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  • Covid-19 protocols for Taraweeh in the Two Holy Mosques

    Covid-19 protocols for Taraweeh in the Two Holy Mosques

    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia has approved performing a reduced version of Taraweeh prayers at the Two Holy Mosques in Mecca and Medina, with the continued suspension of entry of worshipers, the General Presidency of the Two Holy Mosques’ Affairs said in a statement on Wednesday.

    President of the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques, Abdul Rahman As-Sudais, also said that special night prayers performed during the holy month of Ramzan will be held without public attendance at the Grand Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque.

    The statements came amid reports that the mosques had re-opened their doors to the general public and 20 or reduced-to-10 Taraweeh prayers will be held at the mosques.

    While it has been confirmed that the prayers will be shortened to five Tasleemat (i.e. 10 Rak’ahs), claims regarding the mosques being opened for pilgrims have been rubbished as authorities say only limited employees and workers will be allowed group prayers at the two holiest sites of Islam during Ramzan.

    The General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques has also prepared a comprehensive plan for the implementation of coronavirus precautionary measures during Ramzan, which other than including the continued suspension of allowing worshipers to enter the Grand Mosque in Mecca and the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina, also includes increasing the sterilization processes and thermal testing of every person entering for funeral rites.

    The Ramzan group iftars which were traditionally held in the Grand Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque were assigned to Mecca and Medina’s provincial authorities to distribute iftar meals while maintaining the necessary health precautions.

    According to the precautionary health measures, there will be no Itikaf [or keeping vigil] inside the Two Holy Mosques.

    The attendance of employees at the Two Holy Mosques will continue to be restricted to the absolutely necessary workers, and operations of maintenance will be conducted depending on priority and in accordance with the precautionary measures.

    Last week, the Saudi government had announced that Taraweeh prayers will be performed at homes during Ramzan as suspension of prayers at mosques will not be lifted due to the coronavirus outbreak. 

    Saudi Arabia had also announced to ease curfews imposed in several cities in order to facilitate people to head out for essential needs.

  • Saba Qamar releases the first episode of her YouTube channel

    Saba Qamar releases the first episode of her YouTube channel

    The first episode of Saba Qamar’s official YouTube channel is out and it is nothing like we expected.

    The episode titled Isolation shows Saba as she embraces her loneliness in this isolation. She narrates her feelings as she walks around the house and raises some thought-provoking questions.

    “You are a friend, were you helpful in my time of need?” asked the actor. “You are beautiful, but are you beautiful from inside?”

    In the description, Saba says: “We’ve all been in lockdown, and isolation has not been easy for anyone. I decided to voice my frustration and also express my gratitude for it. Here’s an experimental video that I did with a couple of my friends. Hope you like, share and subscribe to encourage me to make further videos.”

    The episode has been produced and written by Saba Qamar while Shiraz Malik has directed it.

    Watch it here:

  • ‘Pakistan, the friend in need’: Millions of COVID-19 drugs to be exported to US, UK, KSA, others

    ‘Pakistan, the friend in need’: Millions of COVID-19 drugs to be exported to US, UK, KSA, others

    Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan has announced the federal cabinet’s decision to send chloroquine tablets — an anti-malarial medicine that some studies found has a strong antiviral effect on COVID-19 — to “friendly nations” to help them in their time of need.

    Addressing a press conference after the weekly cabinet meeting, she said that one million chloroquine tablets will be sent to Saudi Arabia and the United States each, 500,000 to Turkey and Italy each, five million to the United Kingdom, 700,000 to Kazakhstan and 300,000 to Qatar.

    Firdous revealed that leaders of some countries had called Prime Minister Imran Khan and expressed a desire to import the tablets from Pakistan following some encouraging results in treating the coronavirus.

    “Pakistan has always been asking these countries for something or the other. So, for the sake of humanity and to improve Pakistan’s credibility and face value, this is a good chance to help them in this time of need,” she said.

    She also said that Pakistan had some 40 million tablets in stock and possessed the raw material to make even more.

  • Man booked for selling Bonelli’s eagle online

    Man booked for selling Bonelli’s eagle online

    A man was arrested for selling a Bonelli’s Eagle on Facebook in Abbottabad on Tuesday.

    The man, identified as Fawad Sadeeq Sheikh, had posted pictures of the precious bird on his Facebook account after which the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Forest Department arrested him by conducitng a raid.

    As per reports, the eagle has been detained by the department while a fine of Rs40,000 was imposed on the man.

    According to the department, an officer disguised himself as a customer and contacted Sheikh who was selling the bird for Rs25,000. The officer called him for a meeting and arrested him.

    A case has been registered under the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Wildlife and Biodiversity (Protection, Preservation, Conservation and Management) Act, 2015.

  • Lahore Safari Park auctions 14 lions

    The Lahore Safari Park has sold fourteen lions because lack of funds and resources has made it impossible for the park’s management to arrange food for the animals and birds housed there. The park was already facing financial issues before the lockdown was implemented but after that, their problems seem to have increased.

    According to a report in The Express Tribune, the lions were sold because there were a large number of them in the park and taking care of their diet and other needs is not an easy task. The management said that caring for these animals costs millions of rupees and 90 percent of their budget. Officials said a lion is given eight to nine kilogrammes of meat and few litres of milk every day. The daily cost of the lions’ food is about Rs30,000, which amounts to about Rs900,000 per month and Rs10.8 million annually.

    There are 37 African breed lions and lionesses and five tigers, including a white tiger, two jaguars and two pumas in the Safari Park.

    It was further reported that seven African lions and seven African lionesses were sold for Rs2.1 million through an auction. Each lion was sold for approximately Rs 150,000 and they were only handed over to the buyers after all the legal obligations had been fulfilled. They have been sold to breeders who have registered with the wildlife department and have facilities for keeping lions.

    Out of the 14 lions sold, 12 had minor issues related to breeding. According to Punjab Wildlife Director Mohammad Naeem Bhatti, 12 of the lions sold were suffering from partial disability.

    “Someone had problems with paws and others with bones,” he said, adding that the administration was forced to sell them due to disabilities and lack of resources.

  • PM Imran to be tested for COVID-19

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan will undergo the test for the new coronavirus after Edhi Foundation Chairperson Faisal Edhi, who had met the premier last week, tested positive for COVID-19 earlier in the day.

    According to the PM’s focal person on coronavirus, Dr Faisal Sultan, the premier has been advised to get himself tested as a precautionary measure after Edhi tested positive days after meeting him to donate Rs10 million to the government’s virus relief fund.

    Edhi is in Islamabad at the moment and had insisted on being tested since he had been on the ground working with patients. His family will also undergo a test for the virus.

    Edhi had traveled to Lahore and then to Islamabad, where he had met the premier and donated a Rs10 million check on behalf of his organisation, Geo reported.

    According to his son Saad Edhi, everyone who had come in contact with him will be tested for the virus, while the social worker remains in isolation and constant contact with his doctor.

    Edhi says he had started experiencing severe headache and fever on April 16.

    Meanwhile, the host and crew of a TV show, where Edhi had made an appearance last week, has already taken the tests and advised to stay at home till results arrive.

    ‘PAKISTAN AN INDEPENDENT NATION, CAN’T STOP WORSHIPPERS’:

    Separately, the premier said the government “will take action” if safety precautions agreed upon by ulema were not followed. 

    He said that Pakistan was an “independent nation” and it could not force worshippers to not pray in mosques. 

    “The war for coronavirus is being fought by the entire country. It will not differentiate between the rich and the poor. It can happen to anyone,” he said, adding that ulema had signed a 20-point agreement with President Arif Alvi, under which mosques will be reopened with special measures in place. He, however, urged people to pray at home. 

    “I would urge my Pakistanis to stay at home and pray,” he said. “Other Muslim countries have urged their citizens to do the same. But if you have to go to mosques, keep this in mind. You will have to obey these conditions,” he added.

    The premier said if people did not follow the safety precautions and cases surged in mosques during Ramzan, the government will have no other option but to take back its decision. “The government will shut mosques if safety precautions are not followed and this was mentioned in the agreement.”

  • Oil prices have dipped by 305% but what does it mean for Pakistan?

    Oil prices have dipped by 305% but what does it mean for Pakistan?

    Oil prices have turned negative for the first time in history, dipping by 305 per cent as storage space is filling up, discouraging buyers as weak economic data from Germany and Japan cast doubt on when fuel consumption will recover.

    The crash in oil prices on Monday was as disrupting as the pandemic, with the United States (US) oil prices plummeting to a range between $1-2 per barrel. The Brent oil prices also hovered around $22-25 per barrel, the lowest in 22 years. The glut created by the price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia was compounded by the extremely low oil demand in most developed economies.

    Traders have fled from the expiring contract in a frenzy as barely any buyers are willing to take delivery of oil barrels because there is no place to put the crude, creating a global supply glut as billions of people stay home to slow the spread of COVID-19.

    But what does it mean for countries like Pakistan?

    Crash in oil prices is an opportunity for Pakistan because even after passing 50 per cent of the decline on to consumers, the government can make up for revenue fall. Qatari gas will be cheaper than domestic gas.

    Pakistan was in the midst of its worst economic crisis before the coronavirus attack and was finding it hard to finance its huge oil bill as the crude oil was hovering in the range of $55-60 per barrel.

    After the pandemic, the demand for crude started declining sharply, and it ranged for a long time between $30-40 per barrel in March. Its price started declining sharply in the last 10 days with US oil showing more volatility than Brent Oil that is mainly consumed in Asia. 

    With the US oil prices declining to $2, Brent price logically should not be more than $10 which means a price of $12 per barrel. At the moment, Brent Oil is still priced at $22 per barrel but if the buyers started buying from the US this price would not hold.

    This low oil price has vindicated former Prime Minister (PM) Shahid Khaqan Abbasi’s inking of an agreement with Qatar for buying Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) at 13 per cent of the Brent Oil price. At current Brent Oil rates, Pakistan will be buying LNG from Qatar at $2.6-2.8 per mmbt.

    At this rate, it would be feasible for the state to procure gas from Qatar at a price even lower than our local gas, reports say.

    Qatar is bound under agreement to provide this gas as Pakistan is bound to lift a certain quantity of cargo from Qatar whether we needed it in the domestic market or not.

    If the opportunity is made use of, it could lower gas tariff for all industries much below the price that the government is charging from exporting industries after paying huge subsidy and the cost of electricity from gas-run power plants would also decline appreciably.

    All this can result in the government making up for massive revenue losses.

  • Mahira Khan’s gesture for her son is the sweetest thing you’ll see today

    Mahira Khan’s Twitter profile was recently taken over by her son, Azlan, who is a big fan of Pokémon. He has created a Pokémon animation with his friend and wanted to contact Junichi Masuda who is the game director and composer of Pokémon games to include it in his game.

    Mahira let him use her Twitter so that he could contact the game director himself.

    While many people supported the thread and tagged Junichi Masuda, one Twitter user passed a snide remark.

    However Mahira, who is usually cool and composed, was having none of it and hit back at the Twitter user for their comments.

  • Fahad Mustafa announces the celebrity captains for ‘Jeeto Pakistan League’

    Jeeto Pakistan host, Fahad Mustafa has unveiled the five celebrity captains for the Jeeto Pakistan League, which will take place in the month of Ramzan.

    According to his announcement, Humayun Saaed will be the captain for Karachi Lions, Sarfaraz Ahmed for Quetta Knights, Adnan Siddiqui for Lahore Falcons, Shaista Lodhi for Peshawar Stallions and Sana Javed for Islamabad Dragons.

    The year’s edition of the popular gaming show has been reinvented keeping in mind the coronavirus outbreak and calls for social distancing. PEMRA had earlier also banned TV shows from having any live audiences in their studios and has prohibited displaying cars, bikes and other appliances on the show since many people are suffering from financial issues due to the lockdown.

    Read more – PEMRA bans studio audiences for Ramazan transmissions

    According to ARY, the five teams will compete against each other live every day, just like in a cricket match. New people will play games on the show as part of different teams while maintaining social distancing and whoever makes more runs in a day will score more points.

    In the end, there will be a final play-off. Live callers will be able to call in and support their particular cities. The tagline of the show is also: ‘Ab khelega poora Pakistan!’

    The coronavirus pandemic has forced major changes in all industries across the world. Ramzan shows, in particular, have been majorly impacted by the pandemic.

  • PM’s first official visit to Presidency for ‘most important’ meeting with Dr Alvi, ISI chief

    PM’s first official visit to Presidency for ‘most important’ meeting with Dr Alvi, ISI chief

    In what is being called the “most important” meeting, Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has called on President Dr Arif Alvi in his maiden official trip to the Presidency, and the two were later joined by Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Director General (DG) Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed.

    While an official press release says that the three discussed various domestic and international issues, including the COVID-19 pandemic, precautionary arrangements for the forthcoming holy month of Ramzan and Indian aggression against people of held Kashmir, a report has quoted political quarters as terming it a meeting of the big three.

    The report that emphasised on the most important aspect of the gathering, did not drop any hint regarding it.

    The president appreciated the government steps to curb the spread of coronavirus in the country and the PM’s measures for seeking relief in the debt to be paid by the developing countries, the official version maintained.

    Later, the ISI chief also joined the meeting that condemned unprovoked Indian firing along the Line of Control (LoC). They also denounced the usurping of rights of Kashmiris in the garb of coronavirus in Indian-occupied Kashmir (IoK).

    The premier reportedly thanked the president and lauded his efforts to evolve a consensus among religious quarters regarding prayers and Taraweeh at mosques during Ramzan.