WEST PALM BEACH: President Donald Trump on Saturday threatened to send US forces into Nigeria with &quot;guns-a-blazing&quot; if Africa&#39;s most populous country does not stem what he described as the killing of Christians by Islamists. &quot;If the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the U.S.A. will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now disgraced country, &#39;guns-a-blazing,&#39; to completely wipe out the Islamic Terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities,&quot; he said on Truth Social. &quot;I am hereby instructing our Department of War to prepare for possible action. If we attack, it will be fast, vicious, and sweet.&quot;

Americas

President Donald Trump threatened action against Nigeria, saying the U.S. may halt all aid and send forces "guns-a-blazing" to target Islamist perpetrators if the government fails to stop killings of Christians, posting on Truth Social.

Trump threatens military action in Nigeria over 'killing of Christians'

WEST PALM: President Donald Trump said Xi Jinping understands the consequences if China invades Taiwan, while refusing to specifically say the United States would defend the island, according to an extract of a CBS News interview broadcast Sunday.&nbsp;Trump said Taiwan &quot;never even came up as a subject&quot; when he met the Chinese president in South Korea on Thursday for their first face-to-face meeting in six years.&nbsp;Asked on CBS&#39;s &quot;60 Minutes&quot; whether he would order US forces into action if China moved militarily on Taiwan, Trump said: &quot;You&#39;ll find out if it happens, and he understands the answer to that.&quot;&nbsp;But Trump declined to spell out what he meant in the interview conducted Friday at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, adding: &quot;I can&#39;t give away my secrets. The other side knows.&quot;&nbsp;The US president claimed that Xi and those close to him had &quot;openly said&quot; that &quot;&#39;we would never do anything while President Trump is president,&#39; because they know the consequences.&quot;&nbsp;China claims self-governing Taiwan as its territory. Under longstanding policy, the United States recognizes only Beijing but provides weapons for the island&#39;s self-defense.&nbsp;The issue continues to provoke tensions, which Trump and Xi appeared to have avoided at their summit, focusing instead on easing the trade war between Washington and Beijing.

Trump warned that Xi understands the consequences of attacking Taiwan but didn’t reveal if the US would intervene. During their meeting, both leaders discussed easing trade tensions, avoiding the Taiwan issue.
 

Trump says Xi understands 'consequences' if China invades Taiwan

Web Desk

ISLAMABAD: Indian television news is facing a &ldquo;large-scale credibility crisis&rdquo; driven by sensationalism and hyper-nationalist rhetoric, which analysts and journalists say is now damaging India&rsquo;s image across South Asia.&nbsp;In the latest episode of Al Jazeera&rsquo;s The Listening Post released on Sunday, journalist Smita Sharma said the credibility decline stems from Indian television news increasingly drifting away from objectivity. &nbsp;&ldquo;Whether it is sensationalizing a bunch of issues or trying to sound patriotic and hyper-nationalist, the media ends up losing objectivity in its coverage,&rdquo; she said, adding that Indian television news has increasingly become a &ldquo;liability&rdquo; to India&rsquo;s regional interests.&nbsp;She noted that the crisis &ldquo;has spilled over as a larger image problem in the neighborhood, where Indian channels are followed closely.&rdquo;&nbsp;Roman Gautam, editor of Himal Southasian, said this is especially visible in Nepal.&nbsp;&ldquo;If there is one media that should know Nepal better, it is India, because of the depth of the relationship, government to government, people to people,&rdquo; he said.&nbsp;&ldquo;Yet Indian media tends to pay close attention to Nepal only at moments of great crisis, without the nuance or understanding required. When events move fast, it becomes very difficult to report well or make sense of what is happening.&rdquo;<div class="fr-embed youtube-embed"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NLR9D4o2pqc" title="Indian journalists caught in a credibility war in Bangladesh and Nepal | The Listening Post" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen="" style="width: 100%; height: auto; aspect-ratio: 16 / 9; max-width: 100%; display: block;"></iframe>&nbsp;</div>&nbsp;During recent protests in Nepal, Indian journalists were sometimes &ldquo;heckled, chased, even assaulted,&rdquo; as many protesters viewed them as promoting a political agenda on behalf of &ldquo;a larger, more powerful neighbor.&rdquo;&nbsp;Analysts said Indian channels attempted to frame protests as evidence that Nepalese citizens wanted &ldquo;a leader like Modi&rdquo; or a return to a Hindu state, narratives described as &ldquo;completely off the mark&rdquo; compared to realities on the ground.&nbsp;A similar reaction emerged in Bangladesh during the political turmoil that led to the fall of Sheikh Hasina&rsquo;s government.&nbsp;Filmmaker Deepak Kumar Goswami said, &ldquo;As soon as Hasina&rsquo;s regime fell, Indian media started saying Bangladesh had collapsed, that it no longer exists, that its economic foundations have disappeared.&rdquo;&nbsp;He said Indian channels portrayed the protests as driven mainly by &ldquo;extremists, Islamists or reactionary groups,&rdquo; ignoring the role of ordinary citizens. This approach, observers said, appeared patronizing and reinforced perceptions of a &ldquo;political big brother attitude.&rdquo;&nbsp;Analysts argue that the problem originates at home, where media ownership has tightened and critical journalists have been sidelined. Critics say many Indian channels have embraced &ldquo;more noise and less information,&rdquo; relying on aggressive panel debates and nationalist theatrics.&nbsp;One analyst noted that some channels even make false claims during conflict coverage, such as announcing the capture of Pakistani cities. &ldquo;When the media behaves like that, you turn yourself into a circus,&rdquo; they said.&nbsp;The overall effect, analysts warn, is strategic harm. If Indian media is functioning as &ldquo;a propaganda arm or strategic extension of government policy,&rdquo; then it is &ldquo;actually hindering Indian interests in the region.&rdquo;&nbsp;Instead of projecting influence and goodwill, the media now risks &ldquo;alienating the very audiences it seeks to influence.&rdquo;

Asia

Indian TV news faces a credibility crisis driven by sensationalism and hyper-nationalism, analysts say, damaging India’s image in Nepal and Bangladesh. Critics warn this domestic media shift now harms regional relationships and undermines India’s strategic influence.

Indian media’s credibility crisis spills over, harming regional influence

NAVI MUMBAI: Half-centuries by Shafali Verma and Deepti Sharma helped India post a competitive 298-7 against South Africa in the Women&#39;s World Cup final in Mumbai on Sunday. Put into bat in a rain-delayed match, India rode on an opening stand of 104 between Smriti Mandhana (45) and Verma, who top-scored with 87, to stay in the hunt for their first title in front of a sell-out home crowd. Sharma hit 58 off 58 balls at the 45,000-capacity DY Patil Stadium - a venue that has produced big runs, including India&#39;s record chase of 339 in the semi-final against Australia. The ODI World Cup is awaiting a new champion with South Africa also eyeing their first crown. Rain held up the start of the match by two hours before South Africa skipper Laura Wolvaardt won the toss in her team&#39;s first final in the tournament. Hosts India soon took charge with the left-handed Mandhana and Verma hitting regular boundaries to take the attack to the opposition bowlers. South Africa introduced spin in the 17th over and Chloe Tyron struck in the next over with her left-arm orthodox bowling to send back in-form Mandhana, caught behind. Swashbuckling opener Verma, who came in as replacement for injured Pratika Rawal in the semi-final, reached her fifty. Verma survived a reprieve on 56 when Anneke Bosch dropped a simple catch at deep mid-wicket off spinner Sune Luus, to the delight of the Indian fans. Medium-pace bowler Ayabonga Khaka dismissed Verma when she got the batter holed out at mid-off . In the next over took down semi-final hero Jemimah Rodrigues, for 24, to check India&#39;s surge. Sharma and skipper Harmanpreet Kaur got down to the grind to rebuild the innings, in the face of tidy South African bowling. Harmanpreet and then Amanjot Kaur departed as India seemed to fall behind on a high-scoring pitch but Sharma was joined by Richa Ghosh, who hit 34, and the two took on the bowling. India, runners-up in 2005 and 2017, are playing their in third final.

Cricket

Half-centuries by Shafali Verma and Deepti Sharma helped India post a competitive 298-7 against South Africa in the Women's World Cup final in Mumbai on Sunday.

Verma, Sharma help India post 298-7 in Women's World Cup final

Maham Khan

ISLAMABAD: In late October 2025, Indian audiences watched a Bollywood hero demand a DNA test of the Taj Mahal. In &ldquo;The Taj Story&rdquo;, the protagonist claims the 17th-century mausoleum was originally a Hindu temple &lsquo;stolen&rsquo; by Muslim rulers. The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has repeatedly rejected this theory, and centuries of historical and architectural records credit Mughal emperor Shah Jahan with commissioning the monument for his wife Mumtaz Mahal. Yet in Narendra Modi&rsquo;s India, history is increasingly subject to reinterpretation. When cinema becomes a vehicle for myth presented as fact, and when millions absorb propaganda as entertainment, it amounts to a systematic reframing of Muslim contributions to the subcontinent, and of the identities of the 200 million Muslims who live in India today. India&rsquo;s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its ideological parent, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), have refined a strategy of cultural revision: rewrite textbooks, challenge monument origins, recast Mughal history as occupation, demolish mosques and build temples in their place, and enlist Bollywood as a mass-scale amplifier. <figure class="fr-media"><img src="https://paktv-assets-7d41fab8.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/uploads/6cb9827c-b2ee-4b47-837d-1d998cce1d25-2.png" alt="2.png" class="fr-fil fr-dib"><figcaption class="caption-cover-image text-sm text-gray-600 italic">Paresh Rawal promoting his movie The Taj Story on X.</figcaption></figure>The temple that never was The claim that the Taj Mahal was once a Shiva temple, &ldquo;Tejo Mahalaya,&rdquo; originated with P.N. Oak&rsquo;s 1965 book. Historians and the ASI have long dismissed the idea. In 2022, India&rsquo;s Supreme Court rejected a petition to open 22 sealed Taj Mahal rooms to search for Hindu idols, calling the request &ldquo;publicity interest litigation.&rdquo; The ASI has stated that the rooms are simple maintenance spaces. Even within India, voices are raising eyebrows over this narrative. Before the film even premiered, many were quick to label it as propaganda.&nbsp; I think this story is pure propaganda,&rdquo; one Indian X user bluntly put it. <figure class="fr-media"><img src="https://paktv-assets-7d41fab8.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/uploads/bd64d234-dec7-4248-a489-c62aad1266b5-3.png" alt="3.png" class="fr-fil fr-dib"><figcaption class="caption-cover-image text-sm text-gray-600 italic">An Indian X user stated that the entire story was &quot;pure propaganda&quot;. (X)</figcaption></figure>Some went further, openly hoping for the movie to flop &quot;badly&rdquo;. <figure class="fr-media"><img src="https://paktv-assets-7d41fab8.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/uploads/e36968de-f78d-4d9a-838b-627efa0fb68d-7.png" alt="7.png" class="fr-fil fr-dib"><figcaption class="caption-cover-image text-sm text-gray-600 italic">(X)</figcaption></figure> One particularly sharp-witted user quipped, &ldquo;Nothing says trusted research like watching a movie [and] rewriting history! 22 mystery chambers, divine murtis, courtroom &lsquo;eyewitnesses&rsquo;&mdash;all checked. Next up: history books sold at the popcorn stand. Taj Mahal facts brought to you by Bollywood, not archaeologists.&rdquo; <figure class="fr-media"><img src="https://paktv-assets-7d41fab8.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/uploads/4d663e50-9c31-4bc8-ab9e-45ee20c20879-9 (this).png" alt="9 (this).png" class="fr-fil fr-dib"><figcaption class="caption-cover-image text-sm text-gray-600 italic">(X)</figcaption></figure> And it wasn&rsquo;t just the narrative itself that irked people. The main actor&#39;s shifting stance didn&rsquo;t go unnoticed. A post unearthed an from October 2017 from Paresh Rawal, where he had stated, &ldquo;Taj Mahal&mdash;Symbol of Love becomes the symbol of Hate!!! Stupid [and] unnecessary [and] sad [and] pathetic controversy.&rdquo; As the&nbsp;user wryly noted, it looks like Mr. Rawal may have had a &quot;change of heart&quot;&hellip; or perhaps a change of narrative. <figure class="fr-media"><img src="https://paktv-assets-7d41fab8.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/uploads/0db6e1bb-c756-4612-a431-f3ae9829f95f-6.png" alt="6.png" class="fr-fil fr-dib"><figcaption class="caption-cover-image text-sm text-gray-600 italic">(X)</figcaption></figure> When myth shapes law The Taj debate evokes an earlier, far more consequential case: the Babri Mosque in Ayodhya. Hindu nationalist groups spent decades claiming the 16th-century mosque stood atop the birthplace of the Hindu deity Ram. In December 1992, tens of thousands demolished the mosque. The violence and riots killed thousands. After a 17-year inquiry, the Liberhan Commission named BJP and RSS leaders &ldquo;responsible&rdquo; for the demolition. But in 2019, the Supreme Court, while declaring the mosque&rsquo;s destruction illegal, awarded the land to a Hindu trust. In January 2024, Modi inaugurated a new temple on the site in a nationally televised ceremony. The message many took from the sequence was clear: demolish first, wait, then receive recognition. Rewriting identity in classrooms The historical revision extends to classrooms. School textbooks have been reworked to minimize the cultural, architectural, and scientific contributions of Muslim dynasties, particularly the Mughals, who shaped Indian identity for centuries. Mughal emperors are increasingly framed as &ldquo;foreign occupiers&rdquo; rather than rulers whose legacy is interwoven with Indian music, language, art, and city-building. Curriculum is not neutral. What children learn determines who they believe belongs. The politics behind the rewrite Proponents of these changes argue they are restoring &ldquo;authentic Hindu history&rdquo; suppressed by earlier scholars and Muslim rule. But the effect is to cast Indian Muslims as historical outsiders in their own country. If the Taj Mahal, a globally recognized symbol of India, is reframed as &ldquo;originally Hindu,&rdquo; then Muslim claims to Indian cultural heritage are weakened. If mosques are reclassified as former temples, then every mosque becomes contested. Pluralism erodes quietly, long before violence erupts, through shifts in who is considered rightful. What is at stake The Taj Mahal itself will not change. Marble does not respond to political pressure. But the idea of India that built the Taj, a state where Hindu, Muslim, Sikh and other communities participated together in shared cultural production, may not survive if historical narrative becomes a tool of exclusion. The transformation unfolding is not simply about monuments or textbooks. It is about defining who belongs in the world&rsquo;s largest democracy. When a nation with 1.4 billion people and one of the world&rsquo;s largest Muslim populations reorders its history around a singular religious identity, the implications are global. Cinema scenes can become political reality. A fictional demand for a monument&rsquo;s DNA test reflects a deeper shift: the attempt to rewrite not just history, but citizenship itself.

Articles

India’s ruling BJP have refined a strategy of cultural revision: challenge monument origins, recast Mughal history as occupation, demolish mosques and build temples in their place, and enlist Bollywood as a mass-scale amplifier.

Taj Mahal: Hindu nationalist revisionism reshapes India’s monuments and memory

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will call for the full implementation of the Gaza ceasefire and complete Israeli withdrawal from occupied Palestinian territories during the upcoming Coordination Meeting of Arab-Islamic Foreign Ministers in Istanbul, the Foreign Office said on Sunday.&nbsp;In an official statement, the Foreign Office confirmed that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar will undertake a one-day visit to Istanbul on November 3 at the invitation of Turkish foreign minister.&nbsp;&ldquo;This meeting is part of ongoing diplomatic engagement following the Gaza Peace Agreement signed in Sharm El-Sheikh,&rdquo; the Foreign Office spokesperson said, noting that Pakistan has been working alongside seven other Arab-Islamic states to support the peace initiative.&nbsp;According to the statement, Pakistan will &ldquo;emphasize the need for the full implementation of the ceasefire agreement, the complete Israeli withdrawal from the Occupied Palestinian Territory, especially Gaza, as well as the provision of unfettered humanitarian assistance to the Palestinians and the reconstruction of Gaza.&rdquo;&nbsp;The spokesperson added that Pakistan will reaffirm its longstanding stance on the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state.&nbsp;&ldquo;Pakistan will reiterate the need for collective efforts aimed at achieving an independent, viable, and contiguous State of Palestine, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital, based on pre-1967 borders, in accordance with relevant UN resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative,&rdquo; the statement read.&nbsp;The Foreign Office stressed that Pakistan remains firmly committed to safeguarding Palestinian rights.&nbsp;&ldquo;Pakistan has been, and will continue to be, committed to efforts to restore peace, justice, and dignity to the Palestinian people, as well as to ensure the realization of their right to self-determination,&rdquo; it said.

Middle East

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar will attend an Arab-Islamic coordination meeting in Istanbul to press for full Gaza ceasefire implementation, Israeli withdrawal, humanitarian aid, reconstruction, and renewed efforts toward an independent Palestinian state with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.

Pakistan to press Gaza ceasefire implementation at Istanbul ministerial meeting

MANAMA: Syria&rsquo;s president will discuss issues including lifting remaining sanctions, reconstruction and counterterrorism when he becomes the country&rsquo;s first leader to pay an official visit to Washington later this month, the foreign minister said Sunday. Ahmed Al-Sharaa is expected in the US capital in early November, Syria&rsquo;s top diplomat Asaad Al-Shaibani told a panel at the Manama Dialogue in Bahrain. &ldquo;This visit is certainly historic,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Many topics will be discussed, starting with the lifting of sanctions,&rdquo; Shaibani said, adding: &ldquo;Today we are fighting [the Islamic State]... any effort in this regard requires international support.&rdquo; Discussions will also revolve around reconstruction after more than a decade of war, he said. The foreign ministry in Damascus confirmed the trip would be the first ever visit to the White House by a Syrian president. On Saturday, US envoy to Syria Tom Barrack said Sharaa was heading to Washington &ldquo;hopefully&rdquo; to sign an agreement to join the international US-led alliance against the Islamic State (IS). Though it will be Sharaa&rsquo;s first visit to Washington, it will be his second to the US after a landmark UN trip in September, where the former jihadist became the first Syrian president in decades to address the UN General Assembly in New York. In May, the interim leader, whose Islamist forces ousted longtime ruler Bashar Assad late last year, met US President Donald Trump for the first time in Riyadh during a historic visit that led to the US leader vowing to lift economic sanctions on Syria. Israel talksSyria and Israel remain technically at war, but they opened direct negotiations after Assad was toppled by an Islamist-led coalition last December. Trump has expressed hope that Syria will join other Arab countries that have normalized ties with Israel under the so-called Abraham Accords. But Shaibani said that &ldquo;regarding Syria and the Abraham Accords, this is an issue that is not being considered and has not been discussed.&rdquo;A Syrian official had told AFP earlier this year that Syria expects to finalize security and military agreements with Israel in 2025, in what would be a breakthrough less than a year after Assad&rsquo;s ouster. Since December, Israel has deployed troops in a UN-patrolled buffer zone that separates the countries&rsquo; forces and has launched hundreds of strikes in Syria. Damascus has not retaliated. &ldquo;We do not want Syria to enter a new war, and Syria is not currently in a position to threaten any party, including Israel,&rdquo; said Shaibani. He said the negotiations underway were focused on &ldquo;reaching a security agreement that does not undermine the 1974 agreement (cementing a ceasefire with Israel) and does not legitimize any new reality that Israel might impose in the south.&rdquo;

Ahmed Al-Sharaa will make a historic Washington visit to discuss sanctions, reconstruction, and counterterrorism, while Israel talks focus on security, not normalization under Abraham Accords.

Syrian leader to discuss sanctions, reconstruction in US visit: FM

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday reaffirmed that Pakistan remains fully committed to upholding press freedom and ensuring a secure environment for media professionals.&nbsp;In his message issued on the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, the prime minister stated, &ldquo;A free press is the guarantee for a strong, transparent and democratic Pakistan.&rdquo;&nbsp;He noted that the day serves as a reminder that an informed and responsible press forms the foundation of any democratic society. Journalists, he said, play a vital role in enabling public access to facts and act as &ldquo;torchbearers of truth.&rdquo;&nbsp;According to the PM&rsquo;s statement, &ldquo;Acts of violence, threats or vengeance against journalists in the course of their professional duties are, in fact, attacks on freedom of expression.&rdquo;&nbsp;Paying tribute to media professionals who have faced hardships in pursuit of truth, justice, and public interest, the prime minister expressed solidarity with the families of journalists and media workers who have lost their lives in the line of duty.&nbsp;He said the government would continue to strengthen mechanisms to protect journalists and ensure accountability, adding, &ldquo;We will take all necessary measures to guarantee effective investigation of crimes against journalists, deliver justice, and ensure legal action against the perpetrators.&rdquo;&nbsp;The prime minister also called on the international community, media organizations, and civil society to work together to safeguard journalists and promote the universal right to freedom of expression.

Culture

On the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, PM Shehbaz Sharif reaffirms Pakistan’s commitment to press freedom, pledging journalist safety, effective investigations, accountability for offenders, and calling for global support to uphold freedom of expression.

Pakistan reaffirms commitment to protect journalists

JERUSALEM: Israel warned Sunday that its military would step up its attacks against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, a day after the Lebanese Health Ministry reported four people killed in an Israeli airstrike. Despite a November 2024 cease-fire with the Lebanese militant group, Israel maintains troops in five areas in southern Lebanon and has continued regular strikes. &ldquo;Hezbollah is playing with fire, and the president of Lebanon is dragging his feet,&rdquo; Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement. &ldquo;The Lebanese government&rsquo;s commitment to disarm Hezbollah and remove it from southern Lebanon must be implemented. Maximum enforcement will continue and even intensify &mdash; we will not allow any threat to the residents of the north.&rdquo; Thousands of Israelis living near the northern border with Lebanon were forced to evacuate their homes for months after Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel following the outbreak of the war in Gaza in October 2023. That set off a more than yearlong conflict that culminated in two months of open war before last year&rsquo;s cease-fire was agreed upon. The Iran-backed militant group, which opposes Israel, has been badly weakened by the war but remains armed and financially resilient. In September 2024, Israel killed the group&rsquo;s longtime chief, Hassan Nasrallah, along with many other senior leaders over the course of the war. Since the cease-fire, the United States has increased pressure on Lebanese authorities to disarm the group, a plan opposed by Hezbollah and its allies. Latest strikeIsrael never stopped carrying out airstrikes on Lebanon despite the truce &mdash; usually saying it was targeting Hezbollah positions &mdash; and has stepped up attacks in recent days. On Thursday, Israeli ground troops carried out a deadly raid into southern Lebanon, prompting Lebanese President Joseph Aoun to order the army to confront such incursions. Aoun had called for talks with Israel in mid-October after U.S. President Donald Trump helped broker a cease-fire in Gaza. But Aoun later accused Israel of responding to his offer by intensifying its airstrikes, the latest of which killed four people in the Nabatiyeh district on Saturday, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. The official Lebanese National News Agency reported that the Israeli army hit a car &ldquo;with a guided missile.&rdquo; The Israeli military confirmed the strike, saying it killed a member of Hezbollah&rsquo;s Radwan Force in southern Lebanon. &ldquo;The terrorist was involved in transferring weapons and in efforts to reestablish Hezbollah&rsquo;s terrorist infrastructure in southern Lebanon,&rdquo; the military said, adding that three other members of the group were also killed. &ldquo;The terrorists&rsquo; activities constituted a threat to the State of Israel and its civilians and a violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon.&rdquo;

A Lebanese soldier sits on top of a military vehicle outside the municipality building of the southern Lebanese border village of Blida in the aftermath of an Israeli army raid on the village, on October 30, 2025.

Israel warned Sunday that its military would step up its attacks against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, a day after the Lebanese Health Ministry reported four people killed in an Israeli airstrike.

Israel warns of intensifying attacks against Hezbollah in south Lebanon

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan&rsquo;s Ambassador to the United States Rizwan Saeed Sheikh on Saturday inaugurated the Pakistan-United States Joint Business Conference and Expo 2025 in Virginia, US, underscoring the importance of economic collaboration as a foundation for a lasting partnership between the two countries, Radio Pakistan reported. The conference, organized by Brain Designer Pakistan and the Rawalpindi Chamber of Small Traders and Small Industries in collaboration with the US-Pakistan International Chamber of Commerce, gathered business leaders, investors, and traders to explore avenues in trade, investment, and commercial cooperation. In his keynote address, Ambassador Sheikh highlighted the potential of the US market for Pakistani businesses and called for strategic adaptations to succeed in a competitive environment.&nbsp; &ldquo;Pakistan&rsquo;s relations with the United States are best underwritten by economic, commerce, trade, and investment ties that can survive our generation if we sow the right seeds today,&rdquo; he said.&nbsp; &ldquo;This conference would be a seed-sowing exercise leading to developing into a full-blown forest,&rdquo; he added, according to Radio Pakistan. Sheikh described the United States as &ldquo;the world&#39;s premier consumer market&rdquo;, essential for scaling global businesses. He urged Pakistani entrepreneurs to adopt formal business practices, form coalitions, and pool resources to match the scale of the American economy. The ambassador reaffirmed the embassy&rsquo;s commitment to supporting participants in refining business models suited to US standards. The day-long event featured Pakistani companies from diverse sectors, including tourism, real estate, textiles, furniture, leather goods, pharmaceuticals, and information technology, to enhance business collaboration and trade links between the two nations. Ambassador Sheikh also toured various stalls, engaging with business representatives and commending the organizers for hosting a conference that, he said, &ldquo;augured well for small traders and the business community toward expanding their footprint in the United States,&rdquo; Radio Pakistan reported.

Inauguration of the  Pak-USA Joint Business Conference and Expo 2025, Nov 2, 2025. (Screengrab/Radio Pakistan)

Foreign Affairs

Pakistan's Ambassador to the US, Rizwan Saeed Sheikh, inaugurates the Pak-USA Business Conference and Expo 2025 in Virginia; says Pakistan’s relations with the US are best underpinned by enduring economic, commercial, trade, and investment partnerships.

Pakistan’s relations with US based on trade, investment: ambassador

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has rejected a statement attributed to the Afghan Taliban spokesperson regarding the Istanbul talks, which seeks to deliberately distort the facts.&nbsp;In a post on X, Afghan news agency Ariana News quoted spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid, saying that during the Istanbul talks, Afghanistan &ldquo;was willing to deport people Islamabad considers a security threat,&rdquo; but Pakistan did not accept the offer.&nbsp;Rejecting the claim, the Ministry of Information &amp; Broadcasting stated in a post on X:&nbsp;&ldquo;When the Afghan side said that they were Pakistani nationals, Pakistan immediately proposed that they be handed over through designated border posts, consistent with Pakistan&rsquo;s long-standing position,&rdquo; adding that any claim to the contrary is false and misleading. <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" allowfullscreen="true" 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=1984625202018599161&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2F1879%2F&sessionId=67b5d76852f4a487cd242e7b1cf53b4e40416903&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 873px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;"></iframe></div></div>Pakistan also strongly rejected statements by the Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid in an interview with a TV channel on Saturday, regarding the recent Istanbul talks between delegations from both countries. The spokesperson had accused Pakistan of undermining ties and accused it of conducting airstrikes on Afghan soil. Pakistan Defense Minister Khawaja Asif, responding to Mujahid&rsquo;s allegations, issued a categorical statement on X dismissing the claims. &ldquo;There exists complete unanimity of views among all Pakistanis, including the country&rsquo;s political and military leadership, regarding Pakistan&rsquo;s security policies and its comprehensive approach toward Afghanistan,&rdquo; he said. He added that the people of Pakistan, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, are fully aware of the treacherous and barbaric patronization of Indian-sponsored terrorism by the Afghan Taliban regime. &ldquo;They harbor no illusions about its intent or conduct,&rdquo; he noted. The minister described the Taliban&rsquo;s narrative as an attempt to deflect attention from its own failures. &ldquo;It is the non-representative Afghan Taliban regime that suffers from deep internal factionalism and is responsible for the continued oppression of Afghan ethnicities, women, children, and minorities,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Even after four years in power, the regime has failed to fulfill its promises to the international community.&rdquo; He said Pakistan&rsquo;s policy remains consistent and focused on regional peace. &ldquo;Pakistan&rsquo;s policy to protect its citizens from cross-border terrorism and the perverted ideology of Khawarij remains unified, unwavering, and firmly anchored in national interest as well as in the pursuit of regional stability,&rdquo; he emphasized.

Security

Information Ministry says, consistent with its long-standing position, Pakistan demands that terrorists in Afghanistan posing a threat be controlled or arrested.