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Author: News Desk

  • VIDEO: Former MPA Iftikhar Ahmed Baloch attacked, Hamza Shehbaz orders arrest of attackers

    VIDEO: Former MPA Iftikhar Ahmed Baloch attacked, Hamza Shehbaz orders arrest of attackers

    Chief Minister (CM) Punjab Hamza Shehbaz on Wednesday sought a report from Inspector-General (IG) Punjab after former MPA Iftikhar Ahmed Khan Baloch was attacked in Jhang.

    A video that surfaced on social media showed that he was beaten, his clothes were torn and abuses were being hurled at him.

    After the video went viral, Hamza directed the IG Punjab to arrest those involved in the incident.

    The police said that under the direction of the chief minister, a team has been formed to arrest those people who attacked the former MPA.

  • Imran Khan gets bail extension in 10 vandalism cases, to appear before court on July 30

    Imran Khan gets bail extension in 10 vandalism cases, to appear before court on July 30

    A district and sessions court in Islamabad extended Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s interim bail till July 30.  He got bail extension in 10 cases related to vandalism during his party’s Azadi March in the federal capital held on May 25.

    During today’s hearing, District and Sessions Court Judge Kamran Basharat Mufti approved an application filed by Khan seeking exemption from personal appearance and extended his interim bail.

    Read more: Khan in court, granted pre-arrest bail in 10 cases against him

    When Khan’s junior counsel Rai Tajamul pleaded with the court to grant his client interim bail in a case registered in Kohsar police station, the judge remarked that “Khan’s personal appearance is necessary” since he is seeking a fresh bail.

    He informed the court that the PTI chief is in Lahore, while his lawyer Babar Awan is abroad. However, Khan’s counsel assured the judge that his client would appear at the next hearing, which is on July 30.

    On July 19, Judge Mufti extended the interim bail of the PTI Chairman till July 21 in these cases.

  • Pakistan removed from US human trafficking watchlist

    Pakistan removed from US human trafficking watchlist

    The United States (US) removed Pakistan from its human trafficking watchlist.

    Although Pakistan was taken off the “watchlist,” Pakistan remains on Tier 2, which serves as a warning that penalties might be imposed if it didn’t make any further progress and will be downgraded to Tier 3, which would lead to sanctions.

    Tier 2 nations are those who are making considerable efforts in that direction. Pakistan’s performance in combating trafficking, according to the study, has improved.

    “The government demonstrated overall increasing efforts compared with the previous reporting period, considering the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, if any, on its anti-trafficking capacity; therefore Pakistan was upgraded to Tier 2,” the report said.

    “The government allocated resources for the implementation of the National Action Plan (NAP) and amended the Prevention of Trafficking in Persons Act (PTPA) to remove provisions that allowed fines in lieu of imprisonment for sex trafficking crimes with women and children as victims,” the report added.

  • Pakistani rupee plunges to Rs227 against US dollar at midday trading

    Pakistani rupee plunges to Rs227 against US dollar at midday trading

    On Thursday, the rupee’s decline against the US dollar reached an all-time low of Rs227 in the interbank market.

    Experts blame the losses on political unrest and the fact that the dollar is bolstering against other currencies as well, according to DAWN. On Wednesday, the rupee had a closing value of Rs224.92.

    According to the Foreign Exchange Association of Pakistan (FAP), the local currency fell by Rs2.08 to Rs227 versus the US dollar when the session started today at 10:57 AM.

    According to experts, the country’s political unrest had reduced investor confidence, which had caused importers to worry and “unnecessarily” buy dollars from the market. He claimed that as a result, there was an increase in the interbank market’s demand for dollars.

    Furthermore, over the past week, the dollar’s value had increased against over 40 currencies, including the British pound and the Japanese yen, which had an impact on the local market’s use of the rupee, according to Bostan.

    After reaching Rs211.93 on June 22, the local currency climbed to Rs204.56 in the first week of July. When the country’s staff-level agreement with the international lender was reached on July 15, it briefly appreciated but again continued to depreciate against the US dollar.

  • Not in a position of hosting Asia Cup 2022, says Sri Lanka Cricket

    Not in a position of hosting Asia Cup 2022, says Sri Lanka Cricket

    Amid the ongoing economic and political crisis, Sri Lanka has withdrawn from hosting the upcoming Asia Cup 2022. This news came after Sri Lanka decided to postpone the third edition of the Lankan Premier League (LPL).

    Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) informed the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) about their decision that they are not in a position of hosting the Asia Cup because of the current political situation.

    The venue is yet to be decided. It could either be the United Arab Emirates (UAE) or any Asian country, including India.

    Sri Lanka will reportedly consult the UAE Cricket Board, requesting them to provide a venue to host the event. Sri Lanka Cricket will remain the official host of the Asia Cup, but the tournament is set to be played in Dubai and Sharjah between August 27 and September 11, according to ESPNcricinfo.

    The 2022 edition of the Asia Cup is scheduled to be a T20I tournament. Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and one other team from the qualifiers will be competing against each other in the T20 format at the Asia Cup 2022. UAE, Kuwait, Singapore, and Hong Kong will compete with each other in the qualifier rounds to get the spot as the sixth team in the tournament.

    Since 1984, 14 Asia Cups have taken place. India won the Asia Cup title seven times. Sri Lanka is second to India with five cups to their name while Pakistan has won this title two times.

  • Emilia Clarke opens up on struggling post two ‘brain aneurysms’

    Emilia Clarke opens up on struggling post two ‘brain aneurysms’

    Hollywood star Emilia Clarke has revealed that she did not expect to retain her speech ability after suffering from two brain aneurysms.

    Getting candid about her health troubles in a new interview, the Daenerys Targaryen of Game of Thrones was surprised she was still able to speak and communicate normally despite missing parts of her brain, reports aceshowbiz.com.

    Emilia Clarke astonished by her speech ability after two brain aneurysms

    Having gone through several surgeries to treat her brain aneurysms, Emilia Clarke offered updates on her health during an appearance on BBC One’s ‘Sunday Morning’.

    “The amount of my brain that is no longer usable – It’s remarkable that I am able to speak, sometimes articulately,” Emilia Clarke shared her astonishment.

    “And live my life completely normally with absolutely no repercussions,” she continued in the interview airing on July 17.

    She went on to express gratefulness for being one of the lucky ones, saying: “I am in the really, really, really small minority of people that can survive that.”

    Emilia Clarke then brought up the result of her brain scans.

    “There’s quite a bit missing! Which always makes me laugh,” she lightheartedly spilled, adding, “Because strokes, basically, as soon as any part of your brain doesn’t get blood for a second, it’s gone. And so the blood finds a different route to get around but then whatever bit it’s missing is therefore gone.”

    Back in 2019, the actress said that she couldn’t bear to look at her own reflection in the mirror post-surgeries.

    “After my operations I didn’t want to look at my own face. I was so full of drugs from being in the hospital that I had a lot of water retention, and one half of my face was quite swollen,” Emilia Clarke told Stylist magazine.

    “I felt so deeply unattractive. What I can see now is that I could see the pain behind my eyes. And no amount of anything can cover that.”

    Clarke was reported to have suffered from aphasia following her aneurysms, which is a language disorder affecting a person’s ability to communicate. At one point, the “Last Christmas” actress was even unable to recall her own name. In 2019, she launched a charity by the name of SameYou that aims to raise funds to help those recovering from brain surgeries and strokes.

  • Apple may launch its eSIM-only iPhone 14 variant this year

    Apple may launch its eSIM-only iPhone 14 variant this year

    People may soon switch to phones with eSIM instead of physical SIM slots as more carriers and phone makers worldwide adopt the standard.

    The upcoming iPhone 14 series from Apple may only be available with eSIMs in some markets, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.

    However, it is not anticipated that the tech giant will completely abandon physical SIM variants in favour of eSIM-only models for all of its iPhones. Apple appears to be analysing public reaction to the new eSIM-only models.

    According to reports, Apple has already alerted a number of significant US carriers to get ready for the arrival this Fall of its eSIM-only iPhone models. The primary benefit of removing the SIM slot from a phone is the release of limited interior physical space that can be used for other components. Another aspect that will help users is security, as telecoms can simultaneously send security updates to millions of users.

    Speaking of Pakistani users, this is both good and bad news since some folks are used to physical sim variants because they are straightforward and simple to use, whereas you must visit carrier franchises to obtain an e-sim and the setup is a little different from using a sim card.

  • Female students in India forced to remove undergarments at test centre during exam

    Female students in India forced to remove undergarments at test centre during exam

    Almost 100 female students were asked to remove their undergarments before taking a medical entrance exam in India. The incident took place at an exam centre in Kollam city. Their parents have filed a complaint.

    Their undergarments were found piled up by students after the exams. The students claimed that they had to go through severe psychological trauma before the exam.

    The father of a 17-year-old girl who was taking her first-ever medical exam claims that his daughter is still recovering from the painful experience of having to take the three-hour exam while not wearing a brassiere.

    The Kerala Police on Tuesday, 19 July, arrested five women who were on duty when girl students appearing for the entrance test were asked to remove their undergarments.

    The institute, where the incident took place, has denied involvement, claiming that the frisking and biometric checks were performed by third-party agencies

  • PTI rejects ECP decision to defer Sindh local body elections, plans to challenge it

    PTI rejects ECP decision to defer Sindh local body elections, plans to challenge it

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has rejected the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) decision to postpone the Sindh local body elections and plans to challenge it in court.

    PTI leader Ali Zaidi said the party condemns ECP’s decision, adding that the electoral body was already controversial. “The ECP decision will be challenged in the Sindh High Court,” he said.

    The ECP announced the postponement of polls owing to Muharram and rainy weather.

    PTI leadership decides to stick around in Lahore till the election of Punjab CM

    Later, PTI Chairman Imran Khan postponed his Karachi visit ahead of Punjab’s chief minister election tomorrow, July 22.

    “Before the postponement of polls in Sindh, a PTI spokesman insisted that it was the party’s consensus decision that Khan should focus more on Punjab, and because of this he couldn’t spare two days — July 21 and 22 — for Karachi and Hyderabad,” reports Dawn.

    Lahore seeing a repetition of Sindh House horse-trading: Imran Khan

    On July 20, Khan claimed that horse-trading was happening in Lahore with MPAs being offered Rs500 million to switch their loyalty.

    “Today, Lahore is seeing a repetition of the Sindh House horse-trading episode that happened in Islamabad, with up to Rs500 million being offered to buy MPAs,” tweeted the PTI chairman. He alleged that PPP Co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari was the “main architect” behind this, adding that the former president has secured an “NRO for his corruption and purchases people with looted wealth”.

    “This is not only an attack on our democracy but also on the moral fabric of our society. Had Supreme Court taken action and debarred these turncoats for life, it would have acted as a deterrent,” claimed the PTI chairman.

    Khan further claimed that after his government was “toppled with stolen money from Sindh and NRO 2 achieved, certified criminal Asif Zardari in cahoots with Sharif mafia now seeking to steal Punjab people’s mandate by trying to purchase MPAs”.

    “Want to ask the Honourable Supreme Court: are they not cogniscant of the damage being wreaked? Isn’t destruction of our democracy, Constitution and nation’s morality a fit case for Suo Moto action? Are the ‘neutrals’ not realising how our beloved country is literally being destroyed on all fronts by the Imported government brought in through US regime change conspiracy?”

    PTI to move Supreme Court against horse-trading: Fawad Chaudhry

    On the other hand, PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry said that the party will move the Supreme Court against horse-trading.

    “We want Rana Sanaullah, Zardari, and Ataullah Tarar to get arrested and the court to conduct an immediate inquiry into the matter,” he added.

  • Netflix introduces ‘add a home’ feature to prevent password sharing

    Netflix introduces ‘add a home’ feature to prevent password sharing

    Netflix has opposed password sharing for a while now since it allows multiple users to watch their favorite seasons on an account while paying only one subscription fee.

    It had previously signaled about restricting the sharing of passwords, but users were convinced that it wouldn’t happen. Unfortunately, Netflix is now testing a feature to charge additional users.

    Users can purchase additional ‘homes’ to share their Netflix account with by using the ‘add a home’ feature. Although there is an additional monthly fee for each home Rs670 ($2.99) on top of your regular subscription fee, this fee is still significantly less than the price of a full Netflix subscription, allowing a few households or users to save some money on Netflix.

    Additionally, you can use the feature to watch Netflix while travelling on a tablet, laptop, or phone. According to Netflix, a new setting will soon be available that will allow users to manage where their accounts are being used and to instantly remove any additional homes.

    The feature will go live on August 22nd, according to Netflix. When a user shares their account with another household, Netflix points out that it will not automatically add homes and charge a fee; instead, users will be prompted to add homes and consent to the additional fee.

    Read more: Netflix subscriber count drops by 1 million

    The feature’s use is subject to a few restrictions. Depending on its tier, a particular account may only be able to add so many additional “homes”: A second home may be added to a Basic account, a Standard account, two, and a Premium account, three.