Daily News Pakistan

Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjrani Monday has rejected a reference seeking PPP's senator Yousaf Raza Gilani’s disqualification. As per details, the Senate chairman dismissed a reference filed by senator Azam Swati against the former prime minister Senator Yousaf Raza Gilani, seeking his disqualification. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) senator accused Gilani of giving expensive vehicles to former president Asif Ali Zardari and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif from Toshakhana. Rejecting the reference, Senate chairman said that the accusations were made against senator Gilani when he was prime minister and member of the national assembly. The ruling further stated that article 63-A does not apply to the PPP senator as he was elected as a senator on March 3, 2021, and disqualification on this basis doesn’t make any sense after his election as senator. Sadiq Sanjrani reached the reference and assured the PTI lawmakers to look into it as per law.  

After falling against the dollar for three consecutive sessions, the PKR reversed the trend on Monday. The local currency was being traded at Rs220.75 per dollar at 12pm, up Rs1.72 or 0.77 per cent, from Friday’s close of Rs222.47, according to the Forex Association of Pakistan. During the previous week, the rupee fell 0.73% against the US dollar but it was its reported shortage in the open market and the long-march announcement by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan that caused a bit of a stir among official circles.

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has won Brazil’s presidential election by a whisker, but with incumbent Jair Bolsonaro still not conceding defeat there were concerns the far-right contender might challenge the result. According to international media, Lula secured 50.8 percent of the vote compared with 49.2 percent for Bolsonaro on Sunday. “Today the only winner is the Brazilian people,” da Silva told the crowds gathered at a Sao Paulo hotel. “This isn’t a victory of mine or the Workers’ Party, nor the parties that supported me in campaign. It’s the victory of a democratic movement that formed above political parties, personal interests and ideologies so that democracy came out victorious.” Bolsonaro had been leading throughout the first half of the vote count, but as soon as Lula took the lead, the streets of Sao Paulo’s city centre filled with the sound of cars honking their horns. The election was Brazil’s most polarising poll since its return to democracy in 1985 after a military d...

Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb has said PTI Chairman Imran Khan has accepted the bloody nature of his long march. Responding to a tweet of the PTI Chairman, in a statement on Monday, she said the 'bloodshed on ballot' is a proof of bringing revolution through guns. She said there has been no revolution over the last six months but the people have seen the corruption of Imran Khan including in the foreign funding and Toshakhana cases as well as campaign against the martyrs. فارن فنڈڈ فتنہ نے انقلاب نہیں اپنے #خونی_مارچ_نامنظور کا اعتراف کر لیا ہے 'بیلٹ' پر 'بلڈ شیڈ ' بندوقوں' سے انقلاب لانے کا ثبوت ہے۔6 ماہ سے انقلاب نہیں،عوام نے فارن فنڈد فتنہ توشہ خانہ ڈکیتیاں بشرا بی بی کے ہیرے,زمین کے ٹکڑوں پر ملکی مفاد کے سودے,شہدا کے خلاف مہم دیکھی ہے https://t.co/mOKktpyOLd — Marriyum Aurangzeb (@Marriyum_A) October 31, 2022

Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Hajj and Umrah has announced the extension of the duration of the Umrah visa from 30 to 90 days. The Ministry has called on pilgrims to complete the Umrah within the specified period and leave before the expiry of the visa. During this period, pilgrims can freely move between Makkah and Madinah and all the cities around Saudi Arabia during their stay. The ministry noted that pilgrims must register in the Nusuk application.  

Female journalist Sadaf Naeem has been laid to rest after offering funeral prayers in Lahore’s Icchra area in the wee hours of Monday. As per details, a large number of journalists, family members of the deceased journalist and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders including Fawad Chaudhry, Mian Aslam Iqbal and Omar Sarfraz Cheema attended the funeral prayers. Later, the deceased journalist was laid to rest at the Miani Sahib Graveyard. On Sunday, a female reporter from a private news channel namely Sadaf Naeem died in a horrific accident during PTI’s long march. Channel 5 reporter Sadaf Naeem was crushed to death by a container after falling from another container.    

 Voting in the NA-45 Kurram by-elections has ended and the counting of votes has begun. PTI Chairman Imran Khan is one of the candidates from the constituency in this crucial contest. Polling began at 8am and continued till 5pm without any break. There are 16 candidates, including PTI chief Imran Khan, Jamil Khan of Jamiat Ulema e Islam-Fazal (JUI-F) and Sher Muhammad Khan of Jamaat Islami (JI), contesting the elections. A tough competition is expected between Imran Khan and PDM backed candidate Jamil Khan. There are 198,618 registered voters — 111,349 men and 87,269 women — in the constituency, according to the spokesman of the election commission. The voters will cast their votes at 143 polling stations — 119 of them have been declared very sensitive and 24 others sensitive, according to the spokesman. District Police Officer (DPO) Kurram, Arbab Shafiullah said that security arrangements had been completed for by-elections in NA-45 and transportation of election material ...

Pakistan bowlers, led by spinner Shadab Khan, helped them hammer the Netherlands by six wickets in Perth on Sunday for a first win at the Twenty20 World Cup to keep their faint hopes of reaching the semi-finals alive. Pakistan restricted the Dutch to 91-9, and then cruised to 95-4 with 37 balls to spare as Mohammad Rizwan made 49. But it was the bowlers set up victory for a side that lost their opener to India and then were shocked by Zimbabwe in Group 2. Shadab returned figures of 3-22 and pace bowler Mohammad Wasim took two wickets to set the tone for their team´s domination against a Dutch side who are out of the semi-final running after losing a third straight Super 12 match. Pakistan lost skipper Babar Azam, for four, in the second over of their chase when he was run out by a direct throw from Roelof van der Merwe. Rizwan attacked from the start, hitting five fours and putting on 37 with the returning Fakhar Zaman. Fast bowler Brandon Glover had Zaman caught behind for 20 ...

South Korea's President Yoon Suk-yeol has declared national mourning period over a stampede during Halloween festivities that left 151 people dead including 19 foreigners. According to international media reports, "In the centre of Seoul, a tragedy and disaster occurred that should not have happened," Yoon said in a national address on Sunday, vowing to "thoroughly investigate" the incident and ensure it could never happen again. Yoon's announcement came after a mass of mostly young people celebrating Halloween festivities in Seoul became trapped and crushed as the crowd surged into a narrow alley, causing country's worst disaster in years. Emergency workers and pedestrians desperately performed CPR on people lying in the streets after the crush in the capital’s leisure district of Itaewon. Choi Seong-beom, chief of Seoul's Yongsan fire department, said the death toll could rise further and that an unspecified number among the injured were in c...

Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram admitted in his autobiography Sultan: A Memoir that he became addicted to cocaine after retiring from international cricket. Additionally, Akram claimed that he began using cocaine as "a substitute for the adrenaline rush of competition" of playing cricket. The 56-year-old, who had 916 wickets in international play, hung up his boots in May 2003 after Pakistan did poorly in the 50-over World Cup. After retiring from the game, he went on to work as a coach and a commentator. "I liked to indulge myself; I liked to party. The culture of fame in south Asia is all-consuming, seductive, and corrupting. You can go to ten parties a night, and some do. And it took its toll on me. My devices turned into vices. Worst of all, I developed a cocaine dependence. It started innocuously enough when I was offered a line at a party in England; my use grew steadily more serious, to the point that I felt I needed it to function," as per extracts f...

Bangladesh managed to hold their nerve to clinch a thrilling three-run victory over Zimbabwe in their Super 12 game at the Gabba Sunday. Defending 150/7, Bangladesh restricted Zimbabwe to 147/8 to pick up their second win, move to second position in the Group 2 points table and in with a good chance to qualify for the semi-finals. The Tigers are only behind leaders India with maximum four points but a superior net run rate. Zimbabwe needed 16 runs in the last over and off-spinner Mosaddek Hossain conceded 12 runs in the end.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif says the government is taking effective measures for economic stability of the country. Talking to a group of Youtubers in Lahore on Sunday, he stressed the need to make sincere efforts for elimination of poverty and unemployment in the country. The Prime Minister said Pakistan can restore its lost prestige only through political and economic stability. He said the PTI leadership is once again bent upon vitiating the peaceful atmosphere by fanning politics of disruption through another long march and sit-in, but the government will not allow any anti-state activity. The Prime Minister said no patriotic Pakistani can tolerate the narrative of PTI Chairman Imran Khan against the state institutions, which has provided a chance to Indian media to mock Pakistan. He said our armed forces have presented unprecedented sacrifices for the country's defence and elimination of terrorism. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has expressed hope that his upcoming vi...

 Netherlands head coach Ryan Cook has said that Pakistan is a beatable team adding that playing close games against Pakistan earlier in the one-day internationals (ODI) super league has given his side confidence against Pakistanis. Pakistan will take on the Netherlands on Sunday at Perth Stadium in a must-win match as they’ve lost both their games against India and Zimbabwe. The Netherlands coach said ahead of the game that his side is confident of a good show against Pakistan. “I think every team wants to win the game that they play. But we've obviously seen that Pakistan team is beatable, so that's good to know,” he said when asked if he would be hoping to repeat what Zimbabwe did. “Obviously, playing them in the World Super League not so long ago in the Netherlands has given us a lot of confidence because we came quite close in those matches. Hoping to get over the line this time. It would be great,” he added. The coach said that Netherlands bowling attack is “firing ...

 Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday formed a committee to review, assess, and deal with the situation related to PTI's long march. As media reports, the committee consists of 13 members from the federal cabinet. It will be headed by Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah. As media report, that the committee has been formed to deal with the law and order situation, adding that if anyone wants to talk about the long march should talk to the committee. The committee reportedly includes Minister for Economic Affairs Ayaz Sadiq, Minister for Railways Khawaja Saad Rafique, Adviser to the Prime Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira, MQM-P convener Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, ANP leader Mian Iftikhar Hussain, Minister of Communications Asad Mehmood and Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb. Earlier, Sanaullah had said during a Twitter Space session that the government has no right to prevent PTI from staging a protest "if Imran Niazi wants to do it in a peaceful manner". However, the...

Glenn Phillips slammed his second T20I hundred when he reached the three-figure mark against Sri Lanka in a Super 12 2022 T20 World Cup match in Sydney on Saturday. Phillips, who should have been out for 12 off 15 in the sixth over, brought up the landmark with a four off Maheesh Theekshana, in just 61 balls. Phillips was eventually caught for a 64-ball 104. He joins former Kiwi skipper Brendon McCullum as the only two New Zealanders to hit a T20 World Cup hundred. McCullum hit a 58-ball 123 against Bangladesh in 2012. This is now the second T20I hundred of this World Cup, after Rilee Rossouw smashed the first hundred of this year’s Men’s T20 World Cup as South Africa completed a statement 104-run win over Bangladesh in Sydney. Phillips had stolen the limelight in New Zealand’s campaign opener against Australia, albeit in the field, when he leaped off his feet, got horizontal with the ground, and pulled off a stunning catch to get rid of Australian all-rounder Marcus Stoinis. ...

Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb has said there is no room for negotiations with the anarchists. In a statement on Saturday, she said the PTI Chairman cannot hide his reality by taking to the streets as his face and lies stand exposed. The Information Minister said PTI Chairman Imran Khan does not want transparent elections but chaos, unrest, bodies and blood. She said Imran Khan is an absconder in Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's defamation case of ten billion rupees over the last five years. The Information Minister strongly criticized Imran Khan for announcing to file a defamation case against the Chief Election Commissioner. She said Imran Khan is doing so because the Chief Election Commissioner has caught him red handed in different cases including Toshakhana, secret accounts and money laundering.

People from lower-income countries have to work three times harder than those of higher-income countries for the internet which is nearly three times slower. According to international media, this was revealed in a study done by Surfshark, the VPN company. The research has also shown that the internet is significantly less affordable in Africa when compared to Asia — 78 per cent to be precise. The continent also experiences the sharpest internet divide, with only 55 per cent of the population having access to the internet, compared to 77 per cent in Asia. Lower-income countries work 17 minutes for 1 GB of mobile internet with 26 Mbps, while higher-income countries work 6 minutes for 1 GB of mobile internet with 75 Mbps, the report has outlined. This speed is enough for streaming a movie, but not so for a video call which requires 50 Mbps. Many of such lower-income countries also suffer from frustratingly slow internet speeds, making video-calling impossible, while also greatly lim...

In the context of audio leaks on the alleged cipher and the decision of the cabinet sub-committee, the ongoing investigation in the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has been accelerated and former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has also been summoned. According to media reports, on the orders of the Ministry of Interior, the FIA director general formed a five-member inquiry team headed by FIA Islamabad Zone Director Rana Abdul Jabbar on October 5 to investigate the cipher and audio leaks. The committee also includes FIA Cyber Crime Islamabad additional director and Counter-Terrorism Wing deputy director, among others. Similarly, one BS-19 officer from three intelligence agencies was also included in the inquiry team. The inquiry team is engaged in fast-tracking the investigation. The FIA also issued a summons notice to senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Qureshi on Friday. Qureshi has been asked to appear before the inquiry team at FIA Counter-Terrorism Headqua...

With PTI's long march yet to start and day after DGS ISI and ISPR's press conference, the party's Punjab Assembly lawmaker Khurram Sohail Khan Laghari announced on Thursday that he will be leaving the Imran Khan-led party. We were shown "something else" but "something else" was seen practically, said the MPA. "It is possible that we might also resign from the assembly," said Laghari. He added that they are likely to resign from the Punjab Assembly in the next three to four days. Lahari expressed his concerns regarding the Punjab Assembly cabinet, saying that they should know the criteria for appointing a minister. Laghari contested in the 2018 general elections as an independent candidate. He later joined the PTI after the 2018 polls. The PTI MPA served as the special assistant to the chief minister during Usman Buzdar's tenure but he was removed from his position in 2020.  

 While expressing its annoyance at the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) Punjab chief, Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday remarked that the institution has become a “political tool”. The remarks were passed by the LHC's Rawalpindi bench when it heard the case filed by Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah against his arrest warrants issued by ACE Punjab. The director-general of ACE Punjab, Nadeem Sarwar, also appeared in court. “Your institution has become a political tool. One [DG] comes and forms a case, another (DG) comes and finishes that case,” observed the court. It also slammed the official for obtaining Sanaullah’s arrest warrants by making a false statement. “Tell the court if you wish to arrest Rana Sanaullah or not,” asked the court. At this, the DG said that his department is not interested in arrested the interior minister. Upon hearing this, the court sent Rana Sanaullah's case to a trial court, adding that the minister can file an application for acquittal unde...

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif congratulated the Zimbabwean president after Zimbabwe defeated Pakistan in an intriguing match of the ICC Men's Twenty20 World Cup underway in Australia. PM Shehbaz's comment comes on the heels of a jibe by Zimbabwe's President Emmerson Damdudzo Mnangagwa who expressed delight over his country's win in a match versus Pakistan. We may not have the real Mr Bean, but we have real cricketing spirit .. and we Pakistanis have a funny habit of bouncing back :) Mr President: Congratulations. Your team played really well today. ? https://t.co/oKhzEvU972 — Shehbaz Sharif (@CMShehbaz) October 27, 2022 In a tweet today, Shehbaz said, "We may not have the real Mr Bean, but we have real cricketing spirit .. and we Pakistanis have a funny habit of bouncing back." The PM also offered the Zimbabwean president felicitation, saying, "Your team played really well today." Zimbabwe pulled off a stunning one-run upset by putting th...

Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah Thursday said PTI leader Imran Khan's detestable face was exposed before the nation even further after the apex intelligence agency chief stepped up to set the record straight regarding US cypher and Arshad Sharif's murder in a rare presser. "Khan, who staged the US cypher drama, has turned into a festering wound [for Pakistan]," Sanaullah said addressing a press conference following the DG ISI and DG ISPR's joint conference. The minister said the politics of the PTI leader, whose heinous face was unmasked by the audio leaks, was aimed at mongering hate and dividing the nation and it was impossible for democracy to move forward as long as Khan's negative agenda was in force. No entry in Red Zone The interior minister said the government would not let Imran Khan's long march, scheduled to launch tomorrow (Friday, October 28), enter the Red Zone no matter what. "The government will also mobilise the army under Art...

Calling the country’s military spymaster and DG ISPR's conference historic, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Thursday said the establishment’s eagerness to contribute to the country’s progress in a constitutional way must be welcomed. Calling the country’s military spymaster and DG ISPR's conference historic, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Thursday said the establishment’s eagerness to contribute to the country’s progress in a constitutional way must be welcomed. “Press conference by DG ISI and ISPR is unprecedented and historic. Institutional desire to transition must be encouraged,” the foreign minister said in a Twitter post in reaction to the rare presser by the top intelligence official of the country. “Transition of establishment from controversial to constitutional role is vital for Pakistan’s progress and prosperity,” Bilawal said in the same tweet. “The PPP has struggled for this for three generations,” Bilawal said in the tweet. Director G...

President Xi Jinping says China and the United States must “find ways to get along” to safeguard world peace and development. According to international media, the Chinese leader’s conciliatory words follow after months of tension between Washington and Beijing over what the US views as China’s increasingly aggressive stance towards Taiwan, and Beijing’s refusal to condemn Russia’s war in Ukraine. Xi, who secured a third term as Chinese leader on Sunday, has rebuked what he termed “foreign interference” in Taiwan and said China would never renounce the right to use force to unite the island with the mainland. “The world today is neither peaceful nor tranquil,” Xi wrote in a congratulatory letter to the annual gala of the National Committee on US-China Relations, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported on Thursday. “As major powers, strengthening communication and cooperation between China and the US will help to increase global stability and certainty, and promote world peace and...

South Africa beat Bangladesh by 104 runs in the ICC Men's T-20 World Cup at Sydney. Batting first, South Africa scored 205 runs for the loss of 5 wickets in allotted twenty overs. In reply, Bangladesh were all out for one hundred and one runs in sixteen point three overs.  

The Italian Coast Guard has announced that it has brought more than 1,000 migrants to Sicily from the central Mediterranean Sea. According to international media reports, in addition, the Ocean Viking rescue vessel has saved the lives of 41 people from a boat in distress, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports. Another boat with a total of 451 migrants landed in the southern Italian city of Catanzaro Lido on Wednesday evening, August 24, while immigrants mainly came from Sudan, Egypt, and Syria. Through a Twitter post on Thursday, August 25, the private aid organization SOS Méditerranee announced that it rescued 41 people from a wooden boat on Wednesday night and brought them aboard its Ocean Viking search-and-rescue (SAR). Meanwhile, SOS Méditerranee said that the difficult ship was already taking on water and among this group were three women and three unaccompanied minors. In addition, the crew reported four empty boats floating in the water in the Libyan search and rescue area the day...

In an unprecedented move, the ISI chief made an appearance in today's press conference the first time in Pakistan's history. "I am aware that you are surprised by my presence," he said, adding that he had appeared for his institution and the officers who were sacrificing their lives. "As chief of this agency, I cannot remain silent when they are targeted for no reason." Lt Gen Anjum added. Lt Gen Anjum said the nation had given him the responsibility to take secrets to the grave. "But when needed and when necessary, I will bring those facts to light". Talking about the officers martyred in Lasbela, he said that they were mocked. Therefore, it is highly condemnable to speak without proof, he said, adding that words like "neutral and janwar" were meant to illustrate that the institution was indulging in sedition. He added that these words were also being used because the institution refused to bend to an "unconstitutional and ill...

The Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected the federal government's request to immediately stop PTI chief Imran Khan's long march to Islamabad, with Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial advising the government to hold talks with the former prime minister. The federal government filed a contempt of court plea against the PTI chairman in the Supreme Court over his long march to the federal capital. In its petition, the government said, "Imran Khan is making announcements to attack Islamabad", which it claimed was a violation of a court order. It urged the apex court to direct the PTI chief to ensure the implementation of its orders related to protests and sit-ins. A five-member bench, headed by CJP Bandial, comprising Justice Ijaz ul Ahsan, Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Yahya Afridi and Justice Sayyed Mazhar Ali Akbar Naqvi heard the plea today. A day earlier, Khan said PTI will kick off its long march on October 28 (Friday) from Lahore. The former prime...

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will be making his first offical visit to China, on Premier Li Keqiang's invitation, on November 1, the Foreign Office (FO) said on Wednesday. According to a statement issued by FO Spokesperson Asim Iftikhar, the premier will be embarking on the two-day official visit to the neighbouring country, upon an invitation extended by the outgoing Chinese premier. It was further revealed that Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari will also be a part of the premier’s delegation. Several high-level talks are also expected between the two countries during the prime minister’s visit, while he is also scheduled to attend a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, in which the two leaders will discuss the regional situation and global development. Furthermore, during the visit, important memorandums of understanding (MoU) are also expected to be signed. PM Shehbaz's upcoming visit to China could create problems for Pakistan on the economic front as th...

A policeman was martyred on Wednesday in a grenade attack over police station in Quetta. According to police, Dadhar police station was attacked with a grenade by unknown men. As a result, a cop got martyred, whose body has been moved to the Civil Hospital for medico-legal. The police further said the gate and the wall of the police station were partially damaged in the grenade attack.  

A strong earthquake has rocked a large swathe of the northern Philippines, injuring at least 26 people and forcing the closure of an international airport and the evacuation of patients in a hospital, officials said. According to international media, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said Tuesday night’s magnitude 6.4 quake, which was set off by movement in a local fault, was centred 9 kilometres (5 miles) northwest of Lagayan town in Abra province at a depth of 11 kilometres (7 miles). The quake was felt across a wide area of the main northern Luzon region, including in some parts of metropolitan Manila, more than 400 kilometres (248 miles) south of Abra. At least 26 people were injured in Ilocos Norte, the home province of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., where the international airport in the capital city of Laoag was ordered to close temporarily on Wednesday due to damage from the quake, police and civil aviation officials said.  

Ireland earned another famous World Cup win over England with a rain-affected five-run victory over Jos Buttler's off-colour side in another absorbing T20 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Eleven years on from their three-wicket win over England at the 50-over World Cup in India, Ireland beat England in the T20 version after rain thwarted their opponents' stuttering run chase. Chasing 158, England were 105-5 after 14.3 overs, five runs below the DLS par score of 110, when the rain that had caused delays earlier in the game returned and did not relent in time for the match to resume. Moeen Ali (24no off 12) got himself going with three fours and a six after England had laboured to 29-3 in the powerplay and then 86-5 in the 14th over, but weather had the final say as Ireland earned a notable victory.  

The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has approved an increase of Rs0.09 per unit in the power tariff on the account of fuel charges adjustment (FCA) for September. Accoding to notification the hike will be applied to the bills for the month of October. The increase in electricity price is expected to render an additional burden of Rs1.1 billion on the consumers. The Central Power Purchasing Agency (CCPA) had asked the power regulatory authority to approve an increase of 20 paisas per unit in the power tariff. Upon data analysis, NEPRA said only a charge of Rs0.09 per unit is justifiable. NEPRA has said that the hike will not apply to K-Electric, Lifeline, and electric vehicle charging stations.  

A cyclone roared into the Bangladesh coast on Tuesday, killing at least nine people, destroying houses, uprooting trees and disrupting road, power and communication links, officials said. Mass evacuations before Cyclone Sitrang made landfall on the west coast helped save lives but the full extent of the casualties and damage would only be known after communications were fully restored, they said. "It was terrible, it looked like the sea was coming to grab us," Mizanur Rahman, a resident of Bhola district, told Reuters after communications were restored in his neighbourhood. "We spent a sleepless night, all we could do was pray." The cyclone barrelled in from the Bay of Bengal with winds gusting up to 88 kph (55 mph) and a storm surge of about 3 m (10 ft) that flooded low-lying coastal areas. Power and telephone links have been largely cut and coastal areas plunged into darkness, officials said. Most of the people killed were crushed by falling trees. No maj...

Former Australia captain Tim Paine has accused South Africa of ball-tampering in the match that immediately followed the infamous 2018 Newlands Test which saw the Australian team engulfed in the 'Sandpapergate' scandal. Paine, who stepped down from the captaincy late last year and withdrew from cricket for nearly a year, made the comments in his autobiography, “The Price Paid,” which was released on Tuesday. Australia suspended former captain Steve Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft after Bancroft was caught on camera with a piece of sandpaper on the field during the Cape Town Test of the South Africa tour. However, Paine said he then saw South Africa ball-tampering in the next Test in Johannesburg. “Think about that. After everything that had happened in Cape Town, after all the headlines and bans and carry on,” the wicketkeeper wrote. “I was standing at the bowlers' end in the next Test when a shot came up on the screen of a South African player at mid-off ha...

A policeman was martyred in an attack on a polio vaccination team in Balochistan’s Pishin District. According to the police, the incident took place in the Kali Tarata area of the district on Tuesday. The officer was killed when unidentified men opened fire at the vaccination team. The officer was identified as Muhammad Hashim. His body has been shifted to DHQ Hospital Pishin for the post-mortem. Polio vaccinators, however, remained unhurt in the attack. The police and the security forces have cordoned off the area and a search operation for the attackers has been initiated. On Monday, Pakistan launched a week-long anti-polio campaign in 83 districts of four provinces of the country.  

In a tweet late Monday night, the family of the slain journalist said he will be laid to rest in the H-11 cemetery in Islamabad on Thursday. Arshad Sharif was shot to dead in Kenya Sunday night. The Kenyan police took responsibility, saying the anchorperson was shot down by Kenyan police in a “mistaken identity” case while he was travelling to Nairobi from the country’s Magadi town. Federal Information and Broadcasting Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said Sharif's body has been dispatched to Pakistan. As a result of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's conversation with the Kenyan President, legal processes were expedited. The minister said that Pakistani High Commissioner Saqlain Syeda personally inspected the process for several hours as Sharif's body was being sent to Pakistan. She stayed at the Nairobi airport for several hours until the body was sent to Pakistan, the PML-N leader said. Flight QR1342, carrying the coffin of Arshad Sharif, departed from Nairobi at 3:25 PST...

WhatsApp seems to be facing a glitch as a number of users are reporting issues with sending and receiving texts on the app. According to meida reports, a sharp spike in the number of users reporting WhatsApp’s outage. As per media reports, Meta has responded to Business Today's queries on WhatsApp outage. The Meta company spokesperson said, "We're aware that some people are currently having trouble sending messages and we're working to restore WhatsApp for everyone as quickly as possible." Users are even complaining about issues with the calling feature on WhatsApp. The app is not going past the 'calling' phase to the ringing phase. WhatsApp has undergone a similar outage last year in October. WhatsApp users are also turning to Twitter to report the outage. Considering the wide range of outage, this could be one of the worst episodes for the instant messaging application.  

OnePlus Nord series has been doing quite well around the globe, especially in the US where it made up 60% of the total sales for OnePlus phones. According to media reports, the series is expanding again with the Nord N300 5G, a direct successor to the highly successful Nord N200 5G. The display size has increased slightly to 6.56-inches, but the design has changed completely. The corner punch-hole selfie camera has been replaced with a centered waterdrop notch and the main camera design has also been refreshed. The display is an IPS LCD just like before, but the resolution has been downgraded to 720p and the 90Hz refresh rate is still there. The Nord N300 is the first OnePlus phone to feature a MediaTek Dimensity 810 SoC, at least in the US. This is paired with only a single 4 GB/64 GB memory option and there is a memory card slot for expansion as well.  

Pakistan and Iran have agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the fields of economy, trade, culture and people-to-people contacts. This understanding came during a meeting between Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb and Iranian Culture Minister Mohammad Mehdi Esmaeili in Istanbul. Speaking on the occasion, Marriyum Aurangzeb said Pakistan desires to promote its relations with Iran in the fields of film and drama. She said Iranian filmmakers can take benefit from incentives given by the government for the film industry in Pakistan. The Minister said government has abolished taxes on the film industry, culture and tourism sector in this year's budget. The Iranian Minister for Culture expressed commitment to further strengthen cooperation with Pakistan in the fields of information, art and culture.  

The district and sessions court of Islamabad on Monday approved an interim bail of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chief Imran Khan in the case pertaining to protests by his party activists following the ECP’s verdict resulting in ex-PM’s disqualification. At least seven cases have been registered against more than 1,900 suspects, including sen­ior leaders of the PTI, on various charges that also include terrorism, in connection with Saturday’s protests against the Election Commission of Pakistan’s decision to disqualify former prime minister Imran Khan. The cases have been registered against the party leadership at the Secretariat, Industrial Area, Shahzad Town, Sihala, Sangjani, Khanna and Bhara Kahu police stations where the nominees have been charged with blocking roads, attacking police personnel and vandalizing. On Monday, Imran’s counsel Advocate Babar Awan filed an application with the court seeking pre-arrest bail. The petition was heard by additional session judge Za...

Rishi Sunak is favourite to become Britain’s next prime minister after Boris Johnson pulled out of the Conservative Party leadership race to replace Liz Truss, who resigned last week after an economic upheaval. According to internationl media, with the endorsement of nearly 150 conservative MPs, Sunak–who served as Chancellor under Johnson–has emerged as the frontrunner in the Tory leadership race. The only other challenger, Penny Mordaunt, has reportedly the backing of less than 30 MPs. A candidate requires nominations from at least 100 MPs to stand in the race. Johnson had raced home from a holiday in the Caribbean to try and secure the backing of 100 legislators to enter the contest to replace Truss, the woman who succeeded him in September after he was forced to quit over a string of scandals. He said late on Sunday that he had secured the backing of 102 legislators and could have been “back in Downing Street”, but that he had failed to persuade either Sunak or the other cont...

Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has said the foreign office is in contact with the Kenyan authorities over the killing of journalist Arshad Sharif. In a statement on Monday, he expressed deep grief and sorrow over the killing of Journalist Arshad Sharif saying it is an irreparable loss to the journalists’ community of Pakistan. Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb has said process has been started to bring the body of Arshad Sharif back home from Kenya. In a statement on Monday, she said the Kenyan authorities have been requested to complete the required procedures at the earliest. She said Pakistan's Ambassador in Kenya has identified the body of Arshad Sharif at Nairobi's mortuary.  

The Pakistani rupee on Monday continued its winning streak against the US dollar as the local currency gained 39 paisas against the greenback in the interbank market. According to forex dealers, the dollar lost 39 paisas to the Pakistani rupee in the interbank market and is currently being traded at Rs220.45. The dollar is being sold between Rs226 to 229 in the open market, the forex dealers said. On Friday, the local currency closed at Rs220.84 after appreciating 0.11 paisa from yesterday’s close of Rs220.95. Earlier, it emerged that the money exchange companies have decided to cap currency rates in a bid to stabilise the Pakistani rupee against foreign currencies. According to details, the money exchange companies have decided to cap currency rates to devaluate other currencies, including the US dollar.  

President Arif Alvi and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif have expressed deep grief and shock over the tragic death of journalist Arshad Sharif. In their separate statements, they commiserated with the bereaved family and prayed for the departed soul. President Arif Alvi said Arshad Sharif's death is a great loss to journalism and Pakistan. Meanwhile, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb held telephonic conversation with the mother of Journalist Arshad Sharif and expressed deep grief and sorrow over the tragic death of her son. The Information Minister also apprised her of the information received so far from Nairobi about the incident. Marriyum Aurangzeb said we share the grief of the bereaved family. She said efforts are afoot to know the reasons behind the death of Arshad Sharif. She said details will be shared with the bereaved family about the death of Arshad Sharif as soon as these are received from the Kenyan government. She said we are in contact...

Finance Minister Ishaq Dar chaired meeting of Prime Minister's Task Force on Information Technology and Telecom in Islamabad on Sunday. The meeting discussed the issues relating to IT sector's declining export and measures to bring it back to a growth trajectory. The Minister said that government accords priority attention to IT sector as it has immense potential for growth and could play significant role in strengthening Pakistan's economy. The Minister directed to the concerned authorities to take steps for facilitation of IT sector and to remove bottlenecks in order to encourage its exports.  

PML-N leader Hamza Shahbaz and former chief minister of Punjab has been appointed as the leader of the Opposition in the provincial assembly, according to a notification issued on Sunday. Hamza became the chief minister of Punjab on April 30, 2022 after which he was de-notified as the Opposition leader. However, the PML-N led government lost its power in the Punjab after Pervez Elahi became the chief minister of the province as the Supreme Court had declared the ruling of former Punjab Assembly deputy speaker Dost Muhammad Mazari in the chief minister's election "illegal". Elahi, who had been defeated by Hamza on July 22 during the Punjab CM's election after 10 PML-Q votes were rejected by former deputy speaker Mazari had challenged the ruling in the SC. The Supreme Court, in an 11-page short order, had said: "We find that the understanding and implementation of the said short judgment as well as the provisions of Article 63A(1)(b) of the Constitution by th...

SpaceX has launched 54 Starlink satellites to enhance the internet constellation. The launch took place from Florida's Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. According to SpaceX, the first stage booster returned in less than nine minutes after launch on the SpaceX droneship 'A Shortfall of Gravitas'. The satellites deployed into low Earth orbit, around 15 minutes after liftoff. During the live commentary, SpaceX Space Operations Engineer Siva Bharadvaj said, "With the completion of today's launch, it marks SpaceX's 48th successful Falcon 9 mission of 2022". With more than 3,100 operational satellites in orbit, Starlink aims to provide internet service for remote areas and plans to expand tenfold. The company has provided internet service to Ukraine as the invasion of Russia ravages the country. Musk's company has already recorded 31 launches in 2021 and 50 in 2022, with a combination of satellites devoted to Starlink, NASA, and US military.  

Far-right leader Giorgia Meloni has been sworn in as Italian prime minister, to become the first woman to head a government in Italy. According to international media, Meloni took the oath on Saturday before President Sergio Mattarella at the Quirinal Palace in Rome, once home to popes and kings of Italy. Meloni's appointment is an historic event for the eurozone's third largest economy and for post-fascist Brothers of Italy, which has never been in government. It won 26 percent of the vote last month, compared to eight and nine percent respectively for her allies Forza Italia and the far-right League. Meloni's 24-strong cabinet, including six women, suggests a desire to reassure Italy's partners. She appointed Giancarlo Giorgetti as economy minister, who served under the previous government of Mario Draghi. Giorgetti, a former minister of economic development, is considered one of the more moderate, pro-Europe members of Matteo Salvini's League. Meloni als...