Good morning all at the end of Sept (almost)! It’s Monday Sept 28.
Beginning with a 2018 story, the murder of aspiring model, Naqeebullah Mehsud. I remember covering the story when I was working at GEO News and how it took everything by storm - the pressure the Sindh police thought they would never feel over an extra-judicial murder. Dawn has done an excellent piece on it, since eight years later all 25 accused of being part of the encounter are now free. And we ask, as Dawn asks, about the father of Mehsud who died waiting for justice for his son’s murder, a country that had stood up for this young man whose social media presence showed his vibrant life and about then, if these guys are all free, who killed Naqeebullah Mehsud?
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The federal govt begins talks with the IMF today to secure its next $1.2 billion payment. An IMF team will spend nearly two weeks checking whether the country has met the conditions of its $7 billion loan program. If the review goes well, the money could be released by late November or early December.
Lahore police have detained 15 people as they investigate the alleged gang rape of an Azerbaijani woman, with five suspects, including two women, identified so far. Police say the survivor’s medical examination has been completed and the vehicle allegedly used in the crime has been recovered. Raids are continuing in Lahore and other cities as authorities search for the main suspects, some of whom have not been caught yet.
A row has erupted between KP Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi over a new KP law requiring the speaker’s permission before police can arrest an MPA. Naqvi questioned why lawmakers accused of crimes should receive such protection, while Swati says the rule is meant to prevent politically motivated arrests, saying that lawmakers can still be investigated, prosecuted and face court action.
Eight years after Naqeebullah Mehsud was killed in what an official probe concluded was a fake police encounter, all 25 accused in the case are now free. A Karachi anti-terrorism court cleared the remaining seven policemen, including former SHO Amanullah Marwat, citing a lack of evidence. Former SSP Rao Anwar and 18 others had already been acquitted, with the courts finding that prosecutors failed to prove the charges. Naqeebullah’s 2018 killing had sparked nationwide protests and become one of Pakistan’s most high-profile cases of alleged extrajudicial killing. Naqeebullah Mehsud was a 27-year-old aspiring model and shopkeeper from South Waziristan who was living in KHI.
The country’s rapidly melting glaciers are raising fresh alarm, with the number of unfrozen glacial lakes jumping from 40 to 105 in less than two months. Some lakes have grown beyond their previously recorded maximum size, increasing concerns that they could burst and cause dangerous flash floods. Suparco has warned authorities to remain on high alert, particularly in communities living downstream.
Israeli PM Netanyahu made a surprise visit to Abu Dhabi, meeting UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed after attending the UN General Assembly in New York (check out the video where delegates walked out when he spoke but the UAE stayed). The trip comes after controversial reports that the UAE warned Netanyahu of a major Hamas operation before the October 7, 2023 attack, claims Netanyahu denies. Neither Israel nor the UAE has officially commented on the reported meeting.
Take a trip down memory lane. A memory you’ve forgotten will make you happy today.
Apple TV is in Pakistan now and if you have iCloud storage, it’s free with some plans! Have you tried it out yet?
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