Tag: New York

  • Exclusive: Shahzeb Khanzada’s wife Rushna Khan celebrates his birthday in NY

    Exclusive: Shahzeb Khanzada’s wife Rushna Khan celebrates his birthday in NY

    Shahzeb Khanzada’s wife Rushna Khan celebrated her husband’s birthday in New York.

    The couple are enjoying their vacations in the US. Rushna took to her Instagram stories and shared some glimpses of celebrations in the US.

    In the video, Shahzeb can be seen trying the Krispy Kreme doughnut for the first time, while his wife was wishing him.

    She also shared some other posts in which they tried different cakes.

    She also shared a post in which anchorperson Mohammad Junaid wished his colleague from Geo News.

  • HRW releases report on 9/11 calling US to end global war on terror

    Human Rights Watch (HRW) has released a report on September 11, 2001, attacks in the United States titled, ‘9/11 Unleashed a Global Storm of Human Rights Abuses’.

    The report says, “The brutal rulers [US leaders] figured out that the best way to get away with mass abuse was to label it a fight against terrorism.”

    Furthermore it states, “The war paradigm was also used to justify killing suspects wherever they were found, often on the flimsiest of evidence. However, international human rights law requires law enforcement officials to arrest suspects whenever possible and to use lethal force only as a last resort to stop an imminent threat to life.”

    “They [US] not only mistreated the people of Afghanistan but its citizens also had to face discrimination. Globally, Muslims are the primary victims of terrorism. The US has always treated ‘presumed terrorists’ as combatants,” the report reads.

    HRW also has discussed the ill-treatment of one million Uyghurs in Xinjiang, China and the bombings on Gaza by Israel.

    “It is a time to condemn the evil of terrorism. It is also the time to close Guantanamo, by releasing all of the 39 aging detainees still there, who have not been charged and giving the rest a fair trial in a proper court,” the report concluded.

    People from all over the world remembered the horrifying episode today on social media, while some of them share their stories.

    Since 2001, the notorious military prison at Guantanamo has become a symbol of US human rights abuses. Many detainees — mostly Muslim men — were tortured or held for years and even decades without charges, trials, or basic legal rights.

    The 9/11 attacks are the deadliest terrorist attacks on American soil in US history. It was a series of airline hijackings and suicide attacks committed by 19 militants associated with al-Qaeda.

  • Fact Check: Is this picture from Bilawal’s recent trip to the US?

    Fact Check: Is this picture from Bilawal’s recent trip to the US?

    Claim: During a recent trip to the US, Bilawal Bhutto followed the queue in New York city airport but not in Pakistan

    Fact: These pictures were from his 2018 election campaign

    Recently a picture the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, went viral on social media on Wednesday. Bilawal was seen wearing a blue shalwar kameez, standing in a queue while using his cell phone.

    Many people criticised him, stating that this picture was from his recent trip to New York, asking that why the chairman was standing in line in the US but wasn’t standing in line in Pakistan.

    The Current has confirmed from its sources that the photographs circulating were from the election campaign in 2018 and that the PPP chairperson was taking a flight from Lahore and so it is false to say that these pictures show Bilawal Bhutto at the New York city airport.

    VERDICT: [OUT OF CONTEXT]

  • VIDEO: Flight returns after bat seen flying in business class cabin

    VIDEO: Flight returns after bat seen flying in business class cabin

    An Air India flight from New Delhi to New York City had to return back to New Delhi shortly after takeoff as a bat started flying around the cabin in business class of the plane.

    Once the plane was back at the Delhi Indira Gandhi International Airport, the staff contacted the wildlife department.

     “On arrival, it was learnt that crew members saw a bat inside the cabin,” the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) officials told news agency ANI.

     “Wildlife staff were called to catch and take away the bat. The aircraft landed safely at around 3:55 am and later it was declared Aircraft on Grounded (AoG).”

    Read More: Man ‘books entire flight’ to avoid COVID-19

    The plane reportedly underwent a complete fumigation, after which the bat’s body was found from the business class cabin.

    “The probable reason/cause may be loading vehicles like those for catering,” an Air India official told Business Today. “All the time rats/bats come from their vehicle.”

  • VIDEO: Meera gets vaccinated in New York

    Meera has received her dose of COVID-19 vaccine in New York.

    Sharing a video of herself getting the vaccine shot, Meera wrote: “Alhamdulillah, I was able to get vaccinated for COVID-19 a few days ago, while in New York.”

    The actor shared that she experienced “mild symptoms including fever, headache, fatigue and body aches” after the vaccine but would still “recommend everyone to get vaccinated to keep you and your loved ones safe”.

    Urging her followers to get vaccinated, Meera said: “Please don’t be scared of the vaccine, it’s only to help everyone survive from this pandemic.”

    In one of the videos, Meera said that she received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and urged her followers to take the vaccine “to keep fighting against COVID-19.”

    Earlier this week, Meera was seen in a video with a man believed to be her father-in-law Raja Khalid Parvez. Parvez was driving the car while Meera thanked him for taking her to get a vaccine shot. Both of them were not wearing face masks.

    Earlier, reports were rife that Meera has been admitted to a mental facility in the United States. At the time, Meera’s manager had confirmed to The Current that the actor had only gone to get vaccinated and that reports of her being admitted to a facility were completely baseless.

  • ‘Timeless India in the heart of NYC’: Priyanka Chopra to open her own restaurant

    Priyanka Chopra is opening her own Indian restaurant in New York, with the name of ‘Sona’.

    Priyanka Chopra took to her Instagram account and shared the pictures from an intimate prayer ceremony that took place in 2019, to make the announcement.

    “Im thrilled to present to you SONA, a new restaurant in NYC that I poured my love for Indian food into. SONA is the very embodiment of timeless India and the flavours I grew up wit,” wrote Priyanka while making the announcement.

    “The kitchen is helmed by the incredible Chef Hari Nayak , a masterful talent, who has created the most delicious and innovative menu, taking you on a food journey through my amazing country.”

    Priyanka also added: “SONA is opening later this month, and I can’t wait to see you there.”

    She thanked her team members saying, “This endeavour would not have been possible without the leadership of my friends Maneesh Goyal and David Rabin. Thank you to our designer Melissa Bowers and the rest of the team for realizing this vision so clearly.”

    She concluded: “The second and third photos were taken in September 2019 when we performed a small intimate Puja (prayer ceremony) to bless the space that would soon become Sona Godspeed.”

    “Timeless India in the heart of NYC” the description of the restaurant say. As per the information available the restaurant will open its doors in late march.

  • Pakistani artist Salman Toor listed among TIME magazine’s list of 100 emerging leaders

    Pakistani Artist Salman Toor has been listed among “2021 TIME100 NEXT”, a list revealed by Time Magazine that includes 100 emerging leaders who are shaping the future.

    Salman’s profile in the TIME feature says, “In his painting The Star, Salman Toor uses classical techniques—deploying brushstrokes and lighting reminiscent of the 1800s—to render a thoroughly modern scene: a young South Asian man sits backstage in front of a mirror, wearing a furry pink jacket, as a makeup artist and a hairstylist fuss over him. That these contrasts might seem unexpected is exactly the point.

    “Toor, who was born in Lahore, Pakistan, and lives in New York City, has made his career subverting the styles of old paintings by centring openly queer men of South Asian descent in an attempt to, as he says in the audio guide for The Star, ‘play with the idea’ of societal norms. Now more people than ever are paying attention: the artist recently secured his first solo show at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City, which will be on display through April 2021.”

    Priincipal subjects of Toor’s paintings are often South Asian Queer Man.

    Dan Macsai, the editorial director of the TIME100, said: “Everyone on this list is poised to make history. And in fact, many already have.”

    TIME editor-in-chief and CEO Edward Felsenthal writes in his letter to readers: “Amid a global pandemic, deepening inequality, systemic injustice and existential questions about truth, democracy and the planet itself, the individuals on this year’s list provide ‘clear-eyed hope’.”

    TIME100 Next list consists of Artists, Phenoms, Leaders, Advocates, and Innovators.

  • Trump interested in buying PIA-owned luxurious New York hotel govt wanted to sell

    Trump interested in buying PIA-owned luxurious New York hotel govt wanted to sell

    United States (US) President Donald Trump had expressed interest in acquiring the Pakistan International Airlines’ (PIA) Roosevelt Hotel in New York, it was revealed on Wednesday during a meeting of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Privatisation.

    The 19-storey hotel with 1,025 rooms plus allied facilities in New York City, with some of the suites being among the most luxurious available in Manhattan, is considered a valuable property that also carries cultural significance for Pakistan.

    tandingg on the corner of 45th Street and Madison Avenue, in the heart of Midtown Manhattan, the hotel bears a quintessentially American name in honour of former United States (US) President Theodore Roosevelt, who had previously been the governor of New York State.

    According to The News, the managing director of PIA Investments Limited informed the lawmakers that Trump had expressed interest in acquiring the iconic hotel in the past and was “still keen on purchasing it”.

    “The government has tried 10 times to sell the hotel,” he added.

    Briefing the members, Privatisation Minister Muhammad Mian Soomro said the government was not selling the property but rather planning to lease it out or work in a joint venture with the private sector.

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Khawaja Asif said that the parliament should be taken into confidence over the privatisation matter.

    “We are not against privatisation but we must wait for a better time to get a good price,” Asif added.

    “Don’t make a decision now and instead wait. Right now, neither PIA would be sold nor the hotel.”

    Earlier this month, opposition parties had slammed the ruling party when it was reported that the government is considering selling the Roosevelt Hotel.

    The plan was shelved due to stiff opposition and the coronavirus pandemic.

    In a meeting on July 2, the Cabinet Committee on Privatisation (CCoP) decided that the Roosevelt Hotel would be run under a joint venture with a third party.

    The said hotel was acquired by PIA Investment Limited on lease during the year 1979 with an option to purchase the property. PIA had purchased the hotel against $36.5 million against a demand of $59.5 million by contesting a lawsuit against the owner in 1999. The Interstate Hotel and Resort is managing the Roosevelt Hotel since 1997.

  • PTI govt mulls selling PIA-owned luxurious New York hotel worth ‘billions of dollars’

    PTI govt mulls selling PIA-owned luxurious New York hotel worth ‘billions of dollars’

    The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government is planning to privatise the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA)-owned luxurious Roosevelt Hotel in Manhattan, drawing the ire of opposition members and the general public for “attempting to sell an asset of the national carrier worth billions of dollars”.

    The 19-storey hotel with 1,025 rooms plus allied facilities in New York City, with some of the suites being among the most luxurious available in Manhattan, is considered a valuable property that also carries cultural significance for Pakistan.

    Standing on the corner of 45th Street and Madison Avenue, in the heart of Midtown Manhattan, the hotel bears a quintessentially American name in honour of former United States (US) President Theodore Roosevelt, who had previously been the governor of New York State.

    It has remained in news for the last several years for its proposed auction. However, the management of PIA always rejected such claims.

    The said hotel was acquired by PIA Investment Limited on lease during the year 1979 with an option to purchase the property. PIA had purchased the hotel against $36.5 million against a demand of $59.5m by contesting a lawsuit against the owner in 1999. The Interstate Hotel and Resort is managing the Roosevelt Hotel since 1997.

    According to a notification issued Monday — at a time when the federal government is reportedly at odds with the national carrier after Aviation Minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan’s statements regarding PIA pilots having “dubious” licences –, the privatisation of the hotel was discussed in a meeting of the cabinet committee on privatisation on Wednesday.

    The meeting was chaired by Adviser to Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan on Finance and Revenue Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, stated the notification issued a day before the meeting.

    It has, however, not been very well-received by the Twitterati.

    What do you think of the government’s plans to sell the luxury hotel owned by PIA? Let The Current know in the comments.

  • Meera tests negative for coronavirus

    Meera tests negative for coronavirus

    Meera, who recently returned from virus-hit New York after being stranded there for a couple of weeks has tested negative for COVID-19.

    In a video posted to Instagram, Meera along with some other Pakistani students shared that they have tested negative for COVID-19 and are back home safe and sound. They said that they are ecstatic to be home, even though their journey took almost two days. They were quarantined at a local hotel in Lahore while they waited for their tests.

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

    Meera returned from United States on May 12 via a special flight arranged by the Government of Pakistan to repatriate stranded Pakistanis in the US.

    Read more – Meera is back in Pakistan

    In a video message posted to Instagram, the actor has shared that she is back in Pakistan and gave a special shoutout to the Pakistan Embassy in Washington and the New York Consulate for assisting her. Meera appreciated the work of the Pakistan Embassy and Consulate in the US and said that they facilitated her – and all other stranded passengers – at every step.