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); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Iran&rsquo;s president stated that the country has no intention of developing nuclear weapons</li><li style="line-height: 2; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">President Donald Trump said the US won&#39;t &#39;rush&#39; to finalize a deal with Iran</li><li style="line-height: 2; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Oil markets in Asia tumbled over 5% amid optimism surrounding potential US-Iran deal</li><li style="line-height: 2; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Saudi Arabia praised Pakistan&rsquo;s mediation role in efforts to ease regional tensions</li><li style="line-height: 2; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">&nbsp;A pre-dawn Israeli airstrike in central Gaza killed three family members, including an infant</li></ul><hr style="line-height: 2;"> US futures rise as traders weigh ME War developments Published: May 25, 2026 | 1:38 GMT | by Web Desk The Guardian reported Monday that US stock futures moved higher in early trading as investors reacted to expectations surrounding a possible agreement to end the Iran war. The gains came as market participants positioned for increased risk appetite at the start of the week. Nasdaq futures rose 0.89%, while S&amp;P 500 futures gained 0.6%. However, uncertainty over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz limited market enthusiasm. <hr> Oil retreats in Asian trading even as&nbsp;Trump dampens US&ndash;Iran deal prospects Published: May 25, 2026 | 5:44 GMT | by Web Desk/AFP Oil prices fell more than 5% in early Asian trading on Monday, with markets reacting to expectations of a possible US&ndash;Iran agreement even after US President Donald Trump signaled caution over its timing. Brent crude dropped 5.1% to $98.22 per barrel around 2300 GMT on Sunday, while West Texas Intermediate fell 5.2% to $91.57. Trump said in a social media post on Sunday that negotiators should not rush into a deal, saying time was on their side. He added that restrictions would remain in place until an agreement is reached and signed. The United States and Iran have observed a ceasefire since April 8 while mediators continue efforts toward a negotiated settlement.

Americas

Middle East

Trump says sanctions remain until a final agreement is signed, while the US and Iran continue observing a ceasefire as mediators work toward a negotiated settlement.

LIVE: Oil retreats in Asian trading even as Trump dampens US–Iran deal prospects

<h1 id="isPasted" style="line-height: 2;">GENEVA: More than 900 suspected Ebola cases have been identified in the conflict-hit Democratic Republic of Congo, the World Health Organization (WHO) chief has said.</h1> &quot;As surveillance efforts have been scaled up in the DRC Ebola response, more than 900 suspected cases have been identified so far, including 101 confirmed cases,&quot; WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a Sunday social media post that gave no update on the death toll. Ebola is a deadly viral disease that spreads through direct contact with bodily fluids. It can cause severe bleeding and organ failure. The country declared an outbreak on May 15 caused by the Bundibugyo strain, which has no approved vaccine or treatments. In a previous update released on Saturday, the DR Congo health ministry said 204 deaths had been recorded in three provinces of the vast central African country, from 867 suspected cases. Ebola has killed more than 15,000 people across Africa in the past half-century.

Africa

Health authorities are scaling up surveillance in conflict-hit regions as the outbreak continues, with cases spread across multiple provinces and ongoing monitoring of infections and disease transmission.

Suspected Ebola cases top 900 in DR Congo: WHO chief

PARIS: Novak Djokovic battled from behind to keep his dream of winning a 25th major crown at Roland Garros alive, while Alexander Zverev enjoyed a more comfortable first-round victory as the clay-court Grand Slam got underway on Sunday. Lifting the Coupe des Mousquetaires for a fourth time would send the 39-year-old Djokovic clear as the player with the most major titles in the history of the sport. Djokovic&#39;s last Grand Slam title came at the US Open in 2023, and with double-defending Roland Garros champion Carlos Alcaraz missing through injury, he knows this is a big chance to seal that elusive quarter century of crowns. But that dream looked in jeopardy in his opening match against the big-serving Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, who was playing in front of a vocal home support in the night session on Court Philippe Chatrier. The Serb had to deploy all of his expertise as a returner to finally find a way to break the 2.01-metre Mpetshi Perricard&#39;s serve as he fought back to win 5-7, 7-5, 6-1, 6-4 in just under three hours on court. &quot;The match, it was very challenging, obviously mentally,&quot; Djokovic told reporters after making a record 82nd appearance at a major. &quot;First set, zero chance on him serving. It&#39;s one of the most tremendous serves in terms of precision and speed that I have ever faced in my career. &quot;Obviously, the crowd gets into it and you feel the pressure even more. All in all, it was a good match to be part of. &quot;Three hours, just what the doctor ordered at age 39.&quot; After struggling with a shoulder issue that caused him to miss the vast majority of the clay-court swing, Djokovic&#39;s victory over the former world number 29 was his first on the red dirt in 2026. He will meet another Frenchman in Valentin Royer in the second round after the world number 74 beat Bolivian qualifier Hugo Dellien. &#39;Thoughts to Ukraine&#39; Under a blazing sun earlier in the day, German second seed Zverev eased past France&#39;s Benjamin Bonzi 6-3, 6-4, 6-2. The 29-year-old said it was &quot;always nice to start with a straight-sets win&quot;, and he will doubtless have been glad to spend as little time on court as possible with the thermometer going past 30C in the French capital. The only blip for Zverev in an otherwise polished performance was conceding a break of serve in the second frame against the world number 95 but he swiftly righted course to claim that frame. He will next face Czech Tomas Machac, who earlier beat Belgium&#39;s Zizou Bergs 6-4, 6-4, 6-3. Karen Khachanov of Russia also advanced into the second round with a straight-sets win over French wild card Arthur Gea. Czech 26th seed Jakub Mensik made similarly short work of another French invitee, Titouan Droguet, as the 20-year-old strolled through 6-3, 6-2, 6-4. Brazilian 19-year-old Joao Fonseca put on a clinical display to see off hometown qualifier Luka Pavlovic without dropping a set. Taylor Fritz, the seventh seed, again suffered another early exit from Roland Garros as the American went down 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (7/5), 6-7 (9/11), 6-1 to his 148th-ranked compatriot Nishesh Basavareddy. Former French Open winner Barbora Krejcikova was another high-profile departee as the world number 41 was eliminated 6-7 (7/9), 7-6 (8/6), 6-2 by American 26th seed Hailey Baptiste. She was joined in exiting Roland Garros by fellow former major winners Emma Raducanu and Sofia Kenin. Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk earned her 12th consecutive win on clay as she eased past Oksana Selekhmeteva, who was born in Russia but obtained Spanish nationality four days ago, 6-2, 6-3. The Madrid Open champion then revealed that her family home in Kyiv was nearly struck by a Russian missile during a massive bombardment of the Ukrainian capital earlier on Sunday. &quot;This morning, 100 meters from my parents&#39; house, a missile fell,&quot; the 15th seed said. &quot;All my thoughts and all my heart was to the people of Ukraine today. My biggest example are Ukrainian people today.&quot; Swiss 11th seed Belinda Bencic opened play on Court Philippe Chatrier with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Austrian qualifier Sinja Kraus. Russian teenager and eighth seed Mirra Andreeva navigated her way past 181st-ranked Fiona Ferro of France in straight sets.

Tennis

Djokovic fights back from a set down to beat Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in a tough Roland Garros opener and keeps his chase for a 25th Grand Slam title alive.

Djokovic fights through tough Roland Garros opener, Zverev strolls

MONTREAL: Kimi Antonelli said he regretted the power unit failure that took team-mate and title rival George Russell out of Sunday&#39;s Canadian Grand Prix. Antonelli described it as &quot;a shame&quot; to end their thrilling on-track battle, but added he was happy to grab his fourth straight triumph to open a 43-point lead ahead of his Mercedes team-mate, who led the most laps before pulling out of the race. &quot;It was a really fun battle, to be fair, with George,&rdquo; said the Italian teenager. &quot;We were pretty much on the limit. It was not easy today, with the wind. It was very gusty and Turn 10 is very difficult. &quot;One lap, I think, he locked up and I went in front -- and then I locked up, so it was very close and it was a shame for him to have a failure because it would have been a very cool battle. &quot;But, we will take it. Another win. I&#39;m very happy and massive thanks to the team.&quot; Antonelli said he had been so absorbed with his battle for the lead with Russell, which enthralled the crowd at the Circuit Gilles Villeneve, that he had to refocus once in the lead alone. &quot;When I was on my own, I was trying to really manage the tyres because I started to have some graining on the front-left tyre,&quot; he said. &quot;It was just a weird feeling. The tyre was not really biting, but at the end we had the good pace when the temperature was coming in... And now, we&#39;re looking forward to the next one in Monaco.&quot; Luckless Russell, who won Saturday&#39;s sprint race after a bruising clash with Antonelli and claimed pole for the Grand Prix, lost all power on lap 30. It meant his hopes of trimming the precocious 19-year-old Italian&#39;s title race lead were wrecked as Antonelli established himself as the man to beat. &quot;Everything turned off all of a sudden,&quot; he said, describing his car&#39;s failure. &quot;The engine stopped, no electronics, no proper braking. I&#39;m a bit lost for words. I can&#39;t really say much more. &quot;But to be honest, I&rsquo;m proud of my weekend. Pole for the sprint race, won the sprint race, pole for the main race... I had a good battle with Kimi. From my side, I don&#39;t think there was any more I could do this weekend. &quot;I&#39;ll leave satisfied, although of course I&#39;m pretty frustrated by what has happened, but what more could I do?&rdquo; Russell said he had enjoyed his battle with Antonelli and compared it to his early days in motor racing. &quot;I thought it was great,&quot; he said. &quot;I loved it. I really enjoyed it. It felt like karting days. We didn&#39;t make any contact. It was close... I loved it. That&#39;s what racing is about -- I just would have liked to have continued it for 30 more laps.&quot;

(L/R) Ferrari's British driver Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes' Senior Race Team Composite Technician Dean Hale, Red Bull Racing's Dutch driver Max Verstappen and race winner Mercedes' Italian driver Kimi Antonelli (hidden) celebrate on the podium at the conclus

Racing

Antonelli won the Canadian Grand Prix after teammate George Russell retired with engine failure, ending their close battle and extending his championship lead to 43 points with a fourth straight win.

Antonelli regrets Russell retirement but happy with F1 lead

LIVERPOOL: An emotional <a href="https://pakistantv.com/article/salah-to-leave-liverpool-at-the-end-of-the-season" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Mohamed Salah</a> said &quot;we put the club back where it belongs&quot; after playing his final game for Liverpool on Sunday. A 1-1 draw at home to Brentford on the last day of the <a href="https://pakistantv.com/article/man-utds-fernandes-named-premier-league-player-of-the-season" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Premier League</a> season marked the end of the Egyptian forward&#39;s nine-year spell at Anfield. Salah, 33, bid farewell alongside Scotland defender Andy Robertson, who also joined in 2017. Salah scored 257 goals for Liverpool, behind only Ian Rush (346) and Roger Hunt (285) in the club&#39;s list of leading goalscorers. He has also won multiple trophies at the club including the Champions League and two Premier League titles. &quot;I think I cried more than in my whole life,&quot; Salah told Sky Sports after the <a href="https://pakistantv.com/article/man-city-beat-brentford-to-close-gap-on-leaders-arsenal" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Brentford</a> match. &quot;I&#39;m not really an emotional guy. &quot;We lived our youth here, sharing everything from the beginning to the end,&quot; said Salah of the time he shared with Robertson at Anfield. &quot;We put this club back where it belongs.&quot; Salah&#39;s departure was announced in March after he told reporters in December his relationship with Liverpool manager Arne Slot had broken down. And in a social media post following last week&#39;s defeat at Aston Villa, Salah said he wanted to see a return to &quot;heavy metal football&quot;, referring to the approach under former Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp. But he still started the match against Brentford, with the names of both Salah and Robertson met with a deafening roar when introduced by the stadium announcer. Banners in the crowd celebrated both players, one saying &quot;Thank you legends&quot;. Another said: &quot;We Have Gone From Great To Glory. Salah Is Our King&quot;. Salah was the Premier League&#39;s top-scorer last season, with 29 goals, as Liverpool won the title, but his form dipped dramatically this term and he managed just seven goals in the league. The draw with Brentford, allied to Bournemouth&#39;s defeat by<a href="https://pakistantv.com/article/starmer-demands-man-utd-coowner-ratcliffe-apologise-for-immigration-comments" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">&nbsp;Manchester United</a>, ensured Liverpool secured fifth position in the Premier League, guaranteeing the six-time European champions a place in next season&#39;s Champions League. &quot;It&#39;s tricky to leave Liverpool,&quot; said Salah, adding: &quot;It&#39;s life. I look back and wonder if I would have wanted more than I achieved. Not really. &quot;We won it all. We see the love from the fans and this is the most important thing for me. &quot;I will be far away from here. I will be emotional every time. I hope the team stays in the position, fighting for everything.&quot;

Football

Salah leaves Liverpool after nine years with 257 goals and multiple trophies, including the Champions League and two Premier League titles, cementing his status as a club great.

Emotional Mohamed Salah proud to put Liverpool 'back where it belongs'

Web Desk

ISLAMABAD: Governments and diplomatic missions across the world on Sunday strongly condemned the&nbsp;<a href="https://pakistantv.com/article/pakistan-pm-condemns-explosion-in-quetta-vows-to-eliminate-terrorism" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">deadly terrorist attack</a>&nbsp;targeting a passenger train near Chaman Phatak in southwestern Quetta, as Pakistan&rsquo;s leadership vowed strong action against terrorists and their facilitators following one of the deadliest attacks in Balochistan in recent months. The suicide bombing near the railway track martyred more than 20 people and injured dozens of others after an explosives-laden vehicle detonated as a passenger train passed through the area. Pakistani authorities said innocent civilians, including women and children, were among the victims. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the bombing as a &ldquo;heinous&rdquo; and &ldquo;cowardly act of terrorism,&rdquo; saying such attacks could not weaken the resolve of the Pakistani people. &ldquo;We remain steadfast in our determination to eliminate terrorism in all its forms and manifestations,&rdquo; the prime minister said, expressing condolences to the families of victims and solidarity with the people of Balochistan. President Asif Ali Zardari said terrorists and their patrons were attempting to undermine Pakistan&rsquo;s efforts for peace, stability, and development. &ldquo;Pakistan will defeat terrorists, their facilitators, financiers and those providing them safe havens,&rdquo; he said, adding that the country would &ldquo;neither forget nor forgive the terrorists and their patrons.&rdquo; Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti, during a high-level security meeting in Quetta, said all possible measures would continue to eliminate the menace of terrorism. Naqvi said the &ldquo;beastly terrorists&rdquo; had shown &ldquo;extreme brutality&rdquo; by targeting innocent civilians, while Bugti vowed that terrorists linked to &ldquo;Fitna al-Hindustan&rdquo; would be brought to their &ldquo;logical end.&rdquo; Fitna al-Hindustan refers to the banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and affiliated terrorist groups. These networks operate with Indian sponsorship to destabilize Balochistan and undermine Pakistan&rsquo;s peace, security and development. Authorities say these groups are not political actors but foreign-backed terrorist organizations involved in attacks on civilians, security forces, and public infrastructure, including projects linked to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). The international community also responded with strong condemnations and messages of solidarity with Pakistan. The United States Embassy in Islamabad condemned the attack &ldquo;in the strongest terms,&rdquo; noting that the banned BLA, designated by Washington as a &ldquo;Foreign Terrorist Organization&rdquo;, had claimed responsibility. &ldquo;The people of Pakistan deserve to live in security and peace, free from the threat of terrorist violence,&rdquo; the embassy said. UK High Commissioner Jane Marriott said she was &ldquo;absolutely appalled&rdquo; by the &ldquo;cowardly terrorist attack&rdquo; in Quetta and expressed condolences to the families of the victims. The Chinese Embassy in Pakistan said Beijing &ldquo;firmly opposes any form of terrorism&rdquo; and would continue supporting Pakistan in combating terrorism and protecting public safety. &ldquo;We stand firmly with our Pakistani brothers and sisters at this moment,&rdquo; the embassy said in a statement. The Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan condemned the &ldquo;heinous terrorist attack&rdquo; and reaffirmed solidarity with Pakistan. It said that such acts &ldquo;must be unequivocally rejected in all their forms and manifestations.&rdquo; The Russian Embassy in Pakistan expressed hope that those responsible for the attack would be identified and brought to justice, while T&uuml;rkiye&rsquo;s Foreign Ministry called the attack &ldquo;utterly unacceptable&rdquo; and reiterated Ankara&rsquo;s solidarity with Pakistan in the fight against terrorism. Australian High Commissioner Timothy Kane said Australia stood with the people of Pakistan during the difficult time, extending condolences to the victims&rsquo; families and wishing a quick recovery to the injured. Iran&rsquo;s Ambassador to Pakistan Reza Amiri Moghadam strongly condemned the &ldquo;cowardly and heinous suicide terrorist act.&rdquo; He called attacks on civilian transportation infrastructure &ldquo;crimes against humanity.&rdquo; From Bangladesh, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman also condemned the attack. He said Bangladesh stood in solidarity with Pakistan and &ldquo;vehemently condemns terrorism and violence in all forms.&rdquo; Afghanistan&rsquo;s Foreign Ministry additionally condemned the attack in Quetta, stating that civilian casualties &ldquo;in any form and by any side&rdquo; were condemnable. Pakistani authorities said investigations and security operations were continuing following the attack, which also caused extensive damage to railway infrastructure, nearby buildings, and vehicles. Officials stated that the country&rsquo;s counterterrorism campaign would continue with full resolve to ensure peace, stability and national security.

Foreign Affairs

Governments worldwide condemned a suicide bombing targeting a passenger train in Quetta that killed more than 20 people and wounded dozens, as Pakistan pledged continued counterterrorism operations.

Global condemnation grows after deadly Quetta train bombing

BEIJING: China launched its crewed Shenzhou-23 spacecraft and eased it into a successful docking with a space station early Monday as part of Beijing&#39;s ambitions to send humans to the Moon by 2030, state media said. During this mission, a Chinese astronaut is scheduled to spend a full year in orbit on the Tiangong space station, a crucial first in the Chinese lunar landing program. The Long March 2-F rocket blasted off in a cloud of flames and smoke on time at 11:08 pm (1508 GMT) Sunday night from the Jiuquan launch center in China&#39;s northwestern Gobi Desert, video from state broadcaster CCTV showed. The spacecraft separated from the rocket around 10 minutes later and entered orbit, the Chinese Manned Space Agency (CMSA) said on social media. &quot;The astronauts are in good condition, and the launch has been a complete success,&quot; it added. The craft docked successfully with the Tiangong space station after a flight of about 3.5 hours, the state news agency Xinhua reported, quoting CMSA. The mission marks the first spaceflight by an astronaut from Hong Kong: 43-year-old Li Jiaying (Lai Ka-ying in Cantonese), who previously worked for the Hong Kong police. The two other crew members are 39-year-old space engineer Zhu Yangzhu and 39-year-old Zhang Zhiyuan, a former air force pilot, who is travelling into space for the first time. Cheering crowds waved Chinese flags at a farewell ceremony ahead of the launch, while a band played and the three astronauts saluted on stage. The crew is set to carry out numerous scientific projects in life sciences, materials science, fluid physics and medicine. A key experiment of Shenzhou-23 will be the full-year stay in orbit by one of the crew in order to study the effects of a long stay in microgravity. Year-long experiment The experiment is part of China&#39;s preparations for future lunar missions, as well as missions to Mars. The astronaut selected for this one-year mission will be named at a later date, depending on the progress of the Shenzhou-23 mission, a spokesperson for the CMSA said on Saturday. The main challenges will involve long-term effects on humans, including bone density loss, muscle wasting, radiation exposure, sleep disturbances, behavioral and psychological fatigue, said Richard de Grijs, an astrophysicist and professor at Macquarie University in Australia. He also underlined the importance of reliable water and air recycling systems, as well as the ability to manage potential medical emergencies far from Earth. China is &quot;steadily&quot; building operational experience for &quot;sustained occupation&quot; of its Tiangong space station, and year-long missions are an important step towards future lunar and potentially deep-space ambitions, de Grijs told AFP. &quot;A year in orbit pushes both hardware and humans into a different operational regime compared with the shorter Shenzhou missions of the program&#39;s earlier phases,&quot; he said. Crews aboard Tiangong have until now largely remained in orbit for six months before being replaced. The Shenzhou-23 mission is part of China&#39;s goal to land astronauts on the Moon before 2030, a race in which the United States is also competing with its Artemis program. Pakistani crew members China is testing the equipment required for its goal, with an orbital test flight of its new Mengzhou spacecraft set for 2026. The Mengzhou craft will replace the ageing Shenzhou line, and will carry China&#39;s astronauts to the Moon. Beijing hopes to have built the first phase of a manned scientific base by 2035, known as the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS). China also plans to welcome its first foreign astronaut, from Pakistan, aboard the Tiangong station by the end of this year. The Asian giant has significantly expanded its space programs over the last 30 years, injecting billions of dollars into the sector in order to catch up with the United States, Russia and Europe. In 2019, China landed a spacecraft, the Chang&#39;e-4 probe, on the far side of the Moon &ndash; a world first. Then in 2021, it landed a small rover on Mars.

Asia

China successfully launched Shenzhou-23 carrying three astronauts, including Hong Kong’s first space traveller, to Tiangong station. The mission includes a year-long orbit experiment supporting future Moon and Mars plans, while China advances lunar exploration and prepares to host Pakistani astronauts.

China launches three-crew space flight as part of Moon ambitions

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif arrived in Beijing on Sunday after concluding a series of investment and industrial engagements in Hangzhou, where he urged Chinese companies to relocate industries to Pakistan under what he described as a &ldquo;win-win model&rdquo; for both countries. The prime minister&rsquo;s visit comes as Islamabad seeks to deepen economic cooperation with China beyond traditional infrastructure financing under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, focusing instead on industrial relocation, technology partnerships, renewable energy, agriculture and business-to-business investment. According to a statement issued by the Prime Minister&rsquo;s Office, PM Sharif is expected to hold high-level meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang during his stay in Beijing to advance cooperation under CPEC Phase-II in trade, investment, industry, agriculture, science and technology, and people-to-people exchanges. The visit coincides with the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Pakistan and China. In Hangzhou, PM Sharif chaired the opening session of the third Pakistan-China B2B Investment Conference, attended by more than 500 companies from both countries and focused on information technology, battery energy storage systems, agriculture, solar technologies and pharmaceuticals. Addressing Chinese investors and business leaders, the prime minister said Pakistan was offering long-term industrial and investment opportunities rather than seeking external assistance. &ldquo;Pakistan is looking for expertise, experience, investments and not loans, not aid, not handouts, because handouts, aid never made a nation vibrant, never made a nation to stand on its own feet,&rdquo; Sharif said. He invited Chinese manufacturers facing rising labor costs at home to relocate industries to Pakistan through joint ventures with Pakistani firms. &ldquo;This model will be a win-win model for Chinese and Pakistani entrepreneurs, and this will be something of a roaring success in times to come,&rdquo; the prime minister said. Sharif said Pakistan was offering investor-friendly policies, long-term industrial land leases and one-window business facilitation through special economic zones, including a 6,000-acre export zone near Karachi. &ldquo;We are going to offer land to you on a long-term basis in terms of lease,&rdquo; he told investors. &ldquo;This special economic zone would have modern infrastructure, a seamless business environment and would offer a red-carpet treatment and one-window operation.&rdquo; The prime minister also emphasized opportunities in agriculture, minerals, artificial intelligence and information technology, saying Pakistan aimed to significantly expand agricultural exports to China over the next five to seven years. &ldquo;In the next five to seven years, we expect an increase in our agri product trade to China by about $10 billion,&rdquo; he said. PM Sharif held separate engagements with Chinese provincial authorities and leading companies including Alibaba Group, CATL and StarCharge to explore industrial cooperation and investment opportunities. At Alibaba headquarters, the prime minister met Executive Chairman Joe Tsai as Pakistan seeks greater cooperation in digitization, e-commerce and technology development. Pakistani and Chinese officials, on the other hand, agreed to establish a joint working group to explore cooperation in battery cell manufacturing and advanced energy technologies during meetings with CALB Group in Jiangsu province. Pakistan&rsquo;s delegation was briefed on lithium battery systems, electric mobility and energy storage technologies as both sides discussed localization, technical collaboration and industrial modernization initiatives. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, who also arrived in Beijing, said the Pakistan-China &ldquo;iron brotherhood&rdquo; was growing stronger as the two countries marked 75 years of diplomatic relations. &ldquo;Our friendship has stood the test of time, changing global realities, and regional challenges,&rdquo; Dar said during the B2B conference. &ldquo;Pakistan is open for business. Pakistan is reforming. Pakistan is rising,&rdquo; he added. Dar said more than 300 memorandums of understanding and nearly three dozen joint ventures worth over $13 billion had emerged from recent Pakistan-China business engagements. He is also scheduled to attend the second Pakistan-China Political Parties Forum and the fourth CPEC Political Parties Joint Consultation Mechanism alongside senior Chinese Communist Party officials. PM Sharif said the latest agreements signed during the China visit now needed to be translated into operational projects and investments. &ldquo;We have signed MoUs worth billions of dollars,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;These MoUs now need to be converted into agreements.&rdquo;

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif urges Chinese companies to relocate industries and expand joint ventures in Pakistan, highlighting opportunities in technology, renewable energy, manufacturing and agriculture as Islamabad seeks deeper business-driven economic cooperation with Beijing.

Pakistan pushes investment drive as PM Sharif begins high-level Beijing meetings

ISLAMABAD: Eleven terrorists were killed by Pakistan security forces during an intelligence-based operation in north-western Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, according to Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR). The military media wing said that over the last 48 hours, following intense and fierce exchanges of fire, &ldquo;eleven khwarij&rdquo; were killed in what it described as &ldquo;belonging to Indian-sponsored Fitna-al-Khwarij.&rdquo; Pakistan officially refers to the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as &ldquo;Fitna al-Khawarij,&rdquo; drawing on a historical term associated with violent extremism, to underscore the group&rsquo;s ideology, attacks against civilians, and rejection of state authority. &ldquo;Weapons and ammunition have also been recovered from killed Indian sponsored Khwarij, who remained actively involved in numerous terrorist activities in the area,&rdquo; the statement said. The military said the operation is continuing to eliminate terrorists hiding in the area as part of Pakistan&#39;s ongoing counterterrorism campaign under &quot;Azm-e-Istehkam,&quot; approved by the Federal Apex Committee under the National Action Plan. It said the campaign by security forces and law enforcement agencies would continue at full pace to eliminate what it described as foreign-sponsored terrorism from the country. Islamabad has intensified counterterrorism operations against terrorist networks operating along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, with Pakistani officials saying Afghan Taliban authorities have yet to take effective and verifiable action against terrorist hideouts and cross-border infiltration routes used for attacks inside Pakistan.

Security

Pakistan security forces kill eleven terrorists during an intelligence-based operation in north-western Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Pakistan forces kill 11 terrorists in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa intelligence operations

ISLAMABAD: India&rsquo;s opposition parties intensified pressure on Prime Minister Narendra Modi&rsquo;s government on Sunday, demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak controversy that has affected nearly 2.3 million students. The NEET-UG 2026 examination, one of <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/indian-opposition-leader-calls-cbi-chief-selection-a-mockery" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">India&rsquo;s largest entrance tests</a> for admission to undergraduate medical programmes including MBBS, BDS and other healthcare courses, was conducted on May 3 for nearly 2.3 million candidates but was cancelled on May 12 after the National Testing Agency confirmed that question papers had been leaked. Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi criticized Modi for remaining silent on the issue while students continued protests across the country. &ldquo;When millions of youth are on the streets and the future of 22 lakh (2.2) children is at stake, the prime minister remains silent,&rdquo; Gandhi said in a post on X, accusing the government of trying to evade responsibility instead of addressing the crisis.<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-4" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 624px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-4&features=eyJ0ZndfdGltZWxpbmVfbGlzdCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOltdLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X2ZvbGxvd2VyX2NvdW50X3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9iYWNrZW5kIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19yZWZzcmNfc2Vzc2lvbiI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZm9zbnJfc29mdF9pbnRlcnZlbnRpb25zX2VuYWJsZWQiOnsiYnVja2V0Ijoib24iLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X21peGVkX21lZGlhXzE1ODk3Ijp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRyZWF0bWVudCIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZXhwZXJpbWVudHNfY29va2llX2V4cGlyYXRpb24iOnsiYnVja2V0IjoxMjA5NjAwLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X3Nob3dfYmlyZHdhdGNoX3Bpdm90c19lbmFibGVkIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19kdXBsaWNhdGVfc2NyaWJlc190b19zZXR0aW5ncyI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdXNlX3Byb2ZpbGVfaW1hZ2Vfc2hhcGVfZW5hYmxlZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdmlkZW9faGxzX2R5bmFtaWNfbWFuaWZlc3RzXzE1MDgyIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRydWVfYml0cmF0ZSIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfbGVnYWN5X3RpbWVsaW5lX3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9mcm9udGVuZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9fQ%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2058458361021214754&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2F&sessionId=a68cc03651fd282476f4be353d0cc978abde75be&theme=light&widgetsVersion=6a3ad42b224df%3A1778106238597&width=550px">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</iframe></div></div>He reiterated his demand for Pradhan&rsquo;s resignation and called for a foolproof examination system to prevent future leaks. The remarks came alongside a protest march organized in Hyderabad by the National Students&rsquo; Union of India (NSUI), led by its president Vinod Jakhar, where demonstrators warned the government against what they described as &ldquo;anti-youth policies.&rdquo; The opposition Indian National Congress also accused the government of failing to curb the &ldquo;paper leak mafia,&rdquo; saying the scandal had pushed the future of millions of students into uncertainty. Separately, the NSUI described the leak as &ldquo;an assault on the dreams of 22 lakh (2.2 million) students&rdquo; and demanded strict action against those responsible. Pradhan later acknowledged that questions had circulated as &ldquo;guess papers&rdquo; while defending the agency&rsquo;s accountability and announcing a re-test.&nbsp; The controversy has since triggered nationwide protests and calls for the prestigious medical entrance examination to be conducted by AIIMS-Delhi instead of the NTA.

Screengrab shows India’s opposition leader Rahul Gandhi speaking during a video message shared on social media. (File photo: X/@RahulGandhi)

India

The remarks come alongside a protest march organized in Hyderabad by the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI), led by its president Vinod Jakhar, where demonstrators warned the government against what they described as “anti-youth policies.

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