Rooma News : Xi arrives in Washington for state visit as trade truce is extended.Hurricane Polo threatens Mexico’s Pacific coast with flooding and mudslides.

 Rooma News

By Rooma Mehmood, Islamabad

Thursday, September 24, 2026

World

Xi arrives in Washington for state visit as trade truce is extended

Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Washington for a state visit, and US President Donald Trump gave him a rare planeside welcome. Talks focus on trade, where the truce has been extended by two months, along with artificial intelligence safeguards, Taiwan and the Iran conflict. Xi called for the two countries to be “partners, not rivals.”

Iran’s president tells the UN Tehran will not surrender

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian delivered a wartime speech to the General Assembly, saying Iranians are “victims of terrorism” by the US and that Tehran will not yield to threats or bullying, while staying open to diplomacy. His remarks followed Trump’s earlier comments about possible “annihilation.” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged continued economic pressure on Russia, and tech leaders called for international AI controls.

Judge blocks White House ban on three news outlets

A federal judge temporarily blocked Trump’s ban on CNN, MS NOW and Politico from White House grounds and ordered access restored.

In brief

Hurricane Polo threatens Mexico’s Pacific coast with flooding and mudslides.

A bus fire in India’s Uttar Pradesh killed at least nine.

Morocco’s Authenticity and Modernity Party led preliminary parliamentary results.

Russian strikes on Ukrainian infrastructure killed at least seven.

Harvey Weinstein was resentenced to 15 years.

Pakistan

Pakistan strikes 10 locations in Afghanistan after drone attacks

Pakistan carried out “deliberate, precise, and calibrated” strikes on 10 locations in Afghanistan linked to recent drone attacks and incursions, including near Torkham and Kohat. Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said the action was limited to military targets and taken in self-defense.

No talks with PTI until long march is postponed

The government says a protest in the capital will not be allowed. Preparations include possible mobile and internet restrictions, bridge blockades and non-lethal measures. Jamaat-e-Islami has also kept a long-march option open over the petrol levy.

Security forces kill 19 terrorists in Balochistan

Intelligence-based operations killed 19 terrorists, with reports of eight in one operation; one soldier was martyred. Section 144 was imposed across Balochistan for a month. The CTD traced networks linked to the Kohat Police Lines attack.

Najeeb Naqi elected AJK president; PM pushes Iran mediation

PML-N’s Dr. Najeeb Naqi was elected Azad Jammu & Kashmir president. At the UN General Assembly, PM Shehbaz Sharif reaffirmed efforts to mediate an end to the US-Iran conflict, met EU leaders and discussed regional issues with Iran’s foreign minister. Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar also held talks.

Economy, schools and Islamabad

Punjab approved a new school curriculum that cuts the textbook burden by 25%.

IMF officials expressed positivity on Pakistan’s reforms.

The ADB maintained its 3.7% growth forecast.

Reports say a 3-year-old girl was murdered after being kidnapped in Islamabad.

Editorial

Navigating a Turbulent World: Pakistan’s Path Forward

By Rooma Mehmood

The world on September 24, 2026, feels like a pressure cooker of great-power rivalry, regional wars, and technological disruption. From the tense White House talks between Trump and Xi to Iran’s defiant UN address and the grinding Ukraine conflict, global stability hangs by thin diplomatic threads. For Pakistan, these external storms collide with urgent domestic realities: border security, political polarization, and economic fragility.

Pakistan’s calibrated strikes into Afghanistan rightly assert the right of self-defense against drone threats. No sovereign state can tolerate repeated incursions. Yet lasting security demands more than kinetic responses: sustained diplomacy with Kabul, intelligence cooperation, and addressing the root causes that allow militant sanctuaries to persist. Escalation serves neither side.

Domestically, the looming PTI long march and counter-measures risk turning political disagreement into street confrontation. Dialogue, however difficult, remains preferable to disruption that costs the economy hundreds of millions daily and erodes public trust. Both government and opposition share responsibility for keeping protest peaceful and institutions intact. Parallel efforts on education reform and economic stabilization, welcomed by the IMF and ADB, show progress is possible when focus stays on governance rather than zero-sum politics.

Pakistan’s quiet mediation push on the US-Iran front is constructive and aligns with its interest in regional calm and lower energy costs. In a multipolar world, middle powers gain influence not by aligning rigidly but by offering pragmatic bridges. The same pragmatism is needed at home: prioritize border security without distraction, economic reform without delay, and political competition without chaos.

The international stage is noisy and dangerous. Pakistan’s best contribution, and best protection, is steady, self-interested realism: secure the frontiers, stabilize the economy, and keep channels of dialogue open. Turbulence abroad is inevitable; compounding it through domestic deadlock is a choice we can still avoid.

Rooma News, Islamabad. Written and edited by Rooma Mehmood.