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Waqas Dar

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Blog Entries posted by Waqas Dar

  1. Waqas Dar
    From L-R, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, US President Donald Trump, Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni, French President Emmanuel Macron, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe react during a family photo during the G7 Summit in Taormina, Sicily, Italy, May 26, 2017. Photo: REUTERS/file  The image of the United States has deteriorated sharply across the globe under President Donald Trump and an overwhelming majority of people in other countries have no confidence in his ability to lead, a survey from the Pew Research Center showed.
    Five months into Trump's presidency, the survey spanning 37 nations showed US favourability ratings in the rest of the world slumping to 49 percent from 64 percent at the end of Barack Obama's eight years in the White House.
    But the falls were far steeper in some of America's closest allies, including US neighbours Mexico and Canada, and European partners like Germany and Spain.
    Trump took office in January pledging to put "America First". Since then he has pressed ahead with plans to build a wall along the US border with Mexico, announced he will pull out of the Paris climate accord, and accused countries including Canada, Germany and China of unfair trade practices.
    On his first foreign trip as president in early June, Trump received warm welcomes in Saudi Arabia and Israel, but a cool reception from European partners, with whom he clashed over NATO spending, climate and trade.
    Just 30 percent of Mexicans now say they have a favorable view of the United States, down from 66 percent at the end of the Obama era. In Canada and Germany, favorability ratings slid by 22 points, to 43 percent and 35 percent, respectively.
    In many European countries, the ratings were comparable to those seen at the end of the presidency of George W. Bush, whose 2003 invasion of Iraq was deeply unpopular.
    "The drop in favourability ratings for the United States is widespread," the Pew report said. "The share of the public with a positive view of the US has plummeted in a diverse set of countries from Latin America, North America, Europe, Asia and Africa".
    BELOW PUTIN AND XI
    The survey, based on the responses of 40,447 people and conducted between Feb. 16 and May 8 this year, showed even deeper mistrust of Trump himself, with only 22 percent of those surveyed saying they had confidence he would do the right thing in world affairs, compared to 64 percent who trusted Obama.
    Both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, with confidence ratings of 27 percent and 28 percent respectively, scored higher than Trump. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, with a confidence rating of 42 percent, scored highest among the four leaders in the survey.
    The countries with the lowest confidence in Trump were Mexico, at 5 percent and Spain at 7 percent. The only two countries where ratings improved compared to Obama were Russia, where confidence in the US president surged to 53 percent from 11 percent, and Israel, where it rose 7 points to 56 percent.
    Globally, 75 percent of respondents described Trump as "arrogant", 65 percent as "intolerant" and 62 percent as "dangerous". A majority of 55 percent also described him as a "strong leader".
    The survey showed widespread disapproval of Trump's signature policy proposals, with 76 percent unhappy with his plan to build the wall on the border with Mexico, 72 percent against his withdrawal from major trade agreements and 62 percent opposed to his plans to restrict travel to the US from some majority-Muslim countries.
    On the positive side, the survey showed that 58 percent of respondents had a positive view of Americans in general. And in many regions of the world, a majority or plurality of respondents said they expected relations with the United States to stay roughly the same in spite of Trump.


  2. Waqas Dar
    India?s Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Photo: Reuters  WASHINGTON: Kashmiri and Sikh protesters waved flags and chanted slogans against India?s Prime Minister Narendra Modi as he arrived at the White House for a meeting with President Donald Trump.
    "We are here today basically to raise awareness of the human rights violations that are happening in India," Jatinder Grewal, Director of Sikhs for Justice told CBN News.
    Over the past few years under Modi?s rule, conditions for Sikhs, Christians and other religious minorities have grown difficult.
    "When Modi came to power in 2014 he promised the Christians and other minorities that he would allow freedom of religion, he lied," said Pastor Rob Rotola who also protested outside the White House, "The only people that have favoured status in India are not all people, they are the Hindu nationalists. It?s the far extremist party that tends to violence. And as these groups have ramped up the violence, the police state and the government looks the other way, and is allowing it to happen."
    Trump, Modi call on Pakistan to stem terrorist attacks
    Commentators had predicted that Trump and Modi would find much in common


    "I am here to speak for the Indian church," said Bishop John Lutembeak, a missionary in India, "The Indians who are being persecuted by Prime Minister Modi, by a group of radical Hindus. Christians have been killed, women have been raped and Hindu is taking more part in India and it wants to turn India into a Hindu nation and this is what has brought us here to protest, to show that world that even the conversation that President Trump will have with Prime Minister Modi should put into consideration that tolerance of different religious. Let not one Hindu religion be over other religions and begin to persecute them."
    Trump and Modi held a meeting at the White House on Monday, and called on "all nations to resolve territorial and maritime disputes peacefully and in accordance with international law."
     


  3. Waqas Dar
    Residents of Parachinar have been protesting against government apathy since the blasts. Photo: Geo News RAWALPINDI: Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Bajwa said on Tuesday that they will not allow the enemy's plans to use terrorism as a tool for fanning sectarianism in the country to succeed. 
    The Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a press release that the army chief will be spending the second day of Eid in Parachinar, where relatives of Friday's twin-bombing victims are holding a protest sit-in against government 'apathy'. 
    The army chief will review the situation after the twin blasts. 

    Protest by bereaved of Parachinar blast victims continues for fourth day
    Grief-stricken locals demonstrate against tragic loss of lives in the back-to-back blasts that hit the city on Friday
    We all are united as Muslims and Pakistanis, said Gen Bajwa, according to the ISPR. 
    On Tuesday, the sit-in by the bereaved of victims continued for the fifth day on Tuesday, as grief-stricken locals protest  against the tragic loss of lives in the back-to-back blasts that hit the city on Friday.
    The families of the victims have gathered in Shaheed Park where they continue their protest against the repeated terrorist attacks in Parachinar and the firing allegedly carried out by security forces to dispel the demonstrators.
    The bereaved of the martyrs and other locals also offered Eid prayers at Shaheed Park on the first day of Eid and held special prayers.
    COAS Gen Bajwa visits injured of Parachinar blast
    Security tightened; checkpoints created at different spots
    At least 72 people were martyred and over 300 injured after two subsequent blasts rocked a densely populated area of Parachinar in Kurram Agency on Friday evening.
    The bombings occurred as people were busy shopping for Iftar and Eid in the Turi Bazaar area, close to a crowded bus terminal.
    The second blast took place as people rushed to provide aid and rescue the wounded from the first explosion.
    On Sunday, Peshawar Corps Commander Lieutenant General Nazir Ahmed Butt reached Parachinar and assured the families of martyrs and local tribes that those responsible behind the attack would be traced. 
    Parachinar attack: Corps commander Peshawar assures locals of support, death toll reaches 72
    LT Gen Butt visited the injured and offered prayers for the martyrs, says ISPR
    The corps commander addressed a local jirga and emphasised that the role and participation of locals in support of security forces is vital in bringing back normalcy in Parachinar, said a statement by the ISPR.
    Lt Gen Butt also visited the injured in hospital and offered prayers for the martyrs.


  4. Waqas Dar
    ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairperson Imran Khan on Tuesday lashed at Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif for choosing to only visit Bahawalpur despite back-to-back terror attacks in Quetta and Parachinar.
    In a tweet, he remarked ?unfortunate [that] PM only chose to visit Bahawalpur.?
    ?Our people are in mourning in Quetta [and] Parachinar also. Is NS [Nawaz Sharif] not PM of Balochistan [and] FATA?? he remarked.
    He added, ?By not visiting Balochistan [and] FATA, the PM is exacerbating feelings of provincial discrimination.?
    On Monday, PM Nawaz Sharif, along with Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif, visited Bahawalpur and ordered an inquiry into the Bahawalpur oil tanker fire which resulted in the death of at least 150 people and left over 100 injured on Sunday.
    PM visits Bahawalpur, announces inquiry into oil tanker fire
    The prime minister also expressed remorse over the loss of precious lives in the fire incident
    He also declared that the government has made a policy decision to provide jobs to the injured as well as family members of the deceased.
    The PM was in London on a private visit when the incident occurred. He cut short his trip after the tragic fire incident and returned to Pakistan on Sunday.


  6. Waqas Dar
    Syrian President Bashar Assad in Damascus, Syria, on Feb. 10, 2017. Photo: File  WASHINGTON: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad may be preparing another chemical weapons attack, one that would result in the "mass murder" of civilians, the White House said Monday, warning the regime would pay a "heavy price" if it went ahead with such an assault.
    The White House said the preparations were similar to those undertaken by the Assad regime ahead of an apparent chemical attack on a rebel-held town in April.
    Washington launched a retaliatory cruise missile strike days later against a Syrian airbase from where it said the chemical weapons attack was launched.
    That assault with 59 Tomahawk missiles marked the first direct US attack on the Syrian regime and Trump´s most dramatic military action since he took power in January.
    It also led to a quick downward spiral in ties between Washington and Moscow, which accused the US of breaking international law.
    Russia has supported the Syrian regime since 2015 with air strikes against what it says are extremists.
    "The United States has identified potential preparations for another chemical weapons attack by the Assad regime that would likely result in the mass murder of civilians, including innocent children," spokesman Sean Spicer said in a statement Monday night.
    The two-paragraph communique did not offer any evidence justifying the sternly worded warning.
    "The activities are similar to preparations the regime made before its April 4, 2017 chemical weapons attack."
    The suspected attack in April in the rebel held town of Khan Sheikhun killed at least 87 people, including many children, and images of the dead and of suffering victims provoked global outrage. The US State Department said it amounted to a war crime.
    State Department officials who would normally be involved in a big announcement such as Monday´s warning to Syria said they were caught by surprise, the Los Angeles Times reported.
    ´No doubt´
    Assad, backed by Russia, has strongly denied the allegation that his forces used chemical weapons against the town in April, describing it as a "100 percent fabrication".
    He has said repeatedly that his forces turned over all chemical weapons stockpiles in 2013, under a deal brokered by Russia to avoid threatened US military action.
    The agreement was later enshrined in a United Nations Security Council resolution.
    But US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis previously warned that there was "no doubt" that Syria had in fact retained some chemical weapons. An Israeli military assessment also found that Assad´s regime was still in possession of "a few tonnes" of chemical weapons.
    "As we have previously stated, the United States is in Syria to eliminate the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria," Spicer added in his statement Monday.
    "If, however, Mr Assad conducts another mass murder attack using chemical weapons, he and his military will pay a heavy price."
    Syria´s war began in March 2011 with anti-government protests that spiralled into a complex and devastating conflict that has killed more than 320,000 people.
    Russia is flying a bombing campaign in Syria in support of Assad, while the US is heading a coalition mainly targeting IS.
    Neither Washington nor Moscow have managed to find a solution to the conflict.
    Rebels are now on the back foot after regime advances with support from allies Russia and Iran.
    The US-led coalition and allied fighters are battling to oust the Daesh group from its Syrian bastion Raqa.
    The coalition is also backing a major assault on the last Daesh-held pockets of Mosul in neighboring Iraq


  7. Waqas Dar
    Brazilian President Michel Temer reacts during a credentials presentation ceremony for several new top diplomats at Planalto Palace in Brasilia, Brazil June 26, 2017. Photo: Reuters  Brazil's top federal prosecutor charged President Michel Temer with taking multimillion-dollar bribes on Monday in a stinging blow to the unpopular leader and to political stability in Latin America's largest country.
    Rodrigo Janot submitted the charge in a document presented to the Supreme Court, saying "he fooled Brazilian citizens" and owed the nation millions in compensation for accepting bribes.
    Under Brazilian law, the lower house of Congress must now vote on whether to allow the top tribunal to try the conservative leader, who replaced impeached leftist President Dilma Rousseff just over a year ago.
    Lawmakers within Temer's coalition are confident they have the votes to block the two-third majority required to proceed with a trial. But they warn that support may wane if congressmen are forced to vote several times to protect Temer - whose popularity is languishing in the single-digits - from trial.
    Temer's office and his attorney, Antonio Mariz, declined to comment on the charges. Temer has repeatedly said he is innocent of any wrongdoing.
    Investigators have uncovered stunning levels of corruption in recent years engulfing Brazil's political class and business elites. Much of it centres on companies paying billions of dollars in bribes to politicians and executives at state-run enterprises in return for lucrative contracts.
    Temer and one-third of his cabinet, as well as four former presidents and dozens of lawmakers are under investigation or already charged in the schemes. Over 90 people have been convicted.
    Political analysts had warned, long before Monday, that the scandals reduced the chances Temer could push through reforms crucial for Latin America's biggest economy to rebound from its worst recession on record.
    Temer was charged in connection with a graft scheme involving the world's largest meatpacker, JBS SA. Executives said in plea-bargain testimony the president took bribes for resolving tax matters, freeing up loans from state-run banks and other matters.
    Monday's charging document alleges Temer arranged to eventually receive a total of 38 million reais ($11.5 million) from JBS in the next nine months.
    Joesley Batista, one of the brothers who control JBS, recorded a conversation with Temer in March in which the president appears to condone bribing a potential witness. Batista also accused Temer and aides of negotiating millions of dollars in illegal donations for his Brazilian Democratic Movement Party.
    Brazil's federal police released a separate document on Monday about that conversation with Batista. Police recovered a previously inaudible portion of the recording in which Temer is heard telling the scandal-plagued billionaire that it was mainly because of his influence that he chose to appoint Henrique Meirelles as finance minister.
    The significance of the comment about Meirelles, who is widely respected in financial markets, was not immediately clear and the finance ministry did not respond to requests for comment.
    Legal gridlock
    Key lawmakers in Temer's alliance told Reuters, on condition of anonymity, they would halt work on proposed labour reforms if forced to vote on charges against the president.
    Temer's supporters say they have between 250 and 300 votes in the 513 seat lower house to block a trial. But the president is expected to soon face charges of racketeering and obstruction of justice, each requiring a separate vote. Prosecutors have said they may also file other charges, which they have not yet given details on.
    On Monday, the federal police recommended charging Temer with obstruction of justice - the first step toward a likely round of other charges in addition to graft.
    Top lawmakers said Janot's expected strategy of presenting charges one at a time would throw Temer's future into uncertainty.
    With all of congress facing re-election next year, many said that if public outrage boiled over, it would be hard to maintain support for Temer.
    "If this grinds on with multiple votes, you may start to see a lack of governability," said one top lawmaker in Temer's coalition. "In that case, there will be defections, and colleagues may start to move against Temer."
    Carlos Melo, a political scientist with Insper, a Sao Paulo business school, said Janot knew he would lose the first corruption charge against Temer "but he is like a chess player, thinking two or three votes down the line."
    Melo said the votes by lawmakers, many of whom are facing their own corruption investigations, would be a test of how alienated Brazil's political class was from an increasingly angry population.
    "If Congress has any connection left whatsoever with the society it represents, then Janot's strategy of wearing lawmakers down with multiple votes will win and you will see the president put on trial," Melo said.
    If congressmen rally around Temer, Melo said, "then we must face the horrific fact that what we have is a political system entirely detached from society, and it will pay the price in next year's election."


  8. Waqas Dar
    SEOUL: The world´s biggest smartphone maker Samsung will next week start reselling refurbished Galaxy Note 7 devices after a humiliating recall over exploding batteries last year, news reports said Tuesday.
    Samsung Electronics declined to comment on the reports.
    The recall debacle cost the Korean giant billions of dollars in lost profits and hammered its global credibility.
    Around three million Galaxy Note 7 devices were returned to the firm, but campaign groups including Greenpeace expressed concern that discarding them could harm the environment.
    Citing industry sources, South Korea´s Yonhap news agency and other news reports said Samsung would start selling refurbished devices with new batteries and updated software under the name Galaxy Note Fandom Edition (FE).
    They will be priced below 700,000 won ($616) and sales are slated to start July 7, Yonhap said.
    The recall was deeply embarrassing for Samsung but it has just launched a new flagship device, the Galaxy S8, to positive reviews and strong orders.
    In April it posted its biggest quarterly net profit for more than three years, although it has come under pressure on wider fronts.
    Lee Jae-Yong, the Samsung group vice-chairman and heir to its leadership, is on trial for bribery in connection with the sprawling corruption scandal that brought down former South Korean president Park Geun-Hye.
    Lee is accused of bribing Park and her secret confidante Choi Soon-Sil with millions of dollars to seek government favours.
    He has effectively been at the helm of the group since his father suffered a heart attack in 2014.
    His indictment in February sent shockwaves through the firm and triggered the announcement of a major reform of its top-down management style.


  9. Waqas Dar
    [embed_video1 url=http://stream.jeem.tv/vod/d0af302a4985fff07cf60abae63c4aef.mp4/playlist.m3u8?wmsAuthSign=c2VydmVyX3RpbWU9Ni8yNy8yMDE3IDY6NDU6NTQgQU0maGFzaF92YWx1ZT1RV2xYWUFMYTFHTDlsZXFaYVBuWXdnPT0mdmFsaWRtaW51dGVzPTYwJmlkPTE= style=center] LAHORE: Two alleged robbers on Tuesday were shot dead in an 'encounter' in Lahore, the police claimed.

    According to the police, the deceased men opened fire when they were stopped in Lahore?s Shad Bagh vicinity.
    Proclaimed offender killed in ?shootout?: Police
    The authorities claimed that Nadir alias Lakha was wanted in cases of murder, attempt to murder, terrorism and dacoity;
    In the retaliatory firing by police, the two men were shot dead. 




  10. Waqas Dar
    LOS ANGELES: Transformers: The Last Knight smashed its way to the top of the North American box office, data showed Monday, but it was comfortably the weakest opening the franchise has seen.

    The fifth installment of the blockbuster series took in $44.7 million in its debut weekend, the first Transformers movie not to debut to $100 million or more.
    The visual-effects heavy film features actors Mark Wahlberg, Josh Duhamel, John Turturro and Anthony Hopkins.
    Last week´s big hit Pixar´s Cars 3 slowed to a second place finish in its second weekend, taking $24.9 million.
    The animated movie features Lightning McQueen and his longtime friends fighting off a challenge from a new generation of racers, voiced by stars including Owen Wilson, Cristela Alonzo and Armie Hammer.
    Warner Bros. superhero movie Wonder Woman fell to third place with $24.1 million.
    The action film starring Gal Gadot has made a total of $318.1 million in domestic ticket sales in four weeks, according to industry tracker Exhibitor Relations.
    Gadot, of the Fast and Furious series, plays an Amazonian goddess-princess whose lasso, bracelet and tiara have magical powers.
    47 Meters Down, the adventures of two sisters who fend off a shark attack after going cage diving, scored $7.1 million.
    Coming in fifth was The Mummy, starring Tom Cruise, which made $6.1 million.
    The film -- the latest revival of the original Mummy made in 1932 -- cost $125 million to make and has been widely panned by critics.
    Rounding out the top 10 were:
    All Eyez On Me ($5.8 million)
    Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales ($5.4 million)
    Rough Night ($4.7 million)
    Captain Underpants ($4.3 million)
    Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 ($3 million)


  11. Waqas Dar
    President Trump and Prime Minister Modi hold a press conference in the White House. Photo: Reuters WASHINGTON DC: US President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday called on Pakistan to ensure that its territory is not used to launch terrorist attacks on other countries, the White House said in a statement.
    The two leaders, who held a meeting at the White House on Monday, also "called on all nations to resolve territorial and maritime disputes peacefully and in accordance with international law," the statement said.
    "Both our nations have been struck by the evils of terrorism, and we are both determined to destroy terrorist organisations and the radical ideology that drives them. We will destroy radical Islamic terrorism. Our militaries are working every day to enhance cooperation between our military forces. And next month, they will join together with the Japanese navy to take place in the largest maritime exercise ever conducted in the vast Indian Ocean," said Trump, according to the joint press statement released by the White House.
    Trump and Modi embraced each other as friends and partners during Modi's first visit after Trump's oath of office, pledging their quest for economic growth would strengthen rather than undermine ties between the world´s two largest democracies.

    [embed_video1 url=http://stream.jeem.tv/vod/1be56ba4aa278b360ed828b82c7ffc76.mp4/playlist.m3u8?wmsAuthSign=c2VydmVyX3RpbWU9Ni8yNy8yMDE3IDU6NDI6NTAgQU0maGFzaF92YWx1ZT1NTTZCcjh0K3pucHJibXU4Qy92Vm1nPT0mdmFsaWRtaW51dGVzPTYwJmlkPTE= style=center] While Trump´s relations with some traditional allies had a rocky start, he and Modi appeared to strike up an immediate rapport in their first meeting, exchanging hugs in the White House Rose Garden in front of reporters.

    Any differences over issues such as immigration and climate change were kept behind closed doors and they instead vowed to work more closely on combatting terrorism, the war in Afghanistan and defence cooperation.
    While there were no major announcements, Trump´s administration confirmed it had given the green light to the $366 million sale of a transport carrier to India, along with a separate purchase of around 20 drones.
    "I would say the relationship between India and the United States has never been stronger, has never been better," Trump told a beaming Modi as they made statements.
    "I look forward to working with you, Mr Prime Minister, to create jobs in our countries, to grow our economies and to create a trading relationship that is fair and reciprocal."
    After Trump said it was "important that barriers be removed to the export of US goods into your markets and that we reduce our trade deficit with your country," Modi said India was becoming an easier place for American companies to do business.
    "We consider the United States as our primary partner in India´s socio-economic transformation in all our flagship programs and schemes," he added.
    "I´m sure that convergence between my vision for a new India and President Trump´s vision for ´Making America Great Again´ will add a new dimension to our cooperation," added Modi, in reference to Trump´s signature campaign slogan.
    New strength
    Commentators had predicted that Trump and Modi would find much in common, with both men having won power by portraying themselves as establishment outsiders.
    Both men are prolific users of social media, something Trump joked about with his guest.
    "We´re believers, giving the people... the opportunity to hear directly from their elected officials and for us to hear directly from them," said Trump.
    Modi in turn made Trump smile by hailing the property tycoon´s reputation as dealmaker.
    "I´m sure that... your vast and successful experience in the business world will lend an aggressive and bold agenda to our relations."
    Their warm words extended into the evening, when Modi became the first foreign leader to enjoy a White House dinner since Trump came to power.
    "We enjoy a wonderful relationship, but it´s never been better than it is today," Trump told Modi at the dinner.
    While ties with some allies have been strained by Trump´s complaints that Washington has been the loser in trade agreements, Modi appears sensitive to his host´s emphasis on transactional diplomacy.
    India is currently the world´s fastest growing major economy, a status that Modi is hoping to cement by drawing in more foreign investment -- in part by encouraging manufacturers to do business in Asia´s third-largest economy.
    Busy day of meetings
    Ahead of his talks with Trump, Modi met with Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.
    The State Department also announced that it was slapping sanctions on a senior figure in the Kashmiri group Hizb-ul-Mujahideen.
    Syed Salahuddin (also known as Mohammed Yusuf Shah) was designated as a global terrorist.
    US-India relations were generally cool until the 1990s, but they warmed under Trump´s predecessor Barack Obama as India sought greater foreign investment and trade ties.
    Shortly after Trump´s election, obstacles emerged on issues such as trade and visas for Indians wanting to work in the United States.
    Trump then accused India of seeking to profit from the Paris climate accord as he announced the US withdrawal from the deal this month.
    A proposed overhaul of H-1B visas -- used by thousands of Indian software engineers to work in the United States -- has caused concern in New Delhi.
    But Indian officials have downplayed those differences, insisting that Modi was alert to Trump´s concerns over jobs and trade.
    Afghanistan on agenda
    Regional security did feature in the talks, including on Afghanistan, as Washington considers deploying up to 5,000 extra troops to help local forces fighting insurgent groups.
    Trump said he wanted to "thank the Indian people" for their contribution to helping development in Afghanistan.
    Modi in turn said India "would maintain close consultation and communication with the US" to achieve the joint goal of "peace and stability."
    Both our nations have been struck by the evils of terrorism, and we are both determined to destroy terrorist organizations and the radical ideology that drives them. We will destroy radical Islamic terrorism. Our militaries are working every day to enhance cooperation between our military forces. And next month, they will join together with the Japanese navy to take place in the largest maritime exercise ever conducted in the vast Indian Ocean.



  12. Waqas Dar
    Photo: File The Pakistan Meteorological Department on Tuesday said a seasonal low lies over North Balochistan and its adjoining areas.
    A westerly wave is affecting upper parts of the country and monsoon currents are penetrating upper parts of the country.
    Rain and dust-thundershowers (isolated heavy falls) with strong gusty winds are expected at scattered places in upper Punjab, KP, Islamabad, FATA and Kashmir, while at isolated places in south Punjab, Zhob, Kalat, Lower Sindh, and Gilgit-Baltistan in the next twenty-four hours.
    Hot and humid weather is expected in most parts of the country.
    Past weather
    Rain and dust-thundershowers with gusty winds occurred at scattered places in Malakand, Hazara, Kohat, Rawalpindi, Bahawalpur divisions, Islamabad, upper FATA and Kashmir, while at isolated places in Kalat and Mirpurkhas divisions. The weather remained hot and humid in other parts of the country.
    Rainfall (mm)
    Punjab: Islamabad (Z.P 58, Saidpur 52, Bokra 38, Golra 01), Rawalpindi (Shamsabad 42, Chaklala 30), Murree 16,Bahawalnagar 03, KP: Balakot 47, Kohat 18, Saidu Sharif 12, Malamjabba 11, Kakul 08, Parachinar 06, Lower Dir 05, Dir 02 Kashmir: Kotli 14, Garhi Dupatta 08, Muzaffarabad 06, Rawalakot 05, Balochistan: Khuzdar 05, Barkhan 03 Sindh: Chhor 09, Badin 02.
    Yesterday's highest maximum temperatures
    Sibbi 48°C, Dadu , Larkana 47°C, Jaccobabad 46°C, Bahawalnagar, Turbat, Moenjodaro 45°C.


  13. Waqas Dar
    Rain and dust-thundershowers (with isolated heavy falls) with strong gusty winds are expected at scattered places in upper Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Islamabad, Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and Kashmir, according to the Pakistan Meteorological (Met) Department.

    Moreover, rainfall is also expected at isolated places in south Punjab, Zhob, Kalat, Lower Sindh, and Gilgit-Baltistan.
    Past weather
    Rain and dust-thundershowers with gusty winds occurred at scattered places in Malakand, Hazara, Kohat, Rawalpindi, Bahawalpur divisions, Islamabad, upper FATA and Kashmir, while at isolated places in Kalat and Mirpurkhas divisions. On the other hand, weather remained hot and humid elsewhere in the country.
    Rainfall (mm)
    Punjab: Islamabad (Z.P 58, Saidpur 52, Bokra 38, Golra 01), Rawalpindi (Shamsabad 42, Chaklala 30), Murree 16,Bahawalnagar 03, KP:Balakot 47, Kohat 18, Saidu Sharif 12, Malamjabba 11, Kakul 08, Parachinar 06, Lower Dir 05, Dir 02 Kashmir: Kotli 14, Garhi Dupatta 08, Muzaffarabad 06, Rawalakot 05, Balochistan: Khuzdar 05, Barkhan 03 Sindh: Chhor 09, Badin 02.
    Yesterday's Highest Maximum Temperatures
    Sibi 48°C, Dadu , Larkana 47°C, Jaccobabad 46°C, Bahawalnagar, Turbat, Moenjodaro 45°C.
    Data courtesy: The Pakistan Meteorological Department


  14. Waqas Dar
    FIFA on Monday said the re-laid pitch at the St Petersburg stadium had sustained damage but was being treated before it hosts the final of the Confederations on Sunday.
    The 68,000-seat stadium, the home of Russian football powerhouse Zenit, will be a flagship venue at the 2018 World Cup. But the pitch had to be hastily re-laid after it was cut up during the inaugural match there in April.
    Prior to the problems with the grass, issues with the stadium's retractable pitch technology also caused the playing surface to vibrate, rendering it unfit for matches.
    Colin Smith, director of competitions for global soccer body FIFA, told reporters that the stadium's "young pitch" had sustained damage from the matches, as well as from warm-up sessions.
    "We did significant top dressing last night," Smith told reporters at a news conference in St Petersburg.
    "Tomorrow we will fully cover the pitch and really regulate the temperature and the growing conditions in there. We're confident that it will be a good playing surface for the final."
    Smith said greenhouse structures had been installed over the pitch's weaker areas and grow lights have been permanently set up. He added that rainy weather conditions had "not helped the growth of the problem areas" on the pitch.
    Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo and coach Fernando Santos both criticised the pitch after their 4-0 win over New Zealand on Saturday, with Ronaldo telling Portuguese media the grass was too long.
    Santos said the teams were prevented from training on it the day before the game.
    Smith said the group stage of the Confederations Cup had been a great success on the operational level but that there was room for improvement ahead of the knock-out stage, which begins on Wednesday.
    "Very importantly, these improvements will also serve as very valuable lessons looking ahead to next year?s FIFA World Cup," he said.
    Portugal face Chile in the first semi-final on Wednesday in Kazan, while Germany take on Mexico in Sochi the next day. The winners of the two semi-finals will play for the title on Sunday in Saint Petersburg.




  15. Waqas Dar
    ULAANBAATAR: There was no outright winner in Mongolia's presidential election on Monday, forcing the country's first ever second-round run-off between the two leading candidates, the country's General Election Committee said of Tuesday.
    The populist former martial arts star Khaltmaa Battulga of the opposition Democratic Party won the most votes, but failed to secure the majority required, the committee said.
    After the final districts were counted overnight, Battulga emerged with 517,478 votes, 38.1 percent of the total, according to Mongolian state television.
    Ruling Mongolian People's Party (MPP) candidate Miyeegombo Enkhbold, regarded as pro-investment and market-friendly, scraped through to the second round with 411,748 votes, 30.3 percent of the total.
    The election was seen as referendum on the government's economic recovery plans and China's role in the country.
    Battulga is regarded as a resource nationalist who is suspicious of neighbouring China, while Enkhbold, an establishment politician and parliamentary speaker, appears to have suffered as a result of his party's austerity policies.
    The new MPP administration raised interest rates and slashed public spending last year to try to cope with heavy debts and a precipitous fall in the value of Mongolia's currency, the tugrik.
    Enkhbold, the pre-election favourite, was trailing in third place for much of the count after a stronger than expected performance by Sainkhuu Ganbaatar of the breakaway Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party (MPRP).
    Ganbaatar finished with 30.2 percent, trailing Enkhbold by fewer than 2,000 votes, but is expected to be eliminated from the second round.
    All three presidential candidates promised to pull the country out of its current crisis, but their campaigns were clouded by corruption allegations.
    Mongolia, a remote, resource-rich land known as the birthplace of Mongol emperor Genghis Khan, is a parliamentary democracy. The government is run by the prime minister, but the president has powers to veto legislation and make judicial appointments.


  16. Waqas Dar
    New Zealand pop singer Lorde landed her first US chart-topping album on Monday as her latest record debuted at the top of the weekly Billboard 200 chart.
    "Melodrama," the second album from 20-year-old Lorde, sold 82,000 albums, 40,000 songs and was streamed nearly 35 million times, totaling 109,000 album units according to figures from Nielsen SoundScan.
    The singer is the third consecutive female solo artist to top the Billboard 200 chart after Katy Perry's "Witness" and Halsey's "Hopeless Fountain Kingdom."
    Lorde's breakout first album "Pure Heroine," which featured her hit single "Royals," debuted and peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart when it was released in 2013.
    Lorde's album led six new entries in the top 10 of the Billboard 200 chart this week.
    Rapper 2 Chainz' "Pretty Girls Like Trap Music" debuted at No. 2, country artist Jason Isbell/400 Unit's "Nashville Sound" opened at No. 4 and Canadian rockers Nickelback entered at No. 5 with "Feed the Machine."
    Rapper Young Thug's "Beautiful Thugger Girls" landed at No. 8 while indie rock band Fleet Foxes rounded out the new entries with "Crack-Up" at No. 9.
    Last week's chart-topper, Perry's "Witness," dropped to No. 13 this week.
    On the Digital Songs chart, which measures online single sales, Puerto Rican singer Luis Fonsi's summer hit "Despacito" featuring Justin Bieber continued its reign atop the chart with another 139,000 copies sold.


  17. Waqas Dar
    Reports of adverse events associated with cosmetics and personal care products sold in the US more than doubled last year, due in large part to complaints about WEN by Chaz Dean Cleansing Conditioners, a new study suggests.
    Researchers examined data on side effects reported to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) from 2004 to 2016 for products like makeup, sunscreen, tattoos, hair color, perfume, shaving creams and baby care items. Overall, there were a total of 5,144 adverse events, with an average of 396 a year, researchers report in JAMA Internal Medicine.
    Side effect reports climbed 78 percent to 706 in 2015, followed by a 300 percent surge to 1,591 adverse events last year, largely driven by complaints about hair care products and WEN products in particular, the study found.
    "Adverse events to cosmetics matter to patients mostly because nearly everyone uses a cosmetic or personal care product every single day - this includes newborns, infants and pregnant women," said senior study author Dr. Shuai Xu, a dermatology researcher at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago.
    "Unlike drugs and medical devices, cosmetics permeate daily life," Xu said by email. "We're exposed to hundreds of chemicals a day from these products."
    For the study, Xu and colleagues examined adverse events data in the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition?s Adverse Event Reporting System (CFSAN), a repository made publicly available in 2016. It includes voluntary reports of side effects submitted by consumers and health care professionals.
    The three most commonly reported products were hair care, skin care and tattoos. Products that most often involved reports of serious health problems were baby items, which accounted for about half of these cases, followed by personal cleanliness supplies, hair care and hair color.
    Hair products, including shampoos, conditioners and styling aids, accounted for 35 percent of all adverse event reports, followed by skin care products, which made up 22 percent of the complaints.
    In 2014, the FDA began investigating WEN by Chaz Dean Cleansing Conditioners after directly receiving 127 consumer reports, researchers note.
    Later, the FDA learned that the manufacturer had already received 21,000 complaints of alopecia and scalp irritation. Hair loss was also reported by consumers. The product remains on the market with the FDA currently seeking additional consumer reports.
    Limitations of the study include the lack of data on what caused side effects, the authors note. Researchers were also unable to distinguish between reports from consumers and from health professionals.
    It's also possible that the study underestimates the total number of adverse events or the number of serious side effects because reporting isn't mandatory and companies and manufacturers are not required to share complaints they receive with the FDA, the authors note.
    The results suggest that better cosmetic surveillance is needed, the researchers conclude.
    Approaches that might help include registering new products with the FDA so regulators know what's out there; making it mandatory for companies to report adverse events to the FDA, and increased funding for the FDA to investigate problems, former FDA commissioner Dr. Robert Califf and colleagues write in an accompanying editorial.
    In the meantime, consumers should read labels carefully, Califf, now a professor at Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, North Carolina, said by email.
    "There is little direct protection, but consumers should read labels, understand what they are buying and focus on companies with established reputations for quality," Califf said.
    The manufacturer of WEN by Chaz Dean styling products was unable to respond to a request for comment by deadline.


  18. Waqas Dar
    The US supplier of the cladding which encased London's Grenfell Tower before it was destroyed by a devastating fire announced Monday it was stopping sales of the material for high-rise buildings.
    "Arconic is discontinuing global sales of Reynobond PE for use in high-rise applications," a company spokesman told AFP.
    The firm put the decision down to "issues that have arisen in the wake of the Grenfell Tower tragedy" and differences in building regulations around the world.
    The June 14 inferno left 79 people presumed dead after the fire spread rapidly up the 24-storey residential block in west London.
    As emergency services continue to search through the ashes of the gutted building, suspicion has fallen on the recently installed cladding with allegations it may have contributed to the ferocity of the blaze.
    The Arconic spokesman said the company "will continue to fully support the authorities as they investigate this tragedy".
    Sales of the Reynobond PE cladding for use in low-rise buildings will continue.
    An estimated 600 tower blocks in England believed to have similar cladding to that used at Grenfell are currently going through tests.
    Samples taken from 75 high-rises tested so far have all failed safety tests, communities minister Sajid Javid said on Monday.
    "We have witnessed a catastrophic failure," he told MPs, lamenting the slow speed at which samples were being submitted for tests.
    Buildings which have already undergone safety checks include four tower blocks in north London which were evacuated on Saturday, with Javid saying inspectors discovered 1,000 fire doors were missing.
    The minister also warned unsafe cladding "may not be a problem unique to social housing or tall buildings".
    All hospitals have been asked to conduct additional checks and 15 government buildings "require further investigation", he said without giving further details.
    Child identified by teeth

    As work continues to prevent a repeat of the Grenfell Tower blaze, a London coroner's court heard how a five-year-old victim choked to death on fumes as he tried to escape.
    The boy had to be identified by dental records after his body was found on the 13th floor, five levels lower than his home as he family tried to flee.
    "It can't really be explained in enough detail how complex an investigation this is in terms of identification and in terms of recovery of bodies on a dangerous site that my team are not allowed to enter because the building is being shored up," Westminster coroner Fiona Wilcox told the court.
    So far 18 people have been identified including Khadija Saye, a 24-year-old photographer who had exhibited at the Venice Biennale and lived on the 20th floor.
    Saye was discovered on a hallway in the ninth floor and is believed to have died from fumes and burns.
    Her mother Mary Mendy, 52, was identified by dental records after being found on the 13th storey. Her sister Betty Jackson said she will "be missed for a lifetime".
    "My beloved sister, words can never describe the pain of losing you. I can't believe you are gone," she said in a statement published through London's Metropolitan Police.


  19. Waqas Dar
    Bob Corker, chairman of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said he wanted assurances that Gulf countries were working to end their standoff before approving further arms sales to the region A top Republican lawmaker on Monday threatened to block US arms sales to members of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council including Saudi Arabia until their escalating rift with Qatar is resolved.
    "All countries in the region need to do more to combat terrorism, but recent disputes among the GCC countries only serve to hurt efforts to fight Daesh and counter Iran," Bob Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said in a letter to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.
    "For these reasons, before we provide any further clearances during the informal review period on sales of lethal military equipment to the GCC states, we need a better understanding of the path to resolve the current dispute and reunify the GCC."
    US law requires the State Department to notify Congress 30 days before it sells major military equipment. Congress in turn has the power to vote to block the sale.
    In addition, the chairs and vice chairs of the Senate and House committees on foreign relations must give their "preliminary approval," according to Corker's office.
    Corker's block threatens to put the Trump administration's Middle East diplomacy efforts at risk.
    Trump has allied Washington more closely to Saudi Arabia since taking office in January, as a way to boost the fight against the Islamic State extremist group.
    But earlier this month in a bid to reassure Qatar, the United States agreed to a $12-billion sale of F-15 war planes to the emirate.
    Saudi Arabia severed ties with gas-rich Qatar on June 5, with Riyadh accusing the emirate of links to terrorism and of supporting groups, including some backed by Iran, that aim to destabilise the region.
    Bahrain, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Yemen and the Maldives also cut diplomatic ties with Doha.
    The small emirate has been isolated economically through a trade blockade.
    Qatar houses the largest US airbase in the Middle East and the command headquarters for US military operations in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan, and Tillerson has been engaged in seeking to resolve the row.
    During Trump's recent visit to Saudi Arabia, Washington inked a massive, $110-billion arms deal with the kingdom.




  20. Waqas Dar
    'Game of Thrones', 'Lara Croft: Tomb Raider', 'Star Wars' and James Bond are among the films and TV shows to have been shot at locations in Iceland Crystal clear ice caves, glacial lakes, spewing volcanoes and crashing waterfalls framed by dark lava columns: Iceland's breathtaking landscapes have become a magnet for Hollywood moviemakers looking to conjure up otherworldly scenery.
    In southern Iceland, the massive Almannagja gorge stretches as far as the eye can see. Its spectacular setting was chosen as the location for an epic battle scene in "Game of Thrones" between the characters Brienne of Tarth and the Hound.
    "The diversity is so big that you can create almost any kind of landscape," says Leifur Dagfinnsson, president of the Icelandic production company Truenorth, which holds 90 percent of the market.
    "You can both shoot Iceland for Iceland or you can have Iceland double for other places like the Himalayas, the Mongolian tundra, Siberia or Greenland," he tells AFP.
    Located in the North Atlantic, Iceland's moon-like landscape has served as a filmset for many science fiction films portraying other planets, Dagfinnsson, says.
    From TV series such as "Black Mirror", to blockbusters including "Interstellar", "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider", "Star Wars", James Bond movies and "Fast and Furious 8", the list of films shot in Iceland in recent years is long.
    Surreal landscapes

    The country's uninhabited landscapes offer moviemakers the opportunity to film everything from dramatic action-filled scenes to apocalyptic scenery and futuristic worlds.
    Filmmaker Darren Aronofsky chose Iceland as a film location for his biblical blockbuster movie "Noah" in 2014, starring Russell Crowe.
    "The landscapes are surreal -- practically of another world," Aronofsky's producing partner Scott Franklin told the Los Angeles Times at the time.
    The sky can look as though it's on fire in the middle of winter, or teeming with roaring clouds trailed by black smoke.
    These aren't caused by a volcanic eruption or a storm, but pyrotechnic explosions and swarms of helicopters from the movie sets.
    And at the foot of a waterfall or on a beach of silvery pebbles, one might even encounter a strange sword-carrying soldier on horseback returning from battle...
    Post-financial crisis

    Iceland's economic collapse in 2008 has made it an inexpensive country in which to work and it boasts strong infrastructure with easy access to shooting locations, according to Kristinn Thordarson, president of the Association of Icelandic Film Producers (SIK).
    The economy is once again growing thanks to a booming tourism industry and a thriving fishing sector, but a dark cloud looms over its rising currency, the krona, which the heavily export-reliant country has repeatedly tried to tame.
    As an incentive to film in Iceland, a tax rebate was increased this year from 20 to 25 percent of the overall budget of producing a movie in the country, and Thordarson said he hopes it will be boosted to 30 percent within four years, just behind Ireland's 32 percent.
    In the land of ice and fire, 2016 was a peak year for television and movie productions, with turnover for local companies of 20 billion kronur (173 million euros, $189 million).
    But Thordarson wants to take it even further.
    "If we build a studio here and if the filmmakers use the studio... (then) they would do more in Iceland than just film locations," he said.
    Filming is strictly regulated, especially in the country's more than 100 protected areas, from nature reserves to national parks, where a licence from the Icelandic Environment Agency is required.
    Shooting permits have been rising sharply since 2013 and "the conditions for obtaining (them) remain very strict," says Adalbjorg Guttormsdottir, who leads a team that manages licence applications.
    Disrupting the country's flora and fauna is strictly forbidden, and even turning over a stone without putting it back in place is out of the question.
    Cinema tourism

    The Almannagja fault is now a popular destination for tourists and "Game of Thrones" fans.
    Eddy Marks made a one-day return trip to follow a tour of the HBO hit series, after visiting other sets in Croatia's Dubrovnik and Malta.
    "It's nice to see... something on the TV and then you come to see it in real life. It's a different experience," says the Californian after taking a selfie in front of the Langjokull glacier framed by snow.
    Here, the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates divide, creating a deep canyon.
    And it is at this spot, in the heart of the Thingvellir national park, now listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, that the world's oldest parliament was created, in 930.
    Marks is among 20 other tourists who came to the national park to see a territory in "Game of Thrones" called Beyond the Wall.
    "The weather was different in some of the TV scenes," Glenn McGregor, a Canadian retiree, says with a chuckle, as heavy rain falls.
    Iceland's unpredictable weather is known for tormenting film crews.
    "Many days were lost because of this," recalls Theodore Hansson, 35, a long-haired, bearded "Game of Thrones" tour guide.
    A medieval history student at the University of Reykjavik, he also appeared as an extra in season two, three and four of "Game of Thrones" as well as the most recent seventh season.
    But the bad weather also has its advantages.
    "(It) creates an even more realistic and more beautiful scenario," says Leifur Dagfinnsson.
    "Sometimes it is a plus."




  21. Waqas Dar
    Ocean levels rose 50 percent faster in 2014 than in 1993, with meltwater from the Greenland ice sheet now supplying 25 percent of total sea level increase compared with just five percent 20 years earlier, researchers reported Monday.
    The findings add to growing concern among scientists that the global watermark is climbing more rapidly than forecast only a few years ago, with potentially devastating consequences.
    Hundreds of millions of people around the world live in low-lying deltas that are vulnerable, especially when rising seas are combined with land sinking due to depleted water tables, or a lack of ground-forming silt held back by dams.
    Major coastal cities are also threatened, while some small island states are already laying plans for the day their drowning nations will no longer be livable.
    "This result is important because the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)" -- the UN science advisory body -- "makes a very conservative projection of total sea level rise by the end of the century," at 60 to 90 centimetres (24 to 35 inches), said Peter Wadhams, a professor of ocean physics at the University of Oxford who did not take part in the research.
    That estimate, he added, assumes that the rate at which ocean levels rise will remain constant.
    "Yet there is convincing evidence -- including accelerating losses of mass from Greenland and Antarctica -- that the rate is actually increasing, and increasing exponentially."
    Greenland alone contains enough frozen water to lift oceans by about seven metres (23 feet), though experts disagree on the global warming threshold for irreversible melting, and how long that would take once set in motion.
    "Most scientists now expect total rise to be well over a metre by the end of the century," Wadhams said.
    The new study, published in Nature Climate Change, reconciles for the first time two distinct measurements of sea level rise.
    The first looked one-by-one at three contributions: ocean expansion due to warming, changes in the amount of water stored on land, and loss of land-based ice from glaciers and ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica.
    A major warning

    The second was from satellite altimetry, which gauges heights on the Earth's surface from space.
    The technique measures the time taken by a radar pulse to travel from a satellite antenna to the surface, and then back to a satellite receiver.
    Up to now, altimetry data showed little change in sea levels over the last two decades, even if other measurements left little doubt that oceans were measurably deepening.
    "We corrected for a small but significant bias in the first decade of the satellite record," co-author Xuebin Zhang, a professor at Qingdao National Laboratory of Marine Science and Technology in China's Shandong Province, told AFP.
    Overall, the pace of global average sea level rise went up from about 2.2 millimetres a year in 1993, to 3.3 millimetres a year two decades later.
    In the early 1990s, they found, thermal expansion accounted for fully half of the added millimetres. Two decades later, that figure was only 30 percent.
    Andrew Shepherd, director of the Centre for Polar Observation and Modelling at the University of Leeds in England, urged caution in interpreting the results.
    "Even with decades of measurements, it is hard to be sure whether there has been a steady acceleration in the rate of global sea level rise during the satellite era because the change is so small," he said.
    Disentangling single sources -- such as the massive chunk of ice atop Greenland -- is even harder.
    But other researchers said the study should sound an alarm.
    "This is a major warning about the dangers of a sea level rise that will continue for many centuries, even after global warming is stopped," said Brian Hoskins, chair of the Grantham Institute at Imperial College London.


  22. Waqas Dar
    Facebook is starting production on high-quality television series and gaming shows to be broadcast on its platform, one of the social media giant's executives said on Monday.
    The online platform, which has around two billion monthly users worldwide, is working on the project with a small group of partners and hopes to start putting out episodes of its forthcoming series by the end of the summer, Nick Grudin, the vice president for media partnerships, said in a statement to AFP, confirming a report in the Wall Street Journal.
    "Our goal is to make Facebook a place where people can come together around video," Grudin said, noting that Facebook and its collaborators would "experiment with the kinds of shows you can build a community around -- from sports to comedy to reality to gaming."
    Facebook is funding the shows on its own at first, he said, "but over time we want to help lots of creators make videos funded through revenue sharing products like Ad Break," a software tool that allows adverts to be directly inserted into Facebook's online content.
    Facebook did not identify its content-production partners, but the Wall Street Journal said they include Hollywood studios and agencies representing actors and other creative talent from the film and television industries.
    Facebook is ready to spend up to $3 million per episode, a budget which puts it at the upscale end of television production in the United States. In doing so, it is a following a trend set by other internet giants that were once satisfied with allowing their platforms to be used for distribution by other producers.
    Netflix, Amazon and the online television platform Hulu -- a joint venture by Disney, Comcast, 21st Century and Time Warner -- have thrown themselves into content production, as have YouTube and Apple, although on a more modest scale.


  23. Waqas Dar
    WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump welcomed Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the White House for their first face-to-face meeting, seeking to forge a chemistry that can add new fizz to a flourishing relationship between the world's two largest democracies.
    Despite differences over issues such as immigration and climate change, Modi is expected to assure Trump that the United States has nothing to fear from India's growing economic clout.
    After they began their afternoon talks in the Oval Office likely to center on issues such as trade and war in Afghanistan, the two leaders are expected to give a joint statement to reporters.
    Trump, who described Modi as a "true friend!" on Twitter after his weekend arrival in the US, should find much in common with the Indian leader, with both men having won power by portraying themselves as establishment outsiders.
    While ties with some traditional allies have been strained by Trump's complaints that Washington has been the loser in trade agreements, Modi appears alert to his host's sensitivities and emphasis on transactional diplomacy.
    Writing in a Wall Street Journal editorial published just ahead of their meeting, Modi said that in "an uncertain global economic landscape, our two nations stand as mutually reinforcing engines of growth and innovation."
    "The transformation of India presents abundant commercial and investment opportunities for American businesses," said Modi whose government is about to implement a new nationwide tax system designed to scythe through red tape.
    "The rollout of the Goods and Services Tax on July 1 will, in a single stroke, convert India into a unified, continent-sized market of 1.3 billion people," he wrote.
    Busy day of meetings

    Ahead of his talks with Trump, Modi met with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis as India eyes the purchase of more military equipment from the US.
    Although there are not expected to be any major defense announcements, the California-based contractor General Atomics said it had been given clearance by the US government to sell drones to the Indian army.
    The State Department also announced that it was slapping sanctions on a senior figure in the Kashmiri group Hizb-ul-Mujahideen.
    Syed Salahuddin (also known as Mohammed Yusuf Shah) was designated as a global terrorist.
    Relations between India and the US were generally cool until the 1990s but they warmed under Trump's predecessor Barack Obama, as India sought greater foreign investment and trade ties.
    But it was not long after Trump's election that obstacles emerged on issues such as trade and visas for Indians wanting to work in the United States.
    Then Trump accused India of seeking to profit from the Paris climate accord as he announced the US withdrawal from the deal this month -- drawing sharp denials from New Delhi.
    A proposed overhaul of H-1B visas -- used by thousands of Indian software engineers to work in the United States -- has caused concern in New Delhi.
    But Indian officials have played down those differences, insisting that Modi was sensitive to his counterpart's concerns over American jobs and trade, and there were "no major sticking points" that could sour the talks.
    "If there's one thing we want (from the talks), it's chemistry... If the chemistry is good, then frankly everything else gets sorted," a senior Indian official who is traveling with the prime minister told reporters in Washington.
    Afghanistan on agenda

    Regional security is expected to be high on the agenda as Washington considers deploying up to 5,000 extra troops in Afghanistan to help local forces fighting insurgent groups and seeks to encourage what an administration official describes as India's "positive role" in the country.


  24. Waqas Dar
    WASHINGTON: The US State Department imposed sanctions Monday on Syed Salahuddin, the senior leader of the Kashmiri militant group Hizb-ul-Mujahideen.
    The move means the United States now considers Salahuddin, also known as Mohammad Yusuf Shah, a ?Specially Designated Global Terrorist,? the State Department said in a statement.
    Salahuddin in September vowed to block any peaceful resolution to the Kashmir conflict, officials said, threatened to train more suicide bombers, and turn the disputed valley ?into a graveyard for Indian forces.?
    The designation slaps sanctions on ?foreign persons who have committed, or pose a significant risk of committing, acts of terrorism that threaten the security of US nationals or the national security, foreign policy, or economy of the United States,? the statement read.
    The new sanctions mean American citizens are generally barred from doing business with Salahuddin, and all his assets subject to United States jurisdiction are blocked.
    Hizb-ul-Mujahideen is one of several homegrown militant groups that have for decades been fighting around half a million Indian troops deployed in the region, calling for independence or a merger with Pakistan.
    The State Department said that under Salahuddin, Hizb-ul-Mujahideen has claimed responsibility for several attacks.
    Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan since their independence from Britain in 1947, but both claim the territory in its entirety.
    The designation was announced just before Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was due at the White House for his first face-to-face meeting with President Donald Trump.


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