E-Paper PDF 9th January 2020 (KHI)

CMYK

Thursday, 9 January, 2020 I 12 Jamadi-ul-Awwal, 1441 I Rs 17.00 I Vol X No 190 I 16 Pages I Karachi Edition

war fears recede as Trump announces iran sancTions g

TrUmP SAyS ‘PeoPle And leAderS’ of TehrAn ShoUld work TogeTher for ‘ShAred PrIorITIeS’

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IrAn fIreS 20 mISSIleS on US bASeS In IrAq, clAImS To hAve kIlled 80 US PerSonnel; US SAyS no cASUAlTIeS SUffered

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SenATe loSeS no TIme In APProvIng lAwS for ServIceS chIefS’ exTenSIon STORY ON PAGE 02

Pakistan launches diplomatic efforts to de-escalate ME tensions

WASHINGTON/TEHRAN agencies

ours after Iran showered missiles on united states bases in Iraq though failing to inflict any damage, President Donald Trump has announced more “punishing” economic sanctions” on the country while extending an olive branch to the “people and leaders” of Iran to work together for “shared priorities”.

In a televised address in response to the attack, the us president said that the us would be imposing additional sanctions on Iran but made no mention of possible retaliation to Tuesday’s missile attacks — seen by experts as a measured first response by Iran.

The us president acknowledged Iran “appears to be standing down”.

The much-awaited address, which began almost half an hour after its scheduled time, began with Trump saying, “As long as I am president, Iran will not be allowed to hold nuclear weapons.”

Trump was flanked by us Vice President Mark Pence, us secretary of state Mike Pompeo as well as several military officials.

He said there were no American casualties in the Iranian strikes on military bases housing us troops in Iraq. “No Americans were harmed in last night’s attack by the Iranian regime. We suffered no casualties,” Trump said. “our great American forces are prepared for anything.”

Following the attack, the international community had sounded alarm and concern, urging both sides to de-escalate.

IRAN STRIKES BACK: Iraq’s military said 22 missiles were launched on the Ain al-Asad airbase in western Anbar province and a base in the Iraqi Kurdish capital Erbil, causing no casualties among Iraqi forces. The attack was dubbed a slap on the us’s face by Iran’s supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

According to Iran’s state television Islamic republic of Iran Broadcasting (IrIB), 80 “American terrorists” were killed in the missile attack, adding that none of the missiles were intercepted. However, us allies have refuted reports of human loss.

In his televised address from the city of Qom, Khamenei said incremental military actions against the united states alone were “not sufficient.”

Services chiefs’ tenure bills all set to become law

“What matters is that the presence of America, which is a source of corruption in this region, should come to an end,” he said to a hall filled with imams and others.

Khamenei said “sitting at the negotiating table” with American envoys opens the door to greater American intervention in the region and such negotiations, therefore, must “come to an end.”

“This region,” he said, “does not accept the us presence.”

IrIB, citing a senior revolutionary Guards source, also said Iran had 100 other targets in the region in its sights if Washington took any retaliatory measures. It also said us helicopters and military equipment were “severely damaged”.

It was Iran’s most direct assault on America since the 1979 seizing of the us Embassy in Tehran. us and Iraqi officials said there were no immediate reports of casualties, though buildings were still being searched.

Meanwhile, Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Iran is not seeking escalation or war, adding that Tehran would defend itself against any aggression.

Iran’s Islamic revolutionary Guards Corps confirmed they fired the missiles to retaliate for last week’s killing of Qasem soleimani, according to a statement on state TV. The statement advised the united states to withdraw its troops from the region to prevent more deaths and warned us allies including Is-

rael not to allow attacks from their territories.

Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said in a statement that the bases targeted were alAsad airbase and another facility in Erbil, Iraq.

“As we evaluate the situation and our response, we will take all necessary measures to protect and defend us personnel, partners, and allies in the region.”

Trump, who visited the al-Asad airbase in December 2018, was briefed on reports of the attack and was monitoring the situation, White House spokeswoman stephanie Grisham said.

Democrats in the us Congress and some of the party’s presidential contenders warned about the escalating conflict.

“Closely monitoring the situation following bombings targeting us troops in Iraq,” us House of representatives speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Twitter.

STORY ON BACK PAGE

2,543 senior govt officials removed from bISP beneficiaries list STORY ON BACK PAGE

CONTINUED ON BACK PAGE

Int’l community expresses concern following Iran’s attack on US military bases

Imran vows to ‘further improve utility stores’ for middle class

STORY ON PAGE 02

Pakistani passport rated as fourth-worst for international travel

STORY ON PAGE 07

STORY ON PAGE 02

Gas shortage to double next year CCoE informed

Pakistan not to accept TAPI gas price

STORIES ON PAGE 11

CMYK Thursday, 9 January, 2020

02 NEWS

IHC reserves verdict in PMDC dissolution case ISLAMABAD

ISLAMABAD

Staff RepoRt

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday reserved verdict in a petition challenging dissolution of the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC).

The verdict was reserved after the completion of the arguments from both parties. Additional Attorney General Tariq Khokhar concluded arguments while representing the federal government.

AAG Khokhar pleaded the court to thoroughly observe the case details while giving judgment as the matter is currently under discussion in the Parliament. To which, Barrister Zafarullah objected and said that the courts should give a verdict instead of delaying the matter if the case is related to the fundamental rights.

Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani wondered: “Can a court issue an order to the parliament?”

The counsel replied that the court could not issue directives to the parliament, however, the ordinance can be challenged. The judge remarked that the bill is in Parliament and it is not an emergency matter but for the general situation.

Zafarullah said the ordinance is on-field which seized the fundamental rights. Babar Sattar apprised the court that they came to defend the rights of the employees and the case is not filed to challenge the policy of the ordinance. He sought IHC for taking the decision in view of the fundamental rights. The lawyer added the verdict will also guide the parliament.

Later, the high court reserved a verdict in the case.

THE CASE: The medical regulatory body was dissolved through a presidential decree in October last year, paving the way for the establishment of a new organisation namely the Pakistan Medial Commission (PMC).

imrAn vowS to ‘furthEr imProvE utility StorES’ for miDDlE ClASS

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RIME Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday vowed to “further improve utility stores” for the middle class during a visit to one in the federal capital. Addressing the media outside the utility store, the PM said his government had made quality items at affordable rates available for the lower middle class and the salaried people. The leadership’s “top priority is to provide these items at cheap rates”, he added.

“Everything is computerised here. Flour is being sold for Rs800 a kilogramme and we will try to reduce the price further but I can assure

The same day when PMDC was dissolved, President Alvi had also signed a new ordinance titled ‘Pakistan Medical Commission Ordinance, 2019’ which noted that the “implementation of the new ordinance requires dissolution of current PMDC”.

However, the decision to dissolve PMDC was challenged in the IHC by the registrar of erstwhile PMDC, Brig (retd) Dr Hafizud Din and 31 employees, who maintained that an act of parliament gave powers to the government to dissolve the PMDC, but its president, vice president and the executive committee would stay intact till the appointment of newcomers after the elections which were to be held within one year.

The petition also said that the services of the PMDC employees were terminated without giving them a proper opportunity of hearing. It expressed apprehensions that the

newly formed PMC may hire the services of new employees against the sanctioned and contractual positions through other modes after issuance of advertisement which would jeopardise the vested rights to serve the council’s previous employees.

It requested the court to declare the ordinance for the establishment of the PMC as unconstitutional and in the meanwhile allow the erstwhile PMDC employees to continue work in the newly formed commission.

IHC constituted a single-member bench featuring Justice Kayani to take up the petition. As the bench approved the petition for regular hearing, it issued notices to the secretaries to the president, cabinet division and law and health ministries, chief commissioner, attorney general and the president of the newly established Pakistan Medical Commission (PMC) and adjourned the hearing till Nov 8.

you that it won’t rise above Rs800. “There’s nutrition added to the flour,” PM Imran said, referring to the wheat quality. “The rice that I have seen and the edible oil is locally manufactured — including sunflower and canola — so we do not have to import it. “The rupee can fluctuate but it won’t affect the common person.”

The premier noted that pulses worth Rs1.5 billion were being imported but the agricultural department was making full effort to grow them here in Pakistan. “We will further improve these utility stores in the future.”

The Insaf Ration Card would be introduced very soon, allowing the country’s underprivileged people to

AkbAr DurrAni APPointED AS fEDErAl info SECrEtAry ISLAMABAD: The federal government on Wednesday appointed Akbar Hussain Durrani as the federal secretary for Information and Broadcasting in place of Zahida Parveen.

Durrani, a Grade-22 officer, was earlier posted as the secretary Inter-Provincial Coordination. According to sources, Zahida Parveen was removed due to to her alleged differences with Prime Minister’s Special Assistant for Information and Broadcasting Firdous Ashiq Awan. Zahida Parveen was asked to report to the Establishment Division till further orders. SAPM Firdous was not available to comment on her reported differences with the former information secretary. Staff RepoRt

PAkiStAni PASSPort rAtED AS fourthworSt for intErnAtionAl trAvEl

The Pakistani passport has been ranked as the fourth worst passport for international travel, according to the Henley Passport Index. The Henley Passport Index, which is a ranking of all the world’s passports according to the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa, placed Pakistan on the 104th position. Last year the Pakistani passport had been ranked as the fifth worst passport to hold. It now fares better than the passports of only three other countries: Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. It shares the fourth spot with Somalia. Pakistani passport holders still enjoy visa-free access to 32 countries. Japan retained the top spot as the world’s most powerful passport. The Asian nation has come out on top in the index, which is revised quarterly, for the third time in a row. Other Asian countries in the most powerful passport list are Singapore, which stands at the second spot, and South Korea tying with Germany in third place. European countries also performed favourably, with Finland sitting on fourth and Spain, Luxembourg and Denmark coming fifth. Sweden and France took the sixth spot on the list. The United States dropped two places two eighth, sharing the spot with United Kingdom, Norway, Green and Belgium. Meanwhile, Canada ranked ninth. The United Arab Emirates also climbed up 47 places to sit in 18th place, with a visafree or visa-on-arrival score of 171. NewS DeSk

CMYK

get food items worth Rs3,000 every month, he said, adding that one of his government’s goals was to reduce the role of middlepersons, who “earn too much profit” and engage in “hoarding and profiteering”.

“The farmer sells for too low a price and the people have to pay a huge price” as the chain from the farmer to the customer was too long, PM Imran added. Noting that 2019 was the year of stabilisation and 2020 would be that of growth and employment opportunities, he said more big projects were coming soon as well as industrialisation and housing plans.

“We are injecting a lot of money into [utility] stores,” he said.

SC returns plea seeking appointment of CEC, ECP members ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

The Supreme Court (SC) office has returned a petition of the opposition’s Rehbar Committee moved to seek an order for the appointment of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and two members of Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

The court office returned the petition by raising objections that Rehbar Committee has not moved to the concerned forum on the matter which cannot be heard directly by the Supreme Court. It was also stated that the certificate provided with the petition did not meet the legal requirements.

Earlier on January 1, the Supreme Court was moved against the government’s possible move to bring in a presidential ordinance to amend rules of the parliamentary panel tasked with deciding nominees for the posts of the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and two members of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

A petition moved in the apex court states that the government wants to appoint CEC and two members from Sindh and Balochistan of its choice by way of amending rules of the panel, which now require a two-thirds majority for the purpose.

It submitted that the government is trying to replace the word “twothirds majority” with “simple majority”, which it said would be a violation of Article 213 and 218 of the country’s Constitution.

The federal government, the ECP secretary, and the Ministry of Law have been impleaded as respondents in the petition that requests the top court to restrain the government from amending the rules.

CMYK Thursday, 9 January, 2020

NEWS

03

SErviCES ChiEfS’ tEnurE billS All SEt to bEComE lAw ISLAMABAD

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Staff RepoRt

HE Senate on Wednesday approved the three bills regarding the tenure of the services chiefs — chief of army staff, chief of air staff and chief of naval staff and the chairman of the joint chief of staff committee, a day after these bills sailed through the National Assembly. The bills — the Pakistan Army (Amendment) Bill 2020, the Pakistan Air Force (Amendment) Bill 2020 and the Pakistan Navy (Amendment) Bill 2020 — were accorded approval by the Senate’s Standing Committee on Defence on Tuesday.

The bills were moved for voting by Defence Minister Pervez Khattak. Senate

Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani then put up these bills for a voice vote, with a majority of members voting in favour of the bill. The session, which lasted for only 20 minutes, was adjourned immediately after the passage of the bills till Friday. The bills will now become acts of parliament after formal assent by President Dr Arif Alvi. Sanjrani had referred the bills to the Senate Standing Committee on Defence on Tuesday –after their approval from the National Assembly– which held an emergency meeting within minutes after adjournment of the Senate session and passed them unanimously.

NA ACCORDS APPROVAL TO BILLS: The National Assembly on Tuesday approved all the three bills with little opposition. The only voice votes

against the bills initially had come from the two independent MNAs from the tribal areas – Mohsin Dawar and Ali Wazir – who remained in the House for some time and later left the house after tearing up the copies of the assembly agenda to join the members of the JUI-F and the JI, who had walked out from the house as soon as the assembly started the process of the bills’ passage.

The PPP that had suggested recommendations regarding amendments to the bills also took back the proposed revisions after the request by the government. “This will create unity in the House and will create a better situation,” said the defence minister.

Taking the floor, PPP MNA Naveed Qamar took back his party’s recommendations regarding all three bills. “Keeping in mind the

Govt to continue action against drug price hike, says PM's aide ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

Special Assistant to PM on Health Dr Zafar Mirza Wednesday said that the prices of essential medicines had been reduced by 15 percent on the special directives of Prime Minister Imran Khan and through online complaints around 50,000 actions were taken for illegally increasing the prices in markets. Talking to a private news channel, Dr Zafar Mirza said the reduction of medicine prices will be implemented on an urgent basis for the relief of common people.

Moreover, we also introduce an online facility through which people would be able to verify the prices of medicines and registered complaints against people overcharging medicines in the markets, he added.

“I am personally looking into the matter and would not tolerate the illegal and unauthorized increase in the prices of medicines, he added. Dr

Zafar said the crackdown launched by the PTI government against high price medicines has started bearing fruit for poor man, adding that the crackdown against companies who are overcharging will continue.

He said DRAP’s task force will conduct different market surveys for

the determination of overpricing.

He said that action should also be taken against owners of some medical stores who were involved in the unauthorized increase in prices of medicines.

He said that there was a clear direction to take strict action against overpricing and start active surveillance besides seizing the medicines in case of overpricing.

The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) will continue raiding on various medicine supplying companies in different cities and seized their stock for selling drugs at exorbitant rates.

Zafar Mirza said that the essential medicines including cardiac, sugar and blood pressure and some antibiotics have been reduced, adding, citizens should be aware of these prices. This, he said, was according to the medicine price control policy of 2018. The PTI government wouldn’t tolerate any injustice with the masses, he added.

Region can’t afford war, says Qureshi after Iran attacks US bases ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Wednesday expressed concerns over the growing tensions in US-Iran relations and said the region could not afford a war.

In the early hours of Wednesday, Iran launched missile attacks on two US military bases in Iraq in retaliation for the US drone strike on Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani whose killing has raised fears of a wider war in the war-torn Middle East.

“The region cannot afford war. It is not in anyone’s interest and will impact the global economy,” Qureshi said, according to a statement issued by the foreign minister’s spokesperson.

Qureshi added: “The ones who were attacked this morning are still

assessing the damage. Initial reports suggest that there has been no loss of human life.” Commenting on Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif’s recent statement, Qureshi said it reflected Iran’s intent to not escalate tensions.

“The statement reflected the seriousness of the situation and showed restraint. The US should also exercise caution. “There is still a large majority in the US which is not in favor of war and does not want to thrust the US army into the frontlines,” he said.

The foreign minister added he had been in touch with his counterparts in the region. “We are also endeavoring to ensure that tensions in the region remain in check.”

Qureshi went on to say that the views expressed by him during the Senate session on Monday were the views of the government.

“It is too premature to say any-

thing for certain as the situation is still precarious. However, Pakistan does not want tensions to escalate. This region cannot witness yet another war,” the foreign minister emphasised.

“Such matters need to be resolved through dialogue. The UN security council and the international community needs to play a role in resolving tensions in the region,” he said.

PAKISTAN URGES NATIONALS TO AVOID TRAVELLING TO IRAQ: The Foreign Office has advised Pakistanis to “exercise maximum restraint” while planning a visit to Iraq. According to a press release issued on Wednesday, the FO advised “those already in Iraq […] to remain in close contact with the Pakistan embassy in Baghdad”.

Foreign Office Spokesperson Aisha Farooqui also confirmed the same on Twitter.

CMYK

situation in the country and the new situation in the region and after consulting with the rest of the opposition, […] in order to send a unified message, we (PPP) have decided not to press these amendments,” he said.

Speaker Asad Qaiser conducted a clause by clause reading of each bill, one after the other, putting them up for a voice vote. The session was later adjourned till 4pm on Wednesday. A day earlier, the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Defence unanimously approved the bills during an in-camera session, an indication that the government and opposition had reached an accord on the passage of the bill. “The amendments were passed unanimously by the body. I congratulate the entire country and the opposition parties,” Khattak had said.

Amendment in Army Act not unconstitutional, says Shehbaz Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday said that the amendment in the Army Act is not unconstitutional.

Talking to media in London, Shehbaz said that the Supreme Court had ordered legislation regarding extension in army chief “within six months”, adding that the amendment made in the Army Act is not against the constitution and was therefore supported unconditionally. He said that Prime Minister Imran Khan used to say that when dollar rates increase by one rupee, it will increase the country’s loan but in his government, the loans have soared. He said that the power of judiciary, army and parliament lies in moving forward together and everyone should join together ending poverty of the people. NewS DeSk

lhC to hear maryam's ECl plea on Jan LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Wednesday set the hearing of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz’s petition regarding the removal of her name from the Exit Control List (ECL). A divisional bench of the LHC, comprising Justice Tariq Abbassi and Justice Chaudhry Abdul Aziz, will take up the case on Jan 15. The plea was fixed for hearing in December last year but was postponed as both the judges were on the seasonal winter leave. Maryam is seeking the removal of her name from the no-fly list and one-time permission to visit London to inquire after her ailing father, former prime minister Nawaz Sharif. Staff RepoRt

EXTENSION CONUNDRUM: Prime Minister Imran Khan had previously extended Gen Bajwa’s tenure through a notification in August 2019, but the top court suspended it on Nov 26, 2019, due to irregularities in the manner of extension. After three days of heightened uncertainty, the apex court, through a short order on Nov 28, 2019, had announced that Gen Bajwa would remain the COAS for another six months during which the parliament would legislate on the army chief’s extension/reappointment.

In its detailed verdict released on Dec 16, 2019, the top court had emphasised that it was up to the parliament to carry out legislation that would provide “certainty and predictability” to the post of the COAS for all times to come.

Speculations rife as FBR chief goes on 15-day leave

ISLAMABAD SHaHZaD paRaCHa

Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Chairman Shabbar Zaidi’s 15-day leave has triggered rumours within the tax circles that “he has probably left the chairmanship”.

According to sources, Shabbar Zaidi is not feeling well these days and that he recently underwent a surgery in a Karachi hospital. Meanwhile, a lobby within the department has claimed that Zaidi won't return to the office owing to a number of reasons. “The FBR officials are not cooperating with him on issues pertaining to shortfall in revenue, which is why Zaidi is facing criticism from the PM’s finance adviser,” sources said.

“In addition, tax officials are not happy with the government’s proposal to convert FBR into Pakistan Revenue Authority.”Moreover, sources alleged that the tax officials were issuing the SROs without taking the chairman into confidence. Giving an example, sources said that Customs high ups reinstated the Karachi internal audit wing without the chairman’s consent.Customs had merged the Internal Audit of Lahore and Karachi into Islamabad in October last year.Sources further claimed that Zaidi was not happy with the political interference in transfer and posting matters.“The FBR machinery is resisting against taking the action against corrupt officials of customs as well as FBR,” sources said. “The tax officials are paying no heed on corruption complaints which is why matters have started deteriorating.”Talking to this scribe, senior FBR official Dr Hamid Attique clarified, “Leave is everyone’s right so he [Zaidi] has availed it. In addition, he has family commitments and that he is also under treatment. He will surely be back in the office by January 20, 2020.”

Thursday, 9 January 2020

04 KARACHI

WEATHER UPDATES THURSDAY

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SATURDAY

Sindh WAnTS iTS ConSTiTuTionAl righT on nATurAl gAS: CM MurAd KARACHI

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STAFF REPORT

INDH Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, giving a policy statement on the floor of the provincial assembly, has categorically said that his government would never purchase imported gas (LNG) and demanded that the constitutional right of people of Sindh on natural gas being produced from the province be accepted.

Quoting the media talk of Federal Energy Minister Omar Ayoub Khan and Special Assistant to the PM on Petroleum Nadeem Baber in which they claimed that the Sindh government had agreed on weightage average cost of gas (WACOG) which the chief minister said was totally a baseless statement. “I had taken up the matter in the CCI meeting and had requested the participants to accept the constitutional right of people of Sindh on the gas being produced from the province,” he said and added that the prime minister had accepted his plea under Article 158 of the Constitution.

He said that the CCI meeting was held on December 23, 2019 and after two days, on December 25, he wrote a letter to the prime minister and apprised him of the issue of implementation of Article 158 of the Constitution. The prime minister, in his reply, said that he [CM] was pre-empting the minutes of the CCI meeting. The Prime minister advised him to wait for the minutes and see them, if he [CM] would have any objection on them, he [prime minister] would remove them accordingly.

He added that the minutes of the CCI meeting should have been issued within a week but still

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Appointments of advisers, special assistants to Sindh CM challenged KARACHI: The appointments of advisers and special assistants to Chief Minister Sindh have been challenged in Sindh High Court (SHC). It was viewed in the petition that advisers and special assistants of Chief Minister Sindh Murad Ali Shah have been using powers as adviser and special assistants while use of ministers’ portfolios are the right of the people’s representative. The petition demanded to declare the appointment of advisers and special assistants as null and void. STAFF REPORT

Three killed as passenger coach hits motorcycle KARACHI: Three people including two women were killed in a traffic accident in the Mawach Goth area of Baldia Town on Wednesday. According to the police, a speeding passenger coach hit a motorcycle, resulting in the death of three on the spot. The bodies were shifted to nearby hospital for medico-legal formalities. In separate road incidents in Karachi, on Tuesday, three people had lost their lives. INP

were being awaited.

The chief minister said that the Sindh province was producing 25000 to 26000 mmcfd gas but in return, it was hardly receiving 800 to 900 mmcfd.

Mr Shah said that Local gas price was Rs820/unit while the price of NLG was Rs1690.

“On the one hand, they [fed govt] are not giving us our gas and on the other forcing us to purchase costly gas,” he said and questioned “Why we will opt for the imported gas when we are producing 70 percent of the national production,” and added “our stance is very clear that give our people their constitutional right on the natural gas.”

Poisonous chemical leaves thousands of fish dead in Sukkur Barrage canals

Referring to the media talk of federal minister and special assistant to PM, the chief minister said that they claimed that the Sindh had agreed to purchase the LNG which was totally unfounded statement. Murad Ali Shah said that he has written another letter to the PM with the request to stop his ministers from issuing baseless statements on such an important issue.

The chief minister condemned the federal minister and special assistant’s media talk on gas issue and said “we will never accept LNG on average price but want our natural gas being produced from Sindh,” he concluded.

PM’s aide plotted to harm 800,000 BISP beneficiaries: Ghani

SUKKUR INP

Thousands of fish were witnessed dead in the off-taking Canals of Sukkur Barrage after allegedly poisonous chemicals poured into the water on Wednesday.

According to reports, after the Sukkur Barrage closed for maintenance and repairs, the gates at the head of the canals were opened and water allowed to flow downstream into the river. The water collected in small ponds at various sites of the canals found that greedy fishing businessmen poured poisonous chemicals in these ponds to kill mostly the juvenile fish at massive scale. The dead fish then collected in bags and taken to markets for sale. These fish also sold to poultry industry for use as poultry feed. The practice is a public health hazard, as fish died by poison pose threat to the health of consumers. The district administration and concerned department, have, failed to take any action against the perpetrators. The hazardous practice is not new as it being repeated every year in the days of annual closure of Sukkur Barrage for maintenance and repair. In previous years, reports about a large number of dead fish found in the Rice and Nara canals, which were believed to have died as a result of the poisonous chemicals. The substance was said to be so hazardous that it had allegedly caused the deaths of a number of rare blind Indus dolphins over the past few years.

According to locals, the fishermen pour the chemicals into the water late at night and then send their children to collect the dead fish in the morning. The dead fish is either sold to fish farmers to be used as feed or to the poultry industry.

KARACHI STAFF REPORT

Sindh Minister for Information and Labour Saeed Ghani has said that Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Social Protection and Poverty Alleviation Dr. Sania Nishtar had planned to inflict harm on 800,000 deserving people linked to Benazir Income Support.

If the government of Pakistan Tehreek-iInsaaf had reservation over 1500 people, it did not mean that it should make suffer thousands of people, he said while talking to the journalists on Wednesday. Ghani said that the Benazir Income Support Program was created to help the poor. Thousands of people should not suffer owing to few hundreds wrongly included people, he added.

The Provincial Information Minister said that they would not allow PTI to achieve political motives under the guise of damaging

Benazir Income Support Program. He said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf wanted to include its own people in Benazir Income Support Program illegally.

Ghani said that PTI would not be allowed to inflict harm on Benazir Income Support in any way. The provincial minister said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's government was a Tik Tok government and it would collapse only by Tik Tok. He said that Shahriar Afridi had said that there was a difference between video and footage. Now it could only tell what was the difference between Hareem and Tarmeem, he added.

Responding to a question, Ghani said that the number of cabinet members could not exceed over eleven percent after the passage of 18th Amendment. The provincial minister said that according to the law, all the departments were with the chief minister.

Woman declared dead by doctors ‘resurrects’ during ‘final bath’ KARACHI: A woman, who had been declared dead by doctors, woke up when her body was being bathed for burial rites, at Abbasi Shaheed Hospital (ASH) here on Wednesday. According the family sources, 50-year-old Rasheeda was brought to the ASH a day ago for treatment where doctors declared her dead. The doctors had also issued her death certificate to the family. The ‘dead body’ of the woman was moved to the mortuary for the final bath where she suddenly woke up. The mortuary attendants and some female relatives of the women panicked and fled from the room. Rasheeda was later shifted to the ASH again for treatment. Senior Director Medical & Health Service Department Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) Dr Salma Kausar has ordered a probe into the incident. PPI

Bill against ice peddlers to be tabled soon, minister says KARACHI: The Sindh Excise Department has drafted a Bill Sindh Control of Narcotics Substances Act 2019 to award severe punishments to those who were found involved in sale of Ice (Methamphetamine), said Sindh Minister for Excise and Taxation & Narcotics Control and Parliamentary Affairs Mukesh Kumar Chawla on Wednesday. Chairing a meeting here in his office, the Minister said that the proposed bill will be tabled in Sindh Assembly soon for approval and after its approval it will be implemented in letter and spirit.Secretary Excise and Taxation & Narcotics Control Abdul Halim Shaikh, Director General ET & NC Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqui, Director ET & NC Karachi Iqbal Laghari and other officers also attended the meeting. Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqui briefed the participants of the meeting that in proposed bill, Rs0.5 million fine and seven years’ rigorous imprisonment punishment had been suggested for those who would be caught with possession of less than 100 grams of Ice (Methamphetamine), Rs1 million fine and 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment for those who have more than 100gram Ice. Rs1.5 million fine and 14 years’ rigorous imprisonment for those who have more than one kilo gram Ice and death penalty with Rs2.5 million fine for those who have 100 kilo gram Ice, he added. Chawla said that Ice (Methamphetamine) is a deadly drug and has taken life of many young men and destroyed so many families. He expressed hope that such severe punishments would definitely discourage the sale of Ice (Methamphetamine) and also requested the parents and teachers and other stakeholders of the society to work together to save young generation from the use of drugs. APP

Students are being suppressed in universities of Sindh: moot KARACHI STAFF REPORT

Speakers at a discussion on restoration of student unions here on Wednesday demanded the provincial government of Sindh to make the draft law fully compliant to the constitutional provisions and the provisions of international commitments such as Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).

The law must restore full fundamental rights for the students including right to strike against accesses of university administration. There should be more representation of female students in the union and the unions should have enhanced representation in the decision-making bodies such as university syndicate, university

senate and academic council and other committees and mechanism.

The dialogue organized by various students’ group with support of civil society organisations was presided over by the renowned jurists Justice (r) Rasheed A Razvi. Speakers included senior rights activist Karamat Ali, Prof Dr Tauseef Ahmed, Dr Riaz Shaikh, Dean Faculty of Social Sciences at Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology (SZABIST) and leaders of students who have recently established students’ organizations and platforms.

The event coincided with the student’s movement of 1950 when on 8th January students were attacked by the then government of Khawaja Nazim Uddin and 26 students and common people were killed.

While the speakers appreciated the government for a draft bill for restoration of students of unions in Sindh, they criticized the provisions, which are restrictive in nature and demanded that the unions should be restored with full fundamental rights. They also demanded that the government must consult students’ bodies before moving it in the assembly and passing it.

Rasheed Razvi recalled how the student union contributed in democratic movement in Pakistan. He was of the view that political parties also played a negative role, which resulted in the fall of student’s movement. He suggested that demand for restoration of students’ unions should be beyond political affiliations and considerations.

He said: “We can demand more but

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mere restoration of unions would be a first step in the right direction,” he added. Razvi suggested that a provision for financial aid is important in the bill so that the students’ unions would have their own resources.

He said that terms like good order and discipline need to be defined. He suggested that office bearers of the students’ unions should also be mentioned and defined in the law so no manipulation is done in rules.

Senior academician Prof. Dr. Tauseef Ahmed said that 8th January is day of resistance when in 1953 DSF started a movement which was ruthlessly crushed.

It was the first movement after Pakistan independence in which 26 people were killed. It was first important democratic movement. Students demanded free education. Now when the government is con-

sidering to restore students’ union after 36 years, it is quite important that it is fully democratic. This gap has resulted in undemocratic attitudes. The bill should be applicable on both public and private universities including those under defense ministry. With certain changes this can be a good law and must be passed immediately, he added.

Ms. Sindhu Nawaz, a student leader said that young people are deprived of representation. There is a huge student’s resistance movement all around the world and Pakistani students are awake now and will no more remain quite. Students are being suppressed in universities of Sindh because they demand their fair rights.

There are short of facilities and sexual harassment is a main issue but no one is raising this issue.

Thursday, 9 January, 2020

NEWS

Citizens gear up for Afkare-Taza ThinkFest 2020 as programme announced LAHORE STAFF REPORT

A jam-packed two-day schedule for Afkar-e-Taza ThinkFest that will be held on January 11 and 12 at the Alhmara Centre in Lahore has been released. The event will begin with a keynote speech by Sir Mark Lyall Grant, the UK National Security Advisor on ‘International Governance and the Future of the Nation State.’ The first day will feature panel discussions, discussions on the media, a series of book launches especially the launch of the book on Prince Dara Shukoh, the son of Emperor Shah Jahan who was supposed to succeed his father. A highlight of the event’s first day will be a scintillating concert by Ali Sethi at the Alhamra which is free and open to the public on a first come first served basis. Ali Sethi will also feature some new songs and music at the concert. Day two of the ThinkFest will begin with a keynote by the 2009 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry and the President of the Royal Society, Sir Venki Ramakrishnan and will continue with a similar roster to the first day. The ThinkFest will also feature an exhibition curated by Destinations Pakistan. "Unveiling Punjab," will be an immersive exhibition to highlight the potential for cultural heritage tourism via visual displays, special videos and live art and crafts experiences. To complement this exhibit, several panels with leading scholars and practitioners will discuss topics like the environment and tourism, religious tourism and heritage tourism.

Five brick kilns turned over to environment friendly zigzag technology in ICT ISLAMABAD APP

Five out of 64 brick kilns in Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) had been turned over to the new environment friendly zigzag technology. In a written reply, the Ministry of Climate Change told the National Assembly that the zigzag kiln technology had been established to enhance fuel efficiency, energy savings and lessen harmful emissions. The technology was introduced with the cooperation of the All Pakistan Brick Kiln Owners Association. All the owners of brick kilns who had not yet submitted affidavits to convert their kilns to environment friendly zigzag technology had been directed to convert them by the end of 2020. As per the government anti-pollution measures, the brick kilns will be given financial aid to use zigzag technology which was environmentally friendly. All the six operational steel furnaces situated in Islamabad Capital Territory had installed pollution abatement technology which had been monitored

by Pak-EPA during previous four months through routine visits of Environmental Monitoring Team (EMT) and online surveillance cameras for stack emissions in order to ensure the compliance of national environmental quality standards.

Relief package fulfils pM’s pledge to help coMMon Man: fiRdous ISLAMABAD

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APP

ESCRIBING the government’s Rs. 7 billion relief package as “a gift for people”, Special Assistant to PM on Information and Broadcasting Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan Wednesday said Prime Minister Imran Khan had fulfilled his pledge of giving relief to common man after economic stabilization.

“The Prime Minister had made the pledge that after improvement on economic front, he would ensure relief for the poor and pass on the impact to masses,” she said while talking to APP on the occasion of prime minister’s visit to the USC outlet in G-9 Markaz.

The Special Assistant on Information and Broadcasting said that the relief

package, which was in line with the vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan, would help give some ease to the common man and low income classes from inflation and price-hike.

She said the provision of basic food and daily-use items such as wheat flour, sugar, rice, Ghee and pulses on cheaper rates at USC outlets throughout the country, would help lessen the kitchen expenditures of low income classes.

Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan said that the relief package was a first step towards providing relief to common man and the government would continue to pass on the economic dividends to the people in future as well.

Advisor to PM on Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood in his remarks on the occasion said that the government was striving to ensure the provision of basic commodities and daily use items to com-

mon man on cheaper rates.

He said that as it was the priority and commitment of Prime Minister

05

Imran Khan to provide relief to the poor people and save them from inflation and price-hike, adding the Rs. 7 billion relief package depicted the fulfillment of that commitment.

Chairman USC Zulqarnain Ali Khan said that due to the relief package, the people would be able to get basic commodities from USC outlets across the country at 10 to 30 percent cheaper rates as compared to open market.

He said that ration card scheme for the poor and deserving people would also be launched by next month.

Managing Director USC Umar Lodhi said that the Prime Minister had directed them to ensure the provision of quality commodities including the wheat flour to the consumers at cheaper rates across the country.

He said that the Utility Stores Corporation would play the role of a “price moderator” in the open market.

2019-20 to be year of economic growth: minister LAHORE STAFF REPORT

Punjab Finance Minister Hashim Jawan Bakhat said that fiscal year 2018-19 was year of economic reforms and stability while 2019-20 is year of economic growth. He said the Punjab government focused towards austerity, reduction in non-development expenditures, balance and social protection.

He said the efficient management of development budget in 2018-19 was resulted in budget releases increased from 70 percent in 2017-18 to 96 percent in 2018-19 which increased budget utilization from 65 percent in 2017-18 to 90

percent in 2018-19. Further, no overdraft limit was consumed and zero pending liabilities at the close of FY 2018-19 and no litigation on that account. These improvements constituted the stepping stone for more purposeful action in the ongoing fiscal year 2019-20.

Chairing the review meeting of the Finance Department here on Wednesday, Hashim Jawan Bakhat observed that austerity and fiscal prudence were exercised on non-development expenditures side and major focus on regional equalization and social protection on the development side were given in the budget 2019-20.

As a result of the reforms introduced by the Punjab government provincial

own revenue source increased and revenue target of Rs388 billion against revise estimates of Rs269 billion of fiscal year 2018-19 an increase of 44.6 per cent achieved. All-time high additional resource mobilisation of Rs24.91 billion through innovative measures was also achieved. Further, austerity measures and reprioritizing of expenditure resulted in saving of Rs55 billion by reducing non-salary current expenditures.

The government launched Ehsaas Punjab to mitigate the adverse impact of macroeconomic challenges on vulnerable groups through a comprehensive social protection program. Additionally, allocations for the social protection were

increased from 32 percent in FY 201718 to 41 percent in ongoing fiscal year 2019-20. Further allocations for health sector were increased to 15 percent. The government reserved 35 percent of ADP for South Punjab and this development funds could not be used anywhere in the province expect South Punjab.

The government attracted Rs42 billion from private sector investment through Public Private Partnership (PPP) for the development projects in the province. Further, provision of estimated provincial surplus of Rs233 billion was budgeted and committed under an MOU, in support of the Federal Government’s commitments with IMF.

Stage set for Punjab interfaith harmony policy LAHORE PRESS RELEASE

It is on top of the Punjab government’s agenda to create an environment of peace, harmony and acceptance for all so that people can feel safe and contribute to their collective growth and wellbeing with full dedication. It is also important to take them on board and give them a sense of ownership, regardless of class, creed, caste and religion, to make the province an ideal home for them.

This was stated by Punjab Minister for Human Rights, Minorities Affairs and Interfaith Harmony, Ejaz Alam Augustine during a pre-consultation session held at Ministers’ Block, Punjab Civil

Secretariat today. The session had been organized jointly by the ministry and the Youth Development Foundation (YDF) to seek policy recommendations under the project titled “Harmonious, Tolerant, and Safe Punjab for Everyone”.

The project aims at formulation of a comprehensive policy document for the ministry with input from different stakeholders on how to promote feelings of equality, harmony, peace and tolerance in the province. The above-mentioned pre-consultation session was the last of the four organized to identify the problem areas, mull solutions and set direction of the project before its official launch due this week. A launching ceremony of the project is planned on January 11, 2020.

On this occasion, Shahid Rehmat, Executive Director, YDF, gave a brief introduction of the project to the audience and explained its background. He shared it with them that the federal government had devolved Ministry of Interfaith Harmony to provincial administrative units in April 2019 and till date Punjab government had not yet come up with any concrete policy/guidelines for the newly devolved ministry.

To help the government in this respect, Shahid said, the draft recommendations based on consultations under the project will be presented to the members of the Multi Party Working Group (PWG) and Parliamentary Committee on Human Rights, Minorities Affairs and Interfaith Harmony. The objective,

Shahid said, will be to build a stronger case for the ministry to advocate for its adoption by the Punjab government.

Mubasher Bukhari, Policy Consultant of the project, said the beauty of the whole exercise was that it was highly inclusive and based on diverse perspectives which were imperative to address the core issues that existed on ground. He said the pre-consultations were highly productive where participants belonging to diverse backgrounds discussed contentious issues in a cordial environment with a problem-solving approach.

The pre-consultation sessions were attended by religious scholars from different faiths and sects, representatives of civil society, youth, officials of Punjab human rights ministry and others.

Rumors about Kashmir bear no truth: AJK president ISLAMABAD APP

Azad Jammu and Kashmir President Sardar Masood Khan has unequivocally stated that the people of Pakistan, Azad Kashmir and the Kashmiris in the length and cranny of the world are determined to take Kashmir liberation movement to its ultimate goal, and they will not allow any negligence in regard to the Kashmir issue.

Talking to a delegation of refugees of occupied Kashmir at Aiwan-e-Sadr here on Wednesday, he said that India was attempting to create frustration among the Kashmiri people living on both sides of the Line of Control through rumors to

weaken the bonds of Kashmiri people with Pakistan, said a press release received here on Wednesday.

He said that India would never succeed in its heinous attempts. "The citizens of Azad Kashmir living along the LoC are valiantly facing the Indian aggression, while our 40,000 brethren who had migrated from occupied Kashmir, in spite of their problems, remain committed to the Kashmir liberation movement.

The AJK president assured that the problems of Kashmiri refugees would be resolved one by one because we believe that Azad Kashmir and occupied Kashmir are two parts of the same state and the refugees from occupied Kashmir also

have equal rights as their brothers and sisters enjoy in the liberated territory.

Massod Khan further assured that problems like insufficient accommodation in refugee camps, lack of health and educational facilities and monthly cash allowance would be addressed by the state government. The delegation appreciated the AJK president for effectively highlighting Kashmir issue on different forums in the world.

Earlier talking to Chairman GilgitBaltistan Chief Minister's Task Force on Social Youth Development Sajid Mir, the AJK president said that the people of both Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan are intertwined with historical, cultural and socio-economic

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bonds and their hearts beat together.

He maintained that geographically, the future of Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Kashmir is common as both the regions are part of Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IOJK). He said that as per his commitment made during his visit to GilgitBaltistan last year, seats reserved for the students of Gilgit-Baltistan in all public sector universities of Azad Kashmir have been increased manifold, and several more steps were being taken in this regard.

He said that that we are trying to vest 4.1 million youth of both the regions with the entrepreneurship skills by launching joint ventures, and to make them abreast with modern technologies.

On this occasion, Sajid Mir proposed to the AJK president to launch academic and tourism-related exchanges programs to bridge the gap between the youth of Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.

Besides, training programs should be launched for the unskilled educated youth of both regions. For this purpose, a training institute should be established in Islamabad by mutual cooperation of the governments of both Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.

He said that promotion of tourism on this route of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor which is rich in mineral and other natural resources can turn this region into a developed and prosperous area.

Thursday, 9 January, 2020

06 WORLD VIEW

How inevitable is war witH iran?

TRUMP HAS ONLY ONE STRATEGIC IMPERATIVE IN 2020, AND THAT’S VINDICATION IN AN IMPEACHMENT TRIAL AND RE-ELECTION

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AAron DAVID MILLEr

ISTENING to experts, analysts and the 24/7 nonstop media in the days since President Trump ordered a drone strike on Iranian Gen. Qassem Suleimani, and now since Iran has launched ballistic missiles, one could be forgiven for concluding that we were on the brink of a sustained, major war with Iran.

As a longtime State Department analyst and negotiator specializing in the Middle East, I’m conditioned to assume the worst. The U.S. is without a doubt in for a tough time with Tehran. Sources close to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, told reporters he was demanding direct and open retaliation against American targets, and Wednesday morning in Tehran, Iran fired on American and coalition forces in Iraq. In the absence of a Tehran-Washington diplomatic off-ramp, it would be foolish to rule out

uncontrolled escalation. Still, a major war is not yet inevitable.

So far in his presidency, Trump has been cautious when it comes to using military power against Iran, as his unwillingness to retaliate for the Iranian attacks against an American drone in June and Saudi oil facilities in September suggests.

What prompted Trump to take out Suleimani is still not clear. News reports suggest he was angered by the attacks on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, worried that he’d allowed Tehran to think it could act with impunity and egged on by hardliners like Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo, who has been arguing for a military response for months.

Now, judging by Trump’s tweets, he’s prepared to retaliate militarily and directly if Tehran takes out Americans or American targets. Yet beyond acting as a momentary distraction from his impeachment trial, war with Iran is not to the president’s advantage.

Trump has only one strategic imperative in 2020, and that’s vindication in an

impeachment trial and re-election. A messy, all-out — and if the past is any guide unwinnable — war that results in skyrocketing oil prices, a meltdown in financial markets, economic dislocation and a surge in U.S. deaths at Iranian hands will not help him at the ballot box.

George W. Bush didn’t risk his political future by starting a war with Iraq after 9/11 because he was perceived to be responding to a major attack on the United States. Trump would be the perpetrator of war with Iran.

Like Trump, Khamenei in Tehran wants to stay in power. He’s a crafty leader committed to expanding Iran’s regional reach, but his main objective is survival of the Islamic Republic and regime maintenance.

Khamenei isn’t suicidal, and he knows that Iran has been seriously weakened economically by the Trump administration sanctions — the “maximum pressure campaign” — and by the recent massive protests inside Iran. More importantly, Iran’s generals know that in a mil-

itary confrontation with the U.S., the preponderance of force rests with Washington. Khamenei cannot be sure how a sustained U.S. campaign of air, missile and cyber strikes would affect the stability of his government and his power base.

And yet, Khamenei has promised “severe revenge” for the killing of Suleimani. Trump’s tweeted red line doesn’t leave a lot of room for the Iranians to maneuver in. If Khamenei wants to avoid the risks of all-out war with the U.S., he must craft a response that demonstrates that Iran will not back down in the face of American military threats but that stays below the threshold that would trigger more U.S. strikes. However, unlike Iran’s previous carefully calibrated responses, Khamenei has made good on his threat to retaliate directly. An escalatory cycle may now begin.

It would be a boon to world stability if the Trump administration and the Islamic Republic stepped back from the brink and considered talking rather than taking more revenge. Unfortunately,

that’s not very likely. There’s just too much mistrust on both sides.

But there is at least a chance that the mutual fear and uncertainty of war will pre-empt a major conflict. Should the U.S. avoid a full-scale conflict with Iran over Suleimani’s killing, that does not mean his death comes at no cost. The drone attack on the second most powerful man in Iran and in a third country was an act untethered from any coherent, longterm strategy. The killing has not made Americans more secure or limited Iran’s regional influence. What it has done is cripple the U.S.-Iraqi relationship, strengthen Iran’s power in the region and undermine the fight against Islamic State.

The best Americans can hope for in the current crisis is a return to the grinding competition that has marked the relationship between Iran and the U.S. during the Trump years. Given the alternative of severe and sustained regional escalation, I’d take it in a WashingtonTehran minute.

Aaron David Miller is a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He is author of the “End of Greatness: Why America Can’t Have (and Doesn’t Want) Another Great President.”

Iran is making huge political Not Savarkar-Golwalkar, roots of CAA lie in RSS chief Mohan gains out of this crisis IN DEATH, SOLEIMANI HAS DONE MORE FOR HIS COUNTRY THAN HE EVER ACHIEVED IN TWO DECADES AT THE HELM OF THE QUDS FORCE

indePendent PAtrIck cockburn

The Iranian missile attack on two US bases in Iraq is symbolic retaliation for the US assassination of General Qassem Soleimani on 3 January. The Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei said that there would be direct action against the US by the Iranian armed forces, and this has now happened.

The message is that the Iranian leadership wants to de-escalate the crisis; the initial tweet from the US president, Donald Trump, after the attack indicates that he wants the same thing.

This does not mean that Iran will not respond later, using proxies to retain deniability and possibly against a US ally – as it did when it made a devastating drone attack on Saudi oil facilities at Abqaiq and Khurais on 14 September. But even this type of low level guerrilla warfare is not inevitable, since Iran has shown in the past that it wants to avoid a full-scale war with a militarily superior US. The assassination of Soleimani clearly came as a shock to Tehran. It will have shaken their confidence that Trump will not risk a war under any circumstances. After all, Soleimani paid with his life for miscalculating the degree of American anger over pinprick Iranian attacks last year.

Iran is more likely to seek to exploit the assassination for political gains, notably by increasing its influence in Iraq and by acting through third parties. It will look to the Iraqi government, parliament and political parties to demand that the 5,200 US force leave the country. These have been there since 2014 for the purpose of aiding the Iraqi armed forces fight Isis, but, from the moment General Soleimani was killed, they have been looking to their own defence. Isis, which is seeking to revive itself after its destruction as a de facto state, is one clear beneficiary of the Soleimani assassination.

Even if US troops stay for the moment, they will have a status near to that of hostages since many of them are in indefensible compounds in the middle of Iraqi military bases. The willingness of Iraqi security to defend American personnel is dubious, as was demonstrated when Iraqi troops in the Green Zone in Baghdad stood aside last week to let pro-Iranian paramilitary marchers enter the US embassy.

Iran will have already made significant political gains from this crisis, as long it does not now overplay its hand and seek to humiliate the US. Street protests in Iran sparked by a rise in fuel prices last November led to the security forces killing at least 304 protesters, according to Amnesty International. Who would have expected that the next big street event in Iranian cities would be millions of people gathering for the funeral of the second most important figure in the government that had been doing the killing?

These were mourners, moreover, who were calling for vengeance against the US; protesters had previously blamed their leadership for wasting resources on foreign adventures, such as those carried out by Soleimani. It is impossible to judge how far Isis has been re-legitimised by this recent rising of tensions, but it is in a stronger position domestically to withstand the tough times resulting from US sanctions without the fear of a popular revolt.

In Iraq, there will be many who will be pleased to see the end of Soleimani, the man who ordered the violent repression of protests over jobs and government corruption since last October; since then no less than 500 protesters have been killed and as many as 20,000 injured.

But Iraqi protesters, too, have had the ground cut from under their feet because US interference in Iraq has just outpaced Iranian interference. Protesters will be accused of attacking a government that is seeking to defend Iraqi sovereignty. No Iraqi leader will want to be portrayed as pro-American. The pro-Iranian paramilitaries can present themselves as staunch patriots and not as Iranian proxies.

Soleimani has done more for his country by his death than he ever achieved during his two decades as head of Quds force, the foreign operation arm of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards. From the US point of view, his assassination is proving counter-productive, leaving the government in Iran and its regional allies stronger than before.

Bhagwat’s brand new Hindutva WHAT PROTESTERS HAVE MISSED IS THAT CAA HAS EMERGED OUT OF A NEW, REFINED HINDUTVA IDEOLOGY, WHICH HAD ALREADY RECOGNISED CITIZENSHIP AS A POLITICAL ISSUE

Print HILAL AHMED

The Citizenship Amendment Act is being opposed on two grounds. First, that the notion of religion-based citizenship goes against the basic premise of India’s secular Constitution. Second, that the Sangh Parivar wants to use this Act to convert India into a de facto Hindu Rashtra. But the opponents of the CAA disregard the changing ideological position of Hindutva.

It is true that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) goes against the principle of constitutional secularism envisaged by the framers of the Constitution. But what the protesters have missed is that the CAA emerged out of a new, refined Hindutva ideology, which had already recognised citizenship as a political issue, even before the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) was introduced in Parliament.

A NEW HINDUTVA: The RSS and the BJP (or its earlier avatar Bharatiya Jana Sangh) were not very comfortable with the term Hindutva to describe their political ideology before the Ayodhya issue. Hindutva was always associated with Savarkar and Hindu Mahasabha. It was only after the judgment of the Supreme Court in 1997 that the BJP formally accepted Hindutva as its philosophy.

These ideological ambiguities were finally ironed out

by Bhagwat in 2018. Describing the RSS as an open, flexible and change-oriented network, he offered new meanings to the term Hindutva and even went on to reject some of the formulations of Golwalkar.

HINDUTVA CITIZENSHIP : Bhagwat does not make any direct comment on citizenship in formal sense. Instead, he lays out a few core values of Hindutva. …According to us, Hindutva has three basics: patriotism, glory of our ancestors, and respect for culture…

The collective notion of values belonging to the religions (sampraday) that are sprung from the entirety, that is India, is known as Hindutva. … This is the mark of India. And, India belongs to that. Bhagwat then went on to refine the punyabhumi (pious land) argument of Savarkar. He invokes the distinction between Indian origin of a few religions as originally Indian to describe Islam and Christianity as alien religions. However, unlike Savarkar,

Bhagwat is kind towards Muslims. He claimed that there would be no Hindutva without Muslims. He seems to suggest that Muslims enjoy political equality in India despite the fact that their religion did not originate here.

This Hindutva ‘generosity’ argument can be found in the RSS’ 2013 resolution, which called upon the Indian government to provide citizenship to ‘prosecuted Hindu, Sikh and Buddhist minorities’ of Pakistan and Bangladesh.

It said: The government can’t shy away stating that it is an internal matter of the respective governments… In Bharat every Constitutional measure was invoked to accord not only protection and security but also many special provisions amounting to appeasement in favour of the so-called minorities. They are well-placed in our country today in terms of their demographic, economic, educational and social status…the Hindus of Bangladesh and Pakistan have been subjected to continuous persecution.

This new Hindutva conceptualisation of core Indian values, original religions/communities, and its imagination of persecuted minorities under Muslim rule appear to be the ideological sources that the CAA legalises.

CONSTITUTIONAL STATE OF HINDUTVA NATION: In order to justify this revised version of Hindutva, Bhagwat makes a crucial distinction between the state and the nation. He rejects the western idea of nation-state because it empowers the political entity (state) over the cultural identity (nation).

Bhagwat has argued that the RSS is not interested in changing the constitutional structure of India. Instead, he has emphasised upon the need to evolve a national consensus in favour of his interpretation of Hindutva.

According to Bhagwat, B.R. Ambedkar reminded the Constituent Assembly that internal conflicts among Indians were the main reason behind our political slavery; therefore, we must unite as a nation. This invocation of national unity through legal means, Bhagwat suggests, was the national consensus of that time. But there is another function of the Constitution. Bhagawat envisages the Constitution as a tool to achieve a new national consensus, which could be modified, amended, and even revised from the Hindutva point of view through a legal process.

This new Hindutva-driven ‘national consensus’ actually points towards a new package of Hindutva politics. The Ayodhya conflict, Article 370, and triple talaq/Uniform Civil Code are more or less settled issues. It is not possible for the RSS/BJP to rely on them for mobilisation politics. The CAA, however, is the first systematic intervention introduced strategically to challenge the BJP’s opponents who still think that this Constitution would soon be replaced.

No, Hindutva does not want a Hindu state; instead, it wants a constitutional state of Hindutva nation.

The author is a Fellow at the Nantes Institute of Advanced Studies, France (2019-2020) and Associate Professor, CSDS, New Delhi.

Thursday, 9 January, 2020

FOREIGN NEWS 07

AuStrAliAnS urged to 'leAve eArly' in fAce of new buShfire threAt SYDNEY

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Agencies

USTrAlIAn officials issued fresh evacuation warnings Wednesday ahead of a forecast spike in the intensity of out-ofcontrol bushfires that have devastated vast swathes of countryside and sent smoke clouds as far away as Brazil. residents of Victoria state’s fire-ravaged east were urged to leave before another heatwave raises the bushfire danger Friday, while in South Australia state authorities began relocating people from a small community on Kangaroo Island. “leave, and leave early,” Victoria police minister lisa neville urged those in the danger zone.

“Everything we’ve done in terms of… issuing warnings has been about saving lives, and today I’m asking people to continue to heed the messages that we are giving.” The catastrophic bushfires have been fuelled by a crippling drought that has turned forests to tinder and exacerbated by climate change, which scientists say is increasing the length and intensity of Australia’s fire season.

Authorities on Wednesday confirmed that a fourth firefighter had died while battling the blazes, bringing the overall death toll to 26 people.

More than 2,000 homes have been destroyed since the crisis began in September and some eight million hectares (80,000 square kilometres) has been burned, an area the size of Ireland or South Carolina.

University of Sydney scientists estimate one billion animals have been killed in the fires. The figure includes mammals, birds and reptiles, but not frogs, insects or invertebrates.

Smoke from the fires has been spotted more than 12,000 kilometres (7,400 miles) away in Brazil and Argentina, weather authorities in the South American

countries said.

LEAVE EARLY: Despite days of cooler weather and rainfall in parts of the country’s east, dozens of areas continue to burn out of control, and Australians are bracing for yet another heatwave that could spark fresh fires. The country experienced its driest and hottest year on record in 2019, with its highest average maximum temperature of 41.9 degrees Celsius (107.4 degrees Fahrenheit) recorded in mid-December. Each time the mercury has risen in recent months, the risk of deadly blazes has also soared.

Unprecedented in scale even in bushfire-prone Australia, the fires have shocked the world and prompted an outpouring of support from celebrities, athletes and leaders around the globe.

Authorities warn the disaster still has weeks or months to run. residents have begun returning to fireraved towns to assess damage, but the cost of the disaster was still unclear. The Insurance Council of Australia says claims worth Aus$700 million ($485 million) had already been filed and the figure was expected to climb significantly. The government has earmarked an initial Aus$2 billion ($1.4 billion) for a national recovery fund to help devastated communities.

SNIPERS TO CULL UP TO 10,000 CAMELS: Snipers took to helicopters on Wednesday to begin a mass cull of up to 10,000 camels as drought drives big herds of the feral animals to search for water closer to remote towns, endangering indigenous communities. local officials in South Australia state said “extremely large” herds have been encroaching on rural communities — threatening scarce food and drinking water, damaging infrastructure, and creating a dangerous hazard for drivers. It comes after Australia experienced its hottest and driest year on record in 2019, with the severe drought causing some towns to run out of water and fuelling deadly bushfires that

have devastated the country’s southeast.

The five-day cull in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) lands — home to about 2,300 indigenous people in the north-west of South Australia — is the first in the state, local media reported. “These (camel) groups are putting pressure on the remote Aboriginal communities in the APY lands and the pastoral operations as the camels search for water,” the APY lands executive committee said in a statement.

South Australia’s environment department, which is supporting the aerial cull, said the drought had also created “critical animal welfare issues” as some camels have died of thirst or trampled each other as they rush to find water. “In some cases dead animals have contaminated important water sources and cultural sites,” a spokesperson added.

Camels were first introduced to Australia in the 1840s to aid in the exploration of the continent’s vast interior, with up to 20,000 imported from India in the six decades that followed.

Australia is now thought to have the largest wild camel population in the world, with official estimates suggesting more than one million are roaming the country’s inland deserts. The animals are considered a pest, as they foul water sources and trample native flora while foraging for food over vast distances each day. Traditional owners in the APY lands have for years mustered and sold off feral camels but more recently they have “been unable to manage the scale and number of camels that congregate in dry conditions”, according to the environment department.

As a result, “up to 10,000 camels will be destroyed in accordance with the highest standards of animal welfare”, it added.

Public broadcaster ABC reported the animals would be killed away from communities and the carcasses burned.

Smoke from AuStrAliA buShfireS reAcheS brAzil RIO Agencies Smoke from bushfires raging across Australia reached Brazil on Tuesday, an arm of the National Institute for Space Research said on Twitter. Referring to satellite images, the agency’s Department of Remote Sensing said the smoke had arrived in Brazil’s southernmost state, Rio Grande do Sul. Private meteorological company MetSul also tweeted about the arrival of a smoke cloud to Porto Alegre, the capital of Rio Grande do Sul, but emphasized that “the presence of smoke from Australia in the air is almost imperceptible, despite the satellite showing smoke in the atmosphere over the great Porto Alegre.”

Chile’s meteorological service said Monday that smoke from the fires was visible in Chile and Argentina. That means the hazy cloud of smoke, sitting at about 6,000 meters (20,000 feet) in the air, traveled more than 12,000 kilometers (7,500 miles) to reach South America. But the drifting smoke won’t negatively affect the health of the continent’s inhabitants, the Chilean service said. Fires ravaging Australia since September have left 24 people dead and destroyed some eight million hectares (80,000 square kilometers) of land — an area the size of Ireland or the US state of South Carolina. After a catastrophic weekend, Australian firefighters — supported by US and Canadian forces — welcomed rain and a drop in temperatures to boost their efforts early in the week before another heat wave is expected in the coming days. Reserve troops have been deployed to help throughout the country, and the government has earmarked an initial Aus$2 billion ($1.4 billion) for a national recovery fund for devastated communities.

Four killed in car bombing near Somalia parliament MOGADISHU Agencies

At least four people were killed, including a senior government official, when a car bomb exploded close to a checkpoint near Somalia’s parliament in the capital Mogadishu on Wednesday, police said.

A plume of thick black smoke was seen over the city and witnesses said a number of vehicles were on fire.

Islamist group Al-Shabaab claimed the attack, after a rise in activity in recent days by the Al-Qaeda linked group which has seen it inflict mass casualties in Somalia and attack a US mil-

iraq says iran informed it of imminent missile attack on uS forces BAGHDAD

itary base in Kenya.

“Explosives were packed in a vehicle which the security forces think was trying to pass through the checkpoint, but because he could not do that, the suicide bomber detonated it,” said police officer Adan Abdullahi.

“Initial reports we have received indicate four people were killed and more than 10 others were wounded in the blast.” Bile Ismail, the manager of finances at the ministry for women and human rights, was among those killed, relatives and colleagues told AFP. “We have indeed lost a brother and good friend in the blast this morning,” Abdiqani Omar, the ministry’s former director general, told AFP.

“He was sitting in the car waiting in line at the checkpoint when the blast occurred and his body (was) badly burned inside the car,” he added. Abdirahman Mohamed, who was at a nearby grocery store when the blast occurred, said he saw several corpses.

“I saw the dead bodies of several people, some of them killed by shrapnel inside their vehicles. There was chaos… and ambulances reached the scene soon after the blast,” he said.

Shamso Ali, another witness, described “smoke and chaos along the road, the blast was very heavy”. “Thanks to God I was a distance away but I saw the smoke and several vehicles caught on fire,” he said.

Int'l community expresses concern following Iran's attack on US military bases LONDON

Agencies

Agencies

Iraq’s prime minister’s office said on Wednesday it had received “an official verbal message” from Iran informing it that a missile attack on US forces stationed on Iraqi soil was imminent.

Iran launched 22 missiles at Iraqi bases housing US and other coalition troops early Wednesday in response to the killing of senior revolution Guards commander Qasem Soleimani in a US drone strike in Baghdad last week.

In its first statement hours later, premier Adel Abdel Mahdi’s office said it had been warned.

“We received an official verbal message from the Islamic republic of Iran that the Iranian response to the assassination of Qasem Soleimani had begun or would begin shortly, and that the strike would be limited to where the US military was located in Iraq without specifying the locations,” it said.

The prime minister’s office said it was simultaneously contacted by the US, as the missiles slammed into the Ain al-Asad base in western Iraq and Harir further north.

“We immediately warned Iraqi military commanders to take the necessary precautions,” it said, adding that no Iraqi forces had been hurt in the attack.

“Iraq rejects any violation of its sovereignty and attacks on its territory,” the premier’s office added, without specifically condemning the missile strikes.

It said Abdel Mahdi was in talks with domestic and foreign partners to prevent an “open war.”

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo earlier said he had spoken to Masrour Barzani, the prime minister of the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq.

But it remained unclear if there was any contact between Pompeo or any other top US official and Abdel Mahdi.

The international community expressed alarm and concern after Iran launched missile attacks on the United States’ military bases in Iraq on Wednesday, spiking fears of a full-blown conflict in the Middle East.

Iran has said that it attacked the military bases in retaliation to the US drone strike on Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani that killed him last week. Iraq’s military said 22 missiles were launched on the Ain al-Asad airbase in western Anbar province and a base in the Iraqi Kurdish capital Erbil, causing no casualties among Iraqi forces.

With US President Donald Trump set to make a statement soon, countries urged for calm and restraint.

China’s foreign ministry expressed concern about the spike in tensions in the Middle East and said that it hopes matters can swiftly cool off.

Following the attacks, Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters that Beijing has called for restraint by all sides and is in close consultation with the governments involved, including at the

Un and through China’s embassy in Baghdad. russian lawmaker Vladimir Dzhabarov warned that a conflict between the US and Iran might lead to a nuclear war. “reciprocal strikes by the US and Iran may lead to an allout war in the region,” Dzhabarov said. “If Washington sees that it can’t achieve its goals, there’s a danger of a nuclear war.” He said that the Un Security Council should get involved to prevent further escalation in the Middle East.

Germany condemned the Iranian missile strike at bases in Iraq used by US forces. Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer

said that the German government “rejects this aggression in the sharpest possible terms”.

“It’s now particularly up to the Iranians not to engage in further escalation,” she told German public broadcaster ArD. The United Kingdom too condemned the attack and urged Iran to “not to repeat these reckless and dangerous attacks”.

“We urge Iran not to repeat these reckless and dangerous attacks, and instead to pursue urgent de-escalation,” British Foreign Secretary Dominic raab said. “A war in the Middle East would only benefit Daesh (the militant Islamic State

group) and other terrorist groups.

Coalition forces are in Iraq to train local forces to fight the extremists.”

The European Union, however, said that it will spare no efforts in its attempts to keep alive an international deal preventing Iran from developing atomic weapons.

Meanwhile, the energy minister of the United Arab Emirates said that he sees no immediate shortages in oil supplies, but that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries will be called in if there is an issue.

“The situation is not currently a war situation,” Suhail Al-Mazrouei told reporters. “We are all hoping for de-escalation. I think wisdom will prevail despite the tension.”

He said that the flow of oil has been maintained even in past times of war, adding: “So let’s not exaggerate what’s happening. There is no risk that we have seen to the Strait of Hormuz or the movement of oil yet.” He was referring to the narrow waterway between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran through which 20 percent of the world’s oil passes through. His comments came as Brent crude oil jumped to around $70 a barrel amid heightened concerns over tensions between Iran and the US.

Thursday, 9 January, 2020

08 COMMENT Peace in Gulf hanging by a thread

Talha ahmeD

Miscalculation can lead to disaster

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he inevitable has happened. Soon after the burial of Gen Qassem Soleimani, over 80 US forces died in missile attacks on two US military bases in Iraq, Iranian media claimed. The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) has meanwhile announced that it would not differentiate between the USA and Israel while retaliating against the assassination of the Iranian national hero. Further that any land that becomes the source of aggressive measures against the Islamic Republic was going to be targeted. An adviser to the Iranian President has said that any adverse military reaction by the USA will be met with an all-out war across the region. however, Saudi Arabia could have total peace by taking a different path, he maintained.

The USA has opened a Pandora’s Box by resorting to state terrorism. It needs to be reminded that it would be putting the Gulf aflame in case of another misadventure.

It may not be easy for a blustering President to be seen blinking first in an eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation, but since he has created the problem he has to resolve it himself even if he has to eat humble pie.

By assassinating a man who played a crucial role in the near-elimination of the so-called Islamic State (IS) in the Middle east, the clueless US President Donald Trump has provided the terrorist group an opportunity to revive itself. The USA has thus jeopardized the security not only of the Middle east but also of Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Any further escalation in the Middle east will provide militant groups like the IS a new lease of life.

The rising confrontation in the region has a direct bearing on Pakistan. There is however little clarity in our policy vis-à-vis the role of various players. By failing to hold the USA responsible for its act of state terrorism and instead urging both sides to practice restraint amounts to treating the aggressor and the victim equally. While speaking to the Senate, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi had displayed insensitivity by bracketing together General Soleimani, who is a well-loved icon in Iran, with terrorists like Al-Qaeda Chief Osama bin Laden and IS Caliph Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, only to observe that the repercussions in the case of General Soleimani’s assassination would be greater.

Holding back for more The Opposition wants more time

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he Opposition intends to allow the government the legislation, mandated by the Supreme Court, which it needs to allow the COAS an extension in service, but it appears intent on doing so according to its own timetable rather than that of the government. The government had planned to have the National Assembly and Senate Standing Committees on Defence meet on Monday, so that passage could be accomplished through Parliament on Wednesday. however, at Sunday’s meeting of the committees, meeting as the parliamentary committee on defence, the opposition asked for the passage to be put forward by a week, to Wednesday 15.

The purpose of this delay may well be to allow more time for the quelling of the rebellions within the opposition parties against the decision to support the government.

The result of the support extended to the government is not being seen by party cadres as a gesture of support towards the armed forces at a time of unprecedented external threats to the country, but as a craven surrender before the might of the armed forces, even though that is something the parties had set out to rectify. The failure of the party leaderships to extract any establishment of civilian supremacy over the armed forces from the current imbroglio has led to the ranks and file of the respective parties dissatisfied. While the establishment has achieved the salvation of the opposition though the release of such leaders as the PML-N’s Nawaz Sharif and Maryum Nawaz, and the PPP’s Asif Zardari and Faryal Talpur, the real achievement has been the fracturing of opposition unity, with all and sundry blaming Leader of the Opposition Shahbaz Sharif for not taking all parties on board, with the JUI-F declaring that they would not support the bill, and would either abstain or oppose.

The entire episode has shown that there will be no assertion of parliamentary supremacy over the military. It is not to be expected of the present government, but the opposition parties have been ousted in the past by the military, yet now show a willingness to act as a rubberstamp for the government. While the struggle for civilian supremacy will have to wait for another time, there are the NAB Ordinance amendments coming up. The opposition might want extra time over the Army Act to dicker over NABO changes, so that they are more in its favour.

Dedicated to the legacy of the late Hameed Nizami

Arif Nizami Editor Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad

Umar Aziz

Asher John

Joint Editor

Executive Editor

Deputy Editor

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Neocons driving Trump to war with Iran

he Saudi Arabia and Iran rivalry is one of the most significant element around which the politics of the Middle east revolves. Both countries have been in a state of covert war with each other through their respective proxies in the region.

But for last few days it’s all about the USA and Iran. The killing of Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani started a new conflict in the USA gave hopes to the world that a “new Abdel Fattah Sisi in egypt, pulling out of the region. Many inside the USA believe that Iran is peaceful democratic Middle-east” was about to Iran nuclear deal. not only a threat but is an existential threat, and rise because Saddam was the evil person who This is the context that needs to be considthat’s why the USA needs to review its policy. was creating problems in the region. ered before looking into the recent Iran-US Instead of containing Iran, the USA must work The project of a “Peaceful Democratic” standoff. Apart from that, the way the killing of on neutralizing Iran. This policy can be imple- Middle-east, often referred to as reshaping of Soleimani took place it appears more like chapmented through different political and military the Middle-east, failed not once but twice. ter of Rise and Kill First by Ronen Bergman. means. This is not the first time the USA has had First after Iraq war and secondly after the Arab After the killing of Soleimani, the cyber-attacks such an aggressive narrative against a country in Spring. The Arab Spring in Middle-east was that are being carried out against the USA apthe Middle east. The USA had a similar policy reshaping the region, but not as the neocons pear to be originating from Iran but everyone on Iraq during Saddam hussein’s rule, when Iraq desired. They wanted a “Liberal-Democratic who understands the cyberworld knows about was presented as rogue state which was not only pro-Israel” Middle east. Instead it was turning the Mask Technique. Secondly, I doubt the caposing a threat to its own people but to the into an Anti-Israel democratic Middle east, pabilities of Iran in cyber warfare: they could greater US values as well. The New York Times with the Muslim Brotherhood in egypt, hamas have prevented the cyber-attacks on the Iran nuColumnist Thomas Friedman said that the Iraq in Palestine, the Muslim Brotherhood in Syria, clear facility in 2010 if they had such expertise war was caused by just 25 neoconservatives, Saairun and Fatah in Iraq. in cyberspace. Another suspicious event is the most of them Jewish.

The neocons view Israel as the USA’sout- airstrikes targeting Iraqi militia near Camp Taji The neocons were advocating for regime post in Middle-east, and was this outpost (north of Baghdad) on January 4 in an aftermath change in Iraq years before the invasion of Iraq. threatened by the democratic transformation in of Soleimani’s killing. The USA denies, accordJust a few days after 9/11 neocons started ac- the region? And the answer is Yes. This is the ing to the spokesman for Operation Inherent tively campaigning for regime change in Iraq. reason we witnessed a US policy shift in the Resolve, Colonel Myles B Caggins, who said The Project for a New American Century, a pre- Middle-east, pulling out of Syria, moving the the USA did not conduct airstrikes near Camp mier neocon think tank in the USA, wrote an US embassy to Jerusalem, helping President Taji. Question arises if it was not the USA, then open later to George Bush, who conducted those then US President, suggestairstrikes? ing he adopt a policy for The USA continues to regime change in Iraq. It is whip up war hysteria with interesting that the same neoUS President Donald Trump The USA continues to whip up war hysteria with US cons first appreciated Donald once again resorting to a President Donald Trump once again resorting to a Trump on pulling out of the threatening tone against Iran. nuclear deal with Iran and Who advised Trump to threatening tone against Iran. Who advised Trump to now are appreciating him for threaten an attack on Iranian threaten an attack on Iranian cultural sites, that is nothing cultural sites, that is nothing adopting a more aggressive approach towards Iran by but a war crime? Now after but a war crime? Now after the Iraqi parliamentary vote, killing General Soleimani. the Iraqi parliamentary vote, everything critical of the Trump is threatening his own Trump is threatening his own Iraqi allies. This hostile, popular narrative is often laIraqi allies. This hostile, agaggressive bullying is provoking Iran and its proxies in belled as a conspiracy theory, gressive bullying is provokbut isn’t it a fact that the Iraq Middle-East to harshly retaliate. Such a kind of attitude is ing Iran and its proxies in war, which resulted in death Middle-east to harshly retalof millions of Iraqis, was not only posing a threat to Iran and the USA, but also to the iate. Such a kind of attitude based on lies about weapons only posing a threat to whole world. There should be no doubt that neocons are isIrannotand of mass destruction which the USA, but also to were never found in Iraq. the whole world. There trying to drive Trump to war with Iran This whole US narrative is should be no doubt that neonothing new. even at the start cons are trying to drive of the Iraq war in 2003, the Trump to war with Iran.

The neocons want to neutralise Iran

USA in Denial

Pentagon has rejected the allegations that it misled Congress and the US public about the Afghan war, it not only shows the accuracy of revealed documents but also becomes interesting, when we link it to the nonsensical tweets of President Trump about killing 10 million Afghans to win the war in a week. These Papers authenticate the helplessness and desperateness of Trump and his also a swift rise in suspicions about the ambigu- military commanders.

The publication of the papers took place in a ous US objectives in Afghanistan and the US war effort against terrorism. The massive support of time when Donald Trump’ special envoy for the the Afghan populace for a peace process, which Peace process with Taliban, Zalmay Khalilzad, will possibly ensure the considerable dwindling is nearer than ever to ink an agreement about the of the US footprint, if not complete exit of US withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan. If troops, suggest that it is weary of the foreign in- Khalilzad champions a US-favored peace deal tervention. The skepticism of the Afghan public and President Trump succeeds in bringing the US troops home, this exis substantiated by the ristraordinary feat, in which ing toll of civilian casualhis predecessors clearly ties resulting from failed, will bring enorairstrikes. mous popularity to a presAfter the death of There is no sense in ident who is battling Osama bin Laden in Abkeeping the public in impeachment. It might bottabad and the compreeven secure re-election hensive obliteration of Al delusion and factitious for office for the besieged Qaeda networks from hope. The escalation of an Donald Trump. What they Afghanistan and the tranneed is the courage to acsition of security to the unwinnable war has cept failure and go on.

Afghan National and DeDenial and stubbornness fense Forces, it has been a resulted in further help either the USA while that such questions destruction of Afghanistan won’t or Afghanistan. It has furhave been floating in ther complicated the situAfghan politics and reand the loss of US lives. ation. gional media with no There is no shame in There is no sense in heed by US officials: keeping the public in Why is the USA still presaccepting defeat, it is delusion and factitious ent in Afghanistan if it hope. The escalation of cannot defeat the Taliban? rather a trait of brave. an unwinnable war has What are the common obUltimately, The US resulted in further dejectives of the USA and struction of Afghanistan its host Afghanistan? generals will have to and the loss of US lives.

Why is the USA reluctant submit to the fact, like There is no shame in acto accept defeat in an uncepting defeat, it is winnable war? Why lie their predecessor British rather a trait of brave. about perpetual failed Ultimately, The US genstrategies and ignore the and Soviets, that the erals will have to submit Afghan civilian casualAfghan geography can’t to the fact, like their ties? Why are the US milpredecessor British and itary generals so obsessed be conquered.

Soviets, that the Afghan with a military solution to geography can’t be conthe Afghan quagmire? quered.

Despite the fact that

The detrimental stubbornness and the unending Afghan war Samiullah DooranDeSh

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he revelation of the Afghanistan Papers, a trove of documents regarding the Afghan war, by The Washington Post is another twist in the intricate puzzle and decade-long unending cycle of violence, predicament, and destruction there.

The documents that were publicized after a strenuous legal battle over a period of three years have ignited public fury in the USA and initiated a new discussion about the unwinnable Afghan War. The documents, containing 400 interviews of senior military and government officials, have elucidated that the successive US governments misled the public about the ground situation and gloomy prospect of war in Afghanistan— the war that has cost more than $1 trillion, 2400 American lives, extermination of tens of thousands Afghan civilians and troops, and with no certain end to it.

Since the first day of the US military invasion of Afghanistan, the US military generals and the top echelon of the Bush administration knew that even disengagement, let alone a clear military victory, from this region would be difficult if not impossible. The war, which was initiated as a result of a quick reaction to the terrorist incidents in the USA, is taking nearly two decades to reach a conclusion. even the top American military strategists and policymakers misapprehended the strategic culture of Afghans, the uniqueness of its geography, the uneasy history of foreign interventions, the complexity of heterogeneous ethnic composition and the fact that entering Afghanistan is easy but the exit extremely tricky.

Recent years have not only witnessed an alarming decline in US public support to the US engagement in the Afghan War, believed to be an unnecessary entanglement in a foreign war, but

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Thursday, 9 January, 2020

COMMENT 09 Editor’s mail

Send your letters to: Letters to Editor, Pakistan Today, 4-Shaarey Fatima Jinnah, Lahore, Pakistan.

E-mail: letters@pakistantoday.com.pk Letters should be addressed to Pakistan Today exclusively

Pakistan’s healthcare system heALThCARe system of Pakistan consists of private and public sector. The private sector serves nearly 70% of the population and 30% by the public sector. As per Pakistan constitution provision of health is the responsibility of provincial governments except in federally administered areas.

Pakistan’s total health expenditures amounted to 3.9 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2005, and per capita health expenditures were 49.

The government provided 24.4 per cent of total health expenditures, with the remainder being entirely private, out of pocket expenses. Millennium Development Goals are eight international development goals that all 192 United Nations member states and at least 23 international organisations have agreed to achieve by the year 2015. healthcare system of Pakistan especially primary healthcare is facing numerous problems.

Decentralisation present an opportunity to bring in fundamental changes in primary healthcare to make it more efficient and effective to the masses. A goal of reforms in primary healthcare sector is to restructure the non-efficient system by developing from federal to district level. healthcare system includes building blocks such as leadership, service delivery, technology, health workforce, healthcare finance and research. To achieve access coverage and quality services monitoring and evaluation plays an important role.

ANiLA GM Turbat

Take the responsibility

Human Rights are non-derogable The Gap between theory and practice must be ended Women’s rights, in bases of sex etc.; free and the country, are always compulsory education to under threat because of all children of age 5 to 16 the low literacy rate, the

by Government; no diseRTAIN rights that cannot be vio- crimination in respect of commitment of the pubOur government should lated at all or in any condition by any access to public places; lic to cultural relativistic wipe out the impediments practices, women subjucountry or government are termed safeguard against disnon-derogable rights in the Universal crimination in services; and the low ratio in the way of attaining the gation, Declaration of human Rights. These and all citizens have the of women’s participarights are also known as natural rights, primary right to preserve their tion in the social, politipure spirit of human rights, fundamental rights, and basic rights in particular cal, economic and legal language, rights. It should also different legal instruments of the world. Under script and culture, and spheres. Still, our socithese terms, protection is given to different many more. ety is known as androremove the gap between rights such as freedom of speech, access to incentric because females however, there is a theory and practice by formation, freedom of religion, freedom of as- prolonged challenge of are less empowered, and sociation, freedom of press, freedom of conflict between theory their basic right to eduimplementing the 28 assembly, and the (conditional) right to bear and practice that is being cation and freedom is arms. Government is the custodian of the rights faced by the country undermined. Domestic articles fairly. Thus, irrespective of political, communal, religious, since its emergence in violence against women citizens of the country sectarian, and other affiliation with a particular each institution. For inis another issue regardsegment of society. however, the condition of stance, ing the violation of theoretically, may enjoy their natural human rights in Pakistan remained volatile dur- there is no room for women rights. rights, blessed by God, ing different military and democratic reigns be- horse-trading and elecBecause of such vicause of some social, legal, institutional, and toral rigging in the Conolence, nearly 5000 irrespective of any other unavoidable factors. women are killed every stitution, but practically, Basic rights which have been enshrined in horse-trading in different year, with thousands of discrimination. These the 1973 constitution safeguard the rights of all political spheres can be others maimed or disnon-derogable rights are and sundry to lead a life without any discrimi- easily found, and allegaabled, according to The nation. The Constitution, no doubt, articulates tions of rigging abound.

Global Slavery index not to be violated at any perfectly the natural rights which provide a rea- Similarly, non-interven2016. Furthermore, the cost, and we should as sonable environment to all citizens of the coun- tion is the basic principle survey articulates reality try to lead a very peaceful life. Articles from 8 of the Constitution, but by stating that an estihuman beings fulfill our to 28, as mentioned in the 1st Chapter of the history is a witness how mated 2,134,900 people Constitution ensure the protection of the funda- intra-departmental interare enslaved in modernresponsibilities to each mental rights of the peoples of Pakistan, vention and institutional day Pakistan, or 1.13 other in order to create a grounded on the principle of equality. The pri- leg-pulling percent of the populadetracted mary rights as mentioned in the legal instrument from the democratic tion. Arresting journalpeaceful world as well are that no person shall be deprived of life or process. The same thing ists, women as to give relief to liberty save in accordance with law; safeguards is being repeated with subjugation, child labor, as to arrest and detention; all arrested persons the articles because of child abuse, poor educacrippled souls must be informed of grounds of their arrest, those the constitution is tion, the ascendency of they have the right to consult and be defended known as the “custodian private educational inby a lawyer of their choice; right of fair trial; of human rights”. Social, stitutions for primary slavery, forced labour is prohibited and no child political, and legal indiand secondary educaunder the age of 14 years be employed in fac- cators depict that the gap between theory and tion, delayed justice, environmental degradatory and mines; there shall be protection against practice regarding human rights in Pakistan is tion, and ethnic and religious discrimination retrospective punishment; there shall be protec- widening day by day. Rules are enough, but the against minorities are the most awful violations tion against double punishment and self-incrim- fair implementation of the rules is the enduring of human rights in the country. ination; freedom of movement for all citizens; challenge that is portraying the negative face of Our government should wipe out the imfreedom of assembly for all citizens; freedom the country before the rest of the world. pediments in the way of attaining the pure spirit of association for all citizens; there of human rights. It should also reshall be freedom of trade, business and move the gap between theory and profession for all citizens; freedom of practice by implementing the 28 artispeech for all citizens; all citizens shall cles fairly. Thus, citizens of the counWomen’s rights, in the country, are always have the right to have access to infortry may enjoy their natural rights, under threat because of the low literacy mation in all matters of public imporblessed by God, irrespective of any tance; freedom to profess religion and discrimination. These non-derogable rate, the commitment of the public to to manage religious institution in the rights are not to be violated at any country; safeguard against the taxation cost, and we should as human beings cultural relativistic practices, women for the purposes of any particular relifulfill our responsibilities to each subjugation, and the low ratio of women’s gion; safeguard as to educational instiother in order to create a peaceful tutes in respect of religion etc.; all world as well as to give relief to cripparticipation in the social, political, citizens have the right to acquire, hold pled souls. economic and legal spheres. and dispose of the property in any part of Pakistan; protection of property Changezi Sandhu can be rights of owners; all citizens are equal reached at: and there shall be no discrimination on Ch.changezi.sandhu111@gmail.com

Changezi SanDhu

C

POveRTY is a curse. We all know that Pakistan is a developing country. Most of our population is living their lives under the worst circumstances. According to some reports more than 40% of the population of Pakistan lives below the poverty line, which means that 4 out of 10 Pakistanis are living in acute poverty.

There are multiple factors behind this grave situation.

Pakistan is facing multiple economic challenges, a constantly growing population, high illiteracy, and a lack of job opportunities. A large number of educated and talented youth from different regions of Pakistan want to bring some real positive change in the country, but their financial and social circumstances restrict them.

The government cannot afford to do everything, especially when it’s already in an economic crunch. Social sector organisations like Akhuwat are doing a really good job by granting interest-free loans to economically challenged parts of the population who have the potential to become valuable to the society. I believe that we can replicate the Akhuwat model at the individual level. If we really want to play our role in building society, each of us can take the responsibility of providing for one, two, or three people and help them grow economically rather than just cursing the government all the time. Together we can change the fate of Pakistan.

MohSiN ALi islamabad

Cinema of Pakistan DURING the early 1970s, Pakistan was the world’s fourth largest producer of feature films. however, between 1977 and 2007, the film industry of Pakistan went into decline due to Islamization, strengthening of censorship laws, and an overall lack of quality. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the film industry went through several periods of ups and downs, a reflection of its dependency on state funding and incentives.

By 2000, the film industry in Lahore had collapsed and saw a gradual shift of Pakistani actors, actresses, producers and filmmakers from Lahore to Karachi. By 2007, the wounds of Pakistan’s collapsed film industry began to heal and Karachi cemented itself as the center of Pakistani cinema. This was the time new generation producers stepped into the industry with short films with quality story lines, and new technology led to an explosion of alternative form of Pakistani cinema.

It is unfortunate that Pakistani society has always remained short of adequate funds for quality film-making even though our country is teeming with immense talent and God-gifted aptitude. Currently, Lollywood film industry hardly produces three or four movies a year which are often funded by giant media groups like Geo and ARY. Presence of media training institutes and media studies is a prerequisite for development and growth of our film industry sector. Government should play a vital role in the revival of Pakistani cinema by providing funds to the film sector and encouraging and directing the promising institutes of our country to give gross weightage to media studies. Consequently, the process would be a thriving measure in generating skilled future directors and producers with innovative ideas and diversify the field of Pakistani cinema. The people of Pakistan have undoubtedly developed a taste for viewing Indian movies up till now and to counter this trend, our film industry should endeavor to carefully alter and efficiently entice the public’s eye and interests by producing quality movies. The estimated market size and growth of indian film industry is about to hit 3.7 billion US dollars by F.Y. 2022. It is mine and every Pakistani citizen’s heartfelt desire that our film industry multiplies in its production of watch-worthy, entertaining movies and continues to pick up a profitable and prosperous pace for a successful way forward. The bottom line of my opinion is that via mutual efforts of government and concerned institutes, our industry may flourish and the undue attraction towards the Bollywood industry diminishes, assenting the image of Pakistani cinema at large.

AAMNAh MANSooR Lahore

Thursday, 9 January, 2020

10 FOREIGN NEWS

turkey, ruSSiA Seek libyA ceASefire AS rivAlS clASh ISTANBUL/BENGHAZI

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Agencies

UrKEY and russia urged libya’s warring parties on Wednesday to declare a Jan 12 ceasefire as eastern forces carried out air strikes on the government in a conflict drawing increasing foreign involvement and concern.

Turkey backs Fayez al-Serraj’s Tripoli-based Government of national Accord (GnA) and has said it will send troops as requested, while russia has sent forces to back General Khalifa Haftar’s eastern-based libyan national Army (lnA).

However, after talks between their presidents Tayyip Erdogan and Vladimir Putin in Istanbul, Turkey and russia issued a joint statement calling for the end

of hostilities, normalization of life in Tripoli and other cities, and U.n.-sponsored peace talks.

The conflict is undermining regional security and “triggering irregular migration, further spread of weapons, terrorism and other criminal activities including illicit trafficking,” the statement said.

Haftar’s lnA took control of Sirte, a strategically important city in the centre of libya’s Mediterranean coastline, in a rapid advance on Monday and is seeking to consolidate gains.

Since April, the lnA has also been waging a campaign to take the capital, Tripoli, about 370 km (230 miles) northwest of Sirte, where it is battling forces aligned with the GnA. GnA forces said they withdrew from Sirte to avoid bloodshed.

Those forces are mainly from the port

of Misrata, 190 km east of Tripoli, and had controlled Sirte since driving Islamic State militants from the city in late 2016.

On Tuesday afternoon, clashes broke out around al-Washka, on the road between Sirte and Misrata, where lnA sources said nine of their men were killed in an evening drone strike.

On Wednesday, the lnA responded with strikes near the Abu Grein checkpoint, close to al-Washka, where clashes were continuing, lnA military officials said. libya has been divided since 2014 into rival camps based in Tripoli and the east, each with its own set of institutions, and Haftar’s offensive against Tripoli upended U.n. efforts to broker a political settlement.

The upheaval in libya, where strongman Muammar Gaddafi’s long rule was toppled in 2011, has in recent years dis-

rupted the OPEC member’s oil production, fueled migrant smuggling to Europe, and given space to Islamist extremists. regional powers have stepped up intervention, with the lnA also receiving support from the United Arab Emirates, Jordan and Egypt.

The European Union’s top diplomat and the foreign ministers of Britain,

Commercial airlines reroute flights amid US-Iran tensions WASHINGTON Agencies

Commercial airlines on Wednesday rerouted flights crossing the Middle East to avoid possible danger amid escalating tensions between the United States and Iran.

The flight restrictions reflected fears that the conflict between the longtime foes could ratchet up following Iranian ballistic missile strikes on two Iraqi bases that house US troops.

Those strikes were retaliation for the US killing of Iranian revolutionary Guard Gen Qassem Soleimani in a drone strike near Baghdad last week.

Australian carrier Qantas said it was altering its london to Perth, Australia, routes to avoid Iran and Iraq airspace until further notice.

The longer route meant that Qantas would have to carry fewer passengers and more fuel to remain in the air for an extra 40 to 50 minutes.

Malaysia Airlines said that due to recent events,

of the current situation. At least two Kazakh airlines Air Astana and SCAT were considering rerouting or cancelling their flights over Iran following the crash of a Ukrainian plane that killed 176 people.

The plane had taken off from Imam Khomeini International Airport in the Iranian capital when a fire struck one of its engines, said Qassem Biniaz, a spokesman for Iran’s road and Transportation Ministry. Kazakhstan’s officials said that Air Astana, the country’s flagship carrier, is currently holding a meeting on whether to reroute or ban flights. SCAT, one of the largest airlines in Kazakhstan, told russia’s Interfax news agency that they were also considering rerouting flights.

United Arab Emirates budget airline flydubai said it had cancelled a scheduled flight on Wednesday from Dubai to Baghdad but was continuing flights to Basra and najaf. Emirates airline flights between Dubai and Baghdad were cancelled. “The safety of our passengers, crew and aircraft is our number one priority and will not be compromised,” Emirates said in a statement. Qatar Airways, however, said its flights to Iraq were operating normally. “The safety of our passengers and employees is of the highest importance, and we continue to closely monitor developments in Iraq,” the airline said in a statement.

its planes would avoid Iranian airspace.

Singapore Airlines also said that its flights to Europe would be rerouted to avoid Iran.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it was barring American pilots and carriers from flying in areas of Iraqi, Iranian and some Persian Gulf airspace. The agency warned of the potential for “miscalculation or misidentification” for civilian aircraft amid heightened tensions between the US and Iran.

Such restrictions are often precautionary in nature to prevent civilian aircraft from being confused for ones engaged in armed conflict.

The FAA said the restrictions were being issued due to heightened military activities and increased political tensions in the Middle East, which present an inadvertent risk to US civil aviation operations.

Following the FAA, India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation advised Indian commercial carriers to avoid Iranian, Iraqi and Persian Gulf airspace.

The russian aviation agency, rosaviatsia, also issued an official recommendation for all russian airlines to avoid flying over Iran, Iraq, the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman “due to existing risks for the safety of international civil flights.”

German airline lufthansa said it had cancelled its flight from Frankfurt to Tehran on Wednesday in light

2019 second hottest year on record: EU BRUSSELS Agencies

deepika Padukone’s Jnu visit sets off social media storm MUMBA: Top Indian actress Deepika Padukone, who joined students protesting against the government, fell prey to calls on social media on Wednesday for a boycott of her upcoming film, as well as praise for being a rare Bollywood A-lister to stand up against a crackdown on dissent.

Deepika Padukone stood behind students chanting anti-government slogans at new Delhi’s Jawaharlal nehru University (JnU) on Tuesday evening, surprising many in a country where top film stars typically avoid politics. Her act of solidarity came after masked men wielding sticks and rods stormed the JnU campus on Sunday, injuring some 30 people. Students at the varsity have protested for months against an announced fee hike as well as a new citizenship law. Pictures circulating online showing a solemn-faced Padukone standing behind an injured student leader, whose head was covered in a bandage, set off a social media storm, raising calls for a boycott of her film Chhapaak, which is set to be released on Friday. “#BoycottChhapaak” was Twitter’s top trending topic in India on Wednesday, with more than 350,000 tweets on the subject. The film is based on the true story of a woman who survived an acid attack and re-built her life. Agencies

2019 was the second hottest year on record and ended the hottest decade in history, the European Union’s climate monitoring service said Wednesday.

Data released by the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) showed that worldwide temperatures last year were second only to 2016, in which temperatures were boosted 0.12 degrees Celsius by an exceptionally strong El nino natural weather event.

The average temperature in 2019 was only a few hundredths of a degree below the 2016 level.

The five last years have been the hottest on record, and the period of 2010-2019 was the hottest decade since records began, C3S said.

Globally temperatures in 2019 were 0.6 Celsius warmer than the 1981-2010 average. Earth’s temperature over the last five years was 1.1C-1.2C warmer than pre-industrial times. last year was Europe’s hottest ever.

“2019 has been another exceptionally warm year, in fact, the second warmest globally in our dataset, with many of the individual months breaking records,” said Carlo Buontempo, head of C3S. 2019 was just 0.04C cooler than 2016, which saw temperatures boosted by a once-in-a-century strength El nino.

C3S also said that atmospheric carbon concentrations continued to rise in 2019, reaching their highest levels on record. The United nations said last year that manmade greenhouse gas emissions needed to tumble 7.6 per cent each year to 2030 in order to limit temperature rises to 1.5C. Current pledges by countries to cut their emissions put Earth on a path of several degrees warming by the end of the century.

The first week of 2020 has seen climate-related

disasters such as the fires ravaging southeastern Australia and flooding kill dozens of people in Indonesia.

Scientists say such catastrophes will become more frequent and more intense as temperatures climb. “The past five years have been the warmest on record; the last decade has been the warmest on record,” said Copernicus director Jean-noel Thepaut. “These are unquestionably alarming signs.” last year saw the most pronounced warming in Alaska and other parts of the Arctic, as well as large swathes of eastern and southern Europe, southern Africa, and Australia.

In Europe, all seasons were warmer than average, with several countries registering both summer and winter temperature highs. December 2019 was 3.2C warmer than the 1981-2010 reference period, C3S said.

CMYK

France, Germany and Italy this week condemned Turkey’s plans to send military experts and trainers to libya, saying interference was exacerbating instability.

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte held talks with Haftar in rome on Wednesday and was due to see Serraj later in the day, an Italian government source said.

ghosn vows to clear name as he blasts 'collusion' against him LEBANON Agencies

Fugitive auto tycoon Carlos Ghosn on Wednesday accused nissan and Japanese prosecutors of plotting against him, vowing to prove his innocence at his first public appearance since fleeing the country. The former renault-nissan boss described the financial misconduct charges he faced in Japan as “baseless” as he addressed a large crowd of journalists in Beirut. “The collusion between nissan and prosecutors is everywhere,” Ghosn said, claiming his arrest in Japan was “staged”. “There was no way I was going to be treated fairly … this was not about justice. I felt I was a hostage of the country that I have served for 17 years,” he said. “Thanks to the systematic leaking of false information and distorted information and the intentional withholding of exculpatory information by the prosecutor and by nissan, I was presumed guilty before the eyes of the world and subject to a system whose only objective is to coerce confessions, secure guilty pleas,” he said. Ghosn, who denies any wrongdoing, fled while awaiting trial on charges including allegedly under-reporting his compensation to the tune of $85 million. Ghosn said he was “presumed guilty” and had “no choice” but to jump bail, adding he was told by his lawyers he would have to wait five years for a verdict.

He said he had been “ripped” from friends and family when detained. In a comment that risked causing further upset in Japan, he appeared to compare his arrest to the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbour in 1941. “I didn’t suspect anything … Did you see Pearl Harbour happening?”

JAPANESE OUTRAGE: The 65-year-old businessman, once a giant of the car industry, arrived in his native lebanon last month, in the latest shock twist to a gripping saga. Ghosn’s bail jump has prompted outrage from the Japanese government, which has called his escape “unjustifiable”, as well as from Japanese automaker nissan which labelled the getaway “extremely regrettable”. Ghosn said that nissan’s stock market value had fallen by $40 million a day since his arrest, while that of renault had slumped by 20 million euros daily. Many were hoping Ghosn would disclose details of his audacious flight from Japan to Beirut via Istanbul — a dramatic twist in a story worthy of a Hollywood plot. But Ghosn told reporters he was “not here to talk” about how he fled Japan. According to Japanese media, Ghosn slipped out of his house in Tokyo, boarded a bullet train to Osaka and then a private jet to Istanbul, evading customs by hiding in a box, before reaching Beirut on December 30. Ghosn says the charges against him stem from a “coup” inside nissan by disgruntled executives and Japanese officials who feared his plans to more closely integrate the car giant with its alliance partner, French firm renault. Asked how high the alleged conspiracy went, Ghosn said he did not believe Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was involved.

Thursday, 9 January, 2020

BUSINESS 11

CORPORATE CORNER ‘BRI-CPEC to bring new chapter of prosperity in KP’

PakIStaN Not to aCCEPt taPI GaS PrICE ECC APPROVES TECHNICAL SUPPLEMENTARY GRANT OF RS1BN FOR ESTABLISHMENT OF PAKISTAN TOURISM DEVELOPMENT ENDOWMENT FUND

PESHAWAR: A roundtable on ‘CPEC: Opportunities for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’ was organised on Wednesday at the China Study Centre, University of Peshawar. In his keynote address, KP Board CEO of Investment Hassan Daud Butt highlighted immense trade potential in KP, saying that with effective strategies and policies, the province could extract maximum benefits from the upcoming second phase of CPEC. China Study Centre Director Prof Dr Zahid Anwar, UoP Numerical Sciences Dean Dr Muhammad Abid and PCFAKhyber Secretary General Chapter Syed Ali Nawaz Gilani also spoke on the occasion. prESS rELEASE

ISLAMABAD: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF) on Wednesday launched a livelihood project aimed at providing sustainable livelihood opportunities for both Afghan refugees and Pakistani communities. prESS rELEASE

Gas shortage to double next year, CCoE informed ISLAMABAD: Amid lack of new explorations, the shortage of gas is likely to be doubled next year, with a projected shortfall of 477mmcfd. In a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Energy (CCoE), which was held on Wednesday with Adviser to Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh in the chair, it was informed the demand of gas has risen by 5pc per annum during the past seven years. The heavy gas shortfall recorded last month (December 2019) was nearly 270mmcfd. "One of the major reasons for this upsurge was the consumption of gas in the winter season by the domestic sector, which prefers to use heavily-subsidised gas as compared to other energy sources," officials of the Ministry of Energy informed the CCoE. The committee was further told that work on adding 70mmcfd gas in the Sui Southern Gas Company’s system and taking LNG supplies for Sui Northern Gas Pipeline up to 1300mmcfd had already started but its implementation was hampered by issues pertaining to the grant of 'Right of Ways' from the Sindh government, which had granted only one RoW so far while two more were still awaited since last summer. "With these measures, nearly 70mmcfd gas is likely to be added to SSGC by the end of January." According to the energy ministry, in view of 2020-21 projections showing a shortfall of 477mmcfd, the government has decided to build additional terminals; five new private terminals were awarded in Nov 2019, while process for a dedicated pipeline of 1.2BCFD+, required to carry imported LNG from these terminals to north, would also begin soon. The CCoE noted that there was a need to work on contingency plans for 2020-21 to overcome the gas shortage. It stressed using energy produced through gas and electricity as a whole to provide more options to energy consumers and to bring efficiency in the system. Earlier, the Ministry of Energy briefed the CCoE on the current demand-supply situation of gas/RLNG, natural gas allocation and management, average gas supplies, winter load management, indigenous gas production, supplies and consumption in different regions, and LNG requirement by the SNGPL/SSGC. The CCoE asked the ministry to brief in the next meeting the current situation in the power sector so that the problems in both gas and power sectors could be properly analyzed and contextualized uniformly and a realistic and more efficient solution to bridge the demand and supply gap could be chalked out. GHULAM ABBAS

ISLAMABAD

a

GHULAM ABBAS

S construction work on the multibillion-dollar Turkmenistan-AfghanistanPakistan-India (TAPI) Gas Pipeline Project was supposed to start in the first quarter of 2020, Pakistan has decided not to accept the agreed price of the imported gas, as the same was to be much costlier when compared with LNG and mixed gas prices in the country.

According to sources, the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC), which met on Wednesday with Adviser to PM on Finance in the chair, was informed that the price of gas under TAPI project would be much higher than the LNG/mixed gas available in the country.

The price of gas, to be imported from Turkmenistan, was needed to be renegotiated before going for construction of the pipeline in Pakistan.

Under the TAPI project, a 56inch diameter pipeline, spread over 1,680km and having a capacity of

transmitting 3.2 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) of gas, would be laid from Turkmenistan through Afghanistan and Pakistan to the Pak-India border by the year 2022.

According to sources, the ECC was informed that a new gas price formula was needed to be worked out to make the imported gas comparatively competitive. The gas price formula under which the gas prices of every buying country (Afghanistan, Pakistan and India) worked out was also way too complicated. Pakistan wants the reference price of LNG, which was currently cheaper in the open market, as an alternative to the TAPI gas.

As per the officials at the finance ministry, the ECC, after the Ministry of Energy's briefing, decided to constitute a price negotiation committee (PNC) for TAPI project, which would renegotiate the price with Turkmen gas.

According to sources, India had earlier also found the landed price of Turkmen gas as $10 per mmBtu too high, besides its concerns about cutting the supply in case of any

FINANCE MINISTRY DIRECTED TO CHALK OUT WAYS TO IMPROVE PSO’S LIQUIDITY conflict with Pakistan.

The ECC was informed that no guarantee would be given to India for uninterrupted gas supply as demanded by Delhi under this project.

Meanwhile, the ECC refused to give any supplementary grant for the Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) against its liabilities on Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM), citing reasons of agreement with IMF. Under the IMF terms, no major supplementary grants were to be given by the government. However, on the demand moved by the Ministry of Industries and Production for Rs3.02 billion payment of outstanding dues of SSGC by PSM on account of gas bills, the ECC directed to constitute a three-member committee, under the chairmanship of the finance secretary, to find out a feasible solution to the issue so that the already allocated budget may not be exceeded and liabilities of both SSGC and PSM are duly settled.

The ECC, however, approved a technical supplementary grant of Rs1.00 billion for the establishment of Pakistan Tourism Development Endowment Fund. The chair directed Pakistan Tourism Development Cor-

US, UK, China remain Pakistan's top export destinations BUSINESS DESK The United States (US) has maintained its position as the top export destination for Pakistani products during the first five months of the current financial year (2019-20).

According to the data released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the total exports to the US during JulyNovember FY20 were recorded at $1,744.415 million, as against exports of $1,698.809 million during July-November FY19, showing an increase of 2.68pc.

This was followed by the UK, where Pakistan exported goods worth $728.120 million during the period under re-

view, as against exports of $753.054 million last year, a decrease of 3.31pc.

China was the third top export destination for Pakistan, as the country exported products worth $727.480 million to China in 5MFY20, as against exports of $741.643 million last year, depicting a nominal decrease of 1.90pc.

Among other countries, Pakistani exports to United Arab Emirates (UAE) stood at $663.883 million during the first five months of FY20 ($538.786 million in 5MFY19), while exports to Germany were recorded at $533.048 million ($549.071 million last year).

During the period under re-

view, exports to Afghanistan were recorded at $432.465 million ($460.461 last year), exports to Spain stood at $380.249 million ($379.083 million last year), exports to Italy were recorded at $324.971 million ($322.660 million last year), Bangladesh $297.676 million ($314.108 million last year), Belgium $226.668 million ($252.240 million last year), France $188.902 million ($192.340 million last year), Singapore $109.006 million ($119.586 million last year), Japan $84.113 million ($91.932 million last year) Indonesia $32.412 million ($138.031 million last year, whereas exports to India stood at $15.518 million ($182.207 million last year).

‘Taxes reduced on import of smartphones worth Rs15,000’ The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) on Wednesday issued a clarification regarding the reduction of sales tax and income tax on imported mobile phones. “According to Government’s Digital Pakistan Initiative, Sales Tax and Income Tax at the import stage has been drastically reduced in case of smartphones of Rs15,000 or below,” said the FBR statement. It continued that the government wants to provide a level-playing field in the market and encourage local manufacturing of smartphones in Pakistan. “In this regard, a committee, under the leadership of Adviser to PM on Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood, has already been working,” the statement read. “A final decision will be taken by the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) after consulting all the stakeholders.” B U S I N E S S D E S K

poration to come up with their tourism development and soft image promotion plan in the next meeting.

The committee also granted approval to allocate gas from PGNiG's RIZQ gas field to SSGC. It was briefed to the ECC that currently, two wells – Rizq-1 and Rizq2 – are producing 16MMCFD gas, whereas Rizq-3, which is under drilling, is expected to add another 9 to 10MMCFD gas to the existing production. Upon completion of this well, the cumulative gas production from this gas field is expected to raise up to 25MMCFD. Moreover, the ECC directed the Ministry of Finance to explore possibilities to improve the liquidity position of Pakistan State Oil as exchange losses of around Rs28 billion have incurred on FE-25 loans

by PSO. The loans were acquired under the instructions of the Ministry of Finance for the financing of import operations at PSO. The committee also granted an extension of government's guarantee against credit facility of National Bank of Pakistan amounting to Rs5 billion in favour of Utility Stores Corporation of Pakistan.

S&P 500, Nasdaq hit record highs as US-Iran escalation fears fade The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq hit record highs on Wednesday after President Donald Trump said there were no American casualties in the Iranian missile strikes and that Tehran appeared to be standing down, sparking a relief rally in markets. “The fact that we have this great military and equipment, however, does not mean we have to use it,” Trump said at a White House briefing later in the day. “The deescalation nature of the speech is really what the market is focused on,” said Michael Antonelli, market strategist at Robert W. Baird in Milwaukee. “It’s Trump essentially saying that we’re not going to retaliate to the missile attacks last night.”

Trump’s latest comments sent the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq to all-time highs, previously hit on the first trading day of 2020 on hopes of a US-China trade deal. At 12:01 p.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 204.40 points, or 0.72pc, at 28,788.08, the S&P 500 was up 22.02 points, or 0.68pc, at 3,259.20 and the Nasdaq Composite was up 64.35 points, or 0.71pc, at 9,132.94. The blue-chip Dow was trading just below its all-time high as Boeing Co fell 1.2pc after its 737-800 jet belonging to a Ukrainian airline burst into flames shortly after takeoff from Tehran, killing all 176 people aboard. Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc slid 6.2pc as its quarterly profit missed expectations. Shares in rival CVS Health fell 1.8pc. AGENCIES

Strike by millions of workers in India hits businesses NEW DELHI AGENCIES

Banking and other businesses across India suffered on Wednesday as millions of workers went on strike protesting the Hindu nationalist government’s economic policies, especially the planned sale of several stateowned companies including Air India.

Protesters marched on the streets of New Delhi and several state capitals in response to the strike call given by 10

workers unions.

Rail and road traffic also was disrupted in Assam, West Bengal and Kerala states where workers held street protests and blocked railroads, the Press Trust of India news agency said.

Amarjeet Kaur, a trade union leader, said workers were opposed to the proposed sale of natural resources and state assets.

“The working class is on roads today,” she said, adding that the 90-100 per cent of the workers had joined the strike in the

defence, coal, petroleum, income-tax and service sectors in 15 to 16 Indian states.

The unions said that hundreds of thousands of workers will lose jobs if the government went ahead with the sale of Air India, Bharat Petroleum Corporation, the Shipping Corporation of India and the Container Corporation of India.

The government says it plans to sell the companies because they had been losing money for years. It also wants to bolster revenues as it prepares to unveil the

federal budget on Feb 1 for the financial year 2020-21.

The federal government warned the workers that they won’t receive salaries for Wednesday if they went on strike.

The government projected a 5pc economic growth in the current fiscal year, April 2019 to March this year, sharply down from last year’s 6.8pc with the manufacturing, cement and power sectors faring poorly.

Also, the sale of cars and other vehi-

cles dipped by nearly 13pc in mid-2019.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government recently recapitalised the banks and offered tax incentives for domestic companies. But these steps have so far not increased the rate of investment, according to data released by the government’s National Statistical Office.

In May last year, government data had shown that joblessness in the country was 6.1pc of total labor force during 2017-18, the highest in 45 years.

Thursday, 9 January, 2020

12 BUSINESS

aFtEr 15-MoNtH laPSE, Govt all SEt to aPPoINt PSo MaNaGING dIrECtor SBP sells rs95.7bn worth of PIBs KARACHI MEIrYUM ALI

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) raised Rs95.67 billion through the sale of Pakistan Investment Bonds (PIBs) at an auction on Wednesday. As per the auction result, the raised amount was lower than the target of Rs100 billion. The yields on 10-year bonds fell by 10 basis points, from 11pc to 10.9pc, while the that for 3 and 5-year bonds remained unchanged at 11.75pc and 11.19pc, respectively. Out of the Rs72.4 billion for the 3-year PIB, SBP accepted Rs22.7 billion. For the 5year PIB, SBP accepted Rs53.4 billion out of Rs76.6 billion, whereas it accepted Rs19.6 billion for 10-year PIB. Bids for 20-year bonds were rejected. The next auction will be held on 4th February 2020.Bids for 20-year bonds were rejected. The next auction will be held on 4th February 2020.

Honda to raise car prices by up to rs100,000 from 16th Following the footsteps of Pak Suzuki and Indus Motors, the Honda Atlas Cars Limited (HACL) has also decided to jack up the prices its various models by Rs20,000 to 100,000, effective from January 16. After mid-January, Honda City 1.3 MT and AT would cost Rs2.329 million and Rs2.509 million, up by Rs20,000, respectively. Similarly, City 1.5L MT, AT, Aspire MT and Aspire AT would be available at Rs2.389 million, Rs2.55 million, Rs2.539 million and Rs2.719 million, up by Rs20,000, respectively.

The prices of Civic Turbo, 1.8LVTI, I.8L VTI CVT have been increased to Rs4.479 million, Rs3.779 million and Rs3.549 million, up by Rs80,000, Rs30,000 and Rs50,000, respectively. Honda BR-V MT would cost Rs2.999 million, an increase of Rs100,000, while CVT and VS CVT models would be available at Rs3.149 million and Rs3.299 million, up by Rs50,000 each. Depreciation of rupee against the US dollar and a high interest rate has forced the auto industry jack up the prices for multiple times in 2019. However, the current price hike seems to be an attempt to take advantage of seasonality, as many consumers wait for the new year to purchase new vehicles. BUSINESS DESK

Pakistan to export 500,000Mt additional rice to China ISLAMABAD

ISLAMABAD

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AHMAD AHMADANI

HE government is all set to appoint a managing director (MD) for the Pakistan State Oil (PSO), as the Petroleum Division, after a delay of 15 months, has forwarded three names to the federal cabinet for approval.

According to sources, the next federal cabinet meeting is likely to approve the appointment of one of the three candidates recommended by the Petroleum Division.

The candidates include Syed Muhammad Taha, Farrukh Saeed and Nadeem Zaman, with Taha's name on top of the merit order.

However, sources said the Establishment Division has raised objections on the process of filling the vacant slot of PSO. They further alleged that an intelligence agency, in its security clearance report, had also raised questions over the performance of PSO's board, stating that the board had "shortlisted the candidates that do not fulfil the set criterion for the

important position".

As per sources, the Petroleum Division, after receiving nominations from the PSO's Board of Management, had sent the same to Inter-Services Intelligence (1S1) and Intelligence Bureau (1B) for security clearance. The lSl had cleared all the candidates but IB did not clear Masood Zaidi on the grounds of financial integrity, besides pointing out that Nadcem Zaman lacked experience in the oilrelated sector.

It is relevant to note that members of the federal cabinet have already asked PM to limit the role of intelligence agencies in the appointment of top officials of companies.

The members were of the view that the report of intelligence agencies should be to the extent of integrity and other traits of the candidates which are generally unrecorded, adding the agencies should not comment upon the professional angle which had already been vetted and verified by the competent forum.

According to documents available with this scribe, the position

of PSO MD was advertised in the local newspapers on 30th June 2019 and a headhunting firm did the shortlisting of the candidates.

The PSO Board’s Human Resource & Evaluation Committee (BHR&RC), after conducting interviews and scrutiny of experience documents of the shortlisted candidates, had forwarded the names of shortlisted candidates to the Petroleum Division.

Documents revealed that Syed Muhammad Taha has a 25-year experience in oil and utilities, while Farrukh Saeed has a 34-year long experience in the oil and gas sector.

Similarly, it was claimed that Nadeem Zaman has 20 years of experience working in Asia, Europe and Africa. However, IB declared that it was not true.

Sources alleged that the Petroleum Division had kept the name of Nadeem Zaman in the summary, regardless of the findings of IB, apparently to complete the procedure and to ensure the appointment of Syed Muhammad Taha as the new head of PSO.

FBR asked to crack down on smuggled Iranian POL products ISLAMABAD SHAZAD pArACHA

The Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) has directed the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to constitute a joint task force, comprising the officials of customs and law enforcing agencies, to control the smuggling of Iranian petroleum products across Pakistan.

In a suo moto case on Wednesday, the FTO stated that failure of customs and law enforcement agencies in controlling the sale of smuggled Iranian POL products "reflects inefficiency, incompetence and ineptitude" in the discharge of their duties.

"Smuggling is causing a huge loss to the government revenue and is a constant hazard to

the lives and properties of the people," the FTO remarked.

The FTO's investigation noted that the customs department does not register cases against smugglers, while appraisement of goods & vehicles was being made at much less than its value, and that settlement proceedings result in the release of goods & vehicles [used for smuggling] on a nominal fine.

According to the report, during the investigation, Model Customs Collectorate-Quetta, Gwadar and the Directorate of Investigation and Intelligence had expressed their inability to eradicate the menace of smuggling, making excuses like shortage of manpower and logistics and shifting their responsibilities to law

enforcement agencies. However, the FTO said, it is the prime responsibility of the customs department to prevent smuggling and seize smuggled goods, including petroleum products.

As per the FTO report, illegal petrol pumps could be seen on main roads across Pakistan. "The pumps are visible to everyone but not to customs authorities and law enforcement agencies."

The ombudsman recalled the last year's incident at Hub, where at least 26 people were killed in an accident between a coach and an oil tanker. "This should be an eyeopener for law enforcement agencies as well as the customs department as the incident was a result of their negligence and irresponsible attitude."

STAFF rEpOrT

After successfully completing the export quota of 250,000 metric tonnes of rice to China, Pakistan would now export an additional 500,000MT of rice to the country, Advisor to Prime Minister on Commerce, Investment and Industries Abdul Razak Dawood said on Wednesday. In his tweet, the adviser said that after completing the export quota, the government of Pakistan approached the government of China for an additional 500,000MT of rice which was accepted by the Chinese government. He also requested all members of Rice Exports Association of Pakistan (REAP) to take advantage of this golden opportunity. According to the Global Agricultural Information Network report from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), Pakistan’s rice exports hit a record of 4.5 million tonnes during market year 2018-19. “The continuing devaluation of the Pakistani rupee against the dollar, down 40pc since December 2017, is helping maintain the export momentum,” the report said. Favourable weather in rice producing areas has set the USDA’s market year 201920 rice production estimate at 7.5 million for Pakistan.

SECP warns investors of third-party accounts, unlicensed brokers ISLAMABAD SYEDA MASOOMA

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) on Wednesday issued a statement on its official Twitter handle, guiding capital market investors on the use of broker accounts. The post came as part of SECP’s investor education initiative.

The statement warned that if an investment is made in the name of someone other than the investor’s, it is not secure.

“The risk stems from the investor not being the

legal owner of the money invested in someone else’s name. Such investment is also prone to fraud, especially without having Broker and CDC [Central Depository Company] accounts in an investor's own name.”

SECP highlighted that the broker might also use the money for churning in the market for his own benefit. “Only legitimate owners and account holders can file claims in case of default of broker,” said the post, adding, “SECP will not entertain your complaint in case you traded through third-party accounts”.

Previously, SECP had also issued a set of guidelines for investors, advising them to always deal with licensed brokers registered with the commission.

The respective post on social media had also warned investors of the risks associated with unlicensed brokers and noted that neither Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) nor SECP would entertain complaints arising out of dealings with unlicensed brokers.

It is pertinent to mention that PSO is a public limited company under the administrative control of the Ministry of Energy (Petroleum Division). It was incorporated under the Company’s Act, 2017, and governed by the Marketing of Petroleum Products (Federal Control) Act, I974.

Under Section 6 of the Act, the federal government may appoint a managing director under Sub-Section (l) of Section 5 of the Act, subject to an order. The MD should hold office during the pleasure of the federal government and on such terms and conditions of appointment as the federal government may determine. Moreover, as per Rule 5(2) of the Public Sector Companies Corporate Governance Rules 2013 as amended up to 2017 (the Rules), the board shall evaluate candidates based on fit and proper criteria and guidelines specified by the commission for appointment to the position of the chief executive and recommend at least three candidates to the government for its concurrence.

top court grills FBr in illegal tax refund case ISLAMABAD STAFF rEpOrT

The Supreme Court on Wednesday expressed annoyance over the Federal Board of Revenue and grilled its Acting Chairperson Nosheen Javed Amjad for failing to submit inquiry report in the tax refund case within stipulated time.

The court had earlier directed the FBR to complete the inquiry in illegal tax refund case within two weeks. During the hearing on Wednesday, Chief Justice of Pakistan Gulzar Ahmed asked the FBR officials about the absence of FBR Chairman Shabbar Zaidi from the court. The acting chairperson informed the court that he was ill and admitted to a hospital. "I know how ill he is," the chief justice remarked. "We had directed him to complete the inquiry in illegal tax refund case, but no inquiry has been conducted so far." CJP Gulzar continued, "We are not here to listen to stories... billions of rupees have been plundered and that FBR is not bothered about it. If you don't want to work, then leave the seat."

The acting FBR chairperson said that inquiry was underway following the approval of Prime Minister's Office. Justice Gulzar observed that the FBR was busy in "other work" but was not paying heed to the court orders. "Had the money gone from your own pocket, you wouldn't be spending a single minute at home." The court adjourned the hearing for two weeks.

MARKET DAILY

Bears dominate as KSE-100 drops 546 points KARACHI STAFF rEpOrT

After recovering some losses in the previous session, the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) fell back in the grip of bears as investors took a cautious stance amid geopolitical tensions.

Foreign investors remained net buyers for the second consecutive session on Tuesday, as a net inflow of $3.68 million was recorded with major buying in the cement sector (net inflow of $1.35 million).

The KSE-100 Index, which opened at 41,493.63, slid to its intraday low at 41,173.95 after losing 730.52 points. It closed lower by 546.91 points at 41,357.56. The KMI-30 Index declined by 641.27 points to end at 67,546.41, while the KSE All Share Index fell short by 364.90 points, closing at 29,010.85.

Out of the total traded shares, only 42 advanced while 267 declined.

Sectors that added negativity to the index included banking (-147.62 points), oil & gas exploration (-77.29 points) and

power generation & distribution (-61.61 points). Among the companies, Habib Bank Limited (HBL -104.21 points), Pak Petroleum Limited (PPL -49.40 points) and Hub Power Company Limited (HUBC 42.47 points) dented the index the most.

The overall trading volumes improved from 206.89 million in the previous session to 280.07 million. K-Electric Limited (KEL -3.28pc) topped the volume chart, followed by The Bank of Punjab (BOP +0.60pc) and TRG Pakistan Limited (TRG -3.62pc). The scripts had

exchanged 39.46 million, 38.19 million and 11.55 million shares, respectively.

It was another tough day for the automobile assembling sector which lost 2.89pc from its cumulative market capitalisation. Indus Motor Company Limited (INDU -4.51pc), Hinopak Motors Limited (HINO -4.62pc), Ghandhara Industries Limited (GHNI -5.00pc) and Honda Atlas Cars (Pakistan) Limited (HCAR -4.07pc) all closed in the red zone.

Pak Suzuki Motor Company (PSMC -4.95pc) on Wednesday announced that it

would observe four non-production days (Mondays) in the ongoing month.

Furthermore, Sazgar Engineering Works Limited (SAZEW +0.13pc), in a notification sent to the exchange, disclosed its production and sales data for December 2019. According to the notification, 1,189 units were produced while only 615 units were sold.

Moreover, Honda Atlas Cars Limited (HCAR -4.07pc) has jacked up the prices of various models by Rs20,000-100,000, effective from Jan 16.

5 HearttHrobs of 2019, still leading in 2020 In every age and era, we get a huge crush on a particular drama\film actor. Not just for their real personality, but for their performances, their characters in the play and their huge influence on people. We have listed down our favorite men from our Entertainment industry and you all have to agree that these names deserved to be on our radar. By Daniyal MehMooD

SHEHERYAR MUNAWWAR

AHAD RAZA MIR

IMRAN ASHRAF

Sheheryar Munawar, born 9 August 1988, is a Pakistani actor and film producer. He is notable for his role in ‘Mere dard ko jo zubaan mile’ for which he won the best new sensation award at HUM awards. After that, he took roles in Zindagi Gulzar hai, Aasmanon pe likha and other serials. Parey Hut Love and Project Ghazi are his 2019 projects according to which he’s earned his name to be on top in our list.

Ahad Raza Mir, born on 29 Sep 1993, is a Pakistani actor, producer, singer, and writer. He is known for his roles in Pakistani television serials and for his appearance in a musical show.

His 2019 serials Ehd-e-Wafa and Yeh dil mera are a hit on Pakistani television just like his previous serials such as Aangan and Yaqeen ka safar. He’s loved by the audiences and has a hefty following of 915k on Instagram at an age of just 26 years old.

Imran Ashraf being on the list should be no surprise after a masterpiece of performance by him in “Ranjha Ranjha Kardi” that gathered applaud from all over Pakistan and was a reason for his sudden rise to fame. Born on 11th September 1989 in Peshawar, Imran is a Pakistani actor and a writer who started his acting career in 2011 and has gained recognition for his performance in Dil Lagi, Dil mom ka Diya and Tabeer. His 2019 projects include Jaal, Inkar and Kahin deep jaley.

HAMAYUN SAEED

HAMZA ALI ABBASI

Humayun Saeed born on 27 July 1971 is a Pakistani actor and producer. Even after so many years, he is still stealing the attention of the audience and is ruling the film and drama industry. His 2019 drama ‘Mere peas tum ho’ was a huge success because of his exemplary acting and dialogue delivery and effortlessly original expressions. Saeed has a substantial fan following in Pakistan since the beginning of his career and he was also ranked amongst the highest-paid TV actors of his time. In recent years, he has starred in a number of commercially successful films and has gained the title of “Box Office King in Pakistan”. His 2019 movies include Project Ghazi and Love you Jatta.

Hamza Ali Abbasi, the renowned artist, anchor, director and model was born on June 23, 1984.

Dally in the dark was his first play after which he was featured in “The glorious resolve” by Bilal Lashari. His projects such as Pyare Afzal, Main hoon Shahid Afridi, and Waar have been loved by the audience and his 2019 Ali was no different which caught the attention of masses. He has a massive following of almost 442k followers on Instagram.

In 1967, the Nigerian Civil War ground to a halt for two days because both sides wanted to watch Pelé play in an exhibition soccer match.

Winston Churchill's mother was born in Brooklyn.

JUNAID MURTAZA NAMED COUNTRY MANAGING DIRECTOR OF L’ORÉAL PAKISTAN!

HOLLYWOOD BOLLYWOOD

Junaid Murtaza has been appointed the new Country Managing Director of L’Oréal Pakistan with effect from July 1st 2019. Junaid Murtaza, a LUMS alumnus of 2008 began his career with Unilever Pakistan and led an accelerated career path through various successful stints in Marketing & Sales.

His journey in L’Oréal began in 2013 in Pakistan, where he last held the position of Marketing Director - Consumer Products Divi-

sion bringing strong transformation and acceleration for the business, extending the reach of L’Oréal Paris and Garnier brands to the consumers of Pakistan.

In 2016, he moved to the Global L’Oréal Headquarters Paris, France as Zone Marketing Director for Pan Africa & Middle East region. Ju-

naid returned to Pakistan in October 2018 as the General Manager for L’Oréal Pakistan Consumer Products division. In just a span of 9 months, Junaid Murtaza succeeded the position of Country Managing Director where he is the Chief Executive for L'Oréal Pakistan subsidiary, being one of the youngest Country Man-

aging Director in the L'Oréal world.

“Being the global leaders in beauty, L’Oréal has been able to build a strong foundation in Pakistan in the last 10 years. Our ambition is to take this further and democratize the best of beauty for the Pakistani consumer, building more Relevance, Reach and Purpose. Pakistan and our people have an immense potential to be on the global stage.

Jim Cummings is the voice of Winnie the Pooh.

He calls sick kids in hospitals and chats with them in character.

'The Batman' Set Pics Show Robert Pattinson, Colin Farrell Characters

Gal Gadot Saves The Day In 'Wonder Woman 1984' Images

Ishaan Khatter on Shahid Kapoor’s Kabir Singh

Matt Reeves has started filming The Batman where set images posted to social media reveal Robert Pattinson and Colin Farrell's respective characters as well as Gotham City.

It's unclear if the images actually feature the actors or stunt doubles or stand-in actors, but Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne can be seen on a motorcycle sporting dark hair where he has a mask over his face and is wearing a large backpack.

Fans are already comparing the motorcycle scene to something out of the DC Comics "Batman: Year One" graphic novel.

A second set image reveals who may be Colin Trevorrow, or a stand-in actor, possibly as the Emperor Penguin character from the DC Comics, as the actor sports blond hair. In the comics, Emperor Penguin used to be the right hand of the regular Penguin and is named Ignatius Ogilvy, though when announcing the casting news, director Matt Reeves did tease Farrell is playing "Oz," so exactly what is happening remains to be seen.

New images featuring Gal Gadot in Wonder Woman 1984 have been released featuring the actress performing various superhero feats. The first image features Gal Gadot in front of the U.S. Capitol running in the street where soldiers can be seen behind her; the second looks to be from the mall scene where Diana Prince has captured a would-be thief and makes fun of the apprehensions, with the third also at the mall scene featuring Wonder Woman swinging in with her magic lasso.

Additional images below include previously released pic as well as a bunch from the recent Brazil CCXP convention where the Wonder Woman 1984 trailer debuted.

Wonder Woman 1984 gets released June 5, 2020 release directed by Patty Jenkins starring Gal Gadot as the titular character, Chris Pine as Steve Trevor, Kristen Wiig as The Cheetah, Pedro Pascal as Max Lord, Robin Wright as Antiope and Connie Nielsen as Hippolyta. Charles Roven, Deborah Snyder, Zack Snyder, Patty Jenkins, Stephen Jones and Gal Gadot are producing the film.

Ishaan Khatter has said his brother Shahid Kapoor’s character in the film Kabir Singh was “flawed” and it was more of a “cautionary tale”. During his appearance on Neha Dhupia’s radio show No Filter Neha, Ishaan also spoke about the film’s ending and what it implied. Ishaan said that he had already watched the original Arjun Reddy twice before he sat to watch Kabir Singh. The actor claimed that he felt empathetic towards the character and was also affected by it.

Ishaan said, “I loved him and I hated him. I was compelled to know more about his story. I saw the character as a very flawed guy. I saw the character not as an example of somebody to learn from or live your life like. But I saw the character as somebody who is going through ups and downs, most of the downs created by himself and his own actions. It was more of a cautionary tale for me. This guy through his choices had led himself on a path of self destruction.”

Talking about its climax scene, Ishaan said, “It was a director’s choice. It could have ended very differently.

CMYK

Thursday, 9 January, 2020

14 SPORTS

Mane crowned africa's 2019 Player of the year

Cairo Agencies

Liverpool star Sadio Mane was

crowned on Tuesday as Africa's 2019 Player of the Year for the first time at an awards gala in Egypt.

The 27-year old Senegalese

Federer, Serena headline Aussie bushfire charity match

striker was up against his Liverpool teammate Mohamed Salah, the Egyptian who won the award the last two years, and Algerian Riyad

Mahrez of Manchester City.

"I am really happy and at the same time I am really proud to win this award," said Mane at the ceremony organised by the Confederation of African Football in the Egyptian Red Sea city of Hurghada.

"It's a big day for me."

Mane became the second star from Senegal to be named African Player of the Year after El Hadji Diouf, who was the continent's best player in 2001 and 2002.

He scored 34 goals and produced 12 assists in 61 appearances in 2019, according to CAF statistics.

Salah's tally stood at 26 goals and 10 assists in 55 matches while Mahrez accounted for 14 goals and 18 assists in 48 games last year.

The key Senegalese player shared the 2018/19 Premier League Golden Boot award with Salah and Arsenal's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from Gabon.

"I would love to thank all the Senegalese people. They have been for me all the time, they push me," said Mane, extending sincere gratitude to people from his village Bambali.

Job only half done for Guardiola as Man City outclass Man Utd

BrisBane

London

Agencies

Agencies

Superstars Roger Federer, Serena Williams and Rafael Nadal will headline an exhibition match ahead of the Australian Open to raise money for bushfire relief, organisers said Wednesday. Dozens of vast blazes, which continue to burn across eastern Australia, have killed 25 people since the start of the disaster in September and destroyed more than 1,800 homes. Milder conditions are providing a reprieve for firefighters, although more dangerous weather is forecast for later in the week. Tennis Australia last week announced a fundraising exhibition match at Melbourne's Rod Laver Arena -- centre court at the Australian Open -for January 15, the week before the opening Grand Slam of the year. The players were revealed Wednesday with Naomi Osaka, Caroline Wozniacki, Nick Kyrgios and Stefanos Tsitsipas joining Federer, Williams and Nadal. "For a period of about twoand-a-half hours we're going to be showcasing the game, but also coming together as a community to play our part in the relief effort," said Tennis Australia chief Craig Tiley.

Pep Guardiola warned Manchester City of Manchester United's powers of recovery after his side outclassed their city rivals 3-1 at Old Trafford to put one foot in the League Cup final.

The holders were rampant before the break as Bernardo Silva's wonder strike, Riyad Mahrez's cool finish and an own goal from Andreas Pereira put City well on course for a third straight final.

United's captain for the evening Marcus Rashford restored some pride for the hosts to reduce the deficit 20 minutes from time, but they face a huge task when the sides meet again for the semi-final, second leg on January 29.

However, Guardiola remains wary after Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men recovered from losing 2-0 at home to Paris Saint-Germain in last season's Champions League last 16 to progress.

"It's a good result, but it is not over because it is United," Guardiola told Sky Sports.

error-strewn nadal leads spain into atP cup quarter-finals BrisBane Agencies

World number one Rafael Nadal overcame an error-strewn performance and Yoshihito Nishioka's brave challenge to lead Spain into the ATP Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday.

The 19-time Grand Slam winner made 36 unforced errors before beating Japan's Nishioka 76 (7/4), 6-4 in two hours and seven minutes.

Unbeaten Spain -- who won the revamped Davis Cup in Madrid in November -- finished top of Group B with world number 10 Roberto Bautista Agut downing Go Soeda 6-2, 6-4 to secure the tie. Nadal has yet to drop a set but he looked sluggish at times ahead of the Australian Open, where he aims to equal Roger Federer's record tally of 20 Grand Slam titles. The long exchanges against an unwavering Nishioka seemed to take a physical toll on Nadal, who appeared weary in Spain's first day-session tie in the hot Perth conditions. "It's the first time I played under these heavy conditions, so the feeling on court is completely different," Nadal said. "I played against an opponent who has started the season on fire." Nadal struggled to find his rhythm against the defensive prowess of 24-year-old Nishioka, who counter-attacked superbly to break twice in an engrossing first set, but couldn't close it out in the 10th game. Nadal capitalised and drew first blood after claiming a tense tie break.

The 33-year-old remained under pressure in the second set and was forced to fend off three break points in the sixth game, before eventually pulling away. Japan surprisingly finished second in Group B after world number 13 Kei Nishikori and Yasutaka Uchiyama, their third best player, withdrew before the tournament and they are still in the mix to advance to the knockout stages in Sydney.

Unbeaten serbia through to atP cup quarters BrisBane Agencies

"Last season is a good example against PSG. Hopefully in front of our fans we can make a good game and reach the final."

United have shown their ability to win at the Etihad already this season as they tore City apart on the counter-attack to shock the Premier League champions on home soil just a month ago.

But City restored their recent dominance of this fixture with a third consecutive win at Old Trafford and a fourth in five away der-

bies since Guardiola took charge.

The Catalan responded to the problems United posed his side last time out by deploying an extra midfielder with both City strikers Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus left on the bench.

Guardiola's tactical plan worked to perfection as a fluid front four of Silva, Mahrez, Raheem Sterling and Kevin De Bruyne were too fleet of foot and thought for a United defence without the injured Harry Maguire.

Serbian superstar Novak Djokovic said Wednesday that the ATP Cup was the ideal preparation for his bid to win an eighth Australian Open crown. Speaking after Serbia beat Chile 2-1 to remain unbeaten after the roundrobin stage, Djokovic said he wasn’t fazed by having to play three top players in a row to start the season. Djokovic made it three singles wins from three with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Cristian Garin, the world number 33, to win the tie for Serbia after Dusan Lajovic earlier beat Nicolas Jarry 6-2, 7-6 (7/2). Jarry and Alejandro Tabilo salvaged some pride for Chile when they beat Viktor Troicki and Nikola Cacic in the doubles 6-3, 7-6 (7/2).

"I've never minded, to be honest, to face tough adversity from the blocks and have high-intensity matches from day one of the season," Djokovic, a 16-time grand slam winner, said.

"I had Kevin Anderson who was playing some extraordinary tennis. I thought it was the toughest match I've played here in Brisbane.

"And again against (Gael) Monfils, even though it was straight sets, it was still a lot of rallies and it was quite long and exhausting.

Australia reveals 'new concept' for women's tennis after scheduling row BrisBane Agencies

Australian tennis officials said they were working on a "new concept" for women's tennis on Wednesday after top players complained they were being shunted aside to make way for the men's ATP Cup. Brisbane International tournament director Mark Handley said tennis in Australia was in a "transitional period" following the introduction of the ATP Cup, whose inaugural edition is being played in Brisbane, Sydney and Perth.

Maria Sharapova and Sloane Stephens have strongly criticised scheduling at the WTA Brisbane International, also being played at the Queensland Tennis Centre, saying women's players had been unfairly relegated to the outside courts.

"It feels like a little bit of a second-hand event," said Sharapova, while fellow Major-

winner Stephens fumed: "It was what the ATP (men's tour) wanted -- they got what they wanted, girls to the side, that's kind of how it always is." Tournament director Handley, while not directly addressing the concerns, said Tennis Australia was looking at a new format for the women in 2021.

"We are working with the tours to create an Australian summer of tennis that is an incredible global launch to the international tennis season," Handley said.

"The ATP Cup is the first step in that and now we are in great talks with the WTA about a new concept and are really excited about the potential in this space."

Initial responses were positive, with former US Open runner-up Madison Keys saying she would welcome a women's version of the ATP Cup. "I definitely love the idea of adding a team event into the season," she said.

"I think it would be really fun. We all

love playing Fed Cup, and I think being able to do that during the season for a WTA event would be really fun."

Sixteen-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic also said a women's version of the ATP Cup would work well.

"Why not? I mean, I think this kind of format is something that would, I think, bring benefits as well and kind of positive outcomes for the WTA tour," he said, after Serbia made it three wins from three in the round-robin stage with a 2-1 win over Chile. "Of course, I don't know what are the numbers and how is that going to affect their schedule, but it would make sense, considering the fact that we have the ATP Cup also played in Australia.

"They're playing the WTA tour here in Brisbane as well, in Auckland, so most of the top players from the female side are in Australia already, so I think it would make sense."

CMYK

Thursday, 9 January, 2020

SPORTS 15

sri lanka coaching staff have 'serioUs work to do': Mickey arthUr CoLomBo

B

Agencies

OTH Sri Lanka and their new coach Mickey Arthur weren't supposed to be facing the tough questions from the press in Indore on Tuesday night. Zimbabwe had been slated to tour India and Arthur was in line to coach defending champions Central Stags in the ongoing Super Smash T20 competition in New Zealand. But here they are, 0-1 behind.

This is Arthur's first T20I series as Sri Lanka's coach, and he faces the challenge of overseeing their T20 World Cup plans, which will begin with qualifying for the tournament in Australia later this year. That bit probably became even tougher after Sri Lanka suffered their fourth successive defeat in the shortest format. The margins of those defeats have been particularly alarming - 134 runs, nine wickets, seven wickets and seven wickets again.

After Sri Lanka were asked to bat on a flat pitch in Indore, opener Avishka Fernando looked good, especially when he drove or punched on the up. Kusal Perera and Danushka Gunathilaka weren't as fluent, but every time they backed away and targeted the off side,

they looked threatening. Each of the top three made at least 20, but nobody could press on and make it count.

Sri Lanka nearly soaked up 50 dots in their innings, which cost them the match, according to Arthur. "We had a couple of our batsmen getting starts, but starts are not good enough," he said at the post-match press conference.

"Somebody needs to get a 60 or 70 or 80 for us, and that is going to be the journey for us. It is quite a young batting unit and if you look at how we average, we average about what we got [142 for 9] tonight.

"For us as coaching staff and players we have got some serious work to do in terms of game-plan, match awareness and playing the big moments. I think we had 49 dot balls tonight, which is too many, as the best teams in the world [would] have 25 dot balls. That is something we need to keep working on."

Arthur said that by piling up the dot balls, Sri Lanka applied too much pressure on themselves, which prompted the middle and lower-order batsmen to take multiple risks, which is a bad place to be against a skillful India attack. Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Sri Lanka's hero in Pakistan, Dasun Shanaka, their finisher, and Isuru Udana, their No.1 allrounder, were all out

Top Pakistani golfers eye Bank AL Habib’s Rashid Habib Memorial Golf Tournament 2020 karaChi Press releAse

This year Matloob Ahmed will defend his title at the Bank AL Habib’s 9th Rashid D Habib Memorial National Professional Golf Tournament, the most awaited national golf tournament with prize money of Rs7.9 million will begin on Thursday, January 9 at Karachi Golf Club (KGC). Last year, Matloob had won the tournament with 274 - 14 under.

The main tournament will be played over 72 holes from January 9 to 12 with cut over final 2 days as per Pakistan Golf Federation’s (PGF) rules. The Senior National Professionals & Junior Professionals will also be playing in their respective categories concurrently. In addition, a two-day match for local professionals & caddies of KGC is also underway. This tournament is one of the most prominent golf events in PGF’s calendar with one of the highest prize money and is sponsored by Bank AL Habib. Country’s top golfers have confirmed their participation in the national professional category.

swinging hard at the ball.

Legspin-bowling allrounder Wanindu Hasaranga added a semblance of respectability to Sri Lanka's total by taking the returning Jasprit Bumrah for three fours in a row to close out the innings.

However, 142 for 9 was nowhere near enough to challenge India.

"It was a lack of awareness of the game that was actually required at that

Tom Latham facing month out with fractured finger WeLLington Agencies

Tom Latham has been sidelined for a month after sustaining a fractured finger during the third Test against Australia at the SCG. The injury to his right little finger occurred when Latham, who was standing in as captain for Kane Williamson, took the catch to remove Marnus Labuschagne in Australia's second innings which brought the declaration. He opened in New Zealand's second innings making 1 before falling lbw to Mitchell Starc.

Latham will target a return for the one-day series against India which begins in Hamilton on February 5.

He was the fourth New Zealand player to be injured during the Australia tour.

Lockie Ferguson went down with a calf strain on the opening day in Perth, Trent Boult broke his hand facing Starc at the MCG and Matt Henry suffered a broken finger when struck by a Joe Burns drive

James Anderson a fitness doubt for England's third Test in South Africa JohannesBurg Agenc i e s

James Anderson is a fitness doubt for England's third Test against South Africa, after a side injury limited him to two overs after lunch on the final day of their win at Newlands.

Anderson struck early in the day to remove nightwatchman Keshav Maharaj lbw, and took the new ball immediately before lunch, but did not bowl in the afternoon session, spending much of it off the field. He returned to bowl two overs at the beginning of the evening session, but looked in discomfort throughout and was quickly removed from the attack.

With Jofra Archer and Mark Wood both expected to be fit for next Thursday's Test at Port Elizabeth, and Craig Overton and Chris Woakes also available, it seems unlikely that Anderson will be risked if there are any question marks over his fitness.

"It's his side, but it could be just a little niggle," confirmed Joe Root. "He'll go for a scan, get some treatment, and we'll see how he pulls up going into PE. We'll wait and see."

"We'll assess him in the morning and take it from there," head coach Chris Silverwood told BBC Sport. "We've got to make sure he's all right now.

given time," Arthur said. "And you can see with our players there's some much flair. They've got all the skills, but it's that ability to rotate the strike [that's missing]. And if you're not rotating the strike, that causes you to look and try and play the big shots, which they did and India were good enough to put them under that sort of pressure that causes those type of mistakes."

Arthur, though, is pleased that Sri Lanka have identified a core group and hoped to bring his vast coaching experience to turn things around. He drew confidence from having lifted a Pakistan team that was in similar flux to No. 1 on the ICC T20I rankings. He reckoned that the turnaround might take longer with Sri Lanka and even set his focus towards building a strong pool for the 2021 T20 World Cup in India.

"The exciting thing for me though is that there is a very young core group of players and they are very skilled," Arthur said. "But we need to coach game-plans, match awareness; we need to coach how they can construct innings and that for me is the biggest challenge as a coach. It is kind of like what I stared with in South Africa; it was exactly the same when I was in Pakistan. Pakistan was a team that was ranked No. 9 in T20 cricket and we

"When somebody of Jimmy's quality is potentially going to be missing, it is always going to be a concern for the coach - and concern for the team - because we want him in there. He showed in the first innings that he is a great bowler."

While there are few doubts about Anderson's ability - he took 5 for 40 in the first innings, and removed Zubayr Hamza with a textbook spell of reverse-swing bowling in the second - there remain concerns over his long-term durability.

He bowled 37 overs in total at Newlands, having bowled 33 at Centurion in his first Test match back following the injury that limited him to four overs in last summer's Ashes series.

He spent several months training to get back to match fitness ahead of this tour, using Manchester City's facilities in the UK and arriving in South Africa early as part of an ECB-led camp in Potchefstroom, but said ahead of England's final warm-up game that he had no targets as to how many Tests he would play in the series.

During his recovery, he lengthened his run-up slightly in an attempt to "use my legs a bit more to generate more momentum up to the crease", and his bowling speeds have consistently been slightly higher than usual in this series.

on the opening day in Sydney.

"Lockie Ferguson has returned to running and performing bowling drills. He'll continue to progress over the next couple of weeks with the potential to return to domestic cricket early next month," New Zealand coach Gary Stead said. "Trent has been resting his broken right hand and will return to bowling later this week. He'll be touch-andgo to be available for the India T20 series later this month and we'll continue to monitor him closely over the next few weeks.

"Matt Henry has had his broken left-thumb splinted and will require around a month for it to fully heal. In this time, he will still be able to practise bowling and will look at a return to play early next month.

"Kane, Henry [Nicholls] and Mitch [Santner] are regaining their health after being struck down with Influenza A and will continue be monitored as they slowly rebuild their strength and fitness."

New Zealand will name their squad for the T20I series against India late next week.

got Pakistan to win 11 series in a row--we did not play India--and got ourselves to No. 1 in the world. There were good values because we used the sum of our parts.

There were guys who could hit [the ball]out of the park but we learned how to play to our strengths. And that is kind of what I see with Sri Lanka.

"It is going to be a challenge. We've got eight months to that 2020 World Cup - I am thinking even one World Cup further than that--I am thinking [about] coming back here in 2021 when the guys would be a real finished article, but it is going to take a lot of work. In coaching, that is what your biggest challenge it, and that is why you do it. " Arthur's immediate task is to put the recent heavy defeats behind and help Sri Lanka square the series in Pune on December 10. The tourists will have fond memories of the MCA stadium, having toppled a fullstrength India there in 2016. They might have to do without Udana though. The 31-year old did not bowl in Indore after hurting his back while fielding. Arthur said that he was in "hell of a lot of pain" and that the management will consider recalling former captain Angelo Mathews for Sri Lanka's must-win match in Pune.

haris rauf bags hat-trick in BBl sports desk Melbourne Stars pacer Haris Rauf on Wednesday became the first Pakistani to bag a hat-trick in the Big Bash League (BBL) while playing against Sydney Thunder.

The fast bowler grabbed the wickets of Daniel Sams, Matthew Gilkes and Callum Ferguson and finished with figures of 3/23.

One of his deliveries clocked in at a staggering 151.3km/hr.

The bowling dynamo, who was a product of the Lahore Qalandars development programme, had previously picked a five-fer in his second game for the Stars.

He currently stands among the highest wicket takers in the league.

Isuru Udana ruled out of third T20I against India

Sarfaraz shows improvement in fitness tests

Pune: Sri Lanka allrounder Isuru Udana has been sidelined from the team's must-win third T20I against India in Pune on Friday with a back injury. The 31year had injured himself during India's chase in the second T20I on Tuesday night, while attempting to stop the ball at short third man. Udana immediately hobbled off the field and did not return to take the ball. Udana's injury depleted Sri Lanka's attack although Dasun Shanaka stepped in and bowled four tidy overs, giving up 26 runs. India eventually chased down the target of 143 with seven wickets and 15 balls to spare, handing Sri Lanka their fourth successive defeat in the format.

India are now 1-0 up in the threematch series, with the first T20I in Guwahati having been abandoned without a ball being bowled. After the loss in Indore, Sri Lanka coach Mickey Arthur said that Udana had hurt his back and was in "hell a lot of pain." Despite being ruled out, Udana will work with the physio and stay back with the squad in Pune. Agencies

Former skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed has reportedly shown significant improvement in his form during the recently concluded fitness tests at the National Cricket Academy (NCA), according to local media reports.

The fitness tests for 10 centrally contracted players were held at NCA on Monday and Tuesday where the players' speed, endurance and strength are being monitored.

Sarfaraz has shown significant improvement in his form, while openers Shan Masood and Babar Azam were reportedly on track with their fitness.

The tests, which comprised four sessions were held under the supervision of head coach and chief selector Misbah-ul-Haq and bowling coach Waqar Younis.

Meanwhile, Test captain Azhar Ali, Mohammad Rizwan and Asad Shafiq have been recovering from a viral infection, with no tentative

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sports desk

date announced for their return or test.

Fast bowler Hasan Ali and batsman Fakhar Zaman are awaiting clearance from the medical staff. The former has been nursing fractured ribs since November 2019, whereas Zaman has been suffering from back problems.

It has been reported that Ali, who is currently in rehab at the NCA until January 12, will be undergoing a scan following the completion of his rehab.

It is pertinent to mention here that the players failing to meet the fitness standards will see a 15 percent deduction from their salaries by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

Thursday, 9 January, 2020

NEWS

Pakistan launches diPlomatic efforts to de-escalate me tensions IMRAN URGES US, IRAN TO DE-ESCALATE TENSIONS, TASKS FM QURESHI TO VISIT US, IRAN GEN BAJWA TELLS US OFFICIAL PAKISTAN WILL SUPPORT SAYS WON’T BECOME PART OF ANYONE’S WAR AND SAUDI ARABIA ON ‘PEACE MISSION’ ALL INITIATIVES WHICH BRING PEACE IN REGION iSLAmABAd

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stAff RepoRt

MID tensions brewing in the region, Pakistan has launched diplomatic efforts with Prime Minister Imran Khan directing the foreign minister to visit the United States, Iran and Saudi Arabia on a “peace mission”.

Meanwhile, Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa has also reiterated Pakistan’s stance to support efforts for regional stability.

Amid rising tensions between the US and Iran in the aftermath of the killing of an Iranian general, the prime minister tweeted that Pakistan will not become part of the ongoing conflict.

The premier also asked Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa to contact the military leadership of the three countries to convey a clear message that “Pakistan is ready to play its role for peace but it can never again be part of any war”.

The PM also urged for “immediate measures” to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East in a conversation with an Omani minister.

Talking to Oman’s Minister for Endowment and Religious Affairs Sheikh

Abdullah bin Muhammad bin Abdullah Assalami in Islamabad, the PM expressed “deep concern” over the evolving situation in the region and underscored the imperative of avoiding any further escalation in the conflict.

The PM stressed that Pakistan would not become a party to any regional conflict, recalling that Pakistan suffered greatly due to earlier regional conflicts.

During the meeting, the premier also recalled his earlier attempts to facilitate contacts between the US and Iran as well as Tehran and Riyadh for the resolution of their differences.

“Pakistan would always be a partner for peace and would continue playing its role to defuse tensions, prevent any type of conflict, and preserve peace,” the prime minister was quoted as saying.

Speaking about the imminent visit, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said: “We have started our homework and contacts are being made so as Pakistan could play whatever role we can for the regional peace.

“Pakistan believes that these tensions are not only our interest but these are not in interest of the entire region.

We believe that this region can’t afford another war,” he said and added that Pakistan has been endeavouring to re-

solve the situation and it still desires so.

BAJWA TELLS ESPER PAKISTAN VALUES PEACE: Meanwhile, Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa reiterated Pakistan’s desire for regional peace amid US-Iran tensions, saying Islamabad will endorse all initiatives that would bring peace in the region.

The remarks were made by the army chief in a telephonic conversation with US Defence Secretary Mark Esper

hours after Iran launched rocket attacks on US installations in Iraq to avenge the death of its general.

Following the strikes, US President Donald Trump tweeted “all is well” after the strikes saying that an assessment of damage was ongoing.

US Secretary of Defence Dr Mark T Esper telephoned Chief of Army Staff Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa on Wednesday to discuss the ongoing security situation in the Middle East. “[The] COAS received a telephone call from US Secretary of Defence Dr Mark T Esper. Both discussed the ongoing security situation in the Middle East,” the military’s media wing, the ISPR, said in a statement. “The secretary expressed that the US doesn’t want to seek conflict, but will respond forcefully if necessary.”

The army chief, on his part, said: “We would like the situation to de-escalate & shall support all initiatives which bring peace in the region.”

“We call upon all concerned to avoid rhetoric in favour of diplomatic engagement. We all have worked a lot to bring peace in the region by fighting against terrorism,” Gen Bajwa was quoted as saying by the military spokesperson.

He added that Pakistan would continue to play its constructive part towards

All 176 dead in Ukrainian jet crash TEHRAN Agencies

2543 senior govt officials removed from BISP beneficiaries list Weeks after the government struck over 800,000 names off Benazir Income Support Program (BISP) database, a report revealed on Wednesday that several high-rank officials of federal and provincial governments were also the beneficiaries of the poverty reduction initiative. According to a private media house, amongst the 820,165 names removed from the list, over 2000 individuals were working in different government offices. According to details overall 2543 government officials belonging to Grade-17 till Grade-21 were receiving income support tri-monthly handouts. Some officers were receiving money in the name of their wives and other members of families, which were registered on the list. Balochistan is the province with maximum numbers of government officials i.e. 741, who were receiving handouts of the income support programme. Sindh had 342 government officers of Grade-18 who were registered as eligible persons for the income support programme. Three government officers of Grade-21 were among the list of the beneficiaries of the social protection programme.

59 government officers of Grade-20 and 429 Grade-19 officers were enlisted as beneficiaries of the BISP. Six officers of the Benazir Income Support Programme were also among the people getting these handouts for poor, according to the details.

Moreover, 1240 government officers of Grade-17 were also getting the benefit from the social protection scheme. Earlier, Dr. Sania Nishtar in her press conference had revealed that out of over 800,000 beneficiaries removed from the program, more than 140,000 were those who or their spouses were government employees. She had announced that “those having ownership of a car or paying telephone bills up to Rs1000 will be declared ineligible for the program’s registration”. news Desk

A Ukrainian airliner burst into flames shortly after take-off from Tehran on Wednesday, killing all 176 people aboard in a crash that an initial report blamed on engine failure.

Debris and smouldering engine parts were strewn across a field around 10 km (six miles) from Imam Khomeini airport as rescue workers with face masks retrieved bodies of the victims. Ukraine’s embassy in Iran, citing preliminary information, said the Boeing 737 suffered engine failure and the crash was not caused by “terrorism”.

Carrier Ukraine International Airlines said it was doing everything possible to confirm the cause, and the investigation would also involve Boeing and Ukrainian and Iranian authorities. It was the Kievbased airline’s first fatal accident.

Ukraine President

Volodymyr Zelenskiy said all on board had died.

“My sincere condolences to the relatives and friends of all passengers and crew,” he said in a statement.

He warned against speculation about the crash. “I ask everyone to keep from speculating and putting forth unconfirmed theories about

the crash,” he wrote on Facebook, as he cut short a vacation in Oman and flew back to Ukraine.

“The fire is so heavy that we cannot do any rescue […] we have 22 ambulances, four bus ambulances and a helicopter at the site,” Pirhossein Koulivand, head of Iran’s emergency services, told Iranian state television.

the success of the Afghan reconciliation process, so that “it doesn’t get derailed and region goes towards conflict resolution instead of new conflicts”.

EXPERTS WELCOME PEACE EFFORTS: Former director-general of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Lt. General (r) Asad Durrani told Pakistan Today that it was a welcome sign that Pakistan had decided to play its role for peace talks between Iran and the United States.

“I think Pakistan enjoys a special status in the comity of nations and it would be great if we can play a positive role for peace among friendly countries. We should understand that Pakistan can broker peace in the Gulf and if we could do it, it would be a welcome sign,” he said while talking to Pakistan Today.

Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed said that it was a timely initiative as Pakistan, being in the neighbourhood where the conflict is brewing, values peace and understands the costs of conflict.

“Our bottom line should be clear: US drone strikes on neighbours leaders unacceptable, while Iran needs to give a measured response to Trump’s recklessness,” he said. Senator Mushahid reminded Prime Minister Imran Khan that Pakistan cannot become a part of any new war plans of the US administration.

Netanyahu warns of ‘resounding blow’ if Iran attacks Israel TEL AVIV: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned on Wednesday that Israel would strike a “resounding blow” if attacked by arch-foe Iran, as regional tensions soar after the US killing of a top Iranian general. “Anyone who attacks us will receive a resounding blow,” the premier told a Jerusalem conference after Iran launched a salvo of retaliatory missile strikes on bases used by US troops in Iraq.

Netanyahu has described the target of last week’s US drone strike — Major General Qasem Soleimani, commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards foreign operations arm — as a “terrorist-in-chief”.

“Qasem Soleimani was responsible for the deaths of countless innocent people, he destabilised many countries for decades, he sowed fear and misery and anguish and he was planning much worse,” Netanyahu said. “He was the architect and driver of Iran’s campaign of terror throughout the Middle East and the world.” Agencies

War fears recede as Trump announces iran sanctions CoNTiuNuEd fRom pAgE 01 ‘WE WILL TAKE REVENGE’:A senior Iranian official said on Tuesday that Tehran was considering several scenarios to avenge Soleimani’s death.

Other senior figures have said the Islamic Republic would match the scale of the killing when it responds, but that it would choose the time and place.

“We will take revenge, hard and definitive revenge,” the head of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, General Hossein Salami, told throngs who crowded the streets for Soleimani’s funeral on Tuesday in Kerman, his hometown in southeastern Iran.

Soleimani’s burial went ahead after several hours of delay following a stampede that killed at least 56 people and injured more than 210, according to an emergency official quoted by Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency.

Soleimani’s body had been taken to holy Shia cities in Iraq and Iran, as well as the Iranian capital, Tehran, before ar-

riving to be buried in the city cemetery’s “martyrs section”, according to the semi-official news agency ISNA. In each place, huge numbers of people filled thoroughfares, chanting: “Death to America” and weeping with emotion. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei wept as he led prayers in Tehran.

Prompted by the strong public backlash over Soleimani’s killing on Iraqi soil, lawmakers in Iraq voted on Sunday to demand the removal of all foreign forces from the country.

More than 5,000 US troops remain in Iraq along with other foreign forces as part of a coalition that has trained and backed up Iraqi security forces against the threat of Islamic State militants.

A Nato official told Reuters it would move some of its several hundred trainers out of Iraq. Canada said on Tuesday some of its 500 Iraq-based forces would be temporarily moved to Kuwait for safety reasons.

French President Emmanuel Macron, in a phone call on Tuesday to Iran’s president, Hassan Rouhani, urged Tehran to avoid any actions that could worsen regional tensions.

US officials have said Soleimani was killed because of solid intelligence indicating forces under his command planned attacks on US targets in the region, although they have provided no evidence.

Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said 13 “revenge scenarios” were being considered, Fars news agency reported.

Even the weakest option would prove “a historic nightmare for the Americans”, he said.

DELIBERATELY MISSED US FORCES? Meanwhile, Iran is believed to have deliberately avoided US military casualties during retaliatory missile strikes on bases housing American troops in Iraq, following the US killing of an Iranian general, according to US and European government sources fa-

miliar with intelligence assessments.

The sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said on Wednesday the Iranians were thought to have targeted the attacks to miss US forces to prevent the crisis from escalating out of control while still signalling Iranian resolve in response to the US killing of Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani in Iraq last week.

A source in Washington said overnight that early indications were that there were no US casualties following the strikes on the al-Asad airbase and another facility in Erbil. Other US officials declined to comment.

Iran was believed to have tried to hit certain parts of the bases to minimise casualties and especially to avoid US fatalities, three sources said. This assessment included some intelligence from inside Iran confirming the nature of the attack plan, they said.

“They wanted to respond but almost certainly not to escalate,” one of the US sources said.

Published by Arif Nizami at Plot No 66-C, 1st Floor, 21st Commercial Street, Phase-II (Extension), DHA Karachi and printed at Ibn-e-Hassan Printing Press, Hockey Stadium, Karachi. Ph: 021-35381208-9. Email: newsroom@pakistantoday.com.pk

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