Taliban rule ‘made girlhood illegal’: Malala
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai said that Taliban rule in Afghanistan had made “girlhood illegal”, calling for “gender apartheid” to be made a crime against humanity.
Malala was the keynote speaker at an annual event held by the Mandela Foundation in Johannesburg, South Africa, to commemorate the anti-apartheid icon’s 10th death anniversary.
She narrated how Afghan girls barred from school were “turning to narcotics”, “experiencing depression” and “attempting suicide”.
After condemning the Israeli bombardment of Gaza, she said the crises in the Middle East, Ukraine and Sudan had deflected the international community’s attention from the plight of women and girls in Afghanistan.
“Our first imperative is to call the regime in Afghanistan what it really is. It is gender apartheid,” said Malala Yousafzai. “If you are a girl in Afghanistan, the Taliban have decided your future for you. You cannot attend a secondary school or university. You cannot find an open library where you can read.
“You see your mothers and your older sisters confined and constrained,” the Nobel laureate said.
She said governments should not normalise relations with the Taliban. Malala drew a parallel between restrictions the Taliban had placed on women in Afghanistan and the treatment of black people under apartheid in South Africa.
India agrees to withdraw soldiers from Maldives
India’s government has agreed to withdraw its soldiers from the Maldives, the Indian Ocean archipelago’s President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu said.
Muizzu won the presidential election in September, having campaigned to alter the Maldives’s “India first” policy and promising the removal of a small Indian military presence of some 75 personnel. “In the discussions we had, the Indian government has agreed to remove Indian soldiers,” Muizzu told reporters. “We also agreed to set up a high level committee to solve issues related to development projects.” Muizzu made the remarks following engagements on the sidelines of the COP28 climate summit with Indian officials.
India provides certain military equipment to the Maldives, assists in disaster response and has been helping build a naval dockyard there. A senior Indian government official in New Delhi said discussions took place between India and the Maldives on the matter, and both sides recognised the importance of the assistance India provides. The Maldives “acknowledged the utility of these (Indian) platforms … Discussions on how to keep them operational are ongoing.
The core group that both sides have agreed to set up will look at details of how to take this forward,“ said the official, without commenting directly on Muizzu’s remarks. India’s ministry of foreign affairs did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Gaza crisis ‘most dangerous ever’ for journalists
The first 10 weeks of the Gaza fighting have been the deadliest recorded for journalists, with the most journalists killed in a single year in one location, the US-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said.
Most of the journalists and media workers killed in Gaza, 61 out of 68, were Palestinian. The report said it was “particularly concerned about an apparent pattern of targeting of journalists and their families by the Israeli military”.
Four Israeli and three Lebanese journalists, including Reuters visuals journalist Issam Abdallah, were also killed between Oct 7 and Dec 20, CPJ data showed.
The group, a non-profit organisation that promotes press freedom worldwide, said it was further investigating the circumstances of all journalist deaths. It said such efforts in Gaza were hampered by widespread destruction and by the killing of journalists’ family members, who typically serve as sources for investigators looking into how the journalists died.
Reporting in Gaza has been severely restricted under intense Israeli bombardment, with repeated communications blackouts and a lack of food, fuel, and housing, said CPJ, adding that foreign journalists have not been able to access the strip independently.
A May 2023 report by CPJ found that Israeli soldiers had killed at least 20 journalists in the last 22 years, and none had ever been charged.
Narowal sees first N4HK room by Nestlé Pakistan
Nestlé Pakistan inaugurated the Nestlé for Healthier Kids (N4HK) room in Government Boys High School Narowal to foster and promote nutrition awareness. N4HK is Nestlé’s global nutritional awareness initiative, which supports teachers and caregivers on their journey to raise healthier kids through a curriculum-based education program promoting healthy nutrition, hydration, hygiene, and active lifestyle.
Speaking on the occasion, former federal minister and member of the National Assembly from Narowal, Ahsan Iqbal, said, “We are honored that Nestlé Pakistan has extended the reach of its N4HK initiative to Narowal. We are confident that the awareness imparted on nutrition to teachers and students alike will play a very important role in promoting healthy habits and a better nourished future generation.”
The N4HK program is part of Nestlé’s commitment to United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3 of Good Health and Well-Being, to ensure that children understand the value of nutrition as they grow older. So far, the program has reached out to 360,000 kids, trained more than 2300 teachers, and developed 14 N4HK Rooms with 11 partners from the private and public sectors. N4HK has a presence in Punjab, the Federal Capital, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh, and most recently, Gilgit Baltistan.
Pakistan’s IT exports rise by 9% in November
In November 2023, Pakistan’s IT exports experienced a notable 9% increase, reflecting the country’s growing influence in the global technology market. This noteworthy advancement underscores Pakistan’s emergence as a key player in the international arena and highlights the country’s potential to continue making substantial contributions to the global IT sector. As technology continues to reshape our world, this growth in IT exports not only signals Pakistan’s evolving economic landscape but also reaffirms the nation’s position as an important player in the global digital economy.
Pakistan’s information technology (IT) exports surged by 9% month-on-month to $259 million in November, which is also the highest level in the past 12 months.
US official in New Delhi for talks on Sikh plot
White House deputy national security adviser Jon Finer led a US delegation to New Delhi where he noted the formation of an investigative panel by India to probe an unsuccessful plot to assassinate a Sikh separatist on US soil.
“Mr Finer acknowledged India’s establishment of a Committee of Enquiry to investigate lethal plotting in the United States and the importance of holding accountable anyone found responsible,” the White House said in a statement. Finer met Indian foreign minister S. Jaishan-kar and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval.
Last month, the US Jus¬tice Department alleged that an Indian government official directed an unsuccessful plot to assassinate a Sikh separatist on US soil, while it announced charges against a man accused of orchestrating the attempted murder. US officials have named the target of the attempted murder as Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a Sikh separatist and dual citizen of the United States and Canada.
News of the incident came two months after Canada said there were “credible” allegations linking Indian agents to the June murder of another Sikh separatist leader, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, in a Vancouver suburb, a contention India has rejected. US President Joe Biden, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, CIA director Bill Burns and Secretary of State Antony Blinken have discussed this issue with their Indian counterparts in recent weeks.
Export-Import Bank of Pakistan Launched
Caretaker Minister for Finance Dr Shamshad Akhtar inaugurated the Export-Import Bank of Pakistan aimed at strengthening external trade, attracting investments, and fostering broader economic growth in the country.
“EXIM’s operationalization is a proud moment and a major milestone for us today. It will augment the banking and trade finance landscape as we know,” Finance Minister said while addressing the inauguration ceremony of the Export-Import Bank of Pakistan. She further said EXIM’s operationalization is a major milestone and it will augment the banking and trade finance landscape in Pakistan.
She highlighted the global impact of EXIM and said these institutions disbursed a staggering 2.5 trillion dollars in trade finance last year. She emphasized the significance of export credit loans, which provide competitive-rate financing to exporters.
‘Poetry can help caregivers in overcoming grief’
Oncologist, researcher, and classical Urdu poetry connoisseur Dr Azra Raza engaged a captivated audience with her talk at the National Academy of Performing Arts (NAPA).
The packed-to-capacity event titled ‘Sweet Poetry that Medicines All Pains’ was also attended by President Dr Arif Alvi and his wife. Dr Azra opened her talk by reciting Josh Malihabadi and then spoke of the spiritual pain of love and heartbreak. As an oncologist, she said she comes across such pain every day as she sees some 40 to 50 patients every week.
“One of the biggest challenges that I face in my line of work is to convey the bad news without bringing the anguish that is natural,” she told the audience. She said she had been using Urdu and even some English poetry on her patients to make them overcome this pain of knowing the pain that they face. “Poetry can help the caregivers as well as the receivers in overcoming grief.”
She narrated the story of a youth who died of cancer at the age of 22. He was asked to sign documents that would allow the hospice to let him pass away. He could not sign it when his mother was around but later found the courage to do so in his father’s presence. Dr Azra wondered how difficult it would have been for the father to know that his son was to die soon. Only poetry could help him, she said.
Earlier, NAPA CEO Junaid Zuberi introduced her as an international celebrity, a rock star of oncology who in the past 25 years had only three times been to Pakistan. Dr Azra Raza was presented with a memento on behalf of NAPA by its chairman Syed Jawaid Iqbal.
Indian court allows survey over mosque-temple dispute
In a move that could impact the general elections in India next year, the Allahabad High Court allowed a petition demanding that a court commissioner be appointed to inspect the Shahi Idgah mosque in Uttar Pradesh’s Mathura.
The petitioners have demanded full ownership of 13.37 acres of land around the mosque, claiming that it is the birthplace of Hindu deity Krishna.
After the hearing, advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, representing the petitioners, said the court has rejected the arguments of the Shahi Idgah mosque against the survey.
“My demand was that in Shahi Idgah masjid there are a lot of signs and symbols of the Hindu temple, and to know the actual position, an advocate commissioner is required,” Jain told reporters.
He added that the high court will decide the modality about the appointment of the commissioner on December 18.
The suit was filed after the high court had on May 26 transferred to itself all the petitions pending before a Mathura court seeking various reliefs, including removing the mosque that is adjacent to a Krishna temple.
On July 21, a Varanasi district court had passed a similar order allowing a scientific survey of the Gyanvapi mosque in the city.
Wahaj Ali tops UK publication’s list as leading Pakistani celebrity of 2023
In a remarkable achievement, Pakistani actor Wahaj Ali has been crowned as the top celebrity of 2023 by a prestigious UK showbiz publication, securing the ninth position globally in the coveted Top 50 Asian Celebrities In The World list.
Wahaj Ali, the only Pakistani in the top 10, outshone global celebrities across industries, including Hollywood and Bollywood, for his dedicated and exceptional performances. The hardworking actor expressed his gratitude, saying, “Even though it’s nice to be recognized, my main focus continues to be giving my best every time for my fans.”
Music, dance and art converge on NAPA’s annual open house
Students of the National Academy of Performing Arts (NAPA) put their heart and soul into the poetry, music and theatrical performances which they put on during the academy’s day-long annual open house.
Of all the segments, the one deserving special mention would have to be the Terrace Poetry Corner. It was quite an experience listening to the students reciting poetry from one of the academy building minarets overlooking the lawn. The people on the lawn had a clear view of the performer and he of them. The expressions from above fused with emotions from below to create an air of originality, individuality and artistry, not to mention innovation.
Ali Abbas Mirza, head of marketing and brand communications at NAPA, said that this was a first of its kind performance at the academy, where they tried to create new spaces for students to express their creativity.
Expressing his views about the Terrace Poetry Corner, Senator Javed Jabbar, who is also a member of the Board of Directors of NAPA, told Dawn that he felt humbly privileged to be part of the academy. “This is one of the heights that NAPA is in the process of conquering,” he said smiling.
“We have just reached the first floor for now. Inshallah, over the next 18 years after the great legacy by Zia Mohyeddin, we will go to the other floors,” he added.
Meanwhile, at the Music Stage there was continuous singing and music from 3pm till 7pm. Someone played a famous composition, local or foreign, someone sang a song. They sang in Urdu, English, Punjabi and Balochi.
At the Garden Theatre Stage, there was Dastaan Goe, which was enjoyed by many along with dance and Shakespearean sonnets. Daniel Gott, who is assistant professor at the American University of Sharjah, was also there for the experience as well as to share Shakespearean sonnets.
At Bag-i-Sukoon, one could relax and learn to paint with art teacher Hina Yusuf. All over the campus one also ran into students dressed up as interesting iconic characters such as Maula Jatt, PK, Maleficent, etc., who were all students of improvisation teacher Zarka Naz, who is herself a NAPA graduate of 2016.
Classical dancers show ‘heart and art’
A dance recital, more of a fusion of Odyssey and Kathak dance at the Zia Mohyeddin Theatre at National Academy of Performing Arts (NAPA) here saw not a single seat vacant even if you happened to be late by only 10 minutes. The latecomers then occupied the stairs and enjoyed the show as much as those seated comfortably.
Both Odyssey and Kathak are eastern classical dance styles known to convey stories through dance performance typically using facial expressions and hand gestures. The two dancers started the evening with a poem ‘Shaam’, which they presented together. In the background their shadows also danced with them and told the story of the evening with them of a forest going to sleep after sundown as recited in her sweet voice by Kulsoom Aftaab.
Following joint performances by the two dancers, there were also solo performances from them. They also presented tributes to two poets of Urdu. A musical tribute to Ustad Khursheed Hussain and Ustad Sajid Hussain was also presented by Ustad Khursheed’s son Sheroze Hussain, who also lent vocals to the performances. An instructor at Habib University, he presented a composition on raag ‘Des’ taught to him by his late father.
The evening came to its conclusion with the two dancers bringing up the grand finale with an enthralling performance to the 13th-century Sufi poet Amir Khusro’s Aaj Rang Hai.
Pakistan uses artificial rain to combat smog
Pakistan has recently implemented a groundbreaking approach by utilizing artificial rain to counter the severe issue of smog that has plagued the country. This innovative technique represents a significant step forward in the global effort to address environmental challenges and underscores Pakistan’s commitment to finding sustainable solutions. By harnessing cutting-edge technology, Pakistan aims to mitigate the harmful impact of smog on public health and the environment. This bold initiative serves as a beacon of hope and inspiration, highlighting the potential for human ingenuity to combat pressing environmental issues. As the world grapples with the far-reaching effects of climate change, Pakistan’s utilization of artificial rain stands as a testament to the power of innovation and determination in safeguarding our planet for future generations.
Nestlé Pakistan extends PKR 5 million to Pakistan Red Crescent Society
Nestlé Pakistan extended a corporate contribution worth PKR 5 million, as part of its philosophy of Creating Shared Value (CSV), to support Pakistan Red Crescent Society’s (PRCS) efforts towards social welfare and relief work.
Talking at the event, Jason Avanceña, CEO of Nestlé Pakistan, said, “Our collaboration with PRCS over the years has taken many forms. Be it the organization of blood donation camps or partnering during the COVID-19 response, we have depended on PRCS’ unmatched presence and expertise in providing first-aid and emergency response.
“We recognize that we have a responsibility to contribute to the well-being and development of the communities in which we operate. The corporate contribution we are presenting today is a testament to our commitment to supporting PRCS in your noble cause,” he said, adding that Nestlé Pakistan believes in the philosophy of Creating Shared Value (CSV), where we collectively work towards a clear, common goal: to be a ‘force for good.’ “
‘Nestlé Cares,’ the company’s voluntary program, provides the opportunity to engage and assist underprivileged communities through direct and indirect participation. Nestlé has been active in supporting and providing humanitarian assistance to vulnerable communities where needed. Nestlé continues to actively engage in initiatives that promote sustainability, community development, and social welfare.
Aramco to acquire a 40% stake in Gas & Oil Pakistan
Aramco Executive Vice President of Products & Customers, Yasser Mufti, sitting right, signs the agreement with GO Founder & CEO Khalid Riaz, sitting left. Standing, from left: Aramco International Retail Director Nader Douhan, GO CSO Ammar Ali Talaat, GO Director Shehzad Mubeen, GO Chairman Tariq Kirmani, Aramco Downstream President Mohammed Al Qahtani, GO Chief Operating Officer Zeeshan Tayyeb,
GO Director Bilal A. Ansari and GO Head of M&A Zain Jaffery.
Aramco, one of the world’s leading integrated energy and chemicals companies, today signed definitive agreements to acquire a 40% equity stake in Gas & Oil Pakistan Ltd. (“GO”).
GO, a diversified downstream fuels, lubricants and convenience stores operator, is one of the largest retail and storage companies in Pakistan. The transaction is subject to certain customary conditions, including regulatory approvals.
The planned acquisition is Aramco’s first entry into the Pakistani fuels retail market, advancing the Company’s strategy to strengthen its downstream value chain internationally.
This transaction would enable Aramco to secure additional outlets for its refined products and further provide new market opportunities for Valvoline-branded lubricants, following Aramco’s acquisition of the Valvoline Inc. global products business in February 2023.
Mohammed Y. Al Qahtani, Aramco Downstream President, said: “Our second planned retail acquisition this year aligns with Aramco’s downstream expansion strategy, with a clear path ahead for growing an integrated refining, marketing, lubricants, trading and chemicals portfolio worldwide. GO has a significant storage capacity, high-quality assets and growth potential, which will help launch the Aramco brand in Pakistan.”
Taliban rule ‘made girlhood illegal’: Malala
India agrees to withdraw soldiers from Maldives
Gaza crisis ‘most dangerous ever’ for journalists
Narowal sees first N4HK room by Nestlé Pakistan
Pakistan’s IT exports rise by 9% in November
US official in New Delhi for talks on Sikh plot
Export-Import Bank of Pakistan Launched
‘Poetry can help caregivers in overcoming grief’
Indian court allows survey over mosque-temple dispute
Wahaj Ali tops UK publication’s list as leading Pakistani celebrity of 2023
Music, dance and art converge on NAPA’s annual open house
Classical dancers show ‘heart and art’
Pakistan uses artificial rain to combat smog
Nestlé Pakistan extends PKR 5 million to Pakistan Red Crescent Society
Aramco to acquire a 40% stake in Gas & Oil Pakistan
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