GENEVA – The United Nations said it needed $5 billion in aid for Afghanistan in 2022 to avert a humanitarian catastrophe and offer the ravaged country a future after 40 years of suffering. In its biggest-ever single-country appeal, the UN said $4.4 billion (3.9 billion euros) was needed within Afghanistan, while a further $623 million … Read more
KARACHI: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has launched a flagship initiative, Point of Sale, to bring Rs16 trillion worth of undocumented retail sales into the tax net. Pakistan’s total retail sales are estimated at Rs20 trillion annually. The FBR’s integration of POS will also help the tax authorities implement a full-fledged value-added tax (VAT) … Read more
In an interesting turn of events, one of the victims in the famous “couple harassment case” has submitted an affidavit in a trial court, stating that she did not recognize the accused in the case including the prime accused Usman Mirza. “I state on oath that the accused, who have been nominated in the case … Read more
UNITED NATIONS – Cross-border humanitarian aid to northwest Syria, not green-lit by Damascus, remains ‘essential,’ the UN said, as the measure was de facto extended for six months without a new Security Council vote. The council had previously renewed the authorisation allowing aid into rebel-held areas in the country’s northwest “for a period of six … Read more
The mysterious killing of former media in-charge and senior member of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Mufti Khalid Balti – known as Muhammad Khurasani – in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province last Sunday signals that the territory once seen as a safe-haven by the militant group is no longer that hospitable. Unknown assailants killed the TTP spokesman … Read more
WASHINGTON – Women vaccinated against Covid-19 saw a slight delay in their period of almost a day compared to those who were unvaccinated, a US government-funded study said last week. But the number of days of bleeding was not affected, according to the research carried out on nearly 4,000 individuals and published in “Obstetrics & … Read more
Pakistan has been facing a huge trade deficit for the past many years, primarily on account of having more imports than exports. It is a huge challenge for the government to reduce it and control it, but there’s not much hope in sight as all economic indicators are looking down. Recently, a survey brought to … Read more
It is a rainy day with dark clouds scudding across the sky; the biting cold numbs the fingers and nose. And around us, there is lush greenery. Against this backdrop, an elderly couple appears, with a smart looking youngster by their side. They are making their way into a building. The visibly fragile mother suddenly … Read more
KIGALI – Rwanda is among few countries in Africa that have achieved the World Health Organisation (WHO) target of vaccinating 40 per cent of the entire population by December 2021. According to the Rwandan Ministry of Health a total of 7,587,808 of the targeted Rwandan population aged 12 and above, have received at least one … Read more
The Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) on December 6 announced holding an “inflation march” against the incumbent government in Islamabad on March 23. The leadership of the opposition parties’ alliance is also active in the parliament to bring a no-trust motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan and is contacting other political parties in this regard. This … Read more
Hong Kong – Sri Lanka is speeding up vaccination for more age groups so as to meet goals of making 2022 the “Visit Sri Lanka Year”. The South Asian island country extended its vaccination drive to include children and teenagers aged 12 to 15 starting January 7, wrote Sri Lankan Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella in … Read more
NAJAF, Iraq – Iraqi boxer Bushra Al-Hajjar jumps into the ring, gloves raised to eye level, and strikes out at her sparring partner. Her bigger struggle, though, is to deliver a blow against social taboos. In Iraq’s Najaf, the sight of a women’s boxing hall is unusual but, like others here, the 35-year-old boxing instructor … Read more
New Delhi – India has been failing to recover its toxic air quality, while the smog-plagued cities keep increasing along with the diseases caused by the contaminated air. Most of the 132 “non-attainment” cities in India, that is cities with poor levels of air quality have either “marginally improved” or increased their levels of air … Read more
The historic Elections (Amendment) Bill, 2021, meant to enable overseas Pakistanis, in prescribed manner, subject to secrecy and security, to exercise their right to vote during general elections in Pakistan has been well received by many quarters in the country – barring the Opposition, and has been widely appreciated as a positive step. However, there … Read more
Sehar Kamran, PPP leader Democracy is still a new and evolving process in Pakistan. Even though the political parties in the country have existed even before independence, they have not been allowed to operate independently, for a variety of reasons. In addition, the constant discontinuation of the democratic process over the decades has inadvertently added … Read more
Karachi: With the arrival of the new year, came the breaking news that was unexpected, but welcome. Superstar Humayun Saeed was selected to play Dr. Hasnat Khan in the fifth season of Netflix’s series, The Crown, becoming the first mainstream Pakistani actor to go ‘Netflix’. Had he been cast in a lesser-known series, it might … Read more
India and China have been embroiled in a border crisis in the mountainous region of Ladakh for nearly two years. It began in May 2020, when Chinese troops made incursions into territory controlled by India, and it reached a peak that June with deadly clashes that killed 20 Indian soldiers and four Chinese soldiers, writes … Read more
WASHINGTON – A veteran US diplomat who has handled turbulent ties with Turkey was named last week to tackle crises in Sudan and Ethiopia as the outgoing envoy looked to make progress in Addis Ababa. David Satterfield, the outgoing US ambassador to Turkey who has worked extensively in the Middle East, will become special envoy … Read more
NAIROBI – The Ethiopian government announced it was pardoning a number of high-profile political prisoners, including members of the rebel Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), in a bid to promote “national dialogue”. The surprise move comes amid a lull in the brutal 14-month conflict in northern Ethiopia after a dramatic shift in battlefield fortunes at … Read more
One year after the violent assault on the US Capitol, Americans remain deeply concerned about the health of their democracy, and about a third say violence against the government can sometimes be justified, according to the recent polls conducted by the Washington Post – University of Maryland. The January 6, 2021 attack on the seat … Read more
JAKARTA – Indonesia, the world’s top exporter of thermal coal, said it would ease a ban on exports of the fuel that it imposed to head off looming blackouts. Fourteen ships loaded with coal and destined for overseas markets would be allowed to leave Indonesia, Coordinating Minister Luhut said in a statement. But all other … Read more
People of southern Balochistan particularly the people of Makran migrated to various parts of Sindh including Karachi in the 19th century primarily due to famine and oppressive rule of tribal chiefs, writes Essa Khan Baloch in his book “Baloch Naye Zindagi Kì Talash Mein”. The book whose title may be translated as “Baloch in search … Read more
PARIS – Brigitte Macron, Michelle Obama, Jacinda Ardern are among some of the world’s most powerful women who have fallen victim to a growing trend: disinformation about their sex or sexuality to mock or, worse, humiliate them. For months messages have appeared on social media claiming that Macron is a transgender woman originally named Jean-Michel. … Read more
Despite a ban imposed by the Balochistan High Court (BHC), doctors have been boycotting government hospitals for the last two months, badly affecting the common man of Balochistan in general and the people of Quetta in particular. The doctors – employed at the government hospitals of the provincial capital – started their protest in September, … Read more
LONDON – Britons in London called for Prime Minister Boris Johnson to step down after he apologised in parliament for attending a drinks gathering in his Downing Street office during lockdown. The opposition leader called him a “man without shame”. Opposition leader Keir Starmer and even members of his own party have called for him … Read more
BEIJING – The distressing case of a pregnant Chinese woman miscarrying after a strict lockdown delayed her access to medical treatment has reignited debate over the limits of China’s zero-tolerance approach to Covid-19. The country where the coronavirus was first detected in 2019 is now among the last places still hewing to “zero Covid”, placing … Read more
MADRID – Debate over the environmental impact of Spain’s huge factory farming sector is heating up in the country, Europe’s biggest meat consumer, and splitting its ruling coalition. In an interview published in British daily The Guardian, Consumer Affairs Minister Alberto Garzon lashed out against Spain’s “so-called mega-farms”, calling them unsustainable. “They find a village … Read more
POZNAN, Poland – Curators combing through a vast historic archive of Freemasonry in Europe amassed by the Nazis in their wartime anti-Masonic purge say they believe there are still secrets to be unearthed. From insight into women’s Masonic lodges to the musical scores used in closed ceremonies, the trove, housed in an old university library … Read more
