New York Times

NEW YORK:&nbsp;A founding principle of the United States, enshrined in its constitution&rsquo;s opening amendment, is that the republic depends on citizens&rsquo; freedom to disagree with one another. They need to be able to do so intensely, on matters of life and death, including war and divisive modern issues like abortion, gun safety and health insurance.&nbsp; There are limits to free speech, yes, but they involve edge cases, like falsely shouting fire in a theater or inciting an imminent act of violence. If the American ideal of freedom means anything, it is that Americans can engage in an extremely wide range of political speech, including the tasteless and the offensive. The US President Trump is himself a purveyor of tasteless and even threatening language, speaking in ways that no previous president did.&nbsp;Yet his own exercise of his First Amendment rights&mdash;the constitutional protections guaranteeing freedom of speech&mdash;has not stopped him from encroaching on those of others.&nbsp;He has punished universities, immigrants, law firms, federal prosecutors, military leaders, national security officials and others for voicing opinions with which he disagrees. Now he is taking his campaign against free speech to a new level by using the assassination of Charlie Kirk as a justification to promise the repression of groups that he describes as liberal. Mr. Trump&rsquo;s aides are drafting an executive order that could come as soon as this week, The Times reported, and it will most likely target left-leaning organizations. On Monday, the country&#39;s&nbsp;Vice President JD Vance mentioned both the Ford Foundation and George Soros&rsquo;s Open Society Foundations, saying that they benefited from a &ldquo;generous tax treatment,&rdquo; the same tax treatment that benefits nonprofit groups like religious charities and the National Rifle Association Foundation. The intimidation campaign is already having an effect. Federal officials have urged companies to fire workers who have criticized Mr. Kirk, and some have done so. In a direct exercise of government influence, Brendan Carr, the chairman of the F.C.C., threatened Disney for remarks that Jimmy Kimmel made on his late-night ABC show. &ldquo;We can do this the easy way or the hard way,&rdquo; Mr. Carr said. He also urged television stations to stop broadcasting the show. Two major station owners quickly did so, and ABC has suspended the show indefinitely. As we wrote last week, we are horrified by the killing of Mr. Kirk, and we mourn his death. The evidence suggests that he was murdered for his views, which is the most fundamental violation of free-speech principles. We vehemently disagree with people who suggested that Mr. Kirk bore any responsibility for his own shooting. As Spencer Cox, Utah&rsquo;s Republican governor, said afterward: &ldquo;We need more moral clarity right now. I hear all the time that words are violence. Words are not violence. Violence is violence.&rdquo; Yet it is the Trump administration, not the left, now violating Mr. Cox&rsquo;s standard. Mr. Trump&rsquo;s promised crackdown depends on the false premise that liberal and nonpartisan groups are part of a far-left conspiracy that promotes violence against conservatives. In truth, the country has experienced a surge of political violence and plots that have targeted both Democrats and Republicans, including Mr. Kirk, Mr. Trump, Justice Brett Kavanaugh, Representative Nancy Pelosi, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania and two state legislators in Minnesota. As this list suggests, the highest-profile targets show no clear partisan pattern. Mr. Trump and his aides tell a very different story &mdash; and a false one. They claim that political violence comes mostly from the left. &ldquo;The radicals on the left are the problem,&rdquo; the president said last week. In fact, multiple data sources show that neither side has a monopoly on political violence, but it is more likely to come from the right. Between 2015 and 2024, 54 percent of ideologically connected killings were committed by people on the far right, according to the Anti-Defamation League. By comparison, 8 percent came from the political left. Conservatives and progressives alike should reflect on whether the nasty and often personal rhetoric of today&rsquo;s politics may have contributed to an atmosphere in which unstable or angry people become more likely to commit violence. Still, even that scenario is very different from one in which political groups are organizing and helping commit the violence. There is zero evidence that left-wing groups played a role in Mr. Kirk&rsquo;s killing or in other recent violence against Republicans. &ldquo;Absent additional facts, there was one person responsible for Charlie Kirk&rsquo;s assassination,&rdquo; Mike Pence, Mr. Trump&rsquo;s former vice president, pointed out on Thursday. If anything, many elected Democrats and prominent progressives have clearly and consistently condemned Mr. Kirk&rsquo;s killing in ways that prominent Republicans failed to do after attacks on Democrats. After the attack at Ms. Pelosi&rsquo;s home, which included a brutal assault of her husband, Paul, Mr. Trump himself and other prominent Republicans mocked the victim and spread absurd conspiracies that the episode was staged. After the shooting of two Democratic legislators and their spouses in Minnesota, Senator Mike Lee, a Utah Republican, bizarrely blamed &ldquo;Marxists,&rdquo; while Laura Loomer, an influential Trump confidante, falsely blamed &ldquo;goons&rdquo; working for Gov. Tim Walz, the Minnesota Democrat. These are terrible things to say. They are not crimes, however, and they are certainly not grounds for a government crackdown against conservative groups. The Trump administration is now targeting other groups for lesser sins and maybe no sins at all. Mr. Vance&rsquo;s specific (and tenuous ) claim about the Ford Foundation and the Open Society Foundations was that they helped to fund The Nation, which published an article lambasting Mr. Kirk after his death. If that article &mdash; whatever you think of it &mdash; is grounds for government punishment, the First Amendment has no meaning. We urge Mr. Trump and his aides to remember the free-speech criticisms that they and other conservatives have often made of progressives over the past decade. Republicans have excoriated the left for its attempts to conflate personal safety with contestable ideas and to quash political expression on Covid-19, race, trans issues and other subjects. Conservatives have been correct about some of these excesses, too. In his Inaugural Address in January, Mr. Trump promised to &ldquo;bring back free speech to America.&rdquo; Mr. Vance, while speaking in Munich in February, excoriated European countries for restricting speech and promised, &ldquo;Under Donald Trump&rsquo;s leadership, we may disagree with your views, but we will fight to defend your right to offer it in the public square, agree or disagree.&rdquo; Instead of living up to these principles, the Trump administration and its allies are attempting to restrict speech in ways that are more extreme than anything that Democrats have done. Stephen Miller, a top White House aide, has claimed the existence of a &ldquo;vast domestic terror movement&rdquo; on the left and denigrated the Democratic Party as a &ldquo;domestic extremist organization.&rdquo; Attorney General Pam Bondi has suggested that a business that refused to print signs promoting vigils for Mr. Kirk deserved to be prosecuted. Representative Clay Higgins of Louisiana called for permanent social-media bans on &ldquo;every post or commenter that belittled the assassination of Charlie Kirk.&rdquo; Mr. Higgins, it is worth noting, is one of the congressmen who previously criticized social-media companies for suppressing conservative speech &mdash; and who belittled the attack on Mr. Pelosi. If Mr. Trump refuses to stand up for the basic American right to disagree without fear of oppression, others still can. An executive order that follows through on the threats that he and his aides have made would be clearly unconstitutional. And it would deserve an immediate injunction from the federal courts and a swift rejection from the Supreme Court. The ability to disagree with other people on raw, difficult issues, without fear of repression, is the essence of American freedom.

 President Donald Trump speaking to members of the media on the South Lawn of the White House before boarding Marine One en route to Joint Base Andrews, Md., Sunday, Sept. 21, 2025, in Washington. (AP)

Articles

Although Trump frequently uses offensive language himself, he has aggressively punished others—from universities to officials—who express views he opposes.

The Trump administration’s controversial approach to free speech enforcement

Web Desk

ISLAMABAD: President Donald Trump is keeping the option of military strikes against Iran &ldquo;on the table&rdquo; as his administration weighs how to respond to a severe crackdown on nationwide protests, the White House said Monday.&nbsp;White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters outside the West Wing that air strikes would be among &ldquo;the many, many options&rdquo; available to the commander-in-chief in addressing the unrest and the reported killing of demonstrators on Iran&rsquo;s streets. But she stressed that diplomacy remains Trump&rsquo;s preferred first course of action.&nbsp;Leavitt indicated that messages being received privately from Iranian officials differ from the regime&rsquo;s public stance, and the administration wants to explore those back-channel communications before making a final decision. &ldquo;Diplomacy is always the first option for the president,&rdquo; she said.&nbsp;The comments come amid mounting international furor over protests in Tehran. While there is no official confirmation of the number of people killed, the estimate provided by Norway-based Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO) suggests that at least 648 protesters in Iran have been killed.&nbsp;Although Trump and senior US officials have not ordered military action, the administration has been discussing a wide range of responses, including further sanctions and other pressure tactics, alongside possible cyber operations or assistance to opposition forces. Military strikes remain one of several options under consideration should diplomatic efforts fail or conditions worsen.&nbsp;According to media reports, Trump will consult with senior national security advisers on how best to balance diplomatic channels with the potential for stronger action, underscoring the fragile and uncertain moment in US-Iran relations.

Americas

Press Secretary Leavitt says messages being received privately from Iranian officials differ from the regime’s public stance, and the administration wants to explore those back-channel communications before making a final decision.

US may carry out air strikes on Iran: White House

ISLAMABAD: China has rejected India&rsquo;s claim over the Shaksgam Valley in the disputed Kashmir region and defended its infrastructure projects there, saying the territory belongs to China and that development activities are being carried out on its own land, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said at a press briefing in Beijing on Monday. Mao said it was &ldquo;fully justified&rdquo; for China to undertake infrastructure construction in the area and dismissed India&rsquo;s objections to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). &ldquo;The territory you mentioned belongs to China. It&rsquo;s fully justified for China to conduct infrastructure construction on its own territory,&rdquo; the spokesperson said. &ldquo;China and Pakistan in the 1960s signed a boundary agreement and delimited the boundary between the two countries, which is the right of China and Pakistan as sovereign countries.&rdquo; India&#39;s claim Earlier this month, India criticized Chinese infrastructure projects in the Shaksgam Valley and reiterated that it does not recognize CPEC, asserting that the area is part of Indian territory. At a news conference in New Delhi on Jan. 9, the Indian ministry of external affairs had claimed that the Shaksgam Valley is Indian territory and described the 1963 China-Pakistan boundary agreement as &ldquo;illegal and invalid.&rdquo; Indian officials also said New Delhi reserves the right to take necessary measures to safeguard its interests, according to the Times of India. The Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson&nbsp;rejected that position, saying the boundary agreement and CPEC do not affect China&rsquo;s stance on the Kashmir dispute. &ldquo;The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, as an economic cooperation initiative, aims at promoting local socioeconomic development and improving people&rsquo;s livelihood,&rdquo; she said, adding that China&rsquo;s position on the Kashmir issue &ldquo;remains unchanged.&rdquo; China and Pakistan launched the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor project in 2015&nbsp;as a flagship economic cooperation initiative to boost connectivity, trade, and development between the two countries. The project aims to connect Pakistan&#39;s Gwadar Port in the south to China&rsquo;s northwestern region of Xinjiang via a network of highways, railways, and pipelines.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning speaking at a press briefing on January 12, 2026. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China)

Asia

Beijing rejects India’s objections to its Shaksgam Valley activities as 'fully justified,' asserting the territory belongs to China and that CPEC projects do not alter its position on the Kashmir dispute.

China rejects Indian claim on Shaksgam Valley, defends China-Pakistan corridor

SYDNEY: Australian firefighters warned people on Monday to prepare for more bushfires in a &quot;high-risk&quot; summer, after blazes killed one person and incinerated more than 350 buildings in the southeast. Weather conditions have eased since strong winds and temperatures topping 40 &deg;C fueled dozens of wildfires in southeastern Australia&#39;s Victoria, which declared a state of disaster on Saturday. But officials said 12 major fires were still burning across the state. Country Fire Authority chief officer Jason Heffernan said another &quot;heating event&quot; was expected towards the end of January, though its intensity was uncertain. &quot;We are early in the high-risk weather season,&quot; Heffernan told a news conference. &quot;There&#39;s been a lot of fire in the landscape. Much work will be done between now and then to contain these fires,&quot; he said. &quot;Whilst we join with the community in the rebuilding and the relief and recovery of the fires that have been, we need to turn our minds to the fires that could be as the season continues.&quot; More than 350 structures, including over 65 homes, have been lost so far in the state, officials said, with the number likely to rise as fire damage is assessed. One person died in a fire near the town of Longwood, about two hours&#39; drive north of the state capital Melbourne, police say. Emergency Management Commissioner Tim Wiebusch said weather conditions had become more favourable for firefighters. &quot;But that doesn&#39;t mean that the risk is over,&quot; he said. &quot;Whilst the conditions are easing in some parts of the state, even the slightest of winds are still causing those fires to move around.&quot; High temperatures and dry winds combined last week to form some of the most dangerous bushfire conditions since the &quot;Black Summer&quot; blazes. The Black Summer bushfires raged across Australia&#39;s eastern seaboard from late 2019 to early 2020, razing millions of hectares, destroying thousands of homes, and blanketing cities in noxious smoke. Australia&#39;s climate has warmed by an average of 1.51 &deg;C since 1910, researchers have found, fuelling increasingly frequent extreme weather patterns over both land and sea.

This handout photo from the CFA Wandong Fire Brigade, posted on their Facebook page, taken on January 7, 2026, and released on January 8, shows a bushfire burning near the town of Longwood, northern Victoria. (AFP)

Wildlife

A high-risk summer is expected, as 12 major blazes burn in Victoria, where fires have killed one person, destroyed over 350 buildings, and followed extreme heat and strong winds last week.

Australian firefighters warn of 'high-risk' bushfire season

NEW DELHI: Afghanistan&#39;s Taliban government has appointed its first senior official in India since the group returned to power in 2021, charged with leading their embassy in Delhi. India has not officially recognized the Taliban government, but the move signals a deepening engagement, with New Delhi seeking to exploit divisions between Islamabad and Kabul. Noor Ahmad Noor, a Taliban foreign ministry official, assumed responsibility as charge d&#39;affaires and has already held meetings with Indian officials, the embassy said in a statement. &quot;Both sides emphasized the importance of strengthening Afghanistan&ndash;India relations,&quot; the Afghan Embassy said, in a post on X late Monday. India has not commented, but the Afghan embassy posted a photograph of Noor with senior Indian foreign ministry official Anand Prakash. The Taliban&#39;s strict interpretation of Islamic law may appear an unlikely match for Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s Hindu nationalist government, but India has sought to seize the opening. Nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan fought a brief but deadly clash in May 2025, their worst confrontation in decades. The appointment is significant for the Taliban, which has sought to reclaim control over Afghanistan&#39;s overseas diplomatic missions as part of a broader push for international legitimacy. In October, India said it would upgrade its technical mission in Afghanistan to a full embassy. Russia is the only country to officially recognize the Afghan Taliban government.

The Chargé d’Affaires of the Embassy of Afghanistan in New Delhi, Noor Ahmad Noor, met with Anand Prakash, Joint Secretary of the Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran (PAI) Division at the Ministry of External Affairs of India. (X/AFGEmbassyINDIA)

India

Afghanistan

The Taliban have appointed their first senior official in India since the group returned to power in 2021, charged with leading their embassy in Delhi.

Afghan Taliban envoy posted to Indian capital

SYDNEY: Australia said on Tuesday its ambassador to the United States is leaving after a three-year tenure overshadowed by President Donald Trump&#39;s verdict on him: &quot;I don&#39;t like you either.&quot; Former prime minister Kevin Rudd, who departs his post on March 31 to become president of the Asia Society think tank in New York, had sharply criticized Trump while he was out of office. Trump expressed disdain for Rudd during a televised US-Australia meeting at the White House in October last year, prompting some Australian opposition calls for his posting to be ended. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said it was &quot;entirely&quot; Rudd&#39;s decision to step down a year early. &quot;Kevin Rudd has a work ethic unlike anyone I have ever met. He has worked tirelessly. He&#39;s moving on to a role that he believes is pivotal,&quot; he told reporters. The prime minister praised Rudd for his &quot;tireless work&quot; for Australia, including lobbying in favor of the so-called AUKUS agreement to equip Australia&#39;s navy with nuclear-powered submarines. Before taking up his post in Washington, Rudd had described Trump as the &quot;most destructive president in history&quot; and a &quot;traitor to the West&quot; who &quot;drags America and democracy through the mud.&quot; Rudd deleted the online comments after Trump won back the White House in November 2024. At the White House meeting in October, the US president suggested Rudd might want to apologize for his earlier remarks. Turning to Albanese at his side, Trump said, &quot;Where is he? Is he still working for you?&quot; Albanese smiled awkwardly before gesturing to Rudd, who was sitting directly in front of them. Rudd began to explain, &quot;That was before I took this position, Mr. President.&quot; Trump cut him off, saying, &quot;I don&#39;t like you either. I don&#39;t. And I probably never will.&quot; Rudd, a Mandarin-speaking former career diplomat, had been tapped as ambassador during Joe Biden&#39;s presidency, with Australia hoping his expertise on China would gain him influence in Washington.

Australasia

Prime Minister Albanese says it was "entirely" Rudd's decision to step down a year early; Trump has expressed disdain for Rudd during a televised US-Australia meeting at the White House in October last year, prompting some Australian opposition calls for his posting to be ended.

Australia's ambassador to US leaving post, marked by Trump rift

PARIS: US President Donald Trump announced a 25% tariff on any country doing business with Iran, increasing pressure even as a human rights group released casualty estimates of protesters. There is no official confirmation of the number of people killed. The estimate provided by Norway-based Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO) suggests that at least 648 protesters in Iran had been killed, including nine people under the age of 18. Trump, who has repeatedly threatened Iran with military intervention, said in a social media post on Monday that the new levies would &quot;immediately&quot; hit the Islamic Republic&#39;s trading partners who also do business with the United States. &quot;This Order is final and conclusive,&quot; he wrote, without specifying who they will affect. Iran&#39;s main trading partners are China, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and Iraq, according to the economic database Trading Economics. Trump has been mulling his options on Iran, which has been roiled by more than two weeks of demonstrations that have defied a near-total internet blackout and lethal force. Sparked by economic grievances, the nationwide protests have grown into one of the biggest challenges yet to the theocratic system that has ruled Iran since the 1979 Islamic revolution ousted the shah. Iranian authorities have blamed foreign interference for stoking the unrest and staged their own nationwide counter-rallies. The White House said Monday that Trump remained &quot;unafraid&quot; to deploy military force against Iran, but was pursuing diplomacy as a first resort. &#39;Four-front war&#39;&nbsp;Iran on Monday sought to regain control of the streets with mass nationwide rallies that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei hailed as proof that the protest movement had been defeated. In power since 1989 and now 86, Khamenei said the pro-government turnout was a &quot;warning&quot; to the United States. &quot;These massive rallies, full of determination, have thwarted the plan of foreign enemies that were supposed to be carried out by domestic mercenaries,&quot; he said, according to state TV, referring to pro-government demonstrations. In the capital Tehran, state TV showed people brandishing the national flag and prayers read for victims of what the government has termed &quot;riots.&quot; At Enghelab (Revolution) Square, parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf told the crowd that Iran was fighting a &quot;four-front war,&quot; listing economic war, psychological war, &quot;military war&quot; with the United States and Israel, and &quot;today a war against terrorists&quot; &mdash; a reference to the protests. Flanked by the slogans &quot;Death to Israel, Death to America&quot; in Persian, he vowed the Iranian military would teach Trump &quot;an unforgettable lesson&quot; if attacked. But Trump said Sunday that Iran&#39;s leadership had called him seeking &quot;to negotiate.&quot; Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told a conference of foreign ambassadors in Tehran that Iran was &quot;not seeking war but is fully prepared for war,&quot; while calling for &quot;fair&quot; negotiations. Foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said a channel of communication was open between Araghchi and Trump&#39;s special envoy Steve Witkoff despite the lack of diplomatic relations. Reza Pahlavi, the US-based son of Iran&#39;s ousted shah who has been vocal in calling for protests, told CBS News the government was &quot;trying to trick the world into thinking that (it) is ready to negotiate once again.&quot; He said Trump was &quot;a man that means what he says and says what he means&quot; and who &quot;knows what&#39;s at stake.&quot; &quot;The red line that was drawn has definitely been surpassed by this regime.&quot; &#39;Respect for their rights&#39;&nbsp;State outlets were at pains to present a picture of calm returning in Tehran, broadcasting images of smooth-flowing traffic. Tehran Governor Mohammad-Sadegh Motamedian insisted in televised comments that &quot;the number of protests is decreasing.&quot; Iranian state media has said dozens of members of the security forces have been killed, with their funerals turning into large pro-government rallies. The government has declared three days of national mourning for those killed. The European Union has voiced support for the protesters and on Monday said it was &quot;looking into&quot; imposing additional sanctions on Iran over the repression of demonstrations. The European Parliament also announced that it had banned all Iranian diplomats and representatives from its premises. French President Emmanuel Macron issued a statement condemning &quot;the state violence that indiscriminately targets Iranian women and men who courageously demand respect for their rights.&quot; Tehran&#39;s ally Russia, for its part, slammed what it called attempts by &quot;foreign powers&quot; to interfere in Iran, state media reported, in Moscow&#39;s first reaction to the protests.

Iran's main trading partners are China, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Iraq; tariffs announcement comes as Trump mulls possible military action against Iran over the protests.

Trump announces tariffs on Iran trade partners as protest toll rises

BEIRUT: The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon said an Israeli tank fired near its peacekeepers on Monday, and warned that such attacks were becoming &quot;disturbingly common.&quot; UNIFIL has repeatedly reported Israeli fire near or towards its personnel in recent months, and less than two weeks ago, said gunfire from an Israeli position hit close to peacekeepers twice. &quot;UNIFIL peacekeepers observed two Merkava tanks move&quot; from an Israeli army position inside Lebanese territory &quot;further into Lebanon&quot; on Monday, the force said in a statement. UNIFIL has acted as a buffer between Israel and Lebanon for decades, and recently has been working with Lebanon&#39;s army to support a year-old ceasefire between Israel and fighter group Hezbollah. Under the November 2024 truce, Israel was to withdraw its forces from south Lebanon, but it has kept them in five areas it deems strategic and carries out regular strikes on Lebanon, usually saying it is targeting Hezbollah sites and operatives. &quot;The peacekeepers requested through liaison channels that the tanks stop their activity,&quot; the statement said. Later, &quot;one of the tanks fired three shells from its main gun, with two impacts approximately 150 meters away from the peacekeepers,&quot; UNIFIL said, adding that &quot;as the peacekeepers moved away for safety, they were continuously tracked with a laser from the tanks&quot;. The statement reported no casualties but noted UNIFIL had informed the Israeli army of its activities in the area in advance. &quot;Attacks like these on identifiable peacekeepers ... are becoming disturbingly common,&quot; the statement said, urging a stop to such incidents. It called them &quot;a serious violation&quot; of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended a 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah and forms the basis of the current truce. Under heavy US pressure and fears of expanded Israeli strikes, Beirut has committed to disarming Hezbollah, and last week, Lebanon&#39;s army said it had finished doing so in the area near the border. UNIFIL&#39;s final mandate ends this year, and the force is to leave Lebanon in 2027.

Middle East

UNIFIL says "attacks like these on identifiable peacekeepers ... are becoming disturbingly common"; UNIFIL has acted as a buffer between Israel and Lebanon for decades, and recently has been working with Lebanon's army to support a year-old ceasefire between Israel and the fighter group Hezbollah.

UN force says Israeli tank fired near peacekeepers in Lebanon 

ISLAMABAD: China has confirmed that its exported J-10CE fighter jet has achieved its first combat victory, successfully shooting down multiple enemy aircraft during an aerial engagement without suffering any losses, marking a significant milestone for the Chinese-made combat aircraft. In a statement issued on Monday, China&rsquo;s State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense (SASTIND) said the J-10CE&rsquo;s battlefield performance demonstrated the aircraft&rsquo;s operational effectiveness in real combat conditions outside China. &ldquo;The J-10CE fighter jet, exported by China, achieved its first combat success abroad by downing multiple aircraft without incurring any losses,&rdquo; the Chinese defense authority said. The confirmation comes in the wake of the brief but intense Pakistan-India military confrontation in May, during which air power played a central role. Pakistan has previously stated that its air force downed several Indian aircraft during the escalation, while China&rsquo;s acknowledgement underscores the growing operational credibility of its defense exports and Pakistan&rsquo;s reliance on advanced Chinese military technology. According to the US Department of War, Pakistan is currently the only country operating the Chinese-built J-10C fighter jet. The report noted that as of May 2025, 20 additional aircraft were delivered to Pakistan, raising the Pakistan Air Force&rsquo;s J-10CE fleet to 36 jets since 2020. China&rsquo;s state news agency Xinhua described the J-10CE as an &ldquo;all-weather, single-engine, single-seat, multi-role fighter jet&rdquo; independently developed by China to meet modern aerial warfare requirements. Commenting on the aircraft&rsquo;s performance, the Chinese side said the combat outcome reflected both reliability and competitiveness. The J-10CE&rsquo;s &ldquo;combat success abroad fully demonstrates its practicality and usability, highlights its strong competitiveness compared to similar foreign equipment, and promotes Chinese aviation products in the international market,&rdquo; Xinhua quoted Chinese defense officials as saying. Pakistan has stated that during the May confrontation, it shot down seven Indian fighter jets, including three French-made Rafale aircraft. The conflict followed an attack on civilians in Indian-occupied Kashmir, an incident India blamed on Pakistan. A charge Islamabad categorically rejected and has offered &ldquo;independent investigation.&rdquo; The four-day conflict marked the deadliest cross-border fighting since 2019, involving missile, drone, and artillery strikes, before both sides agreed to a US-brokered ceasefire. Addressing the United Nations General Assembly in September, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Pakistani forces had reduced Indian aircraft to &ldquo;scrap and dust.&rdquo; India, meanwhile, claimed it had shot down five Pakistani fighter jets. A claim Pakistan&rsquo;s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif dismissed as &ldquo;comical.&rdquo; Islamabad and Beijing are long-term strategic allies, bound by strong bilateral ties, deep defense cooperation, and a shared commitment to regional stability.

China

In a statement, the Chinese defense authority says its exported J-10CE fighter jet achieves first combat victory, downing multiple enemy aircraft without losses during combat.

China confirms J-10CE ‘first combat victory’ in Pakistan-India May conflict

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Monday strongly condemned a terrorist attack in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa&rsquo;s Tank district that resulted in the martyrdom of police personnel. He reaffirmed the government&rsquo;s resolve to eliminate terrorism from the country, according to an official statement.&nbsp;The attack targeted a police vehicle in the Tank area, killing five police officials, including an Additional Station House Officer (SHO). An investigation into the incident has been ordered and authorities have been directed to bring those responsible to justice at the earliest, according to Radio Pakistan.&nbsp;In his statement, the prime minister offered prayers for the elevation of the martyrs&rsquo; ranks and expressed condolences to the bereaved families.<div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; line-height: 2;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-1" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-1&features=eyJ0ZndfdGltZWxpbmVfbGlzdCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOltdLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X2ZvbGxvd2VyX2NvdW50X3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9iYWNrZW5kIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19yZWZzcmNfc2Vzc2lvbiI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZm9zbnJfc29mdF9pbnRlcnZlbnRpb25zX2VuYWJsZWQiOnsiYnVja2V0Ijoib24iLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X21peGVkX21lZGlhXzE1ODk3Ijp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRyZWF0bWVudCIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZXhwZXJpbWVudHNfY29va2llX2V4cGlyYXRpb24iOnsiYnVja2V0IjoxMjA5NjAwLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X3Nob3dfYmlyZHdhdGNoX3Bpdm90c19lbmFibGVkIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19kdXBsaWNhdGVfc2NyaWJlc190b19zZXR0aW5ncyI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdXNlX3Byb2ZpbGVfaW1hZ2Vfc2hhcGVfZW5hYmxlZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdmlkZW9faGxzX2R5bmFtaWNfbWFuaWZlc3RzXzE1MDgyIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRydWVfYml0cmF0ZSIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfbGVnYWN5X3RpbWVsaW5lX3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9mcm9udGVuZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9fQ%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2010691992112562181&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2F&sessionId=8f9e95ef61cc881f44a56b9642bae75afec05f34&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 921px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;"></iframe></div></div>&nbsp;&ldquo;The Government of Pakistan remains committed to the complete elimination of terrorism from the country,&rdquo; the prime minister stated.&nbsp;President Asif Ali Zardari also expressed deep grief and sorrow over the martyrdom of police personnel in the attack, according to a separate statement on X.&nbsp;The president paid tribute to the fallen officers for their bravery and service to the nation. <div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; line-height: 2;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-0&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2010658334727458837&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2F&sessionId=8f9e95ef61cc881f44a56b9642bae75afec05f34&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 416px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;"></iframe></div></div>&nbsp;&ldquo;May Allah Almighty grant the martyrs an exalted place in His eternal mercy and grant fortitude (Sabr-e-Jameel) to the bereaved families,&rdquo; President Zardari said.&nbsp;Meanwhile, Inspector General of Police Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Zulfiqar Hameed said the &ldquo;cowardly terrorist attacks in Tank and Lucky Marwat cannot, under any circumstances, shake the resolve of our police personnel,&rdquo; according to KP police&#39;s official Facebook page.&nbsp;&ldquo;The martyred officers and soldiers laid down their lives in the line of duty; the entire force takes immense pride in them,&rdquo; the IGP said, adding that the morale of the police force remains high.&nbsp;He stated that the sacrifices of the martyrs would never go in vain and assured that the families of the fallen officers would be provided &ldquo;every possible cooperation and full support.&rdquo; The IGP further confirmed that investigations had been accelerated and those involved would be brought to justice soon.&nbsp;Separately, District Police Officer Lucky Marwat Nazir Khan said the police remained firm against militant elements.<div class="fr-embed"><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fpakhtunkhwapolice%2Fposts%2Fpfbid0c7V4FofrVAvXESbwjqcJKcVo5Lwe6QY2crUc6zRKFoD6B2cu6f5SJumVf1FEToZtl&show_text=true&width=500" width="500" height="250" style="border:none;overflow:hidden;" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share"></iframe></div>&nbsp;&ldquo;These cowardly acts by Fitna al-Khawarij cannot dampen our morale. The Lucky Marwat Police are responding forcefully to every challenge and are prepared to make every possible sacrifice for the protection of the public,&rdquo; he stated in a Facebook post by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police.&nbsp;Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also strongly condemned the blast near the police vehicle in Tank and paid tribute to the five martyred officers.&nbsp;&ldquo;The brave soldiers of the police have sacrificed their &lsquo;today&rsquo; for the peaceful &lsquo;tomorrow&rsquo; of the nation,&rdquo; the interior minister said on X, adding that the sacrifices of the martyrs would always be remembered.<div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-2" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-2&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2010658332152152415&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2F&sessionId=8f9e95ef61cc881f44a56b9642bae75afec05f34&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 368px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;"></iframe></div></div>&nbsp;&ldquo;The martyrs are our pride, and the nation can never forget their timeless sacrifices,&rdquo; Naqvi stated.

Security

Pakistan’s leadership condemned a terrorist attack in KP’s Tank district that killed five police personnel. The prime minister ordered an investigation as the president, interior minister and police vowed justice and reaffirmed resolve against terrorism.

President, PM condemn attack on police, vow eradication of terrorists

Pakistan TV Satellite

ISLAMABAD: Iran&rsquo;s Ambassador to Pakistan, Reza Amiri Moghaddam, has said the United States and Israel are orchestrating unrest inside Iran, warning that any foreign aggression would be met with a strong and decisive response. In an exclusive interview with Pakistan TV, the ambassador thanked the government, media and people of Pakistan for closely and sensitively following developments in Iran. He said Iran&rsquo;s security was being threatened through a &ldquo;designed plan&rdquo; involving the US, Israel and terrorist elements, while Iranian security forces and the public were working to maintain law and order. Moghaddam said recent protests were rooted in economic challenges caused by decades-long US sanctions, government reforms related to foreign exchange and subsidy mechanisms for essential goods.&nbsp; He stressed that peaceful protest is a constitutional right in Iran and that the government engaged directly with traders and demonstrators, including meetings held by the interior minister, commerce minister and the president. However, he said the protests were later exploited by hostile foreign actors. The Iranian envoy said that the US and Israel facilitated the infiltration of armed groups from Syria and Iraq under the cover of protests, adding these elements targeted both security personnel and civilians. He said Iran has lost around 100 police and security personnel, adding that terrorist violence, including attacks on women and children, is unacceptable anywhere in the world. Rejecting foreign-backed opposition narratives, the ambassador said public rallies in support of Iran&rsquo;s political system were underway, reflecting what he described as the people&rsquo;s rejection of external interference. On the possibility of military aggression, the ambassador warned that Iran has proven over the past four decades that it will deliver a befitting response to any attack by the US or Israel. He said diplomatic channels with Washington remain open through the Swiss-managed interest protection office, but stressed that Iran will never recognize or negotiate with Israel.

Beyond Borders

In an Exclusive Interview with Pakistan TV, Iranian Envoy Says Security Threats Are Part of a ‘Designed Plan’.

Articles by New York Times