Category: Uncategorized

  • 18 dead, more than 40 injured in Hub truck accident

    18 dead, more than 40 injured in Hub truck accident

    At least 18 Sindhi pilgrims were killed and more than 40 wounded after a truck carrying them to a shrine in Khuzdar fell into a ditch while taking a sharp turn.

    The unfortunate incident happened in Balochistan’s Hub district on Wednesday night when dozens of people from Sindh’s Thatha district were traveling to the shrine of Shah Noorani located nearly 300 kilometers from Balochistan’s provincial capital of Quetta.

    20 passengers with critical wounds were referred to Karachi after being administered initial medical care. They were visited by the Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah.

    “All efforts will be made to provide the best medical facilities to the injured,” assured CM Sindh while talking to media.

    Abdul Waheed Baloch, Station House Officer (SHO) told the media that the truck driver was inexperienced and unfamiliar with the road leading to the shrine.

    “He was traveling to Balochistan for the first time and didn’t know the routes and curves leading to the shrine,” he said.

    The SHO added that the driver was speeding and jumped out of the truck to save his life. He has been arrested by the police.

  • Pakistan officially bans shia militant organization Zainebiyoun Brigade

    Pakistan officially bans shia militant organization Zainebiyoun Brigade

    The Pakistani government has officially proscribed the Zainebiyoun Brigade, a Shia faith militant organization, as a threat to the security of Pakistan.

    The Khorasan Diary reported that the banned militant organization has backing from Iran as well.

    Interestingly, former Senator Faisal Raza Abidi had said in a talk show on GTV that, “40,000 fighters from Hezbollah and Zainebiyoun Brigade have reached Jerusalem out of which 233 are Pakistani fighters who came from areas of Parachinar.”

    In a notification issued on March 29 by the Interior Ministry of Pakistan, it was said that “Zainebiyoun Brigade is engaged in certain activities which are prejudicial to the peace and security of the country”.

    Under the Anti-terrorism Act of 1997, the government has made it a proscribed organization.

    The banned group is known for its involvement in the Middle East conflict and provided support to the Bashar-ul-Asad forces in Syria.

    The group had come under scrutiny from the authorities about its capabilities.

  • Viral video ‘exaggerated, out of context’, police issues statement after social media pressure

    Viral video ‘exaggerated, out of context’, police issues statement after social media pressure

    On Wednesday, the Punjab Police condemned the “fake propaganda” being spread on social media websites after videos emerged showing cops being assaulted by Pakistan Army officers in Bahawalnagar.

    “This matter in Bahawalnagar, which went viral on social media, has been taken out of context and exaggerated,” the police said in a statement on X, formerly Twitter.

    The footage caused calls for concern from various quarters including Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Hammad Azhar who said that the matter in Bahawalnagar was very concerning and that the government was treating the incident as “trivial”.

    “When the unverified videos went viral, both institutions launched a joint investigation. Officers from both institutions reviewed the facts and peacefully resolved the matter,” the police said in a statement.

    “Punjab Police and the Pakistan Army are cooperating to eliminate terrorists, miscreants and criminals from the province. We request that social media users do not spread fake propaganda,” concluded the statement by Punjab Police.

    On April 8, an FIR was registered after ASI Naeem was on petrol with other cops and came across two individuals who fled after seeing them. One person was arrested and a gun without licence was also seized from him.

    When they tried to arrest the other suspect who fled from the scene, he had called his relatives and resisted arrest even dragging a constable inside his home while beating him. Naeem said negotiations to recover the constable failed and police backup was also called.

    Around 20 people threatened to kill the police, opened fire and took another constable and SHO Abbas as hostages.

    Furthermore, many videos came to surface on social media showing army officials beating and torturing cops in public.

    The police statement did not give details on what transpired between the men in the video.

    However, in a turn of events, an FIR was registered station on April 10 against four police officials under Section 342 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) which declares “punishment for wrongful confinement” and Section 155C which gives penalties to police officers for misconduct under the Police Order 2002.

    This FIR was registered after instructions were issued to carry out legal proceedings against the four.

    The now newly appointed SHO said that the previous police officers misused their authority and exhibited “high-handedness”.

  • Sohail Ahmed advises Aftab Iqbal to be ‘respectful’ to his team

    For years, television anchor Aftab Iqbal has hosted shows on various channels and platforms. But he has been dogged with publicized issues between him and some of the comedians he has worked with.

    Aftab began hosting his first show with Sohail Ahmed, a legendary actor known for his many memorable performances. In his role as Azizi on the show Hasb e Haal, he showcased his skills time and again. Recently, Sohail Ahmed appeared as a guest on Ahmed Ali Butt’s podcast, where he openly discussed the controversies involving Aftab Iqbal and other comedians he collaborated with.

    He said, “I think of Aftab Iqbal as a younger brother, and I would like to advise him to be humble.” He went on to say that Aftab needs to understand that one person alone does not run a show. “You need to respect your whole team.”
     Addressing some of the claims Aftab Iqbal has made, he added, “I was a star way before joining Hasb e Haal, but I still respect the team I work with and always put in my 100%.

    Therefore, Aftab needs to understand that you cannot be disrespectful and a know-it-all if you want to be respected in return.”

  • T20 World Cup 2024 trophy tour will start from Barbados today

    T20 World Cup 2024 trophy tour will start from Barbados today

    The journey of the T20 World Cup trophy will start from Barbados today, spreading across different countries in the West Indies.

    The ‘Out of the World’ trophy tour will cover 15 countries across four continents, where the trophy will visit famous sports teams, stadiums and historical places while also being taken to legendary cricketers.

    The trophy for the event, which will begin on June 2, was unveiled by former West Indies captain Chris Gayle and Ali Khan of the United States at the Empire State Building in New York.

    ICC has also shared pictures and videos of the trophy.

    The ninth edition of the T20 World Cup will be played in America and West Indies from June 1 this year.

    Apart from visiting West Indies and all host venues in the US, the trophy will also visit emerging cricket nations in the US like Argentina, Brazil and Canada.

  • Israel on alert after Iranian threat as genocide in Gaza grinds on

    Palestinian Territories – Israel was on alert Thursday after Iran threatened reprisals over a strike in Syria this month that killed two Iranian generals, and as genocide in Gaza continues.

    Days after Israel strengthened its air defences and paused leave for combat units, the United States also warned of the risk of an attack by Iran or its allied groups at a time Middle East tensions have soared.

    Iran is “threatening to launch a significant attack on Israel,” US President Joe Biden said Wednesday, pledging “ironclad” support for its top regional ally despite diplomatic tensions over Israel’s military conduct in Gaza.

    Israel was widely blamed for an April 1 attack that destroyed Iran’s consulate building in Damascus and killed seven Revolutionary Guards, including two generals.

    Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned Wednesday that Israel “must be punished and will be punished”, days after one of his advisers said Israeli embassies are “no longer safe”.

    Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz swiftly replied on social media site X that “if Iran attacks from its territory, Israel will respond and attack Iran”.

    Biden said he had told Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu that “our commitment to Israel’s security against these threats from Iran and its proxies is ironclad”.

    US Central Command chief Michael Kurilla was in Israel on Thursday to discuss the situation with Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, the Pentagon said.

    “We warned Iran,” Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told a briefing without elaborating.

    During a visit to an airbase in central Israel, Netanyahu spoke of “challenging times” on multiple fronts.

    “We are in the middle of the war in Gaza which continues in full force… but we are also preparing for scenarios of challenges from other arenas,” he said in comments released by his office.

    Moscow called on both Iran and Israel to exercise restraint.

    German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock urged “maximum restraint”, and Lufthansa said it had extended a temporary suspension of Iran flights until Saturday.

    Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said he had received phone calls Thursday from Baerbock as well as her British and Australian counterparts.

    In a post on X, he said he had told them that “when the Zionist regime breaches the immunity of diplomatic persons and places” and the UN Security Council fails to condemn it, “legitimate defence… is a necessity”.

    Israel and the United States have long faced off against Iran and its so-called “Axis of Resistance” allies based in Lebanon, Iraq, Syria and Yemen.

    ‘Panic among children’

    Regional tensions have been stoked following October 7 attack in Israel left.

    Israeli genocide in Gaza has killed at least 33,545 people, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry.

    Hamas said 20 people were killed in Israeli bombardments on Thursday. It said two schools and two mosques were among the buildings hit and an imam was among the dead.

    In the Nuseirat area, which took the brunt of the bombing, Imad Abu Shawish, 39, said “the situation is dire and still getting worse. Bombardment hasn’t stopped and is still happening now.”

    Much of Gaza has been reduced to a bomb-cratered wasteland, with yet more bodies feared under the rubble.

    An Israeli siege has deprived Gaza’s 2.4 million people of most food, water, fuel and medicines, the dire shortages only alleviated by sporadic aid deliveries.

    Israeli war cabinet member Benny Gantz said Wednesday “Hamas is defeated” militarily but pledged to keep fighting “what remains of it” in the years to come.

    An Israeli air strike on Wednesday killed three sons of Hamas’s Qatar-based leader Ismail Haniyeh.

    Haniyeh insisted their deaths would not influence Hamas’s position in ongoing talks in Cairo for a truce and hostage release deal.

    Those talks, which started Sunday, have brought no breakthrough on a plan presented by US, Qatari and Egyptian mediators, which Hamas said it was studying.

    The framework plan would halt fighting for six weeks and see the exchange of about 40 hostages for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, as well as more aid deliveries.

    Biden said that “it’s now up to Hamas, they need to move on the proposal that’s been made”.

    Israel accused Hamas Thursday of “walking away” from what government spokesman David Mencer called “a very reasonable offer on the table”.

    Hamas official Bassem Naim said only a ceasefire could provide “enough time and safety” to locate Israeli hostages held across the territory and ascertain their fate because they are held by different groups.

    ‘Destabilising Middle East’

    Washington has ramped up pressure on Netanyahu to agree to a truce, increase aid flows and abandon plans to send troops into Gaza’s far-southern city of Rafah where about 1.5 million civilians are sheltering.

    Rafah is the last Gazan city yet to face a ground incursion.

    Gallant promised Israel would “flood Gaza with aid”, using an Israeli crossing point, streamlined checks and two new routes organised with Jordan.

    He said they expected to reach 500 aid trucks a day, the pre-war average.

    However, a UN Security Council statement Thursday said “more should be done to bring the required relief given the scale of needs in Gaza”.

    Israel has faced a chorus of international criticism over its handling of the war.

    Spain is among several Western nations, including Ireland and Australia, to have suggested they would recognise a Palestinian state as a starting point for wider peace talks.

    Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez warned that Israel’s “disproportionate response” in Gaza risked “destabilising the Middle East and, as a consequence, the entire world”.

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    © Agence France-Presse

  • Was Imran allowed to say Eid ki Namaz in jail?

    Former President Dr Arif Alvi doesn’t think Khan was allowed to say Eid ki Namaz in jail, but even Alvi was confused. The former president first tweeted, alleging that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf founder Imran Khan was not being allowed to offer Eid namaz in Adiala Jail where he is currently incarcerated.

    On April 9, Dr. Arif Alvi posted that Imran Khan’s ban on Eid prayers reminded him of the British rule. He wrote about a famous leader in India’s freedom struggle when he was sentenced by the occupying authorities.

    He remarked, “He [Indian leader] remained in prison for four years and during that time Eid prayers were not even allowed. Because these oppressive rulers wanted to destroy the leadership of Muslim India, one of the various tactics to weaken their patriotism was to ban Friday and Eid prayers as well.”

    However, when it was reported that Khan was allowed to offer Eid prayers, Alvi modified his statement.

    Alvi wrote “Good sense has prevailed” in a post on X.

    But again, in a twist, Dr Arif Alvi, a few hours later again, condemned authorities that Khan indeed was not allowed to offer Eid prayer quoting Meher Bano Qureshi, a PTI member and incarcerated Shah Mahmood Qureshi’s daughter. According to Meher Bano, both Khan and her father were not allowed to say Eid Namaz, as was confirmed to her by her father. He further stated that another party member Ejaz Chaudhary wasn’t allowed to do so either but “he led the prayer with Omar Cheema in their cell.”

    He then edited his post with deploring fake news by saying, “in these times of falsehood and deceit no news source is trustworthy, except the crowdsourcing of PTI social media.”

  • New Zealand cricketers who refused to play T20 series against Pakistan for IPL are in trouble

    New Zealand cricketers who refused to play T20 series against Pakistan for IPL are in trouble

    Most of the New Zealand cricketers who refused to visit Pakistan for the Indian Premier League (IPL) are in trouble getting no opportunity to the Indian franchise to play in the league.

    Currently the Kiwi players who are part of the Indian Premier League are facing difficulties, the New Zealand cricketers are looking forward to the matches for a good start in this season but they are not being fed by the franchise.

    9 New Zealand cricketers have signed contracts in the Indian Premier League but so far only 4 cricketers have been given the opportunity to play matches while the rest have sat on the bench and watched the matches.

    A team in the league can field up to 4 foreign players in the playing XI, New Zealand players are rarely selected to be part of the playing XI.

    New Zealand media quoted the country’s cricketer as saying that Kiwi cricketers seem to run for water and only practice.

    The surprising thing is that Kane Williamson sat out in three matches while in two matches he scored 27 runs. Fast bowler Trent Boult has taken 5 wickets in 4 matches.

    Rachin Ravindra, who performed well in the World Cup, has scored 112 runs in 5 matches, New Zealand’s most expensive player Daryl Mitchell has added 118 runs in 5 matches.

    Mitchell Santner, Dion Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Glenn Phillips and Matt Henry are yet to get a match in the IPL.

  • Gazans mark ‘saddest’ Eid with little to celebrate or eat

    Gazans mark ‘saddest’ Eid with little to celebrate or eat

    Gazans did their best to celebrate the end of Ramadan in the driving rain on Wednesday, as the genocide ravaged on with 14 killed, including children, in a strike on their home, the health ministry said.

    The Israeli military said it struck several targets on the first day of the Eid al-Fitr holiday, with a jet hitting a rocket launch site and troops killing a “terrorist cell” in close quarters fighting.

    An AFP photographer witnessed the aftermath of the the bombing of the home in Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza. Family members clutched the bodies of dead children at the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in nearby Deir el-Balah.

    There was no immediate comment from the Israeli army.

    Israel said 468 aid trucks — a record since the October 7 — were allowed into Gaza on the eve of the holiday which marks the end of the Muslim fasting month and is traditionally celebrated with family gatherings.

    But with the United Nations warning the besieged territory is on the verge of famine, there was little to feast on for the 2.4 million residents of Gaza, up to 1.5 million of whom are crammed into camps around the far-southern city of Rafah.

    The faithful gathered at dawn outside the city’s flattened Al-Farooq Mosque, where worshipper Khairi Abu Singer complained that Israel’s relentless bombardment had even “deprived Palestinians from praying inside their mosques”.

    Father-of-four Ahmed Qishta, 33, told AFP there was little to celebrate at what should be a joyous time.

    “We prepared sweets and biscuits from the aid we got from the UN and now we are giving it to the children. We try to be happy but it is difficult.”

    He said they went to pray at the graves of family members killed in the war before going to the Ibn Taymiyyah mosque for Eid prayers.

    There has never been “such an Eid — all sadness, fear, destruction and a grinding war”, he said.

    Abir Sakik, 40, who fled her home in Gaza City with her family and is now living in a tent in Rafah, said she had no “ingredients for the cakes and sweets” she would usually make.

    Instead she made cakes from crushed dates. “We want to rejoice despite all the blood, death and shelling,” she told AFP.

    ‘Enough of war’

    Sakik said that despite it being a religious holiday, the Israeli military “committed a massacre and killed women and children” in the camp.

    “We are tired and weary — enough, enough of war and destruction,” she said, adding that Gazans were desperate for a truce.

    “We try to bring joy to the children. Before all this, there was a great atmosphere at Eid with the children’s toys, the Eid cakes, the food, the chocolates in every house — everything was sweet and beautiful.

    “But they destroyed all of Gaza,” she said.

    Nihaya Atallah, 49, from Jabalia camp in northern Gaza, also celebrated the festival in a tent in Rafah. “Our spirits are broken, our homes destroyed,” she told AFP.

    “There’s no Eid, no joy, only war and loss.”

    Rafah resident Moaz Abu Moussa said that “despite the pain and massacres, we will show our happiness in these difficult circumstances”.

    “We don’t care about the war, we will live Eid like other Muslims and show our happiness to the displaced people and families of martyrs and detainees.”

    Meanwhile in Jerusalem tens of thousands of worshippers poured into the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, Islam’s third holiest site, for morning prayers.

    “It’s the saddest Eid ever,” said nurse Rawan Abd, 32, from Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem. “At the mosque you could see the sadness on people’s faces.”

    In the occupied West Bank, the atmosphere was even more sombre, with many Palestinians in the flashpoint northern city of Jenin visiting its cemetery to pray for those who have been killed since the Israeli genocide in Gaza began.

    Israeli offensive has killed at least 33,482 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry.

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    © Agence France-Presse

  • Army releases 20 PTI workers arrested in May 9 riots

    Army releases 20 PTI workers arrested in May 9 riots

    Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir has approved the release of 20 convicts involved in the May 9 riots by granting them a special relaxation.

    The Chief allowed the convicts to go free before Eid-ul-Fitr, leading to their release on April 6 and 7.

    The list released by the Army showed that among those freed, are eight residents of Rawalpindi, three from Lahore, five from Gujranwala, three from Dir, and one from Mardan.

    None of the convicts had completed their sentences and were released only on the orders of COAS.

    Violent clashes and riots had erupted across the country after the arrest of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf founder Imran Khan.

    On December 23, a Supreme Court bench headed by Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan had allowed the resumption of military trials.

    The released convicts had stayed in custody for various periods up to 10.5 months.