KARACHI: The United Kingdom has allocated £10 million ($12.2 million) in humanitarian aid for Pakistan’s flood-hit communities, a press release from the British High Commission said on Wednesday, with a focus on providing immediate relief and early recovery assistance.
Heavy monsoon rains in Pakistan this year, especially in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and eastern Punjab provinces, killed nearly 350 people and injured hundreds of others. Thousands of homes were damaged and destroyed in flash floods, landslides and other rain-related disasters.
In 2022, unusually heavy rains triggered flash floods in many parts of the country, killing over 1,700 people, inflicting economic losses of around $30 billion, and affecting at least 30 million people.
Scientists have attributed Pakistan’s erratic weather patterns to climate change effects. The South Asian nation is widely recognized as one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change.
“‘Monsoon may be ending, but recovery has only just begun. Once again flooding has resulted in a loss of lives, livelihoods and the destruction of infrastructure,” British High Commissioner Jane Marriott was quoted as saying in a press release from the UK mission as it announced the £10 million funding.
“We’re providing immediate relief and early recovery assistance to families whose lives have been overturned by these floods.”
The UK’s support will be targeted at meeting urgent humanitarian and early recovery needs of the most vulnerable, affected families in 13 worst hit districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit Baltistan, Balochistan, Punjab and Sindh. Immediate support includes the provision of temporary shelters, essential relief items as well as cash assistance for affected families. Work had already begun to restore damaged drinking water and sanitation infrastructure, irrigation channels, remove debris, and restore damaged infrastructure, the UK High Commission said.
The agricultural industry was particularly affected by the floods, and the UK is helping to restore people’s livelihoods through supporting climate smart agriculture, livestock provision, and vocational skills training, the statement added.
Working with the Concern Worldwide led consortium and the World Food Programme (WFP), the UK is supporting over 130,000 affected families, approximately 900,000 individuals, through emergency relief and restoration of infrastructure and livelihoods, the statement said.
“The UK’s focus is on improving Pakistan’s longer-term climate resilience, rather than purely responding to disasters,” Mariott added. “The UK has already helped 1.5 million people improve their resilience to extreme climate events, and aims to support a further 3 million people in the next 4-5 years.”
During the devastating floods of 2022, the UK helped over 2.3 million people, dedicating a total of £39 million in UK aid. The British public mobilized and raised £41.5 million as part of the Disasters Emergency Committee appeal. Support included emergency cash assistance, shelter kits, nutritional support, learning kits and infrastructure repair.
UK allocates £10 million for early recovery assistance for Pakistan’s flood-hit communities
https://arab.news/432cr
UK allocates £10 million for early recovery assistance for Pakistan’s flood-hit communities
- Support includes cash assistance, temporary shelters, livestock provision, rebuilding damaged infrastructure
- Heavy monsoon rains in Pakistan this year killed over 350 people and damaged thousands of homes
Afghan forces suffer ‘heavy losses’ in border clashes with Pakistan— state media
- Afghan forces opened fire as Pakistani personnel were repairing border fence, says state media
- Pakistan’s security forces will not compromise on territorial integrity, warns state broadcaster
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani forces targeted Afghan posts in an exchange of fire along the border between the two states on Wednesday, state-run media reported, saying that Afghanistan suffered “heavy losses” as a result of the skirmish.
Clashes along the border between the neighboring countries have happened frequently in the past. In September, Pakistan said it killed eight Afghan Taliban fighters after they opened “unprovoked firing” at Pakistani forces.
Previous clashes have led to the closure of key crossings like Torkham and Chaman, severely disrupting trade and halting the movement of people between the two states. In August, the Torkham border was shut down for three days after the Afghan Taliban announced they were investigating reports of Pakistani fighter jets allegedly violating Afghan airspace to patrol Nangarhar and Kunar provinces.
The latest skirmish between the border forces of the two countries took place along the Nushki-Ghaznali sector, Radio Pakistan said. It added that Afghan forces opened fire on Pakistani posts as Pakistani personnel were repairing the border fence between the two countries.
“The security sources said that the Afghan forces suffered heavy losses due to effective retaliation by Pakistan,” Radio Pakistan said. “They said Pakistan will continue to take effective measures to protect its borders.”
However, the state media did not provide details of the losses it said had been inflicted on the Afghan forces.
Citing security sources, the state broadcaster said Pakistan’s forces “will not compromise their territorial integrity.”
Pakistani officials have previously accused the Afghan Taliban of sheltering and facilitating the banned militant group Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). The TTP has launched several attacks on Pakistan’s security forces since November 2022 after a fragile truce between the two sides broke down.
Islamabad has also urged Kabul not to allow such armed factions to use Afghan territory to launch attacks in the region. The Afghan authorities, however, deny these allegations, maintaining that Pakistan’s security challenges are an internal issue for Islamabad.
Pakistan last year launched a deportation drive to expel undocumented immigrants from its country. The move impacted mostly Afghan refugees in the country, with Islamabad expelling around 700,000 Afghans.
The deportation drive strained ties further between the two nations, with Afghanistan calling on Pakistan to avoid forcefully expelling its nationals.
Pakistan police book separatist BLA’s leadership for suicide attack targeting Chinese nationals
- BLA claimed responsibility for Karachi blast that killed three, including two Chinese nationals, on Sunday night
- BLA leadership planned attack to damage Pakistan’s ties with China, harm national security, says complaint
KARACHI: Pakistani police this week registered a case against the leadership of the separatist Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) militant group for being involved in a suicide attack that targeting Chinese nationals in Karachi, saying that the attack was intended to damage Islamabad’s ties with Beijing.
Three people, including two Chinese nationals, were killed while 10 others were injured on Sunday night in a blast near the Jinnah International Airport in Karachi. The BLA had claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it had used a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED) to target the Chinese citizens.
According to a copy of the First Information Report (FIR) filed by Inspector Kaleem Khan Moosa of the Airport Police Station, police said BLA chief Bashir Ahmed Baloch and other leaders of the outfit had planned the attack to undermine Pakistan’s ties with China. The complaint confirmed that a VBIED was used to target the Chinese nationals.
“An unidentified terrorist brought his Toyota Hilux vehicle very close to the convoy,” the copy of the FIR obtained by Arab News on Wednesday, said.
“He detonated his vehicle in a suicide attack, resulting in the destruction of the convoy vehicles carrying foreign Chinese and other security officials, including Rangers, police, and other nearby vehicles, leading to casualties and injuries.”
Multiple sections of the Anti-Terrorism Act, Explosive Substance Act and Pakistan Penal Code were included in the FIR. It said the BLA leaders had planned the attack with help from accomplices with “the intent of instigating terrorism in the country.”
“They allegedly brainwashed the unknown suicide bomber,” the FIR said, adding that the group had possibly obtained the “assistance of a foreign enemy intelligence agency.”
“Their goal was to undermine the relations between Pakistan and China, affect national security through economic disruption, and achieve financial benefits for their banned organization while instilling a sense of insecurity among the public and diminishing the morale of national security institutions,” it said.
The complaint said that the suicide bomber was driving a vehicle with the number plate KW0375. As per the Excise and Taxation department’s records seen by Arab News, the vehicle is registered under the name of Shah Fahad, who the BLA claimed was responsible for carrying out the attack.
BLA ATTACKS ON CHINESE NATIONALS
Sunday night’s attack was the latest by the BLA, the most prominent of a number of separatist groups fighting for independence for Pakistan’s gas-and-mineral-rich Balochistan province, where a low-lying insurgency has been ongoing for the past two decades.
Baloch militants blame Pakistan’s state for exploiting the province’s resources, a charge the Pakistani state denies. The BLA also accuses Beijing of helping Islamabad exploit the province and has attacked Chinese interests and projects in the past, in particular the strategic port of Gwadar on the Arabian Sea. It has previously killed Chinese citizens working in the region and attacked Beijing’s consulate in Karachi.
China is a major ally and investor in Pakistan, having pledged over $65 billion in road, infrastructure, and development projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project.
BLA carried out its first suicide attack on a convoy of Chinese engineers in Dalbandin on August 11, 2018, by its suicide bomber Rehan Aslam Baloch.
In March this year, a suicide bombing killed five Chinese engineers and a Pakistani driver in northwestern Pakistan as they headed to the Dasu Dam, the biggest hydropower project in the country. In 2022, three Chinese educators and their Pakistani driver were killed when an explosion ripped through a van at the University of Karachi.
Sunday’s airport attack followed a deadly day of coordinated attacks in August, most claimed by the BLA, that killed more than 50 people in Balochistan and which Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and other leaders had said sought to harm Chinese-funded investment and development projects.
Record-breaking Joe Root hits hundred as England power to 351-3 against Pakistan
- All three Pakistani pacers, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah and Aamer Jamal, have taken one wicket each
- 33-year-old Root has become England’s highest run scorer in Tests, and the fifth highest of all time in the world
MULTAN: Joe Root hit a magnificent hundred on Wednesday to guide England to 351-3 at tea on the third day of the opening Test against Pakistan in Multan after breaking Alastair Cook’s Test runs record.
The 33-year-old became England’s highest run scorer in Tests, and the fifth highest of all time, when he drove Pakistan seamer Aamer Jamal for a straight boundary to reach 71 just before lunch.
In the second session he reverse swept spinner Abrar Ahmed for a single to reach his 35th Test hundred – the sixth most by any batsman – before going to the interval on an imperious 119 not out.
Harry Brook scored his 10th Test half century and was 64 not out, leaving England 205 behind Pakistan’s first innings total of 556. Root has so far notched eight fours to Brook’s seven.
Root and Brook’s fourth-wicket stand has so far yielded 102 runs as a flat Multan stadium pitch continued to give no assistance to the bowlers.
Root added 136 for the third wicket with Ben Duckett who made a robust 84 with 11 boundaries, showing no effect of a thumb dislocation on Tuesday that forced him to bat at number four.
Duckett was the only man dismissed in the post-lunch session, trapped leg-before by seamer Aamer Jamal after hitting 11 boundaries.
All three Pakistan fast bowlers, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah and Jamal have taken one wicket each.
It was a day to remember for Root, who took 268 innings and 147 Tests to go past his former captain Cook’s total of 12,472 runs from 161 Tests in a glorious career that ended in 2018.
Root also added 109 for the second wicket with Zak Crawley, who hit 13 fours in an 85-ball 78 but departed early on the third morning.
In the fourth over, Crawley failed to keep a flick down off pace bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi and was caught at the second attempt by Jamal at mid-wicket.
Duckett started with trademark aggression, taking five boundaries off spinner Abrar and completing his 10th Test half-century off just 45 balls.
It enabled Root to accumulate steadily at the other end as he brought up his 65th Test fifty off 76 balls before being applauded by a handful of England fans and teammates in the dressing room when he broke Cook’s record.
The all-time list is headed by India’s Sachin Tendulkar with 15,921 from 200 matches.
Cook tipped Root to eclipse Tendulkar’s mark.
“I can see him overhauling Sachin Tendulkar’s record,” the former England opening batsman said during commentary on BBC radio.
“You could say Sachin is still the favorite but just.
“I don’t see that happening for Root to lose that hunger and ability to keep driving himself forward for the next couple of years.”
Pakistan’s UAE envoy calls for collaboration between commerce chambers, B2B joint ventures
- Pakistani ambassador Faisal Niaz Tirmizi meets Ahmed Jasim Al Zaabi, chairman Federation of UAE Chambers of Commerce
- Tirmizi briefed Zaabi regarding Pakistan’s investment regime and initiatives by the government for facilitation of foreign investors
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s ambassador to the UAE, Faisal Niaz Tirmizi, has called for UAE chambers of commerce to increase collaboration with Pakistani counterparts and set up business-to-business joint ventures for the enhancement of trade and investment between the two countries, Islamabad’s embassy in Abu Dhabi said on Wednesday.
The issues were discussed during a meeting between Tirmizi and Ahmed Jasim Al Zaabi, the chairman of the Federation of UAE Chambers of Commerce and Industry (UAE Chambers) and the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce & Industry (ADCCI). Zaabi is also the chairman of the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED) and the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM).
“Enhancement of collaboration between UAE Chambers with Pakistani Chambers of Commerce and Industries and establishment of B2B joint ventures for enhancement of trade between the two brotherly countries were also discussed during the meeting,” the Pakistani embassy said after the meeting between the two officials.
“Tirmizi briefed Zaabi regarding Pakistan’s investment regime and initiatives of the government for facilitation of foreign investors.”
The envy also briefed the UAE official about potential investment sectors in Pakistan including IT, food and agriculture, textile, leather, tourism, and infrastructure. He also reiterated the invitation to a business delegation from the UAE Chambers to visit Pakistan.
“Both the sides agreed on the enhancement of economic and commercial cooperation between the two brotherly countries through trade facilitation, B2B engagements and mutual exchange of delegations and participation in trade fairs and exhibitions including GITEX and TEXPO,” the Pakistan embassy said.
Last year, Pakistan set up the Special Investment Facilitation Council, a body comprising Pakistani civilian and military leaders and specially tasked to promote investment in Pakistan. The council is so far focusing on investments in the energy, agriculture, mining, information technology and aviation sectors and specifically targeting Gulf nations.
Rights groups slam Pakistan for blocking activist’s US travel
- Ethnic rights activist Mahrang Baloch says officials blocked her from leaving for New York to attend a TIME magazine awards gala
- Authorities in Islamabad have blocked foreign travel for many Pakistani activists, journalists and dissenting politicians in recent years
ISLAMABAD: Human rights advocates including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai criticized Pakistan on Wednesday for stopping a leading ethnic minority activist from traveling to accept a US award.
Mahrang Baloch, one of Pakistan’s most prominent rights voices, said officials blocked her from leaving Karachi for New York on Monday night to attend a TIME magazine awards gala.
The 31-year-old had been due to accept an award for campaigning on behalf of the Baloch ethnic group, which claims it has been targeted by Islamabad with extrajudicial harassment, arrests and killings.
“Mahrang Baloch’s activism for Baloch people should be recognized, not denied a platform,” Pakistan’s Yousafzai wrote on social media platform X on Wednesday.
“I know this will not deter her from continuing to speak up and protest peacefully for human rights,” she said.
The Pakistan government says its forces are fighting separatist militants, who target state forces and foreign nationals, in southwestern Balochistan province.
Authorities in Islamabad have blocked foreign travel for many Pakistani activists, critical journalists and dissenting politicians in recent years.
Baloch said she held a valid US visa but immigration officials in Karachi prevented her from boarding her flight.
She said she was detained for five hours and that her passport and phone were seized, blaming police and the Federal Investigation Agency, a Pakistani intelligence service.
Neither organization responded immediately to a request for comment.
“This action reflects the growing fear and insecurity of the state toward Baloch voices,” Baloch said in a video statement late on Monday.
“There was no legitimate purpose for preventing my travel, except to silence Baloch voices from being heard internationally,” she said.
Baloch, a doctor, was named on the 2024 TIME100 Next list of “rising leaders” who the magazine believes “will play an important role in leading the future.”
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said blocking Baloch’s travel was “a flagrant violation of her right to freedom of movement and expression.”
UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders Mary Lawlor said on X she was “very concerned.”
Pakistan also banned another ethnic activist organization, the Pashtun Protection Movement, at the weekend.
Amnesty International said it was “part of a systematic and relentless clampdown by the Pakistani authorities on peaceful protests and assemblies by dissenting groups.”
Baloch began her activist career at the age of 16 in 2009, when her father went missing in an alleged “enforced disappearance.” His body was found two years later.
Protests and advocacy among the Baloch are generally led by women, who say their male counterparts have suffered the worst in a decades-long state crackdown.
