Today’s top Pakistan current affairs 23 June, 2021 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
- Lahore: Blast In Jauhar Town Claims Two Lives, Other 16 Injured. A blast has happened in Jauhar Town of Lahore which claimed two lives and others 16 injured while injured included children, women and police personnel.
- Coronavirus Cases Decreased As 39 Died. Pakistan has reported 39 deaths in the last 24 hours by novel coronavirus as the number of positive cases has surged to 950,768. The nationwide tally of fatalities has jumped to 22,073 on Wednesday.
- Oil Tankers Association Announces Strike Across The Country. Oil Tankers Contractors Association (OTCA) has announced strike tomorrow (Thursday) for the fulfillment of their demands.
- US seizes Iranian news websites including Press TV, Al-Alam. US Justice Department said Wednesday it had seized 33 Iranian government-controlled media websites, as well as three of the Iraqi group Kataeb Hezbollah, which it said were hosted on US-owned domains in violation of sanctions.
- Two million doses of Sinovac vaccine arrive in Pakistan. A fresh batch of two million doses of Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine arrived in Pakistan Wednesday, said the NCOC.
- COVID vaccination ongoing at 2000 centres across Pakistan: Dr Faisal Sultan. Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Health Dr Faisal Sultan said that as many as 2000 vaccination centres are being operated across the country to administer COVID jabs
- Dollar price reaches four-month high in Pakistan. The dollar’s price in the open market crossed Rs159 barrier in the open market on Wednesday, which shows the greenback at a four-month high. But experts say the dollar rate may fall in July.
- Jonathan Wells optimistic Peshawar Zalmi’s chances in PSL 2021 final. Peshawar Zalmi’s top-order batsman Jonathan Wells is hopeful that the franchise will be able to lift the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2021 trophy on Thursday.
Spotlight by The NewsRun
1. COVID-19 IN PAKISTAN
- 24-hour recap: Pakistan reported 663 cases and 27 deaths in 24 hours. Pakistan also conducted 39,017 tests in the span of 24 hours (P.S. this data was last updated on June 22 at 7:49 am).
- Pakistan to receive 13 million Pfizer vaccines in 2021: Pakistan signed an agreement with Pfizer Pakistan Monday June 21 to receive 13 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. The vaccines are scheduled to be delivered in 2021, according to Dawn, but no dates have been specified. This comes just days after 1.5 million Sinovac vaccine doses arrived in Pakistan from China amid a temporary vaccine shortage nationwide.
2. PM Khan reiterates supporting peace in Afghanistan, denying US bases in Pakistan
What’s going on? In an opinion piece for The Washington Post, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan said Pakistan wants to partner with the U.S. to support peace in Afghanistan, but reiterated that Pakistan will not allow the U.S. to set up bases in Pakistan. This comes just days after his wide-ranging Axios interview where he said Pakistan will “absolutely not” allow “any bases” or “any sort of action from Pakistani territory into Afghanistan.”
The details: Khan’s focal point in the article is that Pakistan and the U.S. have the same interests at hand for Afghanistan — “a political settlement, stability, economic development and the denial of any haven for terrorists” — but without the use of military force. However, he added that Pakistan will work with any government that enjoys the confidence of the Afghan people, and that Afghanistan cannot be “controlled from the outside.”
Tell me more: Khan also stressed the losses Pakistan has endured from the wars in Afghanistan; more than 70,000 Pakistanis have lost their lives, tourism and investment have “dried up” and while the U.S. has provided $20 billion in aid, Pakistan’s economy has suffered losses of more than $150 billion, he argued. More than half the population in Pakistan’s northwestern tribal areas has been displaced and over 3 million Afghan refugees are still in Pakistan.
The context: Since U.S. President Joe Biden announced in April that all U.S. troops will withdraw from Afghanistan by September 11, Pakistan has been involved in the conversation surrounding peace in Afghanistan. Khan argues that Pakistan “would be targeted for revenge by terrorists again” if a civil war started and it agreed to host U.S. bases, which would likely be used to take action in Afghanistan from Pakistani soil. The key point of his piece, however, was this statement: “Meanwhile, if the United States, with the most powerful military machine in history, couldn’t win the war from inside Afghanistan, how would America do it from bases in our country?”
Looking ahead: Khan believes that economic connectivity and regional trade will lead to peace and security in Afghanistan. He stressed that Pakistan is doing “everything … short of military action” to assist Afghanistan, which is why Pakistan jointly signed the “Extended Troika” statement for a peaceful settlement in Afghanistan.
The bottom line: Pakistan is ready to work with the U.S. to help Afghanistan gain peace and stability, just not at the expense of hosting U.S. bases. Years worth of history and damage to both Pakistan and Afghanistan are Khan’s main justifications for his reasoning.
3. PIA to resume flights to Toronto as Canada lifts travel ban on Pakistan
The Canadian government will begin easing its COVID-19 related border restrictions for fully vaccinated Canadian citizens and other eligible people July 5 onward. Canadians and Permanent Residents traveling to Canada who have received two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine won’t have to quarantine. While border restrictions will still apply to foreign nationals who want to enter the country for nonessential reasons, Canadian transport minister Omar Alghabra said the flight ban on Pakistan will be removed. However, a flight ban between Canada and India will continue till July 21.
4. PPP lawmakers submit bill to protect journalists
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Protection of Journalists and Media Practitioners Bill, 2021 was submitted to the KPK assembly Monday by Nighat Yasmin Orakzai of the Pakistan People’s Party. The bill is set to “promote, protect and effectively ensure the independence, impartiality, safety and freedom of expression of journalists and other media practitioners.”
- Backstory: According to the bill, the government should ensure that counterterrorism and security laws are “not used arbitrarily to hinder the work of journalists.” The bill also states that the journalist’s employer will be responsible for providing adequate insurance and training to journalists who might be at risk of being injured, attacked or killed due to their work. Earlier in the year Orakzai submitted the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Child Marriage Restraint Bill, 2021.
