Tag: Fatima Bhutto

  • ‘Snapshots of Hell’; reactions to Israel’s massacre in Rafah

    ‘Snapshots of Hell’; reactions to Israel’s massacre in Rafah

    Amid the ongoing genocide in Gaza, many Pakistani celebrities, including Mahira Khan, Armeena Khan, Anoushey Ashraf, Hania Ahmed, and Fatima Bhutto, are using their social media platforms to highlight Israel’s atrocities in the strip. These public figures drew attention to the dire humanitarian conditions in Rafah, emphasizing the urgency of international intervention and support for the victims.

    Celebrity advocacy for Gaza

    Mahira Khan, known for her influential presence both on and off-screen, has shared emotional images and videos. One of her posts featured a heartbreaking video from Palestinian journalist Motaz Azaiza, showing the bodies of children killed by Israel. She poignantly captioned it, “How can this be the world we live in?”

    Armeena Khan, a dedicated advocate for social causes, highlighted the struggles of Rafah’s residents through her Instagram stories. She expressed gratitude for her privileged position of living in safety while others suffer and shared harrowing content, stating, “Motaz’s stories destroyed my soul tonight. They look like snapshots from hell. Watch, but be mindful; it’s the sort of thing that scars you for life.” Her aim is to maintain global awareness of the crisis.

    Hania Ahmed and Anoushey Ashraf also took to Instagram to spotlight the grim reality in Rafah. They stated, “Israel is burning people alive in Rafah right now. They’re counting on Americans to be too busy during this holiday weekend to pay attention to their latest massacre.”

    Fatima Bhutto shared alarming statistics about the recent attacks, revealing, “Israel bombed Rafah over 60 times in 48 hours after International Court of Justice orders.” She stressed the need for relentless advocacy, captioning her post, “We should not rest till this is stopped. My heart aches.” Bhutto has consistently posted crucial information to keep her followers informed and engaged.

    Bassem Youssef, an Egyptian-American comedian and television host, used his platform to draw attention to the atrocities. He reminded his followers of past misinformation and pointed to the current, documented horrors, urging the world to acknowledge and respond to the genocide in Gaza.

    The collective efforts of Pakistani celebrities on social media remind us that behind our screens lie the harsh realities faced by many. Raising awareness is a powerful way to help those suffering. Israeli airstrikes killed at least 35 Palestinians and wounded dozens on Sunday in an area designated for the displaced in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, according to Palestinian health and emergency service officials. These celebrities aim to keep the world’s attention on these tragic events and encourage action.

  • Fatima Bhutto becomes mother to baby boy

    Fatima Bhutto becomes mother to baby boy

    Fatima Bhutto, author and the granddaughter of former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, announced the birth of her baby boy on Saturday. She has named her son Mir Murtaza Byra, after her father Mir Murtaza Bhutto.

    The writer shared the good news via her account on X and wrote, “Graham and I are so happy to share the news of the birth of our baby boy.”

    The internationally acclaimed writer also shared an elaborate social media post, revealing the name she picked for her son and explaining her reasons behind the choice.

    “We wanted to give our son a name that would bestow him with courage and kindness as he makes his way through the world. I wanted a name that would act as an inspiration to him in his life but also one that would cloak him in love and strength, a name that he could wear with the knowledge that it was given to him from deep within his mother’s heart and soul to protect him throughout his life, to give him in equal measure both grace and fearlessness, a sense of his homeland and of joy,” she wrote.

    Sharing her feelings regarding the naming her child, Fatima stated: “Every time I thought of what name might do that, I always came back to my beloved father’s name.”

    She also asked her fans and followers to pray for her family during this happy time.

  • ‘Show more mercy’: Sanam Saeed calls for Pakistani government to stop deporting Afghan refugees

    ‘Show more mercy’: Sanam Saeed calls for Pakistani government to stop deporting Afghan refugees

    The Pakistani government is set to deport more than 90,000 Afghan refugees by November 1, prompting protests among civil rights activists. Actors, too, are condemning the expulsion. Viral videos show Afghan children in tears as they say goodbye to their friends, expressing sadness over being deported.

    Actress Sanam Saeed has appealed to the government of Pakistan asking that in light of circumstances around the world, Pakistanis must extend their kindness to people seeking shelter in this country.

    “Deporting refugees who seek shelter here will not make our fundamental issues go away. It looks like we are deflecting blame from challenges that the govt or the country overall is facing. At a time like this in the world right now, we need to show more mercy.”

    Veteran actress Nadia Jamil expressed her outrage over a post showing how Afghan children were taken to court and treated as criminals. She shared Osman Khalid Butt’s post and wrote “Statelessness. Their crime is their families Afghan refugee past. Most of them were born here.”

    Columnist Fatima Bhutto shared a video of an Afghan child tearfully saying goodbye to his classmates as he was set to be deported. In the caption she wrote:
    “This is just wrong of Pakistan. It’s inhumane. We must protect the Afghan refugees of this country and allow them a chance to rebuild their lives.”

  • Fatima Bhutto, Kamila Shamsie, 600 authors sign open letter protesting after Frankfurt Book Fair shuts down Palestinian author

    Fatima Bhutto, Kamila Shamsie, 600 authors sign open letter protesting after Frankfurt Book Fair shuts down Palestinian author

    Pakistani writer and columnist Fatima Bhutto and Pakistani-British author Kamila Shamsie were among the 600 writers, academics and translators who signed an open letter in support of Palestinian author Adania Shibli. The ceremony was set to celebrate Shibli’s novel ‘Minor Detail’ by giving her the 2023 LiBeraturpreis, a German literature prize annually awarded to authors from Africa, Asia, Latin American or from Arabia.

    Fatima shared a screenshot of the letter on her Instagram account and urged her followers to read ‘Minor Detail’.

    This outrage arrives after Frankfurt Book Fair postponed the awards ceremony which was due to honour Shibli, providing the explanation “due to the war started by the Hamas, under which millions of people in Israel and Palestine are suffering.”

    In the original statement, LitProm said this was a joint decision made with the author. However, Shibli’s literary agency revealed to The Guardian the decision was not made with her permission, and had the awards ceremony been held she would have taken the moment to reflect on the power of literature during these cruel times.

    The open letter which includes Bhutto, British historian William Darlymple, Shamsie, Irish novelist Colm Toibin, called out the organisers behind the Frankfurt Book Fair writing it holds “a responsibility to be creating spaces for Palestinian writers to share their thoughts, feelings, reflections on literature through these terrible, cruel times, not shutting them down.”

    The event was due to honor Adania’s 2020 novel ‘Minor Detail’ which details the true story about the rape and murder of a Palestinian Bedouin girl by Israeli soldiers. The English translation was nominated for a National Book Award in 2020 and the International Booker Prize in 2021.

    Controversy surrounding the book began this week when the German newspaper, Die Tageszeitung, accused the book for portraying “the State of Israel as a murder machine.”

  • Fatima Bhutto has advice for celebs and their ‘hot takes’ on Palestine

    Fatima Bhutto has advice for celebs and their ‘hot takes’ on Palestine

    As the Palestine seige continues to rage on, several celebrities expresses their opinions, however, most of them received backlash. Rapper Talha Anjum and former wife to Imran Khan, Jemima Goldsmith were slammed by social media for releasing statements that were taking a neutral stance.

    Writer and columnist Fatima Bhutto has taken it upon herself to advice celebrities that it’s okay for them to refuse to comment on the Palestine war, because sometimes it’s better to stay silent than bombard others with unverified facts!

    “Will celebrities and their PR teams please stop issuing statements on Palestine? They are incoherent and dishonest. When you have no courage of conviction it shows . There is slaughter taking place,” Bhutto wrote.

    In the next slide, Bhutto shared the irony of whether these celebrities would give the same ‘all side’s matter’ monologue during gruesome sieges including the Warsaw Ghetto or Rwanda.

    “All I can say is thank god these celebs weren’t asked for their solidarity during Jim Crow (they’d find ways to ‘hold space for both sides’), the Warsaw Ghetto uprising, Rwanda, the Bosnian war or any other massacres and gross injustices of our times.”

    Yesterday Nobel Prize winner Malala Yousafzai was criticised by social media users for her statement on the Palestine-Israel war, with several users questioning why the Pakistani activist was quick to condemn the Ukrainian war, but not this.

  • Sindh Education Ministry denies Fatima Bhutto’s allegations of Sajawal ghost school with photos

    The Ministry of Education & Literacy Department of Sindh has responded to a tweet by Fatima Bhutto that criticised the provincial government for corruption.

    In her tweet, Bhutto had posted a picture of an old and derelict building, referring to it as a ghost school located in Sajawal. She alleged that the ghost school was empty due to the corruption of the Sindh government.

    The Sindh government responded by stating that a new building for the said school has been built 300 meters away from the abandoned building.

    “It is again shared for your record that this is an abandoned structure built around 5 decades back, the new building has been built, some 300 meters near with three rooms and a lavatory block which is functioning smoothly. The pics are given for ready reference,” read the tweet by the Sindh Government. In the attached picture, a school building can be seen while in another photo, two toilets inside the school are visible.

    “In Feb, I posted about the Sajawal govt ghost school that was empty and growing weeds out of its windows thanks to the rampant corruption of the Sindh government -if it can even be called that, since they don’t do even the barest minimum,” alleged Fatima in her tweet.

    “An update: it’s still empty and still a ghost school two months later even though an official came to visit after @BhuttoZulfikar and I wrote about it. Nothing has been done. What teachers are registered as working here? They’re taking government salaries. We should know their names,”she added.

    Fatima Bhutto had further said that It’s still empty and still a ghost school two months later even though an official came to visit after @BhuttoZulfikar and I wrote about it. Nothing has been done. What teachers are registered as working here? They’re taking govt salaries. We should know their names.

  • PM Shehbaz’s wife attended Fatima Bhutto’s wedding

    PM Shehbaz’s wife attended Fatima Bhutto’s wedding

    First Lady of Pakistan and bestselling author Tehmina Durrani attended former Prime Minister (PM) Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto’s granddaughter Fatima Bhutto’s wedding which took place in Karachi a few days ago.

    While sharing a picture of herself with the newlyweds, Durrani wrote: “Fatima Bhutto and Gibran’s marriage is an important message of simplicity for the entire nation.”

    It is pertinent to mention that the history of ties between the Bhutto family and Tehmina goes way back to the 1970s when she was married to former Punjab Governor Ghulam Mustafa Khar, who was one of Bhutto’s closest confidants. However, after Tehmina got divorced from Khar, she remained in touch with Bhutto’s son Murtaza’s family.

    Fatima Bhutto, who is also a famous writer, got married in an intimate ceremony at her family home in Karachi’s 70 Clifton on April 28, with the simple nuptials held in her grandfather’s library.

  • ‘Has someone told her about Kashmir?’: Fatima Bhutto slams Angelina Jolie

    ‘Has someone told her about Kashmir?’: Fatima Bhutto slams Angelina Jolie

    Fatima Bhutto has expressed her wish for actor Angelina Jolie to talk about Kashmir and Palestine after she made an Instagram account to call attention to the plight of people in Afghanistan.

    The Wanted star intends to raise awareness specifically for oppressed women and young girls following the Taliban’s rapid takeover of the country.

    Taking to Twitter, Fatima said: “Judging by some leading feminists and actresses, Afghanistan was a paradise until last week.”

    In another tweet she wrote: “Thanks so much, do Palestine next.”

    “Has anyone told her about Kashmir,” she questioned in her third tweet.

    The Hollywood star’s debut Instagram post included an image of a hand-written letter she said was sent from a teenage girl in Afghanistan, who expressed fear about attending school under the Taliban regime.

    “Right now, the people of Afghanistan are losing their ability to communicate on social media and to express themselves freely,” Jolie wrote in the caption of the post. “So I’ve come on Instagram to share their stories and the voices of those across the globe who are fighting for their basic human rights.”

  • Fatima Bhutto expresses anger over Biden administration

    Fatima Bhutto has expressed her anger over Joe Biden’s administration for approving the potential sale of $735 million in precision-guided weapons to Israel.

    Sharing the news report of the approval on Twitter, Fatima Bhutto wrote: “The Biden administration has blood on its hands already and they are intent on getting them dirtier and dirtier.”

    As per congressional sources US lawmakers were not expected to object to the deal despite violence between Israel and Palestinian militants Reuters has reported.

    Other people are also expressing their anger over the deal :

    https://twitter.com/sunshine_leb/status/1394290306086998026

    Israeli bombardment of Gaza, a Palestinian terrority, is the worst the world has seen in years. Israeli fighter jets continue to pound central Gaza with bombs, as the death toll of the Palestinians killed in the fighting has reached to 212, 61 among them are children.

  • ‘This bashing has to stop,’ says Mehwish Hayat after ‘Groove Mera’ receives criticism

    Mehwish Hayat, Gohar Rasheed and Fatima Bhutto among others have stepped in to defend the official anthem of the sixth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) Groove Mera after it received criticism on social media. This year’s anthem, released on Saturday, features Aima Baig, Naseebo Lal and Young Stunners.

    “I don’t know what the fuss is about?,” wrote Mehwish on Twitter. “I loved the new PSL anthem 2021. It was bold and fresh.”

    “This is what stifles creativity in our country, we always want more of the same and not prepared to accept anything different,” continued the actor. “This bashing has to stop. We need a diversity of voices and ideas.”

    Similarly, Rasheed questioned: “Why do we always have to bash PSL anthem? Has it become a ritual?”

    “Groove Mera has a nice stadium anthem vibe to it,” said the actor, adding: “Remember putting up a show in these times is not easy. So let’s show some respect and support, because the world is watching us.”

    Meesha Shafi also lauded the anthem, referring to Naseebo Lal as “Queen”.

    Other noted personalities including Wasim Akram, Fatima Bhutto and Maria Memon also tweeted in support of the anthem.

    Bhutto said she loved Naseebo Lal in the anthem, while Akram reminded everyone that Groove Mera is just a song.

    Meanwhile, the song has more than 2.5 million hits and is trending at number one on YouTube Pakistan.