Saturday, January 29th, 2022
Ukraine’s Zelensky urges Russia to take ‘concrete steps’ for peace
MOSCOW: Russia must confirm the “absence of intentions to attack” Ukraine and its readiness to negotiate by “taking concrete steps” for peace, the Ukrainian president said. Speaking to reporters on Friday evening in the capital Kyiv, Volodymyr Zelensky underlined that dialogue between the two countries could begin “at least with the issue of release of detainees.” “Does anyone enjoy the fact that people are in prison? What’s the point?” he questioned. He stressed that if Russia has any issues with Ukraine, it would be necessary “to meet and talk, and not to bring troops to the UkrainianRead More
Battling Barty breaks 44-year hoodoo to win Australian Open
An imperious Ashleigh Barty became the first Australian to win her home Grand Slam in 44 years on Saturday, halting the charge of fearless American Danielle Collins in straight sets. The world number one was 5-1 down in the second set but came storming back to win on a tiebreak and sweep past the 27th seed 6-3, 7-6 (7/2) to be crowned Australian Open champion in front of an expectant Rod Laver Arena crowd. It was a third Slam title for the 25-year-old after her breakthrough French Open success in 2019 and Wimbledon lastRead More
Decades-long deep Pak-China relationship grows stronger: PM
ISLAMABAD, Jan 29: Prime Minister Imran Khan Saturday while expressing his eagerness to attend the Beijing Winter Olympics 2022 during his upcoming visit to China, said that the time-tested ties between the two countries had grown strongly over a period of time. During an interaction with the Chinese media, the prime minister said both countries had bonds of friendship spanning over a period of 70 years, further cemented with the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). He said “There is a feeling in Pakistan that China always stood with us inRead More
Finland says diplomats’ cellphones were monitored via Pegasus spyware
Finland on Friday said that the cellphones of its diplomats had been monitored via controversial Pegasus spyware, developed by a private Israeli firm. The highly sophisticated malware infected users’ Apple or Android phones without their noticing and without any action on the user’s part, the Finnish Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Without pointing out who specifically might have been behind the case, the ministry said that perpetrators might have been able to harvest data from the devices they monitored. However, the ministry claimed that information transmitted by phone isRead More
Two Iraqi children killed in an explosion in capital Baghdad
Baghdad, JAN 29: Two Iraqi children were killed on Saturday in an explosion in the capital Baghdad, according to a local police officer. A third child was injured in the blast that occurred when children were playing near a garbage lot in the al-Askari neighborhood in southern Baghdad, the officer said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media. Saturday’s explosion is the second in just 24 hours after three people were killed, including two children, in a blast in a forest in the central Babel province. Iraqi authorities often blame the Daesh/ISIS terrorist group for these blasts,Read More
NSA Moeed Yusuf arrives in Afghanistan to talk on key issues, matters of mutual interest
ISLAMABAD, JAN 29: A high-level inter-ministerial delegation led by National Security Adviser (NSA) Moeed Yusuf arrived in Kabul on Saturday for talks on bilateral matters of mutual interest, focusing on Pakistan’s efforts to avert a humanitarian crisis in the country. The NSA and his delegation were received by Nooruddin Azizi, the acting minister for commerce and industry, at Hamid Karzai International Airport, according to the Pakistan Embassy. Senior officials, including Pakistan’s Special Representative for Afghanistan Mohammad Sadiq, were also part of the delegation. Pakistan Ambassador to Afghanistan Mansoor Ahmad KhanRead More