Sehat Dehleez is Balochistan’s healthcare breakthrough
Free consultations, e-prescriptions, referrals and family health records on one public platform: Balochistan has built a model the rest of Pakistan can learn from.
Top stories
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FOOTBALL
Chinese state TV keeps Real Madrid off air despite Mbappe’s apology for Mao joke as La Liga blackout continues
CCTV did not show Real’s 3-0 win at Racing Santander, and it is unclear whether talks to end the dispute have begun.
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INTERNATIONAL
UN demands investigation after human rights staff member Mohammad el-Shami dies in Houthi custody in Yemen
He had been detained since June 2024 and his family was told only recently. He is the second UN employee to die in Houthi custody.
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ENTERTAINMENT
PTV Drama and Film Academy to be revamped and offer Pakistan’s first local colour grading training, Tarar says
The information minister says the academy will work with the private sector and universities to train young people in film, drama and digital content, and raise PTV’s revenue.
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INTERNATIONAL
India moves thousands from the coast as Cyclone Murasu nears Andhra Pradesh, days after deadly Arnab
The severe cyclonic storm is forecast to cross the south Andhra coast around midnight with winds of up to 110 kilometres an hour, and officials plan to evacuate 30,000 people.
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INTERNATIONAL
Israeli forces withdraw from Hebron after 10-day siege, governor says, as displaced families told they can return
The Hebron Governorate says more than 3,300 Palestinians were displaced or affected and 15 homes and other structures were demolished during the operation.
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- What did the budget change for salaried workers?
- Why did the State Bank hold the rate?
- How much have remittances risen?
Every answer from Thursday Times reporting and the official record. On WhatsApp too.
Featured
Pakistan considers tokenising its Eurobond debt and will seek cabinet approval, Aurangzeb says
The finance minister tells a digital assets dialogue that talks are under way before a request for proposals, and urges banks to build expertise while warning of constant cyberattacks.
Pakistan’s National Incubation Centers win Commonwealth digital policy award in London
Ignite’s startup programme takes the top prize in its category, and Pakistan also wins silver and bronze honours at the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation awards.
Pakistan plans to free LPG prices and end OGRA’s monthly notifications, with subsidies only for poorer households
The proposals, now before the cabinet, would tie prices to import costs after market rates ran up to Rs158 a kilogram above the official ceiling this year.
Four fiefdoms and a flag
Pakistan's four provinces are not an administrative map. They are four estates, kept intact by the men who profit from the distance between citizens and the state.
“He does not need you educated. He needs you to need him.”
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The Thursday Times targeted in major cyberattack by Indian hackers
An extensive security investigation uncovered a sustained Indian intrusion into the publication’s digital infrastructure. With normal operations restored, The Thursday Times says its commitment to independent journalism remains unchanged.
8 min read
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Why Pakistan doesn’t need a treaty to defend Makkah
Pakistan's commitment to defending Makkah predates the pact it just signed, and its silence on specifics isn't hesitation, it's strategy.
5 min read
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How Pakistan overtook India in global diplomacy
What does it take to go from an unanswered White House phone call to a UN Security Council seat in two years? Ask Pakistan. The Makkah Defence Pact. US-Iran mediation. An invite from Damascus. India lost Washington's favor in the same stretch.
7 min read
Why Afghanistan is called a global hub of terrorism
UN monitors, US intelligence and Russia all warn of terrorist groups operating from Afghanistan, as Pakistan becomes the country most affected by terrorism.
“Provided by the de facto authorities in conjunction with weapons permits and travel documents.”
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Through the Maldives, Pakistan stakes a claim to a bigger Indian Ocean role
A maritime security pact signed during President Muizzu’s visit gives Islamabad a foothold in waters New Delhi has long treated as its own backyard.
4 min read
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With Badr, four Muslim powers bet on building their weapons together
Signed in Doha with little fanfare, the Badr memorandum joins Turkish factories, Qatari capital, Pakistani scale and an Indonesian market. Read as industrial policy rather than a pact, it may matter more than it looks.
7 min read
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Inside the Makkah alliance: DG ISPR on expansion, legal basis and the Muslim world’s test
DG ISPR Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry details the Makkah alliance's secretariat, its Article 51 legal basis, and a maritime coalition spanning Hormuz and Bab al-Mandeb, in an interview with Independent Arabia.
2 min read
Pakistan in Numbers
The prices and figures behind your bills and savings, kept up to date.
See all the numbers- InflationHow fast prices are rising, over a year10.3%Down from 11.1%Sep 2026
- PetrolPrice of a litreRs 377.91No change31 Oct 2026
- Foreign reservesDollars the State Bank holds$21.52bnUp from $21.49bn23 Oct 2026
- Dollar rateRupees for one US dollarRs 276.66Down from Rs 276.701 Nov 2026
- Stock marketThe KSE-100 index166,409Down from 167,19330 Oct 2026
- Load-sheddingPower shortfall, as reported4,000 MWUp from 3,600 MW6 Oct 2026
Westline
How markets and wars dictate society.
Read Westline
The backlog Britain built
Ministers of both parties have spent a decade blaming the people in the queue. The numbers point at the people running it.
Abdullah Esquire
The Tories edge past Reform, but credibility is the real fight
Abdullah Esquire
Trump’s infatuation with Munir is a love letter to charisma
The Editorial Desk
Every Starmer stumble brings Kemi closer
TT Monitoring Desk
Binance freezes assets after $6.3 billion breach in what may be biggest crypto heist ever
The exchange suspended deposits and withdrawals and says it will cover all losses, as an analytics firm blames North Korea’s TraderTraitor unit and bitcoin slides to a six-week low.
Abu Dhabi court jails eight for life over arms smuggling to Sudan’s army
The court found the men ran an “integrated scheme” to supply weapons to Sudan’s military and launder the proceeds through UAE companies and bank accounts.
London court revives Ras Al Khaimah’s $273m claim against India over bauxite deal
The Court of Appeal ruled that an arbitration tribunal was wrong to turn away the Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority’s case over a cancelled Andhra Pradesh aluminium project.
Huge fire at Dammam industrial complex after reported Yemeni strike, Iranian state media says
Saudi authorities have not commented on the claim about a strike in the kingdom’s oil-rich Eastern Province.
Saudi Arabia downs Houthi drone aimed at Makkah region as Pakistan condemns attacks at UN
The Saudi-led coalition said it destroyed a Houthi drone heading for the Makkah region and a cruise missile aimed at western Saudi Arabia, as Pakistan told the UN it stands in complete solidarity with the kingdom.
Pakistan offers Saudi Arabia tax-free oil storage as a hedge against Hormuz and Red Sea risks
Pakistan has approved a tax-neutral bonded policy letting Saudi companies keep commercial oil reserves in the country, and the Saudi embassy has started same-day visas for Pakistanis.
PTV Drama and Film Academy to be revamped and offer Pakistan’s first local colour grading training, Tarar says
The information minister says the academy will work with the private sector and universities to train young people in film, drama and digital content, and raise PTV’s revenue.
Lahore’s air quality index crosses 530 and Gujranwala hits 675 as hazardous smog spreads across Punjab
Satellites detected more than 13,000 fire spots in Punjab in October, most of them on farmland, as five of the province’s cities ranked among Pakistan’s six most polluted.
Sindh’s foreign debt jumps 49% in two years to $5.6 billion, the fastest of any province, finance ministry document shows
Punjab still owes the most at $6.4 billion, but the gap has narrowed to under $800 million as combined provincial foreign debt reaches $15.63 billion.
Asim Munir and Maldives’ Muizzu agree to deepen defence cooperation
The army chief met the Maldivian president in Islamabad on the second day of the first visit by a Maldivian head of state in 11 years, as the two countries signed a defence and maritime security pact.
Makkah defence pact text shows a ten-year lock-in and a Pakistani first in line to run its secretariat
The 16-article agreement between Türkiye, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia treats an attack on one as an attack on all, bars withdrawal for a decade and gives Pakistan the first turn as secretary-general.
Türkiye plans parliamentary mandate to deploy military personnel to Saudi Arabia
An AK Party lawmaker told Reuters the request would follow ratification of the Makkah defence pact, which Ankara sent to parliament on Tuesday. There has been no official confirmation from Ankara, Riyadh or Islamabad.
Chinese state TV keeps Real Madrid off air despite Mbappe’s apology for Mao joke as La Liga blackout continues
CCTV did not show Real’s 3-0 win at Racing Santander, and it is unclear whether talks to end the dispute have begun.
Kimi Antonelli becomes Formula One’s youngest world champion at 20 as Verstappen wins dramatic Mexico City Grand Prix
The Mercedes driver breaks Sebastian Vettel’s record and becomes Italy’s first champion since 1953 after finishing third in a red-flagged race.
At 90, Japan’s Toshisuke Kanazawa takes on rivals decades younger at bodybuilding worlds in Spain
He missed the podium but credits brown rice, natto and miso soup for his fitness, and is thinking of one last competition at 93.
From the paper’s own studio
Campaigns, films, adverts and launches, made in-house by the people who make the paper. Brands, causes and institutions can hire the same team.
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The names and the hits
The people who have written for The Thursday Times, and the stories readers came for most.
Written for The Thursday Times
Reham KhanBroadcaster, formerly of the BBCCelebrity sufferings
Mohammad Ishaq DarDeputy Prime Minister and Foreign MinisterPurchasing power is being squeezed from the common man
Mian Javed LatifPML-N member of the National Assemblyعمران خان کا ایجنڈا
Absar AlamFormer PEMRA chairmanجنرل باجوہ کا بیٹا اور میرا بیٹا
Hina Parvez ButtPML-N, Punjab Assemblyلوٹ کے بدھو گھر کو آ رہے ہیں
Ahmad JawadFormer PTI information secretaryقیامت سے قیامت تک
Ammar MasoodChief editor, WE Newsاک نئی قرداد پاکستان
Hammad HassanColumnist, Jangثاقب نثار کے جرائم
Most read, all time
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- Jemima Goldsmith finds love again with Irish financier Cameron O’Reilly
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- COMMENTARYThe Superstar Playboy Politicians
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- ANALYSISA detailed guide to Maryam Nawaz’s first 100 days as Punjab’s Chief Minister
- TORQUEPlanning a motorway trip? Here’s how to get your M-Tag, and what happens if you don’t
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