WASHINGTON, JAN 11 (DNA) – The United States unveiled a way to warn its citizens about the dangers of foreign travel Wednesday, with a four-point safety ranking system for countries and an interactive world map. Ten war zones and failed states are ranked Level Four, “Do Not Travel”: Afghanistan, Central African Republic, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Mali, Somalia, South Sudan, Syria and Yemen. Pakistan has been put in Level 3, and the State Department has urged US citizens to reconsider their plans to visit the country.
Iran has foiled plot to use protests to overthrow system: says Khamenei
BEIRUT, JAN 10 (DNA) – Iran has foiled attempts by its foreign enemies to turn legitimate protests into an insurgency to overthrow the Islamic Republic, supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Tuesday. Comments on his Twitter feed and in Iranian media underscored the establishment’s confidence that it has extinguished the unrest that spread to more than 80 cities in which at least 22 people died since late December.
Gold import rises 50 pc in five months
ISLAMABAD, JAN 10 (DNA) – The import of gold during first five months (July-November) of current fiscal year increased by 50.58 per cent as compared to same period of previous year. During the period under review, 217 kilogram of the yellow metal valuing US $7.768 million was imported against import of 164 kg gold worth $5.823 million last year. On yearly basis, the import of yellow metal in November 2017 also witnessed an increase of 66.1 per cent as compared to same month of the year 2016 as it rose to $1.367 million in November 2017 from $823,000 in November 2016.
Here’s how you can make a delicious hot cup of Kashmiri chai right at home
JAN 09 (DNA) – Kashmir is not only known for its unrivalled natural beauty — snow-covered mountain peaks, blue rivers and rich culture — but also for its mouthwatering traditional food like rogan josh, dum olav, matschgand, goshtaba, modur pulav, aab gosht and many more. To wash all the lovely food down, the Kashmiris have a special pink-coloured tea called noon chai which has a creamy, buttery and slightly thick consistency but is thin enough to sip gently.
Iran bans English in primary schools after leader’s warning
DUBAI, JAN 08 (DNA) – Iran has banned the teaching of English in primary schools, a senior education official said, after Islamic leaders warned that early learning of the language opened the way to a Western “cultural invasion”. “Teaching English in government and non-government primary schools in the official curriculum is against laws and regulations,” Mehdi Navid-Adham, head of the state-run High Education Council, told state television late on Saturday. “This is because the assumption is that, in primary education, the groundwork for the Iranian culture of the students is laid,” Navid-Adham said, adding that non-curriculum English classes may also be blocked.
Two skiers die in avalanche in Austrian Alps
VIENNA, JAN 06 (DNA) – An avalanche in the Tyrolean Alps has killed two German skiers, Austrian police confirmed after the second victim was found under the snow on Saturday. The accident occurred Friday as the two young men from Bavaria skied a steep slope on the Grossglockner, Austria’s highest mountain. They were off piste when an avalanche that was 100 metre wide and 400 metres long came crashing down and buried them.
Popular chef Zubaida Tariq passes away after short illness in Karachi
KARACHI (DNA) – Famous chef, media personality and sister of writer Anwer Maqsood, Zubaida Tariq aka Zubaida Apa has passed away in Karachi on Thursday night after a brief illness. Zubaida Apa was popular for her cooking skills and housekeeping remedies. She has also hosted several shows and wrote various culinary books. According to family sources, her funeral prayer and burial will take place after Friday prayers at Sultan Masjid in Defence Housing Authority today.
SBP takes steps for transactions to be denominated in Chinese Yuan
KARACHI, JAN 02 (DNA) – State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), in the capacity of the policy maker of financial & currency markets, has taken comprehensive policy related measures to ensure that imports, exports and financing transactions can be denominated in CNY. Both public and private sector enterprises (i.e. both Pakistanis and Chinese) are free to choose CNY for bilateral Trade & Investment activities.
US in the dock under Donald Trump By Ansar M Bhatti
The UN General Assembly on Dec 21, 2017 in its extra-ordinary session adopted Pakistan co-sponsored resolution declaring US President Donald Trump’s decision to move American Capital to Jerusalem, by 128 votes. Only nine countries chose to side with the US President while 35 countries including Australia, Canada, Israel, Romania, Hungary did not attend the session. The UNGA decision and the earlier decision of the UN Security Council in which 14 countries out of 15 voted against Trump decision, may not force belligerent American President to withdraw his decision, nevertheless huge moral and political pressure from the international community has ostensibly put America on the back foot.
Kim vows North will mass-produce nukes, missiles
SEOUL (DNA) – Kim Jong-Un vowed North Korea would mass-produce nuclear warheads and missiles in a defiant New Year message Monday suggesting he would continue to accelerate a rogue weapons programme that has stoked international tensions. Kim, who said Monday that he always had a nuclear launch button on his desk, has presided over multiple missile tests in recent months and the North’s sixth and most powerful nuclear test — which it said was a hydrogen bomb — in September. “We must mass-produce nuclear warheads and ballistic missiles and speed up their deployment,” said Kim in his annual address to the nation.
