Blaze News - Pakistan

The United Nations on Wednesday expressed outrage over the destruction of a statue of Jesus by an Israeli soldier in southern Lebanon. Responding to Anadolu's question on the incident, the secretary-general's spokesperson, Stephane Dujarric, told a news conference that the UN is aware of the incident and called it "shocking". He welcomed the reports of "disciplinary measures" taken against the Israeli soldiers. "The desecration of religious symbols, the desecration of houses of worship, is unacceptable, regardless of the religion," Dujarric said. Read More: Latin patriarch of Jerusalem condemns destruction of Jesus statue by Israeli soldier in Lebanon Video footage circulating on Sunday showed an Israeli soldier smashing the statue with a pickaxe in the town of Debel in southern Lebanon. The Israeli army acknowledged the incident in a statement on Monday. The incident was not the first involving damage to Christian religious symbols in Lebanon. In ...

Prime Minister Keir Starmer came to power on a promise to govern Britain efficiently after years of political turmoil. Less than two years later, accusations that his office forced through a key appointment have shattered that image of competence. Embroiled in a scandal over his decision to appoint Labour Party veteran Peter Mandelson ​to Britain's top diplomatic post as ambassador to the United States, Starmer's grip on power appears to be slipping and his leadership skills are in question. Starmer's office denies allegations made by Britain's former top ‌foreign ministry official, Olly Robbins, that it put pressure on his team to accelerate Mandelson's appointment last year. But Robbins' testimony to a parliamentary committee on Tuesday, days after he was sacked, has exposed what Starmer's opponents say is a lack of political instinct and intensified critics' doubts about how he runs his office. Three people close to his Downing Street operation told R...

President Trump said ​on Tuesday that the United States was considering helping the ‌United Arab Emirates financially and a currency swap with the Middle East nation was under consideration. "It is," ​Trump told CNBC when asked if ​a currency swap with the UAE was ⁠under consideration, calling them a good ally. "They're ​really led by incredible people ... I mean, I'm ​surprised, because they are really rich," Trump said. "If I could help them, I would, I mean, we're ​helping them much more with what we're ​doing with the war," Trump said, referring to the US and ‌Israel's ⁠war with Iran. Read More: Pakistan returns $2 billion more to UAE The Wall Street Journal reported that the UAE's central bank governor raised the idea of a currency swap line with US ​Treasury Secretary ​Scott Bessent ⁠and Federal Reserve officials in meetings in Washington last week, in ​case the war plunges the oil-rich ​country ⁠into a deeper crisis. "If...

Over the last decade, at least in the US, trust in higher education has dropped significantly. A decade ago, surveys showed that 57% Americans had a 'great deal of' or 'quite a lot of' trust in higher education. Now the same number has come down to about 36 per cent. It is likely that the number is going to decline further. Manifestations of this issue are seen not just in the political spheres of the right where institutions of higher education are viewed as places of indoctrination of left wing ideas, but also on the left where questions about the value of an exorbitant price tag of higher education, and issues around accessibility, are being asked regularly. The lack of trust plays out in public conversation and in the polling booth. A year ago, Yale University created a committee of ten faculty members from a variety of academic disciplines to analyse the drivers of the decline in trust, and identify remedial measures. The final report was made public last week. The...

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov discussed the Middle East crisis in a phone call with his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi on Monday. The Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Araghchi informed Lavrov of Tehran's position regarding the ceasefire with the US and Israel. "Araghchi informed Lavrov of the Islamic Republic’s position regarding ceasefire violations committed by the United States, including an illegal naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and a seizure of an Iranian container ship," it said. 📞 On April 20, FMs Sergey #Lavrov & @araghchi spoke over the phone. Abbas Araghchi informed Sergey Lavrov of Iran’s position regarding the US violations of the ceasefire, including the illegal naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.https://t.co/zT3c21Ywvj pic.twitter.com/r4XmxB0Fq5 — MFA Russia 🇷🇺 (@mfa_russia) April 20, 2026 The Russian side reiterated the need to maintain the ceasefire, which must be observed within the parameters initially agr...

Recently, BBC London broadcasted a documentary showing how hundreds of young children were infected with HIV in a public sector hospital in Punjab. Their undercover video footage showed staff reusing syringes and other lax infection control practices. It is deeply problematic that this outbreak was reported a year ago and the Punjab government had promised to make changes so that it never happens again. The Department of Health responded by doubling down and refusing to accept that this has happened recently, while BBC stands by its claim that the footage is current. In Sindh, more than 100 people - predominantly children - were reported with Mpox (popularly called monkeypox). Around 30 patients were lab-confirmed, with nine deaths. Most cases came from Khairpur in Sindh and could be traced back to some public healthcare facilities. A high fatality Mpox outbreak is perplexing, but once you put the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle together, it becomes clear that the lack of infection control...