Infinity Social Updates

Bangladesh said it suspected measles killed at least 98 children in the past three weeks, official data showed on Sunday, with Dhaka ramping up vaccination efforts in the worst-affected areas. Last week, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman directed two senior ministers to travel across the South Asian nation of 170 million people in an effort to assess the scale of the crisis to help coordinate a response. Health ministry data released on Sunday showed that children aged between six months and five years old with suspected measles symptoms soared to 6,476. “Compared with past years, the number of affected children is higher, and the death toll is higher too,” Halimur Rashid, director at the Communicable Disease Control, told AFP, referring to the number in suspected cases. The largest number of suspected cases on record was in 2005 at 25,934, according to World Health Organisation (WHO) data, though that number had significantly declined until this year. Rashid attributed the potential...

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah on Sunday announced that the government had secured a province-wide fare freeze after successful negotiations with transporters. Following increases in petroleum prices due to the ongoing global oil crisis, provinces have announced a host of relief measures for the public. In Sindh and Punjab, these steps include subsidies for motorcyclists, transporters and small-scale farmers. Addressing a high-level press conference at CM House, CM Murad said that following a series of consultations, transporters operating both inter-city and intra-city routes have agreed not to increase fares and to maintain rates as of Feb 28, 2026. The Sindh CM was flanked by provincial ministers, transporters’ representatives and top government officers. A press release issued by CM House quoted Murad as saying that the government had worked out a comprehensive strategy to protect citizens — particularly low-income commuters — from rising transportation costs triggered b...

Before war erupted in the Middle East, fisherman Peter Bruce spent about £5,000 ($6,600) on diesel to trawl the North Sea for haddock and cod, the main species used in fish and chips. “Now, the last trip we spent about £10,000,” he told AFP , despite his crew reducing the speed of the boat to save fuel. Bruce, whose boat, Budding Rose, is based in the Scottish port of Peterhead, estimates the extra costs over a year could exceed £100,000. It was not yet clear whether the rise in energy prices would have an immediate effect on the price of fish, Bruce said. But he is worried that the hike in fuel prices will hit customer demand for the classic British meal that was already facing challenges on numerous fronts. Bruce’s catch is sold at auction in Peterhead before being transported around Britain and abroad. He fears that customers “will stop buying so much fish and chips and they’ll stop going out for meals so much”. Classic dish The classic recipe for fish and chips — white fish d...

The Pakistan Navy on Saturday inducted the second Milgem-class corvette into its fleet, said a statement from the service’s public relations department. The warship is the second of four Milgem class corvettes, the contract for which was signed with ASFAT Inc, a Turkish state-owned defence contractor firm in 2018 . Under this contract, two ships were to be constructed in Turkiye and the remaining two ships in Pakistan. At the induction ceremony of the warship PNS Khaibar, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Naveed Ashraf highlighted that Pakistan’s strategic location along vital maritime trade and energy corridors demands a potent naval force to safeguard national interests and ensure secure sea lines of communication (SLOCs). The naval chief maintained that during last year’s war with India , the navy was “poised to sink” the Indian Navy’s aircraft carrier, which forced the warship and its escorts to retreat to their “perceived safe havens”. “The mastery and conduct of naval ope...

President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday paid tribute to former premier Zulfikar Ali Bhutto on his 47th death anniversary, emphasising his lasting impact on Pakistan’s constitution and the need to uphold law, due process, and justice. “Today we observe the 47th anniversary of the martyrdom of Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, whose life was brought to an end unfairly on April 4, 1979. Zulfikar Bhutto occupies a central place in Pakistan’s political history,” said a statement from the president. The statement added that “nearly half a century after his unlawful and unconstitutional execution, the Supreme Court, in its opinion delivered on March 6, 2024, held that Zulfikar Bhutto had been denied a free trial and due process. The Court observed that the legal proceedings destroyed any semblance of fair trial and revealed that an innocent man was ‘rushed to the gallows.’” The president, in his statement, said that the day is a “reminder that justice and d...

Dozens of countries sought ways to restart vital energy shipments through the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday after US President Donald Trump vowed more aggressive attacks on Iran, sending oil prices higher again and deepening strain on consumers. After speculation proved untrue that Trump might discuss ending the war in a speech on Wednesday, the president persisted with threats on Thursday, saying in a social media post: “IT IS TIME FOR IRAN TO MAKE A DEAL BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE”. He also posted video of the US bombing a newly constructed bridge on Thursday between Tehran and the major northwest suburb of Karaj. The B1 bridge was scheduled to open to traffic this year. According to Iran’s state media, eight people were killed and 95 others were wounded in the US attack. “Striking civilian structures, including unfinished bridges, will not compel Iranians to surrender,” Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said in a statement. In the speech on Wednesday night, Trump repeated ...

ISLAMABAD: The country’s first National Forensic Agency formally began operation on Friday, the Ministry of Interior said. The agency was established under the “ The National Forensic Agency Bill, 2024 ”, which was passed into law in 2024. In a statement on X, the ministry said that Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi visited the headquarters on Friday, expressing hope that “the institution will assist in national security matters and curtailing crime”. The minister, during his visit, said that the agency will provide support to law enforcement agencies across Pakistan, directing the NFA to establish offices in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, Kashmir, and Gilgit-Baltistan. He also directed that the services provided by the agency should be “widely publicised”. Director General NFA Hasnaat Rasool briefed the interior minister on the agency’s progress, informing that the “first phase” had been completed. He informed Naqvi that the agency was providing services “in the field of dig...

The Supreme Court (SC) on Thursday restrained the anti-terrorism court (ATC) from framing charges against veteran journalist Matiullah Jan, and directed the Islamabad High Court (IHC) to expeditiously decide on the challenge to the terrorism charges invoked against him. Headed by Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, a three-judge SC bench took up a plea by the journalist seeking to set aside the IHC’s Feb 23, 2026, order denying ad-interim relief to stay his criminal trial. During the hearing, the prosecution did not object to the issuance of directions to the high court, while the apex court observed that it would not go into the merits of the case at this stage so as not to prejudice it in favour of either party. Barrister Qadeer Janjua represented Jan in the case, in which the journalist raised questions about the trial court’s jurisdiction and the applicability of terrorism charges against him. Filed under Article 185(3) of the Constitution, the petition challenged the Feb 23 IHC orde...

“Trump did not lay out a clear strategy from the conflict.” This is what a senior reporter for CNN, Stephen Collinson, wrote in his analysis piece after US President Donald Trump’s first address to Americans on the US-Israel war on Iran. In his 19-minute address from the White House, Trump repeated his claims of severely degrading Iran’s military capabilities. While he said the US was “getting very close” to finishing the “job” in Iran, he also voiced his determination to bomb the arch-foe “extremely hard” for another two to three weeks. His address was widely expected to outline a clear strategy to conclude the war that the US and Israel initiated on February 28. However, to many, Trump’s gloating offered no departure from his frequent Truth Social posts, wherein he has multiple times claimed victory against Iran. CNN In his analysis, Collinson stated that it was hard to conclude that Trump’s address would “reassure Americans worried about where the war is going or global ...

LAHORE: Punjab Education Minister Rana Sikandar Hayat on Wednesday announced that all public and private schools across the province would remain closed on Fridays, with classes taking place four days a week. According to a notification by the Punjab School Education Department shared by Hayat on X, “Pursuant to approval of the competent authority, it is hereby notified that all public and private schools across Punjab shall remain off on Friday till further orders.” However, the notification didn’t mention the reason behind this decision. It also notified the opening and closing hours of public schools. Under the new schedule, schools with a single shift will operate from Monday to Thursday from 8am to 1:30pm. Meanwhile, schools with double shifts will have the morning session from 8:00am to 12:30pm, and the afternoon session from 1:00pm to 5:30pm. Speaking to Dawn , Punjab School Education Department Secretary Muddassir Riaz Malik also confirmed that educational institutions...

A delegation from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) called on Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and discussed its “growing portfolio in Pakistan, which now exceeds $2 billion annually”, according to the finance ministry. IFC is the private sector arm of the World Bank Group. According to the ministry, the IFC delegation comprised IFC Divisional Director for Pakistan, Afghanistan and Central Asia Simon Andrews, World Bank Country Director for Pakistan Bolormaa Amgaabazar and IFC Country Manager Naz Khan. Key areas of engagement included financial sector support through risk-sharing and guarantee facilities to promote trade and small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) financing; expansion of local currency financing to mitigate foreign exchange risks; and upcoming initiatives such as a diversified payment rights facility and a green bond issuance with a leading local bank, the ministry said. “Discussions focused on further scaling private sector investment, particula...

Amjad Ali Khan, 27, left his hometown of Umerkot and moved to Karachi in 2010 in search of a better livelihood. Over the next decade, he moved from one precarious job to another — working in factories, taking odd shifts at hotels and cleaning bungalows — before finally settling down as a driver. Two years back, he rented two cars — one for himself and the other for his brother-in-law — and signed up on Yango, a ride-hailing service. Amjad’s earnings rose to roughly Rs12,000 per day, of which nearly half went to rent and fuel, leaving him with around Rs3,500 to take home and thereby allowing him to call his family of four to the port city earlier this year. But then, war came to the Middle East. While Pakistanis are no strangers to conflict (with neighbouring India and Afghanistan in recent months), this one, despite not involving Islamabad, hit the country’s jugular vein: a massive surge in petrol prices. When the United States and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, the impact tra...

ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Tuesday directed the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) to immediately identify aliens who managed to illegally obtain Pakistani citizenship, and remove them from the national database. The minister, during his visit to Nadra headquarters, chaired a high-level meeting where he praised Nadra’s performance and effective public services, and directed it to fully support law enforcement agencies in the repatriation of foreigners illegally residing in Pakistan. Nadra Chairman Lt Gen Muhammad Munir Afsar briefed the Naqvi on the institution’s performance, as well as its ongoing and future projects. Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Director General Dr Usman Anwar and senior Nadra officials were also present on the occasion. Naqvi noted significant improvements in Nadra’s services over the past two years and directed that more modern services be introduced for public convenience. He also instructed Nadra to build state-o...

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday called on President Asif Ali Zardari to discuss the overall national security situation and key challenges facing the country, according to the President’s Secretariat. The meeting comes a day after the quadrilateral ministerial moot in Islamabad, involving the foreign ministers of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Egypt, discussing possible ways to bring an “early and permanent end” to the war in the region. The foregin ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Turkiye had also called on PM Shehbaz after the meeting concluded. According to President’s Secretariat, the meeting was attended by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi. National Security Adviser and Inter-Services Intelligence Director General Asim Malik also participated in the meeting. During the meeting, participants held a detailed discussion on the overall national security situation,...

Punjab Minister for School Education Rana Sikandar Hayat said on Monday that educational activities in the province would resume from April 1 (Wednesday), with classes taking place five days a week. He made the statement in a post on the social media platform X. Separately, in an official statement, the minister reiterated that schools in Punjab would reopen on April 1 and that classes would take place five days a week. He also said that the “hybrid system” would not work, adding that the classes would be in-person. “Students should come to school and study,” he said. On March 9, the provincial government had announced that educational institutions, including schools, colleges and universities, would remain closed from March 10 to March 31 amid the global fuel crisis triggered by the US-Israel war on Iran. Meanwhile, the Punjab government on Monday also stated that a notification circulating on social media regarding classes four days a week was fake. In a post on X, the P...

HYDERABAD: The Model Criminal Court of Dadu on Monday acquitted all eight accused in the triple murder case of an ex-PPP UC chairman and his two sons in the district’s Mehar town. The ex-UC chairman, Raees Karamullah Chandio and two sons, Mukhtiar and Qabil, were gunned down in an armed attack on their residence in Ahmed Colony on Jan 17, 2018. The attack was blamed on their PPP colleagues, MPA and Chandio tribe chieftain Sardar Chandio and his brother Burhan Chandio. Both the accused were members of the Sindh Assembly at the time of the offence. Mukhtiar’s daughter Umm-i-Rabab Chandio, who is a lawyer, has been pursuing the case along with other counsel. During today’s hearing, an additional session judge, Hassan Ali Kalwar, ruled that the prosecution failed to prove the case and acquitted the accused, extending them the benefit of the doubt. Other than the two MPAs, the accused included Sikandar Ali Chandio, Ali Gohar Chandio, Abdul Sattar Chandio, Zulfiqar alias Qadoo Chandio, ...

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar will embark on an official visit to China on March 31 at the invitation of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, according to a statement issued by the Foreign Office (FO) on Monday. The FO said that Pakistan and China enjoy an all-weather strategic cooperative partnership, characterised by “close coordination and regular consultations” on regional development and international issues. “In this context, the upcoming visit will provide an opportunity for both sides to hold in-depth discussions on regional developments, as well as bilateral and global issues of mutual interest,” said the FO statement. It added that “FM Dar’s decision to undertake the visit, despite medical advice to rest following a hairline shoulder fracture sustained yesterday, reflects the importance Pakistan attaches to its relationship with China”. Earlier on Friday, Dar held a telephone call with Wang Yi, during which they exchanged views on the ev...

As the war in Iran threatens to imperil United States President Donald Trump’s legacy, the political stakes also are rising for two of his top lieutenants: Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio . The pair, widely viewed as potential successors to Trump, have been thrust into still-developing negotiations to end the war at a moment when the Republican Party is already weighing its post-Trump future. Vance has taken a cautious approach, reflecting his scepticism toward prolonged US military involvement, while Rubio has aligned himself closely with Trump’s hawkish stance and emerged as one of the administration’s most vocal defenders of the campaign. Trump has said both men were involved in efforts to force Iran to accept US demands to dismantle its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes and allow oil traffic to pass freely through the Strait of Hormuz . With the next presidential election due in 2028 and term limits barring Trump from running again, the p...

The first Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) direct flight to London in six years took to the skies on Sunday afternoon after a special inauguration ceremony at Islamabad International Airport. The national flag carrier is expected to operate four weekly flights from Islamabad to London. These will be operated from Heathrow Airport’s Terminal 4, according to an earlier statement issued by the PIA spokesperson. PK-785’s voyage was inaugurated by Defence Secretary Lt Gen (r) Muhammad Ali, British High Commissioner Jane Mariott, and Chairman PIA Consortium Arif Habib, who jointly cut the ribbon, state-run Pakistan TV reported. The flight was scheduled to take off at 12:50pm, but faced a slight delay, eventually departing at 1:19pm. On March 26, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif had said that the PIA would commence its first direct flights from Islamabad and Lahore to London’s Heathrow Airport on March 29 and 30, respectively. Last September, PIA had received the go-ahead to r...