ISLAMABAD, Jan 19 (APP): A doctor and a policeman were injured when unknown assailants opened fire on a vehicle deployed for anti-polio campaign in the Bajaur district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Friday.
According to police and rescue officials, the incident took place when the vehicle was returning from District Headquarters Hospital Khar in Turkho area of ??Mamond tehsil, a private news channel reported.
The injured were shifted to the District Headquarters Hospital for immediate medical assistance.
ISLAMABAD, Jan 19 (APP): President Dr Arif Alvi on Friday paid tribute to the soldiers of Pakistan Army who embraced martyrdom in an attack in Lakki Marwat on January 10.
Talking to the family members of Sepoy Muhammad Afzal and Abrar Hussan over telephone, the president offered deep condolence and prayed for elevation of ranks of the martyred in paradise. He also expressed sympathies with the family members of the martyrs.
The president, on behalf of the entire nation saluted the martyrs for sacrificing their lives for the sake of the country’s security.
ISLAMABAD, Jan 19 (APP): The United States (US) remained the top export destination of Pakistani products during the first six months of the current financial year 2023-24, followed by China and the United Kingdom (UK).
Total exports to the US during July-December 2023 were recorded at US 2745.700 million against the exports of US $ 3067.748 million during July-December 2022, showing a decline of 10.49 percent, according to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
This was followed by China, wherein Pakistan exported goods worth US $1481.499 million against the exports of US $1058.088 million last year, showing an increase of 40.01 percent.
UK was the third top export destination, where Pakistan exported products worth US $1014.727 million during the months under review against the exports of US $1003.396 million, SBP data revealed.
Among other countries, Pakistani exports to UAE stood at US $1000.916 million against US $726.020 million last year, showing an increase of 37.86 percent while the exports to Germany were recorded at US $731.033 million against US $881.192 million last year, data said.
During July-December, the exports to Holland were recorded at $669.763 million against $747.770 million whereas the exports to Italy stood at $568.178 million against $572.823 million.
Pakistan’s exports to Spain were recorded at $747.858 million against the exports of US $692.167 million while the exports to Afghanistan were recorded at $260.716 million against $251.580 million last year.
The exports to Bangladesh stood at US $305.443 million against US $420.829 million.
Similarly, the exports to France during the months under review were recorded at US $253.495 million against US $297.335 million while the exports to Belgium stood at US $277.173 million against US $372.480 million.
Pakistan’s exports to Saudi Arabia were recorded at US $328.232 million during the current year compared to US $221.376 million last year whereas the exports to Turkiye stood at US $180.632 million against US $164.255 million.
WASHINGTON, Jan 19 (APP): The United States is monitoring the situation between Pakistan and Iran “very, very closely”, while urging the two countries to avoid escalating tensions, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Thursday.
“These are two well-armed nations and again we don’t want to see an escalation,” Kirby told reporters traveling with President Joe Biden aboard Air Force One. he added, “We don’t want to see an escalation, clearly, in South and Central Asia. And we’re in touch with our Pakistani counterparts, as you might expect.”
Pakistan launched missile strikes into Iran on Wednesday, after Iran carried out strikes in Pakistan late on Tuesday. A foreign office spokesperson said Pakistani precision strikes had hit “terrorist hideouts” in Iran’s south-eastern Sistan-Baluchestan province.
Questioned about US concerns over the exchange of fire between Iran and Pakistan, Kirby said, “I want to let Pakistan speak to their military operations. I want to be careful about that. As you know, they were struck first by Iran, which was obviously — another reckless attack, another example of Iran’s destabilizing behavior in the region.”
Kirby said he was “not aware” whether Washington had any pre-notification about Pakistan’s retaliatory attack.
At the US State Department news briefing on Thursday, Spokesman Matthew Miller also said that tensions between Pakistan and Iran should not escalate in “any way, shape, or form.”
“Pakistan is a major non-NATO ally of the United States. That will remain the case, but we would urge restraint in this case,” Miller said in response to a question.
Miller said Iranian and Pakistani tensions are not connected to the conflict in Gaza, but given the tensions in the region there’s risk for increased conflict.
“We’ve been incredibly concerned about the potential for escalation since October 7th, and that’s why we have engaged in intense diplomatic efforts to try to prevent escalation,” Miller said.
” So, I will say we noted the comments from the Government of Pakistan about the importance of cooperative relations between Pakistan and its neighbours. We thought those were productive, useful statements. And certainly, there’s no need for escalation, and we would urge restraint on all sides in this case.”
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