Saudi Arabia pledges additional USD 3 billion support to Pakistan
Islamabad (PTI): Saudi Arabia has pledged an additional financial support of USD 3 billion to Pakistan and also extended an existing USD 5 billion facility for three years, local media reported.
The support comes at a crucial juncture as Islamabad prepares to repay USD 3.5 billion to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) this month and faces pressure on its foreign exchange reserves.
“Saudi Arabia has pledged an additional USD 3 billion in deposits for Pakistan and has extended its existing USD 5 billion facility for a further three years,” Dawn quoted Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb as saying in Washington.
“The existing USD 5 billion Saudi deposit would no longer be subject to the previous annual rollover arrangement and would instead be extended for a longer term," he added.
The announcement came as Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is expected to undertake official visits to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Türkiye from April 15–18.
"The fresh Saudi support comes at a critical time for Pakistan’s external financing needs and will help bolster foreign exchange reserves and strengthen the external account', Geo News quoted Aurangzeb while speaking to journalists in Washington on the sidelines of the World Bank-IMF Spring Meetings 2026.
The IMF has stipulated that Pakistan's three key bilateral creditors -- Saudi Arabia, China and the UAE -- must maintain their cash deposits with the country until the completion of the ongoing three-year programme.
Aurangzeb said that the government is committed to maintaining reserves in line with its market obligations and targets under the IMF-supported programme, the report said.
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Cross-border narcotics network busted in Jammu; most-wanted drug lord arrested
Jammu, Apr 15 (PTI): The Jammu and Kashmir Police on Wednesday said a major narcotics network with interstate and cross-border links was busted with the arrest of most-wanted drug kingpin Gulzar Ahmad alias Lau Gujjar along with several of his associates.
Senior Superintendent of Police (Jammu) Joginder Singh said Gujjar had been supplying narcotics in bulk quantities across the region, and evading capture for more than two decades, terming his arrest a major breakthrough.
"He was a hardcore criminal and a key figure in the drug supply chain. His network has now been fully identified and dismantled," the SSP told reporters here.
He said Gujjar entered the criminal world as a bovine smuggler in 2006 before launching himself into drug trade around 2016, and scaling up operations by 2019.
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A Pakistan-made pistol was recovered from his possession at the time of his arrest on April 4, the SSP said, adding that three of his associated were also arrested and more than 700 grams of heroin was seized.
Interrogation of around 10 more suspects linked to the network is underway, while around two dozen other suspects have been identified and are under surveillance, he said.
SSP Singh said a Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by a superintendent of police rank officer has been constituted to probe the case, who would examine forward and backward linkages of the network including financial trails and assets created through illicit trade.
The police are trying to ascertain the source and the routes through which these illicit supplies entered India -- whether through Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir or through other border areas, he said.
Singh said the weapon recovered from the accused drug lord indicates a Pakistan link. "We are investigating that aspect as well, pointing towards broader narco-terror angle."
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The SSP said Gujjar was wanted in at least 28 cases in Jammu district alone and dozens of FIRs are registered against him in other states under different identities.
Highlighting the crackdown against drug syndicates, he said police have so far registered 103 cases related to drug peddling in Jammu district this year.
Out of these, nine cases involve commercial quantities of contraband.
Nearly 11 kg of heroin has been seized, along with poppy husk, ganja, controlled medication capsules, and other such contraband, he said, adding around 20 driving licences have been cancelled, and nearly 200 vehicles linked to drug activities have been blacklisted.
