Author: newsdesk

  • Glaring mistake at Paris Olympics opening ceremony

    Glaring mistake at Paris Olympics opening ceremony

    The organizers of the Paris Olympics 2024 opening ceremony made a glaring mistake by flying the Olympic flag upside down.

    Organizers are being criticized for having the Olympic emblem upside down on the white Olympic flag hoisted at the opening ceremony.

    The official Olympic emblem has three circles above and two circles below, while the flag hoisted at the ceremony at the Paris Olympics had two circles above and three below.

    The Olympics formally started with a colourful opening ceremony on river Seine in Paris.

  • Women’s Asia Cup: Sri Lanka qualifies for the final after defeating Pakistan

    Women’s Asia Cup: Sri Lanka qualifies for the final after defeating Pakistan

    In the second semi-final of the Women’s Asia Cup, the host Sri Lanka qualified for the final by defeating the Pakistan by 3 wickets after a nail biting match.

    Sri Lanka Women’s team won the toss and invited Pakistan to bat first in the second semi-final of the Women’s Asia Cup played in Dambulla.

    Pakistan Women’s team scored 140 runs for the loss of 4 wickets in the allotted 20 overs, Muniba Ali scored 37 runs and Gul Feroza scored 25 runs.

    For Sri Lanka, Kavisha and Odisha got out 2 each.

    Pakistan’s target of 141 runs was achieved by Sri Lanka Women in the last over at the loss of 7 wickets.

    Chamari Athapatthu played an innings of 63 runs for Sri Lanka while Anushka remained unbeaten with 24 runs.

    Thus, Sri Lanka Women won by 3 wickets and made it to the final of the Asia Cup where they will face India.

  • ADB approves $400 million loan to rebuild Sindh’s flood-damaged homes, infrastructure

    ADB approves $400 million loan to rebuild Sindh’s flood-damaged homes, infrastructure

    The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has granted Pakistan a $400 million concessional loan to aid in the reconstruction of homes and infrastructure in Sindh province, heavily impacted by the 2022 floods.

    The funds will be used for the Sindh Emergency Housing Reconstruction Project, which aims to repair flood-damaged houses and community facilities while boosting livelihood recovery and enhancing resilience to climate change.

    The project is part of ADB’s broader response to Pakistan’s flood crisis and contributes to the bank’s pledge of $1.5 billion in aid from 2023 to 2025. Yevgeniy Zhukov, ADB’s Director General for Central and West Asia, emphasised that the initiative will help rebuild homes and restore essential services in Sindh, the province most affected by the floods. The disaster impacted 33 million people and caused extensive damage nationwide.

    Sindh sustained about 83% of the total housing damage from the floods, with roughly 2.1 million homes either destroyed or severely damaged. Two years later, many survivors are still living in inadequate temporary shelters lacking basic services like water, sanitation, and electricity.

    The ADB’s project will support the reconstruction of 250,000 homes with designs that are resilient to multiple hazards and environmentally friendly. Additionally, it will fund the construction of community infrastructure such as drinking water and sanitation facilities, covered drainage, and renewable energy solutions for 100,000 households in approximately 1,000 flood-affected villages.

    The project also includes conditional cash grants for livestock, agriculture, small businesses, and e-commerce. A $500,000 technical assistance grant will be provided to support the government’s capabilities in procurement, compliance, and management.

    Srinivas Sampath, ADB’s Director for Water and Urban Development, noted that the project not only aims to rebuild Pakistan effectively but also to promote community-driven climate resilience and disaster risk management strategies, better preparing the country for future hazards.

  • SBP expected to lower interest rates on Monday as inflation stabilises

    SBP expected to lower interest rates on Monday as inflation stabilises

    The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) is anticipated to reduce its key interest rate once more during its upcoming policy meeting on Monday.

    This will be the first meeting following the recent staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the announcement of a new state budget, according to analysts.

    Earlier this month, Pakistan and the IMF reached an agreement on a 37-month loan programme. The deal has introduced stringent measures, including increased taxes on agricultural incomes and higher electricity prices, which have sparked concerns among lower and middle-income citizens already struggling with inflation and the potential for increased taxes.

    In June, the SBP lowered its key interest rate by 150 basis points, reducing it from a historic high of 22 per cent. This marked the central bank’s first rate cut in nearly four years, aimed at stimulating economic growth amid a significant decrease in retail inflation. Inflation had dropped to 12.6 per cent in June, down from 38 per cent in May 2023.

    Out of 14 analysts surveyed, only one predicted that the SBP would maintain the current rate of 20.5 per cent. The majority forecast a rate cut, with seven analysts expecting a reduction of 100 basis points, five anticipating a 150 basis points cut, and one predicting a 200 basis points decrease.

    Mustafa Pasha, Chief Investment Officer at Lakson Investments, noted that the anticipated inflationary surge following the budget has not occurred. The central bank had previously cautioned about potential inflationary pressures from the budget, citing insufficient progress on structural reforms to expand the tax base.

    To compensate, the government set a demanding tax revenue target of Rs13 trillion ($47 billion) for the current fiscal year, representing a nearly 40 per cent increase from the previous year, and aims to reduce the fiscal deficit to 5.9 per cent of GDP from 7.4 per cent in the previous year to secure essential IMF funding.

    Pasha added that the clarity on the IMF programme, currency market stability, and steady foreign inflows into domestic debt and equities provide “ample comfort to the SBP to continue easing the policy rate in July and beyond.”

  • Big names likely to be ruled out from Bangladesh series

    Big names likely to be ruled out from Bangladesh series

    Many big names from the Pakistan Test squad are likely to be ruled out of the Bangladesh series due to fitness, Sama has reported.

    Muhammad Huraira is expected to join the squad, while Faheem Ashraf, Wasim Jr., Saim Ayub, and Nauman Ali may remain in it.

    Imam-ul-Haq and Sahibzada Farhan will be included, while a decision about Amir Jamal and Hasan Ali will be made after their fitness test.

    The final decision for the squad will be made next week.

  • Khan urges General Asim Munir to stay ‘neutral’

    Khan urges General Asim Munir to stay ‘neutral’

    Founder Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan’s sister, Aleema Khan, recently talked with journalists saying that she has a message for the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir from Imran Khan.

    “The two parties (PPP and PML-N) have completely lost in every aspect; therefore, they want to bring the people of Pakistan up against the army,” said Aleema, delivering Khan’s message to the Chief of Army.

    According to Aleema, Khan stated, “Army is the backbone of our country and we must honor our army because it protects our country.”

    She said that Khan condemned the lack of rule of law in the country and the degradation of democracy, blaming it for causing “brain drain and loss of confidence in businesses in Pakistan.”

    She finally stated that Khan had asked General Asim Munir to stay “neutral” for the sake of the country.

  • Woman gang-raped in front of family while police argued over jurisdiction

    Woman gang-raped in front of family while police argued over jurisdiction

    A woman was allegedly gang-raped in front of her husband and three-year-old daughter in district Hafizabad of Punjab while police argued over jurisdiction.

    Dawn reports that robbers took the woman on gunpoint to nearby fields and sexually assaulted her in front of her husband and daughter.

    Originally a resident of Chiniot, the family was reportedly going back to the city via motorcycle after meeting a relative when it was stopped by three robbers near Sukheke around 11:30 pm, Dawn has reported.

    Arguing over jurisdiction

    Reports say that instead of helping the victim family, police officials of the Hafizabad and Nankana Sahib clashed over jurisdiction, a violation of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) issued in the wake of the Lahore-Sialkot motorway gang-rape incident [2020] to respond to sexual assaults on women.

    For an hour or so, the victim and her family remained unattended while the gangsters fled the spot.

    The incident was reported to 15 Nankana police, who then diverted the call to the Hafizabad police, claiming that it was not their jurisdiction.

    The Hafizabad police sent a team to the crime scene and, after a brief investigation, announced that the crime spot is in the jurisdiction of Nankana police.

    An official told Dawn that DPO Hafizabad directed the police to reach the spot and lodge a case.

    Sukheke police registered a rape case against the unknown suspects and took into custody a suspected robber, recovering from his custody two pistols.
    Later, the police of both districts again entered into yet another dispute over jurisdiction.

    Nankana police again rejected the claim that the incident took place in their area. The matter remained under discussion all day on Thursday, bringing the investigation to a halt. To establish jurisdiction rights, Hafizabad police took a tehsildar and staff from the Board of Revenue to the crime scene.

    Hafizabad DPO Faisal Gulzar asserted that even though the incident took place in Nankana Sahib, he ordered an FIR be registered in his district’s police station.

    “We arrested one of the three criminals who looted the family and raped the woman”, he told Dawn, adding that during the investigation, the arrested suspect told the police that his accomplices fled towards Rawalpindi.

    A team has been sent to trace the other men and investigate the incident.

    The DPO also claimed that the woman was raped by one criminal.

  • Shahnawaz Dahani ruled out of Pakistan Shaheens

    Fast bowler Shahnawaz Dahani has once again suffered an injury and has been ruled out of the second tour match of Pakistan Shaheens in Darwin, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has confirmed.

    PCB says that the medical panel will assess the nature of his injury on his return to Pakistan. All-rounder Mubasar Khan has been included in the white ball squad instead.

    Pakistan Shaheens won the first match by 148 runs against Bangladesh.

  • Ayeza Khan and Danish Taimoor celebrate 10th anniversary in Oxford with family

    Ayeza Khan and Danish Taimoor celebrate 10th anniversary in Oxford with family

    Beloved celebrity couple Ayeza Khan and Danish Taimoor are celebrating their 10th wedding anniversary with a memorable trip to Oxford, exploring the historic city.
    On Thursday, Ayeza shared pictures of a couples-
    only day out on her Instagram, account along with a message for her husband. “Just the Two of Us. May we grow older and stronger, just like this beautiful tree, forever standing tall and enduring.”
    Ayeza Khan and Danish Taimoor tied the knot in 2014. The couple is blessed with two children, Hoorain, 8, and Rayan, 6, who have been part of their trip to Oxford.

    With their outstanding performances, Ayeza and Danish have dominated Pakistani television for many years. Danish’s performance in Jaan Nisar secured his status as a leading man, while Ayeza’s recent work in Mein and Jaan E Jahan has garnered her great praise from the audience.

    Here are the pictures of their trip:

  • British Pakistani kicked in head at Manchester found to have cyst in brain, lawyer reveals

    British Pakistani kicked in head at Manchester found to have cyst in brain, lawyer reveals

    The British Pakistani man who was hit in the head by a UK cop at Manchester Airport has a cyst on his brain, the lawyer reveals.

    The video of Fahir and Ammad, the two brothers assaulted by UK cops at Manchester airport, went viral on a global level. Their lawyer told media outside Rochdale Police Station that Fahir has a cyst on his brain after a CT scan was conducted post-incident. He informed the media that Fahir’s condition deteriorated overnight.

    “The people who were assaulted are members of a police officer’s family,” said Yakoob as he shared that Fahir’s older brother, who works as a police officer for Greater Manchester Police, is now “afraid to go to work.”

    “He went in today and spoke to his supervisor, and the only reason he is not going to work is because he fears for his own safety,” Yakoob said while talking to the media.

    The lawyer stated that he was unaware of the events leading up to the incident but insisted that “nothing justifies the barbaric treatment from the police officers.”

    Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham told Sky News said that the assault is a disturbing image and “hard to justify.” He and his deputy have met with both the home secretary and the regional director of the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC). They agreed that the ongoing IOPC investigation will be carried out swiftly, involve community stakeholders, and remain fully independent.

    Several videos of armed UK police officers holding a taser over a man lying face down on the floor are going viral on social media yesterday while it turned out that the incident happened late at night on Tuesday.

    However, the officer was suspended by GMP and later acknowledged the public’s concern and assured them of an imminent investigation that has been taking place.

    Read more: Police brutality on British-Pakistanis provoke protests in Manchester