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Tag: Shehbaz Sharif

  • PM Shehbaz expresses sorrow over loss of lives in Greece boat disaster

    PM Shehbaz expresses sorrow over loss of lives in Greece boat disaster

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif has expressed sorrow over the loss of lives in the immigrant boat disaster that took place off the Greek coast.

    The prime minister expressed sympathies with bereaved families and offered condolences. “My thoughts and prayers are with the bereaved families who lost their loved ones in the unfortunate ferry disaster in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Greece.”

    He further stated that the Pakistani’s Embassy in Athens has identified 12 Pakistanis rescued by the Hellenic Coast Guard.

    The boat sank on Wednesday, resulting in the death of at least 78 people, with many Pakistanis feared to be among dead.

    104 people have been found alive, with 12 Pakistanis among them, the Foreign Office (FO) confirmed on Saturday.

    Different media reports suggest that 400 to 750 people were onboard the ill-fated boat.

  • Not involved in leg pulling business, says Miftah Ismail

    Not involved in leg pulling business, says Miftah Ismail

    Former Finance Minister, Miftah Ismail has said that he is not involved in the business of leg pulling but asserted that he speaks the truth. He made the comments while speaking to The News.

    The former minister was referring to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s statement in which the Premier said without naming anyone that the people criticising current Finance Minister Ishaq Dar have no place in his party, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).

    Miftah Ismail said he is in Islamabad to meet friends and is also trying to contact former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi.

    He further added he has no clue about the PM’s statement about Dar’s leg pulling, and he does not know why the PM gave the statement. According to sources of The News, Miftah Ismail and Shahid Khaqan Abbasi have no intentions of parting ways with PML-N.

    However, Miftah Ismail served PML-N as Finance Minister in 2017 while Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was Prime Minister at that time.

  • Exclusive: You will not believe how many languages PM Shehbaz Sharif can speak

    Exclusive: You will not believe how many languages PM Shehbaz Sharif can speak

    Prime Minister (PM) Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif met with Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev on Thursday during a two-day official visit. During the meeting, he had an informal conversation with the president in Russian language, which left many shocked.

    Earlier, when the Premier’s videos of conversing in other languages went viral, The Current reached out to Prime Minister (PM) Focal Person on Digital Media, Muhammad Abubakar Umer, to confirm exactly how many languages the premier can speak.


    He said that the premier is fluent in German, Arabic and English along with Punjabi and Urdu. According to him, PM Shehbaz can speak basic level Turkish, Chinese, Russian, Pashtu and Sindhi.


    The focal person revealed that PM Shehbaz learned Arabic formally while in exile during former President General Pervez Musharraf’s era. To our surprise, we also got to know that the premier holds a diploma in Arabic.


    According to Abubakar, PM Shehbaz knows a total of ten languages.


    “He learned Chinese and Turkish during his tenure as Chief Minister (CM) Punjab from 2013 to 2018 as at the time he had to engage with Chinese and Turkish officials for China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC),” said Abubakar.


    He learned German and Russian during the 1970s and 80s for his business dealings. “At the time, he was not in government”, said Abubakar.
    Abubakar also revealed that before going to any foreign country, PM Shehbaz hires an instructor who informs him about the cultural aspects of the country, how people greet each other and what social norms are appreciated there.

  • ‘Modern-day Goebbels’: Shehbaz Sharif says Imran Khan has perfected art of lying

    ‘Modern-day Goebbels’: Shehbaz Sharif says Imran Khan has perfected art of lying

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif has on Wednesday scathingly responded to a tweet by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan referring to the events of May 9, calling him a “modern-day Joseph Goebbels.”

    Goebbels was the chief propagandist for the Nazi Party, largely blamed for creating the narrative that led to World War II and the Holocaust.

    Imran Khan’s tweet, posted on Tuesday, said that the violent events that took place on May 9 were pre-planned.

    “If there is someone who deserves the title of modern-day Joseph Goebbels, chief propagandist for the German Nazi Party, is none other than Imran Khan. He is certainly perfecting the art of lying. How convenient of IK to forget how he incited his cult followers to violence over a span of one year! He called the Army and intelligence leadership names, exploited the people’s emotions through slogans of ‘Haqeeqi Azadi’ & use of religious symbols & even administered oath of ‘Jihad’ to them,” wrote PM in the tweet.


    “As the State symbols & military installations came under attack at the hands of his goons, he refused to condemn violence, what to speak of urging the arsonists to stand down. His speeches & Twitter posts have enough evidence to refute his claims & establish a build-up to the events of May 9. As the facts have established so far, the PTI under his watch purposefully deployed violence as a policy. He can lie through his teeth. History doesn’t,” he added

    The National Assembly on Monday adopted a resolution demanding action against May 9 rioters under the Army Act.

    The resolution was moved by Defence Minister Khawaja Asif.

    The resolution demanded that all individuals involved in May 9 riots must immediately face legal repercussions, adding that members of the same party and its leaders were separating themselves from May 9 events.

  • Budget, May 9 top agendas during PM-COAS meeting

    Budget, May 9 top agendas during PM-COAS meeting

    Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday at PM house, right after the presentation of the federal budget, DAWN has reported.

    The National Assembly later passed a resolution right after the meeting that demands instant prosecution of the miscreants involved in the May 9 attack on state and military installations under the Pakistan Army Act, 1952.

    No communication about the meeting has been released but according to sources close to the Prime Minister, he did meet the COAS.

    Reportedly, the Geberal said that there will be no mercy for the planners, instigators and motivators involved in the May 9 riots and their cases will be tried under the Army Act. The meeting between the PM and COAS is also considered important in the backdrop of the recent fiscal budget presentation.

    In a tweet, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif said, despite the domestic and global obstacles, budget 2023-2024 promises to turn things around and shape an unobstructed path for the country.

  • ‘Imran Khan deliberately disinforming local & foreign audiences with fake news’: Shehbaz Sharif

    ‘Imran Khan deliberately disinforming local & foreign audiences with fake news’: Shehbaz Sharif

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif has said in a tweet on Monday that Imran Khan openly and deliberately misinforms local and foreign audiences with fake news.

    “In his interviews with international media outlets, Imran Niazi is openly and deliberately disinforming local & foreign audiences by glib talk laced with fake news & plain misrepresentation.” wrote PM.

    “His expedient description of the post-May 9 events as ‘human rights abuses’ & ‘stifling of the right to political protest’ is not only misleading but aimed at manipulating and swaying opinion-makers outside the country,” he added.
    The PM further wrote that what PTI did on May 9 was “a brazen attack on the State of Pakistan, with malafide intent and sinister objectives.”

    “No country in the world would tolerate such an attempt at destroying its integrity. I assure everyone that the culprits are being dealt with under the law & that I will ensure that no rights violations take place. Every case will be dealt with due process under the law. Pakistan fully respects & is committed to all its constitutional and international obligations on human rights.”

    The tweet comes after Imran Khan said in an interview with Reuters on Saturday that he tried to contact the military for talks but got no response. He further said that he did not know why Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir is ‘fixated’ on sidelining him.

  • ‘Should be held accountable for militant actions’: PM says resounding no to negotiations with PTI

    Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has refused to negotiate with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) after Imran Khan constituted a committee to hold dialogue with the government. The PM, in a tweet referred to the events of May 9, stating that ‘anarchists and arsonists’ who attack state symbols do not qualify for dialogue.

    “Dialogue is deeply embedded in the political process, which helps democracy mature & evolve. Many political & constitutional breakthroughs occurred when political leaders sat across the table to craft a consensus,” he tweeted.
    “However, there is a major difference here, the anarchists & arsonists who wear the garb of politicians and attack the symbols of the State do not qualify for a dialogue. They should rather be held to account for their militant actions. This is the prevalent practice even in developed democracies,” the tweet added.

    Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Sunday, while talking about the possibility of negotiating with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), said that negotiations with Imran Khan can be held if he took “corrective measures: apologises to the nation, admits his mistake and promises not to do anything like May 9 in the future.”


    Imran Khan on May 27 constituted a seven-member negotiation committee for talks with the incumbent government over elections.

  • Karachi needs Shehbaz Speed: BBZ

    Karachi needs Shehbaz Speed: BBZ

    Foreign Minister (FM) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari has said that Karachi needs Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif’s speed.

    Shehbaz Speed was a term popularly used for projects completed in a short duration when Sharif was the Chief Minister (CM) of Punjab.

    While giving a speech at the groundbreaking ceremony of K-IV project, Bilawal addressed PM Shehbaz, stating, “We are looking at you, you should form your own team to solve these problems being faced by Sindh including Karachi.”

    He added that the prime minister has the support of the two major parties of Sindh and all partners of the coalition government want to solve the problems of the country together. “When we all continue to work together, all of Pakistan’s problems can be solved,” he said.

    Talking about Karachi, he said that if the government pays attention to the metropolis according to its potential, then not only the IMF could bid farewell, but the whole nation could also stand on its own feet.

    About the May 9 episode, he warned that if serious crimes like setting fire to Jinnah House Lahore, demolishing martyrs’ memorials and attacking military installations are neglected, then running this country will become not only difficult but impossible. He also asked that if the conspiracy of May 9 events had been hatched either in Bilawal House, Raiwand or Nine Zero, what would have been the reaction to it.

    Bilawal said that when the police went to comply with the court notice in March this year, Zaman Park had been turned into a battleground. He added that even during PTI’s long march, participants had arms, but the government did not take action, adding that the Prime Minister could have banned PTI on the basis of foreign funding case and Al-Qadir Trust case if he wanted. “But we didn’t want the impression of political vendetta and setting a bad precedent,” he said.

  • Miscreants who attacked army installations will face military court, says PM Shehbaz

    Miscreants who attacked army installations will face military court, says PM Shehbaz

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif has announced that miscreants involved in attacks on army installations and civil properties during the violent protests if May 9, will be tried in military courts and anti-terrorism courts (ATCs).

    Chairing a meeting on the law and order situation in Lahore on Sunday, PM Shehbaz said everyone who is involved in incidents of May 9 will be dealt with an iron hand.

    He added that the day will always be remembered as a “black day” in the history of Pakistan. He went on to say that the rioters “turned into enemies of the country” and carried out the attack on the GHQ.

    After Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s arrest, his supporters came out on the streets and allegedly attacked army installations which included Corps Commander’s House (Jinnah House) in Lahore Cantt and the General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi.

  • No evidence of corruption against Shehbaz Sharif in Ashiana housing scheme case: NAB

    No evidence of corruption against Shehbaz Sharif in Ashiana housing scheme case: NAB

    The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has found no evidence against Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif in a case pertaining to Ashiana
    Housing scheme.

    The NAB report highlighted that Shehbaz Sharif did not derive any personal benefits from the Ashiana Housing project.

    The watchdog’s report also cleared Kamran Kiyani, brother of former army chief General (retd) Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, of any wrongdoing in government treasury accounts.

    The report concluded that the accountability court should decide on Shehbaz Sharif’s plea for acquittal according to the law.