A landlord in Sindh has cut off the leg of a donkey that entered his stable.
The incident took place in Batra village of Mehar Tehsil in Sindh.
The donkey’s owner says his son earns money by driving a donkey cart. The owner said, “Last night, my donkey went to the landlord’s shed, after which he and his son got angry and cut off the leg of the donkey.”
Geo News reported that the donkey owner had registered a complaint with the Rajhastan police station against the influential landlord, but so far, the police have not taken any action. They have also left the donkey with the police.
However, the police believe that the donkey’s owner has only reported the case and has not registered an FIR. Further action will be taken after the case is registered and the investigation is carried out.
A flight in America made an emergency landing after passengers spotted lice in a woman’s hair.
The flight, scheduled to fly from Los Angeles to New York, was rerouted to Phoenix.
A TikTok user on board, the flight, said in a video that passengers were left confused as American Airlines did not inform them of what caused the diversion.
Ethan Judelson’s video reached over 1.2 million views. As soon as the plane landed, he described seeing a woman causing a commotion as she rushed through the aisle towards the front. While he was confused, no other passenger paid attention to it.
“It just seemed like one of those people who, as soon as the seatbelt sign goes off, gets up and tries to be the first to their bag,” he told People magazine, recalling the incident. “So the girl next to me … we were both like, ‘Why is she so rushed to get off? We’re all getting off together; calm down.”
The TikToker mentioned that two women gave him “cryptic” answers when asked about what happened to them.
After the plane made the emergency landing, Mr Judelson overheard hushed conversations among fellow passengers. According to eyewitnesses, two passengers had spotted lice crawling out of a woman’s hair, prompting them to alert the flight attendants.
“Apparently, those two girls saw bugs crawling out of the woman’s hair and alerted the flight attendant,” Mr Judelson said in the TikTok video.
The airline later issued a statement confirming that the flight was diverted due to a medical emergency.
Heavy rainfall across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, and Gilgit-Baltistan on Sunday has resulted in at least 12 deaths and 21 injuries over the past 24 hours.
The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa confirmed the 12 fatalities. According to PDMA, six people died in Karak district, and one each in Lower Dir, Charsadda, and South Waziristan districts. In Karak’s Lawaghar Algada area, four individuals were swept away by floods.
In Tank district, a woman and her two children were killed, and four other family members were injured when their roof collapsed. The deceased have been identified as Asma Bibi, her daughter Sadia Bibi, and her son Waheed Ullah.
Tank-South Waziristan road is closed due to flood conditions in local streams and nullahs. In Mansehra district, thousands of tourists and locals stranded in Kaghan and Manor valleys for six days could leave on foot after the Frontier Works Organisation constructed a temporary pavement on the Manor stream in Mahandri. Flash floods caused significant damage in the Kaghan and Manor valleys, including the destruction of the central bridge on the Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad road. A woman and her son and approximately two dozen hotels, houses, and electric turbines were washed away in the floods.
The district administration has advised tourists to avoid Kaghan Valley until conditions improve. An artificial lake formed at Mahandri due to large boulders blocking the Kunhar River flow is causing concerns, and authorities are debating whether to burst it or create spillways.
In Mohmand district, a bridge on the Aqrab Daag to Shaheed Banda Daman link road near Babi Mohmand has been damaged. This has disrupted traffic between Aqrab Daag and Ekkaghund Bazaar, and authorities have closed the bridge.
In Balochistan, the National Disaster Management Authority has warned of high to very high levels of flash flooding in several regions, including the Zhob, Kalat, Nasirabad, and Sibbi divisions and local nullahs in D.G. Khan. These floods could damage infrastructure and impact communities near these waterways. Northern regions, including the catchment areas of the Kabul River and its tributaries, have received substantial rainfall, potentially causing high flooding in Nowshera and its tributaries. Authorities have been instructed to prepare for the effects of these extreme weather conditions.
In Gilgit-Baltistan, flooding from the Rahimabad nullah has damaged cultivated land, uprooted trees, and destroyed water supply channels downstream. The floodwaters have crossed the Rahimabad bridge on the KKH, though the bridge remains intact. The flood also blocked the Hunza river flow at Rahimabad village, causing land erosion in the Jutal, Nomal, and Faizanad areas. Additionally, flooding from the Jaglote Guru nullah has damaged a hotel and other properties, and the Babusar-Chilas Road at Diamer has been blocked and damaged. The Mushkay area has also significantly damaged land, private properties, and water supply channels.
An undersea cable cut last week disrupted internet service globally, bringing speeds down across the world, but got resolved within two days. Despite the restoration of online communication worldwide, internet speed in Pakistan is still slow.
Experts attribute the slow internet to technical reasons.
According to Samaa News, telecom expert Pervaiz Iftikhar explains that internet access via mobile devices relies on spectrum, and Pakistan has the lowest spectrum availability in the region. Additionally, the penetration of optical fiber is very low, which affects internet speed.
It has also been noted that cable quality, digital traffic growth, and climate change impact internet service, but there are also rumors that the internet may be slowing down due to a firewall.
Cyber expert Ammar Jafari points out that while firewalls are necessary for securing systems, every country has the right to protect its own networks to prevent the spread of harmful content or other problems.
Others, however, argue that slow internet speeds are detrimental to the country’s economy. Officials from the IT Ministry have requested an explanation from PTA to determine the cause of the slow internet, as only the regulator can provide the full truth.
A Canadian man of Pakistani origin was set on fire at his store in Surrey, British Columbia, on Friday.
Rahat Rao is now fighting for his life in an intensive care unit.
Known to be an active member of the local Canadian-Pakistani community, he was the owner of a currency exchange business in the Surrey Central area.
An initial investigation conducted by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) says that Rao was attacked by a man who first threw a fire accelerant on him and then escaped after setting him ablaze.
Canadian news outlet Global News talked to an eyewitness who said that she was inside the currency exchange store when a man engulfed in flames came running from the back of the business, screaming. A relative of the shop owner told her the man was set alight in a robbery attempt, she said.
Local police have also released the photograph of the alleged attacker, presumed to be 25-year-old, and the white Mini Cooper he drives.
Dawn reports that media speculations were growing about a possible connection with the killing of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was slain in the same town last year.
Previously, the RCMP had intelligence and concerns about Rao’s safety and had told him to install more cameras.
Born in a poor village some 300 kilometres from Algiers, boxer Imane Khelif had to overcome obstacles in a conservative country where women are considered unfit for the sport.
With braided hair and a powerful 1.79 metre (5 foot 9 inch) physique, the 25-year-old is the object of a Paris Olympic Games gender controversy.
With smiles and a soft voice, Imane told her story on television channel Canal Algerie one month before the start of the games.
“Our village was around 10 kilometres from the centre (of Tiaret, 280 kilometres southwest of Algiers). I moved from the village to the city. From the city to the capital. From the capital to abroad,” she said.
From a family of limited means, she spoke of the difficulty of her life in “a village of conservative people” in Tiaret’s semi-desert surroundings.
“I came from a conservative family. Boxing is not a widely-practised sport by women, especially in Algeria. It was difficult.”
Already a strong athlete, she played football with the boys in her village of Biban Mesbah — but beating boys in matches brought on fights where she fought back with punches.
These fights lead her to boxing.
In an interview with UNICEF, she said she used to sell scrap metal and her mother sold homemade couscous to pay for bus tickets to Tiaret.
Imane’s father at first did not approve of her decision to pursue boxing, but he eventually became one of her biggest fans.
The 49-year-old unemployed welder told AFP that his daughter is “an example of the Algerian woman, a heroine of Algeria”.
He hailed “her strong will to work and to train”, in an interview with AFP on Friday.
In 2022, Imane told the Algerian news agency APS that she had considered giving up boxing “because my family did not accept the idea, and because of how society looked at me, considering that I was doing something wrong.”
But “all these barriers made me even stronger and were an extra motivation to achieve my dreams.”
She also expressed her determination in an interview on the UNICEF website, where she said her “dream is to win a gold medal”.
“If I win, mothers and fathers will be able to see how far their children can go,” she said. “I want to inspire girls and children in Algeria.”
Imane’s international career took off with her participation in the lightweight category in the 2020 summer Olympic Games in Tokyo — postponed to 2021 — where she won fifth place after losing in the quarter finals to Ireland’s Kellie Harlington.
“Everything changed for the better, especially as my country’s flag flew and its hymn played in many countries throughout the world”, she explained.
In 2023, she made it to the semi-finals of the women’s amateur boxing world championships in New Delhi, India.
However, she was disqualified following unspecified gender eligibility testing by the International Boxing Association, which is not recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
After her match against Italian opponent Angela Carini this week in the Paris Games — whom she beat in less than a minute — Imane was targeted by online harassment and racism, where far-right publications insinuated that she was “a man fighting women”.
Her father has dismissed aspersions about her gender, saying she is “a strong and courageous girl.”
And the IOC has supported her participation, amid the furore over Khelif and another woman boxer also disqualified from last year’s world championships.
“All of the competitors respect the eligibility rules for the competitions,” said Mark Adams, IOC spokesman, adding that it had “established that these are women.”
In 2020, The Current won the Google News Initiative (GNI) Innovation Challenge, becoming the only media organization in Pakistan to achieve this highly regarded position within just a year of its launch.
Four years down the road, we continue to grow alongside the ever-evolving news consumption habits of youth in the digital age.
But that’s not all.
In 2021, The Current opened the doors of its digital newsroom to the youth of Pakistan by starting a membership program called ‘Aap Ki Awaaz,’ which provides aspiring journalists with a platform to gain practical experience in digital media and prepare them for responsible information communication for tomorrow.
Having collaborated with the University of Central Punjab and Punjab University, The Current has worked with 120 students, conducting workshops featuring Pakistan’s renowned journalists and digital personalities. Above all, we have provided them with a space to unleash their creativity.
So far, Aap Ki Awaaz has published more than 50 blogs written by these students.
In 2024, 12 of our young members joined The Current’s coverage of Pakistan’s general election, tagging along with our reporters, monitoring election results, writing real-time stories, participating in live podcasts, and gaining firsthand experience of this major political event.
And oh! About a year ago, we launched our newsletter, which now has more than 1,500 subscribers and an open rate of 28 percent (which is growing!).
The Google News Initiative covered our work and the work we plan to do. Join us, support us by becoming a member or subscribing to our free newsletter so we continue to help our community and our country.
Use of Virtual Private Network (VPN) is a must in Pakistan where many sites are blocked by the state including a site as important as X (formerly Twitter).
While the irony is that the site is very actively used by both government officials and the public, it’s still used via VPNs.
A VPN establishes a digital connection between your device and a remote server owned by a VPN provider, creating a point-to-point tunnel that encrypts your data, masks your IP address, and lets you bypass website blocks and firewalls on the internet.
To ensure that online experiences are safer, more accessible and more secure, we bring you a list of VPNs that are best for Pakistanis to use:
ExpressVPN
High-Speed Servers: Offers fast, reliable performance that is ideal for streaming and browsing.
Robust Security: Utilizes AES-256 encryption, a kill switch, DNS/IPv6 leak protection, and trusted server technology for enhanced privacy.
User-Friendly: Simple setup and intuitive apps across various devices.
Bypass Censorship: Effectively circumvents geo-restrictions and online censorship.
Advanced Protocols: Includes Lightway protocol for speed and reliability.
24/7 Support: Accessible customer service via live chat and email.
NordVPN
Extensive Server Network: Over 5,000 servers in 60 countries, offering diverse and fast connections.
Double VPN & NordLynx: Double VPN is for extra encryption, and NordLynx (based on WireGuard) is for high speeds.
Strong Privacy: No-logs policy, CyberSec ad blocker, and Onion over VPN for added privacy.
Obfuscated Servers: Hides VPN usage to bypass sophisticated censorship.
Dedicated IP: Option for a static IP address for specific uses.
User-Friendly: Intuitive interface and reliable performance.
Surfshark
Affordable: Competitive pricing with feature-rich plans.
Unlimited Devices: Allows unlimited simultaneous connections on one account.
Robust Security: AES-256 encryption, CleanWeb ad blocker, and MultiHop for double VPN.
Camouflage Mode: Conceals VPN usage to avoid detection.
NoBorders Mode: Facilitates use in highly restrictive environments.
Whitelisted Feature: Customizes VPN usage for specific apps or websites.
CyberGhost
User-Friendly: Easy-to-use interface with straightforward setup.
Dedicated Streaming Servers: Optimized servers for streaming platforms and bypassing geo-blocks.
Strong Privacy: No-logs policy, NoSpy servers in the company’s data centres, and multi-layer encryption.
Streaming Profiles: Configures VPN settings for various activities like streaming or torrenting.
Secure Wi-Fi: Automatic activation of VPN on unsecured networks for added protection.
Private Internet Access (PIA)
Customizable Settings: Offers extensive options for encryption and protocols.
Strong Privacy: No-logs policy and MACE ad/tracker blocker for enhanced privacy.
Affordable Plans: Cost-effective with flexible payment options, including cryptocurrencies.
Port Forwarding: Improves performance and access to specific services.
Transparency: Regular security audits and a commitment to operational transparency.
Extra VPNs that claim to be reasonable and secure are:
PureVPN
Global Network: Extensive server locations in 140+ countries.
Strong Encryption: AES-256 encryption and secure protocols.
Streaming and Bypassing: Effective at unblocking popular streaming services.
Dedicated IP Option: Available for specific needs.
Ivacy
Affordable Plans: Cost-effective with good features for the price.
Strong Privacy: No-logs policy and robust security.
Wide Server Coverage: Servers in numerous locations worldwide.
Split Tunneling: Allows traffic routing through or bypassing the VPN.
Many users living in Turkey complained on the X platform that they could not refresh their Instagram feed, an issue verified by AFP journalists.
On Friday, the BTK communications authority announced on its website that the Meta-owned platform had been blocked.
It did not give a reason, but a BTK official told Turkish media that it was because of “criminal content” on Instagram that the latter had been asked to withdraw.
The president’s communications director, Fahrettin Altun, had on Wednesday accused Instagram of censure, saying it was “preventing people from publishing messages of condolence for the martyr Haniyeh”.
Ismail Haniyeh, the political chief of the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas and a close ally of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was killed in Tehran on Wednesday in an attack blamed on Israel.
Erdogan decreed a national day of mourning in memory of Haniyeh, who played a key role in talks aimed at ending nearly ten months of war in Gaza.
“This is a very clear and obvious attempt at censure,” Altun said on X.
An anonymous BTK source denied the move was due to Instagram blocking posts about Haniyeh, telling website Medyascope that it was over “insults to Ataturk”, the founding father of modern Turkey, and “crimes” including “drug games (and) paedophilia”.
He said the platform would be blocked permanently if it didn’t resolve the problem.
According to Turkish media, 50 million of the country’s 85 million people have an Instagram account.
Digital law expert Yaman Akdeniz said the decision had likely been taken by the president’s office or a government ministry.
He said BTK needed to get the decision approved by a judge, and it was unlikely that a judge would approve it.
“The censure imposed on Instagram is arbitrary and can be neither explained nor justified,” he said on X.
The decision to freeze the platform at 03:00 am on Friday sparked derision on other social media networks such as X.
“Instagram is blocked in Turkey. Life is over,” wrote user “CringeOfMaster” alongside a picture of a grieving man.
“BTK’s job isn’t to cut off the internet but to get it working faster,” said IT professor Cem Say, noting that Turkey ranked “111th in the world for internet speed”.
This is not the first time that Turkish authorities have temporarily blocked access to social media sites, notably following attacks.
Wikipedia was blocked between April 2017 and January 2020 over two articles that alleged a link between the presidency and extremism.
Although Erdogan’s government is regularly accused of muzzling freedom of expression, the move to stop Wikipedia caused shock because of the huge amount of online information that became inaccessible.
In April, Facebook owner Meta suspended its Threads social network in Turkey following a decision by authorities there to prevent it from sharing information with Instagram.
