s north-west, killing at least 20 people, most of them paramilitary troops, security officials said. The fatal explosion on Sunday will be seen as a heavy blow for the Pakistani military, which has been fighting insurgents in the region. Bombs and shootings have killed thousands of security force members and left thousands more injured. The vehicle was hired by the paramilitary Frontier Corps, said...
Civil service global roundup: The national treasury union is calling for the federal pay raise to get back on track Pakistan: bill introduced to ban civil servants from serving international organisations A bill to prevent civil servants from serving in international organisations has been tabled by senator Nayyer Hussain Bokhari. The bill would not apply to civil servants who are posted in international...
king of wools' is decimating tiny remaining population In the musty back room of the Kashmiri handicrafts store in Islamabad's main Jinnah market, the shopkeeper reaches behind the counter with the keys to open a concealed black suitcase. He retrieves half a dozen luxury shawls made from the fur of an endangered antelope, which are so fine they can be passed through a ring. The shahtoosh shawls – the...
s Sufi-influenced Islamic tradition, according to concerned religious leaders in the country. They say the broad ideological assault on Barelvism, the moderate form of Islam that Muslims in south Asia have followed for centuries, is making it ever harder for Pakistan to confront extremism and terrorism. Last week, six bodies were found with their throats slit near a Sufi shrine in Karachi and two people...
Defence officials say video of sergeant captured in Afghanistan four years ago shows him alive and in poor health ...
s former president – on trial for high treason – say he needs treatment in Texas for 'heart problem' Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan's beleaguered former military ruler facing a high treason trial, has asked permission to receive treatment for a heart condition in the US. It has long been rumoured that health problems might be used as a convenient excuse to whisk him out of the country, bringing to a close...
The Guardian's picture editors bring you a selection of top photographs from around the world Mee-Lai Stone ...
lives by tackling bomber outside his school in north-western Pakistan A 15-year-old who died while tried to defend his school in Pakistan's troubled north-west from a suicide bomber has been hailed as a hero for saving the lives of many of his classmates. Aitizaz Hasan tackled the bomber as he stood outside as a punishment for being late to school in Hangu, a town in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, on Monday....
s lawyer says he is too sick to attend treason trial after suffering chest pains A Pakistani court trying former president and army chief Pervez Musharraf for treason has ordered him to appear at a hearing next week, despite his lawyers saying he is too sick to attend. The ruling was announced in Islamabad by court registrar Abdul Ghani Soomro, who also said that a medical report on Musharraf's health...
Pakistani Taliban claim responsibility for death of Chaudhry Aslam, known for arresting scores of militants in Sindh province A senior Pakistani police officer known for arresting dozens of Taliban members has been killed by a car bomb in Karachi. Chaudhry Aslam was targeted as he passed through a commercial area of Eisa Naghri in the southern port city, police sources said. Aslam, renowned for his...
s asylum-seeker status barred her from attending university. Nida Ul-Naseer, 18, of Newport, South Wales, has not been seen since leaving her home in Linton Street on 28 December. Her family revealed on Tuesday that their attempt to seek asylum in the UK from Pakistan was turned down a year ago. It resulted in Nida opting to retake a business studies course she had already passed. Her sister, Shamyla,...
s largest city – negotiating deals with buyers, Salma seems like the pinnacle of female achievement. Indeed, she is: the mother of three is her family's breadwinner, earning more than her husband, who proudly supports her success. But Salma lives in the poor Gulshan section of Karachi, where husbands rarely allow their wives to leave the house. That used to be Salma's life too. "The most important...
Pakistani authorities suspect blast was caused by artillery shell stored in property in Khyber tribal region An explosion has killed 10 members of the same family in a remote tribal region in north-west Pakistan, according to a government official. Tahir Khan said an artillery shell stored in the house in the village of Dars in the Tirah valley may have been the cause of Monday's blast. The dead included...
One officer killed in troubled Himalayan region after police ambushed by militants north of Srinagar Separatist militants in India have clashed with police and paramilitary forces in a fierce gun battle that killed one officer in the troubled Himalayan region of Kashmir, according to police. Police were ambushed in Sopore city, about34 miles (55km) north of Srinagar, after receiving a tip that militants...
Pakistani TV reporter Shan Daher (aka Dayer or Odhor) was shot on his way home from his work at the Abb Takk news channel in the Larkana district of Sindh province. Though the shooting occurred late on 31 December Daher was pronounced dead in hospital the following day. Therefore, according to the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), he was the first journalist killed in 2014. The murder...
s list of journalists killed last year shows It's grisly to keep count as the International Press Institute's death watch tots up the number of journalists and media people killed during 2013 in the line of duty: at least 117 of them, the second worst total since records began. There's Syria, of course, with 16 journalists gone; but Iraq, with 13, most of them shot, somehow seems just as bad. But at...
Senthorun Raj: A gay man who has been in a serious relationship with an Australian will be deported to Pakistan – where he faces possible jail term. Australia's convoluted visa laws fails gay people Senthorun Raj ...
s former military ruler Pervez Musharraf missed another court appearance on Thursday after suffering what his aides described as a minor heart attack as he was travelling to the building where he is being tried for treason. The man who ruled Pakistan for nearly a decade until he was deposed in 2007 had already missed appearing in the dock twice in the past two weeks after small bombs were found on...
s former president Pervez Musharraf has been rushed to hospital with a "heart problem" he experienced while on his way to a court hearing in a high treason case, police and lawyers said. The unexpected detour is the latest drama in the legal problems that the former army chief has faced since returning to the country in March, with hopes of running in upcoming elections. It was also the third time...
s former military ruler Pervez Musharraf failed to appear at a treason trial his lawyers have described as biased and illegitimate, after explosives were found near his house on the outskirts of Islamabad. Musharraf had been asked to attend the hearing on Wednesday at the grand national library building in the heart of the capital, where if he is found guilty of treason could see the 70-year-old former...