Eleven Palestinian journalists have been killed in the war in Gaza since Israel launched its blistering air campaign on the coastal enclave, the Palestinian journalists’ union said Monday.
Twenty other journalists have also been injured in the conflict since it erupted on October 7 after Hamas militants carried out a deadly attack on Israel that triggered a devastating war.
A school in India has adopted a unique means of educating underprivileged children while creating awareness about environmental concerns at the same time.
In a remote village of the Indian state of Assam, plastic bottles are taken from children as fees.
The school was started by a couple, Mazin Mukhtar and Parmita Sarma, in 2016 to reduce the growing pile of garbage in the village and to provide free quality education to the children.
While no fee is taken from the students, they have to deposit 25 plastic bottles full of waste to the school every week.
By recycling these plastic bottles and the waste they contain, roads, bricks and toilets are made.
Older students earn a living by teaching the younger children.
Apart from education, children are taught different languages, recycling of plastics, carpentry and gardening.
By accepting plastic waste as school fees, the Akshar Foundation school has helped #CutTheCrap in Pamohi, Assam. We salute Akshar’s founders, Parmita Sarma and Azin Mukhtar, who have leveraged the power of education to #RiseForGood. Know More: https://t.co/w3rkxgR28Q pic.twitter.com/EE58AE50TV
— Mahindra Group (@MahindraRise) November 20, 2019
If this doesn’t surprise you, what does?#Incredible_NorthEastCredit: northeastview_ pic.twitter.com/6RO1SqhaNa
— Temjen Imna Along (@AlongImna) October 12, 2023
A video featuring a father and his two children struggling in the sea near Defence Phase VIII in Karachi has gone viral.
Shehbaz Younas, accompanied by his two children, went to the beach to play, however, his children reportedly got stuck in a riptide. Younas jumped in to help his children. Security guards hurried to get them out of the sea and they were taken to the nearby private hospital, as confirmed by DG South.
In a heart wrenching turn of events, the father could not survive while the children are now out of danger.
Joseph Czuba, a 71-year-old man has stabbed a six-year-old Palestinian-American boy to death while also injuring his 32-year-old mother in Plainfield, Illinois USA in what local police have confirmed is a hate crime.
The Palestinian-American family was reportedly attacked by the man after he got influenced watching and reading about the conflict in the Middle East.
Czuba reportedly shouted “You Muslims must die” as he entered the family’s rented home and attacked the mother. When she ran to the bathroom to call 911, Czuba stabbed six-year-old 26 times, killing him on the spot.
President Joe Biden has released a statement, saying that he is “sickened” by the incident.
“This horrific act of hate has no place in America, and stands against our fundamental values: freedom from fear for how we pray, what we believe, and who we are,” he said.
“As Americans, we must come together and reject Islamophobia and all forms of bigotry and hatred.”
Czuba has been charged with first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, hate crimes and aggravated battery.
Will County Sheriff’s Office said on Sunday that they received an emergency call while the woman was fighting the killer.
She “ran into the bathroom and continued to fight off her attacker”, he explained.
By the time the police reached the scene, the mother and the child had “multiple stab wounds to their chest, torso, and upper extremities”.
Bothwere taken to hospital, but the boy who was reportedly stabbed 26 times couldn’t survive the attack.
Czuba, on the other hand, sat “upright outside on the ground near the driveway of the residence.”
“Detectives were able to determine that both victims in this brutal attack were targeted by the suspect due to them being Muslim and the ongoing Middle Eastern conflict involving Hamas and the Israelis,” the Sheriff’s office added.
Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Chicago) identified the boy as Wadea al-Fayoume, and his mother as Hanaan Shahin.
Wadea was born in the US, while his mother was originally from Beitunia in the West Bank and came to the country 12 years ago.
According to CAIR-Chicago executive director Ahmed Rehab, Wadea had celebrated his birthday only a few weeks back.
I’m disgusted by this horrific violent hate crime that targeted an innocent Illinois mother and child because they are Muslim.
— Tammy Duckworth (@SenDuckworth) October 16, 2023
I condemn the barbaric, cold-blooded murder of six year old Wadea Al-Fayoume and hope the bigoted attacker is brought to justice. https://t.co/mc8EOkMeoE
https://t.co/rCFA8fzCq4 pic.twitter.com/tIbFM3uYZp
— Governor JB Pritzker (@GovPritzker) October 15, 2023
My heart is broken hearing the news of the gruesome murder of 6-year-old Palestinian-American Wadea Al-Fayoume. And my prayers are with his mother, Hanaan Shahin, as she recovers from more than a dozen stab wounds and the reality of the loss of her sweet boy.
— Senator Dick Durbin (@SenatorDurbin) October 16, 2023
Two Palestinian students in Gujranwala Medical College were injured by a group of hooligans with a sharp instrument over the weekend, media reports have confirmed.
A case has been filed against the group of six whereas the two Palestinians have been provided with medical aid in the hospital.
According to the police, Khuldoon and Abdul Karim have been living in a rented apartment near the medical college. The group was involved in eve-teasing their fellow female Palestinian students living in a neighbouring apartment. The Arab boys tried to stop the harassers, getting attacked in response.
Four of the attackers have been arrested by the police.
American broadcaster, MSNBC, has allegedly removed three Muslim news anchors from recording new episodes as Israel continues with bombing Gaza.
Semafor reported that MSNBC did not air The Mehdi Hasan Show on Thursday, altered Ayman Mohyeldin’s programme and planned on having another anchor to substitute for Ali Velshi for the weekend.
It has also been reported that a conflict within the organisation arose as an NBCU engineer created a “network-wide support event for staff who felt grief over the conflict”. But the conversation heated up after the engineer criticised Velshi’s show’s producer who asked why there were no Palestinians speaking at the event:
“This is not about Palestinians and Jews/Israelis,
“This is about terrorists and Jews/Israelis. Anyone entering this group needs to denounce terror and what happened on Saturday. Claims of ‘freedom fighting,’ rationalizations, really, anything not explicitly and unequivocally about being supportive during this difficult time; these do NOT belong here.”
To which the producer responded, “You’re on here equating the loss of Palestinian civilian life with terrorism and saying that I have no right to grieve, as you do. You’re putting words in my mouth, demanding that I denounce terror as if I had anything to do with it. Not sure how you have managed to twist all this from a simple question asking, where can I, as someone with friends who are currently trapped in both Gaza and Israel, go to grieve?”
The friction amongst the staff continued.
According to Semafor, MSNBC has denied all accusations, and has”vehemently pushed back against any notion that anyone was being sidelined in any way.”
While many pro-Israeli and Islamophobic individuals have welcomed the suspension, others have been highly critical of MSNBC’s open anti-Palestinian approach.
https://publish.twitter.com/?query=https%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2FIlhanMN%2Fstatus%2F1713256472853827958&widget=TweetSo-called champions of “Freedom Of Speech” . MSNBC suspends Muslims anchors. pic.twitter.com/69ZfgtuxYe
— Etihaad khan (@EtihaadK) October 15, 2023
the white supremacy of Mainstream media is becoming crystal clear now, isn’t it?https://t.co/5yolMSJOBT
— Off Grid Ron (@Off_Grid_Ron) October 15, 2023
Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE) has released a detailed study titled as “LifeTime Cost Of Public Servants” on its website.
The state-run institute headed by economist Nadeemul Haque, has said that the study reveals that the federal government pays a total of Rs. 8 trillion to its Rs. 1.92 million government servants. Along with this expense come pensions for retired staff with six dozen kinds of privileges to the serving lot.
The complete study “Life Time Cost Of Public Servants” is available on the website: https://t.co/9LZWzZYq8T@nadeemhaque @durre_nayab_ #Pakistan #Economy #IMF https://t.co/4cGfL1ioRL
— Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE) (@PIDEpk) October 16, 2023
It states that “The combined ratio of salaries, perks, and operating expenses is much higher for BPS-22 employees, earning 32.52 times from BPS-1 employees. This suggests that perks and benefits and operating expenditure are highly compressed, with a large gap between the highest and the lowest salaries.” Added to this disparity is the use of vehicles for personal use by officers from Grade 20-22 which costs more than 1.2 percent of the basic pay and the reimbursements of health allowances and medical bills cost the budget over Rs. 2.5 to 3 billion. The housing facility that has never been accounted for in the total cost of living.
It has been pointed out very clearly that political hirings and promises by politicians to provide jobs for their voters is a big issue since their role is to create more opportunities and not offer jobs.
A public servant of Grade-1 hired in July 2023 will be costing Rs.8.17 million including the salary, pension, perks and benefits that come with it for a period of thirty years. This goes on to increase for all the officers till Grade 17.
The PIDE report suggests long-term planning, keeping in check all the major expenses spent on Government servants and before hiring a new one. Immediate job creation is good but rapid job creation may have negative effects on the economy in the longer run. It is important to strike a balance between short-term benefits and sustainable fiscal goals.
More than 400 Palestinians killed in Israeli raids in one day
Wafa news has reported that Israeli bombardment of Gaza has killed more than 400 Palestinians and 1,500 have been wounded in the past 24 hours.
China on Israel
During a call with Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud of Saudi Arabia on Saturday, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi deemed Israel’s operation in Gaza as “beyond the scope of self-defence” and alluded to the Israeli government to “cease its collective punishment of” Palestinians.
“All parties should not take any action to escalate the situation and should return to the negotiating table as soon as possible.”, he added.
Gaza death toll climbs to 2,329
According to the health ministry, at least 2,329 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza as the result of Israeli attacks whereas 9,714 have been wounded.
On the contrary, 1,300 people have been killed in the Hamas attack on Israel.
126 Israeli captives
According to the Israeli army, 126 people have been taken captive by Hamas since October 7 attacks, whereas at least 279 soldiers have died.
Israeli military at Gaza border
As per Al-Jazeera’s investigation, the Israeli army has been “struggling to deal with infiltrations by fighters from Gaza” since October 7 attacks by Qassam Brigades.
Nonetheless, Israel continues to attack Gaza and intercept rockets.
Israel’s military is also setting themselves along the border as hundreds of tanks and heavy military equipment are proceeding with operational positions, indicating severe operations in the coming days.
Israeli soldiers harassing Palestinians in Jerusalem Old City
Palestinians in Jerusalem’s Old City are now under intensified harassment at the hands of the Israelis.
Al Jazeera spoke to Palestinians who said that they are now facing “new interrogation tactics at its entry points, including phone searches, increased use of physical force and vulgar insults”.
Additionally, as per Wafa news, 50 Palestinians have been arrested by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank.
No access to health services for 70% of people in Gaza
Palestinian Ministry of Health spokesperson, Ashraf al-Qudra, reported that 70 percent of residents in the besieged Gaza Strip are without health services after the UNRWA evacuated its centres.
Water crisis in Gaza
As per the United Nations refugee agency for Palestinians, water has become a “matter of life and death” in the Gaza Strip as Israel has blocked water supply.
UNRWA has stated that more than two million people are at risk.
“It has become a matter of life and death. It is a must: Fuel needs to be delivered now into Gaza to make water available for two million people,” said UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini.
Additionally, it has been a week since no humanitarian supplies have been allowed into Gaza.
Credits: Al-Jazeera
As the civilian death toll from Israel’s bombing of Gaza continues to rise Instagram users have complained that they are not getting views on pro Palestine content.
While more than a 1000 Palestinians are dead, including more than 600 children, others are struggling to survive through Israel’s embargo on food, water, electricity, and other basic services.
Israel’s atrocities in Gaza have resulted in people around the world raising their voice on social media and sharing footage.
This also includes Pakistani influencers and Instagram users with a significant amount of following.
They are now highlighting that the viewership on their Instagram stories has starkly decreased every since they started sharing pro-Palestinian content.
This has not happened for the first time.
Instagram (i.e. Meta) is known to deliberately restrict the outreach of content that is in support of Palestine or merely stating facts that put Israel in a bad light.
Quds News Network, the largest Palestinian news outlet, has said that Meta has suspended it’s page on Israel’s complaint.
Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), one of the biggest money-losing entities in the country, has ironically announced that they will pay their employees an increment for “good performance”.
As reported by The News, PIA’s management announced the bonus for the performance of the employees over the last six months, from April to September. The bonus will be implemented by October 2023. The amount that was decided is tantamount to the bonus issued in 2022.
PIA is going through a monthly loss of Rs 12 billion and a total loss of over Rs 740 billion but the bonus that was announced is Rs 915 million. The increment in salaries will be 5-10 percent paid on March 31, 2023. The employees who are told to leave on or before October were recruited recently or got a promotion or salary increase in these six months are not eligible for it.
The airline has announced this expenditure while it is grappling with issues of fuel outages and financial loss. According to Caretaker Federal Minister for Privatization Fawad Hasan Fawad, 15 out of 34 PIA aircraft are grounded, the airline is operating with only 19 aircraft and some of them are also not fully operational. The gap between income (22 billion) and expense(34 billion) which is increasing with time.
Amidst the ongoing debate of privatization, PIA has taken a loan of Rs260 billion from commercial banks on a government guarantee. It is not paying tax of Rs1.25 billion to the FBR and has not been able to pay more than Rs1 billion per month to Civil Aviation.