Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah M. Qureshi appealed to Russia to help Pakistan acquire 5M doses of Sputnik vaccines. Qureshi hopes that dialogue mechanisms, such as Pakistan-Russia IGC and various joint working groups meetings, can resume in-person once the Covid-19 situation has normalized.
The price of Bitcoin was up by almost 12 percent to $39,432, wiping out losses from the past week, but still down 34% from last month’s record high. Meanwhile, most of the coins in the top 20 crypto-list experienced a similar upsurge. Tesla’s CEO said the company would begin accepting Bitcoin transactions if the crypto market shifts in favor of clean energy.
National Geographic has decided for the first time in over a century that the body of water surrounding Antarctica should be considered Earth’s fifth ocean. The “Southern Ocean” is a ring-shaped body of water that extends from Antarctica’s coastline and is twice as large as the United States of America.
Rawan Dweik, a Jordanian girl with down syndrome, memorized the Holy Quran and became the first female to do so. When she realized how smart she was, her mother began teaching her the shortest of the surahs which she memorized very quickly. Moreover, at the age of 6, she enrolled in school, where she excelled. Read more: Zara designer head’s
A Zara designer head was recently reportedly spotted making racist remarks about Palestinians. Zara’s head designer, Vanessa Perilman, allegedly posted the controversial remarks in a message responding to pro-Palestine posts. Consequently, people immediately complained to Zara about this racist and Islamophobic statement. Several people are calling for a boycott of Zara because of its ‘generic’ gesture towards Islamophobia, racism, and discrimination.
On Sunday, Naftali Bennett took office as Israel’s new prime minister, ending Benjamin Netanyahu’s 12-year reign as prime minister. Bennett told cabinet members that we are at the start of a new day. Moreover, he added that the rift between our people must be healed in order for the country to function again.
In an effort to curb the spread of Coronavirus in the kingdom, Saudi Arabia has banned international visitors from performing Hajj 2021. The authorities decided to limit registration for the Hajj pilgrimage this year to citizens and residents of the Kingdom due to the prevalent COVID-19 pandemic. The Hajj and health ministries announced that 60,000 people will perform Hajj this year.
Pakistan’s capital Karachi has been ranked in the list of the world’s least liveable cities. According to the ranking, Pakistan’s financial hub(Karachi) was listed at 7th place and Bangladesh’s capital was listed at 4th. However, Damascus is the world’s least liveable city, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU’s) Global Livability Ranking for 2021.
Budget 2021-22 outlined a number of measures aimed at curbing car prices in the automobile sector. Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin announced tax exemptions for vehicles with an engine size of 850cc during the launch of the federal budget on Friday. Moreover, the government also lowered its sales tax on these cars from 17% to 12.5%.
On Friday, the government presented its third budget, aiming to strike a balance between GDP growth and expenditures. In addition to a crippling budget deficit, Pakistan faces pandemic-induced poverty as well as economic recovery challenges. Budget outlays of Rs8.49 trillion are 19% higher than the revised figure of last year. However, no new taxes will be imposed on the salaried class.