Web Desk/AFP

This live blog follows the latest developments across the Middle East crisis, including regional diplomacy, maritime security, ceasefire negotiations, and economic fallout.<hr style="line-height: 2;">Catch up: Yesterday&rsquo;s top developments<ul style="list-style-type: square;"><li style="line-height: 2; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Pakistan&rsquo;s CDF arrives in Tehran for mediation talks; Iran calls visit a &#39;turning point&#39;</li><li style="line-height: 2; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Trump skips son&rsquo;s wedding as prospects for talks continue</li><li style="line-height: 2; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">US State Secretary calls Pakistan the &ldquo;primary mediator&rdquo; in the conflict</li><li style="line-height: 2; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Israel carries out five strikes in eastern Lebanon, killing 10</li><li style="line-height: 2; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Stocks rise, oil gains as investors weigh Middle East peace prospects</li></ul><hr style="line-height: 2;"> Qatar discusses Pakistan-led Iran-US mediation with regional partners Published: May 23, 2026 |&nbsp;1:44 GMT | by Web Desk Qatar&rsquo;s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani held discussions with the foreign ministers of T&uuml;rkiye, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan regarding Pakistan-led mediation efforts between the United States and Iran, Al Jazeera reported. A statement from Qatar&rsquo;s Foreign Ministry said Sheikh Mohammed&rsquo;s call with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan focused on the importance of resolving regional crises through dialogue. It added that the discussions included coordination on diplomatic steps aimed at reducing regional tensions. A Qatari delegation is currently in Tehran in connection with the mediation efforts, as per Al Jazeera. <hr> Iran condemns US-Israeli attack as violation of sovereignty Published: May 23, 2026 | 1:23 GMT | by Web Desk Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said the recent US-Israeli attack on Iran should not be treated as simply an avoidable conflict, describing it instead as direct aggression against a sovereign country, according to Iran&rsquo;s state news agency IRNA. Baqaei said the attack amounted to a clear breach of international law and rejected attempts to soften its characterization. The spokesperson also linked the current tensions to the United States&rsquo; withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear agreement. <hr> Pakistan&rsquo;s CDF arrives at Tehran to advance regional mediation efforts Published: May 22, 2026 | 17:04 GMT | by Web Desk Pakistan&rsquo;s Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) Field Marshal Asim Munir arrived in Tehran on Friday for an official visit, the military&rsquo;s media wing reported. According to Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the field marshal was received by Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni upon arrival. Pakistan Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi was also present at the reception.

Americas

Middle East

Field Marshal Asim Munir is expected to discuss Iran-US talks and regional issues during the visit and meet senior Iranian officials, according to security sources.

Pakistan army chief arrives in Tehran for Iran-US talks facilitation

SOUTH PADRE ISLAND: SpaceX&#39;s Starship spacecraft splashed down into the Indian ocean Friday after the company performed a test flight of the latest version of the enormous rocket. The voyage was not without a few glitches, but SpaceX employees shown on a livestream roared in delight following the trial flight that comes as the firm prepares a potentially record initial public offering. The mammoth rocket blasted off into space at just after 5:30 pm local time (2230 GMT). The company did not intend to recover either the booster or the upper stage, and the final splashdown was fiery but controlled, as planned. &quot;Splashdown confirmed! Congratulations to the entire SpaceX team on the twelfth flight test of Starship!&quot; the company wrote on X. The third-generation Starship spacecraft carried out a maneuver that saw it flip upright and reignite its engines for control, despite one being out of commission. It also deployed its 22 mock satellites, including two that attempted to photograph the spacecraft&#39;s heat shield for analysis. The vehicle had coasted through space but was not in exactly the correct orbit after one of its engines malfunctioned during an initial burn. &quot;I wouldn&#39;t call it nominal orbital insertion,&quot; company spokesperson Dan Huot said, adding however that it was &quot;within bounds&quot; of a previously analyzed trajectory. After the Super Heavy booster separated from the upper stage as expected, Huot said on the livestream that the booster failed to complete its so-called boost-back burn. The booster fell swiftly back to Earth, uncontrolled, into the Gulf of Mexico. SpaceX wasn&#39;t planning to recapture the booster anyway, but was still hoping for a precision return. NASA administrator onsite Friday&#39;s flight followed an aborted trial one day prior. The countdown clock stopped and started until it was determined that the last-minute red flags could not be addressed in time. Musk quickly posted on X that &quot;the hydraulic pin holding the tower arm in place did not retract.&quot; SpaceX said that issue was corrected overnight. The company is facing extra scrutiny after SpaceX filed earlier this week with US financial regulators to go public, likely in June, in what is expected to become a record IPO. Friday marks Starship&#39;s 12th flight overall, but the first in seven months. The latest design is bigger than its predecessor, standing at just over 124 meters when fully stacked. There&#39;s a lot riding on SpaceX&#39;s progress: the company is under contract with NASA to produce a modified version of Starship to serve as a lunar landing system. The US space agency&#39;s Artemis program aims to return humans to the Moon, as China forges ahead with a rival effort that&#39;s targeting 2030 for its first crewed mission. Ahead of launch, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman appeared during the pre-launch SpaceX program and said &quot;we&#39;re looking forward to seeing this fly, because hopefully at some point in the not-too-distant future we&#39;re going to join up in Earth orbit.&quot; Both SpaceX and rival Blue Origin, the Jeff Bezos-owned firm also vying to develop a lunar lander, have realigned their strategies to prioritize projects related to Moon missions. NASA is aiming to test an in-orbit rendezvous between its spacecraft and one or two lunar landers in 2027 and carry out a crewed lunar landing before the end of 2028. But a lot needs to happen before then &ndash; and industry experts have voiced repeated skepticism that SpaceX and Blue Origin can achieve benchmarks in time.

SpaceX’s Starship completes its 12th test flight with a controlled splashdown in the Indian Ocean after minor malfunctions, as the company advances its lunar and commercial space ambitions.

SpaceX's enormous Starship splashes down after test flight

LOS ANGELES: Tens of thousands of people were ordered to leave their homes in California Friday after a huge chemical tank began leaking, with warnings it might blow up, sending toxic fumes over a heavily populated area. The tank contains 26,000 liters of methyl methacrylate, a volatile and flammable liquid used to make plastics, with firefighters warning things were looking bad. &quot;There are literally two options left,&quot; Incident Commander Craig Covey said. &quot;The tank fails and spills a total of about 6-7,000 gallons [22,700&ndash;26,500 liters] of very bad chemicals into the parking lot in that area or, two, the tank goes into a thermal runaway and blows up, affecting the tanks around them that have fuel or chemicals in them as well. &quot;We are setting up these evacuations in preparation for these two options: it fails, or it blows up. &quot;Please follow our requests and orders for evacuations.&quot; The incident was unfolding in the Garden Grove area of Orange County, southeast of Los Angeles. Garden Grove Police Chief Amir El-Farra said about 40,000 people were affected by the evacuation order, with several thousand refusing to leave their homes. Aerial footage filmed by local TV stations showed jets of water being sprayed at the tank, which has a capacity of 128,704 liters. Smaller sprays were coming from a frame around the tank, in an effort to cool its contents and reduce the risk of an explosion. No injuries had been reported by Friday afternoon, and there was no immediate indication as to what caused the leak, which was initially reported on Thursday. Covey said crews were preparing for a chemical spill, which he described as a &quot;best-case scenario&quot; and far preferable to an explosion and a toxic plume. Responders were working to put containment barriers in place to prevent any spilled material from reaching storm drains or river channels that lead into the ocean. The US Environmental Protection Agency says methyl methacrylate is irritating to the skin, eyes, and mucous membranes in humans. &quot;Respiratory effects have been reported in humans following acute (short-term) and chronic (long-term) inhalation exposures,&quot; a fact sheet on the agency&#39;s website says. &quot;Neurological symptoms have also been reported in humans following acute exposure.&quot;

Evacuation orders affect about 40,000 people in Orange County after a leaking chemical tank prompts fears of explosion or spill, with officials preparing for two possible outcomes.

Thousands ordered to evacuate around leaking California chemical tank

NEW YORK: Talks at the United Nations (UN) to reaffirm nuclear nonproliferation and disarmament goals failed on Friday, according to the leader of the talks, after four weeks of negotiations held amid low expectations. Vietnam&#39;s Do Hung Viet, the president of the conference, said that &quot;despite our best efforts... it is my understanding that the conference is not in a position to achieve agreement on its substantive work.&quot; &quot;I do not intend to put the document forward for adoption,&quot; he added. Negotiators were reviewing the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), the cornerstone of nuclear weapons control, amid fears of a renewed arms race. Previous reviews in 2015 and 2022 were also unsuccessful. With expectations low, participants negotiated over a repeatedly reviewed and watered-down text, which they ultimately failed to adopt. Experts pointed out that even in the absence of a review agreement for the third time in a row, the treaty continues to exist, but with diminished legitimacy. &quot;The text keeps on becoming less and less anchored in the realities of current conflicts and proliferation risks,&quot; including North Korea and Iran, analyst Richard Gowan of the International Crisis Group said before the outcome was announced. The latest version of the text seen by AFP on Friday merely stated that Tehran must &quot;never&quot; develop nuclear weapons. The paragraph was in brackets, signaling persistent disagreement, despite the removal of the reference to Iran&#39;s &quot;non-compliance&quot; with its obligations that appeared in the first draft. Also gone were expressions of concern about North Korea&#39;s nuclear program, or even any mention of the &quot;denuclearization&quot; of the Korean Peninsula. Gone as well was the direct call on the United States and Russia to begin negotiations on a successor to the New START treaty limiting Russian and American arsenals, which expired in February. The diluted text still covered &quot;the risk of a resumption of nuclear testing by Russia, China and the United States, the growth of arsenals, and attacks on nuclear infrastructure,&quot; Heloise Fayet of the French Institute of International Relations said earlier on Friday. Exactly why the review failed isn&#39;t yet known. &quot;The majority of countries are indeed working in good faith for disarmament,&quot; said Seth Shelden of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), commenting on the failure of the talks. &quot;But the small handful of nuclear-armed states, and certain of their allies, are undermining the NPT, frustrating disarmament efforts, expanding arsenals and provoking proliferation, and pointing the world toward catastrophe,&quot; he added. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), the nine nuclear-armed states possessed 12,241 nuclear warheads in January 2025, 90% of which were in American and Russian hands. Some countries are modernizing their arsenals or even increasing their stockpiles. The NPT, which entered into force in 1970 and has been signed by almost all states, aims to prevent proliferation, promote complete disarmament and encourage cooperation for the peaceful use of nuclear energy.

UN talks to reinforce nuclear nonproliferation and disarmament fail after four weeks, with negotiators unable to reach agreement on a revised treaty text amid divisions over nuclear weapons policy.

UN nuclear nonproliferation talks fail after month-long negotiations

PARIS: Several French pro-Palestinian activists on Friday described a &ldquo;violent&rdquo; and &ldquo;dehumanizing&rdquo; ordeal after they were detained by Israeli forces on a <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/first-gaza-flotilla-activists-arrive-in-turkey-after-israel-deportation" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Gaza-bound flotilla</a>. Eight French nationals arrived at Charles de Gaulle airport near Paris from Turkey on Friday afternoon, to supporters shouting &quot;Long live the struggle of the Palestinian people&quot;. Two of the 36 French people who were on board the flotilla were still in hospital in Turkey, the returnees told awaiting reporters. Holding a yellow rose and wearing a keffiyeh, Meriem Hadjal, 38, said she was detained on board one of the boats on Monday then transferred to Israel. &quot;They made us go one by one into a pitch-black container. I was groped,&quot; said Hadjal, an activist from the Waves of Freedom - France group. &quot;There were three soldiers in the container and a comrade on the ground with his trousers pulled down. &quot;One of them started touching my breasts. I then got huge deafening slaps to the head and the groping continued. &quot;I was terrified. I thought I was going to be raped at that moment,&quot; she added, claiming that a colleague was tortured with a stun weapon. At Ashdod, in southern Israel, &quot;we had to deal with <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/italy-france-uk-germany-urge-israel-to-end-settlement-expansion" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Ben Gvir</a>&#39;s police who were extremely violent with us, humiliating, dehumanizing&quot;, said Hadjal, referring to Israel&#39;s far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben Gvir. On Wednesday, Ben Gvir sparked an outcry internationally but also within his own government by publishing a video of dozens of activists kneeling with their foreheads on the ground and their hands tied. &#39;Terror&#39;&nbsp;Another activist, Adrien Bertel, described &quot;a gratuitous escalation of humiliation, rights violations and terror&quot;. Bertel, who took part in a previous attempt to break Israel&#39;s maritime blockade of the Palestinian territory, said that among the 430 people of different nationalities who were &quot;kidnapped&quot;, &quot;at least 37&quot; had broken bones. &quot;At least 16&quot; have reported sexual violence, he added. During his two days of detention on the boat, Bertel, who is in his thirties, also spoke of &quot;three soldiers in a container&quot;. &quot;Each of us stayed in there two or three minutes and they beat us up in the dark,&quot; he said. &quot;I had nail polish on. They immediately said &#39;gay&#39;, open homophobia. So that meant an extra layer of violence,&quot; he added. Yasmine Scola said they slept with their hands tied behind their backs for 36 hours and had to go to the bathroom with the handcuffs on. &quot;It&#39;s actually quite a significant form of torture,&quot; she said, adding that she saw injured people left untreated. She described women being subjected to humiliating &quot;parades&quot; where soldiers insulted or laughed at them. At the port, she said she and the others were put in a &quot;stress position&quot;, on their knees with their forehead on the ground for several hours, while the Israeli national anthem played on repeat. Asked by AFP to respond to the reports of physical and psychological violence, sexual harassment, assault, and rape, the Israeli prison service said the accusations were &quot;false and entirely without factual basis&quot;. &quot;All prisoners and detainees are held in accordance with the law, with respect for their fundamental rights under the supervision of professional and trained prison staff,&quot; a spokesperson said. Before leaving the airport, the activists said they had experienced &quot;a tiny part of what Palestinians endure, in silence&quot; and called for protests to demand that the French government &quot;take action&quot;.

Europe

French activists returning from a Gaza-bound flotilla said Israeli forces subjected them to violent and humiliating treatment during detention, including sexual abuse.

French activists describe ‘dehumanizing’ abuse by Israel after Gaza flotilla arrest

WASHINGTON: US intelligence chief Tulsi Gabbard announced her resignation on Friday, ending the tenure of a controversial pick who appeared to be at odds with President Donald Trump over the Middle East War.&nbsp; Gabbard, 45, said she was quitting as Director of National Intelligence to care for her husband, Abraham Williams, after he was recently diagnosed with an &quot;extremely rare form of bone cancer.&quot; &quot;He faces major challenges in the coming weeks and months,&quot; Gabbard said in a letter to Trump that she posted on X. &quot;At this time, I must step away from public service to be by his side and fully support him through this battle.&quot; Gabbard, a former Democratic congresswoman, married her Hawaii-based cinematographer husband in a Hindu ceremony. They met while shooting campaign advertisements, and he proposed to her while surfing at sunset. Trump hailed Gabbard, whose job involved coordinating information from the sprawling network of 18 US intelligence agencies for the president&#39;s daily briefing. &quot;Tulsi has done an incredible job, and we will miss her,&quot; Trump said on his Truth Social network, adding that she &quot;rightfully&quot; wanted to help her husband with his cancer battle. Her deputy, Aaron Lukas, would serve as the acting Director of National Intelligence, the president added. Gabbard is the fourth in a series of high-profile women to have left Trump&#39;s cabinet in recent months. Trump fired Homeland Security chief Kristi Noem in March and Attorney General Pam Bondi in April. Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer stepped down in April amid a series of scandals.But the White House pushed back at a report that Gabbard had been forced out. &quot;This is false. Her husband, who is an absolutely incredible human being, has been diagnosed with a rare bone cancer,&quot; her chief of staff, Alexa Henning, said on X. White House spokesman Davis Ingle said that &quot;any suggestion that the White House forced her to resign over her husband&rsquo;s health is slanderous.&quot; Syria trip&nbsp; The former Democrat was a surprising choice as intel chief for Republican Trump, given her previous history of endorsing conspiracy theories and opposition to America&#39;s foreign military interventions. As a congresswoman, Gabbard had in particular expressed opposition to going to war against Iran. She faced questions over her 2017 meeting with now-deposed Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad and her peddling of Russian propaganda &ndash; particularly false conspiracy theories about the Ukraine war. She was also regarded with suspicion by some over her views on US government surveillance and her backing for National Security Agency (NSA) leaker Edward Snowden. Trump pressed on with the appointment, but she appeared to be increasingly frozen out of decision-making in recent months as he headed toward the war with Iran. Gabbard was reportedly not in the room when Trump huddled with his top advisors in the immediate run-up to the launch of the joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28. After the war began, she repeatedly contradicted or failed to fully back the justifications that the Trump administration gave for launching the war. Gabbard declined to endorse Trump&#39;s claim that Iran posed an imminent threat &ndash; an assessment that the administration used to justify the strikes. She also said US intelligence had concluded that Iran was not rebuilding nuclear enrichment capacities that were destroyed last year by the United States and Israel &ndash; a claim also used as a major justification for the war. The Hawaii native served in Iraq with the Army National Guard. The experience informed her opposition to America&#39;s long foreign wars, as it did for Vice President JD Vance and Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth. Gabbard&#39;s mother, born on the US mainland, embraced Hinduism and raised her children in the tradition. Her first name, Tulsi, is a sacred plant in Hinduism, and she is a lifelong vegetarian.

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard prepares to leave at the conclusion of a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on worldwide threats in the Hart Senate Office Building on March 18, 2026 in Washington, DC. (AFP)

US intelligence chief Tulsi Gabbard resigns to care for her husband after his cancer diagnosis, ending a controversial tenure marked by disagreements over Middle East policy and scrutiny of her past views.

Trump's intelligence chief Tulsi Gabbard resigns

ROME: Italy, France, Britain and Germany on Friday urged Israel to stop expanding its settlements in the occupied West Bank, arguing it was &quot;undermining stability&quot; and prospects for a two-state solution. The statement was welcomed by the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/palestinian-authority-condemns-east-jerusalem-evictions" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Palestinian Authority</a>&nbsp;as an &quot;important step&quot;. &quot;We call on the government of Israel to end its expansion of settlements and administrative powers, ensure accountability for settler violence and investigate allegations against Israeli forces,&quot; said the countries in a joint statement. Noting that the situation in the West Bank had &quot;deteriorated significantly&quot; in the past few months, the countries said settler violence towards Palestinians was at &quot;unprecedented levels&quot;. &quot;The policies and practices of the Israeli government, including a further entrenchment of Israeli control, are undermining stability and prospects for a two-state solution,&quot; the statement added. The countries condemned Israel&#39;s E1 settlement plan &ndash; a new construction project expected to build some 3,400 housing units in the occupied West Bank over 12 square kilometers&ndash; as a &quot;serious breach of international law&quot;. &quot;Businesses should not bid for construction tenders for E1 or other settlement developments,&quot; the countries said. &quot;They should be aware of legal and reputational consequences of participating in settlement construction including the risk of involving themselves in serious breaches of international law.&quot; The statement also called on Israel to lift its financial restrictions on the Palestinian Authority and the Palestinian economy. They &quot;strongly oppose those, including members of the Israeli government, who argue for annexation and forcible displacement of the Palestinian population&quot;, the statement added. &#39;Important&#39; step The Palestinian Authority has called the joint statement &quot;an important step in the right direction&quot;. It called for &quot;serious and effective mechanisms to translate these important positions into concrete steps&quot; to put pressure on Israel. Since Israel began its siege of Gaza in October 2023, near-daily violence has also rocked the <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/peace-activists-gather-ahead-of-jerusalem-day-rallies-known-for-violence" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">West Bank</a>, which Israel has occupied since 1967. The joint statement came at the end of a tense week in European-Israeli relations following the publication of a video that revealed the harsh treatment of European activists from a Gaza-bound flotilla while in Israeli custody. Israel&#39;s far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben Gvir, published the video that showed activists forced to kneel with their foreheads to the ground and their hands tied. Italy and Spain later called on the EU to sanction Ben Gvir, while Ireland urged the EU to take action against Israel over the activists&#39; treatment, according to a leaked letter seen by AFP. The United Kingdom, meanwhile, summoned Israel&#39;s most senior diplomat in Britain following what it called the &quot;inflammatory video&quot;.

A general view of the Palestinian Bedouin village of Khan al-Ahmar is pictured in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, against the backdrop of Israeli settlement of Mishor Adumim, on May 20, 2026. (AFP)

France, Britain, Germany and Italy urge Israel to halt West Bank settlement expansion, calling it illegal and harmful to peace prospects, while the Palestinian Authority welcomes the statement as a significant diplomatic step.

Italy, France, UK, Germany urge Israel to end settlement expansion

Web Desk

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Television Corporation Ltd. (PTV) has won a major international honor at the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting+ Awards 2026, earning recognition in the &ldquo;Virtual Production &ndash; Pakistan&rdquo; category for its innovative project &ldquo;Tasveer Kahani.&rdquo; The award was presented during a ceremony held at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore earlier this week, celebrating excellence and innovation in the broadcasting and media industry across the Asia-Pacific region.&nbsp; The annual awards program recognizes broadcasters, production houses and technology leaders that are redefining storytelling and media production through digital transformation, artificial intelligence and immersive audience experiences. PTV&rsquo;s winning project, Tasveer Kahani, is a unique series of fiction films inspired by real archival photographs from the 1947 Partition of the Indian subcontinent.&nbsp;<div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="true" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 897px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-0&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2057884138384797832&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Flogin%2F&sessionId=956eb7e6beec401652495e516e81d4aed85e6f91&theme=light&widgetsVersion=6a3ad42b224df%3A1778106238597&width=550px" data-tweet-id="2057884138384797832"></iframe></div></div>The production combines historical storytelling with advanced virtual production techniques and artificial intelligence-driven visual enhancement to recreate pivotal moments from one of the region&rsquo;s most defining historical events. This year&rsquo;s awards highlighted the rapid evolution of broadcasting from traditional television formats into more intelligent, interactive and digitally integrated media ecosystems.&nbsp; Organizers said the winning entries demonstrated innovation, impact and technological dynamism in an increasingly competitive and fragmented media landscape. The awards were evaluated by an international panel of industry experts, including senior executives from Kearney, KPMG Singapore, PwC China and Roland Berger. Judges assessed submissions on the basis of innovation, creativity, technical excellence and industry impact. PTV&rsquo;s recognition marks a significant achievement for Pakistan&rsquo;s state broadcaster at a time when media organizations worldwide are investing heavily in next-generation production technologies and digital-first content strategies.

Culture

Tasveer Kahani is a fiction film series based on real archival Partition photographs, blending historical storytelling with virtual production and artificial intelligence-driven visual recreation techniques.

PTV wins prestigious Asia-Pacific Broadcasting+ Award for virtual production innovation

MADRID: Austrian defender David Alaba will leave Real Madrid at the end of the season when his contract expires, Los Blancos said Friday. The 33-year-old has been in the Spanish capital for five years after joining from Bayern Munich, but serious injury problems stopped him playing consistently. Alaba won 11 trophies including two Champions Leagues and two La Liga titles, playing 131 times for the club. &quot;Real Madrid wishes to express its gratitude and all its affection to a player who has been part of a team that has marked one of the most successful periods in our history,&quot; said Madrid in a statement. Alaba, like right-back Dani Carvajal and departing coach Alvaro Arbeloa, can say goodbye to the club&#39;s supporters on Saturday in Madrid&#39;s final league match of the season, at home against Athletic Bilbao. The centre-back, who has not yet announced his next destination, will captain Austria at the World Cup this summer.

Football

Austrian defender David Alaba will leave Real Madrid at the end of the season when his contract expires, Los Blancos said Friday.

Alaba to leave Real Madrid after five years

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) agreed on Friday to accelerate documentation and procedural requirements for the Karachi&ndash;Rohri section of the Main Line-1 (ML-1) railway project, as the government pushes to begin work on the long-delayed infrastructure scheme this year. Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Ahad Cheema chaired a high-level meeting reviewing implementation arrangements for the project, with senior officials from the Economic Affairs Division, Ministry of Railways, and the ADB in attendance. Cheema directed the Ministry of Railways to expedite documentation in coordination with the ADB and the Economic Affairs Division, stressing Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif&rsquo;s commitment to holding the project&rsquo;s groundbreaking ceremony within the current year. &ldquo;The Karachi&ndash;Rohri section is a starter and will be implemented come what may,&rdquo; the statement quoted Cheema as saying.&nbsp; It added that the government was coordinating with other development partners for the remaining sections of the ML-1 corridor and aimed to finalize agreements for the full Karachi-to-Peshawar railway upgrade. Cheema, according to statement, said the government was also engaging other development partners for the remaining sections of the ML-1 corridor and aimed to finalize agreements for the full Karachi-to-Peshawar railway upgrade. The minister said Pakistan was seeking to secure ADB financing in the upcoming fiscal year and emphasized that timely completion of documentation and procedural requirements would be critical to achieving that goal.&nbsp; He also instructed the Ministry of Railways to work closely with the Planning Division to finalize the PC-1 and other mandatory approvals. Cheema described ML-1 as a &ldquo;landmark initiative&rdquo; that would improve freight movement and strengthen railway services nationwide. ADB Country Director Emma Fan reaffirmed the lender&rsquo;s support for the project and praised efforts by Pakistani authorities to advance preparations.&nbsp; &ldquo;ADB would ensure the timely hiring of the PRF consultant,&rdquo; Fan said, adding that the bank would &ldquo;make every effort to minimize the project review timeline&rdquo; to support swift implementation of the strategically important scheme. The ML-1 project, stretching from Karachi to Peshawar, is Pakistan&rsquo;s largest railway modernization initiative and is aimed at upgrading tracks, improving freight capacity, and reducing travel times across the country.

Economy

Pakistan and the Asian Development Bank agreed to fast-track approvals and documentation for the Karachi–Rohri ML-1 railway section, as Islamabad pushes to begin construction this year under the broader Karachi-to-Peshawar railway modernization project.

Pakistan army chief arrives in Tehran for Iran-US talks facilitation

Latest News

SpaceX's enormous Starship splashes down after test flight

Pakistan army chief arrives in Tehran for Iran-US talks facilitation

Thousands ordered to evacuate around leaking California chemical tank

UN nuclear nonproliferation talks fail after month-long negotiations

French activists describe ‘dehumanizing’ abuse by Israel after Gaza flotilla arrest