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Bus Falls into Ravine in Pakistan's Far North, Killing 20

Injured people transferred to an ambulance in Pakistan (AP archive)
Injured people transferred to an ambulance in Pakistan (AP archive)
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Bus Falls into Ravine in Pakistan's Far North, Killing 20

Injured people transferred to an ambulance in Pakistan (AP archive)
Injured people transferred to an ambulance in Pakistan (AP archive)

A bus veered into a ravine in Pakistan's far north early on Friday, a local government spokesman said, killing 20 passengers, while 21 injured were rescued and taken to hospital.
The bus was headed to the mountainous northern area of Gilgit-Baltistan from the garrison city of Rawalpindi in Pakistan's eastern province of Punjab, when the accident happened in the early hours.
"The bus was passing through Diamer district in Gilgit-Baltistan when it fell into a deep ravine," Faizullah Firaq, a spokesman for local government authorities in the area, told Reuters, adding that 21 people were injured.
The government immediately launched a rescue operation to evacuate all the injured, who were taken to hospital, he added.
Fatal road accidents are common in Pakistan, where traffic rules are rarely followed and roads in many rural areas are in poor condition.
For decades Pakistan has done extensive work in carving roads through its dramatic rugged northern terrain, home to some of the world's highest mountain ranges, approached by narrow roads perched on sheer cliffs.
Militant attacks, including one in March nearby in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa that killed six people, pose another risk to travelers in the area, targeting Chinese-backed dams and hydropower infrastructure projects.

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Gabbard Calls Signal Chats a ‘Mistake’ as Trump Officials Face Grilling over Leaked Military Plan

(L-R) Director of the National Security Agency, Gen. Timothy Haugh; FBI Director, Kash Patel; Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard; CIA Director, John Ratcliffe; and Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kruse testify before a House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence hearing on "Worldwide Threats," on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on March 26, 2025. (AFP)
(L-R) Director of the National Security Agency, Gen. Timothy Haugh; FBI Director, Kash Patel; Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard; CIA Director, John Ratcliffe; and Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kruse testify before a House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence hearing on "Worldwide Threats," on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on March 26, 2025. (AFP)
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Gabbard Calls Signal Chats a ‘Mistake’ as Trump Officials Face Grilling over Leaked Military Plan

(L-R) Director of the National Security Agency, Gen. Timothy Haugh; FBI Director, Kash Patel; Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard; CIA Director, John Ratcliffe; and Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kruse testify before a House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence hearing on "Worldwide Threats," on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on March 26, 2025. (AFP)
(L-R) Director of the National Security Agency, Gen. Timothy Haugh; FBI Director, Kash Patel; Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard; CIA Director, John Ratcliffe; and Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kruse testify before a House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence hearing on "Worldwide Threats," on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on March 26, 2025. (AFP)

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said Wednesday it was a "mistake" for national security officials to discuss sensitive military plans on a group text chain that also included a journalist — a leak that has roiled President Donald Trump's national security leadership.

Speaking before the House Intelligence Committee, Gabbard said the conversation included "candid and sensitive" information about military strikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen. But as she told senators during testimony on Tuesday, she said the texts did not contain any classified information.

"It was a mistake that a reporter was inadvertently added," Gabbard said.

Wednesday's hearing was called to discuss an updated report on national security threats facing the US Instead, much of the focus was on the text chain, which included Gabbard, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Vice President JD Vance and other top officials.

Jeffrey Goldberg, the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, was also added, and on Wednesday his publication released more details from the chats, showing the level of detail they offered about the strikes.

Democrats have demanded an investigation into the sloppy communication, saying it may have exposed sensitive military information that could have jeopardized the mission or put US service members at risk.

The National Security Council has said it will investigate the matter, which Trump on Tuesday downplayed as a "glitch." Goldberg said he received the Signal invitation from Mike Waltz, Trump’s national security adviser, who was in the group chat and has taken responsibility for the lapse.

Even though the texts contained detailed information on military actions, Gabbard, Ratcliffe and the White House have all said none of the information was classified — an assertion Democrats flatly rejected on Wednesday.

"You all know that's a lie," Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, told Ratcliffe and Gabbard, who said that any decisions to classify or declassify military information falls to the secretary of defense.

Several Democrats on the panel said Hegseth should resign because of the leak.

"This is classified information. It’s a weapon system, as well as a sequence of strikes, as well as details of the operations," said Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, a Democrat from Illinois. "He needs to resign immediately."

Ratcliffe defended his use of Signal as "appropriate" and said questions over the Signal leak have overshadowed the military operation targeting the Houthis.

"What is most important is that the mission was a remarkable success," he told lawmakers. "That’s what did happen, not what possibly could have happened."

The discussion at times grew heated as Ratcliffe and Democratic lawmakers spoke over one another. At one point, Rep. Jimmy Gomez, an Illinois Democrat, asked whether he knew whether Hegseth was drinking alcohol when he participated in the chat.

"I think that’s an offensive line of questioning," Ratcliffe angrily replied. "The answer is no."

Ratcliffe and Gomez then began shouting over each other as Gomez sought to ask a follow-up question. "We want to know if his performance is compromised," Gomez said.

Wednesday's hearing was called to discuss the intelligence community's annual report on threats to American national security. The report lists China, Russia, Iran and North Korea as strategic adversaries, and notes that drug cartels and transnational criminal organizations pose other threats to Americans.

The presentations from top Trump appointees reflect Trump's foreign policy priorities, including a focus on combating the flow of fentanyl, illegal immigration and human trafficking, and are taking place as Trump attempts to work out a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine three years after Russia's invasion.