Everything That Has Happened In The Past 24 Hours

LOCAL  Another person died from Congo fever in Karachi, taking the death toll from the disease over the country to 15 this year The deceased was identified as Kafeel Khalil, a 32-year-old resident of the city’s Korangi area. He had been admitted to a private hospital in Karachi. So far 26 people in the metropolis have been affected by Congo fever. The Sindh health department has decided to compile a list of all those affected. Meanwhile, a patient admitted on suspicion of Congo fever in Quetta’s Fatima Jinnah General and Chest Hospital was confirmed to have the virus on Thursday.Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a widespread disease caused by a tick-borne virus (Nairovirus) of the Bunyaviridae family. The CCHF virus causes severe viral haemorrhagic fever outbreaks, with a case fatality rate of 10–40%.
PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that history will only remember Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a mass murderer Addressing a rally in the Gilgit-Baltistan city, Bilawal said Modi — who was involved in the mass murder of Muslims in Gujarat in 2002 — was now killing the Kashmiri folks. The PPP chair was referring to the large-scale, anti-Muslim massacre 17 years ago when now-PM was the chief minister of Gujarat state and at least 1,000 people, most of them Muslim, were burned and hacked to death. He warned the Indian premier further: “Try entering Srinagar, he will get to know his place!” Last week, Prime Minister Imran Khan had warned of severe repercussions of India perpetrating ethnic cleansing in Kashmir. In a Twitter post, he had said: “In IoK, 12 days of curfew, presence of extra troops in an already heavily militarized occupied territory, sending in of RSS goons, complete communication blackout; with the example of Modi’s earlier ethnic cleansing of Muslims in Gujarat. “Will the world silently witness another Srebrenica-type massacre and ethnic cleansing of Muslims in IoK?” he had Imran asked. Arif Alvi has added two appointments to the Election Commission of Pakistan, angering the opposition Khalid Mehmood Siddiqui has been appointed from Sindh and Munir Ahmed Khan Kakar has been appointed as a member from Balochistan.The ECP members from Sindh and Balochistan — Abdul Ghaffar Soomro and retired Justice Shakeel Baloch — had retired in January and, under the law, the positions were to be filled within 45 days.The opposition rejected the two new appointments, announcing they would take legal action against the move. In a conversation with the media, PPP leader Khursheed Shah said that the government had not taken the opposition into confidence before making the announcement and had moreover, appointed their own candidates when there was a clear lack of consensus. “The appointment of the two ECP members is illegal. It is in violation of the Constitution,” said PPP’s Khursheed Shah.
The Police have arrested a suspect in connection with the rape and murder of a seven-year-old girl in Abbottabad The seven-year-old girl was raped and murdered by her own cousin, Abbottabad DPO told reporters. The suspect, identified as Siraj, was arrested with the help of DNA test. The police official said that Siraj raped his cousin and later suffocated her. The father of the deceased minor praised the police for their efforts. He said the law enforcers left no stone unturned to investigate his daughter’s murder.
GLOBAL The UN has told the Government of India to end the crackdown on freedom of expression, access to information and peaceful protests, labelling it “collective punishment”  “The shutdown of the internet and telecommunication networks, without justification from the Government, are inconsistent with the fundamental norms of necessity and proportionality,” said the experts. “The blackout is a form of collective punishment of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, without even a pretext of a precipitating offence.” The Government has also imposed a curfew across Jammu and Kashmir, bringing in massive numbers of troops to enforce restrictions on the freedom of movement and of peaceful assembly, particularly in the Kashmir Valley. “We remind the Indian authorities that the restrictions imposed by the Indian Government are intrinsically disproportionate, because they preclude considerations of the specific circumstances of each proposed assembly,” said the experts. At the same time, information received suggests that there has been an increase in the arrest of political figures, journalists, human rights defenders, protesters and others. The experts said they were deeply concerned by reports that security forces were conducting night raids on private homes leading to the arrests of young people. “Such detentions could constitute serious human rights violations,” the experts said. “The allegations must be thoroughly investigated by the authorities, and, if confirmed, those responsible must be held accountable. The United States has confirmed that Hamza bin Laden, the son and designated heir of Al Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden, has been killed “That’s my understanding,” Esper said in an interview late Wednesday with Fox News , when asked if Hamza bin Laden was dead. “I don’t have the details on that. And if I did I’m not sure how much I could share with you,” he added. US media reported at the beginning of August that bin Laden was killed during the last two years in an operation that involved the United States, citing US intelligence officials. But President Donald Trump and other senior officials have refused to confirm or deny it publicly. “I don’t want to comment on it,” Trump told reporters when asked. The 15th of Osama bin Laden’s 20 children and a son of his third wife, Hamza, thought to be about 30 years old, was “emerging as a leader in the Al Qaeda franchise”, the State Department said in announcing the reward. A Syrian man has been sentenced in Germany to nine and a half years in prison over the fatal stabbing of a man, an event which served as a catalyst for far-right protests  Alaa Sheikhi, 24, was found guilty of “joint manslaughter and serious physical injury” over the death of Daniel Hillig, a 35-year-old carpenter. A second suspect, an Iraqi, is thought to have fled Germany after the attack. The case led to violent protests in Chemnitz, where far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) has strong support. Ahead of his sentencing on Thursday, Sheikhi denied any responsibility for the death of Hillig. Speaking through an interpreter, he said: “I can only hope that the truth is brought to light here and that a just verdict is pronounced.” Sheikhi, who had reportedly remained silent throughout the trial, told German public broadcaster ZDF in a telephone interview just two days before the verdict that he did not touch either the victim or the knife that killed him . “I just ran away,” he said, adding: “I swear on my mother I did not touch him.” Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro has said his government lacks the resources to fight the record number of fires in the Amazon He again suggested that non-governmental organisations had started fires in the rainforest, but admitted he had no evidence for this claim. He added that his government was investigating the fires. Earlier, Brazil’s Environment Minister Ricardo Salles was heckled at a meeting on climate change. Conservationists have blamed Brazil’s government for the Amazon’s plight. They say Mr Bolsonaro has encouraged the clearing of land by loggers and farmers, thereby speeding up the deforestation of the rainforest.Answering questions from reporters on Thursday, Mr Bolsonaro said the government couldn’t simply get the ministry of the interior to send 40 men to fight a fire. “Forty men to fight a fire? There aren’t the resources. This chaos has arrived,” he said.Asked on Thursday who was responsible for starting the fires, he responded: “The Indians, do you want me to blame the Indians? Do you want me to blame the Martians?… Everyone is a suspect, but the biggest suspects are NGOs.” Asked if there was any proof of this, he replied: “Did I accuse NGOs directly? I just said I suspect them.” SPORTS The International Tennis Federation has postponed India’s Davis Cup tie against Pakistan to November because of the security tensions The All India Tennis Association had last week written to the ITF asking them to shift the tie to a neutral venue or postpone it until political tensions simmer down between the bitter neighbours. Islamabad was to host the series on September 14-15 on grass courts. “Following an in-depth security review of the current situation in Pakistan by independent expert security advisors, the Davis Cup Committee has taken the decision to postpone the Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Group I tie,” ITF said in a statement. Junior Agogo, a footballer who played for Ghana, Nottingham Forest and Bristol Rovers, has died at the age of 40 Agogo, who began his career at Sheffield Wednesday, played 27 times for his country and scored 12 goals. He finished his career at Hibernian in 2012 having also had spells in the United States, Cyprus and Egypt. Agogo suffered a stroke in 2015 and struggled with his speech afterwards, telling a BBC Four documentary in 2017 he felt anxious about his language. Agogo sealed his place in the hearts of Ghana fans with his performances at the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations where he scored three goals including a late winner against Nigeria in Accra. “I think that was the goal that sealed his popularity in Ghana,” Laryea Kingston, the former Hearts midfielder said. “During the tournament we could feel his influence in the team grow and his popularity go up but that goal sealed everything.” Serena Williams will play Maria Sharapova in the first round of the US Open at Flushing Meadows in New York Williams and Sharapova have shared 21 matches and a fair bit of animosity over the years, but this is their first meeting since the Australian Open quarter-final of 2016. Williams has had back problems in recent weeks, while Sharapova has been limited to just six matches since January because of a shoulder injury. 15-year-old Coco Gauff, who beat Venus Williams on her way to reaching the fourth round at Wimbledon last month, will play Russia’s Anastasia Potapova. Meanwhile, Wimbledon champion Simona Halep will take on a qualifier. TECHNOLOGY Zong yesterday successfully conducted 5G trials in Pakistan, effectively becoming the first telecommunications company to do so in the country “This success marks an important milestone in Pakistan’s telecom sector,” said Zong CEO Wang Hua at an event in Islamabad held to conduct the test. “5G will herald a new era in Pakistan’s social and economic sectors,” said Hua.The Zong CEO also announced that the company will establish a 5G innovation centre in Pakistan in collaboration with Huawei, for which a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was also signed at the event. He reminded the audience that five years ago, it was CMPak that had first brought 4G technology to Pakistan. Hua said that the introduction of 5G services is an important pillar to meet future technological needs. A study into false memories highlights how they can increase the risks of “fake news” spreading through social media Volunteers were shown fabricated news reports in the week before Ireland’s 2018 abortion law referendum . Nearly half of them subsequently claimed to have had prior memories of at least one of the made-up events detailed. And many failed to question their false recollections even after being told the articles they had read might be fake. The 3,140 participants had been more likely to have created false memories if the reports had lied about the side they had opposed, the study added. The peer-reviewed work supports prior research into the phenomenon. But its authors say it is the first time the problem has been tested in relation to a real-world referendum at the time it was being held.”Memory is a reconstructive process and we are vulnerable to suggestion distorting our recollections, without our conscious awareness,” Dr Gillian Murphy, of University College Cork, said.
Microsoft has said that it will stop listening in to Xbox users, saying it was “no longer necessary” It comes after Vice news revealed that it had been recording and listening to the private conversations of gamers – many of whom were children – as far back as 2014. Microsoft said it was done to improve voice command features on the console. It comes amid revelations that other tech firms, such as Facebook, have also listened in to chats. “We stopped reviewing any voice content taken through Xbox for product improvement purposes a number of months ago, as we no longer felt it was necessary, and we have no plans to restart those reviews,” a spokesperson for Microsoft said in a statement. ENTERTAINMENT Eminem’s publisher sues Spotify for copyright infringement over ‘Lose Yourself’ and other tracks Eminem’s music publisher, Eight Mile Style, has filed a lawsuit against Spotify, alleging copyright infringement. The suit claims the steaming platform didn’t get proper licenses for the rapper’s music and wants Spotify to compensate the publisher for billions of streams. There are two prongs to the suit, which was first reported today by The Hollywood Reporter . Spotify is accused of willfully ignoring Eight Mile Style’s ownership of Eminem’s catalogue when deciding how to pay out streaming revenue for his playback metrics. Spotify also allegedly violated sections of the Music Modernization Act (MMA), which passed last October and is designed to help streamline the process by which artists, songwriters, producers, and rights holders get paid for online music streams.  Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the former Trump administration advisor is expected to contribute commentary to Fox News  She is expected to make her debut on “Fox & Friends” during one its next show with a live audience, on September 6. She is the latest White House spokesperson to make their way to the TV-news circuit. Jay Carney and Robert Gibbs, two press secretaries under President Obama, became contributors for CNN and NBC News, respectively. And yet, Sanders, daughter of former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, left the office with a more mixed track record than her predecessors. She held fewer and fewer briefings for White House press as President Trump’s tenure extended and often deferred questions to the President rather than providing facts that might contradict his statements. 70,000 frustrated fans signed a Change.org petition to keep Spider-Man with Disney and the Marvel Cinematic Universe “After the news today that Sony walked away from their deal with Disney, I cannot in good faith stand by while Spider-man and his fans around the world become collateral damage,” Nate Phillips, who created the Change.org petition, wrote in the description. “Spider-man in the MCU has brought some of the best moments in modern cinema history. SONY you must let go of this property or renegotiate with Disney to keep all of the fans happy.”In related fan activism, thousands of people have pledged to “storm Sony and bring Spider-Man home to the MCU.”