ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s two former dominant political parties said on Thursday they would join forces to field their own candidate for prime minister in parliament, challenging former cricket star Imran Khan, whose party won last week’s general election.
The alliance with several other smaller parties appeared unlikely to derail Khan’s election as prime minister, but it could leave him with a thin majority that could make enacting his agenda difficult.
Khan’s party, which won 116 of the 272 elected seats in the National Assembly, is believed to have enough would-be coalition partners among smaller parties and independents to win a majority vote to form a government.
But the main rival parties, which on Thursday repeated accusations that the July 25 vote was rigged by the powerful military, vowed to vote together with several smaller parties against Khan’s election as prime minister in parliament.
“It is an alliance which is against the rigged elections, and where all the political parties were not provided a free and fair, level playing field,” said Maryam Aurangzeb, speaking for the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) of jailed ex-prime minister Nawaz Sharif.
The opposition alliance was not believed to have the numbers to block Khan’s election.
A European Union election monitoring team in its initial assessment described the election campaign as an unequal playing field but said it was up to the people of Pakistan to decide on the vote’s legitimacy.
The PML-N joined with the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), led by the son of assassinated former premier Benazir Bhutto, and several smaller nationalist and religious parties in forming the opposition alliance, known as the All Parties Conference.
The PMN-L and PPP have traded power in Pakistan for most of its history in between periods of military rule after the army seized power, which itself accounts for nearly half of the 71 years since independence from Britain.
Pakistani opposition to challenge Khan with own PM candidate in parliament
Pakistani opposition to challenge Khan with own PM candidate in parliament
Pakistan to introduce new navigation system to cut flight delays at Skardu, Gilgit and Chitral
- Pakistan Airports Authority says satellite-guided RNP-AR procedures will be in place by June 2026, pending a feasibility study
- The system is expected to reduce weather-related delays and cancelations in Pakistan’s most popular mountain destinations
KARACHI: Pakistan said on Sunday it would introduce a new satellite-guided navigation system for flights to Skardu, Gilgit and Chitral by June 2026, aiming to curb chronic weather-related delays and cancelations at the three remote northern airports.
The destinations are among Pakistan’s most visited tourist sites and serve as gateways to the Himalayan and Karakoram ranges. Gilgit-Baltistan, which borders China, also holds strategic significance as part of the northern corridor linking the two neighbors.
Marking International Civil Aviation Day, the Pakistan Airports Authority (PAA) said it was accelerating aviation-sector upgrades, including the rollout of Required Navigation Performance – Authorization Required (RNP-AR) procedures.
RNP-AR is a high-precision, satellite-based approach system that enables aircraft to fly accurate, terrain-avoiding paths in low visibility, reducing weather-related disruptions at mountain airports.
“Pakistan Airports Authority is rapidly working on major projects for safe, efficient and modern aviation in the country,” the PAA said.
It added that RNP-AR flight procedures for Skardu, Gilgit and Chitral “will be implemented by June 2026,” subject to the findings of a consultant’s feasibility study.
The authority said the system would “significantly reduce weather-related flight delays and cancelations.”
The PAA also announced timelines for several other major upgrades, including terminal expansion at Lahore’s Allama Iqbal International Airport by September 2026 and runway modernization at Karachi’s Jinnah International Airport by January 2026.
Further works include the next upgrade phase at Skardu Airport and phase two of Muridke General Aviation Aerodrome, both due to begin next year.
New greenfield airports in Dera Ismail Khan, Sukkur and Faisalabad have also entered planning stages, the statement said.
Final sites have been approved for a new air-traffic control tower and rescue fire station at Karachi Airport, infrastructure the PAA said would strengthen air-traffic management and safety.
“Pakistan Airports Authority is leading the aviation sector toward a safer and more accessible future,” it said.
