Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Pakistan parliament again defers debate on French envoy's expulsion

Pakistan parliament again defers debate on French envoy's expulsion

PAKISTAN's parliament on Friday (23) again deferred debating the fate of the French ambassador, with the government seemingly putting a lid on bloody anti-France protests that rocked the country for a week.

A resolution tabled Wednesday (21) called for the national assembly to debate whether to expel the French envoy, for the assembly to condemn Western blasphemy, for Muslim nations to unite on the issue, and for authorities to provide space in cities for future protests.


But Friday's session descended into rowdiness after members disagreed on how to proceed -- with some chanting anti-French slogans and others displaying a poster calling for the envoy to be booted out.

The speaker adjourned the session indefinitely.

Still, the resolution appears to have taken the steam out of an anti-France campaign waged for months by the Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) since president Emmanuel Macron defended the right of a satirical magazine to republish cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed -- an act deemed blasphemous by many Muslims.

Supporters of the upstart radical party protested violently across the country last week when its leader was arrested after calling for a march on the capital to demand the French envoy's expulsion.

As the protests grew, the French embassy recommended all its citizens leave the country -- a call that appeared to go largely unheeded.

Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed -- who negotiated an end to the protests with TLP leaders -- said five police officers and eight protesters were killed.

Protesters also held hostage 11 police officers and two special rangers for hours, before releasing them bruised and bloodied.

Despite the TLP being banned last week under anti-terror laws -- and its leader's continued detention -- party elders on Tuesday called off further action.

"We have not given anything away," Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry told a news conference Wednesday.

"They have realised the state is serious," added Human Rights minister Shireen Mazari.

Prime Minister Imran Khan has in the past been accused of appeasing the TLP, fearful of antagonising Pakistan's conservatives.

On Monday (19) he had pleaded with the group to end its violent campaign to oust the French ambassador, saying the unrest was harming the nation.

"It doesn't make any difference to France," he said in a national address broadcast on television.

"If we keep protesting our whole lives we would only be damaging our own country and it will not impact (the West)."

Few issues are as galvanising in Pakistan as blasphemy, and even the slightest suggestion of an insult to Islam can supercharge protests, incite lynchings, and unite the country's warring political parties.

More For You

Nepal’s new leader pledges to act on Gen Z calls to end corruption

Officials greet newly-elected Prime Minister of Nepal's interim government Sushila Karki (R) as she arrives at the prime minister's office in Kathmandu on September 14, 2025. (Photo by PRABIN RANABHAT/AFP via Getty Images)

Nepal’s new leader pledges to act on Gen Z calls to end corruption

NEPAL’s new interim prime minister Sushila Karki on Sunday (14) pledged to act on protesters’ calls to end corruption and restore trust in government, as the country struggles with the aftermath of its worst political unrest in decades.

“We have to work according to the thinking of the Gen Z generation,” Karki said in her first address to the nation since taking office on Friday (12). “What this group is demanding is the end of corruption, good governance and economic equality. We will not stay here more than six months in any situation. We will complete our responsibilities and hand over to the next parliament and ministers.”

Keep ReadingShow less
UK secures £1.25bn US investment ahead of Trump’s visit

US president Donald Trump and UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer arrive at Trump International Golf Links on July 28, 2025 in Balmedie, Scotland. (Photo by Jane Barlow-WPA Pool/Getty Images)

UK secures £1.25bn US investment ahead of Trump’s visit

THE British government has announced over £1.25 billion ($1.69bn) in fresh investment from major US financial firms, including PayPal, Bank of America, Citigroup and S&P Global, ahead of a state visit by president Donald Trump.

The investment is expected to create 1,800 jobs across London, Edinburgh, Belfast and Manchester, and deepen transatlantic financial ties, the Department for Business and Trade said.

Keep ReadingShow less
Nearly 150,000 join anti-migrant protest in London as clashes erupt

Protesters wave Union Jack and St George's England flags during the "Unite The Kingdom" rally on Westminster Bridge by the Houses of Parliament on September 13, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

Nearly 150,000 join anti-migrant protest in London as clashes erupt

MORE THAN 100,000 protesters marched through central London on Saturday (13), carrying flags of England and Britain and scuffling with police in one of the UK's biggest right-wing demonstrations of modern times.

London's Metropolitan Police said the "Unite the Kingdom" march, organised by anti-immigrant activist Tommy Robinson, was attended by nearly 150,000 people, who were kept apart from a "Stand Up to Racism" counter-protest attended by around 5,000.

Keep ReadingShow less
Piyush Goyal

Piyush Goyal recalled that in February, Narendra Modi and Donald Trump had instructed their trade ministers to conclude the first phase of the bilateral trade agreement (BTA) by November 2025. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Trade talks with US moving forward positively, says Indian minister Goyal

INDIA’s commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday said that negotiations on the proposed trade agreement between India and the United States, which began in March, are progressing in a positive atmosphere and both sides are satisfied with the discussions.

He recalled that in February, Indian prime minister Narendra Modi and US president Donald Trump had instructed their trade ministers to conclude the first phase of the bilateral trade agreement (BTA) by November 2025.

Keep ReadingShow less
West Midlands Police

West Midlands Police said they were called just before 08:30 BST on Tuesday, September 9, after the woman reported being attacked by two men near Tame Road. (Representational image: iStock)

Woman raped in racially aggravated attack in Oldbury

A WOMAN in her 20s was raped in Oldbury in what police are treating as a racially aggravated attack.

West Midlands Police said they were called just before 08:30 BST on Tuesday, September 9, after the woman reported being attacked by two men near Tame Road. Officers said the men made a racist remark during the incident.

Keep ReadingShow less