Portal:Pakistan

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Pakistan face legal and social difficulties compared to non-LGBT persons. Pakistani law prescribes criminal penalties for same-sex sexual acts.

The Pakistani Penal Code of 1860, originally developed under the British Raj, criminalises sodomy with possible penalties of prison sentences from two years to a life sentence and fines. Despite its illegality, homosexual acts are only occasionally prosecuted by authorities, but it's sometimes used to threaten and harass homosexuals under threat of prosecution. Other morality and public order provisions in the Penal Code are used to target LGBT Pakistanis as well. Another greater problem can be vigilate policing and killings by Islamist and terrorist groups. Police may also act illegally and arrest LGBTQ individuals despite the law stating otherwise. (Full article...)

A magnificent view of Mohatta Palace in Karachi. It was built by Shivratan Chandraratan Mohatta, an ambitious self-made Hindu businessman from Marwar as his summer home in the late 1920s (1926 to be exact). The architect of the palace was Agha Ahmed Hussain. However, Mohatta could enjoy this building for only about two decades before political upheaval and the partition of the subcontinent forced him to leave Karachi. Photo credit: Shizhao

• 8 October 2005: The Kashmir earthquake (also known as the South Asia earthquake or the Great Pakistan earthquake) of 2005, was a major earthquake, of which the epicentre was the Pakistan-administered Kashmir. The earthquake occurred at 08:50:38 Pakistan Standard Time (03:50:38 UTC) on 8 October 2005. It registered 7.6 on the richter scale making it a major earthquake similar in intensity to the 1935 Quetta earthquake, the 2001 Gujarat earthquake, and the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. The Pakistani government's official death toll was 73,276, while officials say nearly 1,400 people died in Jammu and Kashmir and fourteen people in Afghanistan. Most of the affected people lived in mountainous regions with access impeded by landslides that blocked the roads, leaving an estimated 3.3 million homeless in Pakistan.

Clickable map of the four provinces and three federal territories of Pakistan.

Provinces: Balochistan Khyber Pukhtunkhwa (KPK) Punjab Sindh Balochistan and KPK also have Provincially Administered Tribal Areas(PATA) which are being developed into regular districts. Territories: Islamabad Capital Territory Federally Administered Tribal Areas Pakistani-administered portions of the Kashmir: Azad Kashmir Gilgit-Baltistan

• Layout: Pakistan noticeboard, Geography,
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Azad Jammu and Kashmir abbreviated as AJK and colloquially referred to as simply Azad Kashmir, is a region administered by Pakistan as a nominally self-governing entity and constituting the western portion of the larger Kashmir region, which has been the subject of a dispute between India and Pakistan since 1947. Azad Kashmir also shares borders with the Pakistani provinces of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to the south and west, respectively. On its eastern side, Azad Kashmir is separated from the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir (part of Indian-administered Kashmir) by the Line of Control (LoC), which serves as the de facto border between the Indian- and Pakistani-controlled parts of Kashmir. Geographically, it covers a total area of 13,297 km² (5,134 sq mi) and has a total population of 4,045,366 as per the 2017 national census.

The territory has a parliamentary form of government modelled after the British Westminster system, with the city of Muzaffarabad serving as its capital. The President of AJK is the constitutional head of state, while the Prime Minister, supported by a Council of Ministers, is the chief executive. The unicameral Azad Kashmir Legislative Assembly elects both the Prime Minister and President. The territory has its own Supreme Court and a High Court, while the Government of Pakistan's Ministry of Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan serves as a link between itself and Azad Jammu and Kashmir's government, although the autonomous territory is not represented in the Parliament of Pakistan. (Full article...)

• ... that Rehri Goth, one of the poor neighbourhoods on the outskirts of Karachi, is one of the oldest settlements dating back to the 13th century? (31 March 2024)

• ... that Burushaski, a predominantly in northern Gilgit-Baltistan spoken rather than written language, has not more than 120,000 native speakers? (9 July 2023)

• ... that the MagnifiScience Centre in Karachi is the only science center in the country, and, unlike a museum, visitors are encouraged to touch and learn from the interaction with the exhibits? (11 June 2023)

• ... that Ruth Katherina Martha Pfau, the famous German–Pakistani Catholic nun who devoted more than 55 years of her life to fighting leprosy was the first Christian and first non-Muslim to have a state funeral in Pakistan? (2 September 2021)

• ... that Lahore Metrobus open in 2013, was modelled after the Istanbul Bus Rapid Transit System. Plans were developed in the last quarter of 2011 by both local and Turkish experts.^[1] (31 August 2021)

• ... that Lahore Knowledge Park is an actualization of Triple Helix configuration; a framework to create synergies between government, academia and industry to operate into an interactive rather than linear model for the establishment of social formats and entities to promote commercial innovation and R&D. ^[2] (27 January 2017)

• ... that Karachi Kings is the most expensive franchise team of Pakistan Super League? (04 December 2015)

• ... that Sialkot is the world's largest producer of hand-sewed footballs, with local factories manufacturing 40~60 million footballs a year, amounting to roughly 60% of world production. (4 December 2017)

• ... that Hafiz Muhammad Fazal Azim Taha, the famous living Pakistani poet said about Iqbal's work that "He not only dreamed for Pakistan but also got the nation up for their rights". This famous saying is regarded as Iqbal's definition. (14 July 2014)

• ... that Tajammul Hussain Malik headed an unsuccessful coup attempt against Pakistani dictator General Zia-ul-Haq in 1980? (22 September 2009)

• ... that the Legal Framework Order, 1970, issued by Gen. Yahya Khan, set the rules for the first direct popular elections in the history of Pakistan? (14 September 2009)

• ... that in 1881 in the village of Bakhshali in northern Pakistan, the Bakhshali manuscript, the oldest surviving example of Indian mathematics, was discovered written on birch bark? (1 September 2008)

• ... that the original images of Lord Swaminarayan at the Shri Swaminarayan Temple in Karachi, Pakistan were removed and taken to India during the turbulent times of its partition? (1 September 2008)

• ... that Saudi Arabia promised to supply 50,000 barrels of free oil per day to help Pakistan if economic sanctions were imposed after its 1998 nuclear tests? (1 September 2008)

• ... that in a major improvement in bilateral relations in 2008, Pakistan proposed sharing nuclear technology with Bangladesh? (31 August 2008)

• ... that Abdur Rashid Kardar, a pioneer of the Pakistani film industry in Lahore, was a calligraphist who prepared posters for foreign-made films? (11 July 2008)

• ... that the Nigar Awards are the oldest awards of merit in the Pakistani film industry? (10 July 2008)

• ... that Syed Wajid Ali was the longest serving President of the Pakistan Olympic Association with a tenure of 26 years? (7 July 2008)

• ... that the 1948 film Teri Yaad was the first feature film to be released in Pakistan after the partition of India? (6 July 2008)

• ... that The Edhi Foundation, founded by Edhi, runs the world's largest volunteer ambulance service operating 1,800 of them with upto 6,000 a day in Karachi alone. (4 December 2017)

For up to date, in depth news coverage on Pakistan, see Wikinews:Portal:Pakistan. Wikinews is a sister project of Wikipedia, which deals with journalism of current events. They are both operated by the Wikimedia Foundation.

3 July 2024 – Insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Five people, including former senator Hidayat Ullah, are killed when their vehicle en route to an election rally strikes a roadside bomb in Bajaur District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. (AP)

1 July 2024 – Blasphemy in Pakistan; Jaranwala church arsons

A court in Sahiwal, Punjab, Pakistan sentences a Christian man to death for blasphemy against Muslims on social media after anti-Christian mobs burned down dozens of homes and churches in Jaranwala, Punjab, in August. (AP)

27 June 2024 – 2024 Pakistan heat wave

At least 568 people have died from heat-related illnesses due to extreme temperatures and humidity in southern Pakistan. (The Independent) (BBC News)

21 June 2024 – Insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

An IED kills five Pakistan Army personnel in Kurram District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. (Arab News)

20 June 2024 –

A tourist accused of desecrating the Quran is removed from a police station in Swat District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, by a mob who beat him to death before setting his corpse on fire. (Al Arabiya)

11 June 2024 –

The World Bank approves $1 billion for the construction of the Dasu Dam in northwest Pakistan. (Al-Arabiya)

“	People who have no hold over their process of thinking are likely to be ruined by liberty of thought. If thought is immature, liberty of thought becomes a method of converting men into animals.	”
— Allama Iqbal (National Poet of Pakistan)