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Waqas Dar

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Blog Entries posted by Waqas Dar

  1. Waqas Dar
    SWABI: The chehlum for Mashal Khan was observed in his native town Zaida, Swabi on Sunday.
    A large number of locals visited Mashal's grave and held prayers for the Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan student who was brutally murdered over blasphemy allegations.
    The police have so far arrested 57 people suspected to be involved in Mashal's killing.
    The most recent arrested was of Hammad, a student of Zoology at AWKUM.
    On May 16, the police arrested a lecturer of Islamic Studies and two students in the lynching case.
    Wajid, alias Malang, was a lecturer at a government degree college. Other suspects included students Jalal and Sajid.
    According to the police, Wajid was the right-hand man of the main accused in the case, Arif, who is on the run and had also given an incendiary speech before Mashal was murdered by a mob.
    Mashal, a journalism student at AWKUM, was stripped, beaten, shot, and thrown from the second floor of his hostel by a violent mob on April 13 which had accused him of blasphemy. No such charges have been proved.


  2. Waqas Dar
    SWABI: The chehlum for Mashal Khan will be observed in his native town Zaida, Swabi today.
    Prayers will be held for the student of Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan who was killed over blasphemy allegations.
    The police have so far arrested 57 people suspected to be involved in Mashal's killing.
    The most recent arrested was of Hammad, a student of Zoology at AWKUM.
    On May 16, the police arrested a lecturer of Islamic Studies and two students in Mashal's lynching case.
    Wajid, alias Malang, was a lecturer at a government degree college. Other suspects included students Jalal and Sajid.
    According to the police, Wajid was the right-hand man of the main accused in the case, Arif, who was on the run and had also given an incendiary speech before Mashal was murdered by a mob.
    Mashal, a journalism student at AWKUM, was stripped, beaten, shot, and thrown from the second floor of his hostel by a violent mob on April 13 which had accused him of blasphemy. 


  3. Waqas Dar
    German Chancellor Angela Merkel gives a speech at the meeting of the G20 health ministers in Berlin, Germany, May 19, 2017. REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch  Health ministers from the G20 leading economies, meeting for the first time on Saturday, agreed to work together to tackle issues such as a growing resistance to antibiotics and to start implementing national action plans by the end of 2018.
    Germany, which holds the G20 presidency this year, said it was an "important breakthrough" that all nations had agreed to address the problem and work towards obligatory prescriptions for antibiotics.
    Saying that globalisation caused infectious diseases to spread more quickly than previously, the 20 nations also pledged to strengthen health systems and improve their ability to react to pandemics and other health risks.
    "By putting global health on the agenda of the G20 we affirm our role in strengthening the political support for existing initiatives and working to address the economic aspects of global health issues," the communique said.
    The results of the meeting will feed into a G20 leaders' summit in Hamburg in July.
    While the discovery of antibiotics has provided cures for many bacterial infections that had previously been lethal, over-prescription has led to the evolution of resistance strains of many bacteria.
    An EU report last year found that newly resistant strains of bacteria were responsible for more than 25,000 deaths a year in the 28-member bloc alone.
    Germany has argued that even having a discussion about it will help raise public awareness about the problem. The G20 also said they agreed to help improve access to affordable medicine in poorer countries.


  4. Waqas Dar
    Image courtesy: Reuters video Co-owner Sarah Silverman opened up Cupcake Market in April 2016 and had the idea to have iconic, "fun, cartoony" faces painted on sugar cookies.
    "It was perfect timing because it was right when the primaries were going on so opening day, I remember, we had no one coming into our shop and my dad put out the cookies up front on a bench, and then, like, everyone started coming," Silverman said.
    "We do 40 cookies a day and it's usually like a two-day process. One chef just rolls out the cookies, another chef pipes each colour individually and another one paints on the cookie, so it's a really big process," she said.
    Silverman said Trump still remains one of her best sellers even after the election, but people don't buy the cookies to eat it like it's a regular cookie.
    "A few people have sent us videos of them either throwing the cookie or eating the cookie like a monster," Silverman said.
    Silverman initially thought her bake shop would primarily be selling cupcakes, but sales from her face cookies, which go for $16 each, make up the bulk of her business.
    Cookie faces include notable names such as Frida Kahlo, Michelle Obama, Katy Perry, Ryan Gosling, and Kanye and Kim Kardashian West.

    Check out what Silverman has to say about the baking process and how passersby react to the cookies here:




  5. Waqas Dar
    Image courtesy: News of Bahrain JAKARTA: At least five people were killed when a boat carrying nearly 200 people caught fire in Indonesia, rescuers said Saturday.
    The vessel caught fire on Friday afternoon in the waters off the archipelago´s main Java island, prompting the captain to order people to abandon the boat, the national disaster management agency said.
    The agency said the fire might have caused by a short circuit in one of the trucks carried on board.
    Rescuers have evacuated 141 people and recovered five bodies in the incident, the local chief of the search and rescue agency, Mohammad Arifin, told AFP.
    Authorities were checking the manifest to determine whether anyone else was missing, Arifin said.
    Boat accidents are common in Indonesia, a vast network of islands that relies heavily on water transport.
    In January, 23 Indonesian tourists were killed when a massive fire erupted in a boat carrying hundreds of people to an island north of Jakarta to celebrate the New Year.


  6. Waqas Dar
    Mar 11, 2017; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder centre Enes Kanter (11) drives to the basket in front of Utah Jazz centre Jeff Withey (24) during the second quarter at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports  US-based Turkish basketball star Enes Kanter was refused entry into Romania on Saturday because his Turkish passport had been cancelled, Romanian border police said.
    Kanter, who plays in the NBA for Oklahoma City Thunder, is a long-time supporter of Pennsylvania-based preacher Fethullah Gulen, whose extradition Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan is seeking in relation to a failed coup last July.
    Kanter said on his Twitter account that he would hold a news conference in New York on Sunday to discuss his situation.
    "Got lots of things to say with lots of crazy stories, Be ready!!!" he said.
    Kanter had tweeted earlier that Romanian police had detained him at Bucharest airport.
    "I'm being held at Romanian airport by police," Kanter wrote, along with a photo of him with his arms around two police officers and a video describing what he said was his situation.
    "We are in Romania and they said they cancelled my passport by Turkish embassy," he said in the video, speaking in English. "You know because the reason behind it is just, of course, my political views."
    Neither the National Basketball Association nor the Oklahoma City Thunder was immediately available for comment on Kanter.
    Kanter's agent, Melvut Cilnar, told Oklahoma media that the player was safe. He said he and Kanter expected to return to the US from London "very soon", but did not elaborate.
    Romanian border police said in a statement that Kanter had come from the United States and made a stop in Frankfurt.
    "At the border checkpoint it was discovered that his passport is not valid, his travel document being annulled by the issuing state," the statement said, adding he then flew on to London.
    Turkish officials were not immediately available to comment.
    Kanter said last year he had severed ties with his family and pledged allegiance to Gulen after Turkish media published a letter signed by Kanter's father, disowning his son.
    During the coup attempt, rogue soldiers in warplanes and tanks tried to seize power in Turkey in a putsch that killed more than 240 people. Gulen, who has lived in self-imposed exile since 1999, has denied involvement.


  7. Waqas Dar
    Model Cara Delevingne. REUTERS/Danny Moloshok Actress and model Cara Delevingne recently attended the Magnum x Moschino party in Cannes Thursday night along with Moschino creative director Jeremy Scott and other celebrities.

    The 24-year-old, who has recently shaved her head for her role in Life in a Year ? in which she plays a woman with cancer who has one year to live ? said she'd go to "any length" for a "great" movie part.
    Actors T. J. Miller and his wife Kate Miller, model Daisy Lowe, and singer Tallia Storm were among the other guests.




  8. Waqas Dar
    Image courtesy: Reuters video An Aeromexico passenger jet collided with a utility truck on a taxiway of Los Angeles International Airport shortly after landing on Saturday, injuring eight employees who were aboard the truck, but no one on the plane was hurt, authorities said.
    The cause of the mishap, which damaged the right wing of the Boeing 737 and left the large supply truck overturned on its side, remained under investigation, said Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Brian Humphrey.
    Six men and two women aboard the truck were taken to an area hospital for treatment of various unspecified injuries, none of them considered to be life-threatening, Humphreys said.
    Airport officials said all eight were listed in stable condition.
    No one among the approximately 150 passengers and crew aboard the plane, Aeromexico Flight 642 from Mexico City, required any medical attention, according to Humphreys.
    But a statement from the airport said one passenger reported suffering some pain after leaving the aircraft.
    The accident occurred at about 2:30 PM Pacific time. There was no fuel spill or fire, and the plane was able to finish taxiing to its gate, where the passengers disembarked.
    Los Angeles International ranks as America's second-busiest airport, with nearly 700,000 takeoffs and landings a year.


  9. Waqas Dar
    US President Donald Trump dances with a sword as he arrives at a welcome ceremony by Saudi Arabia´s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud at Al Murabba Palace in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia May 20, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst  Swords in hand, swaying left, right and centre to drums beating to a slow tune on drums, officials from the Trump administration, including US President Donald Trump himself, on Saturday danced alongside Keffiyeh-sporting Saudi Arabian leaders in a traditional merrymaking event.


    Trump, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, and White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon waltzed in the Ardha dance ceremony with King Salman in the nation?s King Abdulaziz cultural centre.



    While by definition, the ?Ardha dance begins with a single line of poetry that is repeated with drums beating in the background and swords wielded as part of the national ceremony,? according to Al-Arabiya, it has become more commonplace at celebrations and various other occasions to express joy.


    Saudi Arabia´s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (R) presents US President Donald Trump with the Collar of Abdulaziz Al Saud Medal at the Royal Court in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia May 20, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst  Earlier today, the Saudi Arabian king presented Trump with the kingdom's top civilian honour during the latter?s trip to Riyadh to strengthen security and economic ties. King Salman decorated Trump with the gold King Abdulaziz medal during a meeting at the royal court in the Saudi capital.
    Trump and Muslim world
    Trump reached Saudi Arabia on Saturday, marking the first stop on his maiden international trip since taking office in January.
    US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump arrive aboard Air Force One at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia May 20, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst  Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz greeted him on a red carpet as he stepped off Air Force One, shaking the hand of his wife, Melania, and riding in the presidential limousine. It was a warmer welcome than had been granted to Trump's predecessor, Barack Obama, who was seen in the Arab kingdom as soft on Iran and hesitant on Syria.
    Top regional ally Saudi Arabia has said the trip will conclude political and commercial agreements and will help bolster the joint fight against extremist militants. Trump is expected to sign multiple deals with the country.
    US President Donald Trump meets with Saudi Arabia´s Deputy Crown Prince and Minister of Defense Mohammed bin Salman (centre L) at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia May 20, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst  Dogged by controversy at home, Donald Trump opened his first presidential foreign trip in Saudi Arabia on Saturday and won a warm reception as he looked to shift attention from a political firestorm over his firing of former FBI Director James Comey.
    The White House, on the other hand, hopes the trip will shift focus away from domestic controversies and on to his foreign policy agenda.
    Trump will make stops next week in Israel, Belgium, and Italy. The trip has been billed as a chance to visit places sacred to three of the world's major religions while including meetings with Arab, Israeli, and European leaders.
    The American President is expected to give a speech later on Sunday on the Islamic faith as well during a US-Arab Islamic Summit with nearly 50 other Muslim-majority country leaders.




  10. Waqas Dar
    US President Donald Trump dances with a sword as he arrives at a welcome ceremony by Saudi Arabia´s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud at Al Murabba Palace in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia May 20, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst  Swords in hand, swaying left, right and centre to drums beating to a slow tune on drums, officials from the Trump administration, including US President Donald Trump himself, on Saturday danced alongside Keffiyeh-sporting Saudi Arabian leaders in a traditional merrymaking event.


    Trump, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, and White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon waltzed in the Ardha dance ceremony with King Salman in the nation?s King Abdulaziz cultural centre.



    While by definition, the ?Ardha dance begins with a single line of poetry that is repeated with drums beating in the background and swords wielded as part of the national ceremony,? according to Al-Arabiya, it has become more commonplace at celebrations and various other occasions to express joy.


    Saudi Arabia´s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (R) presents US President Donald Trump with the Collar of Abdulaziz Al Saud Medal at the Royal Court in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia May 20, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst  Earlier today, the Saudi Arabian king presented Trump with the kingdom's top civilian honour during the latter?s trip to Riyadh to strengthen security and economic ties. King Salman decorated Trump with the gold King Abdulaziz medal during a meeting at the royal court in the Saudi capital.
    Trump and Muslim world
    Trump reached Saudi Arabia on Saturday, marking the first stop on his maiden international trip since taking office in January.
    US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump arrive aboard Air Force One at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia May 20, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst  Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz greeted him on a red carpet as he stepped off Air Force One, shaking the hand of his wife, Melania, and riding in the presidential limousine. It was a warmer welcome than had been granted to Trump's predecessor, Barack Obama, who was seen in the Arab kingdom as soft on Iran and hesitant on Syria.
    Top regional ally Saudi Arabia has said the trip will conclude political and commercial agreements and will help bolster the joint fight against extremist militants. Trump is expected to sign multiple deals with the country.
    US President Donald Trump meets with Saudi Arabia´s Deputy Crown Prince and Minister of Defense Mohammed bin Salman (centre L) at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia May 20, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst  Dogged by controversy at home, Donald Trump opened his first presidential foreign trip in Saudi Arabia on Saturday and won a warm reception as he looked to shift attention from a political firestorm over his firing of former FBI Director James Comey.
    The White House, on the other hand, hopes the trip will shift focus away from domestic controversies and on to his foreign policy agenda.
    Trump will make stops next week in Israel, Belgium, and Italy. The trip has been billed as a chance to visit places sacred to three of the world's major religions while including meetings with Arab, Israeli, and European leaders.
    The American President is expected to give a speech later on Sunday on the Islamic faith as well during a US-Arab Islamic Summit with nearly 50 other Muslim-majority country leaders.




  11. Waqas Dar
    Opposition supporters clash with riot security forces while rallying against President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas, Venezuela, May 20, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins  CARACAS/SAN CRISTOBAL: Hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans took to the streets on Saturday to mark 50 days of protests against the unpopular government of President Nicolas Maduro, with unrest gaining momentum despite a rising death toll and chaotic scenes of nighttime looting.
    At least 46 people have been killed in the worst turmoil faced by Maduro since he won the presidency in 2013. Venezuelans from civilians to police have been killed, sometimes during increasingly frequent spates of looting or street melees.
    Many Venezuelans are furious with Maduro's government, blaming it for soaring inflation, shortages of everything from food to medicine, and a crackdown on human rights. They are demanding elections, freedom for jailed activists, foreign aid, and autonomy for the opposition-led legislature.
    Major opposition marches took place across the oil-rich nation of 30 million on Saturday, with protesters in Caracas brandishing placards that read ?No More dictatorship in Venezuela? while in the volatile border city of San Cristobal masked youths threw rocks, and a Reuters witness saw two protesters wielding machetes.
    The Andean area near Colombia suffered a week of mayhem that included looting, prompting the government to send in 2,000 troops.
    "We don't want more deaths. We want salaries that mean something and medicines. The government invests more in bullets and weapons than in food and education for this country," said Maria Diaz, a 33-year-old lawyer standing in the torrential rain in front of security forces with some 8,000 other protesters in San Cristobal.
    Opposition protesters say the government is trying to maintain its grip on power despite the economic crisis. More than 2,600 protesters have been arrested across the country, more than a third of whom remain detained, according to a local rights group.
    ?More resistance?
    The government, which says protesters are trying to foment a coup beneath the pro-democracy rhetoric, held a counter-march in Caracas, with thousands of red-clad supporters singing and dancing. Officials frequently pop up on state television with photos of vandalised stores and blocked roads that they blame on the opposition.
    In recent weeks, protesters have thrown everything from excrement to petrol bombs at security forces, who have used tear gas and rubber bullets to block marchers. Opposition lawmakers have joined protesters, often facing tear gas themselves.
    Two-time presidential candidate and de facto opposition leader, Henrique Capriles, led the Caracas march.
    "Fifty days and they've assassinated 50 people... Despite everything, on day 50, amid more repression, there is more resistance and more fight for Venezuela," said Capriles, surrounded by supporters.
    He was recently barred from holding public office for 15 years and said this week that his passport was confiscated before a flight to New York, where he was set to visit the United Nations and denounce human rights violations.
    On Thursday, the United States imposed sanctions on the chief judge and seven other members of Venezuela's Supreme Court and President Donald Trump described Venezuela's humanitarian situation as "a disgrace to humanity."
    Maduro responded by telling Trump to stop meddling in Venezuela's affairs.


  12. Waqas Dar
    File Photo EDINBURGH: British Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservative party has seen its lead narrow slightly ahead of a June 8 national election but it remains well ahead of its opposition, an Opinium poll showed on Saturday.
    The poll conducted on May 16 and 17 showed the Conservatives with 46 percent, down from 47 percent a week earlier, while the Labour Party had 33 percent, up one percentage point.
    The Liberal Democrats had 8 percent while the United Kingdom Independence Party and the Scottish National Party both had 5 percent of the vote, all unchanged from the previous poll.
    "Although the Tory (Conservative) lead is shrinking, the slow rate of change means that it will be mid-August before Labour close the gap," said Adam Drummond, head of political polling at Opinium.
    The online survey interviewed 2,003 UK adults.


  13. Waqas Dar
    File Photo EDINBURGH: British Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservative party has seen its lead narrow slightly ahead of a June 8 national election but it remains well ahead of its opposition, an Opinium poll showed on Saturday.
    The poll conducted on May 16 and 17 showed the Conservatives with 46 percent, down from 47 percent a week earlier, while the Labour Party had 33 percent, up one percentage point.
    The Liberal Democrats had 8 percent while the United Kingdom Independence Party and the Scottish National Party both had 5 percent of the vote, all unchanged from the previous poll.
    "Although the Tory (Conservative) lead is shrinking, the slow rate of change means that it will be mid-August before Labour close the gap," said Adam Drummond, head of political polling at Opinium.
    The online survey interviewed 2,003 UK adults.


  14. Waqas Dar
    File Photo KOHAT: Four policemen, including a station house officer (SHO), were killed in an attack on a police van here late Saturday, officials said.
    According to police, SHO Lachi police station, Khanullah, had led a police team to Kamal Khel area for the arrest of wanted suspects. The police team, comprising four mobiles, was returning whey they came under attack by terrorists in Mohsin Khel area.
    As a consequence, SHO Lachi Khanullah, Additional SHO Tahir Mahmood, Constable Abid and Tanvir Ali were killed on the spot.
    The police team retaliated, but the terrorists, taking advantage of the dark, fled from the scene.
    Reinforcements were called in and the areas has been cordoned off.
    A search operation is underway for the perpetrators of the attack.


  15. Waqas Dar
    The Pakistani actress who proved her mettle in Pakistani dramas with her brilliant dialogue delivery and acting is winning hearts in India too.
    Saba Qamar made her debut in Bollywood with Hindi Medium, starring alongside the versatile Irrfan Khan. While Irrfan is a class apart when it comes to delivering hits, Qamar has also proved herself a versatile actor who can mould herself in any character. And so when news came of her starring alongside Irrfan, unlike so many others, we not for a moment thought she would be overshadowed by the actor.
    Various publications in India gave raving reviews on her acting in the film, which is about a couple (Irrfan and Qamar) trying to get their daughter admitted in the best possible school. The film focuses on the obsession in our part of the world with seeing the English language as the ultimate ticket to success.
    ?Qamar is a beauty. Between her and Fawad Khan, they might convince Hindi film audiences that Pakistan has cornered a majority share of the world?s hotness. Though her character is often hyper, her acting never is ? that is a fine line to tread, and she pulls it off,? a review in Firstpost says.
    Pinkvilla lamented the tensions between the two countries for not getting Qamar to see in movies enough. ?Whoever found Saba Qamar, take a bow!?
    Hindustan Times describes the Pakistani actress as ?equally effective and funny as a wife who keeps saying ?stand ho jao? and ?lonely and depressed??.
    ?Saba Qamar is Pakistan's finest export so far, and excels as the Chandni Chowk girl with social climbing aspirations,? says India today.
    Back home, she will also be starring in a biopic on the slain Pakistani social media celebrity Qandeel Baloch and is already getting a lot of praise for it.


  16. Waqas Dar
    QUETTA: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan has warned the government against imposition of curbs on media and social media.
    The PTI chief said that his party will not allow the government to suppress the voice of the people in any case.
    The statement was made during his address with participants of a PTI rally at Quetta's Ayub Stadium on Friday.
    Staying of Jadhav sentence result of Nawaz-Jindal meeting: Imran
    The PTI chairman is expected to make an important announcement at the rally
    He accused the prime minister of trying to impose restrictions on social media through Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).
    The PTI chief warned of taking to streets if the PM tried to contain freedom of media or social media.
    Criticising the government further, Khan said the youth affiliated with his party have done nothing wrong.
    "Don't you lay hands on our social media activists," he asked the authorities.


  17. Waqas Dar
    US President Donald Trump (R) and Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman al-Saud take part in a bilateral meeting at a hotel in Riyadh on May 20, 2017. / AFP / MANDEL NGAN    Washington has agreed arms deals with Saudi Arabia worth almost $110 billion, a White House official said Saturday, the first day of President Donald Trump´s visit to the traditional US ally.
    "This package of defence equipment and services support the long-term security of Saudi Arabia and the Gulf region in the face of Iranian threats," the official said.
    It will also bolster the kingdom´s "ability to contribute to counter-terrorism operations across the region, reducing the burden on the US military to conduct those operations," the official added.
    Trump and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson "will attend a signing ceremony" for the deals, the official said.
    The official described the agreements as "a significant expansion of the over seven-decade-long security relationship between the United States and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia."
    The official did not provide details of the agreements with Riyadh, which is one of the world´s biggest defence spenders.
    A preliminary deal worth $6 billion to assemble 150 Lockheed Martin Blackhawk helicopters in Saudi Arabia was separately announced at the Saudi-US CEO Forum held in Riyadh during Trump´s visit.
    The programme to "support the final assembly and completion of an estimated 150 S-70 Black Hawk utility helicopters" will support around 450 jobs in the kingdom, said a forum statement.
    US defence contractors are major suppliers of weapons to Saudi Arabia, which for more than two years has led a coalition conducting air strikes and other operations against rebels in Yemen.
    The new deals come despite mounting pressure on Washington from rights groups to stop arms sales to Riyadh, which has come under repeated criticism over civilian casualties in Yemen.
    Saudi Arabia on Thursday announced the creation of a new military industries firm as part of the kingdom´s efforts to boost defence production.
    The kingdom´s Public Investment Fund said the new government-owned company, Saudi Arabian Military Industries (SAMI), "aims to become one of the world´s top 25 defence companies by 2030."
    The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said in an April report that Saudi Arabia last year was the world´s fourth-largest military spender, spending $63.7 billion.


  18. Waqas Dar
    ISLAMABAD: May 20 The World Bank on Saturday forecast Pakistan's GDP growth in fiscal year 2017 to climb to 5.2 percent, the highest expansion rate in nine years, boosted by consumer confidence and fiscal reforms.
    Growth is expected to accelerate to 5.5 percent in FY18 and 5.8 percent in FY19, according to a World Bank report released on Saturday.
    But it warned that weakening trade and fiscal balances made it crucial to continue reform efforts and to develop skills to find jobs for the country's growing youth population.
    "Pakistan's accelerating growth is good news and reflects the country's success in building confidence. But the pace of reforms has slowed and it is important for the structural reforms to accelerate," said Illango Patchamuthu, World Bank country director for Pakistan.
    The World Bank forecast came the same day as Pakistan's central bank estimated slightly higher real GDP growth in FY17 of 5.3 percent, which would represent a 10-year high.
    Private sector credit showed a net expansion of 503 billion rupees ($4.81 billion) during the nine months through April, well above the 334 billion-rupee expansion recorded in the corresponding period of last year, the central bank said in a statement.
    The World Bank's twice-yearly report was released in Lahore on Saturday in collaboration with Lahore School of Economics.
    It said a moderate increase in investment was expected to supplement growth, driven primarily by public and private consumption.
    The report said there need to be more technical and vocational training programme to boost job prospects for the "youth bulge". Sixty percent of Pakistan's estimated population of 190 million is under the age of 30.
    It emphasized that federal and provincial governments must work together on reforms, since many policies are handled at the province level.
    "Effective collaboration between federal and provincial governments will be crucial if Pakistan has to deliver on its growth potential," said Muhammad Waheed, World Bank senior economist for Pakistan.


  19. Waqas Dar
    CHARSADDA: Police have arrested another suspect in the Mardan lynching case, in which Mashal Khan lost his life at the hands of an enraged mob on the premises of the Abdul Wali Khan University (AWKU) after being accused of blasphemy.
    The total number of arrested suspects stands at 57, while 59 suspects have been identified till yet.
    Suspect Hammad Ahmed is a student of Zoology at the AWKU. He was presented in a special  Anti-Terrorism Court, which remanded him into four-day police custody.
    I attended Mashal Khan?s funeral prayer, when others refused: Sherin Yousafzai
    I am a good Muslim. I pray five times a day, read Durood Sharif 500 times every night. I love my religion. I love my Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H). I attended Mashal Khan's funeral, writes Sherin Yousafzai who helped arrange the slain students funeral prayer.
    Mashal?s father demands arrest of facilitators
    Iqbal Khan addresses media outside Supreme Court; thanks CJP for taking suo motu notice
    Three other suspects, including a lecturer at a college, arrested earlier were also presented in court after expiration of their remand. The court sent them into judicial remand as the suspects have denied the charges.



  20. Waqas Dar
    QUETTA: The security forces on Saturday seized a number of weapons and ammunitions in a search operation conducted in Quetta under Operation Raddul Fasaad, informed Pakistan Army`s media wing in a press statement.

    ISPR claimed that the weapons were buried underground in the Gahi Khan Chowk area and as many as 503 grenades, five locally made IEDs, one RPJ7, two rifles, 22 RPJ7 bullets, 18 fuse and thousands of bullets.


    ISPR stated that the weapons were to be used to conduct terrorist activities in coming future.


  21. Waqas Dar
    LONDON: Former test cricketer Younis Khan will meet Cheif Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif in Lahore after arriving back to Pakistan from the United Kingdom.

    Khan while speaking to Geo News said that there is not a specific agenda of his meeting with the CM Punjab in the meeting and he will revive his career memories during his time with him. The legendary test cricketer will be meeting after receiving a special meeting invite from Sharif.
    Khan was honoured at Lord's in recognition of his remarkable career.
    Talking to Geo News Younis Khan said that he feels truly honoured.
    ?This is more than enough for me. I am really enjoying this. Many players and my friends are here. I feel truly honoured?, he added.
    Head coach Mickey Arthur said that the work ethic and the way Younis Khan goes about his business is fantastic.
    ?It has been a privilege and an honour to work with a player like Younis Khan?, the coach said.
    ODI and T20i coach Sarfraz Ahmed said that Younis Khan deserved all the applause.
    ?I have played with him in the last couple of years. He has been a thorough professional?, he added.
    ?With the pressure on, Younis Khan delivered. His classy 218 in the final Test of the summer, at The Oval, helped Pakistan square the series after successive defeats had left them in danger of squandering their win at Lord?s. It was his 32nd Test hundred ? and a reminder that his struggles earlier in the series had been a blip rather than part of a decline,? said Wisden editor Lawrence Booth.
    Pakistan was 1-2 down in the four-match series, the fourth Test was a must-win for Pakistan to avoid the series loss. Replying to England?s first innings score of 328, Pakistan lost three wickets for 127 runs. Asad Shafiq was joined by Younis Khan to rebuild Pakistan?s innings, and both added 150 runs for the third wicket. Asad departed after scoring 109, but Younis continued his fight and completed a double century. His innings of 218 helped Pakistan post 542, with a lead of 214 runs against England, which helped Pakistan win the Test by 10 wickets.
    The recently concluded three-match series against West Indies saw the end of Younis Khan?s international career. He bid adieu to his career with 10,099 runs - the most by any Pakistan player in the history of Test cricket.


  22. Waqas Dar
    ISLAMABAD: At least 30 people have been injured in the wake of a clash at a Islamabad university, police sources told Geo News.
    The incident took place at Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad, when two groups of students clashed with each other, police sources said.
    The students pelted rocks on each other, while there have also been reports of fire exchange between the two sides.
    A heavy contingent of police reached the campus after being informed of the unrest. Police fired tear-gas shells to disperse raged students.
    Authorities have also called in Rangers to control the situation.
    At least 30 students have been injured in the clash, who are being shifted to hospital.
    A few people also received gunshot wounds during the clash.
    Police have also arrested a few students involved in the clash from the scene.
    The law enforcers also seized weapons from arrested students.
    A search operation for the suspects involved in clash is currently underway at the university.


  23. Waqas Dar
    KARACHI: The Sindh High Court on Saturday directed the secretary transport to submit a report on the implementation of the ban on the entry of heavy traffic in the city from 6AM to 11PM.
    The SHC had in March banned the entry of heavy traffic in the city in the wake of increasing number of casualties due to road accidents.
    Heavy traffic ban to continue, rules SHC
    Transporters? strike has caused loss of Rs4bn: KPT counsel
    Entry of heavy vehicles banned in Karachi from 6am to 11pm
    The ban has been imposed on the orders of the Sindh High Court, which observed that heavy traffic is claiming more lives than terrorism
    During the hearing, the court reprimanded the DIG traffic for allowing heavy traffic in the city during the strike by goods transporters, saying the traffic cannot be allowed without a written order by the court.
    Mayor Karachi Waseem Akhtar also presented his traffic plan and informed the court that the committee?ordered by the court to devise a long-lasting solution to the issue comprising all stakeholders?has been formed. The mayor submitted names of members, terms of reference and suggestions in the court.
    Akhtar suggested that the National Highway and Super Highway link roads be expanded to have three lanes.
    The chief legal adviser of the Board of Revenue also submitted his reply in the court.
    The DIG Traffic in his report submitted to the court said the accidents had gone down by 70% due to the ban.
    The court has adjourned the hearing till May 27.


  24. Waqas Dar
    Saudi Arabia's king presented President Donald Trump with the kingdom's top civilian honour on Saturday as Trump began a trip to Riyadh aimed at strengthening security and economic ties.
    King Salman decorated Trump with the gold King Abdulaziz medal during a meeting at the royal court in the Saudi capital.
    Dogged by controversy at home, Donald Trump opened his first presidential foreign trip in Saudi Arabia on Saturday and won a warm reception as he looked to shift attention from a political firestorm over his firing of former FBI Director James Comey.
    Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz greeted him on a red carpet as he stepped off Air Force One, shaking the hand of his wife, Melania, and riding in the presidential limousine.
    It was a warmer welcome than had been granted to Trump's predecessor, Barack Obama, who was seen in the Arab kingdom as soft on Iran and hesitant on Syria.
    Trump's trip to Saudi Arabia, Israel, Italy, the Vatican and Belgium has been billed by the White House as a chance to visit places sacred to three of the world's major religions, while giving Trump time to meet with Arab, Israeli and European leaders.
    But uproar in Washington cast a long shadow over the trip. The president's firing of Comey and the appointment of a special counsel to investigate his campaign's ties to Russia last year have triggered a stream of bad headlines.
    The New York Times reported Trump had called Comey a "nut job" in a private meeting last week in the Oval Office with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and ambassador to the United States Sergei Kislyak.
    The White House did not deny the report, but said "the real story is that our national security has been undermined by the leaking of private and highly classified conversations."
    In another development, the Washington Post said a current White House official close to Trump was a significant "person of interest" in the investigation into possible ties between Trump's presidential campaign last year and Russia.
    Trump and King Salman seemed at ease with each other, chatting through an interpreter. At the royal al-Yamama palace, the king decorated Trump with the King Abdulaziz medal, the country's top civilian honor.
    The two leaders exchanged tweets, Trump saying it was great to be in Riyadh and King Salman welcoming him.
    "Mr. President, your visit will strengthen our strategic cooperation, lead to global security and stability," King Salman said in a message on his official Twitter account in Arabic and English.
    Trump?s decision to make his first official trip abroad to Saudi Arabia, followed by Israel, countries which both share his antagonism towards Iran, marks a contrast with Obama's approach.
    Trump?s criticism of the nuclear deal Iran reached with the US and five other world powers in 2015 pleases both Saudi Arabia and Israel, who accused Obama on ?going soft? on Tehran.
    Poll results showed on Saturday that Iranians had emphatically re-elected President Hassan Rouhani, architect of Iran's still-fragile detente with the West.
    After a royal banquet, Trump and the king were to have private talks and participate in a signing ceremony for a number of -Saudi agreements, including a $100 billion deal for Saudi Arabia to buy American arms.
    National oil giant Saudi Aramco was expected to sign $50 billion of deals with US companies on Saturday, part of a drive to diversify the kingdom's economy beyond oil exports, Aramco's chief executive Amin Nasser said.
    Trump is to deliver a speech in Riyadh on Sunday aimed at rallying Muslims in the fight against militants. He will also attend a summit of Gulf leaders of the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council.
    A senior Saudi official said a digital centre to monitor the activities of Daesh and other militant groups online would be opened on Sunday, to coincide with the visit.
    Ahead of Trump's trip, the White House said the president expected tangible results from Saudi Arabia in countering religious extremism.
    Shortly after taking office, Trump sought to block people from several Muslim-majority nations from entering the United States, but the travel ban has been blocked by federal courts.
    The 70-year-old president's trip to Saudi Arabia, Israel, Italy and Belgium will be Trump's longest time away from the White House since he took office four months ago.
    Even his hand gestures may draw scrutiny in the Middle East, where the thumbs-up sign, a Trump trademark, is considered taboo.
    The uproar over Comey's firing looked unlikely to go away.
    Trump, who has expressed a desire for friendlier relations with Moscow, drew a storm of criticism this week when it emerged that he had shared sensitive national security information with Russia's foreign minister during a meeting last week in the White House.
    The president was already under attack for firing Comey in the midst of an FBI probe into Russia's role in the 2016 election and possible collusion with Trump campaign members.
    Moscow has denied any such interference. Trump has denied collusion and denounced the appointment of a special counsel as a "witch hunt".
    His fellow Republicans in Congress have expressed frustration that Trump's pro-business economic agenda, featuring a plan to cut corporate and individual taxes, has been pushed to the backburner by the turmoil.


  25. Waqas Dar
    MQM-P chief Farooq Sattar speaking at a press conference in Karachi. KARACHI: Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) chief Farooq Sattar on Saturday claimed that his party's vote bank is "intact and it will remain so."
    Flanked by Barrister Farogh Naseem at a press conference here, Sattar said, "Political vultures, considering MQM-P weak, have been hovering over Karachi and urban areas of Sindh. They think that there's no warmth left in its body."
    He said the Supreme Court has ordered a re-election in Sindh Assembly constituency PS-114, while the election tribunal also exposed rigging of polls by Irfanullah Marwat.
    The MQM-P leaders claimed that their opponents would face defeat in the next elections as well.
    Sattar said majority of petitions filed against his party, pertaining to polls, have been dismissed. 
    He said that his party would hold a rally in Hyderabad in support of the apex court's verdict.
    The MQM-P chief said the rally would be attended by a large number of people.


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