World in Focus (DEC 21-JAN 2022) National & International With MCQs

World in Focus (DEC 21-JAN 2022)

National & International With MCQs

Dec. 16: Pakistan pulled off their highest Twenty20 International run-chase to defeat the West Indies to complete a 3-0 series win in Karachi.
Dec. 16: Babar Azam and Muhammad Rizwan registered their sixth century stand in Twenty20 Internationals in 2021, the most by any pair in the format.
Dec. 16: Prime Minister Imran Khan (PMIK) inaugurated the Skardu International Airport.
Dec. 16: Gwadar sit-in ended after the government accepted the demands of protesters.
Dec. 16: Dr Asad Majeed Khan, Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States, presented his credentials to Sir Cornelius A Smith, Governor General of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, as non-resident High Commissioner of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
Dec. 16: Federal Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari launched the First Five Year National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights.
Dec. 16: Pakistan set a Guinness World Record for the most cars at a drive-in music concert.
Dec. 16: The annual US report on terrorism acknowledged that Pakistan took steps in 2020 to counter terrorism financing, restrain India-focused militant groups and to meet demands of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
Dec. 17: The Supreme Court ordered reinstatement of 16,000 employees by exercising its jurisdiction under Article 184 (3) of the Constitution.
Dec. 17: The first meeting of the International Advisory Board of the Rehmatul-lil-Alamin Authority was held in Islamabad.
Dec. 17: Pakistan’s prolific weightlifter Nooh Dastagir Butt won a silver medal in the World Championship in Tashkent.
Dec. 18: Lahore High Court (LHC) asked the federal and provincial governments to amend the Haq Mehar column in the Nikahnamas and add separate columns for cash, moveable and immoveable properties in that.
Dec. 18: Pakistan’s Asim Shafik was appointed by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) to their Coaches Commission for the 2022-2023 term.
Dec. 18: In a rare exercise of its power to ‘read in’ the law, the Supreme Court (SC) done away with constitutional bar on the appointment of retired judges as members of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) before completion of two years after their retirement.
Dec. 19: The 17th Extraordinary Session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers, which was held in Islamabad, agreed on providing all help to Afghanistan on humanitarian grounds.
The special meet, convened to take up the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, adopted a lengthy 30-point resolution, which importantly, focused on serious liquidity challenges that Kabul faces and resolved to continue focusing on measures to ease access to legitimate banking services.
Around 70 delegations from OIC member states, non-members and regional and international organizations attended the summit.
Dec. 20: The ruling PTI accepted defeat in the local government elections in KP.
Dec. 20: Shaukat Tarin was elected member of the Senate on the vacant seat from KP.
Dec. 20: The Higher Education Commission (HEC) and Microsoft in Pakistan renewed the Education Transformation Agreement (ETA) to help enable positive changes to learning outcomes for the students in the country.
Dec. 21: The federal cabinet approved the Strategic Trade Policy Framework (STPF) 2020-25.
Dec. 21: Pakistan conducted a successful test of an enhanced range version of the indigenously developed Babur Cruise Missile 1B.
Dec. 21: Renowned Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT) surgeon and hematologist Prof Dr Tahir Shamsi passed away.
About Dr Shamsi
Prof Dr Tahir Shamsi was a mentor of mentors in Pakistan and an authority on blood disorders. He was a world-renowned personality, who trained scores of experts, who are now serving the patients in Pakistan and other countries of the world. He had also pioneered the concept of plasma therapy during the first wave of the Covid-19 epidemic in Pakistan. He founded the National Institute for Blood Diseases in 2011 to treat patients suffering from blood-related ailments. He was also a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians.
Dec. 21: The French government gave Pakistan-origin Asma Ashraf the National Order of Merit which is the second national order after the Legion of Honour, for her services in areas of education and social welfare for French society.
Dec. 21: With an aim to boost trade between Pakistan, Iran and Turkey, the Islamabad-Tehran-Istanbul (ITI) freight train was inaugurated.
Dec. 21: The Oxford Pakistan Programme (OPP) was launched at the University of Oxford to promote various Pakistan-related activities there.
Dec. 22: The US thanked Pakistan for hosting an OIC summit on Afghanistan.
Dec. 22: Pakistan’s Hamza Khan won the Under-19 title of US Junior Open Squash Championships in Philadelphia.
Dec. 22: Pakistan and the ADB signed six loans and grant agreements totaling $1.54 billion to improve energy, transport, irrigation, and urban sectors.
Dec. 23: PMIK inaugurated Lahore Technopolis, a special technology zone.
Dec. 24: President Dr Arif Alvi appointed Justice Tariq Mahmood Jahangiri and Justice Babar Sattar as Additional Judges of the Islamabad High Court (IHC).
Dec. 26: Eminent Urdu humorous poet Sarfraz Shahid passed away.
Dec. 27: The National Security Committee (NSC), under PMIK, approved Pakistan’s first-ever National Security Policy (NSP) 2022-2026 with the ultimate purpose of ensuring safety, security and dignity of citizens of Pakistan.
Dec. 27: President Dr Arif Alvi launched Ulema-Ambassadors of Girls Education Campaign.
Dec. 27: Chief Minister Punjab Sardar Usman Buzdar inaugurated the Gulab Devi Underpass in Lahore and announced naming it after Abdul Sattar Edhi.
Dec. 27: British Deputy High Commissioner Martin Dawson handed over the Commonwealth Games Queen’s Baton to the president of the Commonwealth Games Association Pakistan Lt Gen (retd) Arif Hasan.
Dec. 27: Ejaz Ahmad Qureshi took oath as the 8th permanent Federal Ombudsman of Pakistan.
Dec. 27: Senator Shaukat Tarin took oath as federal minister for finance and revenue, for a second time during a year.
Dec. 27: Wapda kept the men’s team title, Army clinched the women’s team title of the National Table Tennis Championships.
Dec. 28: The Supreme Court directed the administrator of District Municipal Corporation East to restore a public park on Tariq Road in PECHS area where Madina Masjid was illegally constructed.
Dec. 28: Pakistan, along with Costa Rica and Congo was selected as ‘Forestry Champion’ in the world during UN Climate Summit COP26 held in Glasgow. Pakistan would now act as a leading green country in the Asian region and it would share its experiences with the regional countries about highly acclaimed green initiatives such as Ten Billion Tree Tsunami project, Clean Green Pakistan and Protected Areas Initiatives.
Dec. 28: Renowned corporate lawyer Mehmood Mandviwalla was appointed as the Chairman Policy Board of Security Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP).
Dec. 29: Federal Minister for IT and Telecommunication Syed Amin Ul Haque inaugurated Amazon Software Technology Park in Islamabad.
Dec. 29: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were crowned champions of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy 2021-2022.
Dec. 30: Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin presented in the National Assembly the Finance (Supplementary) Bill 2021 envisaging withdrawal of sales tax exemptions worth Rs343 billion on machinery, pharma and imported food items.
‘Mini-budget’ at a glance
* Increase in GST on 850cc to 1,000cc vehicles from 12.5% to 17%
* Increasing the FED on imported vehicles having engine capacity of 1,000cc to 1,799cc from 5% to 10%, on 1,800cc to 3,000cc vehicles from 25% to 30% and on those higher than 3,000cc from 30% to 40%
* Increase in advanced tax on up to 1,000cc vehicles from Rs 50,000 to 100,000, on 1,000cc to 2,000cc vehicles from 100,000 to 200,000 and on those higher than 2,000cc from 200,000 to 400,000
* Increase in FED on locally made vehicles of engine capacity between 1,000 and 2,000cc from 2.5% to 5% and on those higher than 2,000cc from 5% to 10%
* Increase in FED on locally made double cabin vehicles from 7.5% to 10%
* 17% uniform sales tax on mobile phones
* Increase in tax on imported electric vehicles from 5% to 17%
* Increase in sales tax on imported oil seeds from 5% to 17%
* 17% tax on products sold in sachets and branded chicken products
* 17% tax on import of animals, raw material for pharma products and agricultural seeds
* Increase in sales tax on batteries from 12% to 17%
* 17% general sales on flour mills
* Increase in tax on packed dairy products from 10% to 17%
Dec. 31: PMIK launched Naya Pakistan National Sehat Card in Lahore.
Dec. 31: Navy defended the title of 6th CNS Open Shooting Championships.
Dec. 31: Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) appointed Irfan Iqbal Sheikh as its new president.
Jan. 01: SAPM on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam inaugurated the first-ever Common Asian Leopard preserve zone in the federal capital’s scenic Margalla Hills National Park Trail-6 that falls in Kalinjar area.
Jan. 01: Pakistan and India exchanged the lists of prisoners in each other’s custody and nuclear sites as part of various agreements in place between the two countries.
Jan. 02: A special dialogue of PMIK with a number of eminent Muslim scholars was held by the National Rehmatul-lil-Alameen Authority on the topic of “Riyasat-e-Medina, Islam, society and ethical revival”.
Jan. 02: Former off spinner Saqlain Mushtaq stepped down as Pakistan’s interim head coach with the PCB.
Jan. 03: The tax directory of parliamentarians, issued by the FBR, disclosed that various big names among parliamentarians paid minimal tax for the tax year 2019.
Jan. 03: After a pause of around a decade, the first freight train between Istanbul and Islamabad via Tehran reached Ankara via Lahore, Taftan and Zahedan.
Jan. 03: Former Pakistan captain Mohammad Hafeez announced his retirement from international cricket.
Jan. 04: SC turned down request to stop demolition of Madina mosque in Karachi.
Jan. 04: Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin laid down in the Senate a copy of the Money Bill, the Finance (Supplementary) Bill, 2021.
Jan. 05: The SC stayed the evacuation of private schools from all 42 Cantonment Boards across the country.
Jan. 05: International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) cleared the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) from its significant safety concerns, paving the way for lifting restrictions on Pakistani-registered aircraft by the European Union, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Jan. 05: During a delegation-level meeting between Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and GCC Secretary General Dr Nayef Falah M. Al-Hajraf, Pakistan and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) finalised the Joint Action Plan for Strategic Dialogue (2022-26).
Jan. 06: The Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) recommended the elevation of Justice Ayesha A. Malik of the LHC to the SC, making her the first female judge in the country’s highest court.
Jan. 06: Wicketkeeper batsman Mohammad Rizwan was declared the Most Valuable Pakistan Cricketer for his exceptional performance with the bat and behind the wickets.
Jan. 07: The IHC ordered the demolition of the “illegal” Navy Sailing Club established at the bank of Rawal Lake within three weeks and ordered action against former naval chief Zafar Mahmood Abbasi.
Jan. 07: The FIA detected an online fraud of USD100 million (Rs17.7 billion) using a cryptocurrency
Jan. 07: SAPM Dr Sania Nishtar, who is the Chairperson of Ehsaas/Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), launched the National Socio-Economic Registry (NSER).
Jan. 07: An LHC judge, Justice Ali Zia Bajwa, ruled that if a marriage is solemnised without spending the Iddat period, it can be called irregular but can’t be annulled.
Jan. 08: Twenty-two persons, including women and children, lost their lives in freezing temperature at the hill station Murree.
Jan. 08: Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani’s younger brother Salar Sanjrani and his driver were killed in a road accident.
Jan. 09: PMIK was awarded the “International Sports Personality Award” at the 11th edition of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Creative Sports Awards ceremony held in Dubai, UAE.
Jan. 10: A former spokesman of the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and prominent militant leader, Mohammad Khalid Balti aka Mohammad Khalid Khorrasani, was shot dead by unknown gunmen in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province.
Jan. 11: The IHC declared Navy’s golf course illegal and ordered the authorities concerned to take over it and seal Islamabad’s hilltop Monal Restaurant by close of business.
Jan. 11: United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and United Nations Development Fund (UNDP) with implementing partner the School of Leadership Foundation (SoLF), launched the Generation Unlimited imaGen Ventures Youth Challenge 2021/22 in Pakistan.
Jan. 11: The 246th Corps Commanders’ Conference was held at the GHQ.
Jan. 11: The Ministry of National Health Services (NHS) banned the conventional disposable syringes, and ordered to replace them with auto-disable syringes.
Jan. 11: A grand jirga constituted by the district administrations of Kohistan and Diamer settled the boundary dispute between Thor and Harban tribes of Gilgit-Baltistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, respectively, and also presented cheques to families whose loved ones were killed over the dispute in 2014. The settlement will enable the Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) to accelerate construction work on the mega Diamer-Bhasha Dam project.
Jan. 12: The Henley Passport Index 2022 ranked the Pakistani passport as the fourth worst passport for international travel for the third consecutive year, with visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to 31 destinations around the world.
Jan. 13: The Finance (Supplementary) Bill, 2021, the mini-budget and the State Bank of Pakistan (Amendment) Bill, 2022, sailed through the National Assembly.
Jan. 13: US Charge d’ Affaires to Pakistan Angela Aggeler called on COAS General Bajwa at the GHQ.
Jan. 13: An Oxfam report revealed that staggering inequality rose sharply across Asia in the wake of Covid-19 devastation as in Pakistan 50 percent of households were unable to receive medical attention due to lack of money.
Jan. 13: Islamic Finance News (IFN), an arm of RED money Group, Malaysia, declared State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) as the best central bank of 2021 across the world in promoting Islamic finance.
Jan. 13: The Council of Common Interests (CCI), during its 49th meeting, approved the conduct of 7th Population and Housing Census as well as the establishment of “Census Monitoring Committee”. The CCI has decided to conduct the 7th Census adopting international best practices, using digital technology and GIS monitoring system.
Jan. 13: Pakistan’s Space & Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO), together with the Planning Ministry, developed a web portal and mobile application though which progress on various projects of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) can be monitored.
Jan. 14: PMIK launched the public version of the National Security Policy.
Jan. 14: Pakistan assumed chairmanship of the Group of 77 and China (G-77) for the year 2022.
Jan. 15: President Alvi granted his approval to the Finance (Supplementary) Bill 2022 under Article 75 of the Constitution.
Jan. 15: The KP government announced 4,130 Rahmatul-Lilalameen scholarships 2021-22 for various categories to facilitate seminary students of newly merged districts.
Jan. 15: Former chief justice of Pakistan Nazim Hussain Siddiqui passed away. He was 81.

Dec. 16: Britain’s seven-time Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton received a knighthood for services to motorsport.
Dec. 16: The World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA) announced to provide $93 billion in fresh funding to help low-income countries respond to the Covid-19 pandemic – the largest package mobilised in IDA’s 61-year history.
Dec. 17: The Czech president appointed a new government led by Petr Fiala, a right-winger.
Dec. 17: Men’s world number one Novak Djokovic was named the 2021 ITF world champion for a record seventh time, while women’s number one Ash Barty picked up her second crown.
Dec. 19: The OIC decided to appoint Ambassador Tarig Ali Bakheet, Assistant Secretary General for Humanitarian, Cultural and Family Affairs at the OIC General Secretariat, as the special envoy on Afghanistan to the OIC Secretary General.
Dec. 19: UK’s Brexit minister David Frost resigned.
Dec. 19: The strongest typhoon Rai hit the Philippines.
Dec. 19: The Taliban government resumed issuing travel documents.
Dec. 19: Ng Eain Yow of Malaysia won the Asian Squash championship at the Mushaf Complex.
Dec. 19: Hong Kong was crowned women individual champions as Tong Tsz Wing beat Rachel Mae Arnold (Malaysia).
Dec. 19: The 3rd meeting of the India-Central Asia Dialogue was held in New Delhi.
Dec. 19: At the three-day Dharam Sansad in Uttarakhand’s Haridwar city, Hindutva leaders called for the ethnic cleansing of Muslims — a strong 200-million population in the country.
Dec. 20: Online fashion tycoon Yusaku Maezawa and his assistant Yozo Hirano returned to Earth, after 12 days on the International Space Station.
Dec. 20: Candidates loyal to China’s Communist Party won a landslide victory in Hong Kong’s legislative elections.
Dec. 20: Leftist millennial Gabriel Boric, 35, became Chile’s youngest-ever president-elect.
Dec. 21: Serge Gelle, Madagascar’s secretary of state for police, swum some 12 hours to shore after his helicopter crashed off the island’s northeastern coast.
Dec. 21: The ruler of Dubai was ordered by an English court to pay his former wife and children around $730 million – the highest divorce settlement set.
Dec. 21: Maj Gen Tamir Heyman, the now-retired general who headed Israel’s military intelligence until October 2021, said that his country was involved in the American air strike that killed Iranian general Qassem Soleimani in January 2020.
Dec. 22: The EU announced to launch legal action against Poland for ignoring European Union law and undermining the independence of its national judiciary.
Dec. 22: The US national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, held talks with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett.
Dec. 22: The UN Security Council unanimously adopted a US-proposed resolution that facilitates humanitarian aid to Afghanistan.
Dec. 22: South Korea were crowned Asian Champions Trophy winners with a win against Japan.
Dec. 22: North Macedonia’s prime minister, Zoran Zaev, submitted his resignation to parliament.
Dec. 23: Belgium announced to shut down all seven of its nuclear reactors by 2025.
Dec. 24: During his annual press conference, in which he stressed the importance of “artistic freedom without hindrance to religious freedom,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said that insulting Holy Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) does not count as an expression of artistic freedom but is a “violation of religious freedom”.
Dec. 24: A Moscow court slapped Google with an unprecedented hefty fine of 7.2 billion rubles, ($98 million).
Dec. 24: Russian military successfully fired a simultaneous salvo of its Zircon hypersonic missiles.
Dec. 24: South Korea’s ex-president Park Geun-hye received a pardon, cutting short a jail term of more than 20 years for corruption.
Dec. 24: Veteran India spinner Harbhajan Singh announced his retirement from all forms of cricket.
Dec. 24: US President Joe Biden signed into law the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act that virtually bans all imports from the Chinese region of Xinjiang in response to concerns over forced labor.
Dec. 24: Renowned English cricketer, commentator and administrator Ray Illingworth passed away.
Dec. 25: The world’s most powerful space telescope James Webb blasted off into orbit.
Named after a former Nasa director, Webb follows in the footsteps of the legendary Hubble.
Dec. 26: South African anti-apartheid icon Archbishop Desmond Tutu, described as the country’s moral compass, died.
Dec. 26: Afghan Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice issued guidance that women seeking to travel long distances should not be offered transport unless they are accompanied by a close male relative.
Dec. 26: Israel’s government approved a $317 million plan to double the Jewish settler population in the Golan Heights, 40 years after it annexed the territory captured from Syria.
Dec. 27: E.O. Wilson, the pioneering US scientist, professor and author whose clarion call to protect Earth earned him the nickname “Darwin’s natural heir,” died at age 92.
Dec. 27: Bangladeshi journalist Mahfuz Anam was elected Asia News Network’s (ANN) next Chairman.
Dec. 27: Naren Chandra Das, the last surviving member of a small troop of Indian soldiers who escorted the Dalai Lama as he fled from Tibet in 1959 died aged 85.
Dec. 28: Russia conducted a third launch of its new heavy-class Angara rocket.
Dec. 28: Australia won the third Test against England to retain the Ashes.
Dec. 28: China submitted to the United Nations space agency a note wherein it accused the United States of irresponsible and unsafe conduct in space over two ‘close encounters’ between the Chinese space station and satellites operated by Elon Musk’s SpaceX.
Dec. 29: A new Kuwaiti government was sworn in, the oil-rich Gulf emirate’s fourth in two years.
Dec. 29: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken appointed Rina Amiri as special envoy for Afghan women, girls and human rights. He also appointed Stephanie Foster as the new senior adviser for women and girls’ issues in the Afghan relocation effort.
Dec. 30: The Indian government extended a special law giving armed forces sweeping powers in the north-eastern state of Nagaland.
Dec. 30: Iran carried out a new space launch when its Simorgh satellite launcher carried three research cargos into space.
Dec. 30: New Zealand great Ross Taylor announced to end his illustrious Test career.
Dec. 31: India hit out at China for giving “invented” names to several places in a disputed Himalayan region on their border as Beijing looks to assert sovereignty over the territory.
Dec. 31: The UK experienced its warmest New Year’s Eve on record with temperatures hovering around 15 degrees Celsius (59 degrees Fahrenheit).
Dec. 31: Hollywood icon Betty White passed away.
Jan. 01: France took over the rotating presidency of the European Union.
Jan. 01: The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) entered into force.
Jan. 02: Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, during a call, pledged to improve ties.
Jan. 02: Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok resigned, less than two months after being reinstated as part of a political agreement with the military.
Jan. 02: A detailed, full-page report in The Wall Street Journal showed that since the Sept 11, 2001, US military outsourcing pushed up Pentagon spending to $14 trillion. One-third to half of that sum went to contractors.
Jan. 02: A massive fire in South Africa’s houses of parliament in Cape Town completely destroyed the National Assembly where parliamentarians sit.
Jan. 03: Yemen’s Houthi rebels seized a UAE ship in the Red Sea.
Jan. 03: Five global nuclear powers pledged to prevent atomic weapons spreading and to avoid nuclear conflict.
Jan. 04: Scotsman Peter Wright won his second World Darts Championship title.
Jan. 04: US tech giant Apple became the first company in the world to reach $3 trillion in market capitalisation.
Jan. 05: North Korea fired a ballistic missile into the sea.
Jan. 05: A jury at the Sheffield Crown Court found Lord Nazir Ahmed guilty over eight counts of alleged sexual offences.
Jan. 05: Bangladesh won their first-ever test in New Zealand.
Jan. 06: Tennis world number one Novak Djokovic was detained at Melbourne’s Tullamarine Airport having failed to “provide appropriate evidence” of double vaccination, or a medical exemption needed to enter the country.
Jan. 06: A Moscow-led military alliance CSTO dispatched troops to help quell mounting unrest in Kazakhstan.
Jan. 06: Air New Zealand topped the annual safety table. Etihad Airways took second place, while Qatar Airways came in third, with Singapore Airlines and TAP Portugal achieving fourth and fifth place respectively.
Jan. 06: French regulators have hit Google and Facebook with 210 million euros ($237 million) in fines over their use of “cookies”, the data used to track users online.
Jan. 06: The speaker of Tanzania’s parliament Job Ndugai quit after a very public spat with President Samia Suluhu Hassan.
Jan. 06: Child marriage became illegal in the Philippines, a country where one in six girls enters wedlock before the age of 18.
Jan. 06: The United Kingdom College of Arms granted the first-ever official “Coat of Arms” featuring the Green Dome of the Prophet’sﷺ mosque in Madina. The Arms was granted to Lord Aamer Sarfraz, a British-Pakistani Member of the House of Lords.
About the Shield
The shield featuring the Green Dome has two heraldic supporters a Lion representing the UK, and a Snow Leopard representing Pakistan. The Coat of Arms also features a Coronet of a Baron. The Crest at the top of the Arms has the Himalayan Mountains.
Finally, at the top, is a Crescent, the symbol of Islam. The Coat of Arms was designed by the Garter Principal King of Arms, the Senior King of Arms of England. The College of Arms was established by Royal Charter in 1484 and is part of the Royal Household.
Jan. 06: Japan and Australia signed a “landmark” treaty to strengthen defence ties.
Jan. 07: Sidney Poitier, Hollywood’s first major Black movie star and the first to win the best actor Oscar, died aged 94.
Jan. 07: Iran began paying compensation to families of those killed when it shot down a Ukrainian airliner in 2020.
Jan. 08: The James Webb Space Telescope completed its two-week-long deployment phase.
Jan. 08: Kazakhstan arrested its former security chief, Karim Masimov, a former prime minister and longtime ally of Kazakhstan’s ex-leader Nursultan Nazarbayev, for suspected treason during days of unrest.
Jan. 08: President Joe Biden nominated Lt. Gen. Michael Kurilla to lead the US Central Command, which oversees military operations in the Middle East.
Jan. 08: Several high-profile Ethiopian opposition figures were freed after the government granted a surprise amnesty for prominent political detainees, including Tigrayan party leaders.
Jan. 08: The Taliban’s foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi visited Iran to discuss Afghan refugees and a growing economic crisis.
Jan. 08: Saudi authorities released Princess Basma bint Saud and her daughter who had been held without charge for nearly three years.
Jan. 09: Women’s camel beauty contest made debut in Saudi Arabia. The event formed part of the prestigious King Abdelaziz Festival, which was previously a men-only affair.
Jan. 09: Spanish superstar Rafael Nadal beat American Maxime Cressy to win the Melbourne Summer Set.
Jan. 09: Canada won their maiden ATP Cup title, after Felix Auger-Aliassime defeated the Spanish star Roberto Bautista Agut.
Jan. 09: Canadian teenager Madeline Schizas captured her first national figure skating title.
Jan. 09: Top-ranked Ash Barty won her second Adelaide International title in three years.
Jan. 10: Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte embarked on a fourth term as his country’s leader.
Jan. 10: The EU’s climate monitoring service, the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), reported that last seven years were the hottest on record globally “by a clear margin”.
Jan. 10: Russia and the United States held tense talks in Geneva, Switzerland.
Jan. 10: Afghanistan’s ambassador to China, Javid Ahmad Qaem, resigned from his post for finding it hard to run the embassy’s affairs in the wake of financial crunch.
Jan. 10: Australia’s Cameron Smith defeated top-ranked Jon Rahm to win the PGA Tournament of Champions.
Jan. 10: Venezuela’s opposition won a historic victory in a tense gubernatorial election in a region ruled by the family of late president Hugo Chavez for more than two decades.
Jan. 11: The New Jersey Senate unanimously passed a resolution to condemn the Sikh massacre in India that took place in 1984 and called it a “genocide.”
Jan. 11: Poet and activist Maya Angelou became the first Black woman to appear on the US quarter, in a new version of the coin unveiled by the US Mint.
Jan. 11: Tata Group became the Indian Premier League’s new lead sponsor, replacing China’s Vivo.
Jan. 11: Doctors at the University of Maryland’s School of Medicine (UMSM) performed the first pig-to-human heart transplant in history. The groundbreaking research by Dr Mohammad Mohiuddin, a Dow graduate from Pakistan, led to this medical miracle. The heart was transplanted in the body of a 57-year-old recipient, David Bennet Sr.
Jan. 11: David Sassoli, an Italian journalist who ultimately became the president of the European Union’s parliament, died. He was 65.
Jan. 11: The United States announced a new contribution of more than $308 million in humanitarian assistance for the people of Afghanistan.
Jan. 12: The US and its European allies sat down with senior Russian envoys at Nato headquarters in Brussels.
Jan. 12: The US imposed sanctions on five North Koreans linked to the country’s ballistic missile program.
Jan. 12: Trinidad and Tobago’s Olympic committee said sprinter Deon Lendore died.
Jan. 12: North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un personally oversaw the successful test of a hypersonic missile.
Jan. 13: The British government appointed Lord Aamer Sarfraz, a British-Pakistani House of Lords member, as Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s trade envoy to Singapore to promote British interests and trade ties between the two countries.
Jan. 13: A German court sentenced a former Syrian colonel, Anwar Raslan, to life in jail for crimes against humanity, in a “historic” verdict marking the end of the first global trial over state-sponsored torture in Syria. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet termed the verdict as a “landmark leap” towards justice.
Jan. 13: The US granted South Korea a sanctions exemption, allowing the country to pay millions of dollars of overdue compensation to an Iranian investor, the Dayyani Group, over a failed takeover of Daewoo Electronics in 2010.
Jan. 13: Talks between Indian and Chinese military commanders on easing a 20-month border standoff ended without a breakthrough for the second time in three months.
Jan. 13: Queen Elizabeth II’s second son Prince Andrew, who is facing a US civil case for sexual assault, gave up his honorary military and charitable roles.
Jan. 13: The Taliban approved their first budget for Afghanistan since they returned to power in August 2021.
Jan. 13: Britain’s domestic spy service MI5 told the House of Commons speaker that the Chinese Communist Party was employing a woman to exert improper influence over lawmakers.
Jan. 14: North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles in its third weapons launch in January.
Jan. 14: The UK government apologised to Queen Elizabeth II, after revelations that Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s staff broke coronavirus restrictions by partying on the eve of Prince Philip’s funeral.
Jan. 14: The Philippines agreed to buy an anti-ship missile system from India.
Jan. 14: Qatari driver Nasser al-Attiyah won the Dakar Rally for a fourth time.
Jan. 14: South Africa defeated India on the fourth day of the third Test to win the series 2-1.
Jan. 15: North Korea launched ballistic missiles from a train.
Jan. 15: World number 20 Aslan Karatsev downed Andy Murray in the Sydney Classic final.
Jan. 15: Australia returned Serbian ace Novak Djokovic to detention, saying the tennis star’s opposition to vaccination could cause “civil unrest” and triggering a high-profile court showdown.
Jan. 15: Former Grand Slam finalist Madison Keys defeated compatriot Alison Riske to claim the Adelaide International title.
Jan. 15: Chinese and Iranian foreign ministers announced the launch of a 25-year cooperation agreement aimed at strengthening economic and political ties.

1. On Dec. 16, Pakistan pulled off their highest Twenty20 Int’l run-chase to defeat ______ in Karachi.
(a) Sri Lanka             (b) West Indies
(c) Afghanistan        (d) Zimbabwe

2. On Dec. 16, Prime Minister Imran Khan inaugurated an international airport in ______.
(a) Mansehra             (b) Kaghan
(c) Skardu                (d) Murree

3. Pakistan’s immediate past ambassador to USA was ______.
(a) Dr Asim Shafik Elahi
(b) Dr Asad Majeed Khan
(c) Dr Maleeha Lodhi
(d) Tariq Mahmood Kahlon

4. Pakistan launched its first Five Year National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights on ____.
(a) Dec. 16                (b) Dec. 17
(c) Dec. 18                  (d) Dec. 19

5. On Dec. 17, the first meeting of the International Advisory Board of the Rehmatul-lil-Alamin Authority was held in ______.
(a) Islamabad              (b) Ankara
(c) Kuala Lumpur          (d) Dubai

6. The 17th Extraordinary Session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers was held in Islamabad on ______.
(a) Dec. 18                   (b) Dec. 19
(c) Dec. 20                   (d) Dec. 21

7. On Dec. 20, Shaukat Tarin was elected member of the Senate on the vacant seat from ______.
(a) Punjab                  (b) Balochistan
(c) KP                        (d) Islamabad

8. On Dec. 21, the federal cabinet approved the Strategic Trade Policy Framework for the years ______.
(a) 2020-25             (b) 2021-26
(c) 2022-27              (d) None of these

9. On Dec. 21, Pakistan conducted a successful test of an enhanced range version of the indigenously developed ______ Cruise Missile 1B.
(a) Ghaznavi            (b) Ghauri
(c) Aurangzeb          (d) Babur

10. On Dec. 21, the French government gave Pakistan-origin Asma Ashraf the National Order of Merit which is the ______ national order of France.
(a) Top                    (b) Second
(c) Third                  (d) Fourth

11. On Dec. 21, the Islamabad-Tehran-Istanbul (ITI) freight train resumed operations after _____ years.
(a) 08                      (b) 10
(c) 12                      (d) 15

12. On Dec. 22, Pakistan and the ______ signed six loans and grant agreements totalling $1.54 billion to improve energy, transport, irrigation and urban sectors.
(a) ADB                  (b) World Bank
(c) IsDB                   (d) IMF

13. On Dec. 24, President Dr Arif Alvi appointed Justice Tariq Mahmood Jahangiri and Justice Babar Sattar as Additional Judges of the ______ High Court.
(a) Islamabad       (b) Sindh
(c) Lahore              (d) Balochistan

14. On Dec. 27, CM Punjab Sardar Usman Buzdar inaugurated the Gulab Devi Underpass in Lahore and announced naming it after ______.
(a) Faiz Ahmad Faiz
(b) Abdul Sattar Edhi
(c) Arfa Karim
(d) Habib Jalib

15. On Dec. 27, Ejaz Ahmad Qureshi took oath as the ______ permanent Federal Ombudsman of Pakistan.
(a) Sixth               (b) Seventh
(c) Eighth           (d) Ninth

16. On Dec. 27, Wapda kept the men’s team title while ______ clinched the women’s team title of the National Table Tennis Championships.
(a) Railways            (b) Punjab
(c) PAF                    (d) Army

17. The name of the mosque in PECHS area of Karachi that the Supreme Court ordered, on Dec. 28, to demolish as it was illegally constructed, is ______.
(a) Sonehri Masjid             (b) Makki Masjid
(c) Kashti Masjid               (d) Madina Masjid

18. Amazon Software Technology Park is located in ______.
(a) Rawalpindi                 (b) Peshawar
(c) Islamabad                 (d) Karachi

19. On Dec. 29, ______ won the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy 2021-2022.
(a) Northern Areas              (b) KP
(c) HBL                                 (d) Punjab

20. The Finance (Supplementary) Bill 2021 was presented in the National Assembly on ______.
(a) Dec. 30                       (b) Dec. 31
(c) Jan. 01                          (d) Jan. 02

21. The current president of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) is ______.
(a) Irfan I. Sheikh            (b) Iftikhar A. Malik
(c) Ali M. Mian                  (d) Sara H. Zaman

22. On Jan. 03, former Pakistan captain ______ announced his retirement from international cricket.
(a) Sarfraz Ahmad
(b) Mohammad Hafeez
(c) Shoaib Malik
(d) Kamran Akmal

23. On Jan. 07, Justice Ali Zia Bajwa, a judge of the ______ High Court, ruled that if a marriage is solemnised without spending the Iddat period, it can be called irregular but can’t be annulled.
(a) Islamabad                  (b) Sindh
(c) Lahore                      (d) Peshawar

24. On Jan. 09, PM Imran Khan was awarded the “International Sports Personality Award” at the 11th edition of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Creative Sports Awards ceremony held in ______, UAE.
(a) Ajman                     (b) Abu Dhabi
(c) Sharjah                   (d) Dubai

25. On Jan. 11, a grand jirga constituted by the district administrations of Kohistan and Diamer settled the boundary dispute between Thor and ______ tribes of Gilgit-Baltistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, respectively
(a) Jandol                 (b) Maidan
(c) Harban              (d) Malliar

26. The settlement between GB and KP tribes will enable Wapda to accelerate construction work on the mega ______ dam project.
(a) Kohistan              (b) Mohmand
(c) Suki Kinari           (d) Diamer-Bhasha

27. On Jan. 12, the Henley Passport Index 2022 ranked the Pakistani passport as the _____ worst passport for international travel.
(a) Third                    (b) Fourth
(c) Fifth                     (d) Sixth

28. At present, Pakistanis have visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to _____ destinations around the world.
(a) 31                        (b) 35
(c) 39                         (d) 43

29. The Finance (Supplementary) Bill, 2021, the mini-budget and the State Bank of Pakistan (Amendment) Bill, 2022, sailed through the National Assembly on ______.
(a) Jan. 13                 (b) Jan. 14
(c) Jan. 15                   (d) Jan. 16

30. The current US Charge d’ Affaires to Pakistan is ______.
(a) Thomas West        (b) Angela Aggeler
(c) Mark Stroh            (d) WK Makaneole

31. On Jan. 13, Islamic Finance News, an arm of RED money Group, ______, declared the SBP as the best central bank of 2021 across the world in promoting Islamic finance.
(a) Turkey                   (c) Malaysia
(c) Iran                        (d) Indonesia

32. On Jan. 13, the Council of Common Interests, during its 49th meeting, approved the conduct of ______ Population and Housing Census.
(a) Sixth                     (b) Seventh
(c) Eighth                   (d) Ninth

33. SUPARCO, together with the ______ Ministry, has developed a web portal and mobile application though which progress on various CPEC projects can be monitored.
(a) Science                 (b) Finance
(c) IT                          (d) Planning

34. Pakistan’s Space & Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO) is based in ______.
(a) Karachi                 (b) Lahore
(c) Islamabad           (d) Tando Jam

35. PMIK launched the public version of the National Security Policy on ______.
(a) Jan. 12                  (b) Jan. 14
(c) Jan. 15                  (d) Jan. 16

36. On ______, Pakistan assumed chairmanship of the Group of 77 and China for the year 2022.
(a) Jan. 12                 (b) Jan. 13
(c) Jan. 14               (d) Jan. 1 5

37. On Jan. 15, President Alvi granted his approval to the Finance (Supplementary) Bill 2022 under Article ______ of the Constitution.
(a) 58                      (b) 65
(c) 70                      (d) 75

38. On Jan. 15, former chief justice of Pakistan Nazim Hussain Siddiqui passed away at 81 in ______.
(a) London             (b) Lahore
(c) New York          (d) Karachi

39. Justice Nazim Hussain Siddiqui was the ______ Chief Justice of Pakistan.
(a) 19th                (b) 20th
(c) 24th                 (d) 27th

40. Justice Gulzar Ahmed assumed the office of the Chief Justice of Pakistan on December 21, 2019, replacing ______.
(a) Justice Mansoor Ali Shah
(b) Justice Jawwad S. Khawaja
(c) Justice Saqib Nisar
(d) Justice Asif Saeed Khosa

1. On Dec. 16, Britain’s seven-time Formula One champion ______ received a knighthood for services to motorsport.
(a) Lewis Hamilton         (b) John Watson
(c) Damon Hill                  (d) David Coulthard

2. The World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA) was established on Sept. 24, ______.
(a) 1945                      (b) 1960
(c) 1965                      (d) 1970

3. On Dec. 17, the ______ got appointed a new government led by Petr Fiala, a right-winger.
(a) Belgium                 (b) Chile
(c) Czech Republic    (d) Mongolia

4. On Dec. 17, men’s world number one Novak Djokovic was named the ITF world champion for a record ______ time.
(a) Fourth                   (b) Fifth
(c) Sixth                      (d) Seventh

5. Ashleigh Barty, who has won ITF world championship for the second time, is from ______.
(a) Switzerland          (b) Belgium
(c) Serbia                  (d) Australia

6. OIC Secretary-General’s special envoy on Afghanistan is ______.
(a) Qassem Al-Ahzan    (b) Zoran Zaev
(c) Tarig A. Bakheet    (d) None of these

7. On Dec. 19, the 3rd meeting of the India-Central Asia Dialogue was held in ______.
(a) New Delhi              (b) Dushanbe
(c) Nur-Sultan               (d) Astana

8. The three-day Dharam Sansad, where Hindutva leaders openly called for the ethnic cleansing of Muslims in Indian was held in Haridwar city of ______ state.
(a) Uttar Pradesh          (b) Uttarakhand
(c) Tripura‎                     (d) Manipur‎

9. On Dec. 20, leftist millennial Gabriel Boric, 35, became ______ youngest-ever president-elect.
(a) Chile’s                    (b) Estonia’s
(c) Venezuela’s             (d) Cambodia’s

10. On Dec. 21, the ruler of ______ was ordered by an English court to pay his former wife and children around $730 million – the highest divorce settlement yet.
(a) Abu Dhabi              (b) Dubai
(c) Qatar                      (d) Bahrain

11. On Dec. 22, the EU announced to launch legal action against ______ for ignoring European Union law and undermining the independence of its national judiciary.
(a) Turkey                     (b) Hungary
(c) Poland                   (d) Italy

12. On Dec. 22, ______ were crowned Asian Champions Trophy winners with a win against Japan.
(a) Iran                       (b) Malaysia
(c) Japan                    (d) South Korea

13. On Dec. 23, Belgium announced to shut down all seven of its nuclear reactors by ______.
(a) 2025                   (b) 2030
© 2040                     (d) 2049

14. On Dec. 24, ______ ex-president Park Geun-hye received a pardon, cutting short a jail term of more than 20 years for corruption.
(a) Thailand’s          (b) Japan’s
(c) South Korea’s  (d) Vietnam’s

15. On ______, US President Joe Biden signed into law the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act that virtually bans all imports from Xinjiang.
(a) Dec. 22             (b) Dec. 24
(c) Dec. 26             (d) Dec. 28

16. The world’s most powerful space telescope James Webb blasted off into orbit on ______.
(a) Dec. 25            (b) Dec. 26
(c) Dec. 27              (d) Dec. 28

17. On Dec. 26, ______ anti-apartheid icon Archbishop Desmond Tutu, died.
(a) American           (b) Italian
(c) South African  (d) British

18. On Dec. 26, Israel’s government approved a $317 million plan to double the Jewish settler population in the Golan Heights, the territory it had captured from______.
(a) Jordan               (b) Syria
(c) Egypt                 (d) Palestine

19. On Dec. 27, E.O. Wilson, an ______ scientist, who was nicknamed “Darwin’s natural heir,” died.
(a) Greek                (b) British
(c) American         (d) Australian

20. On Dec. 27, ______ journalist Mahfuz Anam was elected Asia News Network’s (ANN) next Chairman.
(a) Pakistani          (b) Indian
(c) Afghan             (d) Bangladeshi

21. On Dec. 29, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken appointed ______ the special envoy for Afghan women, girls and human rights.
(a) Nina Hachigian      (b) Michele J. Sison
(c) Laura Dogu            (d) Rina Amiri

22. On Dec. 30, the Indian government extended a special law giving armed forces sweeping powers in the north-eastern state of ______.
(a) Mizoram               (b) Lakshadweep‎
(c) Nagaland            (d) Tripura‎

23. On Jan. 01, ______ took over the rotating presidency of the EU.
(a) Italy                     (b) France
(c) Lithuania             (d) Germany

24. The world’s largest trade deal, Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), entered into force on ______.
(a) Jan. 01               (b) Jan. 02
(c) Jan. 03                 (d) Jan. 04

25. On Jan. 02, ______ Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok resigned.
(a) Sudanese          (b) Ethiopian
(c) Somali                (d) Nigerian

26. On Jan. 03, Yemen’s Houthi rebels seized a ______ ship in the Red Sea.
(a) Qatari                (b) UAE
(c) Kuwaiti               (d) Saudi

27. On Jan. 04, ______ became the first company in the world to reach $3 trillion in market capitalisation.
(a) SpaceX               (b) Apple
(c) Amzaon              (d) Facebook

28. On Jan. 05, ______ won their first-ever test in New Zealand.
(a) Afghanistan        (b) Sri Lanka
(c) India                    (d) Bangladesh

29. On Jan. 06, a Moscow-led military alliance CSTO dispatched troops to help quell mounting unrest in______.
(a) Turkmenistan      (b) Poland
(c) Hungary              (d) Kazakhstan

30. Air New Zealand has topped the annual safety table with Etihad Airways clinching the second position and ______ Airways the third.
(a) Kuwait                 (b) Turkish
(c) Qatar                  (d) Ariana

31. Samia Suluhu Hassan is the President of ______.
(a) Fiji                       (b) Tanzania’s
(c) Sudan                  (d) Ethiopia

32. On Jan. 06, Japan and ______ signed a “landmark” treaty to strengthen defence ties.
(a) Australia             (b) India
(c) United States        (d) Malaysia

33. Sidney Poitier, Hollywood’s first major Black movie star to win the best actor Oscar, died on ______.
(a) Jan. 07                (b) Jan. 08
(c) Jan. 09                  (d) Jan. 11

34. On Jan. 07, Iran began paying compensation to families of those killed when it shot down a ______ airliner in 2020.
(a) Russian                (b) Ukrainian
(c) Canadian             (d) German

35. On Jan. 08, President Joe Biden nominated Lt. Gen. Michael Kurilla to lead the US Central Command, which oversees military operations in the ______.
(a) Indo-Pacific         (b) Guam
(c) Middle East       (d) Antarctica

36. On Jan. 10, the ______ Prime Minister Mark Rutte embarked on a fourth term as his country’s leader.
(a) French                 (b) Australian
(c) Norwegian          (d) Dutch

37. On Jan. 10, Afghanistan’s ambassador to______, Javid Ahmad Qaem, resigned.
(a) Pakistan              (b) USA
(c) India                    (d) China

38. On Jan. 11, ______ became the first Black woman to appear on the US quarter, in a new version of the coin unveiled by the US Mint.
(a) Susan Rice            (b) Michelle Obama
(c) Maya Angelou    (d) Kamala Harris

39. On Jan. 11, David Sassoli, an ______ journalist who ultimately became the president of the European Union’s parliament, died.
(a) Irish                     (b) Italian
(c) Estonian               (d) Austrian

40. On Jan. 15, Chinese and ______ foreign ministers announced the launch of a 25-year cooperation agreement aimed at strengthening economic and political ties.
(a) Qatari‎                  (b) Saudi
(c) Laotian                (d) Iranian