depth of 178 kilometres, allowing tremors to spread over a wide area while limiting the intensity of ground shaking at the surface. E...
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Missing the mark

PAKISTAN’S commitment to the SDGs is routinely reaffirmed, but the gap between promises and progress continues to widen. A meeting between First Lady Aseefa Bhutto-Zardari and the UN country team highlighted priorities such as public health, nutrition, education, climate resilience and women’s empowerment — areas where progress is urgently needed. Yet, with fewer than four years remaining until the 2030 deadline, Pakistan is off-track on many of the goals it pledged to achieve. Cooperation with the UN is valuable, but Pakistan cannot rely on international partners to compensate for weak governance and inconsistent implementation at home. The SDGs are benchmarks for improving lives, not just global commitments. Polio is the clearest example. Despite decades of vaccination campaigns, billions of rupees in spending and sustained foreign aid, we remain one of only two countries where the disease is still endemic. The UN has warned that the coming year will be decisive, but technology alo...
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OpenAI launches limited release of new model in US only

OpenAI on Friday launched a US-only preview of its latest powerful AI model series to a limited group of partners at the request of the United States government, the company said. The release comes two weeks after the US government took Silicon Valley by surprise in ordering OpenAI’s rival Anthropic to ban all foreign nationals from accessing its Fable 5 and Mythos 5 models, citing national security concerns. The release marks the debut of OpenAI’s GPT-5.6 series, which comprises three new models: Sol, OpenAI’s new flagship; Terra, a mid-range model for everyday work; and Luna, a fast, low-cost option. The company said Terra would be priced at half the cost of its predecessor GPT-5.5, as it seeks to lock in customers amid fierce competition from Anthropic and Google. OpenAI said it briefed the US government on its new models’ capabilities ahead of the launch and, at the government’s request, is beginning with a limited preview for a select group of trusted partners whose identiti...
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Leaders reaffirm resolve against drug abuse

ISLAMABAD: On the eve of International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif reaffirmed Pakistan’s unwavering commitment to combating drug abuse and illicit trafficking, stressing that protecting the country’s youth from the menace of narcotics remains a national priority. In his message on the occasion, President Zardari said Pakistan stood with the international community in renewing its collective resolve to address the grave social challenge posed by drug abuse and trafficking. Referring to this year’s theme, World Drug Problem: Persisting Issues, New Challenges, Innovative Responses, the president said it highlighted the evolving and complex nature of the global drug problem and underscored the need for coordinated and innovative action. He said Pakistan remained steadfast in addressing all threats associated with narcotic drugs, including the emergence of new substances, expanding illicit trafficking networ...
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Apple raises prices for MacBooks and iPads, as costs soar over AI

Apple said on Thursday that it was raising prices for its MacBook computers, iPad tablets and other products, citing spiralling memory and storage costs sparked by the rise of artificial intelligence. The price hikes — the first concrete change stemming from outgoing CEO Tim Cook’s repeated warnings about rising costs — sent Apple shares plummeting more than 4.7 per cent in morning trade. On its US website, price increases ranged from $30 to $300. The 14-inch MacBook Pro, which once sold for $1,700, now retails for $2,000, while the iPad Air increased from $600 to $750. The Apple TV streaming device rose from $130 to $200. For now, the price of the iPhone — the company’s main source of revenue — remained unchanged. “The rapid expansion of AI data centres has created an extraordinary surge in demand for memory and storage,” an Apple spokesperson said in a statement sent to multiple media outlets. “We have never seen a component price increase this much, this quickly.” Apple di...
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