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Govt approves army, civil armed forces deployment for Nov 23 by-polls

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Govt approves army, civil armed forces deployment for Nov 23 by-polls


Pakistan Army soldiers walk alongside a presiding officer (centre) carrying ballot boxes as they come out from the voting materials distribution centre in Rawalpindi. — AFP/File

ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Interior on Friday approved the deployment of the Pakistan Army and the civil armed forces for the by-elections scheduled for November 23.

In its order, the ministry stated that the deployment was approved at the request of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

The civil armed forces will be deployed as second-tier responders, with the status of standby/quick reaction force mode only, the ministry added.

The Pakistan Army will be deployed as the “third-tier responders (in-situ Quick Reaction Force Mode)”.

The interior ministry stated that the deployment of the armed forces aimed to support the ECP in ensuring the “peaceful conduct of the by-elections to be held on November 23, 2025”.

The ministry said that the troops have been “empowered by [the] Federal Government to exercise the powers under Section 4 and 5 of [the] Anti-Terrorism Act 1997 for the duration of employment”.

ECP is set to hold by-elections for as many as six National Assembly seats and seven provincial seats of Punjab.

The development came a day after the ECP took notice of remarks made by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi during a political gathering.

The ECP, in letters to secretaries of the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Interior on Thursday, stated that CM Afridi “threatened” district administration, police officers, and ECP officials ahead of the by-election in Haripur.

“Regrettably, he [KP CM] used offensive language which amounts to harassing and unduly influencing them which may prevent them [officials] from effective performance of their duties,” the letter reads.

Hours after the letters, the KP chief minister said his remarks had been “taken out of context”.

“I was not campaigning for anybody. I said yesterday that there should be no rigging,” he added.


This is a developing story and is being updated with further details.





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Deborra-Lee Furness steps up to ‘support’ Nicole Kidman amid her divorce from Keith Urban

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Deborra-Lee Furness steps up to ‘support’ Nicole Kidman amid her divorce from Keith Urban


Deborra-Lee Furness ‘holding’ Nicole Kidman’s hand amid her divorce from Keith Urban

Deborra-Lee Furness has extended her support to Nicole Kidman following her separation from Keith Urban.

Radar Online reported that Furness has lent her shoulder to Kidman after her unexpected breakup from the 58-year-old Australian-American country singer and songwriter.

For those unaware, the 58-year-old Australian-American actress and film producer and Urban announced their separation on September 30, 2025, shortly after the news of their divorce came to light.

The couple met in Los Angeles in 2005, tied the knot in June 2006, welcomed two daughters, Sunday Rose and Faith Margaret, and annulled their marriage in 2025 after 19 years.

Furness, who filed for divorce from Hugh Jackman in May 2025, empathizes with Kidman, as she is aware of the pain of leaving a relationship because of another woman.

An insider told the outlet, “When everything went down between Deb and Hugh, Nicole was careful not to turn her back on her – and now Deb has really stepped up to support her.”

“It makes sense, since Deb was blindsided when Hugh left and felt very alone in the wake of it all. She’s the type to want to save a friend from the same fate.”

“Deb has been holding Nicole’s hand through it all. She validates her and makes her feel less alone. Nicole isn’t going to cut Hugh out of her life, but it’s safe to say that her loyalty is with Deb now,” the source stated. 





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Megan Thee Stallion feels ‘defeated’ amid defamation case

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Megan Thee Stallion feels ‘defeated’ amid defamation case


Megan Thee Stallion gets emotional during defamation case testimony

Megan Thee Stallion has given an emotional testimony in her defamation case against Milagro Gramz.

The Mamushi singer told a court she feels “defeated” and struggles with mental health issues because of a sexually explicit deepfake video the blogger is alleged to have encouraged followers to watch.

The Grammy-winning artist took the witness stand in her lawsuit against Gramz, who is accused of being a “mouthpiece” a “puppet” and a “paid surrogate” for rapper Tory Lanez during and after his high-profile criminal trial.

Gramz is accused of encouraging Megan’s thousands of followers on X and Instagram to view an unauthorised, sexually explicit deepfake video of the star that had been circulating on social media.

“I feel like, to this day, I feel a little, like, defeated,” Megan testified, often shedding tears as she talked about the artificial intelligence porn bearing her image.

Meanwhile, Lanez, whose real name is Daystar Peterson, was convicted of shooting Megan in the foot after the pair left a Los Angeles party in 2020 and has been sentenced to 10 years.

Megan Thee Stallion, whose real name is Megan Pete, accused Gramz in the civil trial of seeking to “denigrate, belittle, insult, and spread false statements” about her on her online social media platforms, “for no other reason than to bully, harass and punish Ms Pete for Mr Peterson’s conviction and to tarnish her reputation, causing emotional distress.”





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CM Afridi urges Punjab CM Maryam to follow court orders on Imran meetings

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CM Afridi urges Punjab CM Maryam to follow court orders on Imran meetings


A collage showing KP CM Sohail Afridi (left) and Punjab CM Maryam Nawaz. — Facebook@ImMuhammadSohailAfridi/TheMaryamNSharif/File
  • CM Afridi cites persistent non-implementation of court orders.
  • No conceivable basis for mishandling immediate family members.
  • Urges accountability of those responsible for mishandling visitors.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi has called on his Punjab counterpart Maryam Nawaz to hold those accountable for mistreating Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan’s sisters and ensure implementation of court orders for meetings with the former prime minister.

In a letter addressed to CM Maryam, Afridi highlighted that “clear and binding” judicial directions governed Imran’s visitation rights, allowing close family members and nominated individuals to meet him on certain days.

“Despite the unambiguous nature of these instructions, repeated reports indicate persistent non-implementation by authorities responsible for compliance,” the KP’s chief executive complained.

The letter also refers to the breif detention and alleged mistreatment of Khan’s sisters — Aleema Khan, Noreen Khan Niazi and Uzma Khanum — by the authorities after they hey refused to end their sit-in near Central Jail Rawalpindi on Adiala road following failure to secure permission to meet the PTI founder.

The sisters of the incarcerated PTI founder, along with dozens of party workers, staged a sit-in on Adiala Road after being denied permission to meet him and his wife, Bushra Bibi.

Meanwhile, the police asked Khan’s sister to clear the road, but the talks failed, and Aleema refused to call off the sit-in. After that, police sprayed water on the road and detained around 8 to 10 PTI activists, including Khan’s sisters.

Aleema has been visiting her incarcerated brother at Adiala and has served as a key channel for conveying Imran’s messages to PTI workers through the media.

Expanding on the incident termed “disturbing” by CM Afridi, he said that these individuals were “apolitical private citizens” only seeking to meet their brother in line with court’s directives.

“[….] there is no conceivable legal or administrative basis for obstructing or mishandling immediate family members whose presence is neither political nor disruptive. Their obstruction, physical restraint, or temporary detention is therefore wholly unacceptable,” the letter reads.

The KP’s provincial chief executive, while lamenting that “such actions create clear impression that judicial directives are being disregarded” and that the situation was “untenable and irreconcilable with basic expectations of due process, rule of law”, urged CM Maryam to ensure that a safe and dignified area for authorised visitors is ensured.

He also urged the Punjab government identify and hold accountable individuals responsible for obstructing, insulting or physically mishandling peaceful visitors including Imran’s family members, issue clear and enforceable directives to prison and police authorities and establish a transparent mechanism ensuring that future meetings are facilitated in orderly, respectful and legally compliant manner.

Furthermore, the KP CM remarked that any deviation from court-mandated procedures or disrespectful treatment of his immediate family “becomes a matter of direct institutional concern” and said that as he could not remain indifferent when dignity of a former head of government and his lawful rights were compromised.

“I am therefore constrained to demand that these issues be addressed promptly, decisively and in full conformity with judicial directions.

“I would appreciate your [CM Maryam] attention to the above so that dignity of all concerned is upheld and the rule of law remains unimpaired,” CM Afridi concluded.





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