You are here

Pakistan football team arrives in Jordan to play World Cup qualifying away fixture

Update Pakistani football players arrive in Amman on March 24, 2024, ahead of their FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifier against Jordan. (Photo courtesy: PFF)
Short Url

https://arab.news/j5jnp

Updated 24 March 2024
Follow

Pakistan football team arrives in Jordan to play World Cup qualifying away fixture

Pakistan football team arrives in Jordan to play World Cup qualifying away fixture
  • Jordan thrashed Pakistan last Thursday 3-0 in first FIFA World Cup qualifying match between two sides
  • Pakistani defender Abdullah Iqbal suspended for crucial away match due to accumulated yellow cards
Updated 24 March 2024
Shahjahan Khurram
Follow

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan men’s football team on Sunday arrived in Jordan to play their FIFA World Cup 2026 Round 2 Qualifier away fixture against the Middle Eastern side, which is scheduled to be held on Mar. 26.
Jordan thrashed Pakistan 3-0 at the Jinnah Stadium in Islamabad during the first qualifying match between the two sides last Thursday. The match marked the first time in 18 years that Jordan’s football team arrived in Pakistan to play a football match.
To play their second qualifying match, the Pakistan team departed for Jordan in the wee hours of Sunday.
“The national team arrived in Amman through a private airline flight via Doha,” the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) said in a statement.
The Pakistan vs Jordan away match will start at 12pm Pakistan time on March 26.
In a setback for Pakistan, the PFF earlier announced that Pakistani defender Abdullah Iqbal had been suspended for the crucial game as a result of accumulated yellow cards during recent matches.
Iqbal was issued the first yellow card during the initial round of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualifiers match against Cambodia in Islamabad on Oct. 17, 2023.
“Subsequently, he acquired another yellow card during a home match against Jordan in the second round of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers on the 21st of March, 2024,” the PFF said.
Last October, Pakistan beat Cambodia 1-0 to win their first ever FIFA World Cup qualifier in Islamabad. Pakistan subsequently lost 4-0 to Saudi Arabia in the second round.

Topics: Pakistan football team

Pakistani journalist ‘abducted’ as Amnesty seeks probe into crackdown on Islamabad protest

Pakistani journalist ‘abducted’ as Amnesty seeks probe into crackdown on Islamabad protest
Updated 57 min 1 sec ago
Follow

Pakistani journalist ‘abducted’ as Amnesty seeks probe into crackdown on Islamabad protest

Pakistani journalist ‘abducted’ as Amnesty seeks probe into crackdown on Islamabad protest
  • Matiullah Jan’s family says he was taken by unknown people in a vehicle from a hospital’s parking
  • Jan was covering the PTI protests and had criticized the authorities’ response to the demonstration
Updated 57 min 1 sec ago
Aamir Saeed

ISLAMABAD: A senior Pakistani journalist critical of the government’s handling of opposition protests was taken by unknown people late Wednesday, shortly after Amnesty International urged authorities to investigate reports of unlawful killings and mass detentions during a crackdown on an opposition demonstration in Islamabad.
Matiullah Jan, known for his outspoken reporting, was taken in an unmarked vehicle from the parking lot of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) hospital, his family said in a statement on social media.
Jan was covering protests by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, and had criticized the authorities’ response to the demonstrations.
“Matiullah Jan has been abducted from the parking of PIMS tonight at around 11 by unmarked abductors in an unmarked vehicle alongside Saqib Bashir (who was let go 5 minutes later),” Jan’s son announced on his father’s social media account. “I demand that my father be let go immediately and his family immediately be informed of his whereabouts.”
The journalist’s abduction adds to growing concerns over press freedom and rights violations in Pakistan, especially in the wake of a crackdown on PTI supporters who had gathered to demand the release of former Prime Minister Imran Khan who has been behind bars for over a year.
In a statement earlier on Wednesday, Amnesty International condemned the use of force against protesters in the federal capital, where PTI claimed multiple deaths. The Pakistani authorities also confirmed the arrest of over 900 demonstrators in a span of three days.
“Yet again, protesters in Pakistan have faced a brutal and lethal crackdown shrouded in a callous opacity by the authorities,” Babu Ram Pant, Amnesty’s Deputy Regional Director for South Asia, said in a statement. “The escalation of violence, shutdown of mobile Internet services, mass detentions, and alarming rhetoric against PTI protesters by the authorities speaks of a pattern of intolerance for the right to freedom of peaceful assembly.”
Amnesty highlighted reports of the use of lethal ammunition and restrictions on media coverage.
The rights body also called for a “prompt, thorough, impartial, effective, and transparent investigation into the deaths and injuries of protesters as well as the unlawful use of force by security personnel.”
Amnesty also demanded the release of all protesters, saying they were detained solely for exercising their right to peaceful assembly.
The government has yet not issued a statement about Jan’s disappearance, though Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif blamed PTI leaders and workers of trying to subvert the country’s economy, promising to “break the hand that wants to sacrifice Pakistan.”
The government has labeled the PTI protest as “unlawful,” citing a Pakistani court ruling that barred disruptions in the federal capital during the three-day visit of a Belarusian delegation, which coincided with the opposition’s demonstration.
 

Topics: Pakistan Amnesty matiullah jan Arab News Pakistan

Imran Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi forcibly removed from Islamabad protest, claims her sister

Imran Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi forcibly removed from Islamabad protest, claims her sister
Updated 28 November 2024
Follow

Imran Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi forcibly removed from Islamabad protest, claims her sister

Imran Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi forcibly removed from Islamabad protest, claims her sister
  • Maryam Wattoo says Bibi was taken by KP administration, with her location concealed from family members
  • A senior PTI leader and close aide of ex-PM Khan dismisses Wattoo’s claims, says they should be ignored
Updated 28 November 2024
Arab News Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Bushra Bibi, the wife of Pakistan’s incarcerated former Prime Minister Imran Khan, was forcibly removed from a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) protest in Islamabad and her whereabouts are now unknown, her sister said during an interview with a local media network on Wednesday.

The protest, led by Bibi and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, drew tens of thousands to Islamabad’s D-Chowk, located near the country’s parliament building and other government installation, demanding Khan’s release more than a year after his imprisonment.

Police and paramilitary Rangers cracked down on the demonstration on Tuesday night to disperse the crowd, as senior PTI leaders vanished from the venue despite announcing an indefinite sit-in in the capital and telling their party supporters they would not return without the ex-premier.

Initially, it was not clear where Bibi and Gandapur had gone, though media reported on Wednesday morning they had reached Mansehra district in KP and were going to address a news conference.

While Gandapur appeared on the media, calling the sit-in a movement and saying it would continue, Bibi did not give a public appearance.

“For several hours, we had no idea what was happening,” her sister, Maryam Riaz Wattoo, told ARY TV during an interview. “We were only being told that she had gone to KP. But I couldn’t believe that she would leave for KP so easily because I knew she was determined to stay there until it was do or die.”

Wattoo said she tried to contact her sister but no one was willing to put her through. 

“I got to talk to her through my own means very late in the day,” she said. “And I asked her to tell me clearly, ‘Did you leave with your own will?’ She said, ‘No. I never wanted to leave. I was ready to die there.’“

The sister maintained Bibi was taken by the KP administration, with her location concealed even from family members.

She also described the chaotic scenes as Bibi was removed, with gunfire in the background and her vehicle’s tire punctured.

“Bushra didn’t even know about the press conference,” she said, referring to the planned media interaction by Gandapur and her that was reported in the media. “She has been taken to an unknown location.”

Wattoo said that while she did not accuse Gandapur of ill intent, the lack of family communication was deeply concerning.

“I find it strange that even if they are moving her for security reasons, why is her family not informed about it,” she asked.

Sayed Zulfikar Bukhari, a senior PTI leader and close aide of ex-premier Khan, dismissed Maryam Riaz Wattoo’s claims as “not true,” adding that they should be ignored.

Pakistan’s Geo TV also aired CCTV footage purportedly showing Bibi in Islamabad, where she is seen stepping out of one vehicle and boarding another before leaving the federal capital.

The government has faced criticism for using excessive force while dispersing protesters, but the PTI leaders have also expressed disappointment over how the demonstration unfolded before reaching an abrupt conclusion.

Topics: Bushra Bibi Imran Khan PTI

Oxford vice chancellor bid, popularized in Pakistan by Imran Khan, ends with election of Lord Hague

Oxford vice chancellor bid, popularized in Pakistan by Imran Khan, ends with election of Lord Hague
Updated 28 November 2024
Follow

Oxford vice chancellor bid, popularized in Pakistan by Imran Khan, ends with election of Lord Hague

Oxford vice chancellor bid, popularized in Pakistan by Imran Khan, ends with election of Lord Hague
  • Former British foreign secretary and ex-Conservative party leader William Hague elected chancellor 
  • Pakistan’s Khan, in jail since August 2023, had applied for chancellor election but was not shortlisted 
Updated 28 November 2024
Arab News Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Oxford University announced on Wednesday it had elected Lord William Hague, a former Conservative party leader and ex-British foreign secretary as its chancellor, months after rejecting former Pakistan premier Imran Khan’s bid for the post. 

Khan, who ruled Pakistan from 2018-2022, has been in prison since August 2023 on charges he says are politically motivated. His aide Sayed Zulfikar Bukhari said Khan filed his application for the chancellor’s role in September.

Oxford later released a shortlist of 38 candidates for the first round of the voting among its alumni. Khan’s name was not featured in the list. 

“Lord Hague will be formally inaugurated as Chancellor early in the New Year and serve for a term of 10 years,” Oxford University said in a report. “He becomes the 160th recorded Chancellor in the University’s history, a role that dates back at least 800 years.”

Hague was a leader of the Conservative Party from 1997-2001 and later served as Britain’s foreign secretary from 2010-2014. He also served as Secretary of State for Wales, Leader of the House of Commons and Minister for Disabled People, in which role he was the author of the Disability Discrimination Act. 

He spent 26 years as a member of parliament for Richmond, Yorkshire.

Hague graduated from Magdalen College, Oxford, in 1982, where he studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics. He was president of the Oxford Union as well. 

“Thank you to my fellow Oxonians for placing such confidence in me,” Hague said. “I regard being elected as the Chancellor of our university as the greatest honor of my life.”

The chancellor is the titular head of Oxford University and presides over several key ceremonies. The chancellor also undertakes advocacy, advisory, and fundraising work, acting as an ambassador for the university at a range of local, national, and international events. 

Hague succeeds Lord Patten of Barnes, who announced his retirement from the post in February.

Topics: Oxford Oxford University Imran Khan Lord Hague

Pakistan’s KP to deploy law enforcers in Kurram as sectarian clashes kill 63

Pakistan’s KP to deploy law enforcers in Kurram as sectarian clashes kill 63
Updated 27 November 2024
Follow

Pakistan’s KP to deploy law enforcers in Kurram as sectarian clashes kill 63

Pakistan’s KP to deploy law enforcers in Kurram as sectarian clashes kill 63
  • Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government says negotiations underway between warring Kurram tribes
  • Kurram, tribal district bordering Afghanistan, has a long history of violent, sectarian clashes
Updated 27 November 2024
REHMAT MEHSUD


PESHAWAR: Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government announced on Wednesday that law enforcement personnel will be deployed in the restive Kurram district to maintain law and order, where sectarian clashes over the past three days have killed at least 63 and injured over 150. 
Kurram, a former semi-autonomous tribal area bordering Afghanistan, has a long history of violent conflicts that have claimed hundreds of lives over the years. A major conflict in the district, triggered in 2007, lasted for years before being resolved by a jirga, or a council of tribal elders, in 2011.
The recent violence in the restive district erupted earlier this month when gunmen attacked a convoy carrying members of the minority Shiite community in the Uchat area of Lower Kurram, killing 41 people. A 10-day ceasefire announced by the KP government failed to hold as clashes between warring tribes continue.
“The process of negotiations are underway to resolve the issue peacefully,” an official handout by the chief minister’s office said about a meeting held by the CM Ali Amin Gandapur on the issue on Wednesday. 
“To maintain peace, contingents of law enforcement personnel will be deployed at important places,” the statement added. 
Participants of the meeting, which also featured the KP chief secretary and other senior officials, were briefed that a damages assessment was being conducted to compensate victims of the clashes. 
KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur said the government’s top priority was ensuring lasting peace in the district. 
“The provincial government will utilize all available resources for this purpose,” he said. 
Participants were also told that standard operating procedures were being finalized to ensure the safe travel of people in the district. 
The recent clashes in Kurram mark one of the deadliest incidents in the region in recent years, following outbreaks of sectarian violence in July and September that killed dozens.
Several hundred people demonstrated against the Kurram violence last week in Pakistan’s two largest cities, Lahore and Karachi, reflecting nationwide concern over the situation.

Topics: militancy in Pakistan kurram kurram district parachinar

Pakistan reports fresh polio case from country’s northwest, taking 2024 tally to 56

Pakistan reports fresh polio case from country’s northwest, taking 2024 tally to 56
Updated 27 November 2024
Follow

Pakistan reports fresh polio case from country’s northwest, taking 2024 tally to 56

Pakistan reports fresh polio case from country’s northwest, taking 2024 tally to 56
  • Male child contracts polio in northwestern Dera Ismail Khan district, confirm authorities
  • Pakistan is one of only two countries worldwide where poliovirus still remains endemic 
Updated 27 November 2024
REHMAT MEHSUD

PESHAWAR: Pakistan reported another polio case from the country’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province on Wednesday, taking this year’s tally of the disease to 56 cases as Islamabad struggles in its efforts to contain the infection. 

Pakistan, along with neighboring Afghanistan, remains the last polio-endemic country in the world. The nation’s polio eradication campaign has faced serious problems with a spike in reported cases this year that have prompted officials to review their approach to stopping the crippling disease.

The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH) confirmed the detection of the 56th wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) case of the year, saying that a male child in the northwestern district of Dera Ismail Khan had contracted the disease. 

“This is the seventh polio case of the year from D.I. Khan, one of the seven polio-endemic districts of southern KP,” the polio program said. 

Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province and KP have reported the highest number of polio cases this year, 26 and 15, respectively, while 13 have been reported from Sindh and one each from Punjab and Islamabad.

Poliovirus, which can cause crippling paralysis particularly in young children, is incurable and remains a threat to human health as long as it has not been eradicated. Immunization campaigns have succeeded in most countries and have come close in Pakistan, but persistent problems remain.

In the early 1990s, Pakistan reported around 20,000 cases annually but in 2018 the number dropped to eight cases. Six cases were reported in 2023 and only one in 2021.

Pakistan’s polio program began in 1994 but efforts to eradicate the virus have since been undermined by vaccine misinformation and opposition from some religious hard-liners, who say immunization is a foreign ploy to sterilize Muslim children or a cover for Western spies. Militant groups also frequently attack and kill members of polio vaccine teams. 

Topics: Polio case Polio Pakistan Polio Polio cases in Pakistan

Latest updates

Saudi influencer Yara Alnamlah’s brand heads to Selfridges London 
Saudi influencer Yara Alnamlah’s brand heads to Selfridges London 
Landslides in Indonesia’s Sumatra kill at least 27, rescuers search for missing
Landslides in Indonesia’s Sumatra kill at least 27, rescuers search for missing
The Australian Senate debates the world’s first social media ban for children under 16
The Australian Senate debates the world’s first social media ban for children under 16
Explosions heard in Ukraine’s Odesa, Kropyvnytskyi – media reports
Explosions heard in Ukraine’s Odesa, Kropyvnytskyi – media reports
Liverpool shine in Champions League, dumping Real Madrid down the table. Dortmund rise to 4th
Liverpool shine in Champions League, dumping Real Madrid down the table. Dortmund rise to 4th

Search form

Print Edition
Read pdf version Subscribe now
© 2024 SAUDI RESEARCH & PUBLISHING COMPANY, All Rights Reserved And subject to Terms of Use Agreement.