Blaze News - Pakistan

India and China agreed to redouble efforts to ensure complete disengagement on the contested Himalayan frontier, New Delhi said on Thursday after India's National Security Adviser Ajit Doval met China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Russia. "Both sides agreed to work with urgency and redouble their efforts to realize complete disengagement in the remaining areas," the Indian government said in a statement. Meanwhile, in a separate development, Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said on Thursday that India's economic relationship with neighbour China has been very "unfair" and "imbalanced". Speaking at an event in Geneva, Jaishankar also said about 75% of the "disengagement" problems at India's long and mountainous border with China had been sorted out. from Latest News, Breaking News & Top News Stories | The Express Tribune https://ift.tt/X6TFHB0

Every morning after breakfast, Afghan teenager Prina Muradi turns on the television - not to watch films or cartoons, but to study maths, science and literature. Muradi, 16, has not been to school since 2021 when the Taliban seized the country and barred girls from secondary education. But now she is racing to catch up, thanks to a satellite television channel that is broadcasting the entire Afghan curriculum from France for girls who are shut out of school. "I've regained hope," Muradi said from her home in the capital Kabul. "This is a battle against ignorance." Begum TV is the brainchild of Swiss-Afghan media entrepreneur Hamida Aman, founder of the Begum Organization for Women (BOW), a non-profit supporting girls and women in Afghanistan. Last November, BOW launched the Begum Academy, a digital platform hosting some 8,500 videos covering Afghanistan's secondary school syllabus in both Dari and Pashto, the country's official languages. But most girls ...

Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican US presidential candidate Donald Trump meet for the first time on Tuesday night in their only scheduled debate, a clash that could prove pivotal in their pitched battle for the White House. The nationally televised debate beginning at 6 am PST on Wednesday takes place just eight weeks before the November 5 election. The race is a close one that could easily swing in either direction and early voting will start in some states in the coming days. The encounter is particularly important for Harris, with opinion polls showing that more than a quarter of likely voters feel they do not yet know enough about her, in contrast to the well-known former president. The debate offers Harris, a former prosecutor, a chance to make her case against Trump, whose felony convictions, outspoken backing for supporters convicted in the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol and frequent falsehoods offer plenty of fertile ground. It will be the firs...

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has not yet added Pakistan’s new 37-month Extended Fund Facility (EFF) to the agenda for its Executive Board meetings scheduled through September 18, according to the Fund’s official website.  The upcoming meetings, set for September 9, 13, and 18, do not include the $7 billion EFF agreement reached with Pakistan, as reported by local media. Earlier this year, Pakistan completed a $3 billion Standby Arrangement (SBA) with the IMF, aimed at bolstering the country’s foreign exchange reserves and easing pressure on its external finances.  Following the conclusion of the SBA, Pakistan and the IMF team reached a staff-level agreement on a new 37-month EFF worth $7 billion on July 12.  However, this agreement still requires the approval of the IMF’s Executive Board, contingent on Pakistan securing necessary financing assurances from its development and bilateral partners. To meet these requirements, the government is reportedly negotiating ...

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) staged a political power show with a rally at Sangjani on Sunday. Mahmood Khan Achakzai, Chairman of the Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party, was also in attendance. Addressing the rally, Achakzai claimed that PTI enjoys unprecedented support from millions of people, a level of backing not seen by any previous movement in Pakistan.  He criticised the current government as one of theft and corruption and threatened a nationwide movement if the PTI founder was not released. He further declared that neither the military nor the police could halt their efforts. Meanwhile, the district administration had instructed rally organisers to conclude the event by 7 pm. However, the rally continued beyond the designated time, resulting in clashes between the participants and the Islamabad Police. from Latest News, Breaking News & Top News Stories | The Express Tribune https://ift.tt/ui0Fksc

Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets across France on Saturday in protest against President Emmanuel Macron’s decision to appoint centre-right politician Michel Barnier as prime minister. Leftist political groups criticised Macron for disregarding the outcome of recent elections. Macron’s appointment of the 73-year-old Barnier, a conservative and former European Union Brexit negotiator, came on Thursday, following a two-month search after his ill-fated decision to call a legislative election that resulted in a hung parliament. Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of the far-left France Unbowed (LFI) party, addressed protesters at the march in eastern Paris, stating, “Democracy is not just about accepting victory, but also having the humility to accept defeat.” He encouraged supporters to engage in a prolonged struggle. Organisers claimed that approximately 300,000 people protested peacefully across France, including 160,000 in Paris. However, police estimates suggested that 26,000 peop...

In the past 48 hours, Israeli airstrikes across the Gaza Strip have resulted in the deaths of at least 61 people, according to Palestinian medical sources, as Israeli forces engaged with Hamas-led fighters. Despite 11 months of ongoing conflict, numerous diplomatic efforts have yet to yield a ceasefire or secure the release of Israeli and foreign hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. Among the targets of the Israeli airstrikes were two former schools in Gaza City and Jabalia, which had been housing displaced individuals. These strikes reportedly claimed the lives of at least 12 people. The Israeli military stated that these strikes were aimed at Hamas gunmen operating within the compounds. A further five individuals lost their lives in an airstrike on a house in Gaza City, bringing the death toll on Saturday to 28. Palestinian resistance groups, including Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Fatah, reported engaging Israeli forces with anti-tank rockets, mortar bombs, and explosives intended for Israeli...