Pak politicians, others ask govt to review Trump's nomination for Nobel Peace Prize
Islamabad (PTI): Several Pakistani politicians and notable figures have asked the government to reconsider its decision to recommend President Donald Trump for the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize after the US bombed Iran’s three nuclear sites.
The government, in a surprise move on Friday, announced that it would nominate Trump for the prestigious award due to his self-proclaimed peacemaking efforts during the recent India-Pakistan conflict.
A letter of recommendation, signed by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, has already been sent to the Nobel Peace Prize Committee in Norway.
But the decision came under scrutiny after the US bombed Iran’s Fordo, Isfahan and Natanz nuclear sites, joining Israel to dent Tehran's nuclear programme.
The Dawn newspaper reported that some leading politicians demanded the government review its decision in light of the latest development.
Veteran politician Maulana Fazlur Rehman, who heads the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (JUI-F), demanded that the government rescind its decision.
“President Trump’s claim of peace has proven to be false; the proposal for the Nobel Prize should be withdrawn,” Fazl told workers at a party meeting in Murree on Sunday.
He said that Trump’s recent meeting and lunch with Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir “pleased Pakistani rulers so much” that they recommended nominating the US president for the Nobel Prize.
"Trump has supported the Israeli attacks on Palestine, Syria, Lebanon and Iran. How can this be a sign of peace?” Fazl questioned.
“With the blood of Afghans and Palestinians on America’s hands, how can he claim to be a proponent of peace?”
Trump had campaigned for office as a “peacemaker” who would use his negotiating skills to quickly end wars in Ukraine and Gaza, but both conflicts are still raging five months into his presidency.
Former senator Mushahid Hussain wrote on X: “Since Trump is no longer a potential peacemaker, but a leader who has willfully unleashed an illegal war, Pakistan government must now review, rescind and revoke his Nobel nomination!”
He said Trump had been “trapped by (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin )Netanyahu and the Israeli war lobby, committing (the" biggest blunder of his presidency”. “Trump will now end up presiding over the decline of America!”
Trump “engaged in deception and betrayed his own promise not to start new wars”, Mushahid said in another post, strongly condemning the US attacks on Iran. Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) lawmaker Ali Muhammad Khan wrote “reconsider” on his X account, highlighting the “US attack on Iran and continuous US support of Israeli killings in Gaza”.
In a separate post, the Opposition PTI condemned the “unprovoked” US strikes and voiced “total support” for Iran’s sovereignty.
Raoof Hasan, head of PTI’s political think-tank, said the government’s decision was now a “cause of unmitigated shame and embarrassment for those who were instrumental in making the choice”.
“That’s why it is said that legitimacy can neither be bought nor gifted,” said Hasan, as he took a jibe at the government.
He also denounced the US' “total disregard for international covenants” through attacks on Iran.
Former senator Afrasiab Khattak said, “The sycophancy adopted by the Pakistani ruling elite in nominating President Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize is not part of normative conduct in international diplomacy.”
“It was most embarrassing to announce the nomination hours before Trump ordered to bomb Iranian nuclear sites,” the veteran politician noted. Jamaat-i-Islami chief Naeemur Rehman has said the decision “undermines our national dignity and grace”.
Maleeha Lodhi, Pakistan’s former ambassador to the US, termed the move “unfortunate” and said it did not reflect the public’s views.
Senior journalist Mariana Baabar, in a post on X, said that “today Pakistan does not look too good either”, sharing the government’s post announcing its intention to nominate Trump for the Nobel.
Author and activist Fatima Bhutto asked: “Will Pakistan withdraw its nomination for him to receive the Nobel Peace Prize?”
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Two injuries, one DNF, a DQ as India end messy World Relays campaign
Gaborone (Botswana) (PTI): Amoj Jacob and Ragul Kumar got injured during the men's 4x400m and 4x100 races respectively as India ended their World Athletics Relays campaign in disappointment on the second day of competitions here on Sunday.
The Indian camp had high hopes of making the 2027 World Championships in the men's 4x400m relay but the team did not finish (DNF) the race as Jacob suffered cramps and pulled out of the race after taking the baton from the first leg runner Dharamveer Choudhary. Rajesh Ramesh and Vishal TK were to run in the third and fourth legs.
Those teams which could not qualify for the 2027 Beijing World Championships by reaching the final round of each of the six relay events on Saturday were given another chance in the second qualification round on Sunday.
The top two teams in each of the two heats (in all six relay events) booked the Beijing ticket on Sunday.
India will now have to try and qualify for the World Championships through the Top Lists of the World Athletics, which is a long and tedious process.
In the men's 4x100m race, third leg runner Ragul Kumar fell down the track after failing to hand over the baton inside the exchange zone to fourth leg runner Gurindervir Singh, which clearly showed the lack of coordination among the runners.
Harsh Santosh Raut and Animesh Kujur ran the first two legs.
The Indian quartet was disqualified and Kumar was seen being taken away from the Field of Play with the help of the volunteers.
It was a comedy of errors in the case of the women's 4x100m race, which saw the baton being dropped during an exchange between first leg runner Tamanna and second runner Nithya Gandhe, though the Indians finished the race in 53.09 seconds.
Gandhe started running quite a distance, but after realising that the baton was not in her hand, she turned and ran back to pick it up.
The only silver-lining for the Indian contingent was the national record time in the mixed 4x100m relay race, though the quartet of Ragul Kumar, Nithya Gandhe, Animesh Kujur and Sneha SS finished sixth in heat number two with a time of 41.35 seconds, bettering the previous national mark of 42.30 seconds set in March in Chandigarh.
The mixed 4x400m relay quartet of Theerthesh P Shetty, Kumari Saloni, Nihal William and Rashdeep Kaur ended at fifth in heat number one with a time of 3 minutes and 19.40 seconds.
On Saturday, all the five Indian relay teams had failed to make it to the respective final rounds and thus missed out on the 2027 World Championships berths.
