Author: newsdesk

  • Sajal Aly, Mehwish Hayat and Kubra Khan address malicious allegations

    Sajal Aly, Mehwish Hayat and Kubra Khan address malicious allegations

    Actor Kubra Khan has announced she would take legal action against fugitive military officer Major (retd) Adil Raja for allegedly leveling false allegations against her.

    In a statement issued on Monday, she said she would take legal action against him if he fails to retract his allegations and does not apologize to her within three days.

    Kubra Khan asked Adil Raja to come up with proof to corroborate his claims or be prepared to face legal action.

    Adil Raja claimed that some Pakistani actresses and models were working in cahoots with General (retd) Bajwa and former ISI honcho Faiz Hameed to trap politicians.

    Although he shared the initials of the actresses instead of full names, it became obvious to netizens who he was referring to.

    Soon after his vlog surfaced online, a large number of social media users were seen spreading a collage of pictures featuring Mehwish Hayat, Mahira Khan, Kubra Khan, and Sajal Aly.

    Shortly after Kubra’s strong response, Raja replied on Twitter by saying that he never took her name. He elaborated on his stance in a vlog. Adil in fact alleged Kubra of defaming him in her post.

    Adil Raja’s Apology

    Major Adil took to his Twitter handle to apologise to Kubra Khan.

    He also stated that he never intended to target any woman, when he posted his controversial video.

    https://twitter.com/soldierspeaks/status/1611292792445358081

    Raja also stated that he apologised because his younger sister asked him to.

    Amidst the ongoing controversy, Sajal Aly tweeted a cryptic message, “It is very sad that our country is becoming morally debased and ugly; character assassination is the worst form of humanity and sin.”

    After Kubra and Sajal, Mehwish Hayat also lashed out at the person responsible for spreading false news about her. Hayat wrote, “Some people stoop down to an inhumane level to get cheap publicity. Hope you’re enjoying your two mins of fame. Just because I am an actress doesn’t mean my name can be dragged through the mud. Shame on you for spreading baseless allegations and insinuations about someone you know nothing about & even bigger shame on people who believe this bullshit. This just shows the sickness of our society that laps up this gutter journalism without any thought. But this stops & it stops now!I won’t allow anyone to defame my name.”

    A few notable celebrities extended support to these leading ladies on social media. Actors Muneeeb Butt and Zara Noor Abbas took to their Instagram stories to condemn the defamation of female stars.

    Muneeb wrote, “Same 90s filthy and graceless politics is back, throwing fake nudes to accusing someone falsely, we haven’t learned anything! I strongly protest and condemn the allegations made by @soldierspeaks. We actors are not vulnerable. We stand firm with our female colleagues.”

    Zara also condemned the misuse of freedom of speech.

    Sister duo Aiman and Minal Khan also shared their stance on the matter in heartfelt Instagram stories.

    Mansha Pasha took to Twitter to condemn the rise of hateful content targeted toward powerful women who are succeeding in their game.

    “Women even at the top of their game; independent, outspoken, and fearless are considered easy prey by small men. It is literally the last refuge of the desperate and is the most cowardly thing one can do.”

    Actor Syeda Tuba Anwar condemned how models and actresses become easy targets for petty politics, and sent her support to Sajal Aly.

    Instagram blogger and wife of actor Usman Mukhtar, Zunaira Inam expressed her rage on social media on how easy it was to character assasinate women without any proper proof.

    ‘So anyone can record a video putting all sorts of allegations on another person and people will hop on the bandwagon? It shouldn’t be this easy to character-assassinate women without any proof. Especially to distract from the dismal security and economic condition of the country.’

    In her next tweet, she called out the blogger for allowing powerful women to be slut shamed based on their own assumptions.

    ‘It’s not “just initials”. You’re allowing ppl to shame women based off nothing but their own assumptions. What did that allegation prove anyway? That generals are corrupt? Have low morals? Is anyone talking about that? Most people are too busy slutshaming.’

  • ‘Disgusting people’ Armeena Khan slams trolls after sharing video clip of husband with their baby

    It’s horrifying to witness how the state of victim blaming and misogyny is deeply steeped within the minds of Pakistani men, that even little children aren’t spared from the mercy of trolls. Women aren’t born as products to fulfill the needs of the patriarchy, and its not the fault of a literal child, if a grown man cannot seem to see her as anything but a sexual object.

    Armeena Khan was quick to school trolls who shamed her for simply uploading a video of her husband giving her baby a shower. Any other person would find this endearing on how fathers are adapting to taking care of children, but Pakistani men, for whom witnessing love and affection is odd and out of form, made a completly different interpretation of what was going on.

    Soon after this video was posted, Khan shared this post where the user was shaming a literal infant for not adorning pardah before her father. The actress was quick to remind the trolls that her daughter wasn’t supposed to feel insecure and terrified around her father, and called out the dirty mind who peddle this misogynist mindset.

    “Baby is literally a few days old, wtf is wrong with you disgusting people! He’s her FATHER! Dirty thoughts dirty people!”

    This is the sad result of championing misgoynist beliefs in a country like Pakistan, that even a father taking responsibility of his child is considered odd, or even could spark hateful comments. Fathers are not baby sitters, or even temporary care takers, it is their responsibility to take their of their own children. As this user reccounted to Armeena that her own husband helps their daughter around the house when she’s not around, the actress reminded the woman that this is how fathers are supposed to be.

    “He’s supposed to my love, he’s your fathers first Mehram. This is what happens when people conflate religion with culture. This culture is dirty and needs to change hoenstly.”

    It is no surprise that Pakistan landed on the fourth spot in the list of most dangerous countries for women in 2021, because even an infant that is three days old isn’t spared from moral policing and sexual objectification from trolls. This entire spectacle has really taught us how difficult it is for women to exist freely on the internet, because we need to keep fighting back against attempts to shame or sexually objectify us. But its wonderful to see Armeena Khan setting an example, and reminding the mediocre minds of Pakistani men that women do not exist for their pleasure solely.

  • ‘Imran se mil ke dosti ka ailaan kareinge’: Gen Faiz convinced Modi to visit Pakistan in 2021, claims Javed Chaudhry

    Journalist Javed Chaudhry continues with bringing inside details of the working of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) led government in his column. In the fourth part of the series published today, Chaudhry alleges that in 2020 the establishment had convinced Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi to visit Pakistan, and former Bahawalpur corps commander Lt Gen (retd) Faiz Hameed played a significant role in arranging the proposed trip.

    The journalist writes that in this regard Lt Gen (retd) Faiz Hameed, who was then the head of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) met Indian National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and both agreed upon Modi visiting Pakistan on April 9, 2021.

    All the details of the trip had been planned out. Modi would have first visited the Hinglaj Mata Mandir in Balochistan and on his way back home he would have met Imran Khan who was Prime Minister. Chaudhry said that it was planned that “Modi would shake hands with Khan and declare peace between the two countries and opening of trade”.

    Continuing with the sensational claims, the journalist writes that both leaders would announce that there will be no interference or terrorist activities from both countries. At the time, Modi was of the view that both countries would sit together after 20 years to decide about the future of India-occupied Kashmir.

    However, this tour was cancelled because Khan—on the advice of his foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi—backed out. Chaudhry writes that Qureshi scared Khan by telling him it would give a perception to the masses that he [Khan] has compromised on Kashmir.

    Lt Gen (retd) Faiz Hameed helped Khan in confidence motion

    According to the journalist, the establishment helped Khan throughout the confidence motion that Imran voluntarily announced he will take, right after Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) candidate Yousaf Raza Gillani defeated PTI’s Hafeez Sheikh in the senate elections. Lt Gen (retd) Faiz Hameed ensured full numbers for PTI so Khan could win the motion. Calls and visits were made to ensure that disgruntled MNAs voted in favour of Khan.

    Moreover, the journalist writes that as per his sources, Khan advised showing leniency towards former President and co-chairman of PPP, Asif Ali Zardari, from National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and the court.

    LNG deal was ruined by Khan

    In the column, another detailed passage says that former army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa admits that former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz signed the best LNG deal with Qatar to ensure supplies for Pakistan during winters but it was ruined by Imran Khan.

    Chaudhry said that then-Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Petroleum, Nadeem Babar, asked for just three gas shipments from Qatar despite a one-time generous offer to take ‘as much as required’ amidst a looming gas crisis at home, so he could sell his own furnace oil.

    In another episode, Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) caught a ship loaded with cheaply bought Iranian petrol. It was for none other than Babar. According to him, Khan was informed about it but chose to stay quiet.

    Also, prior to Nadeem’s appointment, Khan was warned by the establishment but he didnt listen.

    Babar isn’t in the country anymore but Pakistan is still paying the price of his decisions to serve his own interests, all because Imran wanted to retain him as his aide, writes Chaudhry in his column.

  • Hackers put 200 million Twitter users’ private information for sale on dark web

    Hackers put 200 million Twitter users’ private information for sale on dark web

    Anyone can now download the data of more than 200 million Twitter users for free.

    According to Privacy Affairs‘ security researchers, who confirmed the database that’s currently posted on a hacker forum, this most recent data dump, which contains account names, handles, creation dates, follower counts, and email addresses, turns out to be the same — albeit cleaned up — leak reported last month that affected more than 400 million Twitter accounts.

    According to Privacy Affairs CEO and founder Miklos Zoltan, the removal of duplicate accounts is what caused the number of accounts to be cut in half. But this time, he added, “the data is available for download by anyone for free, as opposed to being marketed for sale at $200,000, as it was in December.”

    According to Zoltan’s blog article detailing the breach, some of the well-known individuals and companies in the new 63GB database leak include Donald Trump Jr., Google CEO Sundar Pichai, SpaceX, the US National Basketball Association, CBS Media, and the World Health Organization.

    There is no information on whether the Christmas Day Twitter account hack of British Education Secretary Gillian Keegan is connected. Miscreants hijacked Keegan’s account in that instance, altered her profile photo to one of Elon Musk, and sent out a string of tweets endorsing cryptocurrency.

    The exposed account owners are still at risk even if the disclosed data does not contain users’ phone numbers, physical addresses, or passwords, according to Zoltan.

    “Privacy Affairs cybersecurity experts reviewed the published data and believe this latest leak could lead to social engineering attacks and doxxing.”

    The genuine names and locations of individuals can be ascertained by combining the hacked email addresses connected to Twitter accounts with other publicly accessible data. Additionally, nation state goons and criminals continue to use phishing emails as a successful entry point for social engineering attacks.

    Of course, spammers or con artists can also utilise the listed email addresses; all they need to do is persuade one victim to click on a harmful link.

    Researchers cautioned that despite this week’s data leak having fewer accounts, it may be more dangerous because the thieves are giving away the entire information for free.

    “It is not certain at this moment how exactly this data was obtained,” Zoltan noted. “The most likely method used could have been the abuse of an application programming interface (API) vulnerability.”

    The data was allegedly hacked in 2021 due to a security flaw that Twitter claimed to have closed last year.

  • ‘Kya baat hai Lahore ki thand ki’: Junaid Safdar returns to Pakistan, talks about future plans

    ‘Kya baat hai Lahore ki thand ki’: Junaid Safdar returns to Pakistan, talks about future plans

    Junaid Safdar, the son of Senior Vice President of Pakistan Muslim League- Nawaz (PML-N) Maryam Nawaz, has reached Lahore on Thursday night.

    It was reported earlier this week that Junaid was shifting permanently to Pakistan to assist his mother in her party’s political activities.

    Taking to Instagram, Junaid wrote, “I am not interested in Pakistani politics, for now. I have only moved to Pakistan to fulfil the responsibilities owed to my mother and family. I will be assisting my mother in her work and family matters but I will not be taking part in politics,” he added.

    “Side note: Kya baat hai Lahore ki thand ki [Nothing can come close to Lahore winters]. Have really missed this!” added Junaid.

    On January 2, Maryam Nawaz was appointed the Senior Vice President of PML-N. She will also take on the responsibility of reorganising the party.

    According to news reports, PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz on Wednesday left London for a week-long trip to Geneva.

  • ‘I told them about the Nazi uniform to William and Kate and they had a laugh’; here are some revelations from Prince Harry’s memoir ‘Spare’

    ‘I told them about the Nazi uniform to William and Kate and they had a laugh’; here are some revelations from Prince Harry’s memoir ‘Spare’

    Since the bombshell revelation that Prince William had sworn at and physically attacked Prince Harry, anticipation regarding the release of the former Princer’s memoir ‘Spare’ has gone sky high with many media outlets now carrying other excerpts from the book. Here are some of the more juicy bits from the memoir.

    1. Prince William and Kate Middleton were huge fans of the show ‘Suits’ before they had met Meghan Markle

    Prior to her marriage to the former Duke of Sussex, Meghan Markle starred as paralegal Rachel in the popular drama ‘Suits’ which centered around a powerful law firm in Manhattan. Prince Harry writes that around the time he had told his brother and sister-in-law about his relationship, Meghan had already retired from acting.

    He writes that when he announced he was dating Meghan, the two starred at him in complete shock.

    “Willy turned to me and said ‘F—k off?’” Harry said.

    I was baffled, until Willy and Kate explained that they were regular — nay, religious — viewers of ‘Suits,’” he continued.

    Harry recalled being amused by his brother and sister’s excited responses, as they kept badgering him for details but he only gave them a limited description of their relationship. He further confessed that his brother’s lukewarm warning hurt him, even though he was excited to introduce Meghan to the family.

    “I confessed, for the umpteenth time, that this had long been my dream — to join them with an equal partner. Well, now I felt that it was going to happen and I told him so — but he still said to slow down. ‘She’s an American actress after all, Harold. Anything might happen.’ I nodded, a bit hurt.”

    2. It was Prince William and Princess Kate who had told him to wear the Nazi costume in 2005.

    One of the anecdotes in the book includes Prince Harry’s controversial choice dress up in a Nazi uniform to a Halloween party where the theme was “Native and Colonial”. Prince William was going dressed as a lion. Harry writes that when he had phoned both of his brother and Kate and told them he was going to wear a Nazi uniform, they laughed about it.

    “I phoned Willy and Kate, asked what they thought. Nazi uniform, they said. They both howled. Worse than Willy’s leotard outfit! Way more ridiculous! Which, again, was the point.”

    The former Duke had expressed remorse over his actions in the Netflix documentary ‘Harry and Meghan” and had said he ‘felt so ashamed afterwards.” However, this revelation has brought criticism for the disgruntled Duke of Sussex, with many commenting on how he’s refusing to take responsibility for his scandalous choice of costume.

    3. Prince Williams hair loss was alarming and his resemblance to their mother, the late Princess Diana, had completely faded.

    In a section discussing meeting his family at Prince Phillip’s funeral, Prince Harry recalls realizing that his elder brother’s ressemblance to their mother had completely faded with time. As he writes
    “I looked at Willy, really looked at him, perhaps for the first time since we were little,” Harry recalls, referring to his brother’s “familiar scowl” that “had always been the norm” during their interactions.

    In another section of the book, he wrote how alarmed he was by the way his brother William’s hair was fading, even though the Duke of Wales was only three years older than him.

    4. Both Prince Harry and Prince Williams had begged their father, Prince Charles, not to marry ‘wicked step mother Camila’.

    Writing about his father’s marriage to longtime lover Camila Parker-Bowles, with whom he was involved in an affair while married to Princess Diana, Harry writes that he and his brother had begged their father not to proceed with the wedding.

    “Despite Willy and me urging him not to, Pa was going ahead. We pumped his hand, wished him well. No hard feelings.
    We recognized that he was finally going to be with the woman he loved, the woman he’d always loved.”

    He also writes about his relationship with his stepmother, saying that he was always suspicous about her becoming another wicked stepmother

    “I remember wondering … if she would be cruel to me; if she would be like all the evil stepmothers in the stories. Willy had been suspicious of the Other Woman for a long time, which confused and tormented him. When those suspicions were confirmed, he felt agonizing remorse for not having done or said anything before.”

    5. What had actually happened regarding the infamous ‘Meghan had made Kate cry’ revelation

    Prince Harry opened up about Meghan’s revelation that it was Kate who had made her cry at the Sussex’s bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey, after it was widely reported that it was Markle who had made Kate cry during the preparations for the wedding.

    He wrote in the biography that during the preparation of the wedding, the now Princess of Wales had texted Markle about needing altercations to the younger Princess Charlotte’s dress, saying it was too big, too long and baggy because of which the young one began crying. She had also added that all of the younger bridesmaid’s dresses had to be remade, with only four days left for the wedding.

    When the Duchess of Sussex had agreed to visit the tailor along with Kate and her daughter Charlotte, Harry writes that he later found Meghan in tears on the floor after their meeting. The next day, Kate had sent flowers with a card apologizing for what she had said.

    ‘Spare’ will be released in bookstores worldwide from 10th January onwards.

  • ‘I will not do it’: Punjab CM refuses to take vote of confidence

    ‘I will not do it’: Punjab CM refuses to take vote of confidence

    Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi Thursday ruled out following Governor Baligh-ur-Rehman’s orders for taking a vote of confidence and termed the directions “illegal”.

    “I don’t accept the governor’s letter for the vote of confidence. If I take the vote of confidence, then it means that I am accepting the letter,” he told the media.

    “The governor wants me to follow his illegal order, but I will not do it,” the chief minister said, as the ruling coalition in Punjab scrambles to ensure he maintains his seat.

    Lahore High Court (LHC) reinstated Elahi as CM Punjab following his de-notification by the governor.

    The court reinstated Elahi on December 23 and adjourned the next hearing till January 11. Although it restricted the CM from dissolving the assembly, the court said its order would not stop Elahi from taking a vote of confidence.

    It is pertinent to mention here that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Fawad Chaudhry had told media on January 4, that the ruling coalition would go for a vote of confidence before January 11, the day when an LHC bench resumes hearing into a petition by Pervaiz Elahi challenging the governor’s move.

  • Govt launches paid internship programme to support 30,000 unemployed graduates

    Govt launches paid internship programme to support 30,000 unemployed graduates

    Federal Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal announced on Thursday that the government is initiating the “Talented Youth Internship Program” for 30,000 graduate students who are unemployed.

    The minister announced the internship would last six months and pay a monthly stipend of Rs25,000 to the youngsters while presiding over a meeting of representatives from the private sector.

    He claimed that because two-thirds of Pakistan’s population is under the age of 30, the future of the nation hinges on the youth acquiring meaningful education and skills.

    According to Ahsan Iqbal, the Ministry of Planning’s primary responsibility is to prepare for the youth’s future, and he said that the private sector and the youth’s active participation are essential for Pakistan’s growth.

    He claimed that with this scheme, 30,000 young people would have the chance to work in the industry.

    The minister emphasised the necessity of putting aside differences and cooperating to end the country’s economic problems.

    He said, “When there is a fire in the house, the first thing to do is to extinguish the fire. The economy of a country with a population of 220 million does not sink in 8 months.”

    Every Pakistani, according to him, should contribute to the effort to end the nation’s economic predicament. “Every Pakistani citizen must support the Turnaround Pakistan Campaign.”

  • ‘Used to go to school in the same weather, never complained’ Murad Raas thinks school holidays should not be extended despite smog

    ‘Used to go to school in the same weather, never complained’ Murad Raas thinks school holidays should not be extended despite smog

    Punjab Minister for School Education Murad Raas has criticised the parents, students and teachers who are requesting an extension in school winter holidays.

    “Why are parents/teachers/students wanting more winter holidays? We used to go to school in the same weather and never complained. What is wrong with this generation – no one wants to do anything! Especially study,” the minister wrote in a tweet.

    The School Education Department held a meeting on Thursday in which the participants decided to not extend winter vacations. Education officials indicated that it would not be advantageous to extend the holidays because of upcoming examination schedules and declared that the schools will reopen on January 9.
    Lahore and parts of central Punjab are in the grip of intense smog, with reduced visibility in the early hours of the morning.

  • Netflix drops teaser for second season of ‘Wednesday’

    Netflix drops teaser for second season of ‘Wednesday’

    Netflix dropped a teaser on their social media pages for the second season of its surprise November smash hit Wednesday. It features the titular teenager typing on a typewriter in her room. The girl is seen writing ‘THE END?” and then smirks to herself at the end of the video.

    Wednesday’s season two has been the subject of much speculation recently with some news sources claiming that the show was moving to Amazon for its second season. The specualtion was fulled by Netflix not imemdiately announcing that the show was being renewed for a second season.

    The Addams Family spin-off was created by Alfred Gough and Miles Miller, and directed by Tim Burton.

    It stars Jenna Ortega, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Luis Guzman, Gwendoline Christine, and Christina Ricci, who starred as Wednesday in the 90’s movie.