KARACHI: An accountability court on Friday granted Pakistan’s anti-corruption body a final extension in the remand of former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, ex-Finance Minister Miftah Ismail and former Pakistan State Oil (PSO) managing director Sheikh Imranul Haq until October 28, local media reported.
Abbasi was detained in July in a case that was opened last year over a liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal project signed with Qatar.
The spate of arrests of senior opposition politicians this year have roiled a political scene already thick with accusations of corruption and abuse of office and prompted opposition charges that the government was trying to silence criticism.
Pakistan’s new LNG infrastructure, erected at breakneck speed by the previous administration of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, has emerged as a major anti-corruption battlefield.
LNG terminals built in 2016 and 2017 were vital to ending a decade of electricity shortages and turned Pakistan into one the world’s hottest LNG markets, with Qatar and Italy’s Eni signing long-term gas deals worth billions.
But new Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) party has for years alleged corruption. In April, on the instructions of the National Accountability Bureau, the government first barred Abbasi, Ismail, and six bureaucrats involved in the Qatar deal for the first terminal from leaving the country. Abbasi, Ismail and Haq were later arrested in the case. They all deny wrongdoing. No allegations of wrongdoing have been made against the Qatari side.
Political analyst Mazhar Abbas said NAB was legally allowed to remand an accused for 90 days but would now have to produce enough evidence to launch formal charges against Abbasi.
“We cannot discuss the merits and demerits of the case as the case is subjudice but if NAB fails to file a reference, it will prove Abbasi right that this case was part of a victimization drive,” Abbas said.
Nawaz Sharif’s PML-N party was already engaged in a bitter stand-off with Khan’s party, which came to power last year accusing Abbasi and his predecessor, Sharif, of large-scale corruption and mismanagement of the economy.
In 2017 the Supreme Court disqualified Sharif from holding public office over accusations that eventually led to a seven-year jail sentence for receiving undeclared income. Abbasi took over as premier and served for less than a year before losing an election to Khan’s party in 2018.
The PML-N accuses the government of being behind the arrest of Sharif and other opposition leaders. The government has rejected opposition accusations of using the National Accountability Bureau to suppress its critics and opponents.
It says corruption by past governments is the main reason for an economic crisis that has forced Pakistan this year to seek a $6 billion loan package from the International Monetary Fund, its 13th IMF bailout since the 1980s.
Last year, the NAB ordered an inquiry against Abbasi, Sharif and others “for granting a 15-year contract of LNG terminal to a company of their liking in violation of rules and by misuse of their powers, which caused (the) national exchequer a loss of billions of rupees”.
Anti-graft body gets final remand of ex-PM Abbasi in Qatar LNG case
Anti-graft body gets final remand of ex-PM Abbasi in Qatar LNG case
- Remand of Abbasi, ex-finance minister Ismail and former PSO MD extended until October 28
- Abbasi was detained in July in a case opened last year over an LNG terminal project
Trump look-alike sings to sell pudding in Pakistan
- Bagga, 53, sports distinctive blond quiff because of his albinism that makes him resemble Trump
- Residents of eastern Sahiwal say they take selfies with Bagga, tell people they met US president-elect
SAHIWAL, Pakistan, In a bustling market in Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province, a food vendor who locals say bears an uncanny resemblance to US President-elect Donald Trump gets more business — and attention — than others.
“We feel as if Trump has come here to sell kheer (pudding),” said Mohammad Yaseen, a local resident who prefers to buy the dessert from Saleem Bagga, the look-alike vendor who also sings to draw customers.
“When he sings to sell kheer, we come down to him,” Yaseen said.
Bagga, 53, pushes his colorful wooden cart along the road delivering the milky pudding, a black jacket over his beige shalwar kameez tunic to keep out the winter cold.
A crowd gathers as Bagga, who sports a distinctive blond quiff because of his albinism, sings the lyrics to a Punjabi song: “Now you come down to me my love, don’t delay, my eyes are tired of waiting.”
Local resident Imran Ashraf takes a selfie with Bagga. “His kheer is really delicious ... we talk to him and we take selfies with him and we tell our friends that we have taken these pictures with Trump,” Ashraf said.
Bagga is unfazed by the stream of attention and cameras that follow him throughout the market and even in his home neighborhood in the district of Sahiwal.
“My face resembles Donald Trump, that is why people take selfies with me...I feel very good,” he said, before extending an invitation.
“Donald Trump sahib (sir), you have won the election, now visit here and eat my kheer, you will really enjoy it,” he said.
Pakistan PM hopes new border crossing with Iran will boost legal trade, curb smuggling
- Pakistan and Iran have tried to boost trade by setting up border markets, implementing barter system
- International sanctions on Iran have hampered economic collaboration between the two countries
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday expressed hope a newly inaugurated border crossing between Pakistan and Iran in Panjur would encourage legal trade between the two neighboring states and help curb smuggling, which has long plagued the region.
Pakistan and Iran have intensified efforts in recent years to expand bilateral trade by establishing border markets and implementing barter trade mechanisms.
In April last year, Iran’s late President Ebrahim Raisi described the existing trade volume between the two countries as “not acceptable” during his visit to Pakistan. He said his government had agreed with Islamabad to boost bilateral trade to $10 billion within the foreseeable future.
In the absence of adequate formal trade, smuggling has become a significant issue along the porous 959-kilometer border, where local communities on both sides often rely on the illicit trade of goods, particularly Iranian fuel.
“A new crossing has been inaugurated at the Pakistan-Iran border in Panjgur, which will promote legal trade and help curb smuggling,” Sharif said during a federal cabinet meeting in Islamabad, referring to the new opening this month in the Kohak-Cheedgi area of Panjgur. “I thank our brotherly country Iran for their full cooperation in this regard.”
International sanctions, particularly those imposed by the United States, have significantly hampered economic collaboration between the two countries. This is particularly evident in the shape of the stalled Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project. While Iran completed its section in 2011, Pakistan halted construction due to fears of US sanctions, stalling a project that could have alleviated Pakistan’s energy shortages.
According to the Institute for Strategic Studies, Research and Analysis, a local think tank in Islamabad, trade between the two countries has also suffered owing to the same reason.
Iran’s exports to Pakistan were approximately $1.4 billion in 2022, while Pakistan’s exports to Iran stood at $842.8 million.
The think tank also says Iran’s exports to Pakistan have grown at an annual rate of 13.5 percent over the past 24 years, whereas Pakistan’s exports to Iran have declined by up to 44 percent annually.
During Raisi’s visit, both sides signed memoranda of understanding and agreements covering fields such as trade, science, technology, agriculture, health and culture.
The visit was also seen as a step toward mending fences between the two nations, which had experienced strained ties following unprecedented tit-for-tat missile strikes earlier that year.
Pakistan’s first Sindhi feature film in decades to premiere at Jaipur film festival this month
- “Indus Echoes” explores relationship between humans and Indus River with five stories
- Feature film to be screened at Rajasthan Adult Education Association in Jaipur on Jan. 21
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s first Sindhi-language film in nearly three decades, “Indus Echoes” or “Sindhu Ji Goonj” will have its international premiere next week at the Jaipur International Film Festival (JIFF) on Jan. 21.
The film is directed and produced by Pakistani journalist-turned-filmmaker, Rahul Aijaz, who told Arab News in August last year that the Indus River served as inspiration for the film. The river fascinated Aijaz for a long time as it served as a “major symbol” of the Sindhi culture, he said.
According to its synopsis, the film explores the relationship between humans and the Indus River through five stories set on, across and around the Indus. The film is a collaboration between Pakistan’s Film N’ Chips Media Productions,
Shaam Films and South Korea’s Big Meta Films. It stars Sindhi-speaking actors, Vajdaan Shah and Ansaar Mahar, in addition to Samina Seher in key roles. Renowned actor Shamoon Abbasi serves as executive producer of the film.
“GOOD NEWS! Our Sindhi language feature film “Sindhu ji Goonj” (Indus Echoes) has been selected for the Jaipur International Film Festival in India,” Aijaz wrote on his Facebook profile on Dec. 21. “We will be having the international premiere in Jaipur next month.”
While JIFF is scheduled to kick off on Jan. 17, the Sindhi feature film will be screened at the Rajasthan Adult Education Association in Jaipur on Jan. 21.
Pakistan reportedly released its first-ever Sindhi film, ‘Umar Marvi,’ in 1956, while the country saw the release of its last Sindhi film, ‘Himmat,’ in 1997. Since then, only a few Sindhi telefilms and short films have been produced, but no
Sindhi feature film, which averages between 75 and 210 minutes, was made in the South Asian country.
In 2020, Aijaz also produced a short Sindhi-language film called, ‘A Train Crosses the Desert,’ which was screened in four countries, including at JIFF (2021) in India and the South Asian International Film Festival (2020) in the US.
In moving gesture, Coldplay’s Chris Martin invites Pakistani fan onstage at Abu Dhabi concert
- Chris Martin dedicates band’s popular song ‘Everglow’ to people in West Bank, Gaza, Pakistan and Iran
- Coldplay, one of the most influential pop-rock acts since late ‘90s, is known for vibrant concerts, fan interactions
ISLAMABAD: British rock band Coldplay’s lead singer Chris Martin recently won admiration on social media for inviting a Pakistani fan onstage during their Abu Dhabi concert and dedicating their popular song ‘Everglow’ to people suffering war in Palestine and other countries.
Coldplay performed at Abu Dhabi on Jan. 9, returning to the UAE to perform for the first time since their powerhouse show at Expo 2020 Dubai. While entertaining thousands of fans in the crowd, Martin spotted a female fan holding a sign that read, “I traveled 10,000 km for this.”
Inviting her onstage, he asked where she’d come from, to which the woman named Kinza replied: “Pakistan.”
Martin responded that he had traveled from Los Angeles where “everything was on fire,” adding that it was very strange to witness.
“So maybe we can sing this song for your brothers and sisters in Pakistan,” he said to loud cheers from thousands of fans. “And our brothers and sisters in Iran. Our brothers and sisters in the West Bank and Gaza. You can sing.”
He then proceeded to perform the band’s popular song Everglow, much to the delight of the attendees.
Coldplay remains one of the most influential pop-rock acts since the late ‘90s. With guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman and drummer Will Champion filling out the lineup, the British musicians have long been fixtures on the charts with Hot 100 hits 2001’s “Yellow,” 2008’s “Viva La Vida,” and 2017’s “Something Just Like This.”
The band’s concert in Abu Dhabi was a visual and auditory spectacle, with fans wearing glowing wristbands that pulsed in sync with the music. There were bursts of confetti, large, illuminated planets suspended throughout the stadium where the concert was held, and balloons floating across the crowd during the band’s performance.
Coldplay are scheduled to perform in the UAE capital today, Jan. 14 as well.
Security forces kill eight Taliban militants in Pakistan’s northwest
- The development was announced a day after the army chief visited Peshawar, vowed decisive force against militants
- General Munir’s visit came amid an uptick in violence in KP where 17 government servants were kidnapped last week
ISLAMABAD: Security forces killed eight militants in two separate intelligence-based operations in northwest Pakistan, the military’s media wing said on Tuesday, a day after army chief General Asim Munir warned any attempt to disrupt the country’s peace would be met with decisive force.
The army chief, who attended a security meeting during his visit to Peshawar, emphasized security forces would persist in combating violent extremism, particularly against the proscribed militant network Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which has predominantly targeted civilians and security personnel in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).
The latest operations, conducted in KP, occurred amid heightened tensions following a surge in attacks by TTP militants, which Pakistan says operate from across the border in Afghanistan, though Afghan authorities deny the allegation.
“On 12-13 January 2024, eight khwarij [TTP militants] were sent to hell in two separate engagements in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province,” the military’s Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement.
The ISPR detailed that six militants were killed during an operation in Tank District, while two others lost their lives in a clash that took place in the Tirah Valley, Khyber District.
“Sanitization operations are being conducted to eliminate any other khwarij found in the area, as security forces of Pakistan are determined to wipe out the menace of terrorism from the country,” the statement added.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also praised the security forces for their successful operations.
“The nation is proud of the fearless young men in our security forces,” Sharif was quoted as saying by his office, vowing to thwart the militants’ “evil designs” and reiterating the government’s commitment to eradicating terrorism.
The northwest region of Pakistan has seen an uptick in violence since the TTP ended a fragile ceasefire agreement with the government in November 2022.
Last week, armed TTP militants abducted 17 Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission workers and their driver in Lakki Marwat district, releasing eight of them hours later while police said they were working to free the remaining abductees.
