{"id":14258,"date":"2017-10-20T12:48:37","date_gmt":"2017-10-20T07:48:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jworldtimes.com\/old-site\/jwt2015\/?p=14258"},"modified":"2019-11-18T14:58:18","modified_gmt":"2019-11-18T09:58:18","slug":"world-in-focus-august-sep-2017","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jworldtimes.com\/old-site\/studykit\/worldinfocus\/world-in-focus-august-sep-2017\/","title":{"rendered":"World in Focus (August-Sep 2017 )"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"World<\/a><\/h1>\n

NATIONAL <\/span><\/h1>\n

Aug 16:<\/strong><\/span> PML-N nominated Senator Yaqoob Khan Nasar as the acting president of the party.<\/p>\n

The PML-N came into being in 1990, and since then, Shahbaz Sharif is the only person, other than Nawaz Sharif, to have held the office of party chief.<\/p>\n

Aug 16:<\/strong><\/span> The United States designated Hizbul Mujahideen as a specially designated terrorist organisation led by an internationally recognised terrorist.<\/p>\n

Formed in 1989, HM is one of the largest and oldest groups of Kashmir freedom fighters. The US has already declared its leader Mohammad Yusuf Shah, better known as Syed Salah\u00aduddin, a specially designated global terrorist.<\/p>\n

Aug 16:<\/strong> <\/span>Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi reconstituted the Council of Common Interests (CCI).<\/p>\n

Highlights <\/span><\/h3>\n

1.<\/strong> The eight-member council headed by the PM now has four members from Punjab. <\/span>
\n2.<\/strong> The previous CCI, under Nawaz Sharif, had two members each from the four provinces.<\/span>
\n3.<\/strong> Balochistan and KP lose one member each; Sindh continues to have two representatives<\/span>
\n4.<\/strong> It\u2019s a rare move because it is the president who is empowered under Article 153 of the Constitution to appoint the CCI. It says: \u201cThere shall be a Council of Common Interests \u2026 to be appointed by the President.\u201d<\/span>
\n5.<\/strong> Ghulam Murtaza Jatoi, Federal Minister for Industries & Production, replaced Minister for Overseas Pakistanis Sadruddin Rashdi.<\/span>
\n6.<\/strong> The CCI would be chaired by the prime minister, with four provincial chief ministers and federal ministers for inter-provincial coordination, industries and production and finance as its members.<\/span><\/p>\n

Aug 19:<\/strong> <\/span>The Indonesian government removed Pakistan from its Calling Visa Country List after 13 years.<\/p>\n

Aug 21:<\/strong> <\/span>Over a hundred lawyers broke past the judges’ entry gate of the Lahore High Court after the court issued arrest warrants for Lahore High Court Bar Association’s (LHCBA) Multan bench president Advocate Sher Zaman Qureshi.<\/p>\n

Aug 21:<\/strong> <\/span>The army announced an end to Operation Khyber IV in Rajgal Valley.<\/p>\n

The operation was launched on July 15, 2017, to block the entry of the militant Islamic State (IS) group from across the border with Afghanistan.<\/p>\n

Aug 22:<\/strong> <\/span>Three districts of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) \u2013 Mirpur, Kotli and Bhimber \u2013 are better than the districts in other parts of Pakistan in terms of quality of education, as per \u201cPakistan District Education Rankings 2017\u201d prepared by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI).<\/p>\n

Aug 23:<\/strong><\/span> A study in the journal Science Advances has revealed that the levels of arsenic in the groundwater of eastern Pakistan are \u201calarmingly high\u201d and pose a significant health hazard to tens of millions of people who drink the water.<\/p>\n

As per the report, 50 to 60 million people use groundwater which very likely contains more than 50 micrograms per litre, or five times higher than the WHO’s guidelines.<\/p>\n

Aug 24:<\/strong><\/span> The federal cabinet approved the fixing of maximum prices of 113 new essential and life-saving drugs.<\/p>\n

Aug 24:<\/strong> <\/span>The Pakistan men’s hockey team became the 13th team to qualify for the World Cup 2018.<\/p>\n

Pakistan, which failed to qualify for the event in 2014, has won four world cups, more than any other nation.<\/p>\n

Aug 25:<\/strong> <\/span>The Senate of Pakistan passed the Compulsory Teaching of the Holy Quran Bill, 2017, which provides for making teaching of Quran compulsory in all educational institutions controlled and owned by the federal government.<\/p>\n

Aug 25:<\/strong> <\/span>Pakistan was ranked 106th among 113 countries in the category of civil justice system, according to a World Justice Project survey.<\/p>\n

Aug 25:<\/strong><\/span> Sana Mir, captain of the Pakistan women cricket team, was named among 30 remarkable professionals named \u201cAsia 21 Young Leaders\u201d by Asia Society.<\/p>\n

Aug 26:<\/strong><\/span> Former president and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari got a clean chit in the sixth and final corruption reference against him.<\/p>\n

Aug 26:<\/strong><\/span> The government conferred the status of federal minister on Kashmir Committee Chairman Maulana Fazlur Rehman.<\/p>\n

Aug 26:<\/strong> <\/span>A meeting of the Quadrilateral Counter Terrorism Coordination Mechanism (QCCM), which comprises China, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Tajikistan, was held in Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan.<\/p>\n

Aug 27:<\/strong> <\/span>Khalid Ahmad Kharal, the former federal information minister and an ex-member of the Pakistan People’s Party central executive committee passed away. He was 78.<\/p>\n

Aug 27:<\/strong> <\/span>Pakistan continued to host the largest number of refugees in the world over the last three decades, read a report by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR). Nearly all the 1.45 million refugees in the country belong to Afghanistan.<\/p>\n

Aug 27:<\/strong><\/span> Pakistan’s Dr Mustafa Mehmood Ayubzai published first research piece on selfie deaths in ‘The Annals of Emergency Medicine’ \u2013 one of the highest-ranking American journals in emergency medicine.<\/p>\n

Aug 28:<\/strong> <\/span>Pakistan emerged in third spot on the list of top 10 investors in the Dubai real estate sector.<\/p>\n

Aug 29:<\/strong><\/span> The Federal Cabinet approved re-organisation\/creation of new federal ministries and divisions to facilitate and clarify subjects allocated to them.<\/p>\n

Aug 29:<\/strong><\/span> The Supreme Court allowed Dr Asim Hussain to go abroad for medical treatment for a month.<\/p>\n

Aug 29:\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) approved eight development projects at an estimated cost of Rs125 billion.<\/p>\n

Aug 30:<\/strong> <\/span>Ali Jahangir Siddiqui was appointed Special Assistant to the Prime Minister with the status of Minister of State.<\/p>\n

Aug 30:<\/strong> <\/span>Opening batsman Sharjeel Khan was handed a five-year ban by the Anti-Corruption Tribunal of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).<\/p>\n

Aug 30:<\/strong><\/span> Both houses of parliament unanimously rejected the targeting of Pakistan by US President Donald Trump and denounced his complete disregard for Pakistan’s vast sacrifices in countering the scourge of terrorism.<\/p>\n

Aug 30:<\/strong><\/span> The newly-appointed Director General of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Bashir Ahmed transferred all the important cases from the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) of the agency to FIA zones.<\/p>\n

Aug 30:<\/strong> <\/span>Qatar introduced the visa-on-arrival facility for Pakistani citizens. Pakistanis can now obtain visa on arrival for a maximum stay of 30 days. They can also apply to extend their stay by another 30 days.<\/p>\n

Aug 31:<\/strong> <\/span>Two senior police officers, Additional Inspector General (AIG) Saud Aziz and Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Khurram Shehzad, were sentenced to 17 years in prison and fined Rs1 million each for negligence that led to the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. But five suspects linked with the banned TTP were acquitted.<\/p>\n

ATC Rawalpindi’s judge Asghar Ali Khan announced the judgement.<\/p>\n

Aug 31:<\/strong> <\/span>The Trump administration held back previously promised military aid of $255 million to Pakistan by attaching new conditions.<\/p>\n

Sep 04:<\/strong> <\/span>The European Union was the biggest foreign investor in Pakistan, with the United Kingdom having an investment stock of $9.9 billion at the end of 2015, an SBP report entitled International Investment Position (IIP) said.<\/p>\n

Sep 05:<\/strong> <\/span>A Pakistani undergraduate law student Raza Nazar, who is a student of London School of Economics (LSE) Law School and hails from Karachi, featured in top 5 future lawyers of the United Kingdom.<\/p>\n

Sep 05:<\/strong><\/span> Five years since the passage of the Sindh Mental Health Act, the provincial government finally formed the 10-member Sindh Mental Health Authority (SMHA).<\/p>\n

Chairman:<\/strong><\/span> Senator Dr Karim Khuwaja<\/p>\n

Secretary:<\/strong> <\/span>Provincial Secretary Health or Special Secretary (Public Health)<\/p>\n

The chairperson and the members of the authority have been appointed for four years.<\/p>\n

\"World<\/a>Sep 05:<\/strong> <\/span>Out of the 186 universities recognised by Pakistan’s Higher Education Commission, only four could make it to the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2018.<\/p>\n

Sep 05:<\/span><\/strong> Former bureaucrat Dr Musharraf Rasool Cyan joined the Pakistan International Airlines Corporation Limited as its Chief Executive Officer (CEO).<\/p>\n

Sep 06:<\/strong> <\/span>The latest Basel Anti-Money Laundering Index figures put Pakistan at the 46th position among 146 countries in terms of money laundering and ‘terrorist financing’.<\/p>\n

Sep 06:<\/strong><\/span> Pakistan’s Talha Talib won the gold medal at the Commonwealth Junior Weightlifting Championship and finished second in the seniors’ event.<\/p>\n

Sep 07:<\/strong><\/span> Habib Bank Ltd (HBL) settled out of court with the Department of Financial Services (DFS) of New York State by agreeing to pay a fine of $225 million against various violations of the state’s regulatory provisions.<\/p>\n

The bank had already agreed to surrender its licence to operate a branch in New York and unwind its operations there. The branch has been operational since 1978.<\/p>\n

Sep 07:<\/strong> <\/span>While directing Inspector General of Police A.D. Khowaja to complete his term, the Sindh High Court ruled that the IGP’s tenure could not \u201cunder any circumstances be reduced to less than three years\u201d if the provincial government amended or altered the rules at any time.<\/p>\n

Sep 08:<\/strong><\/span> Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi inaugurated Pakistan’s fifth nuclear power plant (C-4).<\/p>\n

The 340MW Chashma-IV reactor, located some 250km southwest of Islamabad, is the fourth built as part of collaboration between the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) and China National Nuclear Corporation.<\/p>\n

\"World<\/a>Sep 08:<\/strong> <\/span>The National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) won the \u201cBank Trade Deal of the Year\u201d award at the Trade Finance Program Awards announced by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).<\/p>\n

Sep 11:<\/strong><\/span> British-Pakistani writer Mohsin Hamid made it to the shortlist of the 2017 Man Booker Prize. Mr Hamid is on the list with Exit West in which refugees can use doors to escape to other parts of the world.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Sep 12:<\/strong><\/span> In a historic decision, the federal cabinet gave go-ahead signal to bring Fata into the mainstream and as first step, jurisdiction of the Supreme Court and Islamabad High Court (IHC) would be extended to the area.<\/p>\n

Sep 13:<\/strong><\/span> In an explicit outcome of the GSP+ facility, Spain emerged as the third biggest destination for Pakistan’s exports proceeds during the FY 2016-17. Pakistan’s exports to Spain surged to $934.03 million in 2016-17, up 5.43 percent from $886.72m from the same period last year.<\/p>\n

Sep 13:<\/strong> <\/span>Pakistan’s Kanza Azeemi achieved the highest honour (the Sa\u00efd Prize) as an MBA student at University of Oxford. She achieved this position among a class of 327 students from 58 countries.<\/p>\n

Sep 14:<\/strong><\/span> Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi inaugurated the 363-kilometre-long Kachhi Canal project in the Sui area of Dera Bugti.<\/p>\n

About Kachhi Canal Project<\/span><\/h3>\n

1.<\/span> <\/strong>The Kachhi canal project has been built at a cost of Rs80 billion.
\n2.<\/strong><\/span> It is a 363-km-long main canal out of which 351km is lined canal.
\n3.<\/strong><\/span> Of 363km in the first phase, only 81km lies in Balochistan.
\n4.<\/strong><\/span> Its discharge capacity is 6,000 cusecs.
\n5.<\/strong> <\/span>It takes off from Taunsa Barrage in Muzaffargarh district and comes to an end in Dera Bugti district.
\n6.<\/strong><\/span> It is expected to irrigate around 72,000 acres of barren land in the Sui tehsil area of Balochistan.
\n7. <\/span><\/strong>Kachhi canal project is of great importance for the development of water infrastructure and irrigated agriculture in Balochistan.
\n8.<\/span> <\/strong>Its second and third phases are planned to extend across the Kachhi plain and beyond it to the Jhal Magsi, Bolan and Naseerabad districts.<\/p>\n

Sep 14:<\/span> <\/strong>Mohammad Azam Khan, an officer of the Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS), was appointed chief secretary of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.<\/p>\n

Sep 15:<\/span> <\/strong>A US drone fired missiles at a compound in the Ghuzgarhi area near the Afghan border in Kurram Agency, killing three people. This was the first drone strike inside Pakistani territory since US President Donald Trump announced his strategy for war in Afghanistan in August.<\/p>\n

Sep 15:<\/span> <\/strong>The Supreme Court rejected the petitions seeking the review of its July 28 judgement that disqualified Nawaz Sharif as prime minister in the Panama Papers case.<\/p>\n

Sep 15:<\/span> <\/strong>Fazal Abbas Maken became the Secretary National Food Security and Research (NFSR).<\/p>\n

Sep 15:<\/strong> <\/span>Pakistan beat the World XI in the last T20 match by 33 runs and wrap up the three-match T20 series 2-1 at the Gaddafi Stadium.<\/p>\n

\"World<\/a>Sep 15:<\/strong><\/span> The Punjab government banned foreign visits and treatment abroad on state expenses by any minister, MPA or official.<\/p>\n

Pakistan 3rd largest contributor to UN peacekeeping missions<\/p>\n

Sep 15:<\/strong> <\/span>Pakistan is the third largest contributor to United Nations’ peacekeeping missions the world over.<\/p>\n

As many as 7,123 Pakistani peacekeepers \u2013 including 6,703 personnel of armed forces, 74 military experts, 66 staff officers and 280 police officials \u2013 were currently deployed for 7 different UN peacekeeping missions.<\/p>\n

Pakistani troops are performing peacekeeping duties in Congo, Darfur, Haiti, Liberia, West Sahara, Central African Republic and Sudan.<\/p>\n

At least 142 Pakistani soldiers had so far lost their lives, placing the country at number three after India (163) and Nigeria (150).<\/p>\n

Largest deployment of Pakistani troops is in the UN peacekeeping mission in Congo with 3,486 personnel of armed forces, including 3,429 troops, 42 military experts and 15 staff officers performing duties.<\/p>\n

In case of casualty while performing duty, the UN pays a package of $70,000 in compensation. Payments are directly remitted to the duly recognised beneficiaries of the deceased.<\/p>\n

The deadliest mission for Pakistani troops in terms of lives lost was in Somalia in early 1990s. At least 40 Pakistani soldiers lost lives in peacekeeping duties in that country.<\/p>\n

Currently, the number of Pakistani troop deployment is the second largest in Darfur where 2,272 armed force personnel, including 142 police volunteers.<\/p>\n

Similarly, 1,136 Pakistani soldiers are deputed in the Central African Republic, 140 in Haiti, 73 in Liberia, 14 in West Sahara and two in Sudan.

<\/div>
<\/div>\n

INTERNATIONAL <\/span><\/h1>\n

Aug 16:<\/strong> <\/span>Scientists identified earth’s largest concentration of volcanoes in a region known as the West Antarctic Rift System, a 3,541km-long (3,500 km) area that extends from Antarctica’s Ross Ice Shelf to the Antarctic Peninsula. All of these volcanoes are buried beneath the Antarctic ice sheet, some as deep as two miles. They range in size from 325 to 12,600 feet (100-3,850 metres), the largest being as tall as the Eiger in Switzerland.<\/p>\n

Aug 17:<\/span> <\/strong>Melbourne topped the Economist Intelligence Unit’s ranking of the most livable cities in the world.<\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Most Livable Cities 2017<\/span><\/h3>\n

1.<\/span><\/strong> Melbourne, Australia\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 2.<\/span><\/strong> Vienna, Austria
\n3.<\/span><\/strong> Vancouver, Canada\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a04.<\/span><\/strong> Toronto, Canada
\n5.<\/span><\/strong> (tie) Calgary, Canada\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 5.<\/span><\/strong> (tie) Adelaide, Australia
\n7.<\/span><\/strong> Perth, Australia\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 8.<\/span><\/strong> Auckland, New Zealand
\n9.<\/span> <\/strong>Helsinki, Finland\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 10.<\/span> <\/strong>Hamburg, Germany<\/p>\n

Aug 18:<\/strong> <\/span>Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena appointed Rear Admiral Travis Sinniah, a Sri Lankan Tamil, as the next commander of the Sri Lakan Navy (SLN).<\/p>\n

Aug 18:<\/strong><\/span> Donald Trump fired his controversial far-right chief strategist Steve Bannon.<\/p>\n

Aug 18:<\/strong><\/span> The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) launched TDRS-M, the 13th satellite in the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite network and the last of its longtime tracking and communication satellites.<\/p>\n

Aug 19:<\/span> <\/strong>Charles R. Bentley, who in the 1950s led a team of scientists that measured the West Antarctic Ice Sheet for the first time, and who later explained the mechanics of the fast-moving ice streams that drain the sheet, died.<\/p>\n

Aug 19:<\/span> <\/strong>Afghanistan celebrated its independence day.<\/p>\n

August 19 commemorates the signing of the Treaty of Rawalpindi in 1919, which granted Afghanistan full independence from Britain, although the country was never part of the British Empire, after three bloody wars.<\/p>\n

Aug 20:<\/span><\/strong> Veteran American entertainer Jerry Lewis, whose goofy brand of physical comedy endeared him to millions, died.<\/p>\n

Aug 21: The International Seabed Authority (ISA) extended, by five years, India’s exclusive rights to explore polymetallic nodules from seabed in Central Indian Ocean Basin (CIOB).<\/p>\n

About ISA<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

International Seabed Authority (ISA) is a UN body set up to regulate the exploration and exploitation of marine non-living resources of oceans in international waters. It was established under the Convention on Law of the Sea.<\/p>\n

Pakistan is also a member of ISA.<\/p>\n

Founded:<\/strong> <\/span>16 November 1994
\nHeadquarters:<\/strong> <\/span>Kingston, Jamaica
\nMembers:<\/span><\/strong> 168
\nSecretary General:<\/span> <\/strong>Michael W. Lodge (UK)<\/p>\n

Aug 21:<\/strong> <\/span>The United States people witnessed the first coast-to-coast total solar eclipse in a century.<\/p>\n

Highlights<\/span><\/h2>\n

1.<\/strong> No area in the US had seen a total solar eclipse since 1979, while the last coast-to-coast total eclipse took place in 1918.<\/span>
\n2.<\/strong> The rare cosmic event was expected to draw one of the largest audiences in history, including those watching through broadcast and social media.<\/span>
\n3.<\/strong> Over 110km-wide path of darkness carved<\/span>
\n4.<\/strong> Some 12 million people live in the 113km-wide and 4,000km-long zone where the total eclipse appeared, while hordes of others travelled to spots along the route.<\/span>
\n5.<\/strong> The eclipse first reached \u201ctotality\u201d \u2014 the shadow cast when the sun is completely blocked by the moon \u2014 in Oregon at 1715GMT and began spreading eastward.<\/span>
\n6.<\/strong> Another total solar eclipse will cut from Mexico across the southeast and northeast US on April 8, 2024.<\/span><\/p>\n

Aug 22:<\/strong><\/span> India’s top court banned triple Talaq, an Islamic practice that allows men to divorce their wives instantly.<\/p>\n

Aug 22:<\/span> <\/strong>US President Donald Trump announced his new strategy for South Asia and Afghanistan.<\/p>\n

Aug 22:<\/strong><\/span> Tom Pritchard, New Zealand’s oldest cricketer, died aged 100.<\/p>\n

Aug 23:<\/span> <\/strong>The US Navy sacked Vice Admiral Joseph Aucoin, the commander of its Seventh Fleet, after a deadly collision between a destroyer and a tanker off Singapore, the latest of several accidents involving an American warship in Asian waters.<\/p>\n

About the Seventh Fleet <\/span><\/h3>\n

1.<\/strong><\/span> The Seventh Fleet, headquartered at Yokosuka in Japan, is the centrepiece of the US military presence in Asia.
\n2.<\/span><\/strong> It undertakes sensitive missions such as operations in the South China Sea and around the Korean peninsula.
\n3.<\/span> <\/strong>Recent accident was the second fatal collision in two months \u2014 both involving ships from the Seventh Fleet \u2014 after the USS Fitzgerald collided with a cargo vessel off Japan in June.
\n4.<\/span><\/strong> The damaged vessel is named after US Senator John McCain’s father and grandfather, who were both admirals in the US navy.<\/p>\n

\"World<\/a>Aug 23:<\/span><\/strong> Software giant Microsoft announced its Project Brainwave for deep learning acceleration platform for real-time artificial intelligence.<\/p>\n

Aug 24:<\/strong><\/span> Afghan President Ashraf Ghani signed a decree for the implementation of the Compact regarding the mutual cooperation between the US and Afghanistan.<\/p>\n

Aug 24:<\/strong> <\/span>India’s Supreme Court ruled that citizens have a constitutional right to privacy, in a landmark decision that could jeopardise a government programme holding biometric data on a billion people.<\/p>\n

Aug 24:<\/strong> <\/span>Boxer John Marvin took just 21 seconds to clinch the SEA Games light heavyweight title.<\/p>\n

Aug 25:<\/span><\/strong> The Trump administration slapped sweeping financial sanctions on Venezuela.<\/p>\n

Aug 25:<\/span><\/strong> Lee Jae-Yong, the heir to the Samsung empire, was convicted of bribery and other offences and jailed for 5 years.<\/p>\n

Aug 25:<\/span><\/strong> Cristiano Ronaldo was named UEFA’s Player of the Year, beating Lionel Messi and Gianluigi Buffon to the prize.<\/p>\n

Aug 27:<\/span><\/strong> America’s Floyd Mayweather Jr. scored a 10th round technical knockout over Conor McGregor of Ireland in their money-spinning superfight. Mayweather cemented his legacy as an all-time boxing great with his 50th win in as many fights.<\/p>\n

Aug 28:<\/span><\/strong> In keeping with time-honoured French presidential tradition, Emmanuel Macron gave the country a First Dog \u2013 a black labrador-griffon mix named Nemo after the captain in Jules Verne’s science fiction classic, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea.<\/p>\n

Aug 28:<\/span> <\/strong>Kenyans producing, selling or even using plastic bags will risk imprisonment of up to four years or fines of $40,000, as the world’s toughest law aimed at reducing plastic pollution came into effect.<\/p>\n

\"World<\/a>Aug 28:<\/span><\/strong> An Indian judge sentenced a self-styled \u201cgodman\u201d, Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, whose followers went on a deadly rampage after he was convicted of rape, to 20 years in jail.<\/p>\n

Aug 28:<\/span><\/strong> India and China agreed to pull back their troops from a face-off in the high Himalayas where China, India and Bhutan meet, signalling a thaw in the months-long Dokhlam standoff.<\/p>\n

Aug 28:<\/span><\/strong> Ebrahim Yazdi, Iran’s first foreign minister after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, died aged 86.<\/p>\n

Aug 28:<\/span> <\/strong>India overcame Sri Lanka to record a series-clinching six-wicket victory in the third ODI.<\/p>\n

Aug 29:<\/span> <\/strong>Kazakhstan inaugurated a new internationally-controlled uranium fuel bank.<\/p>\n

Aug 29:<\/span> <\/strong>North Korea fired a ballistic missile designed to carry a nuclear payload that flew over Japan and splashed into the northern Pacific.<\/p>\n

Aug 30:<\/span> <\/strong>Bangladesh pulled off their maiden Test victory over Australia.<\/p>\n

Aug 31:<\/span> <\/strong>Hosts Malaysia won 145 gold medals at the Southeast Asian Games to emerge as overall champion.<\/p>\n

Sep 01:<\/span><\/strong> Afghan President Ashraf Ghani indicated his government’s readiness for talks with Pakistan on normalisation of bilateral relations.<\/p>\n

Sep 01:<\/span> <\/strong>Kenya’s Supreme Court nullified recent Presidential election.<\/p>\n

Sep 03: <\/span><\/strong>Pulitzer-prize winning poet John Ashbery, a post-modern American trailblazer, died at age 90.<\/p>\n

Sep 03:<\/span><\/strong> Indian premier Narendra Modi appointed Nirmala Sitharaman India’s new defence minister. She is the first woman appointed to the key portfolio overseeing border tensions with China and Pakistan.<\/p>\n

Sep 04:<\/span> <\/strong>A summit of BRICS nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) was held in Xiamen, China. The leaders of the bloc pledged opposition to protectionism, denounced North Korea’s latest nuclear test, Called for tougher measures against terrorist groups and the UN reforms.<\/p>\n

Sep 05:<\/span><\/strong> The BRICS countries, following the summit in Xiamen, committed to intensifying their cooperation against terror financing and money laundering, within the framework established by the United Nations, specifically the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).<\/p>\n

Sep 05:<\/span><\/strong> Qatar inaugurated a new $7.4 billion port along its Gulf coast.<\/p>\n

About Hamad Port <\/span><\/h3>\n

1.<\/span><\/strong> The Hamad Port, 40km south of Doha, is one of the largest such facilities in the Middle East.
\n2.<\/span><\/strong> The port would allow Qatar to get around the sanctions by importing goods directly from countries such as China and Oman instead of through a major re-export hub in Dubai.
\n3.<\/span> <\/strong>It spans 26 square kilometres and will have a capacity of 7.5 million containers a year with terminals built to receive livestock, cereals, vehicles and coastguard vessels.<\/p>\n

\"World<\/a>Sep 05:<\/strong><\/span> President Donald Trump ended an amnesty, known as DACA that was effectuated under the Obama Administration, protecting 800,000 people, the so-called \u201cDreamers\u201d, many of whom had been brought to the United States illegally as minors, from deportation.<\/p>\n

Sep 05:<\/span> <\/strong>Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen named William Lai, a staunchly pro-independence city mayor, as her new premier.<\/p>\n

Sep 05:<\/span><\/strong> Gauri Lankesh, a newspaper editor and outspoken critic of the ruling Hindu nationalist party, was shot dead.<\/p>\n

Sep 06:<\/span> <\/strong>Seven-time tennis Grand Slam champion Venus Williams became the oldest semifinalist in US Open history.<\/p>\n

Sep 06:<\/span><\/strong> The European Court of Justice, the 28-nation EU’s top court, threw out the challenge from Hungary and Slovakia against a scheme Brussels launched two years ago to ease the burden on overstretched Greece and Italy.<\/p>\n

Sep 06:<\/span><\/strong> Asylum-seekers and refugees held in a remote Pacific camp, the Manus, were awarded Aus$70 million (US$56 million) for being illegally detained and treated negligently, in Australia’s largest human rights class action settlement. The compensation was approved by Victoria’s Supreme Court.<\/p>\n

Sep 07:<\/span><\/strong> The US military added more launchers to the high-tech missile-defence system called the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defence System (THAAD), it installed in a southern town to better cope with North Korean threats.<\/p>\n

Sep 07:<\/span> <\/strong>Mongolia parliament, the Great Khural, threw out the country’s prime minister and cabinet over allegations of corruption and abuse of power.<\/p>\n

Sep 08:<\/span><\/strong> The most powerful earthquake to hit Mexico in over 8 decades tore through buildings, forced mass evacuations and triggered alerts as far away as Southeast Asia.<\/p>\n

The 8.1 magnitude earthquake off the southern coast was stronger than a devastating 1985 quake that flattened swathes of Mexico City and killed thousands.<\/p>\n

\"World<\/a>Sep 10:<\/strong> <\/span>The first OIC Summit on Science and Technology was held in Astana, Kazakhstan. The two-day summit was followed by the adoption of the Astana Declaration that contained pledges to alleviate poverty, enhance education spending and meet the goals set forth in the OIC 2025 plan and the UN Sustainable Development Goals 2030.<\/p>\n

The Summit was aimed at determining priorities, goals, and objectives in the field of science, technology and innovation development in the OIC member states. The Astana Summit was themed “Science, Technology, Innovation and Modernization in the Islamic World”.<\/p>\n

Sep 10:<\/strong><\/span> Rafael Nadal won his third US Open title and 16th Grand Slam by defeating the South African Kevin Anderson.<\/p>\n

Sep 11:<\/strong> <\/span>A photo exhibition \u201cShared history; shared future\u201d was launched in the House of Commons. It marks the links between the UK and Pakistan 70 years after independence.<\/p>\n

Sep 11:<\/span><\/strong> The situation in Myanmar is a \u201ctextbook example of ethnic cleansing\u201d, United Nations Human Rights Chief Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein told the UN Human Rights Council.<\/p>\n

Sep 11:<\/strong><\/span> Martina Hingis captured her 25th career Grand Slam crown, partnering with Taiwan’s Chan Yung-Jan to win the US Open women’s doubles title.<\/p>\n

Sep 11:<\/strong> <\/span>British director Peter Hall, who founded the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1960 and is credited with the boom of post-war British theatre, died at the age of 86.<\/p>\n

Sep 11:<\/strong> <\/span>The UN Security Council unanimously imposed the eighth set of sanctions on the North, banning it from trading in textiles and restricting its oil imports.<\/p>\n

Sep 13:<\/strong><\/span> The International Olympic Committee named Paris and Los Angeles as hosts for the 2024 and 2028 Olympics.<\/p>\n

1.<\/strong><\/span> The 2024 Games will mark the third time Paris has staged the Olympics, coming exactly 100 years after they last hosted the Games.<\/p>\n

2.<\/strong> <\/span>The 2028 Olympics will be the first held in the United States since the chaotic 1996 Games in Atlanta.<\/p>\n

3.<\/strong><\/span> It will also mark the third time that Los Angeles has hosted the Olympics following successful editions in 1932 and 1984.<\/p>\n

Sep 13:<\/strong><\/span> India submitted its initial pleadings, known as ‘memorial’, to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague in Kulbhushan Jadhav case.<\/p>\n

Pakistan will submit its counter memorial on December 13, 2017.<\/p>\n

Sep 13:<\/strong> <\/span>Halimah Yacob, a former speaker of parliament from the Muslim Malay minority, became Singapore’s first female president.<\/p>\n

Sep 14:<\/strong> <\/span>Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe inaugurated India’s first bullet train project; a $19 billion line in Gujarat, the home state of Indian Premier Narendra Modi.<\/p>\n

\"World<\/a>Sep 14:<\/strong><\/span> A new plastic 10-pound note featuring Jane Austen, one of Britain’s most renowned authors, went into circulation. Apart from the Queen, whose portrait is on all UK currency, Austen is only the third woman to feature on a modern-day British banknote, after medical innovator Florence Nightingale and social reformer Elizabeth Fry.<\/p>\n

Sep 15:<\/strong><\/span> Norway’s Ghayas Zahid became the first footballer of Pakistani descent to feature in UEFA Champions League.<\/p>\n

Sep 15:<\/strong><\/span> Norway’s foreign minister Borge Brende was appointed the president of the World Economic Forum (WEF).<\/p>\n

Sep 15:<\/span><\/strong> North Korea fired a ballistic missile over Japan and into the Pacific, responding to new UN sanctions with what appeared to be its furthest-ever missile flight.<\/p>\n

Sep 15:<\/span><\/strong> Nasa’s famed Cassini spacecraft disintegrated in the skies above Saturn in a final, fateful blaze of cosmic glory, following a remarkable journey of 20 years.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NATIONAL Aug 16: PML-N nominated Senator Yaqoob Khan Nasar as the acting president of the party. The PML-N came into being in 1990, and since then, Shahbaz Sharif is the only person, other than Nawaz Sharif, to have held the office of party chief. Aug 16: The United States designated Hizbul Mujahideen as a specially …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":151,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[9072,42],"tags":[8438,2232,7411,40,1527,43],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jworldtimes.com\/old-site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14258"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jworldtimes.com\/old-site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jworldtimes.com\/old-site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jworldtimes.com\/old-site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/151"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jworldtimes.com\/old-site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14258"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.jworldtimes.com\/old-site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14258\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25969,"href":"https:\/\/www.jworldtimes.com\/old-site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14258\/revisions\/25969"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jworldtimes.com\/old-site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14258"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jworldtimes.com\/old-site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14258"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jworldtimes.com\/old-site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14258"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}