The clampdown on public gatherings was openly defied by clerics and worshippers. Now the government has changed the rules as the holy month is about to begin.
Pakistani authorities have called for a maximum of 5 worshippers in a mosque. Many in the religious community disagree — and the issue will only become more heated as Ramadan approaches.
As incomes dry up for low-paid Pakistanis during the COVID-19 crisis, the government is massively expanding a program that gives cash to the out-of-work. But concerns are being raised about its reach.
In a poor neighborhood in Islamabad, houses are right up against each other, families may live 10 or more in a single room and streets are narrow and crowded.
One Pakistani entrepreneur is making protective gear. A Pakistani lawyer raised thousands of dollars and converted his office into a food storehouse for people in need.
The Tablighi Jamaat, a global missionary group, brought together thousands of Muslim preachers from 80 countries. The Gaza Strip's first cases of coronavirus infection are linked to this gathering.
Copies of a new Urdu edition of Mohammed Hanif's 2008 novel, A Case of Exploding Mangoes, were seized Monday. Rights groups say it's another sign that freedom of expression is threatened in Pakistan.
Defending the former leader, a military spokesperson says that someone who "served the country for over 40 years, fought wars for the defense of the country can surely never be a traitor."
The global program Integrity Icon aims to "name and fame" instead of "name and shame." This week, Pakistan honored government employees who did everything from track down killers to evict squatters.
The lawyers were apparently angered by a now viral incident at the hospital in which an attorney was beaten by doctors after he refused to wait in line at the cardiac facility.
Pollution and global warming are causing glaciers to melt and form unstable lakes in the north of the country. NPR visits a valley where farms were destroyed by glacial floods.
The train caught fire in the eastern province of Punjab after a cooking stove smuggled aboard by a passenger exploded. Some of those killed died while leaping from the moving train, officials said.
The World Health Organization is celebrating the eradication of another strain of the polio virus. Yet major challenges remain in the global effort to get rid of the disease.
In 1948, the Nizam of Hyderabad put 1 million pounds in the overseas bank account of a Pakistani diplomat. It accumulated interest for the next seven decades as his family fought to get it back.
Gulalai Ismail spoke out against sexual assaults committed by Pakistani security forces. She was detained and threatened. Then she disappeared — until last week.
Shaniera Akram, the wife of the legendary Pakistani cricket star Wasim Akram, took a walk on a Karachi beach and saw hazardous medical waste. So she issued a plea for action on social media.
Critics have long contended that Pakistan has offered the Taliban shelter, if not outright support. Now the country is facilitating negotiations between Washington and the Taliban.
Prime Minister Imran Khan's ban on plastic bags in Pakistan goes into effect on Aug. 14. Environmentalists say it's a good idea — but argue that the plan is flawed.
Indian-administered Kashmir is now in its fourth day of a communications blackout, following the government's decision to revoke its special status. Pakistan has downgraded diplomatic ties.
