Aman Azhar

A $1.9B Chinese-backed coal plant was supposed to fix Pakistan’s energy crisis. Instead, adjacent communities report rising respiratory illness while the country remains locked into costly power contracts and circular debt. My latest for @insideclimate. insideclimatenews.org/news/25012026/…

The Trump administration is moving to open federal waters near U.S. Pacific territories to deep-sea mining, despite local opposition over the risks it poses to ocean ecosystems and the communities who depend on it. insideclimatenews.org/news/11032026/…

All of Bangladesh’s fertiliser plants are fully shut — in a country of more than 170 million people to feed.

The Earth’s climate swings more out of balance, as greenhouse gases continue to warm the atmosphere, ocean & ice. These changes have happened in just a few decades but will have harmful effects for hundreds of years. The Global #StateOfClimate 2025: bit.ly/StateOfClimate…

Earth is increasingly ‘out of balance’, as more heat is trapped in the atmosphere, driving global warming go.nature.com/4uU83Bc

We are outraged to learn that Canada has banned @RimaHas, Member of the European Parliament for France, from entering the country ahead of her public talks on opposing fascism and liberating Palestine. In justifying its sudden reversal, Canada has cited the fact that apartheid Israel had blocked her delegation of European MEPs from entering its territory last year, and due to complaints made against her political advocacy. This follows a campaign by Israeli diplomats and the pro-Israel lobby who pushed for the ban. This indicates that Canada has decided to endorse Israel's accusations against a Palestinian refugee and European lawmaker. Instead of upholding its own laws, Canada is acting as an extension of Israel's apartheid system. We urge authorities to rescind this decision and explain this arbitrary act of censorship against a European official.

This is truly an appalling story. EU sanctions for reporting on German repression of Pro-Palestinian dissidents. His funds frozen. It is a crime in Germany carrying up to 12 years in jail to give him money - or to give food to his family.

The wars that stain the present moment with blood are the fruit of the idolatry of power and money. Let us not grow accustomed to the clamor of weapons and images of war! #Peace is not merely a balance of power. It is the work of purified hearts, of those who see others as brothers and sisters to be protected, not enemies to be defeated. #ApostolicJourney vatican.va/content/leo-xi…

Pakistan’s constitution provides clear framework for balancing state power with citizen rights #Identity is not a document or plastic card, it’s the gateway to existence. Parliamentarians who voted this law violated Article 4, 9, 10A & 18 of the constitution they were supposed to protect. And the State violated international law obligations it is signatory of: such as ICCPR, UDHR, ICESCR and CRC.

@praveenswami A bigger check. That’s always the playbook.

I have a great deal of sympathy for the Saudi foreign ministry bureaucrats who will be spending their weekend figuring out how to respond to this insult.

@NajamAli2020 Another advantage is that a theoretical O&G infrastructure, premature or fully cooked, cannot be bombed like actual infrastructure being blown up all over. Totally safe to speculate that.

Pakistan stands to benefit disproportionately if this war ends in a negotiated settlement and sanctions on Iran are lifted. The biggest shift will be energy. The long-stalled Iran–Pakistan gas pipeline blocked for years due to U.S. sanctions can finally move forward. Beyond that, geography becomes opportunity. With Gwadar sitting at the crossroads of regional energy routes, Pakistan can develop refining, storage, and transit infrastructure to plug into Iran’s oil and gas flows. In the gulf region, it can play a credible facilitating and security role. A deal with Iran is not just about peace. For Pakistan, it is about: •Energy security •Economic opportunity •Strategic relevance

NEW – ‘Very alarming’ winter sees Arctic sea ice hit record-low for second year running | @rtmcswee @AyeshaTandon Read here: carbonbrief.org/very-alarming-…

Arctic sea ice hits lowest winter level -- tying with last year -- as unprecedented heat hits smashes records all over Earth; Most every continent sees unprecedented heat. What it means. apnews.com/article/arctic…

My dad is driving to DC for the first time since my mom died in Jan and he hit a deer. He called @AAA_Travel for help and a tow & they asked to speak to my mother. He informed them she just died & they said he can’t use the policy then & left a 70 year old grieving man stranded

I wrote about one of the East India Company's two occupations of Kharg Island in my book Return of a King. The Company actually occupied Kharg twice: once from 1838-1842, on the orders of Lord Auckland (shown below) when they eventually withdrew in confusion after the disasterous Retreat from Kabul. Then the Company occupied Kharg for a second time from 1856-7. This time they pulled out again, due the outbreak of the Great Uprising of 1857, and the Highland regiments who had occupied it under Sir Jamew Outram were rushed eastwards to break the Siege of Lucknow. On both occasions, occupying Kharg seemed like a good idea at the time, but proved a strategic dead-end. It showed that the Company could project power into the heart of the Persian Gulf at will, but it also highlighted their inability to translate naval dominance into lasting political stability in the region. Shame our current leaders seem unable to learn the lessons of history...

The Earth’s energy imbalance has reached a new high. In a stable climate, incoming energy from the sun is about the same as the amount of outgoing energy. But increasing greenhouse gas concentrations have upset the equilibrium. 🆕#StateOfClimate 2025: bit.ly/StateOfClimate…

How many landfills would it take to bury $10 trillion? Or maybe they’re using nature to recycle that much cash? theguardian.com/environment/20…

The point of no return: New evidence shows Antarctic melting is already locked in motherjones.com/politics/2026/…

@mehreenzahra Yes as if we haven’t seen earlier failed English news projects like Dawn TV and other ill fated attempts from Geo and Express. There’s no revenues, experience or investor appetite in Pakistan to execute a platform that rivals AJ, TRT etc. But can still be a thought experiment.

Important piece on Pakistani security agencies ‘encouraging’ media executives to launch state-friendly English news platforms, offering incentives like tax breaks to counter foreign narratives, officials and journalists say. This is part of efforts to shape Pakistan’s global image by launching new English-language media outlets and revamping state TV to push the country’s narrative abroad, especially amid tensions with India and Afghanistan.

Not to sound like a broken record but... Over 200 new record high temperatures are forecast this week. 🥵 Record warmth will persist across portions of California, the Southwest U.S., the central Great Basin and will return to areas of the central/southern Plains and mid-lower Mississippi Valley later this week. Stay cool this week, check weather.gov.

Antibiotic resistant bacteria are increasing, and a new study finds that extreme weather may be juicing their rise spklr.io/6019Ey8fW