Good afternoon,

Today’s news: Globally, updates from Lebanon, Gaza, and Russia. Plus, MBS in the White House. Locally, Punjab forms 12 JITs to probe TLP, PTI alleges police brutality, and the LHC takes up petitions challenging the 27th Amendment.

☕ Grab your chaye, let’s go.

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Around The World

Updates from the Middle East. One person has been killed and many wounded in an Israeli attack targeting a vehicle in southern Lebanon, while another Israeli air attack yesterday on a Palestinian refugee camp in southern Lebanon killed 13 people. The IDF said the strike targeted a Hamas training compound. Meanwhile, Israel’s military has continuously carried out several air strikes in parts of Gaza’s Rafah and Khan Younis, as Hamas and other Palestinian factions in Gaza rejected a UN Security Council resolution that establishes a governing board and an international stabilisation force to take over the Israeli-besieged enclave.

Updates from Russia. At least nine people have been killed and dozens wounded in Russian drone and missile attacks across Ukraine, with President Zelenskyy alleging that Russia used more than 470 drones and 48 missiles in the attack on Ukraine. NATO scrambled fighter jets in Polish and Romanian airspace as Russia carried out the deadly attack, with Romania's defense ministry claiming a Russian drone entered its airspace during the ambush.

It comes as Russia said it shot down four US-made long-range missiles “deep within” its territory yesterday, which Ukraine claimed it fired. The use of the missiles, which have a range of up to 300 kilometers, was first approved under the Biden Presidency, and their use has previously been seen by Russia as a major escalation.

Be our guest. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) received a warm welcome to the White House from US President Trump in a visit that has emphasised the deepening ties between Riyadh and Washington. The two leaders addressed Trump’s recent comments about Saudi Arabia joining the Abraham Accords, which established formal relations between Israel and several Arab countries. MBS and Trump signalled possible progress on the issue without providing details or a timeline for a potential deal. The Prince, however, did reiterate that Riyadh wants to advance the establishment of a Palestinian state as part of a potential agreement.

Go fish. China has warned of an incoming ban on Japanese seafood exports, the latest threat from Beijing as its diplomatic spat with Tokyo escalates over recent comments by Japan’s Prime Minister. The two neighbors have been engaged in a rapidly spiraling dispute after Japanese leader Sanae Takaichi said that a Chinese attack on Taiwan would count as “a situation threatening Japan’s survival,” and thus could trigger a military response from Tokyo.

Pakistan

JITtering. The Punjab government has constituted 12 joint investigation teams (JITs) to probe multiple cases registered against the banned Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) in Lahore and Sheikhupura, following violent clashes during the group’s attempted march toward Islamabad. 5 JITs were formed for Sheikhupura and 7 for Lahore, each comprising police officials and representatives from the Counter-Terrorism Department, under the Anti-Terrorism Act. The crackdown on TLP has intensified since the federal ban, with authorities searching for missing TLP chief Saad Rizvi and his brother, both wanted in over 100 cases, and arresting around 1,250 key members and financiers. 

All in all. PTI has accused Rawalpindi police of manhandling and violently detaining Imran Khan’s sisters, Aleema Khan, Noreen Niazi, and Dr Uzma Khan, after they were denied a court-mandated weekly meeting with the former prime minister and staged a sit-in outside Adiala jail. The party alleged that women were dragged, the area was deliberately flooded and darkened, and several leaders and workers were assaulted and picked up, calling it state-backed oppression. 

Police, however, claimed they only removed protesters from the road. The incident drew strong condemnation from PTI leaders, KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, former president Arif Alvi, and others, who said the episode reflected growing authoritarianism, humiliation of dissenters, and abuse of state power, damaging Pakistan’s global image and violating basic human dignity.

27 reasons why. Lahore High Court Chief Justice Aalia Neelum has formed a three-member bench, headed by Justice Sadaqat Ali Khan, with Justices Jawad Hassan and Sultan Tanvir Ahmad, to hear petitions challenging the 27th Amendment. The petitions argue that the amendment undermines the 1973 Constitution’s basic structure, weakens the Supreme Court, compromises judicial independence, distorts decades of judicial tradition, and introduces a federal constitutional court not envisaged in the original constitutional framework. They further contend that the current National Assembly lacks the authority to enact such sweeping constitutional changes, which allegedly violate Islamic provisions, fundamental rights, and the preamble of the Constitution.

What Else Is Happening?

⚽Curaçao salvaged a 0-0 draw with Jamaica on Tuesday to become the smallest nation by population to qualify for a FIFA World Cup, and will be joined by CONCACAF sides Panama and Haiti.

💊The UK will use AI to tackle the rising number of infections that have become resistant to treatment. The project aims to speed up the discovery of fresh antibiotics and deliver new ways of killing other threats, including deadly fungal infections.