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Pakistan, IMF reach consensus to scrap tax-free car import schemes

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Pakistan, IMF reach consensus to scrap tax-free car import schemes


An employee of a car showroom walks amidst new cars displayed at an auto dealer centre in Karachi. — AFP/File
  • Two import car schemes scrapped under IMF-Pakistan agreement.
  • Govt tightens Transfer of Residence scheme for used cars.
  • Five-year-old used cars allowed under stricter import conditions.

Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have agreed to abolish two tax-free car import schemes and tighten regulations on the third scheme as part of efforts to curb misuse and improve transparency in the import regime.

The two sides reached a consensus to discontinue the baggage and gift schemes, while stricter controls will be imposed on the Transfer of Residence scheme, which allows overseas Pakistanis to import vehicles when returning to the country, The News reported.

While commercial import has been granted permission for five-year-old used cars, its conditions will be stringent, with tightened safety guards.

Pakistan and the IMF are scheduled to conclude review talks on Wednesday for the completion of the second review under the $7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and the first tranche of $400 million under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) of $1.4 billion.

The IMF has set a deadline for obtaining approval from the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet for the abolition of two schemes and the tightening of the third one within the current month.

On the tariff rationalisation plan, both sides agreed that the two schemes under the baggage rules and the gift scheme for importing cars would be abolished. For the third scheme, the Transfer of Residence, vehicles will only be imported from a country where the individual has stayed for at least one year, and misuse of this scheme will be curtailed.

One official commented that all vehicles, whether from Japan or the UK, are imported to Dubai first and then brought into Pakistan, so the misuse of imported cars must be curtailed.

Pakistan and the IMF are still working to evolve a consensus on the release of GCD Assessment report, which remains a bone of contention between the two sides. According to insiders, the government established a task force to conduct a detailed review of the vague anti-corruption framework and shared it with the IMF. The task force recommended that the FBR notify draft rules about the “Declaration of Assets of Civil Servants serving in Basic Pay Scale 17-22 and their spouses.”

It also recommended making amendments in the Civil Servants Act, 1973, to allow for the publication of Assets and Liabilities of Civil Servants; making amendments in the Elections Act to mandate Non-Elected Advisors and Special Assistants to the Prime Minister to furnish their statement of assets and liabilities; and making necessary amendments in the NAB Ordinance and the FIA Act to ensure a clear mandate definition, prepare a joint offence list, and establish coordination mechanisms between the two agencies to work harmoniously on offences where both have jurisdiction.

Further recommendations include providing training on jurisdictional boundaries to officers of the NAB, FIA, and Provincial Anti-Corruption Establishments (ACEs); making arrangements for repatriating investigating officers of the FIA posted at airports for processing immigration and tasking that responsibility to another force; and investing in technology, capacity building, and training of the FIA, NAB, and provincial ACE investigators to bring them on par with their regional counterparts.

Additionally, the task force advised conducting awareness campaigns to instill a culture of integrity among officials and educate the public on their right to seek disclosure of public information under the Right to Information Act and on the regulatory framework for reporting corrupt practices; making provisions for the appointment of lawyers through open advertisement based on specific expertise to ensure quality prosecution and for the appointment of independent members of the legal fraternity in special courts on judicial assignments; and empowering Provincial Anti-Corruption Establishments to handle money laundering cases at the provincial level.

The recommendations also include establishing a central coordination forum for assistance in investigation, forensics, intelligence sharing, and addressing jurisdictional issues; ensuring that Chief Internal Auditors are appointed within Ministries and Divisions as required by the Public Finance Management Act; and ensuring strict compliance with the State-Owned Enterprises (Governance and Operations) Act, 2023, and that government entities are run in line with section 36 of the Public Finance Management Act, 2019.





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Prince William drops clue about the state of his rift with Prince Harry in his own words

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Prince William drops clue about the state of his rift with Prince Harry in his own words


Prince William exposes where he stands with Prince Harry amid their rift

Prince William has just dropped a major hint about the state of his relationship with Prince Harry, given their ongoing rift.

The whole thing has been brought to light by the prince himself, during his interview with Eugene Levy, for The Reluctant Traveler.

In that chat the heir was asked about media intrusion and was quoted saying, “I hope we don’t go back to some of the practices in the past that Harry and I had to grow up in. And I’ll do everything I can to make sure we don’t regress in that situation.”

What is pertinent to mention is that, Prince William has remained tight-lipped about his younger brother for more than a year. Even when he met with King Charles in the UK, the Prince of Wales was not present.

Royal historian, Robert Lacey also spoke to People Magazine about this rare mention and said, “they are clearly part of the past.He talked about his brother in the past, as part of his life — not in the future.”

A similar stance was also shared by royal biographer Andrew Morton whose said, “If you want the prince to talk openly, you avoid asking about his brother.”





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Two years on, American Jews turn sharply against Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza: survey

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Two years on, American Jews turn sharply against Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza: survey


Pro-Palestinian demonstrators, including anti-Zionist Haredi Jews, protest near the UN headquarters condemning Israel’s invasion of Gaza and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, after his speech at the 80th United Nations General Assembly, at Dag Hammarskjold Plaza in New York City, US, September 26, 2025. — Reuters

As Israel’s devastating war on Gaza enters its third year, opposition is mounting not just globally — but from within the Jewish community itself. A growing number of American Jews are publicly condemning Israel’s actions as war crimes and genocide, marking a significant rupture in what was once assumed to be unwavering diaspora support, The News reported. 

This shift reflects a broader global reckoning with Israel’s prolonged military assault, launched after Hamas’s October 7 attack. From Washington to Sydney, public opinion is turning. A recent survey poll found that 42% of US adults disapprove of the Trump administration’s handling of the conflict, while in Australia, there is increasing support for sanctions against Israeli leaders. Even within Israel, a majority now believe the Gaza war must come to an end.

According to a Washington Post poll many American Jews sharply disapprove of Israel’s conduct of the war in Gaza, with 61% saying Israel has committed war crimes and about 4 in 10 saying the country is guilty of genocide against the Palestinians.

The poll found that most Jewish Americans surveyed believe Israel has committed war crimes in the Strip, and nearly a third say the US is too supportive of Israel. But respondents were evenly split in their views of Israel’s overall military campaign there. More than two-thirds have a negative view of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s leadership of Israel.

At the same time, the poll found that most American Jews are emotionally attached to Israel, believe Israel’s existence is vital to the Jewish future, and support continued US military aid to Israel. Almost one-third said they do not feel safe in the US.

The poll also found that 80% or more of US Jews are concerned about civilian deaths in Gaza, the Israeli hostages held by Hamas, the threat posed to Israel by the resistance group and Israeli soldiers’ safety in Gaza. Majorities said Israel, Hamas, Netanyahu and the United States all bear responsibility for the continuation of the war. 

According to the poll, US Jews disapprove of the prime minister, with 68% rating his leadership of Israel negatively, including 48% who call it poor. By contrast, 32% approve of Netanyahu’s leadership.

A Pew Research Centre survey finds that nearly two years into Israel’s military operation in the Gaza Strip, Americans’ skepticism of Israel’s operation and its government is higher than at earlier points in the conflict. It suggests about six-in-ten now have an unfavorable view of the Israeli government, with a rising share saying Israel is ‘going too far’.

39% now say Israel is going too far in its military operation against Hamas. This is up from 31% a year ago and 27% in late 2023. 59% now hold an unfavorable opinion of the Israeli government, up from 51% in early 2024. 16% say Israel is taking about the right approach to the conflict, and 10% say it isn’t going far enough. A third of adults say they aren’t sure. Large shares of Americans continue to express uncertainty across several questions about the ongoing war in the Middle East and the US government’s response.

A new national survey from Pew Research Centre, conducted September 22-28 among 3,445 adults, finds that 42% of US adults disapprove of the Trump administration’s response to the conflict between Israel and Hamas, while 30% approve. Roughly a quarter (27%) say they are not sure. Republicans are far more likely than Democrats to approve of Trump’s handling of the conflict and to say he is striking the right balance between the Israelis and the Palestinians. But the shares saying Trump is favoring the Israelis too much have risen in both partisan coalitions.

A third of adults (33%) say the United States is providing too much military assistance to Israel. By comparison, 35% say the US is not providing enough humanitarian aid to Palestinian citizens in Gaza. Eight-in-ten Americans say they are at least somewhat concerned about starvation among Palestinians in Gaza, Israeli military strikes killing Palestinian civilians and the remaining Israeli hostages not being returned to Israel.

While more Americans disapprove (42%) than approve (30%) of the Trump administration’s response to the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. About a quarter (27%) say they are unsure.

And 36% of Americans say President Donald Trump is favouring Israel too much in the conflict (up from 31% in March), while 23% say he is striking the right balance. Few (2%) say he is favouring the Palestinians too much. More than a third — 38% — say they are not sure.

A YouGov poll, commissioned by the Australia Palestine Advocacy Network (APAN), shows the majority of Australians want Israel to end its assault on Gaza, with 69% agreeing — 53% “strongly” agreeing—the Netanyahu government’s military campaign should stop. 14% disagreed.

Australians are supportive of placing tough sanctions on Israel and its leaders for their role in attacking Gaza, with a new poll finding more than half of voters agree the federal government should extend sanctions placed on Russia to Israel. The survey of 1,500 voting-aged Australians suggests the public is broadly supportive of the government playing a more decisive role in bringing the bloody two-year war to an end.

According to a poll by the Israel Democracy Institute, a majority of Israelis believe the time has come to end the war in Gaza, with the top reason being the endangerment of hostages. The survey found that 66 percent of Israelis say the time has come to end the war — a figure 13 points higher than the result from a year ago when respondents were asked the same question — compared to 27% who think or are certain that the time has not yet come, and 7% who are unsure. The top reason both Jewish (50.5%) and Arab Israeli (34.5%) respondents gave that the war should end is the endangerment of the hostages.

“The one thing that everyone could be sure of as the events of October 7, 2023, unfolded was that Israel would emerge from the Hamas attack a changed country. It was not just the immediate trauma of the roughly 1,200 dead and 250 hostages, but also how much it upset the assumptions that Israelis had made in the years before — that the country was more safe and secure than any time in its history, that the Arab world was slowly accepting the inevitability of a predominantly Jewish state and prepared to push aside concerns about the future of Palestinians, and that Israel’s high-tech prowess could not just generate prosperity but also ensure security as well,” an analysis in the Foreign Policy magazine stated.

“A final reckoning on such a cataclysmic event will take years to emerge. In the meanwhile, the most dire predictions — Israel becoming ensnared in prolonged, deadly, and destructive wars with Hezbollah and Iran; a tanking economy; and a deep crisis of confidence — have failed to materialize. The conflicts with Hezbollah and Iran ended in Israel’s favour with relatively little collateral damage. Economic growth has slowed, but Israel has absorbed the shock better than many expected. Trust in the military and many of the country’s key institutions has not declined significantly, if at all.

Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza has claimed over 67,000 lives in the past two years, following Hamas’s October 7 attack, which the Palestinian group insisted was a “historic response” to Israel’s actions against the Palestinians.

“We reaffirm that the Al-Aqsa Flood on October 7 was a historic response to attempts to eradicate the Palestinian cause,” Fawzi Barhoum, a senior Hamas official, said in a televised speech. The attack, according to Israeli officials, resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was repeating his previous appeals “with even greater urgency: Release the hostages, unconditionally and immediately.”

“End the suffering for all… Put an end to the hostilities in Gaza, Israel and the region now. Stop making civilians pay with their lives and their futures. “After two years of trauma, we must choose hope. Now.”

Israel’s foreign ministry said, “Two years ago, Israel faced the darkest day in its history… we pray for the return of the hostages still held in Gaza, and we stand united against terror,” “Hamas must be dismantled to end this war,” the ministry said on X. “Light will rise over darkness.”

Besides calling for the hostages’ release, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer suggested pro-Palestinian protests planned for the anniversary of “”that awful day” were disrespectful. “This is not who we are as a country,” the under-fire premier wrote in The Times.

“It’s un-British to have so little respect for others. And that’s before some of them decide to start chanting hatred towards Jewish people all over again.”





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Taylor Swift, Blake Lively rebuilding their broken bond? Source

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Taylor Swift, Blake Lively rebuilding their broken bond? Source


Taylor Swift, Blake Lively’s friendship gets unexpected twist

Taylor Swift and Blake Lively are back in touch but there is still a long way to being besties again.

The Life of a Showgirl artist and the Gossip Girl star, who appeared to be distant from each other after Swift was dragged into Lively’s legal battle with her costar Justin Baldoni, have “reconnected” according to a report by Radaronline.com.

“Taylor and Blake have reconnected, and some apologies were made about her being dragged into the lawsuit,” a source told the outlet.

“But it is no way a signal that she is supporting Blake in the ongoing case because she wants to stay out of it,” the tipster noted.

The fallout of Swift and Lively’s friendship marked the end of one of Hollywood’s closest bond as the pair first met in 2014.

Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds even called the Grammy winning artist their four kids’ godmother on several occasions.

The Lover hitmaker even mentioned Lively’s kids’ names: James, Inez, and Betty, in her 2020 album Folklore.

Other sources reported to the outlet that the pals are taking small steps to heal their broken bond.

The 37-year-old actress recently showed support to Swift by hitting the like button of the popstar’s Instagram post for her new album, The Life of a Showgirl.

A second source noted, “To be on the same page is still a long way off for Taylor and Blake, but they’re working on it.”

Will it ever be the same as before? Who knows? The trust has to be built again, and that is easier said than done, but Taylor is listening more.”

“As for a full reconciliation between them, it’s still far off. Taylor is open to more discussion and conversation, but on her own terms,” the insider added.





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