LAHORE MIRROR — The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has busted a fraud in which taxpayers illegally revised their old wealth statements to bring unexplained assets worth Rs9.41 billion into their declared wealth. A criminal case under the Anti-Money Laundering Act, 2010 has been registered, and further cases are being processed. The fraud was unearthed by the Directorate General of Intelligence and Investigation (Inland Revenue) through a detailed analysis of FBR’s database, carried out with the support of Pakistan Revenue Automation Limited (PRAL). The analysis identified 85 taxpayers who, between March 2025 and June 2026, revised their wealth statements for…
Author: Faisal Waqas
LAHORE MIRROR — Lahore will celebrate the Basant festival for 10 days from January 29 to February 7, 2027, with festivities suspended on February 5 for Kashmir Day, under a schedule approved by Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz on Wednesday. The provincial government said the chief minister directed relevant authorities to begin preparations for the extended celebrations and ensure stronger arrangements for public safety and convenience than those made during this year’s festival. She described the festival as a gift for Lahore’s people to mark the arrival of 2027 and said it would help promote Punjab’s cultural heritage and the…
LAHORE MIRROR — Pakistan qualified for the semi-finals of the squash team event at the ongoing Asian Games in Japan after defeating South Korea 2-0 in the quarter-finals. Pakistan’s Ashab Irfan secured a 3-0 victory in his match, while Noor Zaman defeated his opponent 3-1 to seal the team’s place in the last four. With their qualification for the squash team event semi-finals, Pakistan have secured another medal at the Asian Games.
LAHORE MIRROR (REUTERS) — Oil prices plummeted on Tuesday as investors focused on signs of recovering crude exports from the Middle East and lingering concerns over potential supply disruptions in the region stemming from the US-Israeli war on Iran. Brent crude futures were down $1.96, or 1.86%, to $103.32 a barrel at 1306 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate crude was at $90.65, down $1.95, or 2.11%. Brent and WTI are headed for monthly gains of around 14% and 5.6%, respectively. “A clearer picture is emerging of higher oil export volumes leaving the Gulf, but much of that increase still relies…
LAHORE MIRROR — Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan has written to the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) for a second time, seeking written details of the inquiry against him and the immediate return of his mobile phone. In his second letter, Rizwan said he had still not been provided with any written information regarding the inquiry, nor had the NCCIA contacted him about any further proceedings. Rizwan said his mobile phone was taken from him in England on August 31, after he provided the password. He said the device was examined in his presence and that, when he appeared before…
LAHORE MIRROR (AFP) — OpenAI will not release its newest artificial intelligence model, known as Astra 6.1, after internal testing by the ChatGPT-maker revealed it did not meet safety standards, the company confirmed Monday. The news comes one day before the AI giant hosts an annual developer conference known as OpenAI DevDay in San Francisco, where the company is expected to make several announcements — though it is unclear if a new version of Astra will be among them. Astra 6.1 was an improvement over previous models in some aspects, but “it didn’t quite meet the bar in terms of…
LAHORE MIRROR (REUTERS) — An Iranian Revolutionary Guards spokesperson on Tuesday called US President Donald Trump a “big liar”, accusing him of concealing the truth from Americans about Iran’s nuclear programme and the effectiveness of Iran’s blockade of energy supplies from the Gulf. Among his reasons for waging war on Iran, Trump has cited the need to ensure that it will never be able to build a nuclear weapon. “The enemy (US) knows that Iran is not after nuclear weapons,” Hossein Mohebbi said. “Their issue with Iran is not its nuclear programme but rather its vastness, which they want to…
PARIS: Global beauty brand L’Oreal Paris staged a star-studded runway show in the French capital on Monday, with pop icon Celine Dion making a guest appearance to close out the evening. The event held at the start of Paris Fashion Week featured models Kendall Jenner and Heidi Klum, actors Andie MacDowell and Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu, as well as US Olympic skier Lindsey Vonn and Italian Paralympian Beatrice Vio, sashaying down a catwalk against the backdrop of a lit-up Eiffel Tower. Dion, who is in Paris for a series of concerts, was a L’Oreal Paris brand ambassador in 2019. L’Oreal Paris is…
LAHORE MIRROR (Reuters) — British police said on Monday they were investigating whether individuals acting for a foreign state were involved in an apparent plot to attack an airbase used by the United States but said five suspects they had arrested would be released on bail. The five men, all British nationals from London in their early 20s, were detained early on Sunday after police were alerted by a local farmer about three white vans driving towards RAF Fairford, a British base that houses US bombers that fly missions against Iran. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said in July the base was…
LAHORE MIRROR (AFP) — Elon Musk’s Starship megarocket reached orbit for the first time on Monday after blasting off from Texas, in a major milestone for SpaceX’s future plans, including trips to the Moon and Mars. The black-and-silver behemoth, standing more than 120 meters tall, rose through a thick cloud of smoke on an ambitious 14th test flight. The upper stage separated from the Super Heavy booster and reached orbit about 26 minutes into flight. During the test, expected to last about 10 hours, the experimental rocket’s upper stage is set to orbit Earth several times and deploy 26 next-generation…
