An emotional video is doing the rounds on social media, which shows a man’s reunion with his after 11 long years. After the father finished his long sentence in Florida jail, he reunited with his son.
The video of the meet-up was shared by a Twitter handle named GoodNewsCorrospondent.
The video shows Johnny Jasmin sitting beside his son, Jahvon, to surprise him. Jahvon — on seeing his father — gets sentimental.
Social media users found the video very cute. Here are a few reactions.
A 280-bed dengue field hospital has been set up at Expo Centre Lahore, Samaa has reported.
Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid, while talking to the media, said the Services Hospital and the Ganga Ram Hospital had been filled to capacity with dengue patients.
“We have 1,209 beds for dengue patients in Lahore,” said Dr Yasmin Rashid, adding that most of the dengue cases were reported from DHA Lahore.
As per Dr Rahsid, the field hospital had been made functional for 24 hours and CBC shall be provided within 45 seconds. Free treatment for fever shall be given to all. All tests shall be done free-of-cost.
In a meeting chaired by Dr Yasmin Rashid on Friday, a medical emergency at public health facilities in Lahore was declared amid the rising number of dengue cases in the city.
Prime Minister Imran Khan, while addressing the Ashra-e-Rehmat-ul-Lil-Aalamin (PBUH) conference, announced the formation of the Rehmatul-lil-Aalameen Authority.
According to Dawn, the scholars in the authority would be responsible for researching how best to disseminate lessons from the life of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) to the masses.
PM said Islam was a religion of peace and humanity and the West did not understand it so the authority would also be tasked with explaining Islam to the world. “When they educate the world about the Prophet’s (PBUH) life, people will understand that Islam is a religion of humanity,” the premier said.
During PM Khan’s address, he announced that the authority will monitor the media [print and electronic], and be in charge of monitoring the schools’ curriculum and how the course on the Holy Prophet’s (PBUH) biography was being taught.
Furthermore, he said that the scholars would be responsible for carrying out and promoting research in universities.
“Research should be conducted on topics such as whether our divorces have increased and what is the impact of this,” he added.
However, the members of the authority haven’t been revealed yet. PM Khan said, “I will be the patron myself but we have started searching for a person who has written books of tafsir, has great command [over religion] and is a scholar for the chairman. There will be an international advisory board above him on which we will bring the Muslim world’s top scholars — we have looked at many names and are approaching them as well.”
The importance of free media and freedom of expression was highlighted once again when journalists Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov won the Nobel Peace Prize for their fights to defend freedom of expression in the Philippines and Russia. Both of them have done work that led to threats from the rulers of their respective countries.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee said in a statement that Ressa and Muratov won the Nobel for “their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which is a precondition for democracy and lasting peace”. The statement added that “they are representatives of all journalists who stand up for this ideal in a world in which democracy and freedom of the press face increasingly adverse conditions”.
It is an honour for journalists around the world that people of their fraternity were awarded the most prestigious award for standing up for free media. At a time when journalists are facing problems and many countries are clamping down on free media, it gives journalists more strength and courage when their struggle is recognised.
Read more- Journalists Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov win 2021 Nobel Peace Prize
Unfortunately, like many other countries, the space for free media is fast shrinking in Pakistan. The government claims that the Pakistani media is more independent than even western countries but the fact of the matter is that censorship has increased over the years, journalists have faced physical attacks in the capital but no one has been arrested, and relentless attacks against journalists continue online as well.
The government claims that they do not shy away from sharing facts with the media but in a recent report published in The News, it says that when Geo News sent approximately 400 different queries to 36 key institutions in the past nine months under the Right to Information (RTI) law but 90 per cent of them were either not responded to or simply declined by them. Only 43 (10 per cent) queries were partially responded to by them through either very little or patchy information in 2021.
It is pertinent that the government realises that the media is not its enemy. Media will act as a watchdog and it is media’s job to report the truth. Journalists will continue to do their job and such tactics will not make them stop. A free and vibrant media is critical for democracy. One should believe in more freedom, not less. Long live media freedom.
Pakistan’s nuclear scientist Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan passed away in Islamabad on Sunday morning at the age of 85.
Dr Khan was admitted to a local hospital where his health deteriorated early morning. PTV said that the nuclear scientist died after being transferred to a hospital with lung problems, reports Radio Pakistan.
“Under the directions issued by Prime Minister Imran Khan, Dr Khan would be given a state funeral,” said Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid.
Prime Minister Imran Khan took to Twitter and wrote Dr Khan was loved by the nation because of his critical contribution to making Pakistan a nuclear weapon state.
“This has provided us security against an aggressive much larger nuclear neighbour. For the people of Pakistan he was a national icon,” he said, adding that he would be buried in Faisal Mosque “as per his wishes”.
President Dr Arif Alvi said, “He helped us develop nation-saving nuclear deterrence, and a grateful nation will never forget his services in this regard.”
Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif said that the nation had lost “a true benefactor who served the motherland with heart and soul”.
According to a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee General Nadeem Raza and all services chiefs expressed sorrow over Dr Khan’s passing.
The ISPR statement also quoted Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa as saying that he had rendered invaluable services to strengthen Pakistan’s defence capabilities.
Born in 1936 in Bhopal, India, Dr Khan had immigrated along with his family to Pakistan in 1947 after the partition of the subcontinent.
After learning of India’s nuclear test in 1974, Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan joined his nation’s clandestine efforts to develop nuclear power, read Radio Pakistan’s statement.
He founded the Khan Research Laboratories in 1976 and was both its chief scientist and director for many years.
He was awarded Nishan-i-Imtiaz for his services to the country.
Sohaib Maqsood has been ruled out of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 due to a lower back injury and has been replaced by Shoaib Malik.
As per a press release issued by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Sohaib underwent MRI scans for the lower back on Thursday after picking up the injury during October 6 match against Northern and consequently missed October 7 match against Central Punjab.
Chief selector Muhammad Wasim said: “Sohaib is devastated to miss out on the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup as he had worked hard for this event and was in sparkling form. We feel for him but injuries are part and parcel of the sport. I am sure after undergoing rehabilitation, he’ll fully recover to be available for future assignments.”
“In his place and following discussions with the team management, we have decided to include Shoaib Malik in the side. I am sure Shoaib’s experience will be handy for the entire squad,” he added.
Shoaib Malik captained Pakistan in the inaugural T20 World Cup event in 2007 and was a member of the side that won the tournament in 2009. After missing the West Indies event in 2010, he featured in the 2012, 2014 and 2016 tournaments.
The Pakistan squad for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 will depart for Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on October 15. They will play two warm-up matches against the West Indies and South Africa on October 18 and 20, respectively before taking on India in a Group-2 fixture on October 24 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
Pakistan squad include Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Hassan Ali, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wicketkeeper), Shaheen Shah Afridi and Shoaib Malik.
Travelling reserves are Khushdil Shah, Shahnawaz Dahani and Usman Qadir.
Actor Ayesha Omar and cricketer Shoaib Malik teamed up for a magazine’s shoot. The duo, known for their impressive sense of style oozed crackling chemistry together.
“Always a pleasure working with friend,” wrote the all-rounder.
The two have been spotted together at events in the past.
On the work front, Ayesha is playing Khoobsurat in the super hit TV serial Bulbulay while Shoaib is currently playing national Twenty20 Cup.
Agha Ali and Hina Altaf are currently on a romantic getaway in Turkey. The Dil-e-Gumshuda duo shared some special moments on their respective social media handles for their fans.
Have a look:
The celebrity couple recently wrapped up Aagha’s directorial short film, Raat.
The Pakistan Medical Commission (PMC) released a clarification on the Medical and Dental Colleges Admission Test (MDCAT) 2021 results controversy.
The PMC claimed that it sent out an e-mail before the scheduled time with the result certificates of students who appeared for their MDCAT 2021 due to “a system error”.
The final MDCAT 2021 results were scheduled to be publicised after 1pm today on PMC’s website.
But this morning, many students reported that they had received an e-mail from PMC’s noreply e-mail with their MDCAT 2021 result certificate attached, the PMC explained in a tweet.
The commission explained that the final result was actually to be announced later in the afternoon after the last examination scheduled today in the morning for Covid-affected students.
The results, it said, were accurate but the commission apologised for its “inadvertent error as it has resulted in concern amongst the students”.
According to the PMC, an option was provided to download, print, or e-mail the result certificates to students on the PMC website to check their final result.
“Unfortunately due to an error, the system generated all the result certificates and e-mailed them to students early this morning automatically.”
The final score in all the result certificates received by students are correct and have been checked, the PMC said, clarifying that although in a small number of certificates e-mailed to students in the morning there are errors in subject marks, the total score is correct.
This only happened due to the results being generated by the system automatically, PMC said, asking students to ignore these errors.
Students can recheck and verify their final results once PMC uploads the live results online.
United States (US) Deputy Secretary of State Wendy R Sherman, following her visit to India, received a cold reception upon her arrival in Islamabad as per The News.
She was welcomed by a mid-level diplomat, instead of her counterpart, Foreign Secretary Sohail Mehmood.
Before coming to Pakistan, Sherman in Mumbai had made it very clear that the US was not interested in a broad relationship with Pakistan, beyond Afghanistan.
She stated, “My visit to Pakistan is for a very specific narrow purpose and the United States does not see itself building a broad relationship with Pakistan and we have no interest in returning to days of hyphenated [India and Pakistan]. That is not where we are. That is not where we’re going to be.”
“My visit to Pakistan in the context of Afghanistan is in a bid to make sure that Pakistan has the capabilities to ensure everybody’s security, including India’s and the US”, she said as she left India.
According to The News, the government was shocked at Sherman’s undiplomatic statements that she had made in India.
Sherman met with the National Security Adviser (NSA) Moeed Yusuf where he stressed that the world “must maintain contact” with the interim Taliban government in Afghanistan.
Furthermore, Yusuf blatantly said that Indian human rights violations in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) also pose a threat to regional peace.
Foreign Minister (FM) Shah Mahmood Qureshi met the Deputy Secretary on Thursday but he didn’t tweet about the meeting. However, Sherman tweeted, “I met today with Pakistan FM to discuss Afghanistan’s future and the important and long-standing US-Pakistan relationship. We look forward to continuing to address pressing regional and global challenges.”
Sherman also met Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa where matters of mutual interest, regional security situation, and collaboration in humanitarian measures in Afghanistan were discussed.
Apart from the meetings, while talking to The News’ editors, Sherman said she believed US President Joe Biden will soon talk to Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan. She said, “We have an idea that every country wants to have a telephone conversation with US President. I am sure that this conversation will be held with PM Khan soon.”
“I am sure that this contact will take place soon, so I don’t think it should mean anything else,” she added.
Moreover, while replying to a question about a bill presented in September by 22 Republican senators targeting Pakistan, Sherman assured, “We get hundreds of bills; thousands of people are behind them but we are well aware of Pakistan’s concerns and are closely looking at the situation.”