In an admission of the US failure in the war-torn nation, Frank McKenzie, a former top general who oversaw United States Central Command from 2019 to April 2022, stated that Pakistan was correct about Afghanistan all along.

“Pakistanis never believed that we would stay, always thought that we would leave,” McKenzie told NBC News on Friday, adding, “You know that? They were right, we left.”

He claimed that the Taliban always had a haven in Pakistan and the US was never able to resolve that in the two decades of the conflict or come to an agreement with Pakistan on the issue.

McKenzie also admitted that Washington engaged in failed nation-building in Afghanistan and insisted on a Western model for the country which was wrong.

Read more: US commits to Afghan asset talks despite frustration with Taliban

“We began to engage in nation-building operations and maybe some of that was necessary in a narrower sense to protect our interests but the broader things we did probably ultimately in the long term didn’t help us. They diffused our efforts,” he said.

“I don’t know that Afghanistan is governable or sustainable with a Western model. I know that Afghanistan is governable and sustainable from an Afghan model. But we paid too little attention to Afghan realities on the ground,” he said.

McKenzie said that overlooking the Afghan reality was costly and “hubris on our part, and on the international community.”

He went on to say that he was “proud of” American men and women on the ground on the day of the controversial withdrawal from Afghanistan, when Afghans died trying to hold on to the plane. He said that the fact it was a highly politicised event was “regrettable”.

McKenzie admitted that getting Afghan allies out of the country is a very “slow” process but did not promise anything on that “moral obligation”.

The top US general agreed that Afghanistan was a bipartisan failure for four US administrations in two decades and added that it was a combination of “military and diplomatic failures”.

He emphasised that it is still too early to predict what will happen in Afghanistan and that the war-torn nation continues to be a breeding ground for threats against the US. Extremist organisations supported by the Taliban will present fresh threats to US leadership, he predicted.

The US declared the completion of the Afghanistan pullout Aug, 30, 2021, ending the 20-year war.

“The UK pledged over £55m to partner with Pakistan to fight climate change, manage water more sustainably and unlock climate investment in November 2021 during the COP26 Conference in Glasgow,” it added.

The Global Climate Risk Index report notes that Pakistan has reported 502 deaths and a loss of $3.772 billion as a result of 173 extreme weather events between 2000 and 2019.

Pakistan is among the most disaster-prone countries in South Asia and has suffered an estimated US$18 billion in damages due to disasters during the past decade.

This has included: recurrent floods; earthquakes; droughts; and urban shocks (such as heatwaves and dengue). Overall, in Pakistan, 25% of households (49 million people) are estimated to be moderately or severely food insecure, whereas 10% of the households (21 million people) are classified as severely food insecure. The Multi-Dimensional Poverty Index suggests that 36.43 million people are chronically vulnerable.

Also read: Won’t rest until each one of flood affected is rehabilitated: COAS

Pakistan is the eighth most at-risk country globally from the impacts of Climate Change (an improvement from fifth most at-risk country in 2020). This year, Pakistan has and is experiencing consecutive extreme climactic events.

The country moved directly from winter into summer temperatures with a number of extreme heat waves, causing rapid glacial flash floods and forest fires.

During the 2020 floods in Pakistan, the UK announced a £800,000 aid package through the National Disaster Consortium (NDC) and provided immediate relief in rural Sindh where many had lost their homes.

It also provided life-saving clean water, sanitation, and shelter to over 55,000 vulnerable people in Pakistan to help them recover from the devastating floods.

Tabarak Hussain, a resident of Sabzkot village of Kotli in Azad Jammu and Kashmir and mentally-challenged, was shot at and arrested in injured condition by Indian troops after he inadvertently crossed the Line of Control in Naushera area of Rajouri district of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) a few days ago.

Read more: British investigators expose India’s war crimes in IIOJK

Soon after his arrest, Indian army and media trained their guns at Pakistan and unleashed their propaganda to prove that Tabarak Hussain was a terrorist sent by Pakistani authorities to carry out an attack on an Indian army post.

Is he a terrorist? A mentally retarded Tabarak Hussain, who accidentally crossed LoC, was projected as terrorist on Indian media. Video attached clearly shows that he is mentally retarded. It is another proof of Indian nefarious propaganda to defame Pakistan.
@Minerva3053 pic.twitter.com/zZnXRayeFS

— Noman Ahmed (@NomanNa476) August 27, 2022

However, some videos of Tabarak Hussain have emerged on social media in which it can be seen that he is not a normal person and even a layman can judge that he is mentally unsound. In some of these videos, he can be seen tied with ropes and chains so that he does not leave his home or harm himself or other people.

Now the Indian officials’ claim that he was paid a meagre amount of Rs30,000 by a colonel of Pakistan intelligence agency to attack the Indian army post is a white lie and a part of Indian nefarious attempts to defame Pakistan and its intelligence agencies at the international level.

It is worth mentioning here that Tabarak Hussain was arrested in April 25, 2016, also by the Indian authorities when he accidentally crossed the LoC and had to spend 26 months in imprisonment before being repatriated via Attari-Wagah border due to his mental condition.

In line with their Vision 2030, the Kingdom had introduced many changes, with mixed results.

Source link

Israel’s Foreign Ministry bursts out with anger at Pakistan

Israel’s DG of Foreign Ministry calls out Pakistan on Twitter, saying it needs to stop targetting Israel for the events in Gaza.

Israel’s Director-General of Foreign Ministry Alon Ushpiz calls out Pakistan on Twitter, saying it needs to stop targetting Israel for the events in Gaza and instead focus on its issues.

Pakistan’s ‘Foreign Minister’s Public Diplomacy’ Twitter handle posted about a special #UNHRC session on “the grave human rights situation in Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem,” which Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi addressed on May 27th.

However, Alon Ushpiz, who has also served as Israel’s ambassador to India, had some harsh words in response. He tweeted ‘Human rights “champion” Pakistan, practically living in a palace of glass, is currently preaching to the only democracy in the Middle East as part of the @UN_HRC special session. Hypocrisy at its best.’

Read more: Chinese loan accounts for 11pc of foreign debt

Human rights "champion" Pakistan, practically living in a palace of glass, is currently preaching to the only democracy in the Middle East as part of the @UN_HRC special session. Hypocrisy at its best. https://t.co/aByazt4QFc https://t.co/V2nZQA1yd2

— Alon Ushpiz (@AlonUshpiz) May 27, 2021

However, the moment that got the most spotlight was his interview for CNN with host Bianna Golodryga. In his opening statement, he said that the public pressure was changing the tide and the ceasefire would be ‘inevitable’ in this case, added, ‘despite Israel’s connections.

In response, the host criticized the Foreign Minister for anti-Semitism. Whether it was his intention or not, it made it clear to the World what Pakistan’s stance on the issue was. While some criticized and some praised him, it was undoubtedly a bold step.

Even though many countries condemned Israel, the fact that Alon Ushpiz’s tweet was only directed towards Pakistan means that Pakistan’s foreign policy and diplomacy are causing Israel issues, which is sure proof of our diplomatic success.

Source: globalvillagespace.com

Palestine to play against Pakistan a friendly football game at Lahore

Palestine will take on Pakistan in a friendly football game on November 15th at Lahore as a part of their final phase of preparations for the Asian Cup.

Football Association confirmed that they will play two away friendly matches in November, one against Pakistan on 15th at Lahore and the other against China on 20th at Hangzhou.

Read more: Atletico Madrid clinch La Liga title thanks to Suarez winner

have played 10 friendly matches in 2018 so far, the two upcoming contests will take that tally to 12, which is the most by them in a calendar year.

Pakistan last played an international football match on September 12th against the arch-rivals India in the semi-final of SAFF Championship, which they lost 3-1.

souorce: Arynews.tv

FIFA’s Congress permanently suspends Pakistan Football Federation

Karachi: The world’s governing body of football, FIFA in its 71st Congres meeting decided to permanently suspend Pakistan Football Federation.

A voting process took place where out of 204 member nations, 203 voted that the ban must be imposed while only one vote was in PFF’s favour.

Remember, the Bureau of the FIFA Council imposed temporary suspension on April 7 after Syed Ashfaq Hussain-led group took over the PFF house charge forcefully from the FIFA-installed Normalisation Committee.

Read more: Man Utd’s Pogba, Diallo display Palestine flag after Fulham draw

Meanwhile, Haroon Malik-led NC has released a statement where they revealed that FIFA has hailed NC’s positive steps and further sanctions were avoided.

“The suspension can be lifted once Normalisation Committee Chairman Haroon Malik, requests FIFA for lifting the suspension. This is the most positive outcome that was possible given the ongoing occupation of the PFF Headquarters by Ashfaq Shah group”.

The permanent suspension will remain until Ashfaq-group doesn’t hand over PFF’s matters to NC.

source:Arysports.tv

West Indies announce provisional T20I squad against Pakistan

KARACHI: West Indies have announced their provisional T20I squad for the upcoming shorter format series against South Africa, Australia, and Pakistan this summer. 

Kieron Pollard has been named captain whereas Nicholas Poraan will be his deputy. The other squad members include Fabian Allen, Dwayne Bravo, Sheldon Cottrell, Fidel Edwards, Andre Fletcher, Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Jason Holder, Akeal Hosein, Evin Lewis, Obed McCoy, Andre Russell, Lendl Simmons, Kevin Sinclair, Oshane Thomas, Hayden Walsh Jr.

Read more : Shoaib Akhtar takes COVID-19 vaccine, urges people to do so

Pakistan and West Indies are scheduled to play five T20Is and two Tests in July August. The tour will commence with back-to-back T20Is in Barbados on 27 and 28 July, before action will move to Guyana for the 31 July and 1 August back-to-back T20Is, and the series finale on 3 August.

source: Arynews.tv

Pakistan’s educational crises gets worse as the lack of internet forces Pakistani students to quit studies

A damning report by the British newspaper, The Guardian, reveals that students belonging to the lower-income communities in Pakistan and the far-flung areas can no longer afford education due to the non-availability of the Internet and transition to distance learning.

Marvi Soomro, the founder of the education charity IEI Pakistan, says that regions like Gilgit-Baltistan have been completely isolated due to lack of technology access since families can no longer earn through tourism to sell livestock to make ends meet.

Read more: Artificial Intelligence all ready to transform Pakistani Education System

Seema Aziz, the founder of Care Foundation, showed concern that attendance will dwindle further as the lack of internet outside big cities makes distance learning next to impossible. “We tried to start online learning on smartphones in a few of our schools, but there’s no mobile signals or internet access for many of our students at home.”, she says.Despite the government’s measures to introduce EdTech to accelerate education in Pakistan during COVID, the low-income populace has benefitted little from the penetration of technology in the education sector. Despite numerous projects worth billions that are aimed at accelerating IT growth through faster internet speeds, broadband infrastructure, and better connectivity in the remote areas, Pakistan’s Internet quality remains one of the lowest in the region.The under-developed or remote areas are yet to get in sync with the urban centres, in terms of technological advancement and internet access and until that happens, education related issues that can be seen as sympotms of the bigger issue, will continue to haunt the country’s majority.Source: The Guardian.

source: Techjuice.pk

Pakistani YouTuber endeavours to Finish poverty with business videos

Entrepreneur Rehan Allahwala creates course content to impart experiences gained across globe

ANKARA:Rehan Allahwala, a YouTuber from Pakistan, carries the lofty goal of eliminating poverty from the planet by educating people with his videos in which he imparts his entrepreneurial experiences.

Educating people has been a personal goal for Rehan over the past 11 years, starting from scratch and now reaching out to almost 141,000 people, he told Anadolu Agency in an exclusive interview.

“To reach out to people, in my experience, the fastest way is dramas or movies. In order to get to dramas or movies, I needed the script and the content. So, I started creating content in shapes of courses to teach. Then, I made books out of those courses. Then, I started making documentaries out of those courses. And then my next goal is to make movies and dramas out of those courses.

“So, if somebody wants to learn how to start a business without money, all he has to do is watch a movie for hour and a half. There may be lots of movies about it but I wanted to add my version of success,” he said.

Allahwala said he started making YouTube videos when the website arrived in Pakistan in 2005, with his work — a video on how to use Facebook — first going viral 11 years ago.

I was utilizing an ancient telephone in those days. I really got genuine just five years prior. Since YouTube was impeded in Pakistan by the public authority, no one could at any point have the option to utilize it. I was posting recordings of my youngsters. One of the recordings which turned into a web sensation was my little girl’s video when she was three years of age. I think I made $1,000 of that video. Furthermore, she was simply perusing a sonnet,” he said.

He said his ideas for content were mostly based on his life experience.

Allahwala said he never worked for anyone but started his first business at the age of 13 by selling computer games, making computer accessories, and then starting an email company, an internet company, and a telecom company.

“I started over 100 companies in five different countries,” he said.

“So, everything I have experienced is what my topic is about. I think travel is where I get most of my content from. In Urdu ‘Suffer’ actually means travel, however in English it is pain. When you ‘suffer’ in Urdu and English together, you learn a lot of things.

“I travelled to 80-plus countries, I’ve lived in five countries. I’ve done, about 100-plus businesses in my life. So all that experience of doing things is what I talk about. I don’t read books, I meet a lot of people, ask a lot of questions and then, based on that, I make my videos,” he said.

“Most of the people in Pakistan have not travelled much, I personally was rejected international visas 26 times,” he said. Referring to Plato’s allegory of the cave, Allahwala noted that he had discovered the world when he started traveling, rather than from what he was taught.

Read more||AirTags unveils by Apple to help users find missing items

“I saw a whole different world out there. And I started talking about that so that people could see what I saw. Most of my content is about trying to wake people up and start to think and have more experiences and have more experiential learning,” he added.

He emphasised that he does not make money off social media platforms and his main income source is his businesses.

New YouTubers should be open to criticism

Allahwala’s advice to new YouTubers is to stop thinking and start doing.

“Get used to people laughing at you. In the first 50 videos, don’t even watch your own videos, just make them. And after you’ve done 50 videos, then go back and start watching them, start improving them, start replying to the comments. Start doing search engine optimisation. Read the comments and feedback and then really get serious about making real videos,” he said.

Posting videos on social media attracts a lot of criticism, critique, and feedback he said, adding that people were not used to these.

“Most of the people are comfortable within their own family circle or their own friends’ circle. They’re not really used to the world. That’s why they don’t even start the videos. So, the first thing you do is just start making it, do not think about anything. You can make videos about anything,” he stressed.

Source : tribune.com