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GILGIT: Climate change-induced shifts in weather patterns have worsened conditions on the peaks of the Karakoram Range in Gilgit-Baltistan, creating serious difficulties for mountaineers.

No climber managed to summit the world’s second-highest mountain, K2 (8,611 metres), or Gasherbrum-I (8,080 metres), this summer.

Around 40 foreign climbers also failed to reach the summits of Gasherbrum-II (8,035 metres), Broad Peak (8,047 metres) and Nanga Parbat (8,126 metres) this year.

Persistent storms, heavy snowfall, unstable snow conditions and an exceptionally high avalanche risk created hurdles for climbers attempting to summit peaks in Gilgit-Baltistan, particularly five of the 14 eight-thousanders.

No climber managed to summit K2, Gasherbrum-I this summer

Expedition teams usually spend weeks at base camps assessing weather forecasts, fixing ropes and acclimatising before beginning their summit push.

Mountaineers have experienced persistent bad weather, avalanches, rockfalls, strong winds and unpredictable conditions at the peaks during the summer season for the past two years. The climbing season on the Karakoram peaks, including K2, Broad Peak, Gasherbrum-I and Gasherbrum-II, usually runs from the end of July to mid-August.

‘Over 200 attempted’

Ghulam Muhammad, a tour operator, told Dawn that more than 200 climbers attempted to summit K2, Broad Peak, Gasherbrum-II and Gasherbrum-I this year. “This year, continued bad weather kept teams at base camp, while repeated summit attempts were called off due to unsafe conditions on the mountains.”

He said only three foreign expedition groups reached the summit of Gasherbrum-II, while members of one local expedition team successfully summited Broad Peak. Earlier, two expedition teams had summited Nanga Parbat, where the climbing season closes by the end of June.

Ayaz Shigri, general secretary of the Alpine Club of Pakistan, told Dawn that weather conditions at the peaks remained unstable this summer. However, he said that after the devastating tragedy at Broad Peak on July 30, in which 10 foreign climbers, including Pakistani climber Sohail Sakhi, lost their lives when a snow avalanche struck them during their summit attempt, many climbers at K2 and Gasherbrum-I abandoned their missions and joined the search and rescue operation.

Asghar Porik, another tour operator, said shifting weather patterns in the mountains had made it difficult for mountaineers to plan their summit attempts. “For 100 or 500 years, climbers have planned their attempts in the Karakoram according to established weather patterns. They usually attempt K2 between July 20 and August 15, with the weather generally considered suitable until the end of June,” he said.

He said the situation had worsened in recent years as rising temperatures made snow unstable and increased the risks of avalanches and rockfalls. Asghar Porik added that his 11-member expedition team at Gasherbrum-II could not find a suitable weather window and called off its expedition.

Ikram Baig, president of the GB Association of Tour Operators, said Broad Peak was considered one of the comparatively less dangerous eight-thousanders. “Broad Peak is often described by experienced mountaineers as one of the comparatively less technical 8,000-metre peaks. However, fresh snowfall can make even an easier route extremely dangerous by creating unstable snow conditions and a high risk of avalanches,” he said.

Mr Baig said climate change had altered conditions and made the environment at the peaks increasingly uncertain. Mohammad Ali Nagari, a tour operator, said the growing number of commercial expeditions was also degrading the fragile environment at the peaks.

Ayaz Shigri said the summer climbing season on the Karakoram peaks had now closed, with climbers returning from the eight-thousanders without summiting K2 or Gasherbrum-I this year. Last year, too, foreign climbers faced similar conditions and mostly returned without summiting peaks in GB.

Published in Dawn, August 16th, 2026

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• Federal minister Aleem Khan, Sindh governor to meet goods transporters in Karachi
• Security authorities join efforts to help break deadlock

ISLAMABAD: With congestion beginning to build at the ports due to a pile-up of containers, the eight-day strike by truckers and edible oil tankers could end on Sunday (today) following a crucial round of talks at Governor House in Karachi between senior federal and provincial government officials and representatives of the transporters.

Sources in the federal government told Dawn that the prolonged disruption and its impact on trade had prompted official efforts to resolve the dispute, with security authorities also becoming involved in attempts to break the deadlock.

“The concerns of the striking truckers and edible oil tankers are genuine, but the government too has its procedural limitations,” a senior official said, adding that the transporters were seeking a strong guarantor regarding implementation of any agreement.

Communications Minister Abdul Aleem Khan, who was appointed by the prime minister as the focal person for negotiations with the transporters, and Punjab Transport Minister Bilal Akbar are scheduled to travel to Karachi to participate in the talks.

The Sindh governor, the provincial transport minister and other officials, including representatives of the Karachi Port Trust (KPT) and Port Qasim Authority, are also expected to attend.

A senior KPT official said the situation at the port was not yet critical, but congestion had become visible because of containers piling up amid the strike.

The goods transporters have been protesting for more than eight days under the banner of the All Pakistan Goods Transport Ittehad.

Officials said several categories of transporters had joined the strike and their demands involved different government departments, complicating negotiations.

One of the major sticking points is the seven per cent withholding tax on goods transport, which stood at 6pc in the previous fiscal year compared to 2pc for fuel tankers.

Striking truckers, container trailer operators and edible oil tanker operators are demanding that their withholding tax also be reduced to 2pc.

However, Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) sources said such a reduction could only be made through the Fin­­­ance Bill and could therefore be considered as part of the 2027-28 budget.

Another contentious issue is the Customs department’s practice of impounding vehicles found carrying smuggled or illicit goods.

“Regarding impounding of vehicles carrying smuggled or illicit goods, the point is why carriers book such items if they are not part of the smuggling network,” an official said.

Meanwhile, the government has decided to offer relief on some other demands, including establishment of a dedicated parking facility for trailers and trucks handling cargo at Karachi port.

The communications ministry has also agreed to provide temporary relief to 10-wheeler trucks regarding the upper axle-load limit on highways and motorways.

All Pakistan Goods Transport Itt­e­­had spokesman Muhammad Owais Chaudhry said the nationwide protest was continuing and thousands of vehicles remained off the roads.

“There was a brief round of talks with several authorities in Karachi today. We made it clear that our first priority is to find a sustainable solution to the issue through negotiations,” he said, accusing the bureaucracy of trying to create divisions among transporters.

“The main problem is that they have made mere verbal assurances, but that is not sufficient. How can we end the strike without practical progress on our demands?” he said.

He appealed to transporters to remain united and peaceful and avoid relying on rumours.

Asked about Sunday’s meeting, Mr Chaudhry said some guarantors were now becoming involved in efforts to resolve the dispute.

Published in Dawn, August 16th, 2026

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Moroccan police arrested at least 111 people on Saturday as they tried to enter Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta, amid tightened security on both sides of the border after social media posts called for another mass migrant crossing.

The attempted crossing came two weeks after more than 72,000 migrants surged into Ceuta, sparking tensions within the European Union and fuelling anti-immigration rhetoric among far-right parties worldwide. At least 96 people died in the attempt to reach European soil.

A source in Morocco’s Interior Ministry told Reuters those detained included 109 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa and two Moroccan citizens arrested in or around Fnideq, the Moroccan city opposite Ceuta.

According to Spanish news agency EFE, Moroccan police used tear gas to disperse groups of migrants gathered on hills about 3km from the border. Reuters later saw hundreds of police officers, some in riot gear and others in plain clothes, returning from the hills outside Fnideq.

EFE and Spanish state broadcaster TVE said Morocco’s Interior Ministry ordered their journalists to leave Fnideq immediately, without providing an explanation.

In Ceuta, Spanish soldiers guarded supermarkets while police heavily patrolled the enclave’s main streets. The city was calmer than in the days after the deadly crossing attempt on July 30.

Madrid has since installed a maritime barrier and deployed more than 500 additional police from mainland Spain, raising the total in Ceuta to more than 1,600. The Interior Ministry said the reinforcements would remain for as long as needed.

“We’ll continue to deploy whatever personnel are necessary to restore normality as soon as possible and prevent events like those of July 30 from happening again,” Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said on Thursday.

About 5,000 migrants remained in Ceuta, the minister said. Reuters saw hundreds sheltering from scorching heat under makeshift bamboo shelters on the urban beach of El Trampolin.

Grande-Marlaska said migrants who entered irregularly would not be allowed to stay in the enclave, travel to mainland Spain or obtain legal status, except in rare cases involving extreme vulnerability. Those without a right to remain would be returned to Morocco, he said.

Morocco steps up checks

Earlier this week, Rabat said it was monitoring “the circulation of social media posts and messages of unknown origin” calling for a mass crossing on August 15, warning it would prosecute organisers and participants.

A Reuters witness saw reinforced security near the border, including police vans with wire shields and road checkpoints. Local media reported similar measures near Spain’s other North African enclave, Melilla.

Authorities prevented several groups from boarding trains and buses to northern Morocco in cities such as Casablanca, Fez and Kenitra.

However, witnesses told Reuters that some migrants from sub-Saharan Africa were bypassing security checkpoints by taking mountain routes towards Fnideq.

One witness said the schools in Fnideq had been turned into accommodation for security forces deployed near the border.

‘My advice don’t cross

Many of the young people who entered Ceuta on July 30 were fishing, swimming or washing at Tarajal beach on Friday.

Driss Sadik, a 22-year-old from Fez who said he swam for five hours to reach Ceuta, urged others not to follow his example.

“The important thing I would advise people trying to cross: Don’t cross now, my brothers. You’re only going to suffer,” he told Reuters.
The warning was echoed by Adil Jamil, 17.

“Those who enter aren’t going to benefit from anything. There will just be more and more of us, and they won’t find a solution for all,” he said.

Jamil said that the mass border crossings were “planned by the people” who pick a date, gather in Fnideq and cross together to find strength in numbers.

“If I had stayed with my parents, I would’ve died slowly. But if I risk my life, arrive and build my future … it will be better,” he said.

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MUZAFFARABAD: The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Election Commission on Saturday, by a 2-1 majority, rejected two petitions challenging the victory of the region’s Prime Minister, Raja Faisal Mumtaz Rathore, in LA-17 (Haveli).

Chief Election Commissioner Justice (retd) Ghulam Mustafa Mughal and Senior Member Muhammad Ahsen dismissed the petitions filed separately by PML-N candidate Chaudhry Mohsin Aziz and independent candidate Khawaja Tariq Saeed, stating that the disputes involved factual questions that could appropriately be resolved through an election petition before an Election Tribunal.

Member Syed Nazeerul Hassan Gillani, however, dissented in both cases and directed the returning officer (RO) to recompile the results of the disputed polling stations based on Forms-24 prepared by presiding officers (POs) and supplied to polling agents at the polling stations.

The majority view prevailed, and Rathore’s election notification remained intact. Under the applicable law, the majority decision prevails in the event of a difference of opinion among commission members.

On Friday night, the commission issued the formal notification declaring Rathore the returned candidate from LA-17 and Sajid Iqbal Abbasi from LA-14.

The PML-N’s Aziz alleged that there were discrepancies between the results prepared by the RO and Forms-24 supplied to his polling agents at 21 polling stations.

He added that 1,133 votes had been allegedly deducted from his tally while 3,095 votes were added to Rathore’s tally through forged and fabricated statements of count.

He further alleged that polling had not been conducted at stations 168 and 173 and sought, among other reliefs, a re-compilation of results according to the original Forms-24 and recounting of votes.

The RO rejected the allegations, saying polling had continued without interruption from 8am to 5pm on August 10 and that no candidate had lodged any complaint against POs during polling.

He added that the POs brought sealed polling bags and Forms-24 to his office under the security of military personnel and duty magistrates, and that the forms were signed, stamped and untampered.

The results, he stated, were read out to and shown to polling agents and journalists before being consolidated in their presence.

The majority maintained that Section 66(5) of the Elections Act allowed a recount only where the count by a PO had been challenged in writing and the RO was satisfied about the reasonableness of the challenge, or where the commission directed a recount.

It noted that no objection had been raised by Aziz’s polling agents when the results were read out and consolidated, and that no contradictory Form-24 had been presented at the time. It also rejected a self-prepared chart produced by the applicant as inadmissible.

The majority further ruled that the allegations did not fall within the scope of Section 9 of the Elections Act (power of the Commission to declare a poll void) and that the disputed matters could be determined through a regular election petition under Section 81 after recording evidence.

It also noted that the returned candidate’s notification had already been issued and that the proper course for Aziz was to avail himself of the alternate remedy provided by law.

Gillani, however, took a markedly different view.

In his dissent on Aziz’s petition, he said the PML-N candidate’s counsel had produced before the commission original Forms-24 supplied to his polling agents at 10 polling stations — Nos 46, 55, 56, 60, 114, 115, 123, 130, 153 and 157 — along with their photocopies.

Gillani said he personally examined the POs’ signatures on the Forms-24 supplied to the polling agents and compared them with those submitted to the RO. He concluded that the petitioner’s allegation of forgery was “substantiated by the record”.

According to his note, the Forms-24 submitted to the RO appeared to have been written by the same person and “in haste”, while results for only three of the four candidates in the constituency had been changed.

He consequently allowed Aziz’s application and directed the RO to re-compile the results of the 10 identified polling stations, as well as any other polling stations where a clear contradiction existed between the Forms-24 supplied to polling agents and those available with the RO.

The second petition, filed by independent candidate Khawaja Tariq Saeed, raised substantially similar allegations.

He alleged that at several polling stations his votes had been reduced while Rathore’s had been increased and expressed apprehension that new, fraudulent Forms-24 could have been placed inside polling bags to validate the disputed results.

Saeed further alleged that PPP workers had attacked his polling agent at Mandhar village, injuring four people associated with him, and sought the recounting of the polling bags before notification of the result.

The RO again maintained that no complaint had been made during polling, that all POs had submitted sealed bags and the original Forms-24 under security, and that no polling agent had objected when the results were consolidated.

He said objections emerged only the following day after the results had been displayed.

The majority held that the dispute over alleged alteration of results was essentially factual and could not be resolved without recording evidence, summoning relevant records and examining POs. It said comparison of the two sets of results could be undertaken through cross-examination in proceedings before the Election Tribunal.

It accordingly dismissed Saeed’s application, reiterating that the commission’s jurisdiction under Section 9 was limited to grave illegalities or violations materially affecting polling and that the appropriate forum for the disputed factual questions was the Election Tribunal.

Gillani again dissented.

He said Saeed had produced “sufficient proof” to establish that the results supplied to his polling agents at various polling stations on Forms-24 by the POs were different from those submitted to the RO.

Gillani also noted that the discrepancies resulted from the preparation of a “fake Form 24” to benefit a particular candidate, whom he identified as the sitting AJK prime minister.

He added that Article 50 of the AJK Interim Constitution and Sections 4, 8, 9 and 66 of the Elections Act vested the commission with broad powers to ensure free, fair and transparent elections.

He consequently directed the RO to prepare the election results of all disputed polling stations according to the original Forms-24 prepared by the POs and received on the spot by polling agents.

The majority, however, maintained that once the result had been prepared and Form-27 issued, the disputed factual questions fell within the jurisdiction of the Election Tribunal.

The majority decisions relied on the AJK Supreme Court’s judgment in Gul Pathan vs Election Commission and others (2023 SCR 1), which held that the commission’s powers under Section 9 concerned grave illegalities or violations materially affecting polling and that, after publication of the returned candidate’s name, an aggrieved person’s remedy lay through an election petition under Section 81.

Both petitions were consequently dismissed as untenable.

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“ASSALAM-o-Alaikum Wa Rahmatullah-i-Wa Barakatuh.”

This is how our tour guide greets us soon after landing at Urumqi Airport. She introduces herself as ‘Sunny’, and then tells us that her given name is Rahiman Ma.

“You are Muslim?” I ask.

“Alhamdolillah yes,” she smiles and nods.

Urumqi, the capital and largest city in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in Northwestern China, has an estimated population of 4.4 million people including a robust Muslim population of Uyghur, Hui, Mongols, Kazakh and Kyrgyz Muslims, that amounts to around 12 per cent of the city’s total number of people.

Over the course of the next three days, I encounter many more Muslims in the city, as well as several others with Muslim-sounding names who said that they don’t follow any religion. I also notice some Arabic writing along with the Chinese Hanzi script on banners and boards, only to be informed that it is the Uyghur script that I’m seeing.

I meet Dilnar and Yasmin Jahan, who say they are Uyghur but not Muslim. Dilnar has visited Islamabad and developed a liking for Pakistani food. Although Yasmin has not been to Pakistan, but she speaks excellent Urdu. She happily drops her real name, Lily, to proudly carry the name given to her by her Urdu teacher in Beijing.

Women in this region usually retire at 55, while the men work for another five years

Sunny, Dilnar and Yasmin accompany us to the Wu Yi Tongxiangdong Mosque in the 12th Division of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps.

It is a rural area surrounded by orchards and farms. Unlike everywhere else in China, there is no big electronic screen to introduce you to the place with a short documentary, nor is there a rotating Lazy Susan on the dining table.

It is Friday afternoon. Chen Yun, the Imam of the mosque, offers you the bounties of nature and savoury items prepared by the mosque volunteers. “They were so looking forward to meeting you all that they delayed going home after Friday prayers to prepare this humble spread for you,” the Imam tells our delegation of journalists from Pakistan.

Meanwhile, Sunny leans forward to ask me if women in Pakistan pray in mosques. I explained to her that we can be in some of our mosques, but not together. Just then, the Imam tells us that his mosque is also for men only. He also says that there are around 25,000 mosques in Xinjiang, but when I ask about the number of Imam Bargahs, he says: “None. The Muslims here are all Sunni”.

On the urban side, the strikingly majestic Erdaoqiao Mosque is surrounded by the bustling Grand Bazaar, beckoning all, especially tourists. Noticing me peering into his shop of beaded jewellery more than once, the shopkeeper gestures for me to come inside, calling out: “Andar ajao Behen [Come in Sister]!”

Not sure I heard him right, I ask if he just spoke in Urdu? “Haan haan [Yes yes],” he says. His name is Aziz and he picked up Urdu in Islamabad where he ran a shop around 15 years ago. “But that was a long time ago,” he says, adding that he is now permanently stationed in Urumqi. “I’m very happy with my life in China,” he tells me.

That evening on our bus ride back to our hotel, Sunny sings to us. “It means: I love Xinjiang and Xinjiang loves me,” she translates.

Does she really? From what I hear, women in the Autonomous Region retire at 55, while the men retire at 60. “Most of us are grandmothers by the time we are 50 and by then we are looking forward to retirement, which allows us quality time with our grandchildren, and pension, which comes a day or so before the start of a new month. It is good money for doing no work,” she winks before taking out her phone and showing me a picture of her daughter, Jamila, looking smart in an Emirates airline stewardess’s uniform. Sunny also has a four-year-old grandson.

Muslims also get to enjoy more holidays on their festivals and ceremonious days. “Where we get something like three days off from work, the others get only a day off,” Sunny smiles.

Published in Dawn, August 15th, 2026

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ISLAMABAD: The National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) on Wednesday launched a new chipless National Identity Card (NIC) built around a secure QR code, replacing the imported microchip used for the past 14 years.

The card has been manufactured domestically by the National Security Printing Company (NSPC) in Karachi in line with Nadra’s technical and security specifications, a statement issued by the authority on Friday said.

Instead of a chip, the card will carry a secure QR code that can be scanned and verified on a smartphone through Nadra’s Pak Identity (PakID) mobile application, it added.

The federal government approved the issuance of the new card on February 23 this year.

The code will contain the cardholder’s information and photograph.

According to Nadra, this will allow institutions to enter individuals’ names, addresses and other identity details more easily and consistently in their systems while reducing data entry errors.

The card will also display a family number and symbols to denote persons with disabilities, senior citizens, organ donors and citizens of Azad Jammu and Kashmir. The cardholder’s name and address will be printed in both Urdu and English, Nadra added.

The visible and covert security features of the card have been “updated to meet current requirements and align with domestic manufacturing capabilities”, the statement said.

Nadra said the chip-based Smart NIC introduced about 14 years ago could not be fully utilised as chip readers and supporting infrastructure were never widely available. The QR-based card addresses this gap, being verifiable through an ordinary smartphone or software connected to a camera, it said.

Telecom operators, banks, hospitals, the Pakistan Railways, police and other authorised institutions will also be provided with software to read and verify the QR code, Nadra said.

The rollout will be phased, with the QR code-based card replacing the standard CNIC from Friday, it said, adding that from January 2027, it will be issued for all categories, including NICs for Overseas Pakistanis (Nicops) and Juvenile Cards. In the final phase, the Pakistan Origin Card (POC) will also transition to the chipless format, according to the statement.

Nadra clarified that all previously issued identity cards would remain valid until their expiry dates.

In February, the government notified amendments to the National Identity Card Rules, 2002 and the Pakistan Origin Card Rules, 2002 to modernise the country’s identity document framework. Part of these reforms included the statutory introduction of the QR code — a scannable barcode containing horizontal and vertical lines, dots, and patterns — as a defined security and verification feature.

The amendments further authorised the use of a QR code or “any other technological feature”, in lieu of the current microchip, enabling Nadra to adopt evolving verification technologies without repeated rule amendments.

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Pakistan Army Major General Jawwad Ahmed Qazi has been appointed the new force commander of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (Minurso), the Permanent Mission of Pakistan to the UN announced on Thursday.

In a social media post on X, Pakistan’s mission said, “UN Secretary General António Guterres has appointed Major Gen Qazi of Pakistan as the new force commander of Minurso.”

“With over 35 years of leadership and operational experience in the Pakistan Army and UN peacekeeping, Major Gen Qazi brings extensive command, field and international experience to the mission,” the mission said.

According to Pakistan’s mission, Major Gen Qazi has previously served in senior leadership roles, including command, staff and instructional positions, both in Pakistan and abroad.

His previous appointments in Pakistan include general officer commanding of an infantry division, force commander in the Northern Areas and director general at the Ministry of Defence, it added.

Earlier in his career, he also served with the UN Transitional Administration for Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Sirmium (UNTAES) in Croatia.

“Pakistan takes pride in this appointment and remains committed to supporting UN peacekeeping and international efforts for peace and stability through deployment of mission-ready contingents and leaders who have vast peacekeeping experience,” it stated.

Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony largely controlled by Morocco, is the only territory on the African continent whose post-colonial status has not been settled.

Morocco has long been in conflict with the Algerian-backed Polisario Front, which seeks independence for the Sahrawi people.

It is claimed by the Polisario Front, which insists on the indigenous Sahrawi people’s right to a referendum on self-determination monitored by the UN.

Polisario is seeking independence and says Morocco should adhere to an agreement it accepted in 1991 that provides for a UN-supervised referendum on self-determination.

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