Experts warn early childhood lead exposure can cause irreversible brain damage affecting learning and behaviour Says children around the world continue to die at an alarming rate, with 5.6 million deaths recorded last year. PHOTO: FILE Four in every ten children aged between 12 and 36 months living in high-risk areas across seven cities in…
KARACHI: Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) increased by $730 million during the week ended April 24, 2026, supported primarily by Eurobond proceeds. According to data released on Thursday, the SBP’s reserves climbed to $15.83 billion, reflecting an improvement in the country’s external liquidity position after recent pressure when…
Fresh cases reported in Bannu and North Waziristan, posing a continued risk to children’s well-being The National Emergency Operations Centre for Polio Eradication (NEOC) confirmed two new cases of wild poliovirus in southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Friday. The cases were reported in Bannu and North Waziristan, where access constraints continue to aid poliovirus transmission, posing a continued…
LAHORE: Passenger traffic has sharply declined at airports across Pakistan amid rising IranUS tensions and surging jet fuel prices, with aviation activity at Allama Iqbal International Airport reduced to a trickle, limited largely to Hajj pilgrims and a small number of essential travellers. Despite a temporary ceasefire in the Middle East, the fallout has continued…
ISLAMABAD: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has allowed Pakistan to pass on the impact of the remaining agreed Rs53-per-litre increase in petroleum levy in two phases, as the tax shortfall of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has further widened to Rs683 billion in this fiscal year. According to an earlier understanding, the entire increase…
Police deployed at all entry points of the building, residents instructed to vacate their apartments by midnight ISLAMABAD: Police and district administration on Friday took control of a multi-storey residential building on Constitution Avenue following a ruling by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in a long-running dispute over the cancellation of its lease. Police teams were deployed…
Leghari says additional gas supplies, which were purchased on spot rates, have arrived in the country Energy Minister Awais Leghari speaking in a video message. SCREENGRAB Energy Minister Awais Leghari on Friday announced the end of load management across the country following the arrival of liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes. In a video message posted…
ISLAMABAD: The Middle East conflict can cause $10 billion to $68 billion annual losses to Pakistan’s economy, and inflation could hit 17% in an extreme oil price volatility situation, said an economist in a briefing to the National Assembly Standing Committee on Finance on Thursday. The three different impact scenarios that Ali Salman, who is…
Street artist confirms work via Instagram after statue appears overnight on traffic island in Pall Mall The monument, which has Banksy’s name scrawled on the base, first appeared on Wednesday just off the central street of Pall Mall. The man depicted is mounted on a plinth, with one leg striding off it, and appears to…
Families of the crew members expressed deep concern over the safety of their loved ones ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office on Thursday said that it was in contact with the Somali government over the hostage crisis involving Pakistani sailors aboard a hijacked oil tanker, adding that it believed the crew members were safe. During his weekly…