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  • ‘Ultimate goal is self-reliance’: PM Shehbaz on Pakistan receiving $2bn from IMF

    ‘Ultimate goal is self-reliance’: PM Shehbaz on Pakistan receiving $2bn from IMF

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif was informed by Finance Minister (FM) Miftah Ismail that Pakistan could receive Rs2 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

    “Miftah Ismail sent a message this morning saying that Pakistan will receive not $1 billion but $2 billion from the IMF. I told him in response, Alhamdulillah, but our ultimate goal is self-reliance,” said PM Shehbaz while addressing the “Turn Around Pakistan” conference.

    The premier’s address comes shortly after Ismail confirmed Pakistan has received the Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies (MEFP) from the IMF for the seventh and eighth reviews.

    The draft MEFP is a prerequisite to paving the way toward striking a staff-level agreement.

    PM Shehbaz said that although the Opposition created much political drama in recent weeks, he will ask whether it is the “choosers” that are now going to receive $2 billion or “the other word”, referring to beggars from the phrase “beggars can’t be choosers”.

    “There is no shortage of anything in Pakistan and there are experts in every field,” said PM Shehbaz, before lamenting that “billions of dollars are buried in Reko Diq but we have not earned a single penny”.

    “It is a pity that the country’s development and prosperity have not been achieved,” he said.

    Addressing the conference before PM’s speech, Ismail said that when he messaged Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif about the development, he replied: “Well done. But remember our ultimate goal is self-reliance. That will be our legacy,” Miftah said, quoting PM Shehbaz.

  • Science declares Robert Pattinson as the ‘most attractive man on earth’

    Science declares Robert Pattinson as the ‘most attractive man on earth’

    According to a recent report by LadBible, Hollywood actor Robert Pattinson has been declared the most attractive man alive on earth by science.

    The title comes after an algorithm that ranks different facial features analysed of actors like Ryan Gosling, Idris Elba, Brad Pitt and Henry Cavill. Although the actors are good-looking in their own sense, none of them could match Pattinson’s perfect features.

    In 2020 also, Pattinson was announced as the most attractive man in the world according to science. The actor’s beauty was judged using an ancient Greek calculation method, the Golden Ratio of Beauty Phi, which has historically been used to measure physical perfection. It seems that even now Pattinson continues to hold that title.

    The Golden Ratio of Beauty Phi is said to have originated during the European Renaissance era. According to Vice, this calculation was mainly used by architects and artists like Leonardo Da Vinci to map and measure the “perfect” length and width for their artistic creations. In modern times, the same formula has been adapted to measure beauty standards and determine how perfect a person’s physical features are. Under this technique, the face is measured and the results are divided. The closer a face’s measurement is to Phi (1.618), the more attractive the person is said to be. The beauty factor also relies on the symmetry and proportion of the face and is influenced by factors such as whether the length of the ear is equal to the length of the nose, or if the width of the eye is equal to the distance between the eyes.

    Robert Pattinson robs Brad Pitt and David Beckham of World's Most Beautiful Man title - Irish Mirror Online

    Speaking to LadBible, Centre of Facial Cosmetic Surgery’s Dr Julian De Silva said, “Robert Pattinson was the clear winner when all elements of the face were measured for physical perfection.” Silva added that the brand new computer mapping techniques have allowed scientists to solve some of the mysteries of what it is that makes someone physically beautiful. Silva also mentioned that the technology is useful when planning a patient’s surgery who aims to accentuate their features.

    According to Vice, Pattinson has the most perfect physical features, followed by British actor Cavill, who has a score of 91.46 percent, Cooper who is rated 91.08 percent, Pitt at 90.51 percent and Clooney ranking fifth with 89.91 percent. Meanwhile, Palestinian-American model Bella Hadid was declared the most beautiful woman in the world through the same method in 2020.

  • Pakistan gets temporary relief of $3.68 billion from G-20 countries

    Pakistan gets temporary relief of $3.68 billion from G-20 countries

    The Ministry of Economic Affairs stated that the Government of Pakistan and the French Republic on Monday signed an agreement as part of the G20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI).

    The government signed a DSSI, which amounted to the suspension of loans totaling $107 million under the G20 DSSI framework, according to a statement made in this regard by the ministry, according to Profit.

    This sum, which was initially due between July and December 2021, will now be paid back over a six-year period (plus a one-year grace period) in semi-annual installments, according to the statement.

    Federal Secretary for Economic Affairs Division Mian Asad Hayaud Din and French Ambassador to Pakistan Nicolas Galey signed the agreement today in Islamabad.

    Agreements for the revocation of $261 million between the government and the French Republic have already been signed.

    The ministry mentioned that the G20 DSSI has provided the fiscal space required to address the immediate health and financial demands of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan as a result of the support given by Pakistan’s development partners.

    According to the ministry, $3,688 million in debt has been suspended and rescheduled overall under the DSSI framework, which covers the period from May 2020 to December 2021.

    Pakistan has so far reached 93 agreements and signed them with 21 bilateral creditors for the restructuring of its liabilities under the G20 DSSI framework, totaling a delay of nearly $3,150 million.

    The above-mentioned agreements have been signed, bringing the total to $3,257 million. The G20 DSSI’s remaining agreements are currently the subject of negotiations.

  • Man shoots restaurant employee dead for putting too much mayonnaise in sandwich

    Man shoots restaurant employee dead for putting too much mayonnaise in sandwich

    A man opened fire at two employees of a restaurant for putting too much mayonnaise in the sandwich. One employee was killed and another was injured. The man claimed that his sandwich had too much mayonnaise. The incident took place at an Atlanta sandwich shop.

    Before shooting two female employees, according to the police, the man argued with them.

    “This was a very tragic situation that did not have to occur,” Atlanta police Deputy Chief Charles Hampton Jnr told reporters on Monday.

    According to the police, the deceased was a 26-year-old woman. The second woman, a 24-year-old, was shot in front of her 5-year-old child and is currently being treated in a hospital in critical condition.

  • ‘Cultural shock’: Kangana Ranaut reveals Mumbai men split bills on dates, Delhi men pay for both

    ‘Cultural shock’: Kangana Ranaut reveals Mumbai men split bills on dates, Delhi men pay for both

    Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut recently appeared on the YouTube Channel, Curly Tales’ show ‘Sunday Brunch’, where the Gangster diva revealed her observation about men from different Indian states.

    Ranaut shared that when she was new in Mumbai as a model, she was slightly shocked to see how men in Mumbai ask to split the bills on dates which was a culture shock for her as she is from Manali. Earlier she also did theater and modelling in Delhi and no man ever asked her to pay the bills on dates.

    Kangana mentioned that in the initial days of her career, she used to live with 5-6 other girls as a paying guest when she had a limited amount of money. When she was asked how her food choices used to be in those days, the actress said that for her Delhi was a very different experience. She said that friends of friends or their boyfriends used to often take them out on rides and pay for their food too. She added that though they used eat very little, they often visited fancy places. Kangana added that when she started earning, she too used to pay at times, but there was no stress about paying. The actress said that in Mumbai, things were different.

    She said, “But when I came to Mumbai, even if you go on a date, you have to Dutch. So this was very new to me, it was a bit of a culture shock. Even in Chandigarh I never paid on a date. But in Mumbai everybody is so practical that even if you are on a date you have to pay equal. If you have water then you pay for it. I think it’s fine. I don’t think it’s not cool, it’s cool.”

  • Fahad Mustafa, Mahira Khan stun with dancing skills in chartbuster ‘Loota Rey’

    Fahad Mustafa, Mahira Khan stun with dancing skills in chartbuster ‘Loota Rey’

    The makers of forthcoming film Quaid-e-Azam Zindabad starring Fahad Mustafa and Mahira Khan recently released the first song of their film, Loota Rey.

    The leading pair exudes good chemistry, despite working for the first time together. They compliment each other visually and yet stay true to their parts.

    A very colourful and fun track with the lead pair oozing impressive chemistry, Loota Rey is a vibrant display of ‘sing and dance’ culture on a mammoth scale. With the music by Shani Arshad, and Aima Baig and Asrar Shah helming the vocals, the song is upbeat, has loads of masala, and is extremely peppy as well.

    Choreographer Nigah Jee has choreographed easy yet enjoyable hook steps.

    Mahira Khan looks breathtakingly gorgeous whereas Fahad Mustafa brings his superstardom and charisma on-screen. All in all, the song is as fun as it is entertaining.

    Loota Rey: First peppy romance song from Fahad, Mahira starrer 'Quaid-i-Azam Zindabad' is out now!

    The film is set to release in cinemas all across Pakistan on Eid-ul-Azha this year.

    Written by Fizza Ali Meerza and directed by Nabeel Qureshi, it is touted to be amongst the costliest film productions of Pakistan till date.

  • Abrar-ul-Haq takes legal action over the ‘Nach Punjaban’ plagiarism controversy

    Singer and politician Abrar-ul-Haq has issued a legal notice to UK record label Moviebox Birmingham Limited which claims to have rights to the song. The legal notice comes days after Haq had said that he will be taking legal action against Bollywood director Karan Johar for stealing his song Nach Panjaban for his movie Jugjugg Jeeyo.

    Taking to Twitter on Sunday, Haq said: “My lawyers in the United Kingdom have issued a legal notice to Moviebox with respect to the misappropriation of my song Nach Punjaban.” He said that he will share the updates soon with people. The singer ended his tweet with the hashtag “Stop Stealing Our Songs”.

    Earlier the record label had said that the song had been “licensed to be included” to use in Karan Johar’s song. It claimed that Dharma Productions have the “legal rights to use the song for their upcoming movie. It called the statements of Abrar-ul-Haq “defamatory and completely unacceptable.”

    Following this, Haq reiterated that this song has not been licensed to any entity. “Nach Punjaban has not been licensed to anyone. If someone is claiming it, then produce the agreement. I will be taking legal action,” he tweeted.

    The Bheega December crooner has taken this action after Bollywood star and the film’s leading man Varun Dhawan praised him in a video message while recording an interview with Bollywood Hungama.

    “I want to say to Abrar that he sung the song so well, the original one,” the actor told the outlet. “It is amazing, outstanding and we loved it.”

    He added, “Our music company, they bought the rights and now our song is doing so well, so thank you.”

    In 2019, a petition against Haq’s wedding song, Chamkeeli featuring Mehwish Hayat and Shahveer Jafry was filed in the civil court.

    According to reports, the plea submitted by lawyer Rana Adnan Asghar stated that the song is encouraging disrespectful attitude for men and women, asserting that the song ridiculed men and must therefore must be removed from YouTube. The petitioner also wanted the singer to apologise for the song.

    However the legal mess later died down.

  • Indian girl stopped from crossing border to meet Pakistani guy

    Indian girl stopped from crossing border to meet Pakistani guy

    An Indian Muslim 24-year-old woman from Madhya Pradesh (MP) was caught by the authorities at the Attari border in Amritsar, Punjab on Thursday when she was trying to cross the border to meet her Pakistani boyfriend, reports The Times of India.

    Fiza met the Pakistan man Dilshad, who lives in Karachi through social media. They fell in love and decided to get married.

    According to the Indian media, Fiza Khan had a valid visa and travel documents but was stopped at Integrated Check Post (ICP), Attari, due to a Lookout Circular (LOC) issued against her.

    Fiza, a teacher working in a private school went missing from Rewa district in MP on June 16. According to the police, after her disappearance, Fiza’s family members lodged a missing complaint. Since she had already discussed traveling to Pakistan, a LOC was issued against her.

    When she was held, the Gharinda police station recorded her statement and sent her to Nari Niketan orphanage. Later on Saturday, she was handed over to a police team from Rewa.

    This is not the first time that such an incident has happened. In 2018 a woman crossed the border and married a Gujranwala-based man whom she met while playing an online game.

  • Crypto heist: Hackers steal $100 million from Harmony blockchain bridge

    Crypto heist: Hackers steal $100 million from Harmony blockchain bridge

    A blockchain bridge titled Harmony, which helps in transferring cryptocurrency tokens between each other, recently disclosed that $100 million in digital currency was stolen on Thursday morning from its Horizon bridge.

    Harmony revealed that its Horizon Ethereum Bridge was a victim of a “malicious attack” in a blog post outlining the incident.

    Harmony said that its separate bridge used for bitcoin wasn’t affected by the hack and that its funds and assets are safe. They have notified other exchanges and stopped its bridge “Horizon” to prevent further transactions as the company investigates the heist. 

    In order to track down the hacker and recover the stolen money, the platform has started working with local law enforcement and forensic experts.

    The hack and ransacking of Horizon weren’t the first this year. In March, cybercriminals stole about $620 million worth of cryptocurrency from a network used to process in-game transactions for Axie Infinity, one of the world’s most popular NFT video games.

  • Twitter withholds accounts of journalists Murtaza Ali Shah, Rana Ayyub, and C J Werleman’s in India

    Twitter withholds accounts of journalists Murtaza Ali Shah, Rana Ayyub, and C J Werleman’s in India

    Twitter in India has withheld accounts of journalists Murtaza Ali Shah, Rana Ayyub, and C J Werleman.

    Murtaza Ali Shah, a Pakistani reporter for Geo News, told The Current, “I am not sure what really happened but I received an e-mail from Twitter yesterday informing me about the withholding of my account in India. Whenever I posted or covered a story relevant to India or Khalistan, Sikhs For Justice, or Kashmir freedom movement and shared it on Twitter, I was informed by the latter that India has reported my tweet.”

    “Twitter at the time did say that there was no violation seen in tweets [relevant to India]. This happened last year. I suppose this is the reason as to why my account has been withheld in India” said Shah, who is a Kashmiri by origin and hails from Azad Kashmir.

    Rana Ayyub, a Muslim-Indian Indian journalist took to her Twitter account and said, “Hello Twitter, what exactly is this?”

    The notice from Twitter read, “In order to comply with Twitter’s obligations under India’s local laws, we have withheld the following account in India under the country’s Information Technology Act, 2000.”

    Werleman is a journalist who writes on Islamophobia and other issues regarding the Muslim communities. His account got suspended before Ayyub.

    Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) condemning the act tweeted, “Twitter complying with Indian government’s directive to withhold journalist @RanaAyyub’s tweet and block columnist @cjwerleman’s account in India are part of an unacceptable new trend of censorship on social media. This must stop! Journalists voices are essential for a democracy.”

    The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) Wednesday took up the issue of blocking the official Twitter accounts of Pakistani embassies and other noted personalities by India.

    The Foreign Office spokesperson has said that India had withheld access to the Twitter handles of Pakistan’s embassies in Iran, Turkiye, Egypt, and the Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York.

    The spokesperson said that social media platforms must abide by the applicable international norms.

    “We are urging Twitter to restore immediate access to our accounts and ensure adherence to democratic freedoms of speech and expression,” the spokesperson remarked.