Author: newsdesk

  • Gold price surpasses Rs213,000 per tola in Pakistan

    Gold price surpasses Rs213,000 per tola in Pakistan

    The price of gold in Pakistan has experienced an upward trend, marked by a noteworthy increase of Rs2,000 per tola within the domestic market on Saturday.

    This surge brings the price of one tola of gold to Rs213,300, as reported by Muhammad Arshad, the chairman of the All Pakistan Jewellers Manufacturers Association.

    Similarly, the price of 10 grammes of gold also saw a significant increase, rising by Rs1,714 to reach Rs182,870.

    On the international front, gold prices are also experiencing an upward trend, currently standing at $1,987 per ounce. 

    However, in the spot market, gold fell by 0.3 per cent to $1,976.19 per ounce by 1:42 pm ET (1741 GMT), and  US gold futures settled 0.3 per cent lower at $1,987.80.

    Other precious metals displayed mixed performance, with silver slipping by 1.3 per cent to $23.05 per ounce, platinum rising by 0.3 per cent to $897.58, and palladium gaining 3 per cent to reach $1,131.03.

  • Complete communication blackout in Gaza: What we know about day 22

    Complete communication blackout in Gaza: What we know about day 22

    Israel vs Hezbollah

    Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported that three missiles were fired on HezbollahAs a result of Israel-Hezbollah exchange of fire, nearly 29,000 people have been forced to flee their homes, the UN reports.

    International Organization for Migration states that so far, 28,965 people have been displaced, mainly in the south, an increase by 37 per cent since October 23.

    Israel hits 150 underground targets in Gaza

    The Israeli army claims to have attacked 150 underground targets in the north of the Gaza Strip, including tunnels used by “terrorists”, resultantly killing a number of Hamas members in overnight air raids.

    Gaza communications blackout

    The Gaza strip is now experiencing a blackout of communications as Israel destroyed feeder lines and towers, cutting off phone networks and the internet, the Palestine Telecommunications Company says.

  • Iranian teen has expired after allegedly being beaten up over violation of hijab laws

    Iranian teen has expired after allegedly being beaten up over violation of hijab laws

    Update : “Armita Garawand, a student in Tehran, died an hour ago after intensive medical treatment and 28 days of hospitalisation in intensive care,” reported the Borna news agency affiliated with the youth ministry.

    The 17-year-old ethnic Kurd, who was declared “brain dead” a week ago, had been hospitalised at Fajr Hospital in Tehran since October 1 after she fell unconscious on the metro.

    In September, lawmakers voted in favour of toughening the penalties, which include jail sentences of up to 10 years for women who violate the dress code.

    The reformist daily Ham Mihan called on the authorities to “allow independent media to investigate” the incident in order to persuade the public.

    Previously it was reported that Armita Geravand, a 16 year old in Tehran, is allegedly the latest victim of Iranian morality police. In a controversial incident that took place in a metro station, she is likely to be “brain-dead” as reported by state-media. 

    Iranian authorities have vehemently denied any such claims of altercation on the Tehran Metro station with the female policers. They say that the girl collapsed due to low blood pressure. 

    Humanitarians such as Kurdish-Iranian Hengaw groups have claimed otherwise of the reason behind the teenager’s collapse. They made her hospitalisation public, showing her pictures in an unconscious state and alleging that the teen had not undergone any operations owing to her fragile health condition. She was admitted to the hospital on October 1 and since then she has been in a critical condition under a tight security presence. Her mother was also reportedly arrested around the hospital but was released afterwards. Her father has told the Hengaw group that he has been informed by the medical team that “her brain is no longer functioning and there is no hope of recovery.”

    As for the footage published by Iranian  Media it can be seen that an unconscious body has been dragged out of the train by the female officers. Amnesty International has opined that there is “mounting evidence of a cover-up” because the analysis shows that the footage has been edited with the frame rate increased and over three minutes of footage is missing. They believe that the family and friends affirming state narrative are saying this under duress. They have not been allowed to visit her and even the journalist who went in to report was detained briefly. 

    The stringent hijab laws in Iran became a point of controversy with the death of 22 year old Mahsa Amini, last year in September 2022. The extremely controversial and unfortunate near-dead condition of this young girl has further raised concerns. 

    Just a couple of days ago, two Iranian Journalists were sentenced to long periods of imprisonment on charges of covering the protests held all across the country after Amini’s death. 

    To read more: https://thecurrent.pk/iran-sentences-two-women-journalists-for-covering-mahsa-aminis-protests/

  • PCB seniors ignoring Babar Azam, Rashid Latif claims

    PCB seniors ignoring Babar Azam, Rashid Latif claims

    Rashid Latif, the former wicketkeeper of the Pakistan team, has claimed that seniors in Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) have begun to ignore the national team captain Babar Azam.

    Yesterday, South Africa defeated Pakistan by one wicket after a sensational match, marking Pakistan’s fourth consecutive defeat in the World Cup.

    The national players and Babar Azam are facing severe criticism.

    Speaking on a TV show, the former wicketkeeper claimed that Babar Azam has been sending messages to the Chairman PCB Management Committee, the Chief Operating Officer, and the Director of International Cricket for two consecutive days, but the three big men of the Cricket Board have refused to answer.

    Rashid Latif claimed that Zaka Ashraf, Salman Naseer, and Usman Wahla were constantly ignoring the messages sent by Babar Azam.

    According to the former Test cricketer, the PCB has told the players that the central contract they have signed will not be accepted and the players will have to sign a new central contract.

    Rashid Latif says that many stories will come out after the World Cup, but the Pakistan Cricket Board has not yet confirmed or denied Rashid Latif’s statement.

    It should be noted that the Pakistan Cricket Board had announced the central contract for the players a few days before the start of the World Cup, in which Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, and Shaheen Afridi included in the A category and their salary was fixed 61 lakhs per month while B The salary of the players included in the category was fixed at 43 lakhs per month.

  • Imran Khan ‘fears for his safety’ in jail

    Imran Khan ‘fears for his safety’ in jail

    Former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s bail plea was rejected by the Islamabad High Court on Friday in a case involving the leaking of state secrets.

    The court also turned down his petition to cancel the FIR in the cipher case.

    The charges relate to the alleged unauthorized communication of classified information, with potentially severe penalties of death or up to 14 years imprisonment.

    Imran Khan’s defense team argued that the case didn’t align with specific sections of the Official Secrets Act, 1923, and that as a former prime minister, he had constitutional immunity from prosecution.

    However, the prosecution contended that the act applied to all citizens and that his actions had jeopardized national security.

    The court emphasized that the disclosure of the classified document during a political gathering was not within the scope of his duties as prime minister.

    It also noted that only the country’s president and governors possess constitutional immunity while in office, not the prime minister.

    The rejection of Imran Khan’s bail request was due to the seriousness of the allegations and the potential penalties involved.

    Furthermore, concerns were raised about the contested cipher copy remaining in his possession.

    Meanwhile, Imran Khan has expressed fears for his safety, stating concerns that there might be another attempt on his life while he is in jail.

    Police open probe on May 9 events

    An official inquiry into the events of May 9 has been opened by police in three districts of Punjab province against Imran Khan, the chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), and Shah Mehmood Qureshi, the deputy chairman of the party.

    The police teams from Kasur and Faisalabad asked specific questions during the initial investigation, but the PTI leaders chose not to answer them.

    Teams from Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, and Kasur police have commenced their interrogations of Imran Khan and Shah Mahmood Qureshi within Adiala Jail.

    Permission for these interrogations was granted by a court established under the Official Secrets Act.

    The police team from Rawalpindi is expected to return to Adiala Jail in the coming days to interrogate Shah Mehmood Qureshi and the former prime minister.

    Meanwhile, the teams from Faisalabad and Kasur have completed their preliminary investigations, according to jail sources.

    The jail administration has made special arrangements to make these investigations easier.

    As part of ongoing attempts to determine what happened on May 9 and the roles that different people played in those occurrences, investigations are being conducted.

  • PML-N will win elections, predicts Ahsan Iqbal

    PML-N will win elections, predicts Ahsan Iqbal

    Ahsan Iqbal, senior leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) said on Saturday that his party will secure the majority in the upcoming general elections scheduled for late January next year.

    Speaking to media in Lahore, the former planning minister recalled the ouster of PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif, saying he was ousted as the premier through a conspiracy in 2017.’

    ‘’Nawaz Sharif was not given a level playing field in 2018,” he observed.

    Opining on the elections, he said, ‘’Elections in the country should be held on time to bring economic stability to the country.’’

    He lavished praise on Nawaz Sharif, saying, ‘’It was Nawaz Sharif who addressed the problems in line with power outages”, Samaa has reported.
    The former planning minister also said, ‘’Nawaz Sharif has said that institutions should play their role to take the country out of the economic quagmire.’’

  • Weather: Karachi to have a light rainfall

    Weather: Karachi to have a light rainfall

    Breaking the streak of hot weather in Karachi and Southern Sindh, winds from the West will bring light rainfall in different parts of the city along with the lowering of temperature. 

    The Meteorological Department has stated that this system of winds will cause a light shower of rain in Tesar Town, Kathor, M-9 motorway, Gulshan e Maymar, and Malir Highway. 

    However, the central part of the city will not experience any downpours. 

  • History will judge us all, warns UN Secretary-General

    History will judge us all, warns UN Secretary-General

    The Secretary-General UN Antonio Guterres has said “Everyone must assume their responsibilities. This is the moment of truth. History will judge us all,” as Israel imposed a total blockade of the internet on the Gaza Strip before the heaviest bombardment of the area has ever seen.

    He reasserted his call for a humanitarian ceasefire in the war-torn Middle East, the release of hostages, and that aid be delivered at the scale needed.

    Earlier on Friday, the UN voted for a humanitarian truce in Gaza and adopted a non-binding resolution where 120 countries voted in favor, 14 were against and 45 abstained. The Palestinian Ambassador Riyad Mansour emphasized, “Enough is enough, the carnage against our people needs to stop and humanitarian assistance should begin to enter the Gaza Strip.”

    It is important to note that Gaza has now no communication access and there is a complete blackout in the besieged area while the Israeli Ambassador in the UN has demanded the resignation of the Secretary-General. Gilad Erdan believes, “understanding for the campaign of mass murder of children, women, and the elderly, is not fit to lead the UN.”

  • Why was Shahid Khaqan Abbasi barred from flying abroad?

    Why was Shahid Khaqan Abbasi barred from flying abroad?

    Former Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi faced a brief hiccup on Friday when he was initially stopped from flying abroad due to his name being on the no-fly list, as per Shahzad Ali of Samaa.

    However, after clarification, he was allowed to proceed with his travel plans to China.

    Mr. Abbasi and his wife were at Islamabad Airport to catch a flight to China when immigration authorities informed him that he was on the stop list based on orders of the Sindh court.

    Consequently, he was told he couldn’t continue his journey and had to return from the airport lounge.

    Eventually, the issue was resolved, and he was permitted to travel.

    When reached for comment, Mr. Abbasi denied any disruption and stated that he had already departed for China.

    Despite attempts to contact the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) immigration authorities for clarification, no response was received.

    Earlier last month, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi’s son Abdullah Khaqan Abbasi was prevented from leaving the nation at the Islamabad airport by immigration officials.

    On a foreign carrier, flight EK-613, Abdullah Khaqan Abbasi was scheduled to travel for Dubai.

    Due to the fact that Abdullah’s name was on the National Accountability Bureau’s (NAB) stop list, the FIA immigration officers stopped him.

    Earlier, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi’s bail had been extended by the Sindh High Court in a case related to an unauthorized appointment at Pakistan State Oil (PSO).

    The court also ordered that Abbasi’s name and those of the other defendants be added to the Exit Control List (ECL).

    The case involved allegations against Abbasi, Arshad Mirza, Imranul Haque, and Yakoob Babar, with the former petroleum secretary also being present during the court hearing.

  • Sheikh Rashid petitions court to withdraw review request in Faizabad sit-in case.

    Sheikh Rashid petitions court to withdraw review request in Faizabad sit-in case.

    Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, the leader of the Awami Muslim League (AML), submitted an application for the withdrawal of his review plea in the Faizabad sit-in case before Supreme Court of Pakistan (SC) on Friday.

    In the top court’s miscellaneous application, the former minister argued that he had no affiliation with Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan (TLP) and had not participated in the relevant sit-in.

    Multiple pleas were filed challenging the SC verdict — given by the apex court’s two-member bench comprising now-Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa and Justice Mushir Alam — on the Faizabad sit-in staged by the TLP in 2017 against the then-Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government.
    Rashid’s withdrawal request follows the federal government’s request to have the review petitions from Pakistan Tehreek-Insaf (PTI), the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), the Intelligence Bureau (IB), the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), and Pakistan Muslim League-Zia (PML-Z) President Ijaz Ul Haq withdrawn.

    The three-member Supreme Court bench led by CJP Isa will hear review petitions in the Faizabad sit-in case on November 1.