KARACHI: President Asif Ali Zardari on Friday invited Saudi businesses to explore investment opportunities in Pakistan, underscoring the historic relationship between the two countries and Riyadh鈥檚 critical role in helping Islamabad through difficult times.
Zardari鈥檚 remarks come as Pakistan looks to attract foreign investment to strengthen its economy. 海角直播 played a key role in stabilizing Pakistan鈥檚 finances in recent years, depositing $2 billion into Pakistan鈥檚 central bank in June 2023 to bolster foreign reserves.
The Kingdom also helped unlock a $3 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund later in the same year.
鈥淧akistan and 海角直播 enjoy deep-rooted and historic relations based on shared faith and mutual trust,鈥 the president said during a meeting with Saudi Ambassador Nawaf bin Said Al-Malki in Islamabad according to a statement circulated by the presidency. 鈥淲e invite Saudi investors to explore investment opportunities in various sectors of the Pakistani economy.鈥
The Saudi financial assistance to Pakistan two years ago came as the South Asian nation鈥檚 reserves had dropped to a level where it could barely cover a few weeks of imports, bringing the country to the brink of sovereign default.
Zardari expressed appreciation for Riyadh鈥檚 continued support during the meeting and called for deeper engagement between the two nations on regional and international forums.
Pakistan has been trying to further strengthen its economic relations with the Gulf countries amid improving macroeconomic indicators.
It also signed 34 memorandums of understanding worth $2.8 billion with 海角直播 in October 2024, part of Islamabad鈥檚 broader push to accelerate its economic recovery through export-led growth and foreign investment.
KARACHI: Police have arrested two suspects for allegedly poisoning a local TikTok star to death in Pakistan鈥檚 southern Ghotki district, officials said on Saturday.
Sumeera Rajput, who had over 58,000 followers and one million likes on TikTok, was found dead at her residence in the Bago Wah area on Friday afternoon, according to Imran Qureshi, a senior superintendent of police (SSP) at Sindh police鈥檚 media and public relations wing.
Police arrested two suspects, Babu Rajput and Muhammad Imran, for poisoning the content creator and lodged a case against them on the complaint of the deceased鈥檚 sister.
鈥淎 post-mortem of Sameera Rajput has been conducted, which has revealed that she died because of poisoning,鈥 Qureshi said in a statement. 鈥淔urther investigation is underway with the arrested suspects.鈥
TikTok has more than 60 million users in Pakistan, many of them young women and teenagers. Rajput鈥檚 death is the second such incident in as many months in the country.
On June 2, Sana Yousaf, a 17-year-old content creator, was shot dead at her home by another social media influencer, Umar Hayat, 22, after she rejected his repeated advances, according to Islamabad police chief Syed Ali Nasir Rizvi.
Yousuf, originally from the scenic northern region of Chitral, was known for promoting traditional Chitrali music and dress through her videos. She also advocated for girls鈥 education.
Hours before her murder, she had posted a photo celebrating her birthday with friends.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan deputy prime minister and foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, said on Friday that his country was hopeful of finalizing a trade deal with the United States 鈥渋n days.鈥
Pakistan and the United States (US) have been engaged in talks after Washington announced a 29 percent 鈥渞eciprocal tariff鈥 on Pakistani exports in April. Islamabad said the move, paused in June for a 90-day period, may undercut its fragile, export-led recovery.
The US is Pakistan鈥檚 top export destination, with shipments totaling $5.44 billion in fiscal year 2023-2024, according to official data. From July 2024 to February 2025, exports rose 10 percent from a year earlier.
Speaking at the Atlantic Council think tank in Washington, the Pakistani deputy premier said both sides have recently held discussions relating to textiles, digital trade and agriculture.
鈥淧akistan seeks better market access in the US. On our part, we are working toward granting greater market access to the US products in the large Pakistani markets,鈥 he said.
鈥淲e hope to conclude a mutually beneficial trade agreement at the earliest, hopefully in days not in weeks.鈥
Under US President Donald Trump, Washington has attempted to renegotiate trade agreements with many countries that he threatened with tariffs over what he calls unfair trade relations. Many economists dispute Trump鈥檚 characterization.
Dar also met Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday.
鈥淢et with Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister @MIshaqDar50 today to discuss expanding bilateral trade and enhancing collaboration in the critical minerals sector,鈥 Rubio said on X.
鈥淚 also thanked him for Pakistan鈥檚 partnership in countering terrorism and preserving regional stability.鈥
The Pakistani foreign ministry also said Dar 鈥渁ppreciated the pivotal role鈥 by Trump and Rubio 鈥渋n de-escalating tensions between Pakistan and India by facilitating a ceasefire.鈥 The State Department statement did not mention India.
Trump has repeatedly taken credit for the India-Pakistan ceasefire he announced on social media on May 10 after Washington held talks with both sides. India disputes Trump鈥檚 claims that the ceasefire resulted from his intervention and trade threats.
An April 22 militant attack in Indian-administered Kashmir killed 26 men and sparked heavy fighting between the nuclear-armed Asian neighbors in the latest escalation of a decades-old rivalry. India struck Pakistan on May 7 and the two nations exchanged hostilities, killing dozens across three days. The ceasefire was declared on May 10.
New Delhi blamed the April attack on Pakistan, which denied responsibility and called for a neutral investigation. Washington condemned the attack but did not blame Islamabad.
ISLAMABAD: Mobile phones, data cables and memory cards sprawl across the editing table in Athar Abbas鈥檚 modest Islamabad apartment.
It鈥檚 an organized chaos the 38-year-old filmmaker fully embraces 鈥 a far cry from the mental turmoil that once engulfed him.
Abbas, a former commercial producer, now documents the lives of ordinary Pakistanis in short, emotionally charged videos he publishes on social media. His mini-documentaries 鈥 raw, personal and deliberately unpolished 鈥 have attracted tens of thousands of followers across platforms, racking up over a million views in the past year.
But Abbas鈥檚 foray into digital storytelling wasn鈥檛 born of ambition. It was a survival tactic.
He began filming after quitting his job at a construction company, where a senior colleague dismissed his work as 鈥減athetic.鈥
The insult gnawed at his confidence and spiraled into a depressive episode. Eventually, Abbas turned to the one outlet that had always brought him calm 鈥 the camera.
鈥淚 picked up my camera and started making stories,鈥 Abbas told Arab News. 鈥淎nd unintentionally, I realized that maybe for an artist, there鈥檚 no therapy greater than his art.鈥
Pakistani filmmaker and content creator Athar Abbas speaks during an interview with Arab News in Islamabad on July 18, 2025. (AN Photo)
Pakistan, a country of over 240 million people, faces a chronic shortage of mental health services.
According to the World Health Organization, more than 24 million people in Pakistan are in need of psychiatric support. Yet the country has only around 500 trained psychologists and 400 psychiatrists, roughly one mental health professional for every 260,000 people.
The stigma around mental illness remains deeply entrenched, especially for men. Talking about emotional vulnerability is often seen as weakness, a perception Abbas says is reinforced in professional environments.
鈥淗e feels that his manly personality will be affected,鈥 he said, referring to why many Pakistani men hesitated to express emotions, especially those that communicated perceived weakness.
鈥淪o he doesn鈥檛 even share that he has a problem with something.鈥
In Pakistan鈥檚 corporate sector, long working hours, harsh managerial practices and lack of mental health policies have contributed to high stress levels.
A 2024 review by the Pakistan Society of Human Resource Management found that most companies lacked formal emotional wellness programs.
Creative professionals, Abbas said, often bore the brunt of toxic leadership.
鈥淚f you talk to anyone in the creative field, they will tell you they are distressed because of senior management鈥檚 behavior,鈥 he said.
鈥淯nfortunately, it greatly affects mental health.鈥
A separate 2025 study in the Pakistan Social Sciences Review noted that while some younger professionals are more aware of mental health issues, institutional support remains weak, leaving them vulnerable to burnout and depression.
鈥楿NTOLD PAKISTAN鈥
For Abbas, the path to stability came through storytelling.
He launched a series titled Untold Pakistan, filming everything from a street vendor鈥檚 hustle to a single mother鈥檚 struggle for dignity. In one video, a man named Kamran Ali cycles from Germany to Layyah, Punjab, only to learn of his mother鈥檚 death upon arrival.
鈥淪torytelling became a way to survive,鈥 Abbas said.
This combination of screenshots, taken on July 26, 2025, shows stills from short videos by Pakistani filmmaker and content creator Athar Abbas. (Courtesy: Instagram/@athar.abbass_)
His films resist sensationalism. There are no stunts or celebrity cameos. Instead, they dwell in moments often overlooked: fatigue, memory, longing, resilience. The comment sections on his pages are peppered with viewers opening up about their own traumas, some for the first time.
Abbas recalls a message from a young man in Lahore who said one of the videos gave him the courage to speak to his father about something he鈥檇 been avoiding for a long time.
鈥淭hat one message made all the late nights worth it,鈥 Abbas said.
After 15 years of directing ads, music videos and corporate content, Abbas has no interest in going back. His priorities have shifted.
鈥淚 didn鈥檛 set out to become an influencer,鈥 he said. 鈥淚 just needed to breathe.鈥
KARACHI: Air Karachi, Pakistan鈥檚 new private airline in the making, has engaged the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) for the supply of airliners to start its flight operations, the group chairman Hanif Gohar told Arab News on Friday.
Spearheaded by a group of leading businessmen from Pakistan鈥檚 southern port city, the airline is also negotiating with global aerospace giants like Boeing and Airbus for the acquisition of at least three passenger aircraft. It was launched in November 2024 by 100 stakeholders with Rs5 billion ($17.6 million) in seed money.
鈥淲e are talking with COMAC regarding the 919, as well as with Boeing and Airbus, to acquire the aircraft,鈥 Gohar said, referring to a narrow-body passenger jet developed by China.
Business leaders in the South Asian nation have stepped up to fill the gap as the state-run Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has become a liability for the cash-strapped government, which is now making a second attempt to privatize the national carrier.
鈥淲e will start our flight operations as soon as we reach an agreement with any of the suppliers, whoever comes first,鈥 Gohar said when asked about the timeline to start operations.
Gohar, a business tycoon himself, expects a deal within the next month.
He said Air Karachi would initially fly three aircraft domestically, and the fleet would later be expanded with four more planes to start international flights within a year.
The idea to launch a business-backed airline was conceived to develop an entity that can operate with efficiency and financial autonomy amid growing challenges faced by PIA.
Last month, Air Karachi received its Regular Public Transport (RPT) license from Pakistan鈥檚 Civil Aviation Authority.
The airline has been modeled after the success of Air Sial, another private carrier launched by industrialists in Sialkot, the manufacturing hub of Pakistan鈥檚 exportable sports and surgical goods.
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday approved Pakistan鈥檚 first Skills Impact Bond, a new financing model aimed at mobilizing private investment to equip young people with market-relevant skills and improve their access to employment, both at home and abroad.
The approval came during a high-level meeting in Islamabad focused on youth employment. According to a statement from the Prime Minister鈥檚 Office, the initiative is part of a broader government effort to align vocational training with labor market demands and make Pakistani youth self-reliant through entrepreneurship and income-generating opportunities.
The model, also known as 鈥減ay-for-success,鈥 links funding to independently verified outcomes such as job placement or minimum income levels.
鈥淧akistan鈥檚 talented youth are the country鈥檚 greatest asset,鈥 the prime minister said at the meeting. 鈥淏y equipping them with education and skills tailored to market needs, we will transform the future of this nation.鈥
Sharif instructed federal ministries and agencies to accelerate skills training, expand employment outreach through digital platforms and present a comprehensive roadmap based on estimates of domestic and overseas job opportunities for Pakistani youth.
The prime minister approved a public awareness campaign to promote the use of the Digital Youth Hub, which has already registered over 500,000 users.
The platform currently lists over 47,000 job openings in Pakistan and more than 100,000 overseas, along with 2,000 scholarship opportunities.
He also emphasized preparing skilled workers specifically for international job markets and directed relevant departments to offer foreign language training for countries with high demand for labor.
