Tag: NULL

  • Pakistan reports two polio cases, girl and boy paralysed

    Pakistan reported its second incidence of wild poliovirus on Friday, after a stool sample from a two-year-old child from the district of North Waziristan in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa tested positive, according to health officials.

    This is the world’s fourth incidence of wild polio in 2022, and Pakistan’s second, which was reported on April 22 in the same district. “Today, the Pakistan National Polio Laboratory at the NIH, Islamabad, has confirmed the detection of Type-1 Wild Poliovirus from the stool specimen from a 24-month-old girl from district North Waziristan, K-P. The girl had onset of paralysis on 14 April 2022,” an official statement said.

    The statement further added that Pakistan had reported only one WPV1 case in 2021 which had onset of paralysis on 27 January in Killa Abdullah, Balochistan.

    “This indicates well-established wild poliovirus circulation within district North Waziristan.”

    Pakistan, along with Afghanistan, is one of only two nations in the world where wild poliovirus is still circulating.

  • Fact check: Has Turkey tightened visa policy for Pakistanis?

    Fact check: Has Turkey tightened visa policy for Pakistanis?

    Claim: Turkish government has tightened the visa policy for Pakistanis after viral social media posts claiming Pakistanis’ involvement in a kidnapping

    Fact: Pakistani embassy in Turkey has refused any changes in Turkey’s visa policy for Pakistanis

    On 29 April 2022, Arab News reported that Turkey had tightened its visa policies for Pakistanis after a Pakistani group allegedly abducted Nepalis at gunpoint while they were wandering in Taksim Square, one of the significant landmarks of the city.

    The abducted people were tortured and their videos were made, with a kidnapping demanding a ransom of 10,000 euros for their release.

    “The Turkish government has tightened the visa policy for Pakistanis after crimes reportedly involving Pakistanis,” a local media news report read. However, the Pakistani Embassy has denied the news reports of changing Turkish visa polices for Pakistanis.

    “In response to various media reports, it is clarified that Turkey has not made any changes in its policy of issuing visas and residence permits specific to Pakistan nationals. The Embassy remains in close contact with the Turkish authorities on all consular related matters,” the Pakistan Embassy in Turkey wrote in a tweet.

    VERDICT: FALSE

  • Shehbaz reaches office at 7am, announces only one holiday a week, on his first day as PM

    Shehbaz reaches office at 7am, announces only one holiday a week, on his first day as PM

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif arrived at the PM Office at 7am on Tuesday, created fear among the staff present at the PM House.

    PM Sharif has also abolished two weekly offs for government officers, reports Geo News. The government offices will be open six days a week under the new schedule, with only one official weekly holiday on Sunday. As per the new timings, the work at the government offices will start at 8am.

    The joint Opposition’s candidate Shehbaz Sharif was elected as the 23rd Prime Minister of Pakistan, after former Prime Minister Imran Khan was voted out of office through a no-confidence motion on Saturday, April 9.

    Read more- Shehbaz Sharif – the 23rd Prime Minister of Pakistan

    Shehbaz bagged a total of 174 votes as opposed to PTI’s candidate Shah Mahmood Qureshi. Qureshi received no votes after his party decided to boycott the polling process.

  • Thousands rally in Sri Lanka, asking Rajapaksa family to quit politics

    Thousands rally in Sri Lanka, asking Rajapaksa family to quit politics

    Thousands of people demanding “total system change” have rallied in Sri Lanka’s capital, Colombo, calling for President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his powerful brothers to quit politics amid a deepening economic crisis.

    At the Galle Face Green on Colombo’s waterfront, students, teachers, lawyers, actors and architects – many of whom said they were protesting for the first time – chanted “madman Gota” and “Go home Gota”, referring to the president’s nickname, as they gathered under a blistering sun.

    They waved the Sri Lankan flag and held up hand-written placards in Sinhalese and English that carried messages such as “No more corrupted politicians” and “Save Sri Lanka from the Rajapaksa family”.

    “This is a do-or-die moment,” said 29-year-old Buddhi Karunatne, who works in advertising.

    “For the first time, people of all kinds of political and social beliefs are coming together, with non-negotiable demands for the president to resign and hand over power to people who are capable of getting us out of this socioeconomic crisis.”

    The display of anger marked a stunning reversal for Rajapaksa, 72, who won the presidency in 2019 by a big margin and whose party went on to secure a two-thirds majority in the parliament less than a year later. Those victories allowed Rajapaksa to appoint his brother Mahinda Rajapaksa as prime minister and amend the constitution to strengthen the president’s powers.

    He also went on to hand three other Rajapaksa family members key positions in his cabinet, including the finance, agriculture and sports portfolios.

    ‘No Rajapaksa should be there’

    Sparked by a foreign exchange crunch, the economic downturn is Sri Lanka’s worst in decades. It has resulted in soaring inflation that has left the poor struggling to afford enough to eat and caused fuel shortages and hours-long power cuts that have threatened to close down businesses.

  • Fact check: Have three popular TV anchors been taken off air?

    Fact check: Have three popular TV anchors been taken off air?

    Claim: Imran Riaz Khan, Irshad Bhatti and Maleeha Hashmy have been sacked by Geo News, Samaa TV and Public News for their political biases

    Fact: Maleeh Hashmy was fired, Irshad Bhatti still works at Geo News and Imran Riaz Khan did not respond

    Minister of Human Rights Shireen Mazari in a tweet expressed her displeasure over the silence of journalists representative bodies and human rights organisations against the sacking of three journalists and TV show hosts/analysts, Imran Riaz Khan, Irshad Bhatti and Maleeha Hashmi.

    “Samaa News sacked Imran Riaz Khan. Geo News sacked Irshad Bhatti while Public News sacked Maleeha Hashmi. Not a word of condemnation came from the media, journos & all other self-proclaimed human rights defenders,” the minister wrote in a tweet.

    Were they all really fired from their jobs? We find out.

    Irshad Bhatti- Geo News

    Truth: He is on leave until Monday April 11, 2022

    Social media reports started circulating yesterday, suggesting that Irshad Bhatti has been sacked from Geo News. Shireen Mazari in her tweet also said the same. However, Bhatti in his reply to Mazari clarified that he has not been taken off-air and he is on leave for three days. He further said that he will be back on-screen on Monday.

    Imran Riaz Khan- Samaa TV

    Truth: He has not confirmed whether he was actually fired from Samaa TV.

    Imran Riaz Khan is a Current affairs host at Samaa TV. He has not confirmed the news yet.

    Special Assistant to the Prime Minister for Political Communication Dr Shahbaz Gill in his tweet said that Imran Khan has been off-aired from Samaa Tv. However, no official statement has been issued from the channel.

    Maleeha Hashmi- Public Tv

    Truth: She has been fired

    Maleeha Hashmi used to host a tv show on Public News. Yesterday, the news of her being fired off from Public News, started circulating on social media. Later, she confirmed the news on Twitter. “Public News has OFF AIRED me because I REFUSED to ATTACK Imran Khan & Defend the Culprits of the foreign conspiracy,” she wrote. The channel is yet to give an official statement.

    Verdict: PARTIALLY FALSE

  • Verdict on no-trust motion coming soon: Supreme Court hint towards restoration of assembly?

    Verdict on no-trust motion coming soon: Supreme Court hint towards restoration of assembly?

    The Supreme Court of Pakistan (SCP) wrapped up the hearing on the ruling of National Assembly (NA) Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri on the dismissal of the no-confidence motion against the interim Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan on Thursday (today). The court has reserved the verdict, which will be announced at 7:30pm today. The verdict has been reserved after five days of court hearings.

    On the final day of the hearing, Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial (CJP) remarked that it is clear that the April 3 ruling is erroneous. “We have to look at national interest,” he said.

    CJP noted that the act is a violation of Article 95 (which is related to the vote of no-confidence against the PM in the lower house) and that the elections would cost the nation “billions of rupees”.

    Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail observed that the ruling doesn’t have Suri’s signature, it was signed by Speaker Asad Qaiser [who couldn’t preside over the session due to the submission of the no-confidence motion against him in NA].

    Justice Ijazul Ahsan said that Imran Khan took advantage of the situation and dissolved NA.

    Opposition Leader and Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari appeared before the court and were called to the rostrum.

    Shehbaz said that he hoped that when the deputy speaker’s ruling was suspended, the no-confidence motion would be revived. “Let us vote for the no-confidence motion”, the Opposition Leader added.

    Justice Mandokhail inquired that if the Opposition wanted to conduct elections from day one, what was the issue now. To this, Shehbaz pointed out that the problem concerns the breaking of the Constitution. Justice Mandokhail replied: “We will repair the Constitution.”

    Attorney-General of Pakistan (AGP) Khalid Javed Khan, who was also present before SC argued that the case is over since April 3, the same deputy speaker passed the ruling to dismiss the motion. CJP Bandial said that he wanted to hear from the AGP on the main issue, which is the dissolution of NA.

    AGP further said that he isn’t defending the speaker’s ruling. “My concern, for now, is the new elections.”

    Since the controversial ruling of the deputy speaker, the matter is in the apex court.

    On March 27, Imran Khan accused the United States (US) of interfering in Pakistan’s politics and plotting to oust him through a no-confidence motion in the NA. In a public gathering, he also brandished a ‘threat letter’ [which he claimed was from the US].

    Following this, based on this ‘threat letter’, Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri rejected the no-trust motion against the PM on April 3. Later, acting on the PM’s advice, President Arif Alvi dissolved the lower house.

    This has plunged Pakistan into a constitutional crisis.

  • Rangers called in Lahore amid simmering political crisis

    Rangers called in Lahore amid simmering political crisis

    The Rangers have been called in Lahore for 15 days to deter any eventuality in the midst of brewing political crisis ahead of the Punjab Assembly session to be convened on April 16 to elect the new chief minister of the province.

    According to a notification issued by the Punjab government, the Rangers personnel will be deployed for security in the provincial capital for 15 days. The notification warned that anyone found taking the law into one hand or creating any trouble in the capital city would be taken into custody.

    Those creating law and order situation could be detained under 16 Section of Maintenance of Public Order (MPO).

    A tough contest is expected between Opposition Leader in Punjab Assembly Hamza Shehbaz and ruling PTI’s nominee for the top slot of the province Parvez Elahi.

  • Video: Biden calls Vice President Kamala Harris ‘first lady’

    United States (US) President Joe Biden accidentally called the US Vice President Kamala Harris the ‘First Lady’, which left the audience in laughter.

    In a video, while addressing the Equal Pay Day event organised by the White House for Women’s History Month, Biden was informing the audience why Harris could not attend the event.

    “There’s been a little change in the arrangement of who is on the stage because of the First Lady’s husband contracting Covid,” Biden said.

    He later corrected himself, sparking laughter, after someone in the audience pointed out his gaffe.

    Previously, Biden referred to Douglas Emhoff, Harris’ husband, as the “first gentleman.” Emhoff is the second gentleman of the US.

  • ‘The person who was blamed of being part of the Jewish lobby was the one to get resolution against Islamophobia passed in UN’: PM Khan

    ‘The person who was blamed of being part of the Jewish lobby was the one to get resolution against Islamophobia passed in UN’: PM Khan

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan on Wednesday said that the Opposition fears that if he stays in office for another year, their leaders will be thrown in jail.

    Jewish Lobby

    Addressing a public gathering at Swat, PM Khan lashed out at Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, said he alleged that Khan was part of the “Jewish lobby”.

    “But the person who was blamed to be part of the Jewish lobby turned out to be the one to get a resolution against Islamophobia passed in the United Nations.”

    “I want to ask you Fazlur Rehman: In the last 30 years, you were part of every government. Did you ever persuade any Western leader to speak against Islamophobia? Did you even speak to them?”

    “Terrorism has no religion, and despite Islam having no links with terrorism, a perception was created that terrorism is being spread across the world,” the prime minister said.

    In a meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) three years back, the prime minister said he had raised the issue of Islamophobia, and after that, he raised it again at the UN.

    “Before that, no Pakistani leader had raised the issue at the UN. Earlier, Pakistanis would come out on the streets and vandalised their own property whenever Islam was insulted in Western countries. At that time, I told them: don’t do this, I will raise this issue internationally,” he said.

    Reach Islamabad to show you stand with the truth

    The premier urged the nation to reach Islamabad on March 27 to tell the world that Pakistanis “stand with the truth and are against corruption”

    “People’s conscience is being auctioned […] it is the duty of people now to stand against evil,” said PM Khan.

    “All the thieves have gathered on the same page and they have given me a chance to bowl out three wickets in a single ball,” added the premier.

     I will hunt them down

    The prime minister urged the nation that they have to struggle against three “mice” — Zardari, Fazl, and Shehbaz Sharif — for the future of the country.

    “But I also promise you that I will hunt them down,” he vowed as he called on the people to support him in the cause.

    PM Imran Khan claimed that the Opposition has started horse-trading to make their no-confidence motion against the prime minister successful.

    “They want to oust me because they know that if I am in power for another year, all of them will be in jails […] and the first thing they plan on doing after coming into power is to dismantle NAB,” he said.

    ‘Kanpien taangain gi’

    Taking a jibe at former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, the premier said, “But the slaves, who worship money, their kanpien tangain gi (legs will tremble) before the American president,” the prime minister said, lashing out at PML-N supremo Nawaz.

    PM Imran Khan said he “looks eye-to-eye” with the president of the United States or any other country, as for him, “no one but Allah is God”.

  • Muhammad Ali Tariq: The only coach to be awarded Expert status at the GMAT and GRE communities

    Muhammad Ali Tariq: The only coach to be awarded Expert status at the GMAT and GRE communities

    Hi.

    My name is Muhammad Ali Tariq.

    I am the only Pakistani SAT, GRE, and GMAT coach to be awarded Expert status at the two largest and only truly global GMAT and GRE communities: GMATClub and BeatTheGMAT.

    I am starting a new batch exclusively for those who are ambitious enough to aim +90th percentile in their first attempts and are ready to put in the effort and time!

    I start my SAT batches with Reading. 

    Every single time! 

    My conviction to sort out SAT Reading ASAP in the SAT preparation journey is strong. And for reasons, I can probably write a complete book on!

    Why this much emphasis to beat Reading first? 

    It’s because of the way SAT is designed: The test begins with the Reading section. And beginnings are special. 

    Things messed up in the beginning can never be fixed. Confidence shattered in the beginning is very hard to regain. 

    Even if you are super comfortable with SAT Math, because of the bad performance in the Reading you have already given up in your mind even before you reach the Math section. 

    This is the reason that those who consistently score 800/800 on the SAT Math in mocks when they perform poorly on the Reading on the test day, their score is always lower than their mocks even in Math. 

    First section messed up and the day is already gone. Game over even before it begins. 

    If you plan to take May 2022 SAT, start with Reading. Can’t emphasize enough. It’s strategically the most prudent move you can make. 

    If you sort out Reading first, the entire SAT is oriented on the track to +1550 type of a score. Start with anything else and the journey is difficult, and in most cases you are destined to doom from the very beginning. And guess what?

    Things messed up in the beginning can never be fixed. 

    Follow    @sat_m.ali.tariq_bilal_tariq     for exclusive SAT tips and tricks.

    Follow    @prepvista_by_alitariq    for GRE, and GMAT tips.

    Also once you follow, DM for the study plan of our next batch.

    P.S: 

    In my live courses, I share the secrets you won’t find anywhere else –neither in Books nor on the Internet.

    It’s my best, newest!

    Enrollments close next week. 

    Once closed, we won’t take any more though the heavens fall!