Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) Prisons Minister Colonel (retd) Abaidullah Baig has returned home after being abducted by militants on Friday while en route to Skardu from Islamabad.
According to police, the minister was travelling with two foreigners when abducted by terrorists.
Geo News’ sources have said that the kidnappers had demanded the release of their jailed accomplices.
Earlier, former GB government spokesperson Faizullah told Geo News that he has spoken to the minister and talks were underway for the release. He had said he was present at the Jirga where negotiations were held with the kidnappers.
Faizullah said that the militants had kept Baig and his companions in a house for six hours. They were released at 3am after negotiations.
Baig was elected from Hunza 6 on a PTI ticket and he is a member of the GB Legislative Assembly since 2020.
Electric buses for intra-city travel will shortly be introduced by the Capital Development Authority (CDA). Electric buses will be used on six distinct public transportation lines, according to CDA authorities. The department will also make room for bus charging stations.
CDA will open the tender for bus consultancy on 12th October. By the end of December, the first shipment of electric buses will arrive in Islamabad. Three e-bus base stations will be built by CDA.
The introduction of electric buses has been a recent priority for CDA. The government started testing these buses in the Twin Cities, and now the project might soon see a concrete follow-up.
Capt. (Ret.) Usman Younis, CDA Chairman, said that the first phase will involve the provision of transportation on six congested roads. The administration would purchase buses for seven more routes in the second phase, he added.
The unpredictable Pakistani rupee, which made the highest rise of 3.9 per cent over five working days to Rs219.92 against the dollar on anticipation of sizable inflows of foreign cash, was dubbed the “world’s best-performing currency” in the week that concluded on Friday.
According to analysts monitoring currency movements, the rupee proved to be the best-performing currency throughout the week.
Friday marked the rupee’s 11th straight successful working day since the current finance minister, Ishaq Dar, announced his return to Pakistan by ending a five-year self-exile last month, according to the Express Tribune.
Clearly, Dar continued his previous strategy of defending the rupee from the assault of the US currency after assuming power. He thought the rupee was undervalued at its all-time low of roughly Rs240 to the dollar in July and suspected commercial banks of manipulating the rupee’s value to advance their own interests.
In a swift move, Pakistani officials notified Moody’s that during recent meetings with multilateral creditors, the government had received an additional funding commitment of more than $2.5 billion from the Asian Development Bank.
This was done while strongly responding to Moody’s downgrading Pakistan’s credit rating to Caa1. The World Bank has also committed to providing an additional $1.3 billion in finance for infrastructure improvement and other projects during the current fiscal year.
Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s involvement in horse trading has been confirmed in the alleged audio leak that surfaced a day earlier.
“Imran Khan has confessed that he was involved in horse trading in the audio,” said PM Shehbaz while lambasting Khan for accusing his opponents of getting an NRO.
The premier said that no one is above the law, adding that his family suffered the worst cruelty and yet have been appearing before the court.
“Did any court summon Imran Khan?” he asked.
“Pakistan’s prime minister was bidding [for people] in the PM house,” PM Shehbaz said outside Special Central Court in Lahore.
“He had set up a market to buy and sell, and consciences were being sold. Could there be a bigger crime than this by a sitting PM?” the prime minister questioned, referring to the recent audio leaks in which Imran can be allegedly heard talking about buying “five” MNA’s.
Terming Khan the world’s worst fraud, Shehbaz Sharif asked why the then NAB chairman did not take notice of the £190 million robbery.
He accused the PTI chairman of hatching a conspiracy against the nation and asked where did he get the money to buy the conscience of five lawmakers?
“Imran Niazi now you have to answer the nation,” the PM declared.
Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa warned that the “price of status quo will be devastating for all of us”.
“The world has changed, and so should we as the price of status quo will be devastating for all of us,” warned the army chief while addressing the passing-out parade of 146th PMA Long Course at Pakistan Military Academy in Kakul.
“I must highlight here that our desire for peace must not be construed as our weakness. No one should make any mistake about our collective resolve to defend our core interests and every inch of our motherland,” he warned.
He said that the people of South Asia deserve prosperity and better living conditions, which can only be achieved with sustained economic growth, developing, and lasting peace.
“Therefore we should try to keep the flames of war away from the region,” he said.
“This can only happen with sustained economic growth, development, and above all, lasting peace. Therefore, we must strive hard to keep the flames of war away from the region,” he stressed.
Don’t get distracted by fake news and political wrangling
During his speech, Gen Bajwa urged the cadets not to get “distracted by fake news and political wrangling” in the country.
“The message is clear: The armed forces with the support of our citizens will never allow any country, group, or force to politically or economically destabilise Pakistan,” he said.
Respect the democratic institutions
“My dear cadets, you are entering the service when the challenges facing the country are complex and multifaceted hence your responsibilities are far greater and more demanding than that of your predecessors,” he told the cadets, advising them that as good soldiers they must always remain focused on their jobs and not get distracted by fake news and political wrangling in the country.
“Respect the democratic institutions and be ready to defend the territorial integrity, sovereignty, and constitution of Pakistan with your life,” he further added.
“Always remain prepared and alert to respond and defeat all intrigues and conspiracies hatched against our country with an iron fist. The message is clear. The armed forces, with the support of our citizens, will never allow any country, group, or force to politically or economically destabilize Pakistan,” he concluded while thanking the commandant for training the cadets.
Star-singer Aima Baig landed herself in hot water last month as her name has emerged in a cheating scandal. Baig was accused of cheating on her fiancé Shahbaz Shigri with Qes Ahmed by British model Taloulah Mair.
Now the talented singer has revealed that the online trolling and humiliation took a toll on her father’s health.
Baig said that when the cheating rumors spread, her father became worried. The famous person also said that he did everything he could to fix things and make her feel better.
She also said that her father wanted to get her out of the mental and physical chaos.“ His tiny concerns, where he would ask me if he can make me my favorite sandwich or his delicate knocks on my door just to check up on me if I’m okay? His soft strokes on my head while I pretend to sleep,” she wrote.
The singer added, “I could see how badly he wanted to go back to when I was in school, and if I was ever bullied, he would stand up for his little girl and take me to my favorite candy shop later, just to see that smile on my face.”
Aima said that he is the best father to her and the only parent she has now.
Controversy
The Sajna Door crooner announced that she and Shigrihave parted ways a year after their engagement. Following which, Mair took to Instagram to accuse Baig of being involved with her ex Ahmed while she was engaged to Shigri.
Now Aima has broken her silence on the controversy in a series of Instagram stories.
“Bol liya aap sab nay? Karlia bully ya abhi bhi or thora rehta ha to wo bhi karlain. [Have you all said your peace? Have you bullied me enough or have you still got some more left to do, go ahead and do it.] Without even knowing the entire truth. Ab main thora sa kuch boloun [now can I say a little something]?” she asked in a series of Instagram stories posted on Wednesday evening.
Her comments come soon after claims made by a British model named Taloulah Mair that Baig was involved with her ex-boyfriend, photographer Qes Ahmed.
“Although I did left a very respectful statement to put an end to this whole situation. But some people wants to stay [quiet because] they know how many more ugly things would come out, not just about them, but about their families too. I still want to keep up with that respect that I gave to these people. In fact to this one person and family because ‘that is not how my upbringing is’,” she wrote. Baig posted a statement announcing her breakup with Shigri on Instagram on September 17 but deleted it soon after.
“I don’t and can’t make fun of people who are deceased or how they used their significant other and then acted as if they are the victim. People who know this person personally… have nothing to say about this matter since they knew the truth way before y’all got aware of it. And trust me they know why it happened,” wrote the singer.
“Whatever happened, I’ve been going through some major trauma, depression right now because people don’t know what actually happened. And these extras who just want some followers and money…please give them that so they can move on with their lives,” she said, referring to an account that made claims about Baig’s relationship. “I’m not someone who fire up the situation by only showing parts to the people that would help them play the victim card. I’m not even going to talk about some random extras in my story since they don’t have families they care about or even dignity to accept who they really are as much as I enjoy memes but this whole thing is beyond funny.”
Calling the situation “straight up bullying and targeting people”, Baig said, “In these past couple of days I kept wondering… how can people believe or any sane person would believe in these accusations by some random people who are only looking for few followers without even knowing the actual truth and the real story behind it?”
In her next story, she asked people for recommendations for a “good doctor”.
“I need to send it to someone who badly needs it. Saath thoray say paisay bhi otherwise apkay sath bhi wohi hoga jo meray sath hua [along with it, send some money otherwise what happened to me will happen to you too] if you know you know…”
She stressed that such medical conditions are “real”. “Even when these patients are doing the same, oh no way! Not the same. But way more worse things than you… they start to live in their own reality. Just like some movie or sh*t. Because aap log aisay logo ki help karnay k bajaye unko aur hype detay hain [because you people hype them up instead of helping people like this]. Which leads to some serious damage for their own health,” she said.
“PS I’m no some doc or whatever. But my sister surely is. So I have got facts. Whereas I am just your very own baazi girl who only knows how to entertain people with her art of singing.”
In a third story, she referred directly to the videos posted by Mair and said she “knowingly bleep[ed] certain words and only posted half the video”.
She also claimed she was being “told what to say on that videos over texts and even her boyfriend knows that”.
Prior to Aima, Qes also issued an official statement on the matter.
“I’ve been made aware that a woman from my past has been saying some out-of-order things about me. She’s accused me of stealing from her and is reaching out to people I know without context screenshots and false facts,” he wrote. “Earlier this year, she did a very similar thing where she reached out to my clients with the same story. She then demanded I pay her 10,000 Euros and after much frustration upon advice from my family, I decide to pay it in order to achieve peace.”
Ahmed went on to accuse Mair and added, “This woman has not had a job ever. She’s lived off of sugar daddies for the last few years, even whilst we were together.” He commented how Mair suffers from “severe mental health issues, which is extremely sad.” Ahmed further shared, “She’s been through a lot so it’s understandable, however, I can’t just sit and allow this nonsense to continue. She’s literally extorted me for 10,000 Euros, made extremely racist remarks, cheated on me throughout the relationship and is accusing me of doing exactly all of the above to her.”
Accusing how Mair is currently unemployed and has spent the money she had ‘gotten from Ahmed’, he penned, “I won’t stand for it. I won’t take legal action at this point until her mental health is assessed.”
In another Instagram story, Ahmed wrote, “To those asking why I stayed with her [Mair] for so long, the truth is I loved her. I overlooked many red flags, like the emotional abuse, the extreme reactions, and the paranoia from her drug use. I felt empathetic up until now. I’m too sure what she wants exactly because she hasn’t asked for money this time around. I have had experiences with people with psychosis before and her behaviour seems to exhibit it. If you truly care for her, I guess I’d urge you to not encourage her behaviour until a mental health team has seen to her.”
Shigri is yet to comment on the matter.
The model made some serious allegations against the singer referring to her as “one of the famous women of Pakistan.”
Mair said in her stories that she was in a relationship with a Pakistani filmmaker (Ahmed) who cheated on her with Baig.
She added that Ahmed told her about his deceit while gloating that he is dating one of the well-known singers of Pakistan.
Mair went on to further accuse Baig of spending a holiday together with Ahmed in Dubai while adding that the singer bought the plane ticket for Ahmed as well.
She alleged that Ahmed not only stole money from her and but also from some other “Pakistani” girls, who he was involved with, and the amount constitutes to £20,000.
In a Q/A session, someone asked Mair how she was so sure that Baig was engaged when she was dating Ahmed.
In response to which, she attached a screenshot of a conversation with Shigri in which he asked the model to send him screen-grabs proving Baig’s infidelity.
Mair also accused Aima of getting her account suspended on Instagram.
After Aima shared her side of the story, fellow female artists like Mathira and Anoushey Ashraf extended support to her.
Anoushey shared that she’s saddened by the trolling that Baig became a victim of.
Mathira shared her disappointment on the cyber vilification of Aima. She also stated that Taloulah and Qes did this for publicity.
Post the celebrity reactions, both Aima and Taloulah shared new screenshots, while dwelling deeper on the matter.
Mair shared a screenshot, showing that Baig called her four times on WhatsApp. According to Taloulah, Aima wanted to convince her to not reveal more details.
On the contrary, Aima showed the last message that she sent to Mair on WhatsApp.
The Balma Baghora diva has spoken her heart out in another Instagram story. She also expressed her concern on the misuse of internet which results into a toxic atmosphere for women.
Former supermodel and actor Vaneeza Ahmed recently grabbed headlines for allegedly slamming leading heroine Ayeza Khan for her supposed lack of contribution to society despite having 12 million followers on Instagram.
Vaneeza appeared on Naumaan Ijaz’s chat show, G Sarkar, where she was asked about her social media consumption. The Ehd-e-Wafa diva that she barely uses Instagram but it is pointless exercise to take selfies all the time.
The Jinnah star supposedly questioned Khan’s popularity based on how she only posts fancy pictures of herself and remarked: “So what if you have 12 million followers?”
“What are you contributing (to society)?” she added.
On that note, she told the host that she had come across the account of a Pakistani actress who has the most followers in Pakistan. Vaneeza couldn’t recall Ayeza’s name until Nauman Ijaz mentioned it and the former model expressed disappointment with why the Chupke Chupke star has 12 million followers when all she does is post pictures of herself and her extravagant lifestyle.
Vaneeza said that she was curious that why did she have such a huge following thus she went to her page and all there was were her own pictures. Vaneeza is also against the culture of posting pictures of first class flights and lavish vacations by people in general. She cannot do things for social media and her niece usually handles her account.
However the senior supermodel has now clarified her statement in an Instagram story. Ahmed took it upon herself to clarify her statement against excessive social media usage, especially by celebrities and influencers. She also specified that her remarks weren’t for Ayeza, instead they were directed to a TikTok star.
The Federal Minister of Finance and Revenue, Ishaq Dar, said on Friday that approaching the bilateral Paris Club creditors for debt relief would be his final option since rating agencies lower the ratings of countries who approach the Paris Club.
The country was not looking for or in need of any rescue from commercial banks or Eurobond creditors, according to Dar’s predecessor Miftah Ismail. “Given the climate-induced disaster in Pakistan, we are seeking debt relief from bilateral Paris Club creditors,” Miftah said.
“We plan on doing business and investors hesitate when countries seek relief from bilateral Paris Club creditors,” Dar said during an interview.
Dar responded to Moody’s decision to lower the Government of Pakistan’s senior unsecured debt rating from B3 to Caa1 by saying that the rating agency had taken a discriminating approach against Pakistan from a professional standpoint.
“Our team spoke to the officials of the rating agency and even I spoke to them personally,” he continued, saying that he had advised them to stay patient for a few days.
He bemoaned the way Moody’s had presented Pakistan as, God forbid, being in default.
Dar stated that efforts will be made to fulfil the conditions set forth by his predecessors in reference to his meeting with IMF employees later this month.
“I have solutions to present in front of the fund members in order to convince them of my decision regarding the petroleum prices,” he said.
According to Geo, the government lowered the price of petrol by Rs12.63 a litre last week, which brought much-needed relief to the nation’s inflation-stricken citizens and raised concerns over the current IMF programme.
The finance minister explained the rupee-dollar parity by expressing optimism that the value of the rupee will go below the 200-point mark against the US dollar in the upcoming days.
Nobel laureate and social activist Malala Yousafzai is expected to visit flood affected areas of Pakistan in the second week of October. She is expected to reach the country on October 12 on a three day visit.
According to sources of Geo News, the Sindh Home Department has issued directives to make strict security arrangements for Malala. A specialised police unit is making arrangements.
As per media reports, she will first land in Karachi. She will then travel to Dadu under strict security.
She is expected to offer flood relief funding from the Malala Fund.
As many as 33 million people of the 220 million South Asian nation have been affected in some way by the floods that swept away houses, roads, railways and bridges and submerged around 4 million acres of farmland.
Yousafzai recently announced the launch of her production company, Extracurricular.
WhatsApp is developing a feature that would let users to prevent other users from screenshotting messages that have been sent as ‘View Once’ on the app.
According to a report by WABetaInfo, the feature was given out with WhatsApp update version 2.22.22.3, but exclusively for Android beta users as of right now. The new function will launch as WhatsApp works to improve its security and privacy procedures.
Users of WhatsApp will have more control over how their information is received, shared, and kept thanks to the functionality. With the upgrade, it is now impossible for a viewer to screenshot a message that was sent with the ‘View Once’ filter applied, whether it be a photo or a video.
WhatsApp presents a warning reading, “Can’t capture screenshots due to security policy,” when someone tries to take a screenshot of “View Once” media.
Even if the user manages to get around this obstacle and record the screen or take a screenshot, the recording will be blank or black, protecting the media that the sender shared on WhatsApp.
Only a small number of Android users have access to the feature on the platform, claims the report. The internet behemoth hasn’t formally stated when it intends to make the function available to all WhatsApp users internationally, though.
In the meantime, Meta has previously disclosed that it is exploring new capabilities to make it simpler for users to migrate between Facebook and Instagram.
The IT behemoth claimed that the new features will simplify for users the process of creating, accessing, and switching between many accounts and profiles on the social networking site.
If customers choose to connect both platforms to the same Accounts Center, they will be able to receive notifications for both in a single location, according to the business.
