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10/09/2026

• Bangladesh assumes presidency as General Assembly formally opens in New York
• Trump to speak on opening day; PM Shehbaz’s speech on 25th; Pezeshkian’s attendance ‘not yet confirmed’
• Renewal on the cards as tenure of panel monitoring Iran sanctions expires during UNGA session
WASHINGTON: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is due to arrive in New York later this month for the UN General Assembly, where he is expected to highlight Pakistan’s efforts to find a peaceful solution to the ongoing US-Iran war.
PM Shehbaz is slated to address the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly on Sept 25, where the Gulf conflict is expected to overshadow much of the high-level debate.
The official theme of the 81st session is ‘Restoring Trust, Managing Transformation: A United Nations That Delivers for All’, and the UNGA debate is expected to run from Sept 22 to 26, with a final sitting on Sept 28.
However, ongoing fighting between Washington and Tehran is expected to feature prominently in discussions among world leaders, particularly over the security of the Strait of Hormuz, regional stability and the possibility of finding a diplomatic way out of the confrontation.
The participation of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is also emerging as a key question ahead of the high-level week.
Iran is listed on the tentative speakers’ schedule as the fifth speaker on Sept 23, the second day of the UNGA debate, but a final decision on whether he will travel to New York or not, has not yet been made.
Iranian officials have indicated that Tehran is still assessing the level of participation and attendance, citing what they describe as “illegal conditions” imposed by Washington on the Iranian delegation’s travel and attendance.
US President Donald Trump is scheduled to address the General Assembly on Sept 22, the opening day of the high-level debate, following Brazil, which traditionally opens the general debate.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is also expected to attend reception hosted by President Trump on the same day.
Israel, the other party to the conflict, is scheduled to speak on Sept 24, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu representing his country.
India, meanwhile, is only sending its foreign minister, who is scheduled to address the General Assembly on Sept 26.
According to diplomatic sources, Pakistan is expected to use the forum of the UN General Assembly to underline its position that the conflict should be resolved through negotiations rather than prolonged military confrontation.
The prime minister is also expected to highlight Islamabad’s contacts with countries involved in efforts to de-escalate the situation.
The Iranian issue is already occupying a prominent place on the UN agenda ahead of the arrival of world leaders.
The Security Council is scheduled to vote on Sept 17 on renewing the mandate of the panel of experts monitoring sanctions on Iran. The panel’s mandate expires on Sept 26, during the General Assembly’s high-level week.
The proposed renewal is expected to produce another confrontation between the United States and its Western allies on one side and Russia and China on the other.
Moscow and Beijing have opposed continuation of the monitoring mechanism, arguing that the Security Council no longer has the authority to pursue the matter in its present form.
The dispute is linked to the restoration of UN sanctions on Iran under the “snapback” mechanism after Britain, France and Germany concluded last year that Tehran was not complying with its obligations under the 2015 nuclear agreement. Iran has rejected allegations that it is seeking nuclear weapons.
The Sept 17 vote will therefore come just days before heads of government begin arriving for the General Assembly and could further sharpen the diplomatic divisions surrounding Iran.
For Pakistan, the situation carries additional urgency because of its geographical proximity to the conflict and its economic and security interests in the Gulf region.
The prime minister will be accompanied by a high-level delegation, including senior members of the government, and is expected to hold a series of bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the General Assembly.
The UN session formally opened on Wednesday, with Bangladesh’s Khalilur Rahman assuming the presidency of the 81st General Assembly. Mr Rahman has placed peace and security, restoration of trust in multilateral institutions and UN reform among the priorities of his presidency.
The session also comes ahead of a major change in the UN hierarchy, as it would be the last for current Secretary General Antonio Guterres, whose term ends on Dec 31, 2026.

10/09/2026

BERLIN: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz cancelled a planned phone call with US President Donald Trump on Wednesday, hours after Trump publicly celebrated a regional election win by Germany’s far-right AfD party.
A spokesman for Merz declined to give a reason for the cancellation, but noted in response to questions fr­­­om journalists that it was not due to scheduling conflicts. Trump, in a po­­­st on his Truth Social platform, ha­­­­­­i­­­led the “really big night” for the AfD.
“They finally got tired of the absolutely horrible Immigration rul­es and regulations which have hurt Germany so badly,” Trump wrote on Tu­­e­­sday night Washington time. Merz’s spokesman did not directly respond to Trump’s comments, but noted that the chancellor had frequently objected “in general terms” to “interfering in or commenting on the domestic political situation, particularly regarding elections”.
A new date for a phone call between the two leaders had not yet been set, the spokesman added.
The German chancellor accuses AfD of calling for ‘ethnic cleansing’
The AfD — which Merz has repeatedly attacked as racist and a threat to democracy — scored a breakthrough win on Sunday in a regional election in the eastern German state of Saxony-Anhalt.
At the end of his message, Trump also wrote the acronym “MGGA”, an apparent pro-AfD play on his own “MAGA” slogan standing for “Make Germany Great Again”.
Other figures in Donald Trump’s political orbit, including a former ambassador to Germany and billionaire Elon Musk, also publicly celebrated the AfD’s victory.
Musk has openly endorsed and supported the AfD for several years, including while serving in the Trump administration as the head of the “DOGE” effort.
Musk made an appearance by video at an AfD campaign rally during German national elections in early 2025, which Merz’s centre-right CDU/CSU bloc won.
‘Ethnic cleansing’
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz accused the Alternative for Germany on Wednesday of supporting Russia against Germany’s interests and advocating anti-migration policies that were tantamount to “ethnic cleansing”.
Merz was addressing the German parliament following his party’s bruising defeat against the AfD, which surged to victory in an election in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt on a platform to curb migration and restore ties with Moscow.
In an email, the AfD said Merz was deliberately mischaracterising its position as a way of demonising the party, and said its policies were legal. Merz is trying to regain the initiative after Sunday’s election loss and his own record-low approval ratings put his position and his government’s reform programme in question. He has brushed off suggestions that he might resign.
“If what is being advocated here, namely ‘remigration’, were to become reality, it would be nothing other than a synonym for ethnic cleansing based on origin and skin colour,” Merz said, in answer to an earlier speech by AfD co-leader Alice Weidel.

08/09/2026

• Rejects plea against SHC order requiring Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal to pay Rs10,000 per month to each girl, with 10pc annual increase until marriage
• CJP says courts may look beyond legal questions to address underlying predicament
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a plea filed by the Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal (PBM) challenging the Sindh High Court’s Dec 1, 2022, order directing the welfare institution to provide financial support to two Hindu minor girls.
A three-judge SC bench, headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Yahya Afridi and comprising Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan and Justice Miangul Hassan Auran­gzeb, upheld the SHC Larkana Circuit Court’s order requiring the PBM to register the minors as beneficiaries for payment of monthly maintenance of Rs10,000 each, with an annual increase of 10 per cent, until their marriage.
Though the Supreme Court appreciated the concern shown by the high court for the welfare of the minors, it laid down a framework for future cases, stating that cases should be referred to the PBM for consideration where circumstances disclosed before a court appear to warrant recourse to the institution.
Bait-ul-Mal may thereafter facilitate the applicant by assessing their circumstances in accordance with the applicable policy and eligibility criteria and determining the extent of assistance.
“This course allows the concerned court to bring a deserving case within the reach of the welfare institution established to respond to it, without displacing the structure through which the PBM is required to administer its assistance,” the court observed.
The controversy stemmed from PBM’s challenge to the Dec 1, 2022, SHC order, which held that Ram Raj — the paternal grandfather of the two minor Hindu children — was not personally liable for their maintenance under the applicable family law. However, the high court also directed Bait-ul-Mal to register the minors as regular beneficiaries and pay each of them monthly maintenance.
It so happened that Shrimati Re­eta, a Hindu woman, married Ravi Kumar in 2012, and two minor daughters, Jasika and Sanika, were born of the marriage. Ravi Kumar later died by su***de on May 20, 2017.
With no independent source of income to maintain herself and her daughters after her husband’s death, Shrimati Reeta instituted proceedings before a family court in Jacobabad, seeking maintenance for the minors from one of the respondents, their paternal grandfather, Ram Raj.
Ram Raj’s own circumstances were scarcely better. Aged and infirm, he too lacked a source of income and a residence of his own and was living in a dharamshala (charitable shelter).
Nevertheless, the family court decreed the claim for maintenance and directed Ram Raj to pay Rs3,000 per month to each minor, with an annual increase of 10pc. The decree was maintained in appeal, after which Ram Raj invoked the constitutional jurisdiction of the SHC.
CJP Afridi observed in the judgement that courts were not infrequently faced with cases where resolution of the legal question at hand did not necessarily resolve the underlying predicament of the parties. Thus, in fully discharging its judicial function, a court may look beyond the immediate legal question and seek to address that predicament.
And when a state institution exists precisely for that purpose, the court may very well seek its assistance, he observed. The present case, the CJP noted, demonstrated precisely why such recourse may sometimes become necessary.
The judgement noted that the minors’ mother was a widow without an independent source of income, while their paternal grandfather, himself aged and infirm, was living in destitute conditions.
The judgement noted that the two children belonged to a religious minority in a country where minorities occupied a particularly vulnerable position, with social and economic hardships often bearing upon them with greater force.
While poverty, loss of familial support and other forms of hardship were difficult to withstand in themselves, their impact might be considerably more acute for those who already stood outside the social majority, the verdict said.
Therefore, institutions of the state must remain mindful of this reality, the judgement said, adding that for Jasika and Sanika, their minority status formed a crucial part of the wider context in which their need for support should be considered.

08/09/2026

• IHC CJ Dogar to take up petition against Sept 27 protest today
• Petitioner fears disruption of routine life, traffic, and businesses, seeks court intervention against use of provincial resources for march
• KP CM asks Karachi lawyers to join protest, says Imran not cutting any deals
ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has been moved against the PTI’s planned sit-in and nationwide protest scheduled for Sept 27, with the petitioner apprehending disruption of routine life, traffic and business activities in the federal capital.
IHC Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar will hear the petition filed by citizen Waqas Ahmed on Tuesday.
The petitioner has made the inspectors general of police of all four provinces, Islamabad Police and Motorway Police, besides other relevant government authorities, as respondents. According to the petition, the PTI has announced a sit-in in Islamabad on Sept 27, which could cause inconvenience to citizens and commuters and adversely affect business activities in the capital.
The petitioner particularly raised concerns over the proposed participation of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, who, according to the PTI’s announcement, would lead the Islamabad-bound protest. The petition expressed apprehension that the resources and machinery of the provincial government could be utilised for political activity.
It sought directions to the provincial authorities not to involve themselves in any political activity and to confine themselves to their official responsibilities. The petitioner also sought appropriate directions to the respondents to ensure that the rights of ordinary citizens, commuters and business communities were not affected by the proposed protest. The petition came ahead of the PTI’s preparations for its Sept 27 mobilisation, which the party leadership declared would not remain confined to Islamabad.
CM invites lawyers
KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi spent the past few days in Sindh to mobilise the party supporters for the Sept 27 protest. Speaking at a convention organised by the Sindh High Court Bar Association on Monday, the CM, who reached Karachi despite hurdles, invited lawyers to participate in the PTI protest and maintained that his leader Imran Khan was standing firm for the future of the country and was not striking any deal for his release.
He said the Islamabad High Court had ordered his meeting with the party founder, while the Supreme Court had ordered hospitalisation of former premier, but that was to no avail. He added the judiciary was reluctant to timely fix the contempt applications for hearings.
The CM also complained about the obstacles on the route of his convoy. PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari posted a welcome message on social media while his party’s government in Sindh placed obstacles in the way of his convoy and arrested the participants.
The CM apologised to the people of Sindh and Karachi for the inconvenience caused by his convoy’s movement. He, however, said the province already lacked adequate infrastructure and that even the available thoroughfares had been blocked.
Sept 27 protest
According to PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja, the party’s call for Sept 27 is aimed at mobilising people across the country for the supremacy of the Constitution, rule of law, and release of PTI founder Imran Khan. He had clarified that demonstrations would be held in every city and district, maintaining that peaceful protest was a constitutional and legal right. “The people from every province and district would take to the streets as a nationwide, peaceful movement for their rights and the supremacy of the Constitution and law,” he had said.
Mr Raja had further said that the Sept 27 protest would be “Pakistan’s voice” and that the party would exercise what it considered its constitutional and legal right to hold peaceful demonstrations. He had also confirmed that KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi would lead the Sept 27 long march towards Islamabad, desc­ribing the planned mobilisation as a nationwide movement.
The preparations for the mobilisation have also seen the emergence of a volunteer organisation among PTI workers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Last week, a group of ideological PTI workers announced the formation of a volunteer unit called ‘Pasdaran-i-Azm Imran Khan Pakistan’ to assist participants and provide support during the Sept 27 long march. The announcement was made by PTI leader Daniyal Khan Afridi, along with other party workers, at a press conference at the Peshawar Press Club.

08/09/2026

MIAMI: At least five people were killed when an Amazon cargo plane overshot a runway after it landed on Sunday at Miami International Airport, crashed into vehicles and caught fire, officials said.
Miami-Dade County fire chief Ray Jadallah told reporters that in addition to five fatalities, three people were transported to trauma centers “in critical condition” and two more were treated at a local hospital.
“The airplane did strike a couple of vehicles,” which left “a couple of victims that were actually trapped in the vehicles,” Jadallah said. “A complex extrication with our technical rescue team” was needed, “including a search and rescue of the pilot and co-pilot that were trapped in this aircraft.” Jadallah did not clarify whether the pilot or co-pilot survived, and officials declined to answer questions after brief statements were made.
Video showed thick smoke billowing from the blue and white Boeing 767 after it arrived at 1:58pm from Puerto Rico, as fire trucks raced to the scene. The plane operating as Prime Air Flight 7598 caught fire as a result of the “crash,” fire officials said.
“A total of 60 fire apparatuses arrived, just short, just shy of 200 men and women from Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, to begin the actual search and rescue and firefighting,” Jadallah said.
“The actual cause of the incident will be determined by the FAA and the NTSB,” he added, referring to the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board.
In a statement posted to X, fire officials said they used foam to extinguish a fire in the engine compartment.
“One person was trapped under one of the involved vehicles and had to be extricated by specialized technical rescue personnel

07/09/2026

02/09/2026

In the dry, sun-scorched expanse of Gehlaur village near Gaya, a towering ridge of solid quartzite, part of the rugged Rajgir Hills, stood like an unbreakable wall between life and death. While geologists call it a hill ridge, to the locals it was an imposing mountain of razor-sharp, ancient stone. For generations, this massive wall dictated terms to the people living under its shadow, completely severing them from hospitals, schools, and basic safety.

In 1959, that brutal wall of stone took Falguni Devi. Her only mistake was attempting to carry a simple meal up the narrow, treacherous ridge to her husband, Dashrath. One misplaced step on the loose cliffside sent her tumbling into the gorge below. Her injuries were severe, but it was time and the crushing 55-kilometer detour around the jagged ridge, that ultimately ended her life. She succumbed to her wounds long before medical aid could ever reach her.

Driven by grief that refused to settle into quiet acceptance, Dashrath Manjhi looked up at the towering cliff face. Quartzite is one of the hardest, most stubborn rock types on Earth, resistant to weathering and nearly impossible to shatter without heavy explosives. Yet Manjhi sold his family’s only asset, a few goats, to purchase an iron hammer, a chisel, and a crowbar, and stepped up to the base of the ridge to declare war on the rock.

When his hammer first struck stone, the village laughed. They called him a madman, a grieving soul wasting his remaining years fighting an ancient titan with iron hand tools. But every morning before dawn, and long into the night under the pale moon, the rhythm continued: clang, clang, clang. Through blistering summer heatwaves that made the metal tools scorch his skin, bitter winter frost, cracked callouses, and decades of silence, he kept swinging. As years bled into decades, the mockery turned into quiet respect. Neighbors began dropping off meals or gifting him fresh iron chisels as they watched the solid cliff slowly give way.

In 1982, after twenty-two years of solitary manual labor, the dust settled. Manjhi had moved thousands of tons of solid rock, carving a path 360 feet long, 30 feet wide, and 25 feet deep straight through the heart of the ridge. Single-handedly, using nothing but simple hand tools, he slashed a grueling 55-kilometer ordeal down to a mere 15-kilometer walk.

Yet Manjhi’s mission did not end at the rock.. Determined to bring real change to his neglected village, he walked over 500 kilometers along train tracks all the way to New Delhi to petition bureaucrats for a paved road, a hospital, and a primary school. Though officials brushed him off at first, his story eventually captured the entire nation's conscience.

Years later, during a public gathering, Bihar’s Chief Minister Nitish Kumar stood up out of sheer respect and handed Manjhi his own executive chair. When the state government awarded Manjhi five acres of land as a reward for his monumental achievement, he refused to keep it for himself, instantly donating it back so the state could construct a local hospital.

When Dashrath Manjhi passed away in 2007, the government honored him with a full State Funeral. Authorities finally blacktopped the gap he had carved, officially naming the highway the Dashrath Manjhi Path, and fulfilled his lifelong dream by building the hospital, primary school, and electricity network for Gehlaur. In 2016, India Post even issued an official commemorative postage stamp in his memory.

He didn't just carve a path through stone; he proved that while grief can shatter a man, love and unwavering purpose can force even a mountain of granite to bow.

27/08/2026

On August 26, 2026, a horrifying tragedy shook the nation. Fourteen newborns lost their lives inside the Neonatal Emergency Ward at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) after an air conditioner explosion sparked a massive fire. Fed by central oxygen lines, the blaze engulfed the ward in seconds, leaving devastated families waiting for DNA matches to identify their infants. Only one baby survived.

To read the full article, click the link in the first comment.

26/08/2026

Tragic Incident at PIMS Hospital:...See More

22/08/2026

PESHAWAR (August 22, 2026) :The Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa celebrated the KP Youth Excellence Awards 2026 at Sahibzada Abdul Qayum Hall, University of Peshawar. Organized under the Directorate of Youth Affairs in connection with International Youth Day 2026, the ceremony recognized 28 young changemakers from across the province for their contributions to social work, education, culture, technology, humanitarian service, youth empowerment, and community development.

The event gathered over 250 young participants and featured the unveiling of the KP Youth Policy 2026 and the Ehsaas Naujawan Programme. The proceedings included youth success stories, panel discussions, inspirational talks, and musical performances.

Atifa Yousafzai, Operations Director Youth Affairs, served as the Chief Organizer of the ceremony, with event management and consultancy provided by Alamzeb / Bint-e-Hawa Forum.

List of Awardees (KP Youth Excellence Awards 2026)
Muhammad Adan Khan — Swat
Syed Mohsin Ali Shah (Shah Jee) — Peshawar
Shahid Ali Khan — Peshawar
Arab Shah — Peshawar
Adnan Khan — Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Ramin Raana Marwat — Lakki Marwat
Saddat Syed Bilal — Peshawar
Jiya Kashif — Mardan
Oliyab — Peshawar
Manmeet Kaur — Peshawar
Hassan Nisar — Haripur
Muhammad Bilal Sethi — Peshawar
Sania Javed — Peshawar
Mashal Javed — Peshawar
Fatima Faraz Hoti — Peshawar
Asghar Khan Mohmand — District Mohmand
Shahab Ud Din — Peshawar
Dr. Haseeb Ullah — Peshawar
Ammad Ali — Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Sabahat Rahim Baig — Chitral
Khkula Momand — Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Nasar Ali Roghani — Upper Dir
Usman Ashraf — Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Hira Ali Malik — Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Sufyan Ahmad — Peshawar
Suleman Qamar Khan — Malakand
Zarka — Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Kamal Shah — Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Empowering the Next Generation

The awards celebrate the message that empowered youth are the driving force behind a stronger, more inclusive, and progressive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.