ISLAMABAD: Scores of supporters have welcomed Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on his arrival on the outskirts of the capital, Islamabad from a nearby hilltop resort. He was staying at the resort after last week’s dismissal from office by the Supreme Court for concealing family assets.
Sharif was replaced by a lawmaker from his party, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, this week.
After spending a night in Islamabad, Sharif will travel to his home city of Lahore on Sunday to address a rally there. It will be the first show of political strength from Sharif’s ruling party since his removal.
The Pakistan Muslim League party wants Abbasi to serve as premier until Sharif’s younger brother, Shahbaz Sharif, the chief minister of Punjab province, wins a national assembly seat in a by-election.
Supporters welcome deposed Pakistan PM Sharif in Islamabad
Supporters welcome deposed Pakistan PM Sharif in Islamabad
Spain eyes full service on train tragedy line in 10 days
- The Jan. 18 disaster in the southern region of Andalusia partially shut the line linking Madrid and Seville
- “After the replacement, the whole of the Madrid-Seville line will resume service,” said Puente
MADRID: Spain aims to restart within 10 days full service on a key high-speed railway line where a collision between two trains killed 45 people, the transport minister said on Wednesday.
The January 18 disaster in the southern region of Andalusia — one of Europe’s deadliest such accidents this century — partially shut the line linking Madrid and the city of Seville as investigators cleared the wreckage and collected evidence.
“Today we have received legal permission to proceed with the replacement of the infrastructure in the section of the accident,” Transport Minister Oscar Puente wrote on X.
“Our aim is that it is completed in a timeframe of approximately 10 calendar days. After the replacement, the whole of the Madrid-Seville line will resume service,” he added.
The line was Spain’s first high-speed rail connection when it opened in 1992, with the network expanding to become the world’s second-largest after China’s and a source of national pride.
But the accident has raised doubts about the safety of rail travel in the country.
A preliminary report released last week suggested the track was cracked before a train run by private firm Iryo derailed and smashed into an oncoming service operated by state company Renfe.
