Author: EchoAsiaNews

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Wednesday renewed its support for the people of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) on Youm-e-Istehsal Kashmir, with President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar reaffirming the country’s continued diplomatic, political and moral backing for Kashmiris. The day marks seven years since India revoked the special constitutional status of Jammu and Kashmir by abrogating Article 370 on August 5, 2019, and reorganised the region into two federally administered union territories. In separate messages issued to mark the occasion, the country’s top leadership said Pakistan would continue to advocate for…

NEW YORK: Speculation is mounting within the gaming community that Rockstar Games could unveil the third trailer for Grand Theft Auto VI (GTA 6) on Thursday, although the developer has not officially confirmed any announcement. The latest expectations stem from Rockstar’s recent pattern of releasing major GTA 6 updates on Thursdays, prompting fans to anticipate fresh news ahead of Take-Two Interactive’s earnings call scheduled for August 7. Rockstar has previously used Thursdays to announce key milestones related to GTA 6, including the release of promotional material and the opening of pre-orders, fueling expectations that another update could follow the same…

KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) staged a strong recovery on Wednesday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index surging more than 2,400 points during intraday trading as hopes of a potential US-Iran peace agreement and declining global oil prices boosted investor confidence. The KSE-100 Index climbed to an intraday high of 179,536.15, gaining 2,452.93 points from the previous close of 177,083.22. The index also touched an intraday low of 178,631.90, remaining 1,548.68 points above Tuesday’s closing level. What drove the PSX rally? Market participants attributed the sharp gains to renewed optimism over diplomatic efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, easing…

MUZAFFARABAD: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) secured one seat each in the delayed polling for two Muzaffarabad constituencies, completing the second phase of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Legislative Assembly elections. Polling was held on Tuesday in LA-27 Muzaffarabad-I and LA-28 Muzaffarabad-II after voting scheduled for August 2 was postponed due to adverse weather conditions. According to unofficial and unconfirmed results, PML-N candidate Noreen Arif won LA-27 Muzaffarabad-I with 18,919 votes, defeating Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP) candidate Sardar Tabarak Ali, who secured 18,621 votes. In LA-28 Muzaffarabad-II, PPP candidate Bazil Ali Naqvi emerged victorious…

DUBAI: The United States said on Tuesday that a deal with Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz could be reached within hours, raising hopes of easing tensions in one of the world’s most critical energy corridors even as fresh maritime attacks underscored the fragile security situation. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC there was “a chance we may have a deal” as early as “today or tomorrow,” echoing President Donald Trump’s recent comments expressing optimism about ongoing diplomatic efforts. The prospect of an agreement pushed global oil prices sharply lower, with Brent crude falling more than six percent…

DALLAS: The Chehlum (Arbaeen) of Imam Hussain (AS) and the martyrs of Karbala was observed with solemnity and devotion in Dallas, Texas, as hundreds of mourners gathered for religious congregations (Majalis) and participated in a central procession through downtown Dallas. The commemorations were held at various Imambargahs across the city, with the main gathering taking place at the Alam Centre, where Maulana Qasim Zaidi addressed mourners on the enduring message of Karbala. How was Arbaeen commemorated in Dallas? Following the Majalis, mourners took part in the central Arbaeen procession carrying Alam and symbolic Taboot while reciting elegies, performing chest-beating (Matam)…

WASHINGTON: Progressive candidate Abdul El-Sayed held a narrow lead over US Representative Haley Stevens in Michigan’s Democratic US Senate primary on Tuesday, with the closely watched contest emerging as a key test of the Democratic Party’s ideological direction ahead of the 2028 presidential election. With around 70% of the estimated vote counted, CNN showed El-Sayed leading with 49.8% of the vote, compared with 46.3% for Stevens. The race remained too close to call. The winner of the Democratic primary will face Republican Mike Rogers in November in a contest that could prove crucial to determining control of the US Senate.…

KARACHI: Pakistan’s Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem has been confirmed in the entry list for the men’s javelin throw at the Lausanne Diamond League, scheduled to take place on August 21, where he will compete against some of the world’s top throwers. The entry list, released by the event organisers, features an elite field led by India’s Neeraj Chopra, two-time world champion Anderson Peters of Grenada, and newly crowned Commonwealth Games gold medallist and world leader Rumesh Pathirage of Sri Lanka. The competition will also include Germany’s Julian Weber and Thomas Röhler, Czechia’s Jakub Vadlejch, Curtis Thompson of the United States,…

Pakistan and the United States have reaffirmed their commitment to expanding counterterrorism cooperation, pledging coordinated action against the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), Daesh (ISIS-K), al-Qaeda (AQ), and affiliated militant groups during the fourth US-Pakistan Counterterrorism Dialogue held in Washington. The dialogue took place on August 4 and was co-chaired by US Coordinator for Counterterrorism Ambassador Gregory LoGerfo and Pakistan’s Special Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Nabeel Munir, according to a statement issued by Pakistan’s Foreign Office on Wednesday. Both sides reaffirmed their shared commitment to confronting terrorism and agreed to deepen collaboration to…

WASHINGTON: New observations from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have uncovered evidence suggesting that Neptune’s inner moon system was reshaped by a massive collision billions of years ago, with scientists identifying the giant moon Triton as the most likely trigger. The findings, published in the journal Science Advances, indicate that Neptune’s present-day inner moons and rings were formed from debris left behind after the planet’s original moons were destroyed during a violent gravitational upheaval early in the Solar System’s history. Using JWST, researchers analysed the composition of Neptune’s small inner moons Proteus, Larissa, and Galatea, along with the planet’s…