ISLAMABAD: The Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) religious party on Thursday criticized the Pakistani government for increasing the prices of petroleum products, despite a decline in rates in the international market.
On Tuesday, US crude oil prices fell by 1 percent to below $67 per barrel, adding to Monday’s losses of more than 4 percent. This price level was the lowest since the beginning of October as market participants reassessed the risks of escalating Israeli attacks in the Middle East and potential disruptions in the oil sector.
Oil prices were likely to remain “too cheap” in the near term compared with fundamentals, Goldman Sachs analyst Daan Struyven told CNBC, citing demand from refilling the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve as well as from the airline industry.
But Pakistani authorities on Thursday respectively increased the prices of petrol and high-speed diesel by Rs1.35 and Rs3.85 per liter for the next fortnight, according to the country’s oil and gas regulator.
“The government is not ready to give relief to the people and the industry, then how will the country move forward,” JI chief Hafiz Naeem-ur-Rehman asked in his post on X late Thursday.
“Prices are decreasing in the international market and increasing in Pakistan.”
Rehman said the government increased the prices instead of announcing a major cut, demanding it to provide relief to the masses.
Pakistan revises petroleum prices every fortnight.
Petrol is mostly used in private transport, small vehicles, rickshaws and two-wheelers in Pakistan, while any increase in the price of diesel is considered highly inflationary as it is mostly used to power heavy transport vehicles and particularly adds to the prices of vegetables and other eatables.
This is not the first that the JI has called on the government to provide relief to inflation-stricken people.
In August this year, Rehman had led thousands of his JI party supporters to the garrison city of Rawalpindi, where they had staged a weeks-long anti-inflation protest. Demonstrations were also occasionally held in other Pakistani cities during the month.
Pakistan party protests increase in petroleum prices despite slump in international market
https://arab.news/jb57x
Pakistan party protests increase in petroleum prices despite slump in international market
- Global oil prices are likely to remain ‘too cheap’ in the near term, analysts say
- Jamaat-e-Islami demands the government provide relief to inflation-hit Pakistanis
Pakistan rejects Amnesty claims of Israeli spyware use, calls reports ‘disinformation’
- FO denies any link with Israel, says Pakistan has “absolutely no cooperation” on surveillance tools
- Islamabad accuses India of delaying clearance for relief aircraft bound for flood-hit Sri Lanka
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Friday rejected an Amnesty International report alleging the use of Israeli-made invasive spyware in the country, calling the findings speculative and misleading.
Amnesty’s investigation, published Thursday under the title Intellexa Leaks, cited the case of a Pakistan-based human rights lawyer who reported receiving a suspicious WhatsApp link in 2025. According to Amnesty International’s Security Lab, the link bore signatures consistent with Predator, a spyware product developed by Israeli manufacturer c
Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi dismissed the suggestion that Islamabad had deployed the tool or maintained any technological cooperation with Israel.
“These are all media speculations. These are all rumor-mongering and disinformation. There is absolutely no cooperation between Pakistan and Israel on anything, let alone a spyware or these kinds of tools. So, I would reject it quite emphatically,” he said at a weekly briefing.
Andrabi also accused India of obstructing humanitarian operations, saying New Delhi delayed flight clearance for a Pakistani relief aircraft carrying aid to flood-affected Sri Lanka.
“The special aircraft carrying Pakistan’s relief goods had to wait for 48 hours, in fact more than 48 hours, around 60 hours, while the flight clearance from India was delayed,” he said.
He added that the eventual conditional flight window was too narrow to be workable.
“The partial flight clearance which eventually was given after 48 hours was operationally impractical, time-bound just for a few hours and hence not operable, severely hindering the urgent need for the relief mission for the brotherly people of Sri Lanka,” Andrabi stated.
“Humanitarian assistance is like justice, if it is delayed, it is denied.”
Responding to India’s claim that clearance was granted within four hours, he said Pakistan has documentary proof contradicting New Delhi’s version.
On a separate question about reported delays in the arrival of a Turkish delegation aimed at mediating between Islamabad and Kabul, Andrabi said Pakistan welcomed Ankara’s initiative but was unaware of the cause of postponement.
“We stand ready to receive the Turkish delegation. That delegation has not arrived as yet. And I’m not aware of any schedule. Pakistan is ready to hold negotiations, discussions,” he said, adding that the delay may be linked to coordination with the Afghan side.
