Author: Arif ArifArman

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The state-run radio of Pakistan reported that 3,248 Afghan refugees have been returned to Afghanistan from this country. According to Pakistani authorities, since the deadline for the expulsion of undocumented migrants was set, more than 51,000 Afghans have been deported. Jan Achakzai, Balochistan Province’s Minister of Information, highlighted Pakistan’s intensified efforts to combat illegal immigration. He emphasized that these actions go beyond Afghan refugees, with measures like the November 1st expulsion deadline applying to all undocumented immigrants in the province, showcasing the government’s dedication to upholding order and security. Additionally, as reported by the Express Tribune, a specialised…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The elusive “freedom” and “economic prosperity” of Azad Kashmir seems to have started evaporating into thin air as a powerful rights-movement has surfaced in a land which has remained mostly under the direct rule of Pakistani state ever since 1947. The scenes of shutter down strikes across major cities of Azad Kashmir point towards the grim situation in the region. Kashmir interestingly holds a key position in the entire narrative of Pakistani establishment when it comes to defending the utilization of 60% of the Pakistan’s national budget (direct and indirect combined) for sustaining a security state. There have…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The United States is imposing sanctions on three China-based companies that it said on Friday have worked to supply missile‐applicable items to Pakistan’s ballistic missile program. A U.S. State Department statement identified the firms as General Technology Limited, Beijing Luo Luo Technology Development Co Ltd, and Changzhou Utek Composite Company Ltd. It said General Technology had worked to supply brazing materials used to join components in ballistic missile rocket engines and in the production of combustion chambers; Beijing Luo Luo had worked to supply mandrels and other machinery, which can be used in the production of solid-propellant rocket…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Pakistan, the biggest and brazen exporter of terrorism in the world, is marching, tweeting, and using every opportunity to condemn Israel’s attack on the Islamic terrorist organization, Hamas, calling it a genocide and the end of humanity. The act has exposed its double standards. Pakistan has forgotten its treacherous invasion and genocide of innocent Kashmiri Hindus and Christians in the October of 1947. Begging and crying for more than 75 years got them international sympathy. But in the 21st century, it is not hard to identify these Islamic hardliners that displayed their jihadi mindset, just two months into…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The International Buddhist Confederation (IBC) will celebrate International Abhidhamma Divas on the auspicious occasion of Sharada Purnima, the full moon day, on October 28, 2023, a press release said. This day commemorates the descent of Lord Buddha from the celestial realm of the 33 divine beings (Tavatimsa-devaloka) to Sankassiya, known today as Sankisa Basantapur in the Farrukhabad district of Uttar Pradesh, India. The significance of this location is underscored by the presence of the Asokan Elephant Pillar, an enduring marker of this historic event. According to Buddhist texts, after imparting the teachings of Abhidhamma to the Devas with…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: As tensions continue to escalate in the Taiwan Strait, the international community has been engaged in extensive discussions and analysis regarding the potential for an imminent military assault on Taiwan by the Chinese communist regime. This evolving situation has raised concerns and prompted experts and policymakers to closely examine the dynamics at play in the region. Observers and analysts who are closely monitoring these developments believe that while the possibility of an immediate military attack on Taiwan cannot be ruled out entirely, it is unlikely that Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leader Xi Jinping would opt for such a…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: A Norwegian Navy ship shadowed a Chinese container ship investigated over damage to a gas pipeline in the Gulf of Finland for about 15 hours as it sailed along the western coast of Norway on Monday, vessel tracking data showed. Finnish investigators on Tuesday said they were looking into the Chinese vessel, the NewNew Polar Bear, and a Russian-flagged ship, the Sevmorput, as well as other vessels, present in the area when a Baltic Sea pipeline was damaged on Oct. 8. They said the incident was due to “outside activity” and could have been deliberate. The NewNew Polar…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: China’s new home prices fell for the third straight month in September, official data showed on Thursday, dashing hopes of a turnaround in demand during a traditionally peak home buying period despite efforts to revive the crisis-hit property sector. New home prices fell 0.2% month-on-month but narrowed from a 0.3% drop in August, according to Reuters calculations based on National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) data. Prices were down 0.1% from a year earlier, matching August’s decline. China’s property sector, once a key engine of economic growth, has been squeezed by a regulatory crackdown since 2020 as authorities curbed…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Around 1200 Indian nationals including 18 Nepali nationals have been brought back from Israel under ‘Operation Ajay’ and more flights will be planned as per the requirements, the Ministry of External Affairs informed on Thursday. MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi also said that the government is assessing the situation in Israel amid the ongoing war with Hamas. Addressing a press briefing, Bagchi said, “1200 Indians have come back in five flights under operation Ajay, including 18 Nepali nationals…We are assessing the situation and as per the requirements we will plan further flights”. He refuted any reports of Indian casualty…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Nepal’s newly inaugurated Pokhara International Airport built with Chinese help has come under scrutiny and a foreign policy expert called for stern government actions before it turns out to be Nepal’s Hambantota. Former foreign relations advisor to Nepal’s former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, Arun Kumar Subedi called on the government to take stern action after an investigative piece by the New York Times exposed the wrongdoings and flaws at the time of construction of the much-hyped airport. In an interview with ANI, Arun Kumar Subedi said, “Up to now the conditions are analogous, more or less same.…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: This is the story of a Pakistani American businessman with a complex and controversial history, who once aspired to join the Biden administration and later formed connections with former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s government. His journey has been marked by numerous setbacks and allegations, making it an intriguing tale of persistence, deception, and intrigue. At the outset, this individual harbored ambitions of joining the Biden administration, but his efforts fell short. Despite his claims of close ties with President Biden, he had to resort to requesting a congressman for a ticket to the Presidential inauguration ceremony, a fact…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The power sector of Pakistan continues to crumble under the ever increasing burden of Chinese debt. Islamabad attributes the mountainous debt to the faulty power purchase agreements (PPAs) it signed with the Chinese companies. According to recent estimates in Pak media, the country owes PKR 350 billion (around $1.27 billion) to the Chinese independent power producers (IPPs) and the liability has become a sore point in the bilateral relations. Further, the issue is being regularly raised in Pakistan’s negotiations with multilateral lenders, casting a shadow over the fiscal health of the country. The liability and its potential impact…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: In July 2023, after its worst-ever crisis, IMF credited Pakistan’s economy with yet another aid of $3 billion, making it the fourth heavily indebted nation by the Fund. Given the scenario, experts fear that the band-aid solution will only provide short-term relief to the economy unless large-scale reforms are implemented. On the one hand, policy pundits and academicians have been beating the drums in unison, lamenting the inefficacy of foreign aid to Pakistan for over a decade. On the other hand, its leaders have been actively soliciting and lobbying to receive their regular aid. The empirical evidence suggests…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Chinese civil servants and employees of state-linked enterprises are facing tighter constraints on private travel abroad and scrutiny of their foreign connections, according to official notices and more than a dozen people familiar with the matter, as Beijing wages a campaign against foreign influence. Ten current and former employees told Reuters the curbs had been widened since 2021 to include bans on overseas travel, tighter limits on trips’ frequency and duration, onerous approval processes, and pre-departure confidentiality training. They said the measures were unrelated to Covid-19. The individuals’ accounts varied but were consistent in describing heightened scrutiny of…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Australian journalist Cheng Lei, freed last week after three years detained in Beijing, said in her first interview with news channel Sky News Australia that she alternated between feeling “very fragile” like a newborn and feeling like she could fly. Cheng returned home last Wednesday and was reunited with her children aged 12 and 14 in Melbourne, after being released from a Chinese jail. She was met by Foreign Minister Penny Wong at Melbourne’s airport and welcomed back to Australia in a telephone call from Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who had raised her case with Chinese president Xi…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: UN human rights experts on Tuesday called on Pakistan to refrain from deporting Afghan nationals after Islamabad ordered all illegal immigrants, including 1.73 million Afghan citizens, to leave or face expulsion. Pakistani authorities, who have given illegal immigrants until Nov. 1 to leave, linked the measures to their allegations that Afghan nationals were involved in several suicide bombings this year. “We urge Pakistan to uphold the absolute and non-derogable principle of non-refoulement and prevent collective expulsion and forced return,” the experts, a group of UN special rapporteurs, said in a statement. “The lack of domestic asylum laws and…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Continuing the deportation of Afghan migrants from Pakistan, officials in Balochistan province have stated that 5,000 Afghan migrants returned to Afghanistan in the last 15 days. Pakistani media reported on Sunday that these migrants have returned to their country through the Chaman-Spin Boldak border crossing. Afghan refugees in Pakistan are alleging that the Pakistani army is destroying their homes to force them to leave the country. These long-term residents are now turning to refugee advocates for help. Haji Nazar, a Pakistani-based Afghan refugee, stated, “In the last two days, Afghan family camps have been brutally demolished, seemingly without…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Nestled amidst the towering peaks of the Himalayas is an age-old, unbreakable bond between two nations, Bhutan and India, one deeply rooted in spirituality, The Bhutan Live reported. This enduring connection has recently come to the forefront with a delegation of senior monks from Bhutan’s Central Monastic Body (CMB), led by Tshogi Lopen Sangay Khandu, currently on a visit to India, exploring the cultural and spiritual treasures of Delhi and Ladakh. The spiritual relationship between Bhutan and India traces its origins to the teachings of the great Buddhist master, Guru Padmasambhava, affectionately known as Guru Rimpoche in Bhutan,…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: On a sweltering June morning, the new international terminal at the airport in Pokhara, Nepal’s second-biggest city, roared to life with the arrival of a Sichuan Airlines flight from China. A water cannon showered the plane, an Airbus A319, the first international flight to land at the airport since it had opened six months earlier. A throng of people gathered in the arrival area to greet the passengers, wishing them a “hearty welcome” to “the Land of Everest” with their signs. These maiden arrivals were athletes and Chinese officials who had come for a good-will dragon boat race.…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The former chairman of the Bank of China has been arrested over suspicions of bribery and giving illegal loans. Liu Liange, chairman of the state-owned bank from 2019 to 2023, had resigned from his position in March this year. Weeks later, authorities announced Mr Liu was facing corruption charges. The 62-year-old is one of the most senior bankers to be ensnared in President Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption probe into China’s $60 trillion (£49 trillion) financial sector. The push to weed out corruption from the country’s financial industry appears to be ramping up, with officials in April warning that the…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The steady deterioration in Pakistan-Afghanistan relations over the past year and a half can be traced to the repeated clashes involving the Taliban and the Pakistani military on the Durand Line. The state of the relationship between the two countries is in marked contrast to the expectation prevalent in the Pakistani defense establishment two years ago. The civil-military leadership in Pakistan was ecstatic when Taliban forces took over Kabul and the rest of Afghanistan on August 15, 2021. Many Pakistani leaders and strategic analysts assumed that the advent of Taliban rule would prove to be geopolitically advantageous. However,…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: In 2022, Pakistan and Sri Lanka faced severe economic crises, but their responses and outcomes diverged significantly. Sri Lanka swiftly embarked on a path to a slow yet steady recovery. In contrast, Pakistan’s economic concerns persist, with double-digit inflation, food shortages, mounting foreign debts, excessive defense spending, corruption, external instability, and climate-related shocks. The rapid depreciation of the Pakistani rupee has compounded its economic troubles, including increased fuel import costs. As of July 2023, Pakistan grappled with an alarming inflation rate of 28.3 percent, accompanied by socio-political instability, and it faced the risk of defaulting on its external…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Over 18,000 criminal cases are pending in the Islamabad court, with a majority of the suspects going scot-free as a result of archaic laws, weak prosecution, and flawed investigation, reported Pakistan-based Dawn. According to the statistics provided by the court, 9369 criminal cases are pending with the Sessions Division (West) of Islamabad whereas the total pendency of Sessions Division East is 8,660. Additionally, the total number of pending cases in Islamabad has surged to a total of 18,029. In 2023, the sessions court convicted suspects in 1143 cases, however, in 661 cases the convicts got acquitted through appellate…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The port city of Pakistan, Gwadar, faced a severe drinking water shortage as citizens announced a complete shutdown to draw attention to the current situation, The Nation reported on Sunday. The water crisis has highlighted the city’s incapability to face such essential shortages. The Nation reported, that for an entire week, Gwadar residents have grappled with a water crisis, and their cries for help seemed to fall on deaf ears. The shutter-down strike, called for by the Citizen Committee Gwadar, led to the closure of businesses, shops, and banks. This drastic measure was the last resort for a…