At least nine people, including several children, were killed in Pakistani drone and missile strikes on Iran on Thursday morning, two days after Iranian strikes against a separatist militant group on Pakistani soil.
The early-morning strikes hit Iran's south-eastern province of Sistan and Baluchestan, which borders Pakistan's Balochistan province where Iran carried out a drone and missile attack on Tuesday night.
State outlet Irna said explosions were heard around the city of Saravan.
Three women, four children and two men, were killed in the Pakistani strikes, provincial deputy governor Ali Reza Marhamati told the Associated Press. All the victims were foreign citizens living in border villages, he said.
Halvash, a Baluch advocacy group in Iran, said the strikes destroyed the homes of two senior commanders of the Baloch Liberation Army and killed 10 people: four women, five children and a man.
It published footage of destroyed homes and craters surrounded by rubble, and said women and children were trapped under the debris.
The Pakistani army confirmed it had conducted drone and missile strikes on “terrorist separatist groups” in Iran and said it was “necessary to respond in kind”, in a post to its Arabic-language X account.
“We note and warn that whoever extends his finger towards us, it will return amputated, and whoever thinks of attacking us will return … defeated,” it said.
The post also hinted at further action, saying: “Our fingers are on the trigger.”
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said several people were killed in a series of “highly-co-ordinated and specifically targeted” strikes against “terrorist hideouts” in Sistan and Baluchestan.
The ministry said Pakistan “fully respects” Iran’s sovereignty but hit out at Tehran for a “lack of action” on intelligence shared by Islamabad in recent years.
“The sole objective of today’s act was in pursuit of Pakistan’s own security and national interest, which is paramount and cannot be compromised,” it said.
The Baloch Liberation Army, an ethnic separatist group that has operated in the region since 2000, issued a statement confirming that strikes had caused deaths and warning that Pakistan would “pay a price”.
“Now the Baloch Liberation Army will not remain silent. We will avenge it and we announce war on the state of Pakistan,” it said.
Iran strongly condemned the attack and asked for an “immediate explanation” from Islamabad, summoning the Pakistani envoy to Tehran.
Pakistan's caretaker prime minister Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar cut short his trip to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, as the situation escalate.
Pakistan had criticised Iran's strikes in its Balochistan province as “completely unacceptable” and warned of “serious consequences”.
Islamabad recalled its envoy from Tehran on Wednesday and blocked the Iranian ambassador, on a visit home, from returning to Pakistan.
Iranian news agencies said the “missile and drone” attack targeted the headquarters in Pakistan of Jaish Al Adl, a Baluch militant group.
Mehr news agency described the attack as “another decisive step taken by Iran in response to the aggression against the security of our country”.
A Pakistani security official told The National that Iran's strike convinced Pakistani authorities to respond in the same manner.
“Soon after the Iranian strike that challenged Pakistan’s sovereignty, a response had to be given to Iran because we can’t compromise on such incidents,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity
China, which has large-scale economic projects in Pakistan's Balochistan province, has offered to mediate between the two.
Baluch separatist groups have carried out a low-level insurgency for more than two decades and have targeted members of the security forces in Iran and Pakistan.
Speaking to The National, former inspector general of police Syed Akhtar Ali Shah said Pakistan should accept mediation with Iran and avoid getting dragged into the continuing regional tensions sparked by the war in Gaza.
“I believe that China and other friendly countries should mediate between Pakistan and Iran and resolve the issues through diplomatic channels,” he said.
Iran's strikes in Pakistan came a day after it fired missiles into Syria and Iraq amid growing fears that the conflict in Gaza could spread to the wider region.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the ballistic missile strikes on the Iraqi Kurdish city of Erbil targeted a Mossad headquarters, accusations denied by Kurdish officials. The attack killed several civilians, including an 11-month-old baby.
The IRGC also struck ISIS militants in north-west Syria, after the group claimed responsibility for two bombings near the tomb of former Quds Force general Qassem Suleimani this month.
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
The bio
Favourite book: Peter Rabbit. I used to read it to my three children and still read it myself. If I am feeling down it brings back good memories.
Best thing about your job: Getting to help people. My mum always told me never to pass up an opportunity to do a good deed.
Best part of life in the UAE: The weather. The constant sunshine is amazing and there is always something to do, you have so many options when it comes to how to spend your day.
Favourite holiday destination: Malaysia. I went there for my honeymoon and ended up volunteering to teach local children for a few hours each day. It is such a special place and I plan to retire there one day.
MATCH INFO
Who: UAE v USA
What: first T20 international
When: Friday, 2pm
Where: ICC Academy in Dubai
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE%20v%20West%20Indies
%3Cp%3EFirst%20ODI%20-%20Sunday%2C%20June%204%20%0D%3Cbr%3ESecond%20ODI%20-%20Tuesday%2C%20June%206%20%0D%3Cbr%3EThird%20ODI%20-%20Friday%2C%20June%209%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EMatches%20at%20Sharjah%20Cricket%20Stadium.%20All%20games%20start%20at%204.30pm%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EUAE%20squad%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EMuhammad%20Waseem%20(captain)%2C%20Aayan%20Khan%2C%20Adithya%20Shetty%2C%20Ali%20Naseer%2C%20Ansh%20Tandon%2C%20Aryansh%20Sharma%2C%20Asif%20Khan%2C%20Basil%20Hameed%2C%20Ethan%20D%E2%80%99Souza%2C%20Fahad%20Nawaz%2C%20Jonathan%20Figy%2C%20Junaid%20Siddique%2C%20Karthik%20Meiyappan%2C%20Lovepreet%20Singh%2C%20Matiullah%2C%20Mohammed%20Faraazuddin%2C%20Muhammad%20Jawadullah%2C%20Rameez%20Shahzad%2C%20Rohan%20Mustafa%2C%20Sanchit%20Sharma%2C%20Vriitya%20Aravind%2C%20Zahoor%20Khan%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
THE%20SPECS
%3Cp%3EEngine%3A%203-litre%20V6%20turbo%20(standard%20model%2C%20E-hybrid)%3B%204-litre%20V8%20biturbo%20(S)%0D%3Cbr%3EPower%3A%20350hp%20(standard)%3B%20463hp%20(E-hybrid)%3B%20467hp%20(S)%0D%3Cbr%3ETorque%3A%20500Nm%20(standard)%3B%20650Nm%20(E-hybrid)%3B%20600Nm%20(S)%0D%0D%3Cbr%3EPrice%3A%20From%20Dh368%2C500%0D%3Cbr%3EOn%20sale%3A%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
Simran
Director Hansal Mehta
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Soham Shah, Esha Tiwari Pandey
Three stars
ULTRA PROCESSED FOODS
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- Margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars
- Energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- Infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes
- Many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
