Siasat Wala Blog

ISLAMABAD: Former president Pervez Musharraf Monday said that he is waiting for a favourable time to return to Pakistan and that he hoped for justice from the country's judiciary.Speaking to media after his telephonic address with party workers...

DAMASCUS: Missile strikes on central Syria killed 26 pro-regime fighters, most of them Iranians, a monitor said Monday, in a raid that bore the hallmarks of Tehran’s archfoe Israel. The Syrian regime, which denounced a “fresh aggression” after the strikes, meanwhile continued to flush out armed groups from the capital with more deals to transfer fighters to the country’s north. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group, missile strikes hit two military targets in Aleppo and Hama provinces late Sunday. The strike on Hama province hit a base known as the 47th Brigade where pro-regime fighters are stationed. Both hits destroyed surface-to-surface missiles, the monitor said. “At least 26 fighters were killed, including four Syrians,” in the Hama strike, said Rami Abdel Rahman, who heads the Britain-based monitoring group. “The others are foreign fighters, a vast majority of them Iranians,” he told AFP. “Given the nature of the target, it is likely to have...

DOHA: Qatar could increase the minimum wage for migrant workers by the end of 2018, unions predicted on Monday, as the 2022 World Cup host seeks to push through labour reforms. It would be the first change to the monthly wage since its introduction by the gas-rich Gulf state last November. “By the end of the year we expect a new minimum wage to be set, that’s good news,” said Sharan Burrow, general secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation. Burrow did not name a figure but said the new wage would be calculated by assessing a “basket of goods”. She was speaking after meeting Qatar’s labour minister, Issa al-Jufali al-Nuaimi, and other government officials in Doha over the past two days. The minimum wage was set at 750 riyals a month ($206, 170 euro) on its introduction. In addition to the salary, labourers receive free accommodation, food and healthcare plans, covered by employers. The 750-riyal figure has been criticised as too low. “We believe it is not good e...

ISLAMABAD: The government on Monday increased the price of petrol by Rs 1.70 per litre with  effect from May 1. The price of High-Speed Diesel (HSD) has also been increased by Rs 2.31 per litre, Light Diesel Oil (LDO) by Rs. 3.55 per litre, while the price of kerosene has been increased by Rs 3.41 per litre. The new price of petrol will be Rs 87.70 per litre. The price of HSD has been increased to Rs 98.76 per litre and LDO at Rs. 68.85 per litre , while kerosene will be available at Rs 79.87 per litre. The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) had proposed an increase in the petrol prices by Rs. 3.22 per litre, HSD by Rs. 5.02 per litre, LDO by Rs. 6.95 per litre, and kerosene by Rs 6.97 per litre. However despite a tight fiscal environment, the prime minister declined to pass on the full impact of the increase in prices to the consumers and decided that the government will absorb almost fifty percent of the impact of increase. The prices will be effective from May 1, 201...

Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan rallyKARACHI: In a bid to express show of power both the factions of Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan announced on Monday to hold public gatherings at the Tunki ground, a day after Pakistan Peoples’ Party held...

Iran is ready to participate in a gas swap between Pakistan and Turkmenistan, but a long-planned pipeline to transport gas from Turkmenistan to India is unlikely: local media. File photo: Reuters ANKARA: Iran is ready to participate in a gas swap...

MAPULA LODGE, Botswana: In an exclusive Botswana safari camp where Prince Harry took Meghan Markle on a romantic getaway last year, guests wake to the sound of doves cooing in the trees and hippos splashing in the serene waters of the Okavango Delta. Harry whisked the American actress away last year for a surprise holiday to celebrate her 36th birthday, hopping between luxury resorts in the sparsely populated southern African country renowned for its stunning wildlife and sweeping vistas. The trip last August came a year into their relationship and a few months before they got engaged. Their wedding on May 19 is building up to be the social event of the year. Harry sourced the diamond in Meghan’s engagement ring from Botswana, the world’s biggest producer. The couple went to Botswana soon after they began dating in July 2016, a trip Harry described in a media interview last year as a “crucial” chance to get to know each other. Their subsequent visit to the Okavango Delta last ...

Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Imran Khan. Photo: AFPISLAMABAD: Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Imran Khan on Monday said the only competition in Punjab for the upcoming general elections is between his party and the PML-N.    In an...

PTI chairman Imran Khan/File photoPakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan on Monday condemned the remarks by the opposing PML-N’s Rana Sanaullah and Abid Sher Ali against his party’s female members. The PTI chief posted a series of...

LA PAZ, BOLIVIA: Bolivian ex-dictator Luis Garcia Meza, who was serving a lengthy prison sentence for crimes committed after his 1980 military coup, died on Sunday in a La Paz hospital at the age of 88, his attorney told local media. Garcia Meza died of cardiac arrest and respiratory failure at the Cossmil military hospital in La Paz, where the former general had spent more than a third of his 30-year prison sentence, attorney Frank Campero said. Garcia Meza took power in a violent military coup in July 1980, near the end of the period of military dictatorships in Latin America. Scores of people, including socialist leader Marcelo Quiroga Santa Cruz, were killed as his forces seized power. Quiroga’s body was never found. A fierce anti-communist, Garcia Meza tortured opponents and launched a sweeping crack down on leftist dissenters. The regime even sought advice from Nazi war criminal Klaus Barbie, who helped set up a death squad. In one notable case eight leaders of Bolivia’s l...

Pakistan Star clinched the Queen Elizabeth II Cup for jockey William Buick in Hong Kong on Sunday, the highlight of three Group One spring races with a total purse of HK$58 million ($7.4 million). Known for being unpredictable, the five-year-old stormed to victory by a large margin in the final strides and finished the 2,000m course in just over two minutes. “He’s quite a famous horse for his antics so I was aware of him and I was aware of what he can do,” Buick said after the race, adding Pakistan Star “felt beautiful today”. “When I found out that I was riding him, I took on board all of the information I knew about the horse and also thought it was quite important to ride him with a fresh mind and just be very positive about the horse,” the winning jockey said. The prize money for the Audemars Piguet QEII Cup had been boosted up from last year’s HK$20 million to HK$24 million. Italian jockey Alberto Sanna finished second on Gold Mount, while Austr...

Zinedine Zidane may have won two consecutive Champions League titles but he refused to admit a third would brand this his very own era at Real Madrid. Real stand on the brink of a trio of finals ahead of their second leg against Bayern Munich in the last four on Tuesday, when they will carry a 2-1 lead, and two away goals, to the Santiago Bernabeu. It makes them favorites to go through and, for many, heavy favorites to win the tournament after already beating Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus in the knock-out stages. For Zidane, a third European crown as coach is now in sight, which would put him level with Carlo Ancelotti and Bob Paisley in the pantheon of successful managers. Only the three triumphs of Paisley, however, came at one club, Liverpool, and over a single era, in 1977, 1978 and 1981. Ancelotti’s treble stretched across 11 years, with two clubs, Real and AC Milan. “We cannot talk about this,” Zidane said on Friday. “Coaches like this were given a lot of time, they di...

Miranshah Market Complex includes 1344 shops, to be connected to CPEC via newly-constructed trade terminal and communication infrastructure in tribal areas. — ISPRMIRANSHAH: Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi on Monday inaugurated...

KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah on Monday assigned Child Foundation the task to assess pediatric facilities at Mithi hospital and present him report in a week. “I am worried about the children of Thar who still need special attention,” he said while holding a meeting with a delegation of Child Foundation here at the CM House. He directed the Child Foundation to send their professional team to Mithi Civil Hospital to inspect their entire facilities and give him a report within a week on the missing facilities so that they could be provided at the earliest. “We have equipped the Mithi Civil Hospital with the latest facilities and equipments but still there are child mortality reports which are quite disturbing for me.” “I want you to survey the facilities and modus operandi at the Mithi hospital and then present a final report to upgrade it,” he said. Read More: Infant dies of malnutrition in Mithi, pushes monthly death toll to 24 He said that he was trying to i...

MADRID: Barcelona’s coach Ernesto Valverde was delighted that his side “finally” wrapped up 25th La Liga title with four matches to spare, thanks to Lionel Messi’s hat-trick that secured a thrilling 4-2 victory at Deportivo La Coruna on Sunday. Valverde’s men completed a league and cup double after thrashing Sevilla 5-0 in last week’s Copa del Rey final, regaining the Spanish crown from Real Madrid and relegating Deportivo in the process. “I feel very happy because in the end the league is very long, it starts in August and when spring arrives everything is decided, we have passed everything. “We’ve been pursuing it since the beginning, we have been in the lead, we’ve finished well, with a big margin, It’s the first La Liga that I’ve won.” he told Spanish television. The only blip on the Catalans’ season was the stunning Champions League quarter-final loss at Roma when they blew a 4-1 first-leg lead. “The elimination by Roma marked us a little bit because it was unexpected, ...

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi on Monday assured that basic facilities will be provided to tribal people in FATA on priority basis. Addressing a tribal Jirga in Miranshah, the headquarters of North Waziristan agency, the prime minister said FATA will be included in the national mainstream and all political parties are serious of about it. He said Miranshah will be developed as it is the gateway to Central Asia. He also inaugurated a number of development projects in the area. These include the newly constructed market, a bus terminal, and Ghulam Khan National Logistics Cell terminal. He said that these projects will promote trade and business activities in the agency. Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa, Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Zafar Iqbal Jhagra and Corps Commander Peshawar Lt. General Nazir Ahmed Butt accompanied the prime minister on the ocassion.   The post Political parties serious about mainstreaming FATA : PM Abbasi appeared first on A...

Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Imran Khan. Photo: AFPISLAMABAD: Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Imran Khan on Monday said the only competition in Punjab for the upcoming general elections is between his party and the PML-N.    In an...

Inzamam-ul-Haq speaks to reporters in Lahore LAHORE: Chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq on Monday once again defended the team selection for Pakistan’s Test tour of Ireland and England, saying that he is only trying to do what is in the best...

Tourists' allegations have led to a #BoycottMurree campaign on social media, after videos of several such incidents went viralMurree, a popular mountain resort town nestled in Galyat region of northern Pakistan, may face a dip in its tourist...

Activists of Hazara Democratic Party stage a demonstration outside Balochistan Assembly. — INP QUETTA: Successive incidents of targeted killings have spread a wave of terror among citizens of Quetta, who on Monday staged protests at different...

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump suggested Monday that his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un be held in the truce village that straddles the border separating the two Koreas. Trump has previously listed the number of locations under consideration for the historic summit — which would be the first between a sitting US president and a leader of North Korea — but this is his first public comment on a potential site. “Numerous countries are being considered for the MEETING, but would Peace House/Freedom House, on the Border of North & South Korea, be a more Representative, Important and Lasting site than a third party country? Just asking!” Trump tweeted. The Peace House in Panmunjom, the truce village in the Demilitarized Zone that separates the two Koreas, was where Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in met Friday for a historic summit. ALSO READ: North and South Korean leaders made history today holding first ever summit Kim, the first North Korean leader ...

Shares of Asian telecom players have already priced in the impact of investments for setting up fifth generation (5G) mobile networks and potential monetization uncertainty, J P Morgan Securities analysts said on Monday. The Asian telecom sector has underperformed the broader market by 18 percent in the past 12 months due to investor concerns stemming from uncertainties related to 5G spending and potential monetization, JP Morgan analysts said. They, however, believe it is now time to revisit the sector, with spectrum auctions due in Korea and Australia in 2018 and Japan and China in early 2019. JP Morgan recommended investors buy telecom stocks in Japan, South Korea, China and Australia, saying these companies were unlikely to build significant standalone 5G networks until a business case emerges. However, their rivals in Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan face more competitive spectrum auctions, which are not expected until 2020, due to limited availability of 5G bandwidth, the an...

LAYYAH: Evading the accusations levelled by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief, Chief Minister Punjab and President Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) on Monday said responding to the accusations of Imran Khan was a sheer wastage of time for him and a disrespect to honesty, ARY News reported. Counting a number of allegations, he said, “Imran accused him of Rs27 billion embezzlement and said I offered him Rs10 bn to withdraw Panama Leaks case. He also alleged that I had done corruption in Multan Metro Project,” he said adding that he had no time to respond to his allegations as he had piled records of lies. Shehbaz said the PML-N wanted in real sense to carve out Quaid-e-Azam’s Pakistan, while those chanting slogans of ‘Naya Pakistan’ only wanted devastation. Read More: ‘Din Raat Dharna or Koi Kaam Na Karna’: Shehbaz takes a jab at Imran in Mardan Commenting on “the historic” eleven points agenda laid out by Imran for Naya Pakistan, he said the PTI chairman presented eleven po...

MV Saim 7. Photo: Geo NewsTEHRAN: As many as six Pakistani sailors of a commercial ship anchored in Iran are stranded from last four months.According to Chief Engineer Atiq Ahmed, the MV Saim 7 departed from Dubai to Iran on June 2017."It has been...

ISLAMABAD: Former interior minister and Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) stalwart Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan on Monday announced the constituencies from which he would contest the next general elections. Nisar would contest from one National Assembly, NA-59 in Attock, and two provincial assembly constituencies, PS-10 and PS-14, in Rawalpindi. The decision by made during a visit by a delegation led by Union council chairman and vice-chairman district Attock. Nisar also expressed his desire to contest the next election from NA-63 in Taxila. The UC delegation appreciated Nisar’s services and expressed confidence in his leadership. They said that a politician like Nisar was a matter of pride for the people of Potohar region. Nisar thanked the local government representatives for their support, and said he would made a final decision after consultation with the party representatives of Wah, Taxila. The delegation vowed to support Nisar irrespective of the constituency chosen to contest the...

Shehbaz Sharif speaks to media LAHORE: Punjab chief minister Shehbaz Sharif fired back at Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan, a day after the opposing party held what it called a “Tsunami plus” power show at Minar-e-Pakistan....

CANTERBURY: Heavy overnight and early morning rain resulted in the abundance of play on the third day of the tour game between Pakistan and Kent without a ball being bowled. It was the second successive day in this four-day fixture where play had been completely washed out. But the umpires waited until lunch on Sunday before calling off play, the amount of rain taken by the Spitfire St Lawrence ground on Monday meant that this time they abandoned proceedings for the day at 9:00 am local time (0800 GMT) — two hours before the scheduled start. Kent are 39-1 in reply to Pakistan’s first innings 168, a total in which Imam-ul-Haq’s 61 was the top score. Uncapped at Test level, Imam’s inclusion in the tour squad generated debate because the 22-year-old left-hander is the nephew of Pakistan chief selector and former international batsman Inzamam-ul-Haq. But there was no denying Imam’s talent or application as he struck nine fours in a 111-ball innings played in typically English ov...

Pakistan Muslim League - Nawaz leader Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan on Monday, April 30, 2018, announced to contest the upcoming elections from the NA-59 constituency. Photo: Geo News screengrab ISLAMABAD: PML-N leader Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan on Monday...

ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office on Monday strongly condemned the twin suicide attacks killing and injuring scores of innocent people in the Afghan capital Kabul. “We are distressed and grieved at the loss of precious human lives. We express our deepest sympathies and heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of those who have lost their lives and pray to Almighty Allah for early recovery of the injured,” said a statement by spokesman Muhammad Faisal. The spokesman further said that the government and people of Pakistan express their support and solidarity with their Afghan brethren in this hour of grief. “We are confident that the resolve of brave Afghan people to defeat terrorism cannot be weakened by such cowardly attacks,” he added. Pakistan reiterates its condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and resolves to fight this menace till its elimination. MUST READ: Twin blasts in Afghan capital kill at least 26, including nine journalists Twin blasts...

Sindh Rangers Director General Major General Muhammad Saeed. Photo: FileKARACHI: Sindh Rangers Director General Major General Muhammad Saeed on Monday urged the people of Lyari to play their role in establishing peace in the area.The Sindh Rangers...

KATHMANDU: An Italian climber has died on Nepal’s rugged Mount Dhaulagiri, officials said on Monday, the first fatality of the busy spring climbing season. Simone La Terra, 37, was blown off the 8,167-metre (26,795-foot) mountain — the world’s seventh highest peak — by a strong gust of wind on Sunday. His body was found on Monday. Dambar Parajuli of Prestige Adventure, which organised the Italian’s expedition, said La Terra was inside a tent at 6,900 metres when he was swept off the mountain. His team members searched for him on foot while a rescue helicopter struggled against bad weather to search higher up the mountain, Parajuli said. “His body was found this morning at 800 metres below the spot (where he had been camped),” he said. Ram Prasad Sapkota, spokesman for Nepal’s tourism department which regulates all climbs in the country, also confirmed the death.   “His body has been retrieved and brought to Kathmandu,” Sapkota told AFP. Dhaulagiri in central Nepal was fi...

T-Mobile US and Sprint said on Sunday they had agreed to a $26 billion all-stock deal and believed they could win over skeptical regulators because the merger would create thousands of jobs and help the United States beat China to creating the next generation mobile network. The agreement capped four years of on-and-off talks between the third and fourth largest US wireless carriers, setting the stage for the creation of a company with 127 million customers that will be a more formidable competitor to the top two wireless players, Verizon Communications and AT&T. US regulators, who have challenged in court AT&T’s $85 billion deal to buy US media company Time Warner, are expected to grill Sprint and T-Mobile on how they will price their combined wireless offerings. Verizon has 116 million US wireless customers, according to a spokesman, while AT&T has 93 million branded customers, as of the first quarter. Their first round of merger talks ended unsuccessfully in 2014 a...

The food authority is tasked with ensuring availability of quality food and hygienic environment in hotels, restaurants and other eateriesKARACHI: The Sindh Food Authority, a year after the provincial assembly passed a law for provision of safe and...

KARACHI: Pakistan Rangers (Sindh) officials deployed across the province, including Karachi, will be seen wearing a new uniform from Monday.The pattern of the uniform of the paramilitary force has been changed days after the change was...

ELNA, FRANCE: An art museum in the south of France has discovered that more than half of its collection consists of fakes, in what the local mayor on Sunday described as a “catastrophe” for the region. The tiny 8,000-strong community of Elne just outside Perpignan re-opened its Etienne Terrus museum, dedicated to the works of the local artist who was born in 1857 and died in 1922, on Friday after extensive renovation work. But an art historian brought in to reorganise the museum following the recent acquisition of around 80 paintings, found that nearly 60 percent of the entire collection was fake. “Etienne Terrus was Elne’s great painter. He was part of the community, he was our painter,” said mayor Yves Barniol on Friday. “Knowing that people have visited the museum and seen a collection most of which is fake, that’s bad. It’s a catastrophe for the municipality.” Eric Forcada, the art historian who uncovered the counterfeits, said that he had seen straight away that most of th...

65-year-old Aslam Chaudhry frequently comes to the rescue of cricket´s most recognisable stars out of his small, decades-old workshop in south MumbaiMUMBAI: When the Indian Premier League´s big hitters need their favourite bat urgently repaired...

NEW YORK: Talk therapy for insomnia is effective at reducing insomnia, as well as mental fatigue, among military personnel, according to a new study. For the new analysis, published online in Sleep, researchers recruited 151 active-duty U.S. Army personnel stationed at Fort Hood, Texas who had chronic insomnia and randomly assigned half of them to receive six weekly 60-minute sessions of a treatment cognitive behavior therapy for insomnia (CBTi). All the soldiers had served at least one military deployment in or around Iraq or Afghanistan. The average age was about 32, and more than 80 percent were male. CBTi is a short-term, goal oriented type of psychotherapy that tries to change destructive thinking and behavior. It has been successfully used since the 1960s in civilian populations to treat several clinical problems besides insomnia. The soldiers’ CBTi program also included relaxation training and helpful tips on how to get a good night’s sleep, or sleep hygiene, such as avoid...

KUALA LUMPUR: A Malaysian court on Monday handed a Danish man a one-week jail term for breaking a law against “fake news”, the first person to be punished under the controversial legislation. The law, passed in early April, makes the deliberate dissemination of false information punishable by up to six years in jail and a hefty fine. It has sparked outrage from rights groups, who believe it is aimed at cracking down on dissent. Salah Salem Saleh Sulaiman, a 46-year-old of Yemeni descent, admitted making and posting on YouTube a video accusing emergency services of responding slowly after a Palestinian Hamas member was gunned down in Kuala Lumpur. Fadi al-Batsh, said to be a rocket-making expert, was on his way to dawn prayers on April 21 when he was assassinated by motorbike-riding gunmen, a killing his family have blamed on Israel’s spy agency. The Jewish state has denied it was behind the murder. The Dane, who did not have a lawyer and was wearing white robes and a green skullc...