Today’s top Pakistan current affairs December 25,2020 with download link available in pdf. These are the latest breaking news about Pakistan which will be helpful for aspirants in test preparation of current affairs, Pakistan affairs, General knowledge for NTS, PPSC, CSS, FPSC, KPPSC, SPSC, BPSC, AJKPSC, OTS, PTS, and other Govt Jobs, exams & MDCAT, ECAT Entry test preparation.
One Liner
- Nation celebrates Quaid-e-Azam’s birth anniversary. The nation is celebrating 145th birth anniversary of the founder of Pakistan Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah with traditional zeal and enthusiasm on Friday (today)
- 3.9 magnitude earthquake jolts Sibi and adjoining areas. A mild earthquake hit Balochistan’s Sibi city and its adjoining areas on Friday
- Private Schools Federation announces long march if schools are not reopened on Jan 11. President All Pakistan Private Schools Federation (APPSF), Kashif Mirza has said that as many as 10,000 private schools have been closed in Pakistan thus so far
- Indian troops martyr soccer player in occupied Kashmir. In their fresh act of state terrorism, Indian troops on Friday martyred two youths, including a local footballer, in occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
- PTA issues notices to Google, Wikipedia for promoting ‘blasphemous content’. The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority has issued notices to Google Inc. and Wikipedia for spreading blasphemous content through their platforms.
- No Power Can Undo Pakistan: COAS Bajwa. Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa says no power on earth can undo Pakistan.
- US ‘deeply concerned’ over release of men charged in Daniel Pearl’s murder case by SHC. A day after the Sindh High Court (SHC) ordered the immediate release of the four accused – British-born al-Qaeda leader Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh and his three aides – in the murder of American journalist Daniel Pearl’s case, the United States has expressed concerns over the decision.
- Four terror suspects arrested in Bajaur. The Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) has foiled a major terror bid in tribal district Bajaur by arresting four suspects and seizing a huge quantity of explosive material and two vehicles.
- Today Gold Price In Pakistan, 25th December 2020. Today Gold Price in Pakistan, on 25th, December 2020 are being sold for Rs. 96800 per 10 grams, and the price of Gold is Rs. 112900 per tola in Pakistan today.
Spotlight by The NewsRun
1. COVID-19 IN PAKISTAN
- Pakistan reported 2,152 cases and 85 deaths in the past 24 hours. Pakistan also conducted 39,435 tests in the span of 24 hours (P.S. this data was last updated on December 25 at 7:46am).
- Local state of the art ventilator: There’s a prototype of a locally made ventilator, reportedly equipped with all the features available in imported ones. This prototype was handed over to the Innovation and Testing Center (I&TC), a part of the Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC). The center will test the prototype for around two weeks, then pass it on to the Drug Regulatory Authority for approval. If approved, the ventilator will be designated as registered medical equipment fit for use in Pakistan. During the pandemic, imported ventilators are costing between PKR 4.5 million to PKR 6 million. However, the local ventilators will cost around PKR 1.5 million.
- Another lawmaker dies of COVID: Mohammad Shah Jeelani, from the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), passed away on Thursday due to COVID-19. He was being treated at a private hospital in Karachi. He was also a member of the National Assembly.
- Ventilator availability status: The highest number of ventilators are occupied in Multan (51%), followed by Islamabad (40%), Lahore (35%), and Peshawar (27%).
2. Court orders release of Daniel Pearl’s kidnapper and alleged killer
What’s going on? A provincial court ordered the release of a man charged for kidnapping and killing 38-year-old American journalist, Daniel Pearl. The Sindh High Court (SHC) said Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, a British-Pakistani, has to be released from govt detention by December 27.
The details: Sheikh and three others were convicted in the kidnapping and murder of Pearl. In April this year, the SHC partially overturned Sheikh’s conviction and death sentence. Initially, he was sentenced to death for both kidnapping and murder. However, the SHC set aside Sheikh’s murder conviction, and said he’s only guilty of kidnapping Pearl. The SHC sentenced him to seven years in prison for kidnapping instead. However, since Sheikh was already in prison for 18 years on death row, the SHC decided he’s already done with his prison sentence. The SHC also acquitted Sheikh’s suspected accomplices, who were sentenced to life in prison.
Tell me more: The court keeps saying it can’t find any evidence linking the four men to Pearl’s murder. In July this year, a govt order said Sheikh and his accomplices have to remain in custody for another three months. The govt basically imposed emergency detention powers. This detention measure was extended after the three-month deadline. Now the SHC is saying ‘enough is enough, this continued detention is illegal.’ Pakistan’s govt and Pearl’s family separately petitioned the Supreme Court to hear an appeal against the SHC’s April decision. The Supreme Court will hear these appeals on January 5.
The context: The gruesome incident took place nearly two decades ago. Pearl was a foreign correspondent for The Wall Street Journal when he died. He was doing research on Pakistani militants when he went missing in Karachi on January 23, 2002. Later on, a video of Pearl being beheaded was sent to the US Consulate General in Karachi and posted on the internet. In 2007, Khalid Sheikh Mohammad, the alleged mastermind of the September 11, 2001 attacks, told a US military tribunal that he is the one who beheaded Pearl.
The bottom line: The US State Department issued a statement on Thursday, saying it was “deeply concerned about the court’s decision to release multiple terrorists responsible for the murder of Daniel Pearl.” However, Pakistani authorities are trying to fight Sheikh’s release. Pakistan is already under international pressure to crack down on terrorist groups.
3. The all-male board
The federal cabinet reportedly approved an all male-board atZarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL). This board is apparently in violation of parliament’s 2017 Companies Act, which states that all public interest companies must have women representation on their boards. ZTBL is a public sector financial institution, and an agricultural development bank that works with the farming community. The govt itself keeps reaffirming its support for the social and economic empowerment of women. However, the cabinet still went ahead and approved the all-male board. A finance ministry spokesman insisted there’s no legal requirement to appoint a woman on the ZTBL board. PPP Senator, Sherry Rehman said “this not only breaks the law…but is a stunning indictment of the official culture of open discrimination against women…”
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