🔴[Breaking] Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif says the United States and Iran have reached a peace agreement that will end military operations across multiple fronts, including Lebanon, with a formal signing scheduled in Switzerland on Friday. US President Donald Trump declared the deal “complete,” announced the end of Washington's naval blockade in the Strait of Hormuz, and said, “Let the oil flow.” Iran's deputy foreign minister has also confirmed the agreement, while Tehran's military leadership is portraying the outcome as a strategic victory.

SAT OP-ED | Buried beneath Cold War rubble for decades, the Moscow-Islamabad relationship is quietly being rewritten. In an exclusive piece for South Asia Times, regional security analyst and Pak-Afghan affairs expert Salman Javed @M_EssJay takes a deep dive into the emerging architecture of a new Eurasia. As unilateral dominance fractures, Pakistan and Russia are intentionally bypassing historical rivalries to secure critical ground in a fast-evolving multipolar order. From groundbreaking energy corridors and crucial security convergence to shared Eurasian connectivity networks, this evolving alignment is moving at a pace most global spectators are completely missing. Read the full, forward-looking strategic analysis to understand why this partnership matters far more in the coming years than the world realizes. southasiatimes.org/pakistan-…

Pakistan’s Economic Survey for FY2025–26 presents a mixed picture of moderate growth alongside persistent structural pressures. While key macroeconomic indicators show relative stability, challenges in inflation, debt, and poverty continue to weigh on overall welfare outcomes.

Just three days ago, Indian Hindutva trolls flooded social media with mockery, abuse, and conspiracy theories after a Pakistan Army Mi-17 helicopter crashed in AJK due to a technical malfunction. Today, an IAF An-32 has crashed in Assam, killing all onboard. Yet, no sane Pakistani is celebrating or exploiting the tragedy for views or engagement. But those who mocked our martyrs in the last three days are now witnessing the same grief on their side of the border and will hopefully understand that a tragedy remains a tragedy, whether the uniform is Pakistani or Indian. My condolences to the families of the five IAF personnel who lost their lives.

Budget 2026-27: 1. For the average Pakistani: no major relief, but no major additional burden either 2. Major achievement: fiscal deficit down from 9.1% to under 4% 3. Growth targets look broadly reasonable: A. Services: 4.2% B. Agriculture: 3.8% C. Manufacturing: 4.0% D. Inflation target of 8.2% looks optimistic E. Investment target of 15% looks ambitious

[PAYF Commentary] The Pakistan Economic Survey for FY2025-26 opens with an honest admission: Pakistan missed its growth target. GDP expanded at 3.7%, the highest in four years, and not an insignificant achievement, but it fell short of the 4.2% projected at the year’s outset.

"𝗔𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗵 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗚𝘂𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗼𝗳 ʿ𝗨𝗺𝗮𝗿 𝗶𝗯𝗻 𝗮𝗹-𝗞𝗵𝗮𝘁̣𝘁̣𝗮̄𝗯 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿." This sentence is found transcribed upon a stone recently discovered in the Madinah region. In yet another discovery that aligns with the evidentiary support for the veracity of Islamic claims 𝑺𝒂𝒖𝒅𝒊 𝑨𝒓𝒂𝒃𝒊𝒂'𝒔 𝑯𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝑪𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 has concluded the second season of archaeological survey work in Al-Mahd Governorate, in the Madinah Region, documenting 1,774 archaeological finds and inscriptions. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱: "In 𝑨𝒍-𝑴𝒂𝒉𝒅 𝑮𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒏𝒐𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒆, 𝑨𝒍-𝑴𝒂𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒉 𝑹𝒆𝒈𝒊𝒐𝒏, the first and second seasons of our archaeological surveys uncovered remarkable sites that bring the stories of past civilizations to life, revealing new chapters in the history of this land."

Maj Hafiz Majid (shaheed), the co-pilot on the helicopter that crashed today at Muzaffarabad. He was approved as Lt Colonel and was awaiting his rank. May Allah grant him the highest place in jannah. Ameen.

Trump says Iran shot down a U.S. Apache helicopter on patrol that crashed near the Strait of Hormuz. Washington will now face pressure to respond, but the real test is whether it can deter the IRGC without triggering a new round of regional escalation.

The U.S. giving Israel a shut up call is the fruit of the hard work of Pakistan’s diplomacy. Well done, gents!

On spot. The @TheEconomist’s characterisation of TTP once “poor and ill-disciplined” but now “better organised and financed, and only targets Pakistani soldiers and police”, represents a selective narrative that is inconsistent with both empirical evidence and Pakistan’s official counter-terrorism posture. In KP alone, TTP has taken lives of 86 civilians and injured 260 more in 2026 thus far. It must be noted that Pakistan’s policy remains unambiguous. TTP, officially designated a banned terrorist organisation constitutes an existential threat to the constitutional order, the writ of the state, and the safety of its citizens. This designation is indicative of group’s deviant ideology and indiscriminate violence, rejecting any notion of “restraint” or “selective targeting.” Upgraded organisational capacity and external financing have amplified the scope and lethality of its operations across civilian and security domains alike. Open-source and official reporting confirm a sustained pattern of TTP-attributed attacks on markets, schools, infrastructure, and civilian gatherings in KPK, alongside operations against security forces. Such data refute any implication of disciplined insurgency and align instead with the broader resurgence documented in recent threat assessments. Under the Revised National Action Plan and the ongoing Azm-e-Istehkam campaign, Pakistan maintains a zero-tolerance, full-spectrum response. No negotiations, no legitimacy, and relentless kinetic and ideological pressure against TTP and affiliated networks. Responsible scholarship and journalism must integrate complete casualty record rather than curate a partial portrait that inadvertently legitimises an insurgency. Civilian suffering in KP is not collateral, it is central to TTP’s strategy of destabilisation. Accurate threat assessment demands fidelity to facts, alignment with Pakistan’s national security imperatives, and rejection of sanitised framings. The data, and Pakistan’s resolute policy, speak clearly.

RT @Huk06: I have exclusive photos of the greatest bet a Pakistani has taken on Pakistan this century. A massive $200 Million investment in…

BREAKING: Iran denies firing 'any shots' at Saudi air base 🔴 LIVE updates: aje.news/5n8ezy?update=46354…

I saw this & I was thinking that Why stop at MBQ? What about Expeditions of Caliph umer? Expeditions sent by Prophet Muhammad SAW? Prophet SAW send letters to persia & rome & sowing the seeds of their conquest? Ponder! That's how the Paindu jahilliya of nationalism blinds us.

I’ve seen several Indian accounts portraying the Balochistan Liberation Army’s (BLA) non-inclusion on the UN 1267 Sanctions List as some kind of diplomatic victory. That argument is neither as clearcut nor as significant as it’s being presented. Pakistan and China formally raised the matter at the UN Security Council in 2025. Since then, the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia have all designated the BLA and its Majeed Brigade as terrorist organizations, not rights movements. Importantly, 1267 sanctions is a process, not a one time political verdict which has been focused primarily toward AlQaeda, Islamic State, and affiliated entities. Terrorism related evidence often includes intelligence reporting, protected sources, and ongoing investigative material. Such information cannot always be made public immediately without compromising sources, methods, or active operations. Reducing a complex sanctions process to a simplistic “victory” narrative is both premature and misleading.

No matter how many constitutional amendments or reforms the government brings, Pakistan will remain trapped in the same corrupt and oppressive system as long as feudal and Seth culture continues to dominate our society and assemblies. The problem is not just the laws. It's the class of people who benefit from this broken system and have no incentive to change it. And Pakistan's destiny will not change until we break the grip of this privileged elite over our politics, economy, and institutions. Our media, influencers, and the entertainment industry also need to stop glorifying this culture. Instead of selling fantasies of quick wealth, power, and elite lifestyles, they should be highlighting the real social and economic problems that millions of working-class Pakistanis face every day.

Update | Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has said that Türkiye’s relations with Pakistan are rooted in history and solidarity and should not be viewed negatively by India. He added that if India takes issue with countries maintaining good ties with Pakistan, “there will be many such countries,” urging New Delhi not to misread the situation.

Reports say Taliban Supreme Leader Akhundzada privately warned the TTP to halt attacks inside Pakistan. Islamabad has "welcomed" the signal. But a nation that has buried thousands of soldiers, civilians, and schoolchildren cannot be satisfied with an informal message conveyed through back channels. 1/5

After a long wait - I'm finally happy to share this output with my friends. A study on the concept of this menace and how does it operate from the ideological point of view. What's the language they use, how they abuse and manipulate the sacred and divine scriptures. Why our policy makers and our scholars from social sciences background, avoid this subject and it's details discussion? I'll share the content online tomorrow after it's publication on @_southasiatimes. Stay tuned.

EDITORIAL!! Everyone is focused on border strikes and military pacts. But the most dangerous crisis in our region isn't happening on a battlefield, it's happening in a classroom. Or rather, the absence of one. 1/5