ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan army said army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa has confirmed death sentences for 12 “hardcore terrorists” after military courts found them guilty of carrying out multiple attacks, killing innocent civilians, attacking Pakistan law enforcement agencies and armed forces.
In a statement on Monday, issued by the military media wing Inter-Services Public Relations, the army said: “On the whole, they were involved in the killing of 34 people including 26 civilians and eight Armed Forces/Frontier Constabulary personnel, and injuring 133 others.
“These convicts confessed their offenses before the judicial magistrate and the trial court.”
Six other convicts have been given prison sentences.
Pakistan resumed military courts after the December 2014 attack on the Army Public School in Peshawar, which left more than 150 dead, mostly students.
Pakistan Army confirms death sentences on 12 ‘hardcore terrorists’
Pakistan Army confirms death sentences on 12 ‘hardcore terrorists’
- Pakistan resumed military courts after the December 2014 attack on the Army Public School in Peshawar, which left more than 150 dead, mostly students
Pakistan’s ‘Forward Sports’ to kick off operations in Saudi Arabia
- Forward Sports is a leading Pakistani sports goods manufacturer that produces Adidas’ official World Cup footballs
- Saudi ambassador meets Forward Sports representatives to discuss opening company’s headquarters in Kingdom
ISLAMABAD: Prominent Pakistani sports goods manufacturer Forward Sports is set to open its headquarters in Saudi Arabia, the Kingdom’s embassy said on Thursday.
Forward Sports, based in Pakistan’s eastern city of Sialkot, is famous for manufacturing and exporting high quality footballs. It produces Adidas’s official World Cup match balls and recently displaced a Chinese competitor as the German brand’s largest football supplier.
Pakistan’s Finance Minister told Arab News in November that Forward Sports’ representatives and Saudi officials met during the Future Investment Initiative summit in Riyadh in October. Both sides explored a model in which high-precision manufacturing takes place in Pakistan, with finishing, packaging and regional distribution shifted to Saudi Arabia as part of its industrial localization push, the minister said.
“In the context of strengthening trade relations between the two friendly countries, the ambassador of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques to Pakistan, Nawaf bin Said Al-Malki, met representatives of Forward Sports Industries to discuss preparations for opening the company’s headquarters in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” the Saudi embassy in Pakistan said.
The collaboration in manufacturing footballs takes place as Saudi Arabia gears up to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup, which is driving demand for sports-related goods in the Kingdom.
Saudi businessmen have previously eyed collaboration with Pakistan, especially when it comes to importing sports goods and surgical instruments from the country.
A Saudi business delegation in 2022 visited the manufacturing units of Forward Sports, Elmed Instruments (Pvt) Limited and Hilbro International (Pvt) Limited companies, all located in Sialkot, to assess the quality of sports and surgical instruments there.
The development takes place as Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directs his government to increase its focus on enhancing exports. Islamabad has sought to escape a prolonged economic crisis over the past few years, seeing increased exports and foreign investment as key drivers of sustainable economic growth.
