NASEERABAD: Justice (retired) Mir Hazar Khan Khoso, a former caretaker prime minister of Pakistan, passed away at the age of 92, media reported Saturday. The seasoned politician had been undergoing treatment at a hospital in Quetta for a month, sources in his family said, adding that his body will be brought from Quetta to Manjhipur.
Khoso served as the Balochistan governor and chief justice too. He was appointed the caretaker PM by the ECP on 24 March 2013, out of four nominees coming from both the opposition and the dissolved government. He took oath on 25 March 2013.
Karachi (Muhammad Yasir) In collaboration with Health Department, Government of Sindh, the management of Naya Nazimabad has set up a new COVID-19 vaccination Centre in its own premises, at Ali Habib Medical Centre (AHMC).
“We are pleased to make vaccinations easily accessible to the residents of Naya Nazimabad and adjoining areas,” said Samad Habib, CEO, Naya Nazimabad. “The new vaccination centre reinforces our ongoing commitment to safety, while also providing an added convenience to our residents and the entire community. We would like to thank Government of Sindh and AHMC for their partnership in this important initiative,” added Samad Habib.
Vaccines will be available on a walk-up basis and no appointments are necessary. The vaccine is available to anyone 18 years of age or older. “As a socially responsible corporate entity, our commitment to improve the health and wellbeing of our community as well as the city of Karachi is what fuels Naya Nazimabad’s aggressive vaccination efforts. We are grateful for the opportunity to work with GoS in protecting our residents and citizens of the city, as we begin to safely return to a normal life with friends, family, and colleagues,” Samad Habib further added.
Deputy Commissioner West Mr. Saleemullah Odho also visited the facility on 26 June 2021 with AHMC management and was given an update on the progress of the vaccination drive. On this occasion DC West appreciated the efforts & hard work done by the management of Naya Nazimabad and AHMC in setting up the vaccination centre. He said that the situation of coronavirus in Sindh is different from other provinces and that is why the government of Sindh had to impose more restrictions. “The acceleration of vaccination drive in Sindh, especially Karachi is being made possible by Government of Sindh and in this regard, we are thankful to Samad Habib, management of Naya Nazimabad and AHMC to support our stance and our initiatives to vaccinate the citizens of Karachi,” he added.
The fully equipped vaccination centre is located at Ali Habib Medical Center, Naya Nazimabad. Vaccinations are being provided and administered by Government of Sindh employees, free of cost.
RAWALPINDI: Five soldiers of Frontier Corps (FC) Balochistan embraced martyrdom on Friday while thwarting terrorists” attack on the FC patrolling party in Sangan area of District Sibi, Balochistan. The spokesperson of Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) in a statement issued here said the terrorists targeted Frontier Corps patrolling party in Sangan, District Sibi where during the exchange of fire heavy losses were inflicted on to the terrorists in men and materials. The five brave martyred soldiers who valiantly fought back the terrorists during the attack were identified as Havaldar Zafar Ali Khan resident of Lakki Marvat, Lance Naik Hidayat ullah resident of Lakki Marvat, Lance Naik Nasir Abbas resident of Bhakkar, Lance Naik Basheer Ahmed resident of Naseerabad and Sepoy Noor Ullah resident of Lakki Marvat. The ISPR further told that a sanitization and search operation was also in progress to block the escape routes of the terrorists and apprehend the perpetrators. The Armed Forces spokesperson said such cowardly acts by inimical elements, backed by Hostile Intelligence Agencies cannot sabotage the hard earned peace and prosperity in Balochistan. The Security forces were determined to neutralize their nefarious designs even at the cost of blood and lives, it added.
Speaker Balochistan Assembly Abdul Quddus Bizenjo on Friday strongly condemned the attack on security forces in Sangan area of Sibi district. In a statement, he expressed his deep grief and sorrow over the loss of lives and extended his sympathy with bereaved families. He said no one would be allowed to sabotage peace while the nefarious designs of terrorists could be foiled from the country with the contribution of security forces.
Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Mahmood Khan on Friday strongly condemned the terrorists’ attack on FC contingent in Sibbi district of Baluchistan. In a message, the Chief Minister expressed profound grief and sorrow over the martyrdom of five FC men and extended heartfelt sympathies with the bereaved families. He also prayed for eternal peace to the martyred souls. He said such cowardice attacks could not shake the courage and resolve of the security forces adding the whole nation stands by its forces in war against terrorism.
Minister for Information and Broadcasting Chaudhry Fawad Hussain also vehemently condemned terrorists” attack on FC patrolling team in Sibi. He said those who sacrificed their lives for the sake of country were the real heroes of the nation
Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar has strongly condemned terrorists” attack on FC patrolling team in Sibi in which five personnel were martyred. The chief minister paid tributes to the services rendered by FC personnel and expressed heartfelt condolences with the bereaved family members. He termed the martyrs as hero of the nation and said the people were united in war against terrorism.
Five FC soldiers martyred thwarting terrorists attack in Sibi
TARBELA: Power generation of Tarbela dam Friday decreased to 2044 megawatts which were improved in last week and crossed 3000 MW. According to the Tarbela Dam officials, the water level of Tarbela dam decreased and remained 50 feet above dead level which is 1442.15 feet, where 12 power generation units out of 17 were producing only 2044 megawatts of electricity and they are also not working with full capacity either while five power generation units were shut down. Water inflow in the dam was 110300 cusecs and outflow 155000 cusecs feet, dam officials also stated that owing to the increase in water inflow we have also increased the outflow in Ghazi Brotha and Indus River. It was also disclosed that today 800 cusecs of water were released for Pehur High-Level Canal (PHLC) to supply water, some areas of KPK for irrigation.
Power generation of Tarbela dam decreases to 2044 MW
ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday suspended a call up notice issued by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to a journalist and summoned Cyber Crime Wing director in person on the next hearing. The court asked the FIA director to explain that why its orders dated November 3, were not implemented. IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah heard the case filed by journalist Bilal Ghauri challenging FIA call up notice served to him. During the hearing, Iman Mazari and Usman Warraich advocates appeared in the court on behalf of journalist Ghauri and took a stand that FIA were misusing its authority. Ghauri had been summoned without giving any reason, they added. The chief justice said the court had repeatedly pointed out that fundamental rights should be taken care of. The FIA officials were constantly repeating the same exercise and violating the court orders, he added. The court also clubbed all the identical cases against the FIA notices for hearing together on the next date of hearing.
islamabad: Hajj officials in Saudi Arabia have said they had completed all the organizational, service, and health preparations to provide the best services to pilgrims upon their arrival at the Grand Mosque in Makkah during this year’s Hajj season, which will begin mid-July.
The General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques said that all field and administrative agencies and departments are working to improve the outputs of business and services through pre-prepared plans and programmes.
Due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the Saudi Arabia”s Ministries of Health and Hajj announced earlier this month that a total of 60,000 pilgrims will be allowed to perform the pilgrimage this year as registration is only open to citizens and residents of the Kingdom, Arab news reported. Authorities will take into account COVID-19 health requirements to preserve public health and safety while also facilitating the performance of rituals and worship in the Grand Mosque. Those wishing to perform Hajj must be free of any chronic diseases, and be within the ages of 18 to 65 years for those vaccinated against the virus, according to the Kingdom’s vaccination measures.
Hajj pilgrims should be fully vaccinated, or those who took one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at least 14 days before, or those who are vaccinated after recovering from coronavirus infection.
All okay to welcome pilgrims: Saudi Hajj officials
ISLAMABAD: Ministry of Human Rights in collaboration with Pakistan Citizens Portal has launched “Zainab Alert App” nationwide to combat child abuse issue on war footing to address this grave problem, an official of MoHR said on Friday. Talking to media here, he said that the Zainab alert app was launched on Citizen’s portal and relevant regional and district levels for combating emergency and recovery of missing or abducted children. The basic purpose of this App is to initiate a quick response as soon as a complaint is lodged. It has connected the DPOs to the system and the complaint directly reaches to the concerned DPO. The App keeps a track of the missing child case and all the process taking place from preliminary examination to verification, registration of FIR and investigation. However, a Mobile App with same purpose and nature was already launched and working on Sindh level inside the CPLC office, he added. He said, “We always see duplication of services and notice that same nature of activities are undertaken at different places by different people”. It not only consumes time but also the efforts, he added.
LAHORE: The police made foolproof security arrangements on Friday in the city and policemen remained alert around mosques, Imambargahs and other religious places. The CCPO had issued directions to DIG Operations, SSP Operations and SPs to ensure foolproof security arrangements besides implementing coronavirus SOPs in the city. CCPO Ghulam Mahmood Dogar personally visited different areas, including mosques and religious places, to check arrangements while SPs, SDPOs and related officers also ensured tight security. The officers and officials with Dolphin Squad and Police Response Unit remained alert and conducted effective partrolling. The police also checked vehicles and suspects at entry and exit points in the city.
ISLAMABAD: United Nations’ (UN) international day in support of victims of torture will be marked on June 26 (Saturday) across the globe including Pakistan to remind people that human torture is not only unacceptable but it is also a crime. The day serves as a reminder to people that torture is a crime(stop torture now). This event gives everyone a chance to unite and voice their opinions against human torture (stop torture now). Organizations, including the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims and Amnesty International, have played an active role in organizing events around the world to promote the day. Activities may include: photo exhibitions; the distribution of posters and other material to boost people’s awareness of issues related to human torture; and television advertisements. On June 26, 1987, the convention against torture came into force (stop torture now). It was an important step in the process of globalizing human rights and acknowledging that torture and inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment should be universally illegal. In 1997 the United Nations General Assembly decided to mark this historic date and designated June 26 each year as the international day in support of victims of torture. The first International Day in Support of Victims of Torture was held on June 26, 1998. It was a day when the United Nations appealed to all governments and members of civil society to take action to defeat torture and torturers everywhere. That same year marked the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which proclaims that “no one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment”.
NUT Desk- LAHORE: In a breakthrough in the investigation into Wednesday`s bomb blast case, law enforcement agencies (LEAs) arrested a suspect said to be a foreign national from the Lahore airport.
Identified as Peter Paul David, the suspect was offloaded from a Karachi-bound flight and shifted to an undisclosed location for interrogation. He is said to be the owner of the car used in the blast on Wednesday near the residence of Jamaatud Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed that killed three people and injured 24 others.
The LEAs were also on the lookout for another suspect who is said to have driven the explosives-laden car to the targeted location while dodging law enforcers.
Details about the identity and whereabouts of the arrested suspect are being withheld. David`s travel history showed that he had been shuttling between Karachi, Lahore and Dubal frequently, while he couldn`t satisfy the investigators about the purpose of these visits and his activities.
Since being stolen in 2010 from Gujranwala, the car used in the blast had been sold further multiple times and David was its last owner, according to initial investigations.
The bomb blast near the residence of the JuD chief has also sparked off debates on the intelligence failure of the Counter-Terrorism Department. CTD chief Wasim Sial also faced criticism in a high-profile meeting on Thursday when it transpired that the terrorists prepared the explosives-laden car in Lahore and transported it near the high value target`s residence in Johar Town.
The CTD housed an intelligence wing todetect terrorist networks and counter and pre-empt their activities.
An official said intelligence agencies traced the location of the owner of the car through its registration record obtained from the excise department, and then arrested David from the Lahore airport.
Quoting initial investigations, the official said the car entered Lahore from Babu Sabu interchange a few hours before the blast where police personnel cleared the vehicle and the driver after checking.
He added that there were conflicting reports about whether it was carrying explosives at the time or not. However, there was a strong possibility that it was fitted with explosives inside Lahore and then driven to Johar Town.
CCTV footage showed a masked suspect parking the car at the corner of a street near the residence of the JuD chief around 10:40am on Wednesday. He got out of the car and then disappeared, the official said, adding that the blast occurred around 11:10am. Reportedly, the suspect had carried out the blast with a timed-device.
Footage later showed that the driver was picked up from a petrol pump nearby by an accomplice in a car and they drove off, the official said.
He added that during interrogation, David denied his involvement in the blast.
He told the investigators that during his last visit to Dubai, a friend of his said someone he (the friend) knew in Gujranwala needed his (David`s) car for a couple of days. When he returned to Pakistan, he handed over the car to a masked man in Gujranwala, David said, adding that he thought the man was wearing the mask because of Covid.
