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  • Islamabad robbers used ‘nullahs’ to carry out their thefts

    Islamabad robbers used ‘nullahs’ to carry out their thefts

    Who would have thought that Islamabad’s nullahs would be used to carry out thefts and provide shelter to robbers?

    Turns out that a gang of robbers, who have been creating panic in the capital, were using the drains, or nullahs, to carry out their activities.

    According to reports, the police’s Criminal Investigation Agency (CIA) made the discovery after they found a hideout near Jinnah Avenue in F-7 and uncovered a makeshift room in one of the drains, with all the requirements for a bedroom and living room.

    An investigation into the matter was carried out after more than a dozen robberies took place in F-10, F-11, G-10 and G-11. The investigation team led by Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Hakim Khan studied the areas where the robberies took place and found that all the houses that were robbed were located near drains.

    Surveillance of the drains revealed that the suspects were using them for their movement.

    Though most of the suspects escaped the police raid, two people were later arrested and the stolen goods confiscated. The police said that there were eight to 10 tributaries leading off from the drain they raided, which made it difficult to follow the suspects further.

    Those arrested during interrogation revealed that they were part of a five-member group and the remaining three members had fled to Afghanistan following the raid. They shared that they stayed in a city for a few weeks, robbed several houses, and then travelled to Afghanistan with the stolen items with the help of local facilitators who were given 10 to 15 per cent of the stolen items.

    The apprehended further said that houses near nullahs were chosen for robberies to be carried out at sunset and sunrise. They revealed that they entered the houses by cutting through grills and then held residents hostage before carrying out their robberies.

  • Nov 22: News you need to know before heading to work

    Nov 22: News you need to know before heading to work

    PTI’s conscience clean in foreign-funding case: PM Imran

    • Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has said that the opposition was misleading the people in the foreign-funding case.
    • Speaking to his party’s spokespeople PM said, the PTI submitted all relevant details to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), noting that the leaders of two of the country’s biggest political parties made money through money-laundering.
    • Reacting to opposition’s call for APC he said they were doing so and protesting to mask their embarrassment. However, the people have rejected their protest.

    Nawaz to be admitted in hospital upon cardiologist’s advice

    • Dr Adnan Khan, has said that Professor Simon Redwood of the London Bridge Hospital had recommended hospital admission for the former prime minister to undergo angiogram followed by further intervention.
    • “Once he has gone through all haematological investigations, we will then have a clear picture of what is required next and what the exact treatment should be”, Dr Adnan added.

    Treason case: Musharraf, Govt file petition against special court’s verdict on Nov 28

    • The federal interior ministry and former president Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf both submitted pleas in the Islamabad High Court on Monday, requesting it to stop the special court from announcing its reserved verdict in the high treason case against the former army chief.
    • The special court, constituted to try the former military ruler for high treason, was set to announce its verdict on November 28. The IHC will hear the case on Tuesday.
    • The ministry in its plea has stated that the accusers to be tried with Pervez Musharraf were not included in the trial. The prosecution team was denotified on Oct 23, but it proceeded with the case on Oct 24 without having an authority in the matter.

  • Did Greta Thunberg time travel?

    A picture that was taken 121 years ago has a Greta Thunberg lookalike. It sparked a new conspiracy theory about the environmentalist being a time traveller.

    Twitterati started claiming that one of the people in the photo from 1898 that shows three children from the Yukon Territory in Canada has a face that’s so identical to Thunberg’s that it couldn’t possibly be anybody else.

    The girl said to be Thunberg also has the same braided hairstyle that the Swedish teen is known for. And although the timeline certainly doesn’t add up, many are saying that it’s proof that Thunberg is from a different time.

    Here are some of the snippets of this conspiracy debate:

  • VIDEO: Posters, pamphlets in London seek ‘Sadqa and Zakat’ for Nawaz’s treatment

    VIDEO: Posters, pamphlets in London seek ‘Sadqa and Zakat’ for Nawaz’s treatment

    Hundreds of charity posters and pamphlets with a picture of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif have emerged in different parts of London, requesting donations for the ailing former prime minister’s (PM) treatment, a private media outlet has reported.

    “Please donate your Sadqa and Zakat to save your qaumi (national) hero,” read the banners, a majority of which have emerged in East London.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    The former premier is currently in London for medical treatment. On Wednesday, PML-N chief Shehbaz Sharif, while talking to media, had said that his brother’s medical treatment would begin after a complete medical examination.

    “Nawaz has undergone some medical tests today [Wednesday] with others more to follow,” he had said while briefing media over the ongoing treatment of the former premier outside Guy’s Hospital. Shehbaz had also prayed for the health of the three-time prime minister of the country.

    Ex-PM Nawaz reached London on Tuesday night for medical treatment in a “high-end air ambulance” equipped with an intensive care unit and an operation theatre.

    Nawaz was accompanied by PML-N President Shehbaz and personal physician Dr Adnan Khan. A team of doctors and paramedics were also on board to cope with any emergency situation.

    As soon as the former premier exited through the VVIP gate at Heathrow in London, he was welcomed by a convoy of party loyalists who took him home. In a statement, PML-N spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb said that Nawaz had safely landed in London and thankfully had not faced any medical complications during the flight.

    She also asked the nation to pray for Nawaz’s health.

    Ailing former premier was granted bail on humanitarian grounds while he underwent treatment at Lahore’s Services Hospital following a precarious drop in his platelet count last month. He was shifted to the hospital from Kot Lakhpat jail and later diagnosed with acute immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP), an immune disorder that leads to an abrupt and sharp drop in blood platelet.

    Last week, the Lahore High Ccourt (LHC) had permitted Nawaz to seek medical treatment abroad without any conditions for a time period of four weeks. In its decision, the LHC said that in case Nawaz’s health doesn’t improve then the time-period can be extended, adding that the government officials will be able to contact Nawaz through the Pakistani Embassy.

  • PIA workers arrested for stealing money from passenger’s bag

    Two PIA workers have been arrested in Karachi for stealing a passenger’s money.

     As per reports, the airport police have recovered the Rs400,000 that the staffers stole from passenger’s bags. A case had been filed at the airport police station by a man named Muddasir Ahmed. He said his wife’s money had been stolen from her bag on May 26.

    The two workers involved were arrested by personnel of PIA’s head office security. The PIA spokesperson said the two men are in police custody and a case has been registered against them.

  • Our next Sunday guest will work for the protection of children

    Our next Sunday guest will work for the protection of children

    The Current’s next Sunday guest Ahsan Khan has pledged to work towards the protection of children. He has been appointed ambassador for Child Protection and Welfare Bureau by the Government of Punjab.

    The Alif actor has been actively working for children rights and welfare for a while now.

    Ahsan said that he was humbled by the appointment.

    Members of the film fraternity took to social media to congratulate the star on his appointment.

    Ahsan is also the brand ambassador for Human Development Foundation and also serves as the Goodwill Ambassador for The Citizen Foundation.

    Tune into our exclusive interview with Ahsan Khan, Sunday 8 pm.

  • Nida Yasir is also launching her own clothing collection

    Looks like launching your own clothing brand is the new fad in town.

    Following the Hocane sisters, Urwa and Mawra, and the Khan twins, Aiman and Minal, popular morning show host Nida Yasir is launching her own clothing line.

    Nida teased her fans with a short video of her latest venture Nida Yasir Collection. Though the collection can be anything, the threads at the beginning of the video hint towards a clothing collection.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/B5FXfvihIKl/

    What do you think it is?

  • Organisers modify speakers for upcoming panel on feminism after backlash

    Organisers modify speakers for upcoming panel on feminism after backlash

    Following the immense backlash on social media, The Arts Council of Pakistan has modified their upcoming panel on feminism and have added three women to it.

    According to an updated shared by Chairperson Electronic Media and Aesthetic Committee Uzma Alkarim, the panel of speakers now includes two women: senior journalist Quatrina Hosain and senior politician Mehtab Akbar Rashidi. Meanwhile the title of the talk has also been changed to Understanding Feminism. Meanwhile, Uzma, another female, will act as moderator. Filmmaker Nabeel Qureshi (Actor-in-Law, Load Wedding) has been removed from the speaker’s list.

    On Monday, a poster for a panel discussion hosted by The Arts Council of Pakistan started circulating on social media. The panel discussion titled Feminism: The Other Perspective featured five speakers and interestingly they were all men. The men on the panel included Duraid Qureshi, Jibran Nasir, Mohsin Sayeed, Muaaz Ahsan and Nabeel Qureshi.

    Needless to say the panel given the topic of conversation received immense backlash from the public who took to express their frustration on Twitter.

    Jibran Nasir was first to respond to the controversy.

    Uzma had also issued a statement and explanation on the matter.

  • Sanam Marvi accused of sending death threats to her neighbour

    A complaint has reportedly been filed against folk singer Sanam Marvi for harassing and threatening her neighbour over a property clash.

    Sanam’s neighbour Riffat Jamal has registered a case at Lahore’s police station accusing the singer of threatening her to forcefully occupy her house.

    According to Riffat, Marvi had fought with her many times before sending her death threats.

    The singer has not yet responded to the allegations.

    Read More: Two ‘Coke Studio 12’ songs taken down because of copyright issues

    On Wednesday, Marvi’s first song for Coke Studio Season 12 Hairaan Hua was also removed from YouTube over a copyright claim by Abida Parveen.

  • Worst air quality: Lahore tops global list as Pakistan beats India, again

    Lahore on Thursday once again topped the global list of cities with poor air quality as monitors showed an average “hazardous” Air Quality Index (AQI) of 335.

    According to Newsweek Pakistan, residents of the capital of the country’s most populous province woke up again to the sight of a haze covering the city, with residents complaining of sore throats, itchy eyes and other ailments linked to inhaling toxic material through the smog that has increasingly become a regular fixture.

    While the average AQI for the entire city stood at 335 around noon, parts of the city with individual air quality monitors showed the figure rising as high as 763, which posits a PM2.5 of nearly 900 ug/m3 — the equivalent of smoking nearly 40 cigarettes.

    While smog is not a new phenomenon in Pakistan, it has taken on greater urgency this year amid ever worsening air quality that is particularly unhealthy for children, the elderly and the infirm. In 2007, the Lahore High Court (LHC) ordered authorities to prepare a smog response action plan to overcome the health crisis. The Punjab Environment Protection Council, however, adopted a plan that utilised a modified AQI classification system, which claims a PM2.5 rating of 60 is “satisfactory” even though US AQI adopted by much of the world declares it “unhealthy”.

    PM2.5 refers to atmospheric particulate matter that has a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometers, so small that they can only be detected with an electron microscope. These fine particles, which can come from various sources including power plants, motor vehicle emissions, and agricultural burning, last longer in the air than heavier particles. This increases chances of them being inhaled by humans and animals, where they can bypass the nose and throat and penetrate deep into the lungs. The air pollution worsens during winter, emerging as smog, due to temperature inversion, which produces a layer of warm air that traps air pollutants.

    Meanwhile, schools on Friday will once again remain closed across the city due to smog. Both public and private schools in Gujranwala and Faisalabad will also remain shut.

    The Punjab School Education Department has issued a notification in this regard as well.