Tag: CNN

  • ‘I know how to do this job’: Biden seeks to repair debate damage with fiery speech

    ‘I know how to do this job’: Biden seeks to repair debate damage with fiery speech

    A fired-up Joe Biden came out swinging on Friday as he tried to make up for a disastrous debate performance against Donald Trump, insisting he was the right man to win November’s US presidential election.

    Biden’s appearance at a campaign rally in the battleground state of North Carolina came amid rumblings in his alarmed Democratic Party about replacing the 81-year-old as their nominee — and shortly before the nation’s most influential newspaper urged him to step aside.

    “I don’t walk as easy as I used to. I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to. I don’t debate as well as I used to,” Biden admitted to supporters in unusually confessional remarks.

    “But I know how to tell the truth. I know how to do this job,” he said to huge cheers, vowing “when you get knocked down, you get back up”.

    Biden’s team was in damage-control mode after Thursday’s debate when he often hesitated, tripped over words and lost his train of thought — exacerbating fears about his ability to serve another term.

    He had hoped to allay qualms about his advanced age, and to expose Trump as a habitual liar.

    But the president failed to counter his bombastic rival, who offered up a largely unchallenged reel of false or misleading statements about everything from the economy to immigration.

    On Friday, Biden delivered the lines Democrats wished they had heard in the televised debate.

    “Did you see Trump last night? My guess is he set — and I mean this sincerely — a new record for the most lies told in a single debate,” Biden said.

    “Donald Trump is a genuine threat to this nation. He’s a threat to our freedom. He’s a threat to our democracy. He’s literally a threat for everything America stands for.”

    Trump also returned to the campaign trail on Friday, speaking at a rally in Virginia and launching his familiar attacks on Biden in a rambling speech.

    “It’s not his age, it’s his competence,” Trump said.

    “The question every voter should be asking themselves today is not whether Joe Biden can survive a 90-minute debate performance, but whether America can survive four more years of crooked Joe Biden.”

    A new Democrat?

    Trump addressed the chances of Biden being replaced by another candidate, saying, “I don’t really believe that because he does better in polls than any of the (other) Democrats.”

    So far, no senior Democratic figure has publicly called on Biden to withdraw, with most toeing a party line about sticking with the existing ticket.

    “I will never turn my back on President Biden,” California Governor Gavin Newsom, who has figured prominently on lists of possible replacement candidates, said immediately after the debate.

    Forcing a change in the ticket would be politically fraught, and Biden would have to decide himself to withdraw to make way for another nominee before the party convention next month.

    Biden overwhelmingly won the primary votes, and the party’s 3,900 delegates heading to the convention in Chicago are beholden to him.

    If he exits, the delegates would have to find a replacement.

    “Bad debate nights happen,” Biden’s former boss, Barack Obama, wrote on X. But the election is “still a choice between someone who has fought for ordinary folks his entire life and someone who only cares about himself”.

    A logical — but not automatic — candidate to take Biden’s place would be his vice president, Kamala Harris, who also loyally defended his debate performance.

    The show of Democratic loyalty and Biden’s defiance in North Carolina were not enough for The New York Times, however.

    The daily newspaper slammed Biden’s campaign as a “reckless gamble” in the face of the threat posed by Trump, with its editorial board — which is separate from the newsroom — calling for the president to stand aside.

    The “greatest public service Mr. Biden can now perform is to announce that he will not continue to run for re-election,” it said.

    Many election bettors, too, abandoned Biden, preferring to bet on Trump or other Democratic leaders.

    Before the debate, bettors on the platform Smarkets were giving Biden a 35 per cent chance of winning in November, but on Friday that figure dropped to below 20pc.

  • Legendary singer Eric Clapton plans special concert for children of Gaza

    Legendary singer Eric Clapton plans special concert for children of Gaza

    In a heartfelt initiative to make a difference in the lives of the children of Gaza, legendary musician Eric Clapton is set to deliver a powerful message through the broadcast of his intimate concert, which took place in London in December 2023.

    Scheduled for airing on January 17th, the exclusive performance is not only a musical treat for fans but also a beacon of hope for a cause that has gone global.

    Eric Clapton’s concert, performed in front of a small, intimate audience, showcased the artist’s iconic songs such as Tears In Heaven, Got To Get Better In A Little While, and a poignant rendition of George Harrison’s Give Me Love (Give Me Peace On Earth) featuring Dhani Harrison.

    The carefully curated setlist not only resonates with Clapton’s musical prowess but also reflects the spirit of empathy and compassion that underscores the purpose of this unique broadcast.

    By choosing Gaza as the beneficiary, Clapton not only spotlights the urgent need for support but also invites viewers to contribute to a cause that transcends borders, fostering a collective effort to bring hope and relief to the young lives affected.

  • CNN’s Clarissa Ward first Western reporter to enter Gaza without Israeli supervision

    CNN’s Clarissa Ward first Western reporter to enter Gaza without Israeli supervision

    CNN’s chief international correspondent Clarissa Ward has become the first Western journalist to have gone into the Gaza Strip without the Israel Defense Forces’ supervision, reporting from sight what she deemed “absolute horror.”

    Ward entered the besieged strip on Wednesday with UAE medical volunteers and visited a field hospital setup by the Gulf country.

    “Even in that brief window, you really got a sense of the absolute horrors that have been taking place in Gaza,” she said speaking to CNN.

    “I can honestly say I don’t think we’ve ever seen it quite on this scale.” she expressed while reviewing the destruction she witnessed.

    International coverage of Gaza depends on reports from Palestinian journalists, aid teams, health workers, and social media because of Israel’s entry bans.

    As of yet, at least 63 journalists have been killed since October 7 in Israeli airstrikes.

    Ward was initially accused of staging a video in which she can be seen trying to seek a safe place from attacks during live coverage near the Israel-Gaza border. CNN, however, rebutted these assertions, contending the authenticity of the video.

  • Journalists embedded with IDF slammed

    CNN’s Fareed Zakaria has revealed the process journalists have to comply with for coverage while being embedded with the Israeli military in its ground fight with Hamas in Gaza.

    A CNN journalist went into Gaza on an IDF embed. The journalists embedded with the IDF Gaza operate under the observation of Israeli commanders in the field and are not permitted to move unaccompanied within the Gaza Strip.

    “As a condition to enter Gaza under IDF air support, outlets have to submit all materials and footage to the Israeli military for review prior to publication. CNN has agreed to these terms….”

    People slammed the revelation on X (formerly Twitter).

    Some considered it to be the norm in war journalism due to security concerns of the army.

    However, many journalists stated that complete control is avoidable inspite the element of security.

  • Iran President declines interview by CNN anchor who refuses to wear hijab

    Iran President declines interview by CNN anchor who refuses to wear hijab

    Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi didn’t turn up for a CNN interview when the interviewer, Christiane Amanpour, refused to wear a hijab during the taping.

    Amanpour took to Twitter to explain the incident, stating that the interview was long planned and this would have been President Raisi’s first-ever interview on US soil. However, things didn’t go as planned.

    “An aide came over and said that the President is suggesting that I wear a headscarf because it’s the holy months of Muharram and Safar”, she said while adding that the aide made it clear that the “Interview would not happen if Amanpour did not wear a headscarf”.

    She said that she “politely declined”, stressing that she was in New York, where there is no law or tradition regarding headscarves. “I pointed out that no previous Iranian president has required this when I interviewed them outside Iran,” she pointed out.

    The journalist concluded by saying that because of the situation going on in Iran, it would have been an “important moment” to speak with President Raisi

    “And so we walked away. The interview didn’t happen. As protests continue in Iran and people are being killed, it would have been an important moment to speak with President Raisi.”

    Anti-government protests erupted across Iran last week over the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while in custody, after having been arrested by Iran’s morality police on an accusation of violating the law on head scarves.

    However, Iranian officials have claimed that Amini died after suffering a “heart attack” and falling into a coma, but her family has said she had no pre-existing heart condition.

    Following the incident, thousands of people have taken to the streets. In the videos which are circulating on social media, women can be seen cutting their hair and burning their hijabs as a protest. According to media outlets, at least eight people have been killed in the demonstrations.

    It is pertinent to mention that since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, it has been compulsory for women to wear the hijab in Iran.

  • ‘Naqal ke liye aqal ki zaroorat hoti hai’: Qasim Suri trolled for sharing fake CNN screenshot

    ‘Naqal ke liye aqal ki zaroorat hoti hai’: Qasim Suri trolled for sharing fake CNN screenshot

    Former National Assembly (NA) Deputy Speaker and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Qasim Suri shared a fake screenshot of CNN covering PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s rally in Haripur on Wednesday.

    “PTI Power Show in Haripur, Massive Crowed,” read the caption shared in the fake CNN screenshot shared by Suri.

    Soon after Suri tweeted the fake CNN screenshot with the caption, “Hunnh aaraam aye?” (Are you satisfied now?), several people pointed out that it was fake.

    CNN journalist Sophia Saifi also replied to Suri’s tweet.

    Suri deleted his tweet after being called out for posting a fake screenshot with wrong spellings of ‘crowd’.

    However, Twitterati did not spare him and soon “crowed” started trending on Twitter.

    https://twitter.com/CorollaViruss/status/1562499608521035776?s=20&t=-qzlJ79cspn3jmGZyRjAUw

    This is not the first time that a PTI leader shared a fake screenshot.

    In April, PTI leader Ali Muhammad Khan went overboard as he shared a photo from the United States (US) National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), claiming that it was from the party’s rally.

    The picture shared by the PTI leader actually shows the lights in the Iberian Peninsula, which falls in Spain and Portugal.

  • Ahsan Iqbal’s remarks about cutting down chai consumption make international headlines

    Ahsan Iqbal’s remarks about cutting down chai consumption make international headlines

    Federal Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal’s recent statement about cutting down on tea has not just taken social media by storm but international media has widely covered his remarks.

    “I appeal to the nation to reduce tea intake by one or two cups daily because we borrow money for tea import as well,” said Ahsan Iqbal on Tuesday.

    People in Pakistan urged to drink fewer cups of tea was how BBC covered it.

    CNN’s headline says: Pakistanis told to drink less tea as nation grapples with the economic crisis

    People in Pakistan urged to drink fewer cups of tea, was how Iqbal’s statement was covered by the Saudi Gazette.

    AlJazeera also reported Ahsan Iqbal’s statement: Pakistan minister slammed for ‘drink less tea, save money’ appeal

    Turkish news media outlet TRT also did a story and a video on the same with the title: Pakistan minister stirs controversy with ‘drink less tea, save money’ plea

    Indian media also jumped in and did a news piece with the title: Pak Minister Asks Citizens To Drink Less Tea As Economy Faces Loan Burden: Report

    The Print wrote: ‘First roti, now tea? Pakistan’s angry response to the minister who wants them to drink less

    ABC Australia did a video report on Ahsan’s statement.

    ‘Cutting chai’ | Pakistan Minister urges people to reduce tea consumption, wrote The Hindu.

  • Pakistan wants to ensure rights to the women of Afghanistan: Bilawal Bhutto

    Pakistan wants to ensure rights to the women of Afghanistan: Bilawal Bhutto

     Foreign Minister (FM) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari has said that Pakistan wants to ensure rights to the women of Afghanistan.

     The foreign minister in an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour said, “I see women’s rights or women’s rights to education as rights granted to us in Islam. We’ll be emphasising that the Taliban keep their international commitments and ensure rights to the women of Afghanistan because these are rights guaranteed to women in Islam,” Bilawal said when he was asked if Islamabad had engaged with the Afghan Taliban on how Muslim countries can give rights to women.

    The minister said it wasn’t an issue of the West. He also said that the first word in Quran is ‘Iqra’, which means to read. “Nowhere is it written that only men should read. We are all meant to pursue our path to education.”

    FM Bilawal said that Islamabad is looking to the Taliban regime in Afghanistan to play its role in discouraging the increase in terrorist activity on Pakistan’s side of the border.

    “We continue to not only monitor this situation but work on our side to ensure that we can try to tackle the threat of terrorism and hope that the regime in Afghanistan lives up to their international commitment to not allow their soil to be used for terrorism.”

    “We must prioritise, alleviate the humanitarian crisis, ensure there’s no economic collapse and hold the Taliban regime to the international commitments. It was not Pakistan, but the United States who had direct communication with the Taliban regime before their takeover of Kabul. Pakistan and the international community believe it will not serve any of our interests if we abandon the people of Afghanistan once again,” said Bilawal.

    “We all believe, Pakistan believes and the international community believes, they will not serve any of our interests if we abandon the people of Afghanistan, once again,” said Bilawal.

  • ‘I was forced into politics at a young age, I did not choose it’: Bilawal to CNN

    ‘I was forced into politics at a young age, I did not choose it’: Bilawal to CNN

    Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said on Wednesday that he was forced into politics at a young age. “I didn’t choose this life, it chose me,” said Bilawal in interview with CNN’s Becky Anderson.

    When Anderson posed a question regarding dynastic politics, Bilawal said,” Absolutely, dynasties exist and it would be unfair to criticise the former Secretary of State and presidential candidate Hilary Clinton for being involved in politics because her husband was involved in politics, etc. You can criticise nepotism and dynastic politics as much as you want but whoever the people of Pakistan decide, that should matter by the end of the day.”

    “As far as myself is concerned, my grandfather was hanged by a military dictator, my mother was assassinated by terrorists and I was forced into Pakistani politics at a young age. I did not choose this life, it chose me,” he added.

    Answering a question about being the foreign minister under a PM that is not from his own party, Bilawal said that it would be difficult for the party to stomach, being the second-largest member of the coalition. “However, we do have to work together to address Pakistan’s problems.

    Talking about former Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan’s demand for early elections, Bilawal said: “We absolutely want free and fair elections but in order for them to take place, we must legislate when it comes to the electoral reforms. As everybody knows, the 2018 elections that Khan used to come to power have been widely seen and condemned not only nationally but internationally as rigged and compromised elections that resulted in three years of an autocratic dictatorial rule through the office of Imran Khan. He not only robbed our media of media freedoms but robbed average Pakistanis of their democratic rights that they just recently started to enjoy.”

    “It is a big victory for democracy that we are moving towards electoral reforms and free and fair elections. We are not a selected government like Mr Khan’s but a government that is truly representative of the people of Pakistan and can decide their fate.”

  • ‘I know India much more than rest of my own countrymen’: PM Khan

    ‘I know India much more than rest of my own countrymen’: PM Khan

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan on Sunday said that no one in Pakistan knows India better than him. PM Khan was talking to CNN’s Fareed Zakaria about Pakistan’s relations with India.

    “I understand and know India much more than the rest of my own countrymen or probably all over the world,” said PM Imran Khan, adding that he has many friends in India.

    Racist RSS ideology has taken over India: PM Imran Khan

    “The moment my government came into power, the first thing I did was reach out to India. I told them [PM Narendra Modi] if he took one step forward, I would take two. Our only issue is Kashmir, and we should solve it like good neighbours on the dialogue table,” said PM Khan.

    “Unfortunately Fareed, there is a tragedy unfolding in India. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) ideology has taken over India. We are in this day of information technology. All we have to do is Google who are the founding fathers of RSS,” said the premier.

    “It’s a racist ideology which has taken over India. It’s an ideology that assassinated the great Gandhi. It’s very difficult to come to terms with the ideology,” said the prime minister.

    “We have made no headways. But my worry is Fareed that what is going on in India is much more damaging for India than for Pakistan,” added PM Khan.

    The only option the world has right now is to engage with the Taliban for things to move forward: PM Khan

     The premier further talked about Pakistan’s diplomatic relations with the new Taliban government in Afghanistan and the current state of the war on terror.

    PM Khan said that sooner or later, the Taliban will have to be recognised by the world as it is about the well-being and future of about 40 million Afghans.

    “Forty million people in Afghanistan are in dire straits because of the ongoing situation in the country,” the premier said, adding that the people of the United States (US) should understand that disliking the Taliban government is one thing but thinking about the welfare of the Afghans is another as they are facing “extreme difficulties”.

    “Afghanistan is on the verge of experiencing the worst humanitarian crisis,” PM Imran Khan said. “Considering the circumstances, is there any other alternative to the Taliban in Afghanistan? No, there isn’t.”

    “Therefore, the only alternative we have is to work with the Taliban government [for the sake of the Afghans] because turning the Taliban away would only lead to chaos in the country,” PM Imran Khan reiterated. 

    He went on to say that the US’ War on Terror (WoT) backfired and increased the number of terrorists worldwide, adding that because of the war, there had been extensive casualties in Pakistan as more than 80,000 Pakistani citizens lost their lives during the war.

    “Pakistan had to bear the brunt of the war in Afghanistan by witnessing numerous suicide attacks,” he said. “The US must reconsider its policy on carrying out drone attacks.”

    The situation in Xinjiang is not what the western media portrays: Premier

    When asked about China’s treatment of Uyghur Muslims, PM Khan said that Pakistan’s ambassador to China Moin ul Haq had visited Xinjiang and said that the situation over there is “not what the western media portrays”.

    The premier said that a comparison of Pakistan’s condemnation of India committing genocide of innocent people in occupied Kashmir and the issue of Xinjiang is not fair.

    “Occupied Kashmir is a disputed territory between Pakistan and India and India is ruled by an RSS ideology,” the premier said. “Until the Kashmir issue is resolved, the fear of war between the two nuclear powers will remain intact.”