Category: National

Prisoners with mental disorders to no longer be given death penalty: SC

The Supreme Court of Pakistan has said that if a prisoner on death row is unable to comprehend the rationale behind their punishment due to a mental illness, then carrying out the death sentence does not “meet the ends of justice”. The apex court announced the verdict after reserving its judgement on a point whether mentally ill death-row prisoners can be executed.

Indian extremists accuse Rihanna of taking money from Pakistan for supporting farmer’s protests

Rihanna, the famed singer has been called a fool and accused of taking money from Pakistan for speaking in support of farmer’s protests going on in India. After Rihanna tweeted about the issue, her replies were filled with messages from mostly unverified Twitter accounts from India that said that she tweeted that because she has taken money from Pakistan. Guns

Rising leopard population on Margalla Hills linked to a healthy ecosystem

The Islamabad Wildlife Management Board (IWMB) on Tuesday linked the increase in population of leopards dwelling in Margalla Hills National Park (MHNP) to “plenty of game”. Apart from leopards, there is a significant wild boar and monkey population along with barking deer. This also why no case of attacks on livestock has been reported there.

Pakistan’s vaccine drive aims to cover 300,000 health workers within next three weeks

The Pakistani government is planning to vaccinate more than 300,000 frontline health care workers within the next three weeks, the prime minister’s special adviser on health has said. A Pakistan military aircraft brought back the country’s first consignment of COVID-19 vaccines produced by China’s Sinopharm on Monday. The official rollout of the vaccine campaign will start this week on Wednesday, February 3.

MQM founder Altaf Hussain contracts COVID, issues message from ICU

Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) founder Altaf Hussain, who has been away from the public eye for the past few years, has contracted COVID-19 and is currently in an intensive care unit (ICU) at a hospital in the UK. In an audio message released to the public, Altaf revealed that he started seeing symptoms 20 days ago and is currently being treated for the virus. 

PIA to confiscate passports of crew to control slipping away of staff in foreign countries

In a fresh directive, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has revealed that its cabin crew’s passports will be confiscated on arrival abroad. The passports would be returned at the time of check-in on departing flights. The decision was taken in order to control recent incidents of staff “slipping away” in foreign countries. There have been two recent incidents of cabin crew going missing in Canada.

Around seven million doses of AstraZeneca to reach Pakistan by March

Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health, Dr Faisal Sultan has announced that around seven million doses of AstraZeneca would reach Pakistan in the first quarter of the current year. The doses of the vaccine will be given to the public free of cost. Pakistan’s vaccine drive starts next week, beginning with frontline healthcare workers.

How to get the COVID vaccine in Pakistan: Eight-step guideline by NCOC

The National Command and Control Centre (NCOC) has released an eight-step procedure to get the COVID-19 vaccine in Pakistan. The plan aims to vaccinate people under an integrated digital system following the best international practices, according to a statement by the NCOC. All details of immunisation will be handled through the National Immunisation Management System, which the federal government developed last year. 

Pakistan to stop issuing manual visas from next month

Pakistan will stop issuing manual visas from next month and has asked non-resident Pakistanis and others interested in travelling to the country to apply online for electronic or e-visas. This change applies to all Pakistani missions and embassies across the globe will stop issuing manual visas from Feb 1. Pakistan stopped issuing manual passports several years ago.

PIA pilot spots ‘extraordinary’ object in Pakistani skies

The Pakistan International Airlines has confirmed that the captain of a Lahore-bound commercial flight, PK-304, had spotted “an extraordinary object” hovering in the sky in the airspace between Multan and Sahiwal on January 23. A PIA spokesman said that the captain saw something over 1,000 feet above his aircraft, which was at an altitude of 35,000 feet.