Pakistan PM to hold sector-wise meetings with business leaders to strengthen economy

ISLAMABAD: The Palestinian embassy has hosted a reception to honor two young Pakistani siblings, Ubaydah Al Fiddhah Hafiah (11) and Ghulam Bishar Hafi (13), for their steadfast support and advocacy for the children of Gaza, Pakistani state media reported on Friday.
While the development comes amid a ceasefire that has brought a measure of relief to the people of Gaza, it cannot undo the irreversible damage done, particularly the thousands of limbs lost by Palestinian children during the prolonged attacks, which some have described as an act of infanticide.
Hafiah and Hafi have rigorously campaigned for the children amputated in Gaza, which featured blood-written notes and open letters to global authorities. Their campaign, “Voice for the Voiceless,” is considered one of the most impactful advocacy efforts and has earned official recognition from Palestinian authorities.
Palestinian Ambassador to Pakistan Dr. Zuhair Zaid has expressed profound gratitude to the siblings for their unwavering solidarity with the Palestinian cause, and has praised their courageous efforts in an official letter of appreciation, the APP news agency reported.
“I find myself at a loss for words, overwhelmed by the depth of your courage, the purity of your love, and the boundless compassion you have shown,” Dr. Zaid wrote, emphasizing that their message was a powerful reminder that “humanity is still alive in its purest form.”
He described their advocacy as an “unbreakable bond that transcends distance and time” between the people of Pakistan and Palestine.
The Pakistani brother-sister duo has called for urgent global intervention to provide care and rehabilitation to thousands of orphaned and permanently disabled children in Gaza.
Their campaign began in 2024, coinciding with the International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression on June 4, and their first blood-written protest notes were presented to international platforms, including the United Nations, urging the world to listen to the “Voice of the Voiceless.”
Their advocacy continues to inspire a global movement, proving that even the youngest voices can resonate across borders in the fight for justice and humanity.
The ambassador commended the ability of the young brother and sister to turn “pain into power, grief into hope, and silence into a voice that echoes across borders,” according to the report. He acknowledged the depth of their advocacy, stating that their words, “written with hands so young yet hearts so vast” held profound significance.
Prof. Dr. Aurangzeb Hafi, the father and mentor of the siblings, quoted the ambassador as saying that Palestine “owned” these two children, their petitions, resolutions, and protest notes issued as part of their campaign against the atrocities committed against Gazan children.
The Palestinian ambassador discussed with Prof. Hafi the pressing need to protect and resettle orphaned children from Gaza, particularly those left amputees due to the ongoing violence, according to the report. The ambassador assured the siblings that their message of sacrifice would never fade.
“From the depths of my heart, I thank you. I honor you. And I promise that your message will continue to inspire millions,” he stated.
Israel’s war on Gaza, which began after the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas, has killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, and displaced almost all of Gaza’s 2 million population by laying waste to swathes of neighborhoods, schools and hospitals.
Palestinian territory – encompassing the Gaza Strip and West Bank, including East Jerusalem – has been occupied by Israel since 1967. Pakistan does not recognize Israel and has consistently called for an independent Palestinian state based on “internationally agreed parameters.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistanis and an Afghan national living in Islamabad this week called a new potential US travel ban ‘unfortunate,’ saying it could affect young Pakistanis who invested money to study in US universities.
A new travel ban by President Donald Trump could bar people from Afghanistan and Pakistan from entering the US as soon as next week based on a government review of countries’ security and vetting risks, three sources familiar with the matter said.
Speaking to Reuters, Syed Abbas Haider, a 29-year-old Islamabad resident, said a potential ban would be “unfortunate and strange,” considering that the people and government of Pakistan consider the US “an ally and supporter.”
The new ban could affect tens of thousands of Afghans who have been cleared for resettlement in the US as refugees or on Special Immigrant Visas because they are at risk of Taliban retribution for working for the US during a 20-year war in their home country.
Ehsanullah Ahmadzai, a 31-year-old Afghani who has been living in Islamabad for three years, said restrictions should not be placed on vulnerable people who need US assistance.
Trump issued an executive order on January 20 requiring intensified security vetting of any foreigners seeking admission to the US to detect national security threats.
That order directed several cabinet members to submit by March 12 a list of countries from which travel should be partly or fully suspended because their “vetting and screening information is so deficient.”
Afghanistan will be included in the recommended list of countries for a complete travel ban, said the three sources and one other who also asked not to be identified.
The three sources said Pakistan also would be recommended for inclusion.
The departments of State, Justice and Homeland Security and the Office of the Director for National Intelligence, whose leaders are overseeing the initiative, did not respond immediately to requests for comment.