ABDUL Qadeer Khan, who died on Sunday (10), was lauded in Pakistan for transforming it into the world's first Islamic nuclear weapons power.
But he was seen by the West as a “dangerous renegade” responsible for smuggling technology to rogue states.
The nuclear scientist, who died at 85 in Islamabad after recently being hospitalised with Covid-19, was revered as "the father of Pakistan's nuclear bomb".
He was seen as a national hero for bringing the country up to par with arch-rival India in the atomic field and making its defences "impregnable".
But he found himself in the crosshairs of controversy when he was accused of illegally proliferating nuclear technology to Iran, Libya and North Korea.
Khan was placed under effective house arrest in Islamabad in 2004 after he admitted running a proliferation network to the three countries.
In 2006, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer but recovered after surgery.
A court ended his house arrest in February 2009, but his movements were strictly guarded, and he was accompanied by authorities every time he left his home in an upscale sector of leafy Islamabad.
Born in Bhopal, India on April 1, 1936, Khan was just a young boy when his family migrated to Pakistan during the bloody 1947 partition of the sub-continent at the end of British colonial rule.
He did a science degree at Karachi University in 1960, then went on to study metallurgical engineering in Berlin before completing advanced studies in the Netherlands and Belgium.
The crucial contribution to Pakistan's nuclear programme was the procurement of a blueprint for uranium centrifuges, which transform uranium into weapons-grade fuel for nuclear fissile material.
He was charged with stealing it from the Netherlands while working for Anglo-Dutch-German nuclear engineering consortium Urenco and bringing it back to Pakistan in 1976.
On his return to Pakistan, then prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto put Khan in charge of the government's nascent uranium enrichment project.
By 1978, his team had enriched uranium and by 1984 they were ready to detonate a nuclear device, Khan later said in a newspaper interview.
The 1998 nuclear test saw Pakistan slapped with international sanctions and sent its economy into freefall.
Khan's aura began to dim in March 2001 when then president Pervez Musharraf, reportedly under US pressure, removed him from the chairmanship of Kahuta Research Laboratories and made him a special adviser.
But Pakistan's nuclear establishment never expected to see its most revered hero subjected to questioning.
The move came after Islamabad received a letter from the International Atomic Energy Agency, a UN watchdog, containing allegations that Pakistani scientists were the source of sold-off nuclear knowledge.
Khan said in a speech to the Pakistan Institute of National Affairs in 1990 that he had dealings on world markets while developing Pakistan's nuclear programme.
"It was not possible for us to make each and every piece of equipment within the country," he said.
'I saved the country'
Khan was pardoned by Musharraf after his confession but later retracted his remarks.
"I saved the country for the first time when I made Pakistan a nuclear nation and saved it again when I confessed and took the whole blame on myself," Khan said in an interview in 2008 while under effective house arrest.
The scientist believed in nuclear defence as the best deterrent.
After Islamabad carried out atomic tests in 1998 in response to tests by India, Khan said Pakistan "never wanted to make nuclear weapons. It was forced to do so".
Nearly a decade ago, Khan tried his luck in the political arena, forming a party - the Tehreek-e-Tahafuz Pakistan (TTP), or the Save Pakistan Movement - in July 2012 in hopes of winning votes on the basis of the respect he still commanded in Pakistan.
But he dissolved it a year later after none of its 111 candidates won a seat in national elections.
Khan also stirred a new controversy that same year when, in an interview to mass circulated Urdu newspaper Daily Jang, he said he transferred nuclear technology to two countries on the direction of slain prime minister Benazir Bhutto.
He did not name the countries, nor did he say when Bhutto, the twice-elected prime minister who was assassinated in 2007, had supposedly issued the orders.
"I was not independent but was bound to abide by the orders of the prime minister," he was quoted as saying.
Bhutto's Pakistan People’s Party denied the claim as "baseless and unfounded".
None of the controversies appears to have dented Khan's popularity, even years on.
He regularly wrote op-ed pieces, often preaching the value of scientific education, for the Jang group of newspapers.
Many schools, universities, institutes and charity hospitals across Pakistan are named after him, his portrait decorating their signs, stationery and websites.
Minouche Shafik named chief economic adviser to Keir Starmer.
Darren Jones moves into Downing Street role; James Murray replaces him.
Wider reshuffle includes changes in Starmer’s private office and communications.
Appointment comes ahead of a budget expected to include further tax rises.
Prime minister Keir Starmer has named Minouche Shafik, a former deputy governor of the Bank of England, as his chief economic adviser. The appointment comes as he looks to strengthen his team ahead of what is expected to be a difficult end to the year.
Shafik’s arrival, along with the decision to bring Darren Jones, deputy to chancellor Rachel Reeves, into his Downing Street office, signals Starmer’s focus on economic advice before a budget later this year that is likely to include further tax rises.
Jones will be succeeded by Labour lawmaker James Murray, who previously held a junior post in the finance ministry, Starmer’s office said in a statement.
Wider changes in Downing Street
Starmer has also reshuffled his Downing Street operations, replacing his principal private secretary and naming a new director of communications.
After more than a year in power, Starmer’s government has faced criticism from within Labour for struggling to explain difficult policy decisions and highlight its achievements. Labour’s poll ratings have dropped in recent months.
The changes could strengthen the economic advice available to Starmer before Reeves presents a budget with limited scope, as she remains committed to her fiscal rules aimed at balancing day-to-day spending with tax revenues by 2029.
"I think the creation of a role for Darren Jones is a good move," one Labour lawmaker said.
"He’s clearly got an eye for the details but understands the politics too."
Shafik to bring ‘additional expertise’
Shafik served as deputy governor for markets and banking at the Bank of England between August 2014 and February 2017, leaving early to become vice chancellor of the London School of Economics.
In 2023, she was appointed president of Columbia University in New York but resigned after little more than a year following criticism over the university’s handling of student protests related to Israel’s war in Gaza.
Earlier in her career, Shafik was the top civil servant in Britain’s foreign aid ministry and later deputy managing director at the International Monetary Fund. At the IMF, she oversaw work in Europe and the Middle East during the euro zone debt crisis and the Arab Spring.
"This role and the additional expertise will support the government to go further and faster in driving economic growth and raising living standards for all," Starmer’s office said.
Shafik’s background
Shafik, who is also a non-partisan member of the House of Lords, was born in Egypt and grew up in the southern United States before earning a doctorate in economics at the University of Oxford.
In a 2021 book, she argued for policies that included income floors with work incentives, pensions linked to life expectancy, and early childhood interventions to equalise opportunity.
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Before their formal meeting, Putin offered Modi a ride in his Aurus limousine.
INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi met Russian president Vladimir Putin and Chinese president Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Tianjin, China.
Modi pressed for ending the Ukraine conflict at the earliest, reaffirmed India’s long-standing ties with Russia, and discussed trade and border issues with Xi.
Modi, in his address, called the Pahalgam terror attack “an assault on India’s conscience” and “an open challenge to every nation that believes in humanity.” He said combating terrorism is a “duty towards humanity.” The SCO declaration echoed this, with leaders strongly condemning the attack and stressing the need for united global efforts against terrorism.
“The member states strongly condemned the terrorist attack in Pahalgam on April 22,” it said.
“They (member states) expressed their deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the dead and the wounded. They further stated that perpetrators, organisers and sponsors of such attacks must be brought to justice,” the declaration said.
2. Modi–Xi meeting on trade and border issues
Modi and Xi agreed to expand trade and investment ties to stabilise global commerce and deepen cooperation to address common challenges.
Modi thanked Xi, the Chinese government and the people of China for the successful organisation of the summit, his first visit to the country in seven years.
Modi said an atmosphere of "peace and stability" has been created on their disputed Himalayan border, the site of a prolonged military standoff after deadly troop clashes in 2020, which froze most areas of cooperation between the nuclear-armed strategic rivals.
3. Modi–Putin meeting on Ukraine and bilateral cooperation
Modi told Putin, “The call of humanity is to end the conflict as soon as possible and find ways to bring permanent peace to the region.”
He welcomed peace initiatives and emphasised a durable settlement. Putin, addressing Modi as “Dear Mr Prime Minister, dear friend,” said Russia and India had maintained “friendly and trusting” ties for decades.
The leaders discussed cooperation in trade, fertilisers, space, energy, security and culture, reaffirming the “Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership.”
4. Modi–Putin private conversation in limousine
Before their formal meeting, Putin offered Modi a ride in his Aurus limousine.
The two leaders held a one-to-one conversation for nearly an hour inside the car.
Modi later shared a photograph on social media, writing, “Conversations with him are always insightful.”
Modi said India is waiting to receive Putin later this year. The Russian president is scheduled to travel to India in December for summit talks.
5. Xi’s call for SCO development bank
Xi Jinping said the SCO’s “international influence and appeal are increasing day by day.”
He urged members to accelerate creation of a development bank and announced initiatives including scholarships, PhD programmes, livelihood projects and AI cooperation centres.
He also proposed closer cooperation in energy, infrastructure, digital economy, science and green industries.
6. Condemnation of Gaza strikes
The SCO members also criticised the military strikes by Israel in Gaza, noting that they have caused civilian casualties and created a humanitarian crisis in the region.
The SCO also condemned terror strikes in Pakistan’s Balochistan province, including those in Khuzdar and on the Jaffer Express.
(With inputs from agencies)
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Afghan volunteers and Taliban security personnel carry an earthquake victim evacuated by a military helicopter from the Nurgal district of Kunar province onn September 1, 2025.
A MAJOR rescue operation was underway in Afghanistan on Monday after a powerful earthquake and several aftershocks destroyed homes in a remote mountainous region, killing more than 800 people, according to Taliban authorities.
The quake struck just before midnight and was felt as far as Kabul and in Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad.
The US Geological Survey (USGS) said more than 1.2 million people likely experienced strong or very strong shaking.
Heavy toll in Kunar province
Near the epicentre in eastern Afghanistan, about 800 people were killed and 2,500 injured in Kunar province alone, Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said.
In neighbouring Nangarhar province, another 12 people died and 255 were injured, he added.
"Numerous houses were destroyed," interior ministry spokesman Abdul Mateen Qani told AFP.
Many Afghans live in mud-brick homes that are highly vulnerable to collapse.
Remote villages cut off
Some villages in Kunar province remain inaccessible due to blocked roads, the UN migration agency said in a statement to AFP.
The Taliban authorities and the United Nations mobilised rescue efforts in the worst-hit areas. The defence ministry said 40 flights had been carried out so far.
A member of Kunar’s agricultural department in Nurgal district said locals had rushed to clear blocked roads to reach cut-off villages, but the areas worst affected were remote with limited telecoms access.
"There is a lot of fear and tension... Children and women were screaming. We had never experienced anything like this in our lives," Ijaz Ulhaq Yaad told AFP.
He added that many people in the quake-hit villages were among the more than four million Afghans who have returned from Iran and Pakistan in recent years.
"They wanted to build their homes here."
Quake details
According to the USGS, the earthquake struck at a shallow depth of eight kilometres and was located 27 kilometres from Jalalabad in Nangarhar province.
Both Nangarhar and Kunar provinces border Pakistan. The nearby Torkham crossing has seen repeated waves of Afghan returnees, often with no jobs or shelter.
International response
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed condolences, joining the Taliban government and several nations in offering sympathy.
"I stand in full solidarity with the people of Afghanistan after the devastating earthquake that hit the country earlier today," he said.
Aftershocks and frequent quakes
At least five aftershocks followed the initial quake, the strongest a magnitude 5.2 just after 4:00 am (2330 GMT Sunday).
Afghanistan experiences frequent earthquakes, particularly in the Hindu Kush mountain range where the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates meet.
Nangarhar province was also hit by flooding between Friday night and Saturday, which killed five people and destroyed crops and property, provincial officials said.
In October 2023, a 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck western Herat province, killing more than 1,500 people and damaging or destroying more than 63,000 homes.
In June 2022, a 5.9-magnitude quake hit eastern Paktika province, killing more than 1,000 people and leaving tens of thousands homeless.
Ongoing crises
Afghanistan, already facing humanitarian challenges after decades of war, has limited capacity to respond to disasters. Since the Taliban’s return, foreign aid has been sharply reduced, further straining resources.
(With inputs from agencies)
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The Ganpati festival celebrates Ganesha as the god of new beginnings, and the god of wisdom and intelligence. (Photo: Getty Images)
A HINDU community centre in east London caught fire on Saturday evening, causing major damage to the building. The London Fire Brigade brought the fire under control and confirmed that no injuries were reported.
The incident took place at the Shree Sorathia Prajapati Community Centre on Cleveland Road in Ilford, which had been decorated for a Ganapati Visarjan event attended by members of the Hindu community.
Some reports suggest that fireworks could be a possible cause. The Metropolitan Police, however, said its investigation has so far found no evidence that the fire was started deliberately.
“No one was injured in the incident, however the building suffered significant structural damage. The cause of the fire is under investigation – at this stage, the investigation team have found no evidence to suggest that it was started deliberately,” a Metropolitan Police spokesperson said.
“We are working closely with Redbridge Council to support the local community. Residents are advised to keep windows and doors closed due to smoke,” the spokesperson added.
The Met Police said neighbourhood officers on patrol discovered the fire and alerted the London Fire Brigade.
“We were called at 2000 (hours) yesterday (Saturday) to reports of a building fire on Cleveland Road in Ilford. Firefighters attended and discovered a single-storey community centre fully alight,” a London Fire Brigade spokesperson said.
“The fire was safely brought under control by crews by 2121 (hours) and there were no reports of any injuries. However, the building has sustained a significant amount of damage as a result of the fire,” the spokesperson said.
The brigade said it received about 14 calls regarding the fire. Six fire engines and around 40 firefighters from Ilford, Barking, Stratford, Leyton, Hainault and Romford fire stations were sent to the scene.
“A 32-metre turntable ladder from Dagenham Fire Station also attended and was used as a water tower to help extinguish the fire from above,” the spokesperson added.
Ilford South MP Jas Athwal expressed his gratitude to the fire crews. “A fire at Shree Sorathia Prajapati Community Centre on Cleveland Road has been extinguished,” he said in a post on social media.
“Grateful to the brave crews for their swift response and for keeping our community safe. I am in contact with the emergency services and the advice is to avoid the area,” Athwal said.
The leader of Redbridge Council also urged residents to avoid the area while assessments of the fire damage were carried out. “Neighbouring buildings have been evacuated and I’m grateful to the efforts of the emergency services,” he said.
The fire came just a week after another incident in Ilford, when an Indian restaurant was set alight in an arson attack that seriously injured five people.
The Metropolitan Police said a 15-year-old boy and a 54-year-old man had been arrested on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life in connection with that case at the Indian Aroma restaurant in the Gants Hill area of Ilford.
(With inputs from agencies)
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Narendra Modi talks with Vladimir Putin and Xi jinping ahead of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit 2025 at the Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Centre in Tianjin on September 1, 2025.
SCO condemns terror attack in Pahalgam and echoes India’s stance on “double standards”.
Leaders call for justice for perpetrators of attacks in Pahalgam and Balochistan.
Declaration criticises Israeli military strikes in Gaza causing civilian casualties.
SCO stresses UN’s central role in global counter-terrorism strategy.
THE SHANGHAI Cooperation Organisation (SCO) on Monday condemned the terror attack in Pahalgam and agreed with India’s position that “double standards” in tackling terrorism are not acceptable.
The grouping outlined its position in a declaration at the end of its two-day annual summit in the Chinese port city, attended by Indian prime minister Narendra Modi, Chinese president Xi Jinping, Russian president Vladimir Putin and other leaders.
SCO stance on regional security
The declaration highlighted regional security as a priority and described terrorism as a major challenge.
“The member states strongly condemned the terrorist attack in Pahalgam on April 22,” it said.
The SCO also condemned terror strikes in Pakistan’s Balochistan province, including those in Khuzdar and on the Jaffer Express.
“They (member states) expressed their deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the dead and the wounded. They further stated that perpetrators, organisers and sponsors of such attacks must be brought to justice,” the declaration said.
Condemnation of Gaza strikes
The SCO members also criticised the military strikes by Israel in Gaza, noting that they have caused civilian casualties and created a humanitarian crisis in the region.
No place for double standards
Reaffirming its commitment to fighting terrorism, separatism and extremism, the SCO said it opposed attempts to use such groups for “mercenary purposes.”
“The member states strongly condemn terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, stress that double standards in the fight against terrorism are unacceptable, and call on the international community to combat terrorism, including cross-border movement of terrorists,” it said.
The SCO underlined the role of sovereign states and their authorities in countering terrorist and extremist threats. It also said the United Nations has the central role in implementing relevant Security Council resolutions and the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, in line with the UN Charter and international law, to jointly counter terrorist groups.