Web Desk

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will call for the full implementation of the Gaza ceasefire and complete Israeli withdrawal from occupied Palestinian territories during the upcoming Coordination Meeting of Arab-Islamic Foreign Ministers in Istanbul, the Foreign Office said on Sunday.&nbsp;In an official statement, the Foreign Office confirmed that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar will undertake a one-day visit to Istanbul on November 3 at the invitation of Turkish foreign minister.&nbsp;&ldquo;This meeting is part of ongoing diplomatic engagement following the Gaza Peace Agreement signed in Sharm El-Sheikh,&rdquo; the Foreign Office spokesperson said, noting that Pakistan has been working alongside seven other Arab-Islamic states to support the peace initiative.&nbsp;According to the statement, Pakistan will &ldquo;emphasize the need for the full implementation of the ceasefire agreement, the complete Israeli withdrawal from the Occupied Palestinian Territory, especially Gaza, as well as the provision of unfettered humanitarian assistance to the Palestinians and the reconstruction of Gaza.&rdquo;&nbsp;The spokesperson added that Pakistan will reaffirm its longstanding stance on the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state.&nbsp;&ldquo;Pakistan will reiterate the need for collective efforts aimed at achieving an independent, viable, and contiguous State of Palestine, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital, based on pre-1967 borders, in accordance with relevant UN resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative,&rdquo; the statement read.&nbsp;The Foreign Office stressed that Pakistan remains firmly committed to safeguarding Palestinian rights.&nbsp;&ldquo;Pakistan has been, and will continue to be, committed to efforts to restore peace, justice, and dignity to the Palestinian people, as well as to ensure the realization of their right to self-determination,&rdquo; it said.

Middle East

Asia

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar will attend an Arab-Islamic coordination meeting in Istanbul to press for full Gaza ceasefire implementation, Israeli withdrawal, humanitarian aid, reconstruction, and renewed efforts toward an independent Palestinian state with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.

Pakistan to press Gaza ceasefire implementation at Istanbul ministerial meeting

Faraz Saeed

LAHORE: On a late afternoon in Lahore, as the sun dipped behind Gulberg&rsquo;s glass storefronts, 23-year-old Meerab settled into her favorite corner of a crowded caf&eacute;. A cappuccino steamed in front of her, laptop open, tote bag slouched at her feet. Outside, the city felt rushed and unpredictable, but inside the caf&eacute; she found something steady. &ldquo;I think coffee gives me a way to breathe,&rdquo; she told Pakistan TV Digital, her hands wrapped around the warm ceramic cup. &ldquo;It wasn&rsquo;t just a drink. It was a pace, a rhythm, a space to think.&rdquo; Meerab was part of a generation that had shaped Lahore&rsquo;s fast-growing caf&eacute; culture, a shift that had turned coffee houses from occasional hangouts into daily anchors for studying, working, and gathering. Across the city, cappuccinos accompanied homework sessions, cold brews fueled freelance deadlines, and flat whites spilled into long after-hours conversations. For decades, Pakistan had been a tea country, its identity steeped in dhaba culture and shared cups of doodh patti. But today&rsquo;s urban youth, nearly 60% of whom were under 30, had leaned toward coffee not just for taste, but for identity. &ldquo;It became a lifestyle,&rdquo; Meerab said. &ldquo;A caf&eacute; was where friendships lived, where work happened, where ideas started.&rdquo; Culture brewing beyond the cupThe rise of Lahore&rsquo;s coffee scene had not happened overnight. Global chains like Tim Hortons and Second Cup had amplified the trend, but the groundwork had been laid earlier. First with Dunkin&rsquo; Donuts in the early 2000s, then Espresso in 2006, and later a wave of locally founded caf&eacute;s. What defined today&rsquo;s trend was not novelty, but cultural expression. Among those shaping the shift was Third Culture Coffee, a Pakistani caf&eacute; brand that became closely associated with Lahore&rsquo;s young creative crowd. &ldquo;Pakistan was predominantly a tea-drinking nation,&rdquo; Suleiman Ghaznavi, co-founder of Third Culture Coffee, told Pakistan TV Digital. &ldquo;But in recent years, the younger generations shifted to coffee, maybe because it was cooler, at least that was the perception. And since nearly 60% of Pakistan&rsquo;s population was under 30, that shift in taste was only going to grow.&rdquo; For many like Meerab, the caf&eacute; became less of a beverage stop and more of an extension of self. Finding identity in a cupEven the name Third Culture Coffee reflected that evolution. &ldquo;The term third culture was originally used to describe children who grew up outside their home culture, adapting to different worlds,&rdquo; Ghaznavi explained. &ldquo;We applied that to coffee,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;In coffee, there were waves, and we were in the third wave, which focused on specialty coffee: high-quality beans, freshly roasted, and knowing where they came from.&rdquo; &ldquo;That was what Third Culture stood for.&rdquo; His co-founder, Suleiman Khan, said the caf&eacute; boom had been inevitable.&ldquo;There were a lot of caf&eacute;s that had been successful in Lahore and Karachi,&rdquo; Khan told Pakistan TV Digital. &ldquo;When the success rate was high, the business naturally attracted more clones.&rdquo; He added that caf&eacute;s had economic appeal too. &ldquo;At a restaurant, you might spend Rs5,000 [$17.80] per person. In a caf&eacute;, you might spend Rs1,100 [$3.92], even Rs700 [$2.49] with discounts, and still get the same social experience.&rdquo; Third Culture&rsquo;s own growth mirrored demand: established first as a roastery in 2019, the brand opened its first caf&eacute; in 2022. Within three years, it expanded to multiple branches across Lahore, Islamabad, Karachi, and even Hunza. Meerab&rsquo;s story: coffee as communityMeerab first walked into Third Culture as a college student trying to find purpose and direction. &ldquo;One day, I wanted to hold a small fundraiser for my NGO,&rdquo; she recalled. &ldquo;The owners didn&rsquo;t just agree, they helped me make it happen.&rdquo; The collaboration led to something unexpected: &ldquo;Eventually, I ended up doing a summer internship at the very caf&eacute; I was a regular at.&rdquo; For her, the caf&eacute; was never just a place to drink coffee. &ldquo;Coffee shops were where ideas lived,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;You could come alone, or with everyone. Coffee fit every mood.&rdquo; Tea continued to have its rooted place in Pakistan, familiar, shared, deeply emotional. Coffee was not replacing it. But it was creating a parallel cultural track: one shaped by urban youth, digital connectivity, and global taste. Ignore the trend, and Pakistan risked missing a growing economic and cultural opportunity. Support it, and coffee could become something more than a drink, a contribution to the country&rsquo;s evolving identity.

Culture

Ignore the trend, and Pakistan risks missing a growing economic, cultural opportunity; support it, and coffee could become something more than a drink, a contribution to the country’s evolving identity.



From Chai to Cappuccinos: Lahore’s youth fuel a new coffee identity

BARCELONA: Lamine Yamal and Marcus Rashford struck for Barcelona as they earned a 3-1 win over Elche in La Liga on Sunday to bounce back from last weekend&#39;s Clasico defeat. Ferran Torres was also on target for the Catalan giants, who moved back into second place to trail leaders Real Madrid by five points. Barca continued to struggle in defence and Elche had chances to cause an upset, scoring through Rafa Mir, with the striker also twice hitting the woodwork. Hansi Flick&#39;s Barca have failed to keep a clean sheet in six consecutive league games, in the midst of an injury crisis. The champions were missing Pedri, Gavi, and Joan Garcia among others, but were able to bring on Robert Lewandowski and Dani Olmo following spells out of action. Teenage star Yamal underwhelmed in last week&#39;s defeat by Real Madrid after coming back from a groin issue, but looked more spritely against Elche. &quot;We found our spirit and intensity,&quot; Torres told DAZN. &quot;I think we&#39;re finding last year&#39;s Barca, from the first minute to last we gave everything, and we&#39;ll keep doing that.&quot; Coached by Eder Sarabia, a former Barcelona assistant coach under Quique Setien, the ninth-placed visitors came to play and impressed. Barca took the lead after nine minutes when Alejandro Balde drove forward and fed Yamal in the area. The winger took a touch to set himself and then whipped a clinical finish past former Barca goalkeeper Inaki Pena, a team-mate of his last season. Three minutes later Torres doubled the hosts&#39; advantage, tapping home after Fermin Lopez broke into space down the left and provided an inch-perfect cross. The striker revealed a t-shirt paying tribute to Valencia, his home region, a year on from the deadly flooding which hit Spain&#39;s east coast. Lopez and Rashford fired narrowly off-target while Pena saved from Torres as Barca squandered some presentable chances. Mir, who in October was indicted for sexual assault allegations dating back to 2024, pulled a goal back shortly before half-time. Barca tried to catch the forward offside but he was in his own half when he was played in. Mir bent a shot past Ronald Araujo and Barca goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny and in at the far post. Torres might have scored again before the interval but Pena produced a superb save to tip his strike to safety.&nbsp;&#39;Our identity&#39;Early in the second half Mir clipped the top of the crossbar with a curling effort as Elche battled well. Rashford sealed Barca&#39;s victory with a superb finish after Lopez picked him out with a cross, for his second league goal of the campaign. Veteran goalkeeper Szczesny pushed a Mir effort onto the post to save Barca sweating over their advantage in the final stages. &quot;We have our identity and we show it against all teams. That work has taken us to here and giving that up wouldn&#39;t be good,&quot; said Elche defender Alvaro Nunez, explaining his side&#39;s attacking gameplan. &quot;We were ourselves and the fans are proud of how we played,&quot; said Elche coach Sarabia. &quot;We know that it&#39;s normal that they score goals against us, but we could have got some too.&quot;

Football

Barcelona beat Elche 3-1 with goals from Yamal, Torres and Rashford, bouncing back from their Clasico loss. Despite defensive issues and injuries, Barca climbed to second, while Elche threatened through Rafa Mir, who scored and hit the woodwork.

Barca beat Elche to recover from Clasico loss

WEST PALM: President Donald Trump said Xi Jinping understands the consequences if China invades Taiwan, while refusing to specifically say the United States would defend the island, according to an extract of a CBS News interview broadcast Sunday.&nbsp;Trump said Taiwan &quot;never even came up as a subject&quot; when he met the Chinese president in South Korea on Thursday for their first face-to-face meeting in six years.&nbsp;Asked on CBS&#39;s &quot;60 Minutes&quot; whether he would order US forces into action if China moved militarily on Taiwan, Trump said: &quot;You&#39;ll find out if it happens, and he understands the answer to that.&quot;&nbsp;But Trump declined to spell out what he meant in the interview conducted Friday at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, adding: &quot;I can&#39;t give away my secrets. The other side knows.&quot;&nbsp;The US president claimed that Xi and those close to him had &quot;openly said&quot; that &quot;&#39;we would never do anything while President Trump is president,&#39; because they know the consequences.&quot;&nbsp;China claims self-governing Taiwan as its territory. Under longstanding policy, the United States recognizes only Beijing but provides weapons for the island&#39;s self-defense.&nbsp;The issue continues to provoke tensions, which Trump and Xi appeared to have avoided at their summit, focusing instead on easing the trade war between Washington and Beijing.

Americas

Trump warned that Xi understands the consequences of attacking Taiwan but didn’t reveal if the US would intervene. During their meeting, both leaders discussed easing trade tensions, avoiding the Taiwan issue.
 

Trump says Xi understands 'consequences' if China invades Taiwan

ISLAMABAD: Indian television news is facing a &ldquo;large-scale credibility crisis&rdquo; driven by sensationalism and hyper-nationalist rhetoric, which analysts and journalists say is now damaging India&rsquo;s image across South Asia.&nbsp;In the latest episode of Al Jazeera&rsquo;s The Listening Post released on Sunday, journalist Smita Sharma said the credibility decline stems from Indian television news increasingly drifting away from objectivity. &nbsp;&ldquo;Whether it is sensationalizing a bunch of issues or trying to sound patriotic and hyper-nationalist, the media ends up losing objectivity in its coverage,&rdquo; she said, adding that Indian television news has increasingly become a &ldquo;liability&rdquo; to India&rsquo;s regional interests.&nbsp;She noted that the crisis &ldquo;has spilled over as a larger image problem in the neighborhood, where Indian channels are followed closely.&rdquo;&nbsp;Roman Gautam, editor of Himal Southasian, said this is especially visible in Nepal.&nbsp;&ldquo;If there is one media that should know Nepal better, it is India, because of the depth of the relationship, government to government, people to people,&rdquo; he said.&nbsp;&ldquo;Yet Indian media tends to pay close attention to Nepal only at moments of great crisis, without the nuance or understanding required. When events move fast, it becomes very difficult to report well or make sense of what is happening.&rdquo;<div class="fr-embed youtube-embed"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NLR9D4o2pqc" title="Indian journalists caught in a credibility war in Bangladesh and Nepal | The Listening Post" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen="" style="width: 100%; height: auto; aspect-ratio: 16 / 9; max-width: 100%; display: block;"></iframe>&nbsp;</div>&nbsp;During recent protests in Nepal, Indian journalists were sometimes &ldquo;heckled, chased, even assaulted,&rdquo; as many protesters viewed them as promoting a political agenda on behalf of &ldquo;a larger, more powerful neighbor.&rdquo;&nbsp;Analysts said Indian channels attempted to frame protests as evidence that Nepalese citizens wanted &ldquo;a leader like Modi&rdquo; or a return to a Hindu state, narratives described as &ldquo;completely off the mark&rdquo; compared to realities on the ground.&nbsp;A similar reaction emerged in Bangladesh during the political turmoil that led to the fall of Sheikh Hasina&rsquo;s government.&nbsp;Filmmaker Deepak Kumar Goswami said, &ldquo;As soon as Hasina&rsquo;s regime fell, Indian media started saying Bangladesh had collapsed, that it no longer exists, that its economic foundations have disappeared.&rdquo;&nbsp;He said Indian channels portrayed the protests as driven mainly by &ldquo;extremists, Islamists or reactionary groups,&rdquo; ignoring the role of ordinary citizens. This approach, observers said, appeared patronizing and reinforced perceptions of a &ldquo;political big brother attitude.&rdquo;&nbsp;Analysts argue that the problem originates at home, where media ownership has tightened and critical journalists have been sidelined. Critics say many Indian channels have embraced &ldquo;more noise and less information,&rdquo; relying on aggressive panel debates and nationalist theatrics.&nbsp;One analyst noted that some channels even make false claims during conflict coverage, such as announcing the capture of Pakistani cities. &ldquo;When the media behaves like that, you turn yourself into a circus,&rdquo; they said.&nbsp;The overall effect, analysts warn, is strategic harm. If Indian media is functioning as &ldquo;a propaganda arm or strategic extension of government policy,&rdquo; then it is &ldquo;actually hindering Indian interests in the region.&rdquo;&nbsp;Instead of projecting influence and goodwill, the media now risks &ldquo;alienating the very audiences it seeks to influence.&rdquo;

Indian TV news faces a credibility crisis driven by sensationalism and hyper-nationalism, analysts say, damaging India’s image in Nepal and Bangladesh. Critics warn this domestic media shift now harms regional relationships and undermines India’s strategic influence.

Indian media’s credibility crisis spills over, harming regional influence

NAVI MUMBAI: India captain Harmanpreet Kaur said her team&#39;s breakthrough Women&#39;s World Cup triumph on Sunday was &quot;just the beginning&quot; as they beat South Africa by 52 runs to win the tournament for the first time. Shafali Verma and Deepti Sharma starred with both bat and ball to propel India to the title in front of a jubilant home crowd at Mumbai&#39;s DY Patil Stadium. Hosts India posted 298-7 and then bowled South Africa out for 246 in 45.3 overs with spinner Sharma taking five wickets after earlier contributing a vital run-a-ball 58 in the middle order. Opener Verma top-scored with 87 as India posted a challenging total after they were put in to bat in a final delayed two hours by rain. South Africa skipper Laura Wolvaardt hit a valiant 101, but her departure off Sharma raised the noise at the 45,000-capacity stadium, which had turned into a sea of blue. Sharma took down Nadine de Klerk, for 18, for the final wicket as India celebrated with the thousands of supporters inside the ground and millions outside in the cricket-mad nation. &quot;We wanted to break this barrier,&quot; Kaur said. &quot;And our next plan is to make this a habit. We were waiting for it, now this moment has come. So many big occasions are coming, and we want to keep improving. This is not the end, just the beginning.&quot; The Indian women triumphed at the third attempt after finishing runners-up in 2005 and 2017. India toiled in the league phase and suffered three successive defeats, but clinched the last semi-final spot before knocking out record seven-time champions and heavy favourites Australia. For South Africa, it was a third straight loss in a World Cup final after they finished runners-up in back-to-back editions of the T20 showpiece in 2023 and 2024. South Africa made their first ODI World Cup final despite starting the competition with a 10-wicket thrashing by England after being bundled out for 69. Verma&#39;s golden arm&nbsp;The Proteas had their revenge when they beat England in the semi-final, with Wolvaardt scoring 169. &quot;I could not be prouder of this team for the campaign we had,&quot; said Wolvaardt, who led the tournament batting charts with 571 runs at an average of over 71. &quot;Brilliant cricket throughout, but outplayed today (by India). Unfortunate to be on the losing side, but we will definitely grow from this.&quot; Sharma struck key blows with her off-spin in the final, including the wicket of Annerie Dercksen, who hit 35 in a 61-run partnership with Wolvaardt that gave South Africa hope. But it was Sharma&#39;s double-wicket over to dismiss Wolvaardt and then Chloe Tryon, for nine, that took India to the brink of victory. Kaur&#39;s ploy of giving the ball to Verma, a part-time off-spinner, in the 20th over proved key as the youngster removed Sune Luus. Verma dislodged Marizanne Kapp in the next over to plunge South Africa into deeper trouble, but Wolvaardt kept South Africa in the game until her departure in the 42nd over. Kaur said the decision to hand Verma, who was named player of the match, the ball proved to be the &quot;turning point&quot; of the game. Verma, who was brought into the team for the semi-final after fellow opener Pratika Rawal went down injured, gave India a fast start with the bat. She put on 104 runs with Smriti Mandhana (45) to lay solid foundations at a venue that has produced big runs, including India&#39;s record chase of 339 in the semi-final against Australia. Sharma then added valuable runs with her 18th ODI fifty to crank up the pressure on South Africa despite three wickets for Ayabonga Khaka. Sharma took a tournament-best 22 wickets, also chipping in with 215 runs as a batter, and was named the best player of the World Cup.

Cricket

Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma star with both bat and ball to propel India to the title in front of a jubilant home crowd at Mumbai's DY Patil Stadium.



India lift first Women's World Cup

Maham Khan

ISLAMABAD: In late October 2025, Indian audiences watched a Bollywood hero demand a DNA test of the Taj Mahal. In &ldquo;The Taj Story&rdquo;, the protagonist claims the 17th-century mausoleum was originally a Hindu temple &lsquo;stolen&rsquo; by Muslim rulers. The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has repeatedly rejected this theory, and centuries of historical and architectural records credit Mughal emperor Shah Jahan with commissioning the monument for his wife Mumtaz Mahal. Yet in Narendra Modi&rsquo;s India, history is increasingly subject to reinterpretation. When cinema becomes a vehicle for myth presented as fact, and when millions absorb propaganda as entertainment, it amounts to a systematic reframing of Muslim contributions to the subcontinent, and of the identities of the 200 million Muslims who live in India today. India&rsquo;s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its ideological parent, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), have refined a strategy of cultural revision: rewrite textbooks, challenge monument origins, recast Mughal history as occupation, demolish mosques and build temples in their place, and enlist Bollywood as a mass-scale amplifier. <figure class="fr-media"><img src="https://paktv-assets-7d41fab8.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/uploads/6cb9827c-b2ee-4b47-837d-1d998cce1d25-2.png" alt="2.png" class="fr-fil fr-dib"><figcaption class="caption-cover-image text-sm text-gray-600 italic">Paresh Rawal promoting his movie The Taj Story on X.</figcaption></figure>The temple that never was The claim that the Taj Mahal was once a Shiva temple, &ldquo;Tejo Mahalaya,&rdquo; originated with P.N. Oak&rsquo;s 1965 book. Historians and the ASI have long dismissed the idea. In 2022, India&rsquo;s Supreme Court rejected a petition to open 22 sealed Taj Mahal rooms to search for Hindu idols, calling the request &ldquo;publicity interest litigation.&rdquo; The ASI has stated that the rooms are simple maintenance spaces. Even within India, voices are raising eyebrows over this narrative. Before the film even premiered, many were quick to label it as propaganda.&nbsp; I think this story is pure propaganda,&rdquo; one Indian X user bluntly put it. <figure class="fr-media"><img src="https://paktv-assets-7d41fab8.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/uploads/bd64d234-dec7-4248-a489-c62aad1266b5-3.png" alt="3.png" class="fr-fil fr-dib"><figcaption class="caption-cover-image text-sm text-gray-600 italic">An Indian X user stated that the entire story was &quot;pure propaganda&quot;. (X)</figcaption></figure>Some went further, openly hoping for the movie to flop &quot;badly&rdquo;. <figure class="fr-media"><img src="https://paktv-assets-7d41fab8.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/uploads/e36968de-f78d-4d9a-838b-627efa0fb68d-7.png" alt="7.png" class="fr-fil fr-dib"><figcaption class="caption-cover-image text-sm text-gray-600 italic">(X)</figcaption></figure> One particularly sharp-witted user quipped, &ldquo;Nothing says trusted research like watching a movie [and] rewriting history! 22 mystery chambers, divine murtis, courtroom &lsquo;eyewitnesses&rsquo;&mdash;all checked. Next up: history books sold at the popcorn stand. Taj Mahal facts brought to you by Bollywood, not archaeologists.&rdquo; <figure class="fr-media"><img src="https://paktv-assets-7d41fab8.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/uploads/4d663e50-9c31-4bc8-ab9e-45ee20c20879-9 (this).png" alt="9 (this).png" class="fr-fil fr-dib"><figcaption class="caption-cover-image text-sm text-gray-600 italic">(X)</figcaption></figure> And it wasn&rsquo;t just the narrative itself that irked people. The main actor&#39;s shifting stance didn&rsquo;t go unnoticed. A post unearthed an from October 2017 from Paresh Rawal, where he had stated, &ldquo;Taj Mahal&mdash;Symbol of Love becomes the symbol of Hate!!! Stupid [and] unnecessary [and] sad [and] pathetic controversy.&rdquo; As the&nbsp;user wryly noted, it looks like Mr. Rawal may have had a &quot;change of heart&quot;&hellip; or perhaps a change of narrative. <figure class="fr-media"><img src="https://paktv-assets-7d41fab8.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/uploads/0db6e1bb-c756-4612-a431-f3ae9829f95f-6.png" alt="6.png" class="fr-fil fr-dib"><figcaption class="caption-cover-image text-sm text-gray-600 italic">(X)</figcaption></figure> When myth shapes law The Taj debate evokes an earlier, far more consequential case: the Babri Mosque in Ayodhya. Hindu nationalist groups spent decades claiming the 16th-century mosque stood atop the birthplace of the Hindu deity Ram. In December 1992, tens of thousands demolished the mosque. The violence and riots killed thousands. After a 17-year inquiry, the Liberhan Commission named BJP and RSS leaders &ldquo;responsible&rdquo; for the demolition. But in 2019, the Supreme Court, while declaring the mosque&rsquo;s destruction illegal, awarded the land to a Hindu trust. In January 2024, Modi inaugurated a new temple on the site in a nationally televised ceremony. The message many took from the sequence was clear: demolish first, wait, then receive recognition. Rewriting identity in classrooms The historical revision extends to classrooms. School textbooks have been reworked to minimize the cultural, architectural, and scientific contributions of Muslim dynasties, particularly the Mughals, who shaped Indian identity for centuries. Mughal emperors are increasingly framed as &ldquo;foreign occupiers&rdquo; rather than rulers whose legacy is interwoven with Indian music, language, art, and city-building. Curriculum is not neutral. What children learn determines who they believe belongs. The politics behind the rewrite Proponents of these changes argue they are restoring &ldquo;authentic Hindu history&rdquo; suppressed by earlier scholars and Muslim rule. But the effect is to cast Indian Muslims as historical outsiders in their own country. If the Taj Mahal, a globally recognized symbol of India, is reframed as &ldquo;originally Hindu,&rdquo; then Muslim claims to Indian cultural heritage are weakened. If mosques are reclassified as former temples, then every mosque becomes contested. Pluralism erodes quietly, long before violence erupts, through shifts in who is considered rightful. What is at stake The Taj Mahal itself will not change. Marble does not respond to political pressure. But the idea of India that built the Taj, a state where Hindu, Muslim, Sikh and other communities participated together in shared cultural production, may not survive if historical narrative becomes a tool of exclusion. The transformation unfolding is not simply about monuments or textbooks. It is about defining who belongs in the world&rsquo;s largest democracy. When a nation with 1.4 billion people and one of the world&rsquo;s largest Muslim populations reorders its history around a singular religious identity, the implications are global. Cinema scenes can become political reality. A fictional demand for a monument&rsquo;s DNA test reflects a deeper shift: the attempt to rewrite not just history, but citizenship itself.

Articles

India’s ruling BJP have refined a strategy of cultural revision: challenge monument origins, recast Mughal history as occupation, demolish mosques and build temples in their place, and enlist Bollywood as a mass-scale amplifier.

Taj Mahal: Hindu nationalist revisionism reshapes India’s monuments and memory

MANAMA: Syria&rsquo;s president will discuss issues including lifting remaining sanctions, reconstruction and counterterrorism when he becomes the country&rsquo;s first leader to pay an official visit to Washington later this month, the foreign minister said Sunday. Ahmed Al-Sharaa is expected in the US capital in early November, Syria&rsquo;s top diplomat Asaad Al-Shaibani told a panel at the Manama Dialogue in Bahrain. &ldquo;This visit is certainly historic,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Many topics will be discussed, starting with the lifting of sanctions,&rdquo; Shaibani said, adding: &ldquo;Today we are fighting [the Islamic State]... any effort in this regard requires international support.&rdquo; Discussions will also revolve around reconstruction after more than a decade of war, he said. The foreign ministry in Damascus confirmed the trip would be the first ever visit to the White House by a Syrian president. On Saturday, US envoy to Syria Tom Barrack said Sharaa was heading to Washington &ldquo;hopefully&rdquo; to sign an agreement to join the international US-led alliance against the Islamic State (IS). Though it will be Sharaa&rsquo;s first visit to Washington, it will be his second to the US after a landmark UN trip in September, where the former jihadist became the first Syrian president in decades to address the UN General Assembly in New York. In May, the interim leader, whose Islamist forces ousted longtime ruler Bashar Assad late last year, met US President Donald Trump for the first time in Riyadh during a historic visit that led to the US leader vowing to lift economic sanctions on Syria. Israel talksSyria and Israel remain technically at war, but they opened direct negotiations after Assad was toppled by an Islamist-led coalition last December. Trump has expressed hope that Syria will join other Arab countries that have normalized ties with Israel under the so-called Abraham Accords. But Shaibani said that &ldquo;regarding Syria and the Abraham Accords, this is an issue that is not being considered and has not been discussed.&rdquo;A Syrian official had told AFP earlier this year that Syria expects to finalize security and military agreements with Israel in 2025, in what would be a breakthrough less than a year after Assad&rsquo;s ouster. Since December, Israel has deployed troops in a UN-patrolled buffer zone that separates the countries&rsquo; forces and has launched hundreds of strikes in Syria. Damascus has not retaliated. &ldquo;We do not want Syria to enter a new war, and Syria is not currently in a position to threaten any party, including Israel,&rdquo; said Shaibani. He said the negotiations underway were focused on &ldquo;reaching a security agreement that does not undermine the 1974 agreement (cementing a ceasefire with Israel) and does not legitimize any new reality that Israel might impose in the south.&rdquo;

Ahmed Al-Sharaa will make a historic Washington visit to discuss sanctions, reconstruction, and counterterrorism, while Israel talks focus on security, not normalization under Abraham Accords.

Syrian leader to discuss sanctions, reconstruction in US visit: FM

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday reaffirmed that Pakistan remains fully committed to upholding press freedom and ensuring a secure environment for media professionals.&nbsp;In his message issued on the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, the prime minister stated, &ldquo;A free press is the guarantee for a strong, transparent and democratic Pakistan.&rdquo;&nbsp;He noted that the day serves as a reminder that an informed and responsible press forms the foundation of any democratic society. Journalists, he said, play a vital role in enabling public access to facts and act as &ldquo;torchbearers of truth.&rdquo;&nbsp;According to the PM&rsquo;s statement, &ldquo;Acts of violence, threats or vengeance against journalists in the course of their professional duties are, in fact, attacks on freedom of expression.&rdquo;&nbsp;Paying tribute to media professionals who have faced hardships in pursuit of truth, justice, and public interest, the prime minister expressed solidarity with the families of journalists and media workers who have lost their lives in the line of duty.&nbsp;He said the government would continue to strengthen mechanisms to protect journalists and ensure accountability, adding, &ldquo;We will take all necessary measures to guarantee effective investigation of crimes against journalists, deliver justice, and ensure legal action against the perpetrators.&rdquo;&nbsp;The prime minister also called on the international community, media organizations, and civil society to work together to safeguard journalists and promote the universal right to freedom of expression.

On the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, PM Shehbaz Sharif reaffirms Pakistan’s commitment to press freedom, pledging journalist safety, effective investigations, accountability for offenders, and calling for global support to uphold freedom of expression.

Pakistan reaffirms commitment to protect journalists

JERUSALEM: Israel warned Sunday that its military would step up its attacks against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, a day after the Lebanese Health Ministry reported four people killed in an Israeli airstrike. Despite a November 2024 cease-fire with the Lebanese militant group, Israel maintains troops in five areas in southern Lebanon and has continued regular strikes. &ldquo;Hezbollah is playing with fire, and the president of Lebanon is dragging his feet,&rdquo; Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement. &ldquo;The Lebanese government&rsquo;s commitment to disarm Hezbollah and remove it from southern Lebanon must be implemented. Maximum enforcement will continue and even intensify &mdash; we will not allow any threat to the residents of the north.&rdquo; Thousands of Israelis living near the northern border with Lebanon were forced to evacuate their homes for months after Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel following the outbreak of the war in Gaza in October 2023. That set off a more than yearlong conflict that culminated in two months of open war before last year&rsquo;s cease-fire was agreed upon. The Iran-backed militant group, which opposes Israel, has been badly weakened by the war but remains armed and financially resilient. In September 2024, Israel killed the group&rsquo;s longtime chief, Hassan Nasrallah, along with many other senior leaders over the course of the war. Since the cease-fire, the United States has increased pressure on Lebanese authorities to disarm the group, a plan opposed by Hezbollah and its allies. Latest strikeIsrael never stopped carrying out airstrikes on Lebanon despite the truce &mdash; usually saying it was targeting Hezbollah positions &mdash; and has stepped up attacks in recent days. On Thursday, Israeli ground troops carried out a deadly raid into southern Lebanon, prompting Lebanese President Joseph Aoun to order the army to confront such incursions. Aoun had called for talks with Israel in mid-October after U.S. President Donald Trump helped broker a cease-fire in Gaza. But Aoun later accused Israel of responding to his offer by intensifying its airstrikes, the latest of which killed four people in the Nabatiyeh district on Saturday, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. The official Lebanese National News Agency reported that the Israeli army hit a car &ldquo;with a guided missile.&rdquo; The Israeli military confirmed the strike, saying it killed a member of Hezbollah&rsquo;s Radwan Force in southern Lebanon. &ldquo;The terrorist was involved in transferring weapons and in efforts to reestablish Hezbollah&rsquo;s terrorist infrastructure in southern Lebanon,&rdquo; the military said, adding that three other members of the group were also killed. &ldquo;The terrorists&rsquo; activities constituted a threat to the State of Israel and its civilians and a violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon.&rdquo;

A Lebanese soldier sits on top of a military vehicle outside the municipality building of the southern Lebanese border village of Blida in the aftermath of an Israeli army raid on the village, on October 30, 2025.

Israel warned Sunday that its military would step up its attacks against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, a day after the Lebanese Health Ministry reported four people killed in an Israeli airstrike.