Karachi News

Thousands of spectators endured long queues and navigated stringent security checkpoints hours ahead of a high profile cricket match on Sunday in Karachi, the first time in nine years that it has hosted a game of such stature. At least 8,000 security personnel that also included armed soldiers guarded the 27,000 capacity National Stadium where Peshawar Zalmi will take on Islamabad United in the third PSL final. “It's (the PSL final) giving a message to the world that Pakistan is a peaceful country and Pakistan will play role in sports,” said 24-year-old spectator Hamza Yousuf Shah, who was waiting in one of several long queues to get into the stadium. “Pakistan is full of cricket fans and it's a great thing that cricket is back in Pakistan, hopefully, it will be a success,” said 16-year-old cricket enthusiast Ria Martin. Love of the game also brought 14-year-old Maaz Ahmed, who uses a wheelchair, to the ground.

If rain does not intervene today, the Karachi Kings will face Peshawar Zalmi in the last eliminator of the Pakistan Super League 2018. Strict security measures are in place for the match which will be held at Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium, the venue of last year's PSL final. The Kings are sporting two major changes with Mohammad Amir leading the team, and both Shahid Afridi and Imad Wasim out of today's match due to injuries. Thee new additions to the squad include Mukhtar Ahmed, Zulfiqar Babar, and Danish Aziz. Foreign players from the Karachi squad who have travelled to Pakistan for the playoff include Lendl Simmons, Joe Denly, Colin Ingram, Tymal Mills, David Wiese and Ravi Bopara. Zalmi may also be in a bit of a fix as their opener, Tamim Iqbal, has flown back to Bangladesh after being injured in the previous match. Another thing that may not work in Zalmi's favour is that the team has not had a rest day after yesterday's intense showdown against the Quetta ...

The Supreme Court-appointed  commission on water quality in Sindh ordered on Tuesday that all newly-constructed housing schemes be demolished, including the controversial Bahria Town, if they are found to have broken the laws governing such development projects. The commission, headed by Justice Amir Hani Muslim, was informed by Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) Director General Agha Masood Abbas that the construction in Bahria Town had been done without proper approval. Upon this, Justice Muslim inquired as to why an investigation had not been initiated yet against Bahria Town, to which Abbas could only offer that: "A report has been submitted to the Sindh government against Bahria Town." "Under what law was the report submitted?" Justice Muslim asked, also inquiring as to how many other such housing schemes exist. The retired justice then issued orders for the demolition of all illegally constructed buildings, remarking: "The city has been dest...

At least 20 shipping containers are still afloat as Karachi Port Trust authorities continue on Wednesday the operation to recover the containers, which had fallen into the sea after the collision of two shipping vessels. Hapeg-Lloyd’s ship 8,000-TEU Tolten, which was carrying transit-containers, collided with another vessel 6,350-TEU Hamburg Bay near the South Asia Port Terminal Limited (SAPT) berth on Monday. Both vessels were docked at the Karachi Port soon after the incident. During Tuesday’s operation, the divers tied the ropes around 12 containers which will be taken out with the help of a crane today (Wednesday), port sources informed Geo News. The recovery operation is likely to span over a period of two to three days, maritime experts told Geo News, following which the SAPT will open for traffic. Operations at the SAPT, which were suspended after the accident, will resume after the containers are removed from the sea through a special operation by the Karachi Port Tr...

The law enforcement agencies claimed to have arrested at least 80 suspects including bandits raped women during house robberies on Tuesday. According to details, Surjani Town police busted a gang of bandits used to rape women during robberies. Police said that three members of the gang Naqeeb, Naveed and Usman have been arrested so far while recovered weapons and looted valuables from their possession. Police said that the gang of bandits was also involved in various cases of gang rapes. Police said that the five members of the gang used to rob a house located in Surjani Town in recent past and also raped a woman while tortured her husband to made him unconscious. Following the complaint police managed to trace the culprits through the mobile phones have taken away during robbery at the said house. Police said that the accused persons have sold out the mobile phones to a man Abdul Hameed. Police managed to arrest Hameed and arrested three out of five members of the gang. Po...

KARACHI: The biggest issue in the city is its local government, which is not empowered, said Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairperson Imran Khan. “The local government of Sindh [on the whole] not being empowered is the biggest issue of Karachi,” Imran said while addressing a news conference at Karachi Press Club Sunday. “[Moreover] people who come in power in Sindh are never interested in Karachi.” He added the money of citizens was being sent to Dubai.  Earlier in the day, while speaking to the media after landing in Karachi, Imran criticised Pakistan Peoples Party chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, alleging the latter does not know how a hardworking person in the country earn bread and butter. Imran said Bilawal  made tall claims in multiple statements recently but is unaware of the actual issues faced by the people. About the issues pertaining to the citizens, Imran mentioned those pertaining to water saying that water supplied for irrigation had sewage mixed in it....

UK authorities investigating the MQM for alleged money laundering also found a list of weapons in an MQM property. A Pakistani official has told the BBC that India has trained hundreds of MQM militants over the past 10 years. The Indian authorities described the claims as "completely baseless". The MQM also strongly denied the claims. Party spokesman Saif Muhammad Ali told BBC Urdu that the MQM had never received any funding or training from India. He said authorities in Pakistan were running a campaign against the party. With 24 members in the National Assembly, the Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) has long been a dominant force in the politics of Pakistan's largest city, Karachi. British authorities held formal recorded interviews with senior MQM officials who told them the party was receiving Indian funding, the BBC was told. Meanwhile a Pakistani official has told the BBC that India has trained hundreds of MQM militants in explosives, weapons and sabotage...

LAHORE:  Every day, the animosity between Indians against Pakistani artists and the Pakistani artists seems to increase. In a new wave of controversy, the Indian Motion Picture Producers Association (IMPPA) has demanded a ban on work permits to all Pakistani artists wanting to work in India. That’s not surprising. But this time, the demands were expressed through a letter from the IMPPA president T P Aggarwal directly to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In the letter, Aggarwal requested that the PM take into account the sacrifices made by Indian soldiers and make a decision once and for all. Stress levels amongst Pakistani artists currently engaged in different projects within Bollywood have increased while the Indian government is expected to apply even more restrictions. A couple of days ago, IMPPA also demanded for visa restrictions to be amplified and requested a complete ban the issuance of visas for all Pakistanis. According to the letter, the IMPPA has deman...

Media Watchdog Farewell to our very own star on Earth, the extraordinary Stephen Hawking By  Salman Hameed   Published: March 15, 2018 65 SHARES   SHARE   TWEET   EMAIL At the age of 22, he was diagnosed with a rare motor neuron disease and was given only a couple of years to live. PHOTO: AFP “They’re named black holes because they are related to human fears of being destroyed or gobbled up. I don’t have fears of being thrown into them. I understand them. I feel in a sense that I am their master.” These are  the words  of Stephen Hawking who  passed away  on March 14 th  at the age of 76. He was not afraid of death. And why would he be? He was told, at the age of 22, that he was suffering from a rare motor neuron disease and was given only a couple of years to live. But nobody loved defying odds as much as Hawking did, and so instead, he lived another five decades and became one of the most celebrated ...