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  • Pak Army to assist Qatar with security for FIFA World Cup 2022

    The Pakistan Army will assist Qatar with security in the upcoming FIFA World Cup 2022. The federal cabinet approved a draft agreement that allows the government to provide troops for security at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar later this year.

    “The agreement aims to define the obligations of the two parties, the specific specialisations, and the number of security personnel to be sent by Pakistan to participate in the security and safety operations,” the summary presented to the cabinet read.

    Read more- Pakistan offers Qatar security for 2022 FIFA World Cup

    The government of Qatar had requested Pakistan’s assistance in the security of the FIFA World Cup. The event will be held from November 21 to December 18, 2022.

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif is in Qatar on a two-day official visit at the request of Qatar’s Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

  • Bilawal appeals to media to ignore ‘tamasha in Islamabad’ and focus on floods

    Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari appealed to the media that the number one priority at the moment should be the flood-affected people across the country.

    “Whatever tamasha that is going on in Islamabad should be kept aside during this national calamity that has hit us. Those who have been affected by floods don’t have food or roofs over their heads anymore. Floods have taken everything from them. So I appeal to media owners, politicians, federal government and the provincial governments that all attention must be given to the people suffering right now,” said Bilawal Bhutto.

    Bilawal visited different areas of Sindh affected by heavy rains and floods.

    PPP co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari said that all attention must be given to the flood-affected people across the country.

    “We should all focus on the flood-affected people,” said Zardari.

    ‘I will live among the people in this difficult situation,’ Bilawal postpones official visit to Europe

    Bilawal postponed his official visit to four European countries due to the calamities across Pakistan caused by the ongoing heavy monsoon rains and flooding.

    “My countrymen are suffering and I cannot go abroad in these circumstances,” said Bhutto in a statement. “I will live among the people in this difficult situation.”

    Bilawal Bhutto also instructed elected representatives of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) to stay among the people in their constituencies.

    According to a statement by the foreign ministry, Bilawal delayed his European visit due to the heavy damages to lives and property caused by the torrential rains in the country.

    The FM was set to depart on a four country-trip including Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Norway in a bid to strengthen Pakistan’s engagement with Europe and share its perspective on regional and global issues from August 22-26.

    Bilawal’s visits to these capitals will be rescheduled at mutually agreed later dates in consultation with the host governments, said the ministry.

    At least 400 people have died in floods caused by heavy rains in Sindh and Balochistan provinces. According to the data issued by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), 216 people have lost their lives to rain and flood-related incidents in Balochistan and 216 people have lost their lives in Sindh.

    Read More: Floods in Balochistan and Sindh kill at least 400 people

    A total of 777 people have died in the country from June 14 to August 21

     

  • Here’s why the internet was down in Pakistan last night

    Here’s why the internet was down in Pakistan last night

    The internet services in Pakistan suffered another disruption on Monday night. Services of almost all of the major Internet Service Providers (ISPs) were disrupted. Services were suspended in Rawalpindi, Islamabad and Lahore around 11:10pm and remained suspended until 1:20am.

    “A nation-scale internet disruption has been registered in Pakistan; the incident affects multiple providers including PTCL, Nayatel and StormFiber with real-time network data showing connectivity at 38% of an ordinary level,” NetBlocks said in a tweet.

    Why was the internet down?

    Sources in PTCL said the internet fibre cables suffered damage due to heavy rains in Sukkur areas. “They said rainwater had entered the PTCL exchange causing electricity to short-circuit. The company expects the repair work to be completed by Tuesday morning,” reports Dawn.

    This was the second major disruption of internet services in less than a week. Last week, internet services were affected on Friday (August 19).

  • Zulfiqar Jabbar announces support for ‘Kana Yaari’ singer Wahab Bugti amidst floods

    Zulfiqar Jabbar announces support for ‘Kana Yaari’ singer Wahab Bugti amidst floods

    As torrential rain continues to wreak havoc across Balochistan, stories are emerging of thousands of people being homeless, amongst them is musician Wahab Bugti.

    The Kana Yaari singer and his family have been affected by the flooding in Dera Bugti and required help. Fellow Coke Studio artist Kaifi Khalil and activist Muniba Mazari requested public to help him and his family.

    Activist Mazari shared photo of the singer with his family surrounded by floodwater on Twitter.

    Khalil asked his followers to help as much as they can. “Please help him koyi bhi in say nazdeek rehta hai ya in k touch main hain [whoever lives nearby or is touch with him] lots more of prayers for you Wahab bhai,” he wrote.

    The musician is currently staying at his friend’s home, since his house has been affected by the water.

    Now the producer of Coke Studio 14, Zulfiqar Jabbar has announced that he and his team are providing support to Bugti and his family amidst the crises.

    Read More: Floods in Balochistan and Sindh kill at least 400 people

  • ‘Yes, it’s true’: Shahbaz Gill confirms he was sexually assaulted in police custody

    ‘Yes, it’s true’: Shahbaz Gill confirms he was sexually assaulted in police custody

    Imran Khan’s chief of staff Shahbaz Gill’s room in Parliament Lodges was raided late Monday.

    The Islamabad police recovered weapons, a satellite phone and foreign currency. A pistol was recovered during the operation; however, Gill refused to take ownership of the weapon.

    “My wallet was usually carried by my driver and the room from where the pistol has been recovered was in use of my guards,” he said. 

    Replying to the questions of journalists, Gill confirmed he was sexually assaulted in police custody. 

    “Yes, it’s true”, said Gill in response to the question about Imran Khan’s statement.

    “I see some changes in my room, my passport wasn’t found at its usual place…this means that somebody came here during the time I was in custody,” he added.

    Read More: Islamabad court approves two-day physical remand of Shahbaz Gill

    Earlier on Monday, a district and sessions court in Islamabad granted a two-day physical remand of Gill after reviewing his medical report. Shahbaz Gill was taken into custody on August 9 from Bani Gala Chowk for inciting the public against state institutions.

    ‘Gill was tortured both mentally and physically, including sexual abuse’: Imran Khan

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman demanded justice for his Chief of Staff Dr Shahbaz Gill and claimed that he was sexually abused while in police custody.

    In a series of tweets Khan said, “All the pictures and videos show clearly Gill was tortured both mentally and physically, including sexual abuse — most too gruesome to relate.”

    “ICT police says it did not inflict any torture. So my question is: Who tortured Gill?” Khan asked.

    The PTI chairman added that there is a general perception in the public at large and in “our minds too as to who could have carried out the gruesome torture”.

    “Remember the public will react. We will leave no stone unturned to find out those responsible and bring them to justice,” he added.

    Rallies in solidarity with Shahbaz Gill

    In a video message, PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry said that nationwide rallies to show solidarity with Shahbaz Gill will be taken out tomorrow.

    Imran reaches PIMS

    Khan reached Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) to meet Gill.

    Khan barred from meeting Shahbaz

    Imran Khan announced nationwide rallies to show solidarity with Shahbaz Gill, after the former premier claimed his party leader faced “sexual abuse” in police custody.

    “I will lead a rally in Islamabad tomorrow […] and rallies will be held in all divisional headquarters across the country,” the PTI chairman told journalists.

    Khan’s brief presser came after he was barred from meeting Gill at the PIMS hospital in the federal capital.

  • Bilawal Bhutto most vocal MNA during PTI tenure: PILDAT

    Bilawal Bhutto most vocal MNA during PTI tenure: PILDAT

    As the 15th National Assembly concluded its fourth parliamentary year, the Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development And Transparency (PILDAT) released analysis of its performance.

    Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari was the most vocal lawmaker during the fourth year of the current National Assembly before the change in government, with a talk time of one hour and 59 minutes , according to PILDAT.

    PML-N leader Shehbaz Sharif came in second and spoke for one hour and 57 minutes, followed by PML-N’s Khawaja Mohammad Asif who spoke for one hour and 27 minutes.

    During this period in the House of 342 members, 174 (50.88 per cent MNAs) did not speak for a single minute in the Assembly. Out of these 174 non-vocal MNAs, 149 were male and 25 were women MNAs. 84 of these MNAs (22 per cent of the House) belong to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), 48 MNAs are of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and 23 are affiliated with the PPP.

    PILDAT’s comparative analysis looked at the three years and eight months’ period of the National Assembly under former prime minister Imran Khan and also looks how the PTI tenure under Imran Khan as prime minister was different from the same period in the 14th National Assembly.

    Legislative activity witnessed a decrease of 8 per cent in the fourth year of the 15th National Assembly as it passed 55 laws compared to 60 bills passed during the third year of the Assembly. 30 bills were passed during the second year while only 10 bills were passed in the first year.

    However, in a comparison of legislation between four years of 15th and 14th National Assembly, the 15th National Assembly has passed 155 bills in the four-year-period while the 14th National Assembly had passed 125 bills in its first four years.

  • Govt imposes Rs36 billion additional tax on cigarettes, tobacco processing to revive IMF programme

    Govt imposes Rs36 billion additional tax on cigarettes, tobacco processing to revive IMF programme

    The government has issued an ordinance to impose an additional Rs36 billion tax on cigarettes, an additional Rs2 billion tax on the processing of tobacco, and lowered charges on transportation vehicles in order to raise an additional Rs38 billion in taxes.

    According to Geo, tier-1 brand cigarettes may see a price increase of Rs20 to Rs30 each packet, while tier-2 brand cigarettes would see a price increase of Rs10 per packet.

    The government increased the advance federal excise duty (FED) tax on tobacco processing from Rs10 per kg to Rs390 per kg, which will be adjustable.

    In order to secure the restart of a stalled programme and the release of a $1.17 billion tranche under an expanded $7 billion extended fund facility (EFF), Pakistan has moved to impose taxes on cigarettes and tobacco processing just prior to the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) executive board meeting, which is scheduled to take place in Washington on August 29.

    The government did not apply regulatory duties on luxury goods because they will be imposed through SRO after receiving tariff board approval and perhaps receiving ECC approval.

    The FBR expects to raise between Rs5 and Rs14 billion in tax income through RDs, hence the overall revenue impact could reach between Rs50 and Rs52 billion.

    It appears strange that the government did not implement any taxation measures on the production of sugar-filled beverages, which also harms the health sector.

    According to the ordinance, retailers who do not fall under tier-1 will be charged the tax through their monthly electricity bills at a rate of 5 per cent where the amount of the bill does not exceed Rs20,000 and at a rate of 7.5 per cent where the amount is greater. The electricity supplier will deposit the money that is thus collected directly without deducting it from his input tax.

    Through this move, the government hopes to raise Rs2 billion.

    In contrast, the FED on locally produced cigarettes has increased from Rs5,900/1,000 sticks to Rs6,500/1,000 sticks for tier-1 and from Rs1,850/1,000 sticks to Rs2,050/1,000 sticks for tier-2 cigarettes. The FED on un processed tobacco has increased from Rs10 per kg to Rs390 per kg.

  • Kim Kardashian, Sylvester Stallone, others under fire for water wastage amidst California drought

    Kim Kardashian, Sylvester Stallone, others under fire for water wastage amidst California drought

    A-lister celebrities from the American entertainment and sports industry are included in a list of about 2,000 Los Angeles residents accused of using excessive amounts of water amid the ongoing drought.

    According to documents obtained by the Los Angeles Times from the Las Virgenes Municipal Water District, several celebrities were issued “notices of exceedance” stating that they had surpassed 150 percent of their monthly water budget at least four times since the district issued new rules to combat the drought at the end of last year.

    La Nina is on the way — don't expect CA drought to lessen

    The excessive water usage notices were sent out in May and June, and according to the Times, among those recipients were Kim and Kourtney Kardashian, Kevin Hart, Sylvester Stallone, and former NBA star Dwyane Wade.

    Kim was also recently under fire after making number 7 on a list of celebrities that were ranked as the “biggest offenders” of private jet emissions. While occasionally sharing her views on climate change, the report stated that her jet expelled 4268.5 tonnes of carbon emissions over 57 flights so far this year.

    Nearly 97 percent of Los Angeles is in a state of “severe drought” according to Drought.gov. This year has been deemed the fourth driest year in the last 128 years—with the first four months being the driest ever recorded, the Weather Channel reported in May.

  • World’s most handsome man: BTS’ RM tops, beats Nick Jonas and Hrithik Roshan

    World’s most handsome man: BTS’ RM tops, beats Nick Jonas and Hrithik Roshan

    According to an international survey, South Korean boy band’s member RM was chosen as the world’s most handsome man over Henry Cavill, Nick Jonas and Hrithik Roshan.

    Top 10 Most Handsome Man In The World 2022
    Top 10 Most Handsome Man In The World 2022

    RM leads the biggest boy band in K-pop history, and gave many hits like Butter, Life Goes On, and many more.

    According to the TC Candler platform in a survey given out by them, BTS’ RM aka Kim Nam-Joon was selected to be the world’s most handsome man, beating Superman fame Henry Cavill to come in second on the list. The list also included soccer veteran David Beckham.

    Top 10 Most Handsome Man In The World 2022

    After the South Korean boy band’s first day of the BTS PTD concert in Las Vegas, Kim Nam-Joon interacted with fans on V Live. RM spoke about marriage, having children and dyeing his hair. He also got candid about the Grammy and having haters.

    BTS’ RM Opens Up About Having Kids “I Used To Want To Have Kids So Bad But Now...”

    During the V Live session, when a fan asked RM when he wanted to get married, the singer replied, “Oh… I don’t know.” But when quizzed about having children, the BTS leader said, “How many kids I’d like to have? I used to want to have kids so bad but now… not so much. When I think about a kid who’s like me since I was not a very nice kid to my mom so I don’t like that idea.”

    While talking about the South Korean boy band having haters, RM said (as translated by Twitter user @modooborahae), “We’ve always had haters. It could be our fault but a lot of times it’s not our fault. There were always haters. All teams have their haters.” The BTS leader added, “There’s also a positive thing about having haters here in the US since it means we’re mainstream.”

    During the interaction with the ARMY, RM also opened up growing his hair long and dyeing it. He said, “Later on when I want to grow my hair long and dye it a dark colour.. one day when I have the patience, I’d like to do that.”

    The BTS rapper also spoke about getting a tattoo, saying, “I used to plan to have one and I actually had a sketch but I cancelled it because I was afraid. Because I’m kinda ‘in a rush’ guy, I get sick of something really fast so if I have a tattoo, I was afraid I would be sick of it. I’m still open tho!”

  • Nine women murdered in Peshawar in a week

    Nine women murdered in Peshawar in a week

    According to the police, nine women, including a girl child, were killed in Peshawar in the last week. Incidents of women’s murders have taken place in Dawoodzai, Matni, Shahpur, Khazana and Regi.

    A female child was killed in a firing between two parties in Shangri. According to the police, most incidents of murder of women are cases of domestic violence and honour killing.

    The cases of murder of women were registered in their respective police stations, and the police have arrested 4 suspects involved in the incidents.

    As per the data compiled by the Sustainable Social Development Organization (SSDO) and the Centre for Research, Development and Communication (CRDC), the month of July saw 16 incidents of physical assault reported in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
    (KP), three cases of abduction occurred, 11 cases of rape were reported and17 cases of domestic violence were reported. 32 children were sexually abused and 27 children were kidnapped. 11 cases of physical violence against children were reported and three children were murdered. One child labour case was reported.