Pashtun Times Latest News

PESHAWAR: The Obama administration has asked the Taliban to engage in a peace process and ultimately become a legitimate part of the political system of a sovereign and united Afghanistan. State Department spokesman John Kirby issued the call days after the militant movement refused to enter a reconciliation dialogue with the government of President Ashraf Ghani. Instead of continuing to ...

NEW YORK: US sportswear maker Nike said Monday it was halting its relationship with Maria Sharapova, after the tennis star announced she had tested positive for a banned substance. “We are saddened and surprised by the news about Maria Sharapova,” Nike said in a statement. “We have decided to suspend our relationship with Maria while the investigation continues?” Meanwhile, Swiss ...

KABUL – Saffron production in Afghanistan has increased by 17 percent this year, the Ministry of Agriculture Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL) said on Monday. A statement from the ministry said that during the current solar year, saffron yield was 4,657 kilograms. The production surge was linked to MAIL’s efforts to promote the crop’s cultivation. According to the statement, the distribution ...

BEIJING – China said on Monday that it hoped the Afghan government and the Taliban as well as concerned parties will work together for the resumption of Afghan peace talks at an early date. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei made the remarks at a routine press conference, when asked about a statement made by the Taliban on Saturday, which ...

PESHAWAR: At least eight people were killed in an explosion in the premises of a local court in Charsadda’s Shabqadar area on Monday, police said. The Jamatul Ahrar, a splinter group of the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), claimed responsibility for the attack in an email sent to journalists, saying the attack was carried out to avenge the hanging of Mumtaz ...

ISLAMABAD / LAHORE: Infor­ma­­tion Minister Pervaiz Rashid said on Sunday that former president retired Gen Pervez Musharraf had set up the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to use it against PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif. Talking to reporters, the minister also accused Benazir Bhutto of politically victimising the PML-N. “Our accountability is being done for the last 20 years. First, it was ...

As we today mark UN Women’s Day, it is worth considering what the inequality between men and women costs South Asian countries and what can be done about it. One big cost of inequality is that South Asian economies do not reach their full potential. In Bangladesh, for example, women account for most unpaid work, and are overrepresented in the ...

WASHINGTON: The United States on Sunday warned the Taliban to either join the peace process or face the onslaught of American and Afghan forces.  “The Taliban have a choice:  to join good-faith negotiations for peace, or continue to fight a war in which they are killing their fellow Afghans and destroying their country,” a State Department spokesman told Pajhwok Afghan News.  “If they choose ...

The Afghan-born Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fighter Siyar Bahadurzada returned to UFC with a victory over American UFC fighter Brandon Thatch during UFC 196. Held at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, Bahadurzada submitted the Elevation Fight Team standout with a third-round arm-triangle choke. Bahadurzada ended the fight in his favour during the last seconds of the third ...

The greater Punjab is not acceptable to small nations anymore. Pakistan in its present state is an imbalance state numerically, politically and economically Pakistan minus Punjab, there is no Pakistan. But Pakistan with Punjab is MAHA Punjab. This equation may sound silly to some readers and the others may ignore it to be the simplification of the grievous situation, prevailing ...