Shehbaz Sharif
A Pakistani court on Thursday ordered confiscation of the properties owned by the son-in-law of the jailed opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif for skipping an ongoing investigation in connection with bribe charges against him, court record said.
An accountability court in northeastern Lahore city announced the order on the request of the National Accountability Bureau, a state-run anti-corruption agency, which accuses, Ali Imran, Sharif’s son-in-law, of receiving Rs 130 million ($1 million) as bribe in exchange for grating a water contract to a local company.
The NAB claimed that the accused, who had reportedly fled to London, was not joining the investigation despite repeated summoning.
His father-in-law, and a three-time chief minister of the country’s most populous Punjab province is the prime accused in the said case apart from a string of other corruption cases.
The air forces of Turkey and Pakistan held a joint exercise at an undisclosed operation base in Pakistan, an official statement said on Wednesday.Pakistan Air Force’s (PAF) Air Chief Marshal Mujahid Anwar Khan also took part in the ongoing exercise at the base, the statement by the PAF said.Khan flew an exercise training mission in a fighter aircraft, it said.Interacting with the combat crew of both the air forces, he congratulated the participants for the smooth, professional and successful conduct of the exercise.Turkish troops support education in KosovoHe further said that both countries' air forces have a long history of enviable cordial relations. The ongoing exercise, he noted, would certainly help both the air forces to learn from each other’s experiences.The ongoing exercise is part of strong bilateral ties that Ankara and Islamabad have developed in recent years, especially in defense and security fields.Pakistan is set to receive 30 T129 Advanced Attack and Tactical Reconnaissance Helicopters (ATAK) from Turkey under a deal finalized in July this year.The Turkish-made helicopters -- a new generation, tandem, two-seat, twin-engine -- specifically designed for attack and reconnaissance will be delivered gradually in five years.Ankara is, meanwhile, buying MFI-17 Super Mushshak trainer aircraft from Pakistan besides upgrading three Pakistani submarines and jointly building a fleet tanker, according to the local media.In July this year, Ankara won a multibillion-dollar tender to supply four corvettes to the Pakistani Navy -- a deal dubbed as the highest export for Turkey’s defense industry in the history by the then Defense Minister Nurettin Canikli.In May 2017, Turkish and Pakistani defense companies had struck a deal for construction of four Turkish Ada class MILGEM (National Ship) corvettes.According to the agreement, two ships will be built in Istanbul, while two others in Karachi.The first pair of the corvettes will join the inventory of the Pakistan Naval Forces in 2023, while the remaining two will be handed over in 2024.Turkey had also gifted 34 T-37 trainer aircraft and spares to Pakistan in 2015.
Turkish, Pakistani air forces hold joint exercise
The NAB has also summoned Salman Shehbaz, Sharif’s son, over making assets beyond his known sources of income.
Sharif was taken into custody by the NAB authorities in Lahore in connection with a housing scam last week -- a move the opposition parties dubbed as “political victimization.”
The opposition leader is accused of granting illegal contracts to his favorites for the construction of low-cost houses for the poor and middle-class in Punjab -- the country’s political power base.
His elder brother and three-time Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has already been disqualified for life, and given a 10-year jail term in a corruption case. However, Islamabad's High Court suspended the jail term, and granted bail to the former three-time premier last month.
Pakistani army on Wednesday appointed Lt. Gen. Asim Munir as the new head of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), the country’s primary spy agency, according to a statement by Inter-Services Public Relations.The lieutenant-general had recently been promoted with a three-star general officer rank.Munir, who joined the army in 1982, previously served as the head of the Military Intelligence (MI).He is replacing the incumbent ISI chief Lt. Gen. Naveed Mukhtar, who is retiring together with four other three-star generals on Oct. 25.Pakistan stresses efforts for sustainable development
Pakistan army appoints new chief of intelligence agency
Pakistani senate’s deputy chairman on Tuesday said sustainable development is a universal goal that can only be achieved through peace and cooperation by viewing the world through the prism of cooperation rather than competition.According to a statement issued by Pakistan’s Embassy in Ankara, Saleem Mandviwalla addressed the third Meeting of the Speakers of Eurasia Countries’ Parliaments (MSEAP) held in Turkey’s southern Antalya province.Speaking about the climate change, Mandviwalla said it is a threat to the very existence of life on the planet and urged to accord environmental issues a high priority in policy formulation in line with the Sustainable Development Goals.Pakistan successfully conducts training launch of nuclear capable missile systemHe said world economic growth should be pursued in environmentally sustainable ways along with improving the economic performance of least developed countries."In order to achieve the goal of sustainable development, it is imperative to resolve long simmering global disputes like Jammu and Kashmir and Palestine," Mandviwalla was quoted as saying in the statement.Mandviwalla also stressed the need for establishing a permanent secretariat of the forum.The third MSEAP under the team --Economic Cooperation, Environment and Sustainable Development in Eurasia -- will continue till Thursday.US adviser on Afghanistan holds talks with Pakistan
Pakistan stresses efforts for sustainable development