Author: i2wtc

ISLAMABAD: The inaugural round of the additional secretary-level mechanism between the foreign ministries of Pakistan and Afghanistan was held in Islamabad on Monday, with the Pakistani side urging “concrete actions” against terrorist groups operating from Afghan soil. The new mechanism was established following an understanding reached during Pakistan’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister’s visit to Kabul on April 19, according to a Foreign Office statement. The Pakistani delegation was led by Additional Secretary (Afghanistan & West Asia) Ambassador Syed Ali Asad Gillani, while the Afghan side was headed by Mufti Noor Ahmad Noor, Director General of the First Political…

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court has ruled that confessional statements made by an accused while in police custody and recorded by the media are inadmissible in court, warning that such media-facilitated confessions can undermine the presumption of innocence and irreparably damage the accused and the judicial process. “A confession made by such an accused while in custody of a police officer cannot be proved against him/her unless made in the immediate presence of a Magistrate,” states the 25-page judgment authored by Justice Athar Minallah. The bench was hearing a criminal appeal in which the accused, earlier sentenced to death by the…

A view of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) building in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 11, 2025. Jonathan Ernst | ReutersThe IRS said in a new federal court filing that churches can endorse political candidates without risking the loss of their tax-exempt status.The move upends a 70-year interpretation of the U.S. tax code, whose Johnson Amendment has barred non-profit groups, including churches, from endorsing political candidates without putting their tax-exempt status in jeopardy.”Communications from a house of worship to its congregation in connection with religious services through its usual channels of communication on matters of faith do not run afoul of the…

Kirk Tanner, then chief executive officer of North America beverages for PepsiCo Inc., speaks during the Bloomberg Power Players Summit in Miami, Florida, U.S., on Friday, Jan. 31, 2020. Marco Bello | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesWendy’s CEO Kirk Tanner has been named the new chief executive of The Hershey Company, effective August 18.Tanner will replace Michele Buck, who is retiring after almost 20 years at Hershey, including almost eight as CEO.Tanner joined Wendy’s in 2024 after more than 30 years at PepsiCo, including leading the company’s North American beverages unit. His move to Hershey marks a return to the consumer packaged…

This photo taken on July 7, 2025 shows an exterior view of the memorial hall commemorating the Hundred-Regiment Campaign in Yangquan, north China’s Shanxi Province. The Hundred-Regiment Campaign took place in northern China from August 1940 to January 1941 during the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. (Xinhua/Zhan Yan)This photo taken on July 7, 2025 shows an interior view of the memorial hall commemorating the Hundred-Regiment Campaign in Yangquan, north China’s Shanxi Province. The Hundred-Regiment Campaign took place in northern China from August 1940 to January 1941 during the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. (Xinhua/Zhan…

ISLAMABAD: In a major shake-up, the government seeks dynamic private sector talent to revamp key ministries, inviting experts to lead federal secretaries’ posts in economic affairs, finance, and energy, signalling a significant shift beyond traditional bureaucracy. The government has issued advertisement over the weekend to hire seven “dynamic” private sector individuals for the posts of federal secretaries. However, the advertisement did not name the divisions, the qualification criteria and job descriptions. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has also constituted a ministerial committee, headed by Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, to finalise new nominees for appointment of Grade-22 bureaucrats as executive directors…

Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev says it’s not “entirely relevant” that the trading platform’s so-called tokenized shares of OpenAI and SpaceX aren’t technically equity in the companies.It comes after OpenAI raised concerns about the product, which is designed to give users in the European Union exposure to various U.S. stocks — including private companies, which are less liquid than publicly listed firms.OpenAI last week warned that Robinhood’s stock tokens do not represent equity in the company and said in a post on X that, “any transfer of OpenAI equity requires our approval — we did not approve any transfer.”Robinhood says its…

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, lays a floral basket to pay tribute to the martyrs at the monument square honoring the martyrs of the Hundred-Regiment Campaign during the war of resistance against Japanese aggression, when inspecting Yangquan City, north China’s Shanxi Province, July 7, 2025. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)TAIYUAN, July 8 (Xinhua) — President Xi Jinping has called on north China’s Shanxi Province to further promote the transformation and development of the resource-based economy and strive to write its own chapter in advancing Chinese modernization.Xi,…

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has introduced Pakistan’s first Artificial Intelligence-based Custom Clearance and Risk Management System (RMS). The development came on the directives of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. During a meeting chaired by the premier in the federal capital to review the ongoing reform measures by the FBR, it was informed that under the new system, the estimation of the cost and nature of goods during import and export will be conducted using artificial intelligence and bots. The new risk management system, based on modern technology, will continuously improve through automation using machine learning, along with the…

ISLAMABAD: Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir on Monday issued a stern warning, stating that any misadventure or violation of Pakistan’s territorial integrity by an aggressor would be met with a “deeply hurting and more than reciprocal response” – delivered without constraints or hesitation. Addressing the graduating officers at the National Defence University (NDU), Islamabad, the army chief said that India’s allegations of external support to Pakistan during the Operation Bunyanum Marsoos reflected Delhi’s chronic reluctance to acknowledge Pakistan’s indigenous capability. According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the media wing of the military, Field Marshal…