Fan Zhei, a young woman of Pakistani descent adopted by a Chinese couple when they came to work in the country, is attracting attention for the contrast between her foreign looks and Chinese accent.
Fan, 20, has 750,000 followers on Chinese social website Douyin, and her videos are going viral.
How was she adopted?
She was found abandoned in a cardboard box on the street in Pakistan by her adoptive parents when they were working in the country, according to South China Morning Post.
The couple brought her back to their hometown in a rural area of central China’s Henan province, and called her Fan Zihe, an auspicious name meaning “vigorous and long-lived”. She remains their only child.
Fan attracting attention due to her complexion
Fan first attracted attention on social media in 2021, when she posted a video of herself eating traditional Henan noodles while squatting in front of her house.
The contrast between her appearance and her native Henan dialect piqued the curiosity of many.
Fan’s content on social media includes activities of rural life– farming, eating noodles and asking for lucky money from the elderly members of the family.
Fan said her parents have always treated her as though she is their biological daughter and defended her whenever people said she looked different. She was nicknamed “little black girl”.
“Our daughter’s dark skin is beautiful and healthy,” they said.
Fan identifies as Chinese. She expresses gratitude to her parents for adopting her.
“People say loving a person is like growing a flower. I think the best gardeners are my parents,” Fan said.
She said she wants to buy them a flat in the city to repay them. She earns 4,000 yuan (US$550) a month from her Douyin account, more than Chinese farmers’ average salary, which was 1,678 yuan a month in 2022.
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) of Pakistan has once again extended the deadline for outsourcing Islamabad Airport.
According to ARY, the government aims to raise funds by outsourcing airport services, so the deadline is now extended by two months, until July 15. The CAA mentioned that companies from Turkey, Qatar, Malaysia, UAE, Saudi Arabia, and other countries have shown interest in the project.
CAA first announced the tender in March with deadline of May 15. But the deadline has been extend due to a lack of interest from potential bidders for outsourcing the airport.
Before this, the federal government asked for applications to outsource Islamabad International Airport for 15 years. The Civil Aviation Authority told interested bidders to submit their applications with a Rs5,000 fee by November 8.
The government also plans to outsource Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad International Airports.
The Employee Unions of the CAA are against the decision to outsource Pakistan airports.
Australian doctor Richard Scolyer is cancer-free after undergoing the world-first treatment for a brain tumor based on his own pioneering research.
BBC reported about his self-treatment journey earlier this year and called it a “gamble” as the detected cancer was in its fourth stage. It was so aggressive that most patients survived less than a year.
The 57-year-old underwent experimental therapy based on his own research on melanoma, a type of cancer that starts in the skin.
Dr. Scolyer, went ahead with the treatment, aided by his colleague and friend Professor Georgina Long. Both are co-directors of the Melanoma Institute Australia.
The team used a treatment based on immunotherapy, which teaches the body’s immune system to attack cancer cells.
Dr. Scolyer also became the first to be administered a vaccine personalised to his tumour’s characteristics.
After a tough couple of months, at the start of the year – spent dealing with epileptic seizures, liver issues, and pneumonia, Dr. Scolyer says he is feeling healthier.
The results so far have generated huge excitement that the duo may be on the cusp of a discovery that could one day help roughly 300,000 people, who aer diagnosed with brain cancer globally every year.
Students and women in South Waziristan are facing difficulties in creating online e-domicile.
On the instructions of the Home Department of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government, the district administration started working on creating an e-domicile from March 21, but the complicated steps of e-domicile have increased the difficulties of people instead of facilitating them.
Additionally, B-form is required for online e-domicile, another problem for the locals.
Assistant Commissioner Wana Faisal Ismail told Geo News that the district administration is receiving a lot of complaints regarding e-domicile from the citizens.
The Water Corporation has warned the people of Karachi suffering from shortage that there will be further reduction in water supply, advising carefully storing and using water.
Geo reports that according to the spokesperson of Water Corporation, the supply of water from New Pump House Gharo will be suspended from May 16 to 19 due to development works of K-Electric and Water Corporation.
The annual work by Water Corporation and K-Electric in New Pump House Gharo will result in a shortage of 13 MGD of water in the city.
The Water Corporation also said that new electrical panels and electrical equipment will be installed in New Pump House Gharo, and the total duration of development works will be 72 hours.
Students who want to study abroad, particularly in Turkey, can now pursue their education as Ankara-based TED University officials is offering significant scholarships in 23 undergraduate and 17 graduate programmes for Pakistanis, enrolling for the Fall 2024 semester.
TED University announced that new enrollees will receive scholarships ranging from 25 percent to 100 percent, determined by their academic achievements and other credentials.
No GRE required
Pakistani students will not be required to undergo GRE or English language tests.
TED is one of the top universities in Ankara with highly educated professional faculty members.
Free of cost housing
The university houses many facilities to support students’ education, health and recreation free of cost.
Courses offered
Undergraduate courses offered in the five faculties are architecture, city and regional planning, industrial design, interior architecture and environmental design, visual communication design, psychology, sociology, mathematics, English language and literature, business administration, economics, political science and international relations, early childhood education, primary education, guidance and psychological counseling, English language education, mathematics education, computer engineering, electrical and electronics engineering, industrial engineering, civil engineering, mechanical engineering, and software engineering.
Graduate courses
Graduate programmes include applied data science, architecture and urban studies, civil engineering, computer engineering, developmental focused clinical child and adolescent psychology, economics, economics and finance, mechanical engineering, mechatronics engineering, engineering management, English language education, industrial engineering, interactive computing and information systems, management in educational institutions, migration studies, and psychological counseling and guidance.
Students to teachers ratio
5,000 students were currently studying at the TED university at the moment while the faculty to student Ratio is 24:1 that provides guidance to the students. So far, the students have taken part in 84 research projects, 44 nationally funded projects, 23 internationally funded projects, and curated 100 industry projects.
Hazim Bangwar, Assistant Commissioner for North Nazimabad, Karachi, has responded to criticism on his unconventional attire at the Hum Style Awards.
He asserted that he has carried his office “with respect and dignity and always dressed appropriately”, adding that no doctor or officer wears their uniforms outside their office.
Hazim Bangwar, has often been the subject of attention on social media — but this time he is in the spotlight for a very ludicrous reason.
He is not an average Pakistani Commissioner.
In a world full of stereotypes, he is a gritty fashion icon with a unique sense of style. He has a passion for singing and has released a few songs too. He is often attending events including the red carpet premiere of Money Heist, Korea.
And only recently, he made an appearance at the red carpet of Hum Style Awards in an all-black, sleek costume-like attire with a long, pleated neck piece.
In all this debate, the question is: does one’s attire matter? Does wearing a crisp, white shalwar kameez with a waistcoat, or the finest of suits make one more diligent in their job?
By all accounts, Hazim is doing a good job as Commissioner. Why then should we be bothered by his clothing choices, worn at a private event?
Trolls really need to come to a grip with trying to dictate their choices onto public servants.
If you are young and unemployed, this one’s for you: the government is recruiting for 1,102 vacant posts for grades 1 to 17 in federal ministries and subordinate institutions.
The Establishment Division has issued separate NOCs for each institution.
NOC has been issued for the recruitment of 12 vacancies of Medical Officers (Grade 17) in District Health Office Islamabad. These recruitments will be through FPSC while two of Grade 16 and 17 in National Library, five for Information Service Academy of Grade I to 13, and 206 recruitments of Grade 4 to 15 will be made in the Defense Division.
Additionally, 66 Grade I to 15 in the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis, 429 Grade I to 15 (including 85 regulars) in PIMS Hospital, one Information Officer Grade 17 and Grade 16 Computer Operator in Ministry of Defense (GHQ). Another Federal Government Polyclinic Hospital will be filled for 77 posts from Grade I to 15.
Surplus of Establishment Division to recruit 85 of Grade 4 to 15 in Ministry of External Affairs, six of Grade 16 in Staff Welfare Organization, 13 of Grade I to 14 in Pakistan Public Administration Research and 199 of Grade I to 15 in FIA.
CNN has published and aired a damning report with the help of Israeli whistleblowers working at the Sde Teiman detention camp in Israel. The exposé has revealed systemic abuses by the military, including prisoners being restrained, blindfolded, and forced to wear diapers.
Israel’s military base, which is now a detention center in the Negev desert, was photographed twice by an Israeli worker of a scene that he says continues to haunt him.
Picture showed rows of men in gray tracksuits sitting on paper-thin mattresses, ringfenced by barbed wire. The detainees were blindfolded, their heads hanging heavy under the harsh glare of floodlights.
The whistleblower told CNN about the conditions these men were kept in, detailing that they are forbidden from speaking to each other, so they mumble to themselves.
“We were told they were not allowed to move. They should sit upright. They’re not allowed to talk. Not allowed to peek under their blindfold.” Guards were instructed “to scream uskot” – shut up in Arabic – and told to “pick people out that were problematic and punish them,” the report laid out.
Where is Sde Teiman?
Sde Teiman is located some 18 miles from the Gaza frontier and is split into two parts: enclosures where around 70 Palestinian detainees from Gaza are placed under extreme physical restraint, and a field hospital where wounded detainees are strapped to their beds, wearing diapers and fed through straws. “They stripped them down of anything that resembles human beings,” said one whistleblower, who worked as a medic at the facility’s field hospital. “(The beatings) were not done to gather intelligence. They were done out of revenge,” said another whistleblower. “It was punishment for what they (the Palestinians) did on October 7 and punishment for behavior in the camp.”
Why is it a paradise for medical interns?
The whistleblowers give a peek into the very common practice of amputation of prisoners’ limbs due to injuries sustained by constant handcuffing. The detention centre is also called “a paradise for interns” because sometimes underqualified medics perform procedures here and learn through practice.
Accounts of Palestinians held in the Israeli detention centre
CNN interviewed Dr. Mohammed al-Ran who headed the surgical unit at Northern Gaza’s Indonesian hospital, one of the first to be shut down and raided as Israel carried out its aerial, ground and naval offensive.
He was arrested on December 18, he said, outside Gaza City’s Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital, where he had been working for three days after fleeing his hospital in the heavily bombarded north.
He was stripped down to his underwear, blindfolded and his wrists tied, then dumped in the back of a truck where, he said, the near-naked detainees were piled on top of one another as they were shuttled to a detention camp in the middle of the desert.
“We looked forward to the night so we could sleep. Then we looked forward to the morning in hopes that our situation might change,” said Dr. Mohammed al-Ran, recalled.
Al-Ran was held in a military detention center for 44 days, he told CNN. “Our days were filled with prayer, tears, and supplication. This eased our agony,” said al-Ran.
Punishment for speaking to each other
A prisoner who committed an offense such as speaking to another would be ordered to raise his arms above his head for up to an hour. The prisoner’s hands would sometimes be zip-tied to a fence to ensure that he did not come out of the stress position.
For those who repeatedly breached the prohibition on speaking and moving, the punishment became more severe. Israeli guards would sometimes take a prisoner to an area outside the enclosure and beat him aggressively, according to two whistleblowers and al-Ran.
Unleashing dogs as form of “the nightly torture”
That whistleblower and al-Ran also described a routine search when the guards would unleash large dogs on sleeping detainees, lobbing a sound grenade at the enclosure as troops barged in. Al-Ran called this “the nightly torture.”
“While we were cabled, they unleashed the dogs that would move between us, and trample over us,” said al-Ran. “You’d be lying on your belly, your face pressed against the ground. You can’t move, and they’re moving above you.”
The same whistleblower recounted the search in the same harrowing detail. “It was a special unit of the military police that did the so-called search,” said the source. “But really it was an excuse to hit them. It was a terrifying situation.”
“There was a lot of screaming and dogs barking.”
Strapped to beds in the hospital
“If you imagine yourself being unable to move, being unable to see what’s going on, and being completely naked, that leaves you completely exposed,” the whistleblower said. “I think that’s something that borders on, if not crosses to, psychological torture.”
Another whistleblower said he was ordered to perform medical procedures on the Palestinian detainees for which he was not qualified.
Response of IDF
The Israeli Defence Forces did not directly deny accounts of people being stripped of their clothing or held in diapers. Instead, the Israeli military said that the detainees are given back their clothing once the IDF has determined that they pose no security risk.
Two Palestinian prisoners associations said last week that 18 Palestinians – including leading Gaza surgeon Dr. Adnan al-Bursh – had died in Israeli custody over the course of the war.
Sde Teiman and other military detention camps have been shrouded in secrecy since their inception. Israel has repeatedly refused requests to disclose the number of detainees held at the facilities, or to reveal the whereabouts of Gazan prisoners.
A suspected serial-killer of the police and alleged member of the banned militant group Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Faizan Butt, who was reportedly involved in three attacks on police officials in Lahore within a week, was killed along with three other terrorists during an encounter in Karol Ghatti on Sunday night.
The counter-terrorism department’s spokesperson told the media that the team took the arrested terrorists to Karol Jungle for seizure of weapons. Meanwhile, about six terrorists opened fire on the police, as a result, four of the terrorists were shot dead by the firing of their accomplices while three managed to escape.
The police seized two Kalashnikovs and a pistol from the spot, he said.
UPDATE: “The target killer involved in killings’s of Lahore police was himself killed in a gun battle with militants during a recovery operation.”
The Counter Terrorism Department Punjab in a statement claimed that Faizan Butt who went by pseudonym Usman Khurasani was taken to… https://t.co/FcHiZebeU2
— The Khorasan Diary (@khorasandiary) May 12, 2024
Faizan had shot dead a sub-inspector and a constable after following them when they were unarmed on their way back home. He had also shot and injured another police constable. Investigations revealed that he recorded the attacks by using a pen camera, ensuring that the victim was dead before leaving. He then sent the recordings to his handlers as proof.
Initial investigations suggested that the suspect was frustrated because the police had registered a case against him.
The CTD had received information that he had contacted some people in his area to help him join a militant organisation.
Later, Faizan got arrested for carrying explosives and he was sent to prison. There he met a jailed leader of a banned sectarian outfit who helped him in getting released on bail.
He went to Afghanistan where he had meetings with TTP leaders who assigned him the task of killing six policemen to prove his loyalty.
The suspect revealed in police custody that the banned group had arranged a 30-bore and a 9mm pistol for the killings.
Faizan’s father was a manager in a factory and lived in Shadbagh. His mother had separated from him and lived in the private housing society.
