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  • Educational institute in Islamabad sealed after coronavirus cases emerge

    Educational institute in Islamabad sealed after coronavirus cases emerge

    An educational institute in Islamabad has been sealed after the emergence of the coronavirus cases, confirmed the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) on Tuesday.

    As per details, the institution was sealed after 16 coronavirus cases were reported. Meanwhile, contact tracing is currently underway to contain the spread of the deadly virus.

    Educational institutes across Pakistan have reopened today (Sept 15) after nearly a six-month-long break due to the pandemic.

    Earlier in the day, Federal Minister for Education Shafqat Mahmood welcomed the students and advised them to follow all the SOPs (standard operating procedure) 

  • Aviation vlogger Noel Philips shares experience of travelling on ‘banned’ PIA

    Aviation vlogger Noel Philips shares experience of travelling on ‘banned’ PIA

    Travel expert and aviation vlogger, Noel Philips, recently released a vlog, sharing his experience of travelling on Pakistan International Airline (PIA) that is now banned in Europe and the United States (US) after it was revealed by the aviation minister that a large number of commercial pilots hold fake licenses.

    Noel shared his experience in a video titled ‘Flying a banned airline – Pakistan International Airline‘.

    Phillips said he was quite surprised after “seeing so many people with so much excess baggage”. As he entered the plane, he was welcomed and guided to his seat by a PIA official. 

    He then shared that a few passengers were shouting on flight attendants.

    “Most of the customers are onboard and a few people are on wrong seats and we’ve got passengers shouting at flight attendants and things, flight attendants running around with bits of paper in the hands.”

    Because of the chaos, the flight took off half an hour later than the scheduled time. 

    Phillips said he liked the food served on his flight.

    Sharing the cons, he said he was shocked to see garbage under the seats after he pushed his seat back. He further said that when he laid down to take some rest, he was woken up by “the unmistakable smell of cigarette smoke.” 

     “Passengers are strictly prohibited from smoking onboard PIA flights. I mean, there is a sign and everything and I am sure that not a single member of the crew or passengers would ever want to bend those rules, not on PIA surely.”

    Phillips, who flew from India to Islamabad, said that he liked the capital’s scenic views, the hospitality of Pakistani people and masala curries. 

    He wanted to share what people think about PIA through his vlog and was of the opinion that even a little amount of investment can improve the airlines.

    “And I really do think that given a little bit of investment in their aircraft, PIA could be up there with some of the best airlines,” he said while signing off.

  • ‘Motorway rapists left Rs1,000 on dashboard of survivor’s car, which was for police bringing petrol’

    ‘Motorway rapists left Rs1,000 on dashboard of survivor’s car, which was for police bringing petrol’

    Journalist Fereeha Idrees, who has extensively been covering the Lahore-Sialkot Motorway gang-rape case and is also reportedly in contact with the survivor, has made a shocking revelation that has added to people’s doubts regarding the alleged involvement of law enforcement in the incident.

    Speaking to The Current during a live session on Monday night and separately to a private media outlet, Fereeha revealed that one of the accused left Rs1,000 on the dashboard of the survivor’s vehicle. The amount was meant for police upon their arrival at the spot after she had called the emergency helpline when her car ran out of fuel en route Gujranwala at midnight.

    The journalist quoted the survivor as saying that when she reached the toll plaza, she paid toll tax and asked for the nearest petrol station. “After covering some distance, her car ran out of fuel and she called the motorway helpline. They apologised but gave her the local number.”

    WATCH VIDEO:

    Over the phone, a person sought her exact location via WhatsApp and then asked her to wait, she said.

    Further quoting the victim, Fereeha said the woman was also asked as to how much petrol did she need, to which she requested for fuel worth Rs1,000. “She then waited for over an hour and a half before she was attacked and later raped in nearby fields off the main road.”

    When the woman was found by the police and her belongings were retrieved, eyewitnesses say there was a Rs1,000 currency note on the dashboard, Fereeha said and added that it was left by the attackers.

    “Apparently, the attackers wished that she would go home and not tell anyone. But is it a coincidence that she had said she needed fuel for at least Rs1,000 to reach home and that was exactly the amount the attackers left behind?”

    Did one of them go back to put it there as they took her purse with them?

    THE INCIDENT:

    A woman, along with her three children, was driving to Gujranwala in her car when she was forced to stop at the Gujjarpura section of the motorway after running out of fuel at around 1:30 am.

    She immediately called a relative and sent him her location. He asked her to also dial the Motorway Police helpline 130 but she was reportedly refused help.

    In the meantime, two robbers approached the car, broke the window and took the woman and her children to nearby bushes where they raped her repeatedly in front of the children. They also snatched her purse that had cash around Rs100,000, one bracelet, car registration and three ATM cards. 

    The Gujjarpura police have registered a case, while Motorway Police spokesperson said they had not been able to take action as the incident did not occur in the limits of Motorway Police.

    Amid a strong reaction by the public and countrywide protests, at least one of the two culprits has surrendered. His co-accused is still at large.

  • ‘We took her kids to the bushes to make her follow us,’ says man who gang-raped mother of three

    ‘We took her kids to the bushes to make her follow us,’ says man who gang-raped mother of three

    Lahore-Sialkot motorway gang-rape accused Shafqat, who has confessed to his role in the horrific incident along with absconding co-accused Abid, has made shocking revelations regarding the incident such as how did they force the survivor to follow them into the bushes off the main road.

    According to reports, the accused, while detailing the entire episode, said that key suspect Abid called him and one Bala Mistri to reach Lahore for some criminal activity.

    “All three of us left to commit a robbery but Bala ditched us on the way.”

    Confessing to the robbery and rape, Shafqat told investigators that they were intoxicated at the time of the incident and initially had planned to only commit a robbery.

    “Abid smashed the windows and injured his hand in the process,” he said, adding that after looting the victim they decided to sexually assault her.

    “We decided to bring her off-road and after stiff resistance, took away her children to the nearby bushes so she would follow.”

    “As expected, the woman followed us off the main road where we raped her,” Shafqat said and added that they have committed various crimes at the same spot.

    According to his statement to the police, he further said that they spent the next day in the Qila Sattar Shah area of Sheikhupura district. “Then I went to Dipalpur while Abid went to meet his father in Manga Mandi.”

    “We last spoke to each other three days ago,” he confessed.

    Since it was not their first such criminal activity, Shafqat told the investigators during the probe that they also tried to sexually assault a woman during a robbery in Sheikhupura, however, the attempt was foiled after police reached the site of the incident.

  • ‘#IbshamZahidBehindTheBars’: Guy under fire for sending rape, death threats to girl

    ‘#IbshamZahidBehindTheBars’: Guy under fire for sending rape, death threats to girl

    A girl, named Fatima, has recently come forward to share her story of being harassed and tortured by a guy named Ibsham Zahid.

    She posted a few screenshots on an Instagram account.

    The girl shared images, audio and video clips that show how she was being forced into a ‘relationship’ by Ibsham.

    As per the girl’s account, Ibsham started threatening her after she refused to get into a relationship with him. The girl shared a video that shows the boy threatening the girl to kill her father if she doesn’t consent to the boy’s wishes.

    Ibsham can be seen flaunting his weapons to frighten the girl and her family.

     “Hum Baloch hain. Hum dil nahi tortay, hum hadian tortay hain. Samajh mein aa rahi hai baat? Warna wo jo cheezain pari hui hain na wo istemal ho jayain gi ap per,” Ibsham said in the video.

    Amid all this, Ibsham’s sister also took to social media to tell her side of the story, in a very long Instagram post, she revealed that Ibhsam is just 16 years old and he is suffering from mental health conditions. She revealed that her brother was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), anger management issues and is highly emotionally unstable.

    She also mentioned that her parents are making conscious efforts for his treatment through the help of multiple professionals but they have not been able to successfully do it.

    She further mentioned that she, along with her mother, had also gone to Fatima’s house to apologise for Ibsham’s actions.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CFFdetgBscV/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

    Upon receiving a clarification by Ibsham’s sister, Fatima stated that Maarosh was twisting the facts to tell another version of the story and she was “lying about the events that never happened”.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CFGSPP6haxn/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
  • VIDEO: PML-N takes credit for construction of Sialkot motorway while talking about gang-rape

    VIDEO: PML-N takes credit for construction of Sialkot motorway while talking about gang-rape

    President of the former ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Shehbaz Sharif, has sought credit for his party and brother, former prime minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif, for the construction of the Lahore-Sialkot Motorway while mentioning the gang-rape that took place there last week.

    “I request that an investigation be carried out… the motorway… because this horrible incident took place on the Sialkot motorway, I think it won’t be inappropriate to mention that it was also constructed under the leadership of Mian Nawaz Sharif,” Shehbaz said on the floor of the National Assembly (NA).

    WATCH VIDEO:

    Earlier, Monday’s session of the NA saw heated arguments between members of the government and opposition over the horrifying incident of gang-rape of a mother of three after her car ran out of fuel on the motorway past midnight last Tuesday.

    As per the details, the woman, along with her three children, was driving to Gujranwala in her car when she was forced to stop at the Gujjarpura section of the motorway after running out of fuel at around 1:30 am.

    She immediately called a relative and sent him her location. He asked her to also dial the Motorway Police helpline 130 but she was reportedly refused help.

    In the meantime, two robbers approached the car, broke the window and took the woman and her children to nearby bushes where they raped her repeatedly in front of the children. They also snatched her purse that had cash around Rs100,000, one bracelet, car registration and three ATM cards. 

    The Gujjarpura police have registered a case, while motorway police spokesperson said they had not been able to take action as the incident did not occur in the limits of Motorway Police.

    The authorities’ failure to protect the masses has drawn a strong reaction from the public as countrywide protests demand that justice is served at the earliest.

  • Noor Khadija becomes first female head of South Waziristan’s education department

    Noor Khadija becomes first female head of South Waziristan’s education department

    For the very first time, the South Waziristan district in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province has hired a woman as the head of the Education Department.

    As per reports, the area has the lowest female literacy rate in the country.

    Noor Khadija, who comes from a family of educators and has been linked with the education department for ten years, was appointed South Waziristan’s deputy district education officer in August.

    “It was my long-standing desire to serve my community, specifically girls, to remove obstacles in the way of their education,” Khadija told a local media outlet.

    A portrait of Fatima Jinnah hangs on the wall in Khadija’s office.

    “As a woman, Fatima Jinnah proved that women could make a difference and play a decisive role to lead the society for positive change,” Khadija said.

    “I will strive to provide girls schools with all missing facilities, to empower girls through education, which is of paramount importance for a vibrant society,” she added.

  • Imran approves tabling of bill to remove rapists’ testicles

    Imran approves tabling of bill to remove rapists’ testicles

    The ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has decided to bring to parliament a bill to punish rapists with castration — the process of removal of testicles of a man or animal, ARY News quoted sources in the government as saying.

    According to reports, Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has approved legislation to castrate rapists once proven guilty, and government bodies will soon be introducing it in the parliament.

    Federal Minister for Water Resources Faisal Vawda has reportedly been delegated with the task of furnishing the draft bill that proposes neutering sex offenders.

    “After the castration bill, the government will also table a bill for the hanging of such criminals,” Vawda was quoted as saying.

    The development comes hours after senior journalist and analyst Dr Moeed Pirzada quoted the premier as saying that criminals such as those involved in the Lahore-Sialkot motorway gang-rape should be hanged at public squares.

    According to the journalist, the premier made the statement while speaking to him during an interview that will air tonight (Monday) on 92 News.

    The interview comes days after a mother of three was raped by two men after her car ran out of fuel on the Lahore-Sialkot motorway past midnight.

    As per the details, the woman, along with her three children, was driving to Gujranwala in her car when she was forced to stop at the Gujjarpura section of the motorway after running out of fuel at around 1:30 am.

    She immediately called a relative and sent him her location. He asked her to also dial the Motorway Police helpline 130 but she was reportedly refused help.

    In the meantime, two robbers approached the car, broke the window and took the woman and her children to nearby bushes where they raped her repeatedly in front of the children. They also snatched her purse that had cash around Rs100,000, one bracelet, car registration and three ATM cards. 

    The Gujjarpura police have registered a case, while motorway police spokesperson said they had not been able to take action as the incident did not occur in the limits of Motorway Police.

    Amid a strong reaction by the public and countrywide protests, at least one of the two culprits has been identified.

    PUBLIC HANGINGS:

    While a number of people are demanding public hanging of the accused such as sought for serial child rapist and killer Imran Ali of Kasur, the premier’s belief contradicts that of federal science and technology minister and his government’s former spokesperson, Fawad Chaudhry.

    A day earlier, Fawad had said that calls for hanging and burning the rapists alive from prominent members of his party and the educated faction were a reflection of the society’s violent thinking.

    The minister’s comments had come after two members of the ruling party, namely Senator Faisal Javed and Minister for Water Resources Faisal Vawda, called for extreme punishments for those behind the gang-rape and the rape and murder of minor Marwah in Karachi.

  • Criminals like motorway rapists should be hanged at public squares: PM Imran

    Criminals like motorway rapists should be hanged at public squares: PM Imran

    Senior journalist and analyst Dr Moeed Pirzada has quoted Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan as saying that criminals such as those involved in the Lahore-Sialkot motorway gang-rape should be hanged at public squares.

    According to the journalist, the premier made the statement while speaking to him during an interview that will air tonight (Monday) on 92 News.

    “PM Imran Khan thinks that criminals like the ‘motorway rapists’ should be hanged at public squares; watch an explosive discussion with PM Imran Khan, in Hard Talk Pakistan, 92 News, 8:03 pm tonight,” Pirzadatweeted.

    The interview comes days after a mother of three was raped by two men after her car ran out of fuel on the Lahore-Sialkot motorway past midnight.

    As per the details, the woman, along with her three children, was driving to Gujranwala in her car when she was forced to stop at the Gujjarpura section of the motorway after running out of fuel at around 1:30 am. She immediately called a relative and sent him her location. He asked her to also dial the Motorway Police helpline 130 but she was reportedly refused help.

    In the meantime, two robbers approached the car, broke the window and took the woman and her children to nearby bushes where they raped her repeatedly in front of the children. They also snatched her purse that had cash around Rs100,000, one bracelet, car registration and three ATM cards. 

    The Gujjarpura police have registered a case, while motorway police spokesperson said they had not been able to take action as the incident did not occur in the limits of Motorway Police.

    Amid a strong reaction by the public and countrywide protests, at least one of the two culprits has been identified.

    PUBLIC HANGINGS:

    While a number of people are demanding public hanging of the accused such as sought for serial child rapist and killer Imran Ali of Kasur, the premier’s belief contradicts that of federal science and technology minister and his government’s former spokesperson, Fawad Chaudhry.

    A day earlier, Fawad had said that calls for hanging and burning the rapists alive from prominent members of his party and the educated faction were a reflection of the society’s violent thinking.

    The minister’s comments had come after two members of the ruling party, namely Senator Faisal Javed and Minister for Water Resources Faisal Vawda, called for extreme punishments for those behind the gang-rape and the rape and murder of minor Marwah in Karachi.

  • Bushra Ansari urges Maulana Tariq Jamil to break silence over motorway gang-rape

    Bushra Bashir, formerly known as Bushra Ansari, has urged Maulana Tariq Jamil to break his silence over the motorway gang rape and hold a ‘dharna‘ or ‘ihtejaj‘ (protest) in this regard.

    In a social media post, the actor wrote: “Thinking what to ask and what to think.”

    “Just want the rapist to be alive, not to be hanged. They should live the rest of their lives, with the pain and helplessness with broken legs broken arms and without the organs which destroy women and their souls,” she continued.

    “I demand and strongly demand to cut and throw their sickness tools and make them impotent and break their legs and hands so that they just become a symbol for all others who are going to do this today tomorrow or day after. Because they will keep doing this until they don’t see these results,” said the actor, adding that they should be made an example out of.

    Bashir then went onto say that she has had enough.

    “Islam ki bohat [baatein] karty hain toh practical banain. Aankh k badly aankh, toh izzat or zilat k badley zilat.”

    Addressing Maulana Tariq Jamil, Bushra said: “Please Maulana Tariq Jameel, koi dharna, koi ihtejaj aap bhi toh karain. Aap ki yahaan bohat zuroorat hai. Boliye please.”

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CFEGUS9hkmu/

    Read more – Bushra Ansari lashes out at fan for criticising her drama ‘Zebaish’

    Later the actor also said that those who are protecting the criminals should also be punished for doing so.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CFFM1cEBkVD/

    Meanwhile, as per the latest reports, the police have identified one of the suspects behind the gruesome incident that shook the nation. The individual, namely Abid Ali is a resident of Haroonabad town of Punjab’s Bahawalnagar district, is a proclaimed offender, and has been nominated in multiple cases earlier as well. While Ali is still at large, the other suspect identified by the Punjab government Waqarul Hassan reportedly surrendered himself on Sunday at Lahore’s Model Town police station. He claimed that his brother-in-law was using the mobile phone which had wrongly implicated him in the crime, adding that he himself was not involved. The police have said that they will conclude the matter after they receive the DNA report of the suspect.