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In a significant development, Federal Minister for Health Mustafa Kamal announced a major breakthrough for Pakistani doctors working in Qatar. During a conference call, he revealed that the issue of lower ranking of Pakistani doctors in Qatar has been taken up at the diplomatic level, resulting in the removal of the examination condition for Pakistani doctors. This decision has restored the previous status of Pakistani doctors, who can now work directly in Qatar with their degrees.
Minister Kamal emphasized that for the past 7 decades, only medical colleges and hospitals have been built, but nothing has been done to prevent people from becoming patients. He further stated that over 50,000 students who have cleared their MD exams are unable to secure admission in medical colleges due to limited seats, forcing them to look abroad for medical education. He stressed the need to increase the number of seats in medical colleges and the government is working to increase the capacity.
Meanwhile, opposition leaders met with JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman in Islamabad. During the meeting, opposition leader Mahmood Khan Achakzai stated that they have decided to hold a peaceful and democratic protest. Minister of Defense Khawaja Asif confirmed that the Islamabad blast was carried out by a Pakistani citizen.
In a related development, a massive rescue operation is underway at a plastic factory in Islamabad, where 4 fire brigade vehicles are working to put out the blaze. The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has increased the electricity price by 28 rupees per unit in the wake of the fuel price adjustment in December.
Former cricketer Shoaib Akhtar expressed concern over the ongoing dastardly attacks, asking when would Pakistan stop making condemnatory statements and start taking concrete action against terrorism. A protest was held in front of the National Press Club in Islamabad, with a large number of people, including Maulana Sadique Jafri and Maulana Muhsin Hassan, participating.
Chief Minister of Punjab Maryam Nawaz has cancelled all her scheduled events for the day, while Minister of Interior Mohsin Nawaz has returned to Islamabad and visited the Trali Imam Bargah. The Sindh government has also cancelled its cultural night to express solidarity with the victims of the Islamabad blast.
Minister of Defense Khawaja Asif stated that the terrorist who carried out the blast was a Pakistani citizen and had received training in Afghanistan. He further revealed that the terrorist had traveled to Afghanistan multiple times for terrorist training. Chief Minister of Punjab Maryam Nawaz has cancelled all her scheduled events for the day.
Inspector General (IG) Islamabad, in an interview with the media, revealed that the IG’s cousin was among the victims of the blast. Thomas Ninni, in an interview, stated that a one-sided nuclear deal is not acceptable, citing China’s lack of transparency regarding its nuclear arsenal.
