Govt school bombed in NW Pakistan
Peshawar, June 6: Unknown miscreants bombed a government high school in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in northwest Pakistan early Friday, local police said. The miscreants blew up the government high school using explosives in Akbari village in the jurisdiction of the Gul Imam police station in Tank district, police sources said, adding, several rooms of the school collapsed due to the explosion. No group has claimed responsibility for the school bombing as yet. However, splinter groups of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) active in Tank district are against girls’ education and usually target their schools. According to data collected by local NGOs, over 450 schools in the province have been destroyed in such attacks over last decade, forcing students to either stop attending schools or attend classes next to ruined buildings or the rubble. Pakistan witnessed multiple attacks on girls’ schools until 2019, especially in the Swat Valley and elsewhere in the northwest where the Pakistani Taliban long controlled the former tribal regions. In 2012, the insurgents attacked Malala Yousafzai, a teenage student and advocate for the education of girls, who later went on to win the Nobel Peace Prize. (PTI)
Ex-federal minister dies in home blast in Pakistan
Peshawar, June 6: A former Pakistani minister on Friday succumbed to his injuries after a powerful gas leak explosion at his residence in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, police said. Three people, including former Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) senator Abbas Khan Afridi, were injured in the gas leak explosion at his residence in Kohat district on Thursday, police said. Despite efforts by medical staff, Afridi died at Kharian Hospital owing to the injuries he sustained in the blast, it said. Afridi, a prominent political figure who has served as a federal minister and a senator, quit PML-N as well as politics in 2024. The police said they have launched a probe into the cause of the incident. (PTI)
India-Sri Lanka discuss boosting maritime security
COLOMBO, June 6: India and Sri Lanka have held a high-level meeting to discuss expanding their bilateral defence cooperation, particularly in maritime security. The Sri Lanka-India Defence Dialogue took place in Colombo, marking the first high-level meeting since the signing of the first-ever defence partnership on April 5. The discussions aimed to strengthen bilateral defence cooperation, enhance maritime security, and explore new avenues for collaboration in training and strategic engagement. Senior officials from both sides participated, reaffirming the longstanding defence partnership between Sri Lanka and India. The agreement will institutionalize existing military engagement and pave the way for more structured cooperation, including potential collaboration in the defence industrial sector. (PTI)