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Pakistan is currently facing an alarming economic crisis that poses a risk of defaulting on its debt. The country has also been hit hard by catastrophic floods in 2022 that have affected nearly a third of the country, causing a significant increase in food and fuel prices, which many people cannot afford.

The situation is expected to worsen, with estimates from the World Food Programme indicating that over 5 million people will be at risk of famine-level hunger by the end of March, as per NPR’s official reports.

Chris Kaye, the Pakistan country director, describes the situation as frightening, especially when compared to what’s happening next door in Afghanistan. According to NPR’s Diaa Hadid, the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan has escalated out of control since the Taliban took over, with over 6 million people on the brink of famine.

Kaye believes that the food crisis in Pakistan is not far off from what is happening in Afghanistan in terms of the absolute number of people affected. The hunger crisis has even reached prosperous areas where the poor have typically sought work.

The situation demands immediate action to prevent a large-scale famine in the region, and the international community must come together to support Pakistan and alleviate the suffering of millions of people facing hunger and malnutrition.

A Spanish man who slapped his wife on a live TikTok video was sentenced to a year in jail on Monday. However, the victim had declined to file a complaint against him.
The man was found guilty of violence against women by a court in the northern city of Soria, with the court barring him for three years from getting a gun and from being within 300 meters (1,000 feet) of his wife or contacting her.
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Images of the husband striking his wife in the face so forcefully that she turns around and starts crying went viral in Spain.

The incident occurred in the early hours of January 28 during a TikTok “battle” between the woman and three men. TikTok “battle” is a real-time competition amongst streamers where the winner is chosen by viewers.

“The defendant assaulted his wife publicly and openly, in front of thousands of people, with the aim of undermining her physical integrity and humiliating her in public,” the court ruled.

A 35-member violent gang of boys enrolled in different private schools in Lahore is operating in the city, Geo News has reported. As per details, the gang operates under the name ‘102’.
Police have arrested a member of the gang for torturing a young boy in the Gulberg area of Lahore.

According to the police, the accused gang member tortured a young boy in a snooker club, taped the assault and uploaded the video on social media.

The Barkhan tragedy has taken a twist on Wednesday night when an autopsy report revealed that the body believed to be that of Giran Naz, a woman allegedly imprisoned in a private jail in Balochistan, is of an unknown teenager.

Giran Niaz with her daughter and four sons were recovered alive in the late hours of Wednesday night after three separate search operations were conducted in different locations. The autopsy conducted on the female corpse recovered from a well, thought to be that of Naz, showed that the body was of a young woman aged around 18 years, who had been raped and shot in the head thrice.
Police on Wednesday had earlier arrested Sardar Khetran from Quetta on charges of killing Naz and her two sons.

Giran Naz along with her children is in protective custody and will be handed over to representatives of the Marri tribe.

What is the back story?

Sardar Abdur Rehman Khethran, 64, head of the Khethran tribe in Balochistan’s Barkhan, allegedly runs a private jail in the province, and the three bodies recovered in Haji Koat were imprisoned in the same private jail. Khethran wanted Mohammad Marri, who worked as a guard for him, to testify against his son Inaam Shah in a fake police case about a property clash. Marri refused to testify against Inaam after which Khethran imprisoned eight members of his family in his private jail including his wife Giran Naz Bibi, six sons Mohamad Nawaz, Abdul Majid, Abdul Qadir, Abdul Sattar, Abdul Ghaffar, Mohammad Imran and a teenage daughter Farzana.
Khethran also had Marri arrested, however, he was released after spending three and a half years in jail. After getting released, he started to look for ways to release his family from the private jail.
Marri, with the help of Inaam Shah, smuggled a cellphone inside the private jail where his wife and kids were being detained.

A video of Giran Naz Bibi was recorded while she was carrying a Holy Quran. She claimed in the video that Sardar Khethran is holding them captive.

In order to investigate the discovery of three bodies riddled with bullet wounds in a well at the Haji Kot area of Barkhan district in Balochistan, the provincial Home Department on Tuesday established a joint investigation team (JIT) under the direction of DIG Loralai Division.

“A press release issued by the police said the bodies, which were in sacks, were found on February 20 at around 8pm. The station house officer (SHO) of Barkhan Police Station was informed about the corpses in the well,” Dawn has reported.

Police identified the victims as Giran Naz, the wife of Khan Muhammad Marri, who was 40–45 years old, and her two sons, Mohammad Nawaz, 20–25 years old, and Abdul Qadir, 15–17 years old.

What is the back story?

Sardar Abdur Rehman Khethran, 64, head of the Khethran tribe in Balochistan’s Barkhan, allegedly runs a private jail in the province, and the three bodies recovered in Haji Koat were imprisoned in the same private jail. Khethran wanted Mohammad Marri, who worked as a guard for him, to testify against his son Inaam Shah in a fake police case about a property clash. Marri refused to testify against Inaam after which Khethran imprisoned eight members of his family in his private jail including his wife Giran Naz Bibi, six sons Mohamad Nawaz, Abdul Majid, Abdul Qadir, Abdul Sattar, Abdul Ghaffar, Mohammad Imran and a teenage daughter Farzana.
Khethran also had Marri arrested, however, he was released after spending three and a half years in jail. After getting released, he started to look for ways to release his family from the private jail.

Marri, with the help of Inaam Shah, smuggled a cellphone inside the private jail where his wife and kids were being detained.
A video of Giran Naz Bibi was recorded while she was carrying a Holy Quran. She claims in the video that Sardar Khethran is holding them captive.

Senator Mushtaq Khan of the Jamaat-e-Islami brought up the subject in the Senate in January. The chief secretary of Balochistan was required to produce a report, and the senator urged that Minister Khethran be called before the Senate

The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has predicted that summers will start early, Ayesha Atta has reported for Samaa.

As per the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), summer could start as early as February. A heat wave is anticipated to hit Punjab particularly Lahore in the middle of February, according to the PMD’s Shahid Abbas.

Temperatures are likely to go up to 45 degrees celsius in summerd due to less rainfalls and climate change

Pakistan has fallen to its lowest score in a decade on the Corruptions Perception Index (CPI), Transparency International has revealed on Tuesday in its annual report.

The country now ranks at 140 out of 180 total countries on the list.

In its report, Transparency has written that, “Pakistan too has continued its statistically significant downward trend, this year hitting its lowest score since 2012 at just 27 points amidst ongoing political turmoil.”

In 2021, Pakistan’s corruption score stood at 28 while in 2020, it was at 31, placing the country at 124 out of 180 countries.

CPI ranks countries and territories based on perceived levels of corruption and malpractices in the public sector. Denmark holds the number 1 spot as the least corrupt country with a score of 90 while New Zealand and Finland jointly hold the second spot with a score of 87. With 84, Norway rounds up the top three positions.

The country now ranks at 140 out of 180 total countries on the list.

In its report, Transparency has written that, “Pakistan too has continued its statistically significant downward trend, this year hitting its lowest score since 2012 at just 27 points amidst ongoing political turmoil.”

In 2021, Pakistan’s corruption score stood at 28 while in 2020, it was at 31, placing the country at 124 out of 180 countries.

CPI ranks countries and territories based on perceived levels of corruption and malpractices in the public sector. Denmark holds the number 1 spot as the least corrupt country with a score of 90 while New Zealand and Finland jointly hold the second spot with a score of 87. With 84, Norway rounds up the top three positions.

Shaheen Shah Afridi, the captain of Lahore Qalandars, will design his team’s uniforms for the upcoming eighth season of the Pakistan Super League (PSL).
The team captain will create this year’s uniforms, Atif Rana has said in a video that the Qalandars uploaded on their official social media accounts.

Shaheen, who guided the team to its maiden championship win last season, is also the Lahore Qalandars’ captain this year.
“Shaheen is designing the best kit, just like he takes wickets,” Atif Rana said, adding that the fast bowler’s kit design will blow everyone away. He hoped fans will like the new kit design.
It is important to note that the grand opening ceremony for the eighth PSL season will take place at the Multan Cricket Stadium on February 13.
Lahore Qalandars and Multan Sultans, who competed against each other in the season seven championship game last year, will square off in the opening game of the edition.

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has expressed its “deep concern” over the Criminal Laws (Amendment) Act 2023, which was passed unanimously on January 17 in the National Assembly. While the stated aim of this bill is to curb sectarianism, HRCP believes it is likely to exacerbate the persecution of Pakistan’s beleaguered religious minorities and minority sects.

The National Assembly unanimously passed the Criminal Laws (Amendment) Bill on Tuesday, aimed at increasing punishment for disrespect of Ummahatul Momineen, Ahl-e-Bait, Khulfa-e-Rashideen and Sahaba-e-Kiram.

“The proposed legislation increases the punishment for using derogatory remarks against holy persons—including the Prophet (PBUH)’s family, wives and companions, and the four caliphs—from three years with a fine to imprisonment for life ‘which will not be less than ten years’. The bill also makes the offence non-bailable, thereby directly violating the constitutionally guaranteed right to personal liberty under Article 9,” read the press release from the human rights watchdog.

“Given Pakistan’s troubled record of the misuse of such laws, these amendments are likely to be weaponised disproportionately against religious minorities and sects, resulting in false FIRs, harassment and persecution. Moreover, increasing the penalty for alleged blasphemy will aggravate misuse of the law to settle personal vendettas, as is often the case with blasphemy allegations,” it added.

“At a time when civil society has been calling for amendments to these laws to prevent their abuse, strengthening this punishment will do the exact opposite.”