LAHORE: A Pakistani court on Monday dismissed a plea seeking a ban on popular online video game Players’ Unknown Battle Ground (PUBG), local media reported.
A citizen, Tanveer Sarwar, had moved the Lahore High Court (LHC) to ban the game weeks after a teenager confessed to killing four members of his family in a rage after bingeing for days playing online.
Police said Ali Zain had shot dead his mother, two sisters and a brother in Lahore on January 18, and claimed under questioning that the game had driven him to violence.
Sarwar contended in his plea that PUBG was creating intolerance in the society, especially in youngsters, who were addicted to it, Geo News channel reported.
“The LHC disposed of the plea over the petitioner’s discontinuation of the case’s pursuit,” the report read.
Last month, police in the central Pakistani province of Punjab also recommended a ban on PUBG, in relation to the Lahore family massacre.
“To stop acts of violence caused by this game, it is necessary to ban PUBG,” the police said. “Youngsters addicted to completing the game’s tasks eventually commit acts of violence.”
Pakistan banned PUBG in July 2020 after the country’s telecom regulator said it had received numerous complaints that the game “affects physical and mental health” of children and teenagers.
“The game is highly addictive, destroying the youth, a wastage of time and has a negative impact on physical and psychological health,” the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) said at the time.
However, the ban was lifted the same month on the orders of the Islamabad High Court (IHC).
Pakistani court dismisses plea seeking ban on popular video game PUBG
https://arab.news/4ppkd
Pakistani court dismisses plea seeking ban on popular video game PUBG
- Development comes weeks after a teenager shot his mother and three siblings dead in Lahore
- Pakistan imposed a ban on PUBG in July 2020 but removed it the same month on court orders
Pakistan to send over 10,000 workers to Italy over three years after securing employment quota
- Government says Italy will admit 3,500 workers annually under seasonal and non-seasonal labor schemes
- It calls the deal a 'milestone' as Italy becomes the first European country to allocate job quota for Pakistan
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has secured a quota of 10,500 jobs from Italy over the next three years, an official statement said on Saturday, opening legal employment pathways for Pakistani workers in Europe under Italy’s seasonal and non-seasonal labor programs.
Under the arrangement, 3,500 Pakistani workers will be employed in Italy each year, including 1,500 seasonal workers hired for time-bound roles, and 2,000 non-seasonal workers for longer-term employment across sectors.
The Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development said Italy is the first European country to allocate a dedicated labor quota to Pakistan, describing the move as a milestone in Pakistan’s efforts to expand overseas employment opportunities beyond traditional labor markets in the Middle East.
“After prolonged efforts, doors to employment for the Pakistani workforce in Italy are about to open,” Federal Minister for Overseas Pakistanis Chaudhry Salik Hussain said, calling the quota allocation a “historic milestone.”
The jobs will be available across multiple sectors, including shipbreaking, hospitality, healthcare and agriculture, with opportunities for skilled and semi-skilled workers in professions such as welding, technical trades, food services, housekeeping, nursing, medical technology and farming.
The agreement comes as Pakistan seeks to diversify overseas employment destinations for its workforce and increase remittance inflows, which remain a key source of foreign exchange for the country’s economy.
The ministry said a second meeting of the Pakistan-Italy Joint Working Group on labor cooperation is scheduled to be held in Islamabad in February 2026, where implementation and future cooperation are expected to be discussed.
