ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication on Thursday issued a directive to the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) and Frequency Allocation Board for renewal of operating licence of Jazz, which is set to expire on July 5. The policy directive has stated that the renewal of licence will be in accordance with recent price benchmarks of renewal 2019 and spectrum auction 2021. The last spectrum auction for each megahertz (MHz) frequency was $39.5 million for 900 MHz and $31m for the 1800 MHz. The current 15-year operating licence was awarded to Jazz in 2007. The policy directive has stated…
Author: Hasnain Abid Khanzada
BEIJING: Prime Minister Imran Khan arrived here on Thursday on a four-day official visit during which he will join other world leaders attending the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics scheduled to be held on Friday (today). Accompanied by a high-level delegation, including federal cabinet members, the prime minister will also meet the Chinese leadership. Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin, Planning and Development Minister Asad Umar, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry, National Security Adviser Dr Moeed Yusuf, Adviser on Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Khalid Mansoor…
DETROIT: Tesla is recalling more than 817,000 vehicles in the US because the seat belt reminder chimes may not sound when the vehicles are started and the driver hasn’t buckled up. The recall covers the 2021 and 2022 Model S sedan and Model X SUV, as well as the 2017 through 2022 Model 3 sedan and 2020 through 2022 Model Y SUV, according to documents posted on Thursday by safety regulators. Federal motor vehicle safety laws require the chimes to sound when vehicles are started, and the sound stops when front belts are buckled. The recall documents posted by the…
LONDON: The Kingston-upon-Thames crown court on Thursday heard the prosecution’s opening statement in the incitement to violence trial involving Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s (MQM) supremo Altaf Hussain. Mr Hussain was present in the court when the jury was informed of the prosecution’s case and taken through the evidence as well as the charge against the MQM leader. The prosecution’s statement rested on two speeches made by the MQM founder on August 22, 2016 in which he first allegedly ordered crowds to assemble and later told them to charge the Sindh Rangers headquarters, as well as offices of the ARY, Geo and Samaa television channels. The prosecution said…
LONDON: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson suffered four staff defections on Thursday as pressure intensified on the embattled leader over lockdown parties and his loose-lipped style of politics. One of the departures was linked to an inflammatory remark made by Johnson, attacking opposition Labour leader Keir Starmer over a notorious paedophile. “Being honest, I wouldn’t have said it and I’m glad the prime minister clarified it,” finance minister Rishi Sunak said in an extraordinary rebuke of his boss during a televised news conference. Sunak is tipped as a leading contender to replace Johnson, if a brewing Conservative revolt against the…
KIEV: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan offered on Thursday on a visit to Kiev to hold a Ukraine-Russia summit, as EU leaders stepped up outreach to the Kremlin to defuse fears Moscow could invade. The diplomatic offensive came as Russia accused the United States of ratcheting up “tensions” by sending 1,000 soldiers to Romania and 2,000 to Poland to bolster Nato’s eastern flank. As Moscow refuses to pull back over 100,000 troops from Ukraine’s borders, the leaders of European powerhouses Germany and France said they were eyeing possible visits to Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. French President Emmanuel Macron…
WASHINGTON: For the first time in years, the United States emphasised its strategic partnership with Pakistan, clarifying that Islamabad does not need to strain its relations with China to maintain ties with Washington. The US-Pakistan relationship came up for discussion at a State Department briefing on Wednesday afternoon when a journalist referred to a recent statement by Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi who blamed the BJP government in India for pushing Pakistan into the Chinese camp. “Does the State Department agree with Mr Gandhi’s assessment?” the journalist asked. The department’s spokesperson Ned Price, however, refused to get involved in an…
KIEV: Russia accused the United States on Thursday of ramping up tensions and ignoring Moscow’s calls to ease a standoff over Ukraine, a day after Washington announced it would send nearly 3,000 extra troops to Poland and Romania. Nato meanwhile said Russia had stepped up deployments to Ukraine’s northern neighbour Belarus in recent days and was expected to have 30,000 troops there for joint military exercises this month. Ukraine says Russia has positioned 115,000 troops near its borders, stoking fears of a looming attack. Moscow denies any such plan but international concern that Russia might be gearing up for war…
JERUSALEM: Israel and Bahrain signed a defence agreement on Thursday as part of a show of cooperation aimed at sending a message towards archenemy Iran. Defence Minister Benny Gantz signed the memorandum of understanding with his Bahraini counterpart in the capital of Manama, a key step after the two nations normalised ties in 2020. He called the agreement “a new high point in the countries’ relationship that will help protect other countries in the region. Earlier, Gantz and his Bahraini counterpart visited the headquarters of the US Navy’s 5th Fleet, which is based in the strategically located Persian Gulf country.…
ISLAMABAD: At least five people were killed in armed clashes among groups of people in two separate incidents in the rural area of the capital on Thursday. According to police, the fights took place in Bhara Kahu and both were related to land disputes. In the first incident, a group of people, armed with modern weapons, opened fire on their rivals in Phulgran near Seri Chowk. Five people sustained bullet injuries. Assuming that they all were dead, the attackers escaped. People from nearby areas later gathered on the spot and found four of them dead and two others injured. The…
