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  • PM Shehbaz uses international platform to plead for action against climate change

    PM Shehbaz uses international platform to plead for action against climate change

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif talked about the ongoing climate change devastation that has been caused by unprecedented floods across Pakistan at Shangai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

    In his speech, the premier stressed that his country’s contribution to the global carbon commission is only 1 per cent. “Our carbon emission is less than one per cent. Yet nature had this in store for us,” Shehbaz Sharif said.

    Moreover, he urged the world to formulate a well-thought-out and sustainable plan to prevent devastating episodes of climate change destruction in the future. “We are going to stand on our own feet but will this be the last time a country is going to fall victim to this devastation”, he asked, as he appealed to the SCO to “build a wall” against the menace of climate change.

    He concluded his speech by reaffirming Pakistan’s “strong and unwavering commitment” to advancing the objectives of the SCO.

    At the international forum, the premier urged the leaders not to ignore Afghanistan at this time.

    He stated that the world would have to work together to support all “good initiatives” in Afghanistan. “It will be a big mistake if we ignore Afghanistan this time around”, he warned.

    Moreover, PM Shehbaz asked the international community to support efforts to build a sustainable Afghan economy. “Unfreezing Afghanistan’s financial assets remains a crucial need in this regard”, he stressed.

    PM Shehbaz meets Chinese President Xi Jinping

    On Friday, PM Shehbaz met Chinese President Xi Jinping at SCO in Uzbekistan.

    In an official statement, the Chinese foreign ministry said that during the meeting, Xi pointed out that China and Pakistan are close neighbours “linked by mountains and rivers and with a shared future”.

    The two countries have all along stood with each other through thick and thin. No matter how the international situation evolves, China and Pakistan are always each other’s trustworthy strategic partners, the statement added.

    President Xi stressed that the two sides must continue to firmly support each other, foster stronger synergy between their development strategies, and harness the role of the Joint Cooperation Committee of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to ensure smooth construction and operation of major projects.

    On Thursday, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said that PM Shehbaz had “very successful” talks with Russian President Putin and Chinese President Xi.

    “Both of them have officially invited Shehbaz Sharif to visit their countries. The prime minister has accepted both invitations. There will be a visit to China in November 2022,” the minister confirmed in a tweet.

    Earlier, it was reported that PM Shehbaz would meet Xi Jinping, the Chinese President. However, no plans have been announced of a meeting between the Pakistani Prime Minister and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi, who is also attending the SCO.

    Shehbaz Sharif was also scheduled to meet Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev later in the day.

    On Thursday, the prime minister met with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iran’s Ebrahim Raisi. He also met with the president of Tajikistan and Kagystan.

    Shehbaz Sharif declared his meetings with the world leaders on Thursday as “productive”.

    “It was a long but productive day in Samarkand. In my meetings with leaders of friendly countries, we agreed on enhancing trade and investment. I explained the flood ravages due to climate change. Food and energy shortages present a real challenge to our shared development agenda,” he tweeted.

    During the meeting with Putin, the Russian president said that pipeline gas supplies to Pakistan are possible, and that part of the necessary infrastructure is already in place.

    After the meeting with Putin, the premier also held a bilateral meeting with Tajikistan’s President Emomali Rahmon.

    The two leaders held wide-ranging talks covering all aspects of mutually beneficial bilateral cooperation, including regional and international issues.

    Shehbaz Sharif thanked Tajikistan for its support to flood affectees in Pakistan and shared details of the devastation caused by the massive floods.

    Since becoming a full member of SCO in 2017, Pakistan has been actively contributing and participating in the activities of the organisation.

  • Govt of Pakistan’s Twitter account withheld in India, claims Indian Twitterati

    Govt of Pakistan’s Twitter account withheld in India, claims Indian Twitterati

    The Government of Pakistan’s official Twitter account is with held in India.

    Indian Journalist Suhasini Haider who is currently covering the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s (SCO) Council of Heads of State (CHS) Summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, tweeted a picture of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Vladimir Putin of Russia having a conversation. Government of Pakistan’s Twitter handle originally shared the picture.

    Moments after Haider tweeted, one of her followers pointed out that her quoted tweet can’t be seen in India as there is a chance it has been withheld in India.

    https://twitter.com/Autiqueering/status/1570693475439644672?s=20&t=nPU-ihMf9Mn9N5bmTcpcTg

    On September 13, Twitter’s former security chief, Peiter Zatko, told a US Senate hearing that the Indian government forced the micro blogging website to hire two persons who were likely “government agents” and had access to sensitive user data. Zatko had alleged in a complaint filed in August that Twitter had violated it’s agreement with users by giving access to their data to a government agent.

    Zatko also told the hearing that it was his belief that the government agent was placed at Twitter by the BJP government to asses if the social media giant would be willing to agree with censorship demands.

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

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

  • Video: Indian Police mocks Shadab’s dropped catch with message for road safety

    Video: Indian Police mocks Shadab’s dropped catch with message for road safety

    The Delhi Police Department of India have used a video of Pakistani cricketers Shadab Khan and Asif Ali’s on-field collision in the final of Asia Cup 2022 against Sri Lanka to pass along a message of traffic safety.

    The Pakistani cricketers collided while attempting to catch a skier hit by Sri Lankan batter Bhanuka Rajapaksa in the 19th over of the first innings. Asif was about to grab the catch when Shadab stepped in front of him. The misfielding resulted in a lost opportunity to send the rampaging Rajapaksa back to the pavillion, as the ball went over the ropes.


    Sri Lanka’s stiff target of 171 turned out too much for Pakistan as Rajapaksa’s unbeaten 71 helped Sri Lanka clinch their sixth Asia Cup title. Many Pakistani fans blamed the dropped catch for the defeat.

    Delhi Police have used the video to take a jibe at Pakistan’s team.


    “Ae bhai, zara dekh ke chalo,” wrote the Indian Police in the caption of the video, to raise awareness about road safety.

  • Indian PM Modi to attend regional summit along with PM Shehbaz

    Indian PM Modi to attend regional summit along with PM Shehbaz

    Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi and Pakistani Premier Shehbaz Sharif will take part in Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit which is due to take place on September 15 and 16 in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

    New Delhi has not yet specified whether Modi would hold bilateral talks with his Pakistani counterpart, Russian President Vladimir Putin or Chinese President Xi Jinping.

    Earlier, in the SCO foreign ministers’ meeting, all of the ministers reiterated that the heads of SCO states would attend the summit.

    Foreign Minister (FM) Bilawal Bhutto, who had attended the meeting in Tashkent, said that a bilateral meeting between the Pakistani and Indian leaders is not scheduled.

    “There are no plans of any meetings between Indian and Pakistani prime ministers in September”, Bilawal revealed, adding that both India and Pakistan are part of the SCO and the two countries are only engaged in the context of the broad-based activities of the organisation.

    The foreign minister had said: “India is our neighbouring country. While one can decide on a lot of things, one cannot choose its neighbours, therefore, we should get used to living with them.”

    Other than this, it has been reported that Russian Putin and Chinese Xi would meet at the summit. China has refused to condemn Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and has ramped up purchases of Russian oil.

  • Across borders: Rahul Gandhi extends heartfelt sympathies to Pakistan’s flood victims

    Across borders: Rahul Gandhi extends heartfelt sympathies to Pakistan’s flood victims

    The leader of India’s Congress party, Rahul Gandhi, has extended his heartfelt condolences and sympathies to the bereaved flood-affected families of Pakistan.

    In a tweet on Friday, Gandhi said, “The floods in Pakistan are a terrible tragedy. My heartfelt sympathies to all the people affected and deepest condolences to those who have lost their loved ones.”

    Earlier, Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi also offered condolences to Pakistan.

    In a tweet posted on August 29, Modi said he was, “Saddened to see the devastation,” of the floods, adding that he hoped to see an early return to normalcy.

    PM Shehbaz Sharif had replied to his Indian counterpart’s tweet, thanking him for his words of condolence.

    Devastating floods in Pakistan have wreaked havoc across the country, leaving a path of destruction and loss in their wake. More than 1,400 people have lost their lives, one-third of whom are children.

    Record monsoon rains and melting glaciers triggered the disaster. The United Nations (UN) and Pakistan have linked the extreme weather to climate change; some 600,000 people have fled their homes.

    As many as 33 million people of the 220 million South Asian nation have been affected in some way by the floods that swept away houses, roads, railways and bridges and submerged around 4 million acres of farmland.

    UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is currently in Pakistan and all set to visit flood-affected areas of the country today (Saturday).

    On Friday, Guterres said that Pakistan is one of the countries most affected by climate change despite its minimal contribution to the phenomenon.

    During a briefing at the National Flood Response Coordination Centre (NFRCC), the UN chief said, “Pakistan has had little contribution to climate change but it is one of the most dramatically impacted by the consequences of climate change.”

    Earlier this week, PM Shehbaz said that the financial impact of the biblical floods might be in the “trillions”.

  • Extremist mob protests, prohibits Alia-Ranbir from entering temple amidst beef controversy

    Extremist mob protests, prohibits Alia-Ranbir from entering temple amidst beef controversy

    Bollywood stars Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt are actively promoting their upcoming film Brahmastra as the release date draws closer. There have been calls for the boycott of Brahmastra as well for different reasons. Whether it is Karan Johar’s backing of the film or Alia Bhatt’s controversial comments in a recent interview, the movie has been making the headlines for all the wrong reasons. Recently internet users dug out an old Ranbir Kapoor interview from ten years ago and cited it as a reason to boycott the film.

    The video of the interview is being reshared now with fresh calls for a boycott of his forthcoming biggie.

    Not just a boycott, the beef controversy resulted in an embarrassing affair for the lead couple of the film. Members of right-wing groups Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal, created a huge row in Ujjain today ahead of the visit of actors Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt and Ayan Mukerji. They were to visit the famous Jyotirlinga at the Mahakaleshwar Temple this evening.

    Ahead Of Alia Bhatt, Ranbir Kapoor's Visit, Protest Outside Ujjain's Mahakal Temple

    Ahead of the visit, the right-wing workers gathered at the main gate and the conch gate meant for VVIPs to show them black flags. The police had to use batons to bring the crowd under control.

    Parents-to-be Alia Bhatt, Ranbir Kapoor's Ujjain ethnics: Pics, videos inside | Fashion Trends - Hindustan Times

    After promoting the film in Mumbai, Chennai and Hyderabad, the lead actors of Brahmastra had taken a flight to Ujjain hoping to visit the Mahakaleshwar Temple along with director Ayan Mukerji.

    Since Alia Bhatt is pregnant, she decided not to go to the temple amid the ruckus. Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor returned to Indore without darshan. From Indore, they will take a flight to Mumbai, said Ashish Singh, the Collector of Ujjain.

    After the situation was brought under control, only Ayan Mukerji went to the temple and had darshan, said Mr Singh.

    Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt stopped from entering Ujjain temple, Ayan Mukerji seeks blessings alone | Bollywood Bubble

    Brahmastra, directed by Ayan Mukerji, also stars Amitabh Bachchan, Akkineni Nagarjuna and Mouni Roy in pivotal roles and is a fantasy adventure film that draws heavily from mythology. It is slated for release on September 9.

    This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is brahmastra15062022m.jpg
  • Muhammad Rizwan allows Indian female fan to take a ‘doorfie’ instead of selfie

    Muhammad Rizwan allows Indian female fan to take a ‘doorfie’ instead of selfie

    Muhammad Rizwan, a wicketkeeper-batsman for Pakistan, is regarded as one of cricket’s most popular players both domestically and internationally.

    In addition to the fact that he is an excellent golfer, his lovely and humble personality is what has earned him such a large fan base.

    The player has unnecessarily drawn criticism during the current Asia Cup 2022.

    A video of a female Indian cricket fan asking Rizwan to take a photo with her during a practise session has been shared by sports journalist Brashna Kasi. Rizwan reluctantly consented to take a photo with the woman but stood at a visible distance, making it clear it wasn’t a selfie and leading the fan to mockingly refer to it as a “doorfie”.

    The fan claimed in the video that Rizwan had informed her that he never poses for photos by himself with female fans.

    This, however, is nothing new since Rizwan has repeatedly stated that he feels uncomfortable with women. In actuality, the beloved cricketer has never been seen in any of his photos with a female fan.

    We must “respect his boundaries and leave him alone,” as Kasi put it.

    Rizwan explained why he never poses for photos with women in an interview with local media earlier this year.

    When asked why he is so shy around women, he replied: “It is not about being shy but some things are personal and every player has their own personal [reasons].”

    He stated that he greatly respected ladies and did not deem himself “worthy” of taking pictures with “mothers and sisters,” even if they requested one.

  • Hafeez, Harbhajan support Arshdeep amid abusive trolling

    Hafeez, Harbhajan support Arshdeep amid abusive trolling

    Pakistani cricketer Mohammad Hafeez has come to the defence of India’s young fast bowler Arshdeep Singh who is being trolled for dropping Asif Ali’s catch in a high-voltage Pakistan vs India Match in the Asia Cup on Sunday.

    Right-wing Indian fans are trolling Arshdeep for his age or calling him anti-national.
    “My request to all Indian team fans. In sports, we make mistakes as humans. Please don’t humiliate anyone for these mistakes,” wrote the Pakistani cricketer in support of the Indian sportsman.

    Indian cricketer Harbhajan Singh also extended his support to the young cricketer. “Stop criticising young @arshdeepsinghh .. No one dropped the catch purposely..we are proud of our boys .. Pakistan played better.. shame on such people who r putting our own guys down by saying cheap things on this platform bout arsh and team.. Arsh is GOLD.” he tweeted.

    Check out some other tweets:

    https://twitter.com/SagrikaKissu/status/1566515122901635072

    After a blazing start by India, Pakistan bowlers did well to halt India’s march, restricting the defending champions to 181/7 in 20 overs.

    Chasing 182, Pakistan achieved the target with one ball to spare. Pakistan will play its second Super Four stage match against Afghanistan on Wednesday.

  • India beats UK to become fifth-largest economy in the world

    India beats UK to become fifth-largest economy in the world

    India has surpassed the United Kingdom to take over as the world’s fifth-largest economy. The country was ranked as having the fifth-largest economy after outperforming England in the first three months of 2021.

    The UK has moved up to the sixth spot from where it was rated during the 2019 fiscal year. According to a survey by Bloomberg, the US economy was worth USD 854.7 million in ‘nominal’ cash terms in the quarter ending in March, compared to USD 816 million for the UK.

    According to reports, the mark was calculated using an adjusted basis and the dollar exchange rate on the last day of the relevant quarter.

    The update was released two days after the government published the first-quarter GDP figures.

    According to statistics, the Indian economy is expanding by 13.5 per cent annually. Despite the fact that this figure was lower than the RBI’s prediction, the rate is reported to be the highest among emerging nations.

    This fiscal year, India is expected to grow at a rate of about 7 per cent.

  • Bella Hadid wants your support finding the right organisations to help flood victims in Pakistan

    Bella Hadid wants your support finding the right organisations to help flood victims in Pakistan

    Supermodel Bella Hadid has requested her followers to guide her on ways to help the flood victims in Pakistan.

    Sharing a video on her Instagram stories, she wrote , “Finding real ways to help Pakistan.” 

    Floods triggered by incessant rains have killed more than 1000 people including 300 hundred children.

    The catastrophic flooding has rendered millions of people homeless during the last few days.

    Earlier this year, Bella claimed she was “shadow banned” by Instagram for posting about Palestine after Israeli authorities attacked worshippers at al-Aqsa Mosque on Friday.

    “If you really would like to silence me , just like the journalists, or really anyone trying to educate about Palestine, @instagram, I will continue to come forward with peace , showing factual information about how the IDF, Israeli government, and Settlers attack innocent Palestinians for no reason , except for simply being Palestinian. This is all a breach of human rights, and if you continue to sensor us, is the biggest form of bias and Unjust censorship.”

    “But I will not continue to sit here and have my peoples name be slandered as if they are constantly doing something wrong to deserve this kind of abuse. Absolutely UNPROVOKED abuse. In their home , and on their land, that they have lived in for hundreds of years. Especially now, during the holy month of Ramadan. This is unprovoked,” added Bella.

    Bella is an ardent advocate of women’s rights as well. In February, she had called out India for the discrimination faced by Muslim women for wearing hijab.