Shehbaz Sharif's party leader out on bail in UK grooming case wins PoK polls: Report

IANS | August 6, 2026 11:06 AM

London, Aug 6 (IANS) Former Pakistani state minister Rukhsar Ahmed, who was arrested in the United Kingdom in July 2024 on suspicion of raping vulnerable young girls in Manchester in the 1990s and trafficking children in care as part of a grooming gang, has been "re-elected" as a "lawmaker" from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), according to media reports.

Pakistan tightens grip on foreign media; draws backlash over shrinking press freedom

IANS | August 6, 2026 10:02 AM

Islamabad, Aug 6 (IANS) The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) expressed grave concern over the Pakistani government's new Foreign Media Facilitation Guidelines 2026, warning that these measures come amid an increasingly restrictive environment for media freedom, with the space for independent journalism continuing to shrink in the country.

Juvenile, unbecoming of diplomatic communique: Bangladesh Foreign Ministry condemned for remarks against India

IANS | August 6, 2026 7:23 AM

New Delhi/Dhaka, Aug 6 (IANS) Several former Ministers from Bangladesh have strongly criticised the Tarique Rahman-led government over its remarks targeting former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and India, describing the administration's political rhetoric as "juvenile" and accusing it of abandoning diplomatic decorum while attempting to suppress dissenting voices.

Pakistan using bullets and media blackout to hide brutalities in PoK: Report

IANS | August 5, 2026 9:55 PM

Islamabad, Aug 5 (IANS) Pakistan's response to a bread-and-butter protest movement in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) with live fire, mass arrests, a communications blackout, and the blocking of an international media outlet reporting on the unrest was not merely an attempt to quell dissent. It was an effort to ensure the rest of the world never saw how that dissent was being suppressed. The true measure of the international community's commitment to press freedom will be whether it allows Islamabad's effort to succeed, a report has stated.

Global group voices concern over two missing Pakistani journalists who reported on PoK unrest

IANS | August 5, 2026 9:55 PM

New York, Aug 5 (IANS) A leading international press freedom group on Wednesday called on Pakistani authorities to immediately release journalists Razi Tahir and Muhammad Saif, who were reportedly taken from their Islamabad office by men in police uniforms, following their reporting on the ongoing unrest in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), where authorities have imposed an internet blackout and severe restrictions on press freedom.