Author: newsdesk

  • Montana becomes first US state to ban TikTok

    Montana becomes first US state to ban TikTok

    Montana has become the first state in the United States to impose a ban on the popular social media app TikTok. The state’s governor signed a legislation that forbids mobile application stores from providing access to the app within Montana starting from next year.

    This action is part of a series of measures taken by the US against TikTok, which is owned by the Chinese technology company ByteDance. Concerns have been raised about TikTok’s connections to China, amid fears that these ties could pose a threat to national security.

    The federal government, along with over half of US states, has already prohibited the use of the app on government devices. Furthermore, the Biden administration has issued a warning of a potential nationwide ban unless TikTok’s parent company divests its shares.

    TikTok has previously denied allegations of sharing user data with the Chinese government, asserting that it would refuse such requests. In response to the Montana bill, the company released a statement claiming that it infringes upon the First Amendment rights of Montana residents by unlawfully banning TikTok. They also expressed their intention to protect the rights of their users both within and outside the state.

    During a congressional hearing in March, TikTok’s CEO, Shou Zi Chew, was compelled to defend the company’s relationship with China. Lawmakers raised concerns about the app’s impact on the mental health of young people.

    TikTok boasts a user base of over 100 million in the United States, making it one of the most popular social networks globally. There are lingering questions regarding the enforcement and repercussions of such bans, particularly for creators who rely on the platform.

    Effective from January 1, Montana’s new law prohibits the downloading of TikTok within the state. It imposes a daily fine of $10,000 on any entity, whether it be an app store or TikTok itself, for every instance in which someone is provided the opportunity to access the app or download it. The penalties, however, do not apply to users.

  • PCB’s hybrid model under discussion as Pankaj Khimji and Jay Shah meet

    PCB’s hybrid model under discussion as Pankaj Khimji and Jay Shah meet

    After a strict warning from Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Najam Sethi, the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) is trying to find the best possible way to resolve the hosting matter for Asia Cup 2023.

    Najam Sethi warned ACC that Pakistan will stick to its stance if hosting rights will be compromised. More likely, Pakistan will boycott World Cup 2023 in India and will not play its matches in the arch-rival country, citing security concerns.

    After Sethi’s clear stance, ACC officials have now called a meeting. Jay Shah, President of ACC who is also secretary of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will meet with the Vice-President ACC Pankaj Khimji today.

    The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has offered to host the Asia Cup in two phases, first in Pakistan and the other at a neutral venue which is said to be decided mutually.

    Khimji will meet Shah to give him a briefing on the second option of the hybrid model. Moreover, Khimji will also share the details of his meeting with Najam Sethi with Shah.

    After Bangladesh and Sri Lanka agreed on the second hybrid model via email, as per sources, PCB is confident of a final decision by ACC very soon. The second option of the hybrid model is most likely to be accepted.

    ACC is also likely to call a meeting of board members by the end of this month.

    It must be noted that BCCI has refused to send their team to Pakistan for the Asia Cup, which is set to take place in September this year, and is keen on ensuring that the event is held at a neutral venue. However, the PCB is not interested in hosting the event outside Pakistan since it would affect its efforts with regards to the return of international cricket in the country.

    Despite being considered one of sport’s greatest rivalries, India and Pakistan have not met on home soil in any version of the game since 2012, and only play each other in multinational tournaments on neutral grounds.

  • Prince Harry, Meghan Markle in ‘near catastrophic car chase’ in New York

    Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were in a “near catastrophic car chase at the hands of a ring of highly aggressive paparazzi” after attending an event in New York, their representatives have said.

    According to People magazine, the spokesperson for the royals revealed that it was the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, and Markle’s mother Doria, were being driven back to a friend’s private residence, where they staying during their visit to New York. Along the way, a dozen cars began chasing after them, running over red lights, and trying to take photographs of the couple and Doria in the car.

    “Last night, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Ms. Ragland were involved in a near catastrophic car chase at the hands of a ring of highly aggressive paparazzi. This relentless pursuit, lasting over two hours, resulted in multiple near collisions involving other drivers on the road, pedestrians and two NYPD officers. While being a public figure comes with a level of interest from the public, it should never come at the cost of anyone’s safety.”

    The two were in New York to attend the Ms. Foundation 2023 Women of Vision Awards: Celebrating Generations of Progress and Power at the Zeigfield Ballroom in Manhattan. Markle had been honoured as this year’s Women of Vision Award.

    Prince Harry’s mother, the late Lady Diana, passed away in a car crash in 1997 in Paris, when paparazi were relentlessly chasing after her car.

    In a mental health documentary ‘The Me You Can’t See’ , Harry spoke about how trauma from watching his mother’s death is the reason why he chose to step back from his royal role, to prevent his wife Meghan from going down the same path:

    “My mother was chased to her death when she was in a relationship with someone who wasn’t white, and now look what’s happened. You’re talking about history repeating itself? They’re not going to stop until she dies.”

    It’s incredibly triggering to potentially lose another woman in my life,” Prince Harry added about Meghan.

  • ‘My criticism on army is like criticism on children’: IK gives address as he expects arrest

    ‘My criticism on army is like criticism on children’: IK gives address as he expects arrest

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan addressed party workers from his Zaman Park residence through video link on Wednesday.
    “I am afraid today that Pakistan is on the route to destruction,” he said during the speech.

    While talking about his criticism of the army, Imran said, “When I criticise the army, it is like me criticising my children.”

    He blamed PDM for “deliberately trying to create a conflict between the PTI and the army.”

    “If an inquiry is properly conducted into this, it would be revealed who was behind this conspiracy to ban a political party,” said Imran, adding that putting 7,500 people behind bars was pre-planned.

  • Is everyone naraaz with Imran? Another PTI member leaves party

    In a major setback to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the party’s former Member of the National Assembly (MNA) Aamir Kayani has announced that he is quitting the party after the attacks of May 9 on the security forces as he has to “rethink” his politics.

    Addressing a presser in Islamabad, he expressed regret over the May 9 violent protests by PTI leaders, workers and supporters.

    “I made my decision two months ago, but will formally announce it today,” he said.

    “My entire family, including my grandfather and everyone, we belong to an army family,” the MNA said.

    “Our domain is politics, and we should stay in it,” he added.

    Kiani has not only decided to quit PTI but also announced to end his political career. He emphasised that he will not join any political party.

    On Tuesday, the party faced another major blow when Karachi’s Mahmood Baqi Moulvi quit the party.

    In a statement, Moulvi had said he was leaving the party due to “differences with the leadership”.

  • Agar PTI churrwaana chaahtay ho toh goli maar do: Ali Zaidi sheds tears

    Agar PTI churrwaana chaahtay ho toh goli maar do: Ali Zaidi sheds tears

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Sindh President Ali Zaidi held a press conference on Wednesday to clear the air about rumours of him resigning from the party.

    Stating clearly that he is not leaving the party, Zaidi said that it is unfortunate that the speculations are coming from within PTI.

    “Agar PTI churrwaana chaahtay ho toh mujhe mathy par goli maar do” (If you want me to leave PTI, shoot me in the head) he said, adding that “no one can force me to take this step.”

    Getting emotional and teary-eyed, he said that he served the party for 23 years and that PTI is his party. “I will leave PTI when Imran does,” he said of his party chairman.

    Talking about May 9, Zaidi said that he also comes from an army background hence the episode that took place after Imran Khan’s arrest was condemnable.

    The PTI leader said that he will never allow violence.

    Zaidi is under house arrest by the Sindh government.

    It was being speculated that special treatment is being given to Zaidi in comparison to his party fellows.

  • LUMS professor beaten up for demanding freedom of speech

    LUMS professor beaten up for demanding freedom of speech

    Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) professor Muhummad Tariq said that he was beaten up for holding placards outside of the university with his teenage children and for “suggesting upholding the constitution and exercising fundamental rights to express ourselves.”

    He has alleged that due to the beating, he ended up with a broken arm and knee.

    Taking to social media, he said that after all this he does not regret coming back to Pakistan and is proud of the country and will serve it with even more dedication, commitment and honesty.

    He also said he always tells his student to stand strong. He ended the note by saying that he is doing fine now.

  • ‘Individual act of workers’: Waleed Iqbal says protesters should be dealt with Army Act

    ‘Individual act of workers’: Waleed Iqbal says protesters should be dealt with Army Act

    Senior leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Waleed Iqbal, who is also the grandson of 20th-century poet and philosopher Allama Iqbal, has said that he saw PTI workers inside Lahore’s Jinnah House at the time of the attack on the building on May 09. He however, said that these were iindividual acts of party workers and they should be charged according to the Army Act or any other applicable law.

    He made the comments on Waseem Badami’s programme on ARY on Tuesday evening.

    He continued by saying that the party had not made announcement in this regard nor had a policy of violence.

    A Special Corps Commander Conference held on Monday at the General Headquarters (GHQ), presided by Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir, decided that the planners, instigators, abettors and perpetrators of the attacks on military installations and buildings during the protests led by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) supporters will be tried under relevant Pakistani laws, including the Army Act and Official Secret Act.

  • ICC revenue model: Najam Sethi wants clarity before approval

    ICC revenue model: Najam Sethi wants clarity before approval

    Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) officials are not happy with International Cricket Council (ICC) new revenue distribution model in which the game’s biggest financial engine India will get most of the shares.

    ICC has proposed a new revenue-sharing model for the 2024-27 cycle to be voted on at its next board meeting in June.

    According to reports, in the revenue model, India would claim 38.5 per cent, while England and Australia would pocket 6.89pc and 6.25pc respectively. Pakistan stands to earn 5.75pc of the ICC’s projected earnings, primarily from its media rights sale.

    The 12 full members of the ICC would collectively get 88.81pc, while the rest would be distributed among its 96 associate members.
    “We are not happy with the figures shared with us. We are insisting that the ICC should tell us how these figures were arrived at,” Sethi told Reuters from London.

    “Come June, when the board is expected to approve the financial model, unless these details are provided to us, we are not going to approve it,” he stated.

    Disney Star shelled out $3 billion last year to acquire the 2024-27 media rights for the Indian market.

    Sethi said that we asked ICC to explain how the finance and commercial affairs committee headed by Indian cricket board secretary Jay Shah determined the share.

    This despite the fact that all nations will get more money and despite that PCB is not happy with the model, two other test playing nations are also unsatisfied with the biased model.

    The ICC, which considered factors such as the performance of a country’s men’s and women’s teams and their contribution to the ICC’s commercial revenue, was not immediately available to comment.

    “In principle, India should get more, there is no doubt about that but … how is this table being developed?” Sethi asked

    The proposed revenue split has become a major talking point in world cricket, which is already facing a rapidly altering landscape because of the Indian-driven rise of franchise-based leagues.

    Former England captain Mike Atherton, writing in The Times newspaper on Monday, criticised the “flawed” model, which he feared would only deepen the game’s existing inequality.

    “If that distribution comes to pass, then the strong will get stronger, the weak weaker (relatively) and international cricket will continue to become less competitive — which is in nobody’s long-term interest,” Atherton wrote.

  • Pakistan suspends cryptocurrency services to combat illegal transactions

    Pakistan suspends cryptocurrency services to combat illegal transactions

    The Pakistani government announced on Wednesday that it will suspend cryptocurrency services provided over the internet in the country in order to prevent illicit digital currency transactions.

    According to Geo, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) and the Ministry of Information Technology have already begun the process of prohibiting cryptocurrencies, complying with the directives.

    During a briefing to the Senate Standing Committee on Finance, Dr Aisha Ghaus Pasha, the Minister of State for Finance and Revenue, emphasised that cryptocurrency will never be legalised in Pakistan.

    She revealed that the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has imposed restrictions on the matter, stating that the condition set by FATF is that cryptocurrency will not be legalised.

    Supporting Pasha’s stance, Sohail Jawad, the Director of SBP, stated that crypto transactions carry high risks and will therefore never be granted permission in Pakistan. He explained that cryptocurrency is a virtual currency with over 16,000 types currently in existence. Additionally, he mentioned that the market, which was valued at $2.8 trillion, has now shrunk to $1.2 trillion.

    Senator Saleem Mandviwalla from the Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) expressed concerns over the billions of dollars invested in the market. In response, the SBP official reassured him by mentioning that the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and the Financial Monitoring Unit (FMU), a financial intelligence unit aiding Pakistan in combating terrorism financing and money laundering, are actively addressing these concerns.

    Pakistan has witnessed a surge in cryptocurrency trading and mining, as evidenced by the growing interest in related social media videos and online exchange transactions.

    Although the government had previously banned trading and mining of virtual currencies in April 2018, cryptocurrency mining continues to thrive in the country, despite the closure of several mining farms.

    Most exchanges operate discreetly through undisclosed partners, evading regulatory oversight. Nevertheless, the government persists in its efforts to curtail crypto trading activities.