Author: i2wtc
When confronted in 2013, the man who claimed scholars agreed on the death penalty for blasphemy told his interrogators that he could not actually read Arabic. This man, Advocate Ismail Qureshi, is at the centre of a new documentary by the Alliance Against Blasphemy Politics Pakistan (AABP). It hosted an early screening of The Inevitable Misuse of Blasphemy Politics (2024) and a new episode titled Blasphemy as Biddat: Intra-Muslim Difference in the Age of Empires on Sunday, August 17, at Kitab Ghar. A small group of students, teachers and journalists gathered to watch the documentaries and have a Q&A with…
India batting great Rahul Dravid has stepped down as head coach of Indian Premier League team Rajasthan Royals after just one season with them, the franchise said on Saturday. Dravid, 52, was offered a “broader position” after a structural review of the team set-up but the former Indian captain declined the offer, the franchise said in a statement. “Head coach Rahul Dravid will conclude his tenure with the franchise ahead of IPL 2026,” it said. Dravid had returned to the team as head coach ahead of this year’s T20 tournament, but Rajasthan failed to make the playoffs and ended a…
Semma restaurant in New York, NY. Courtesy: Steven HallExecutive Chef Vikas Khanna has plated hundreds of thousands of dinners over the past 20 years — and he’s seen firsthand just how much Indian cuisine has evolved in the U.S.Khanna, a world-renowned Indian restaurateur, created Junoon, his high-end Indian restaurant in New York City, more than a decade ago to wade deeper into sophisticated Indian dining, ultimately earning a Michelin star for the restaurant — one of the first Indian restaurants to earn the distinction.As an immigrant in a post-9/11 America, Khanna said his bosses early in his career had been…
LAHORE: The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Punjab has issued its latest assessment of the devastation caused by the overflowing Ravi, Sutlej and Chenab rivers, outlining the scale of damage and the ongoing relief efforts. Relief Commissioner Nabeel Javed said more than 2,308 villages across Punjab had been inundated, affecting 1.516 million people. Of these, 481,000 had been evacuated to safer areas. The provincial administration has set up 511 relief camps providing food and shelter, along with 351 medical camps and 321 veterinary camps. Over 405,000 animals have also been moved to secure locations. Read: Floods to drive up food…
Participants take part in a training for the upcoming V-Day military parade in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 12, 2025. (Xinhua/Yin Gang)BEIJING, Aug. 30 (Xinhua) — Many cities around the world bear the label of “peace.” Few, however, wear it as literally as Zhijiang, a county in central China’s Hunan Province, where a boulevard, a bridge, a theater, a hospital and even a lake all contain the word.In 1945, Japanese troops signed a memorandum of surrender in Zhijiang, which was followed by similar events in more cities across China. After 14 years of resistance, a nation long scarred by war…
LONDON: Fenerbahce’s Jose Mourinho has left by mutual agreement, the Turkish club said on Friday, bringing an end to the Portuguese coach’s tenure in Istanbul two days after his side crashed out of the Champions League playoffs to Benfica. Another Turkish Super Lig side did the same when Besiktas sacked Ole Gunnar Solskjaer after their 1-0 loss to Lausanne due to which they crashed out of the UEFA Conference League 2-1 on aggregate in their qualification playoff on Thursday. Mourinho, 62, took charge of Fenerbahce in July 2024 after leaving AS Roma. A statement from the Istanbul club, chasing their…
In this aerial view, detained venezuelans board the flight to venezuela at San Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez International Airport as part of a detainee exchange agreement between Venezuela and United States on July 18, 2025 in La Paz, El Salvador. El Salvador Presidency | Getty ImagesA federal judge on Friday temporarily blocked the Trump administration from carrying out speedy deportations of undocumented migrants detained in the interior of the United States.The move is a setback for the Republican administration’s efforts to expand the use of the federal expedited removal statute to quickly remove some migrants in the country illegally…
KARACHI: Pakistan is bracing for a significant surge in food inflation in the coming months, as devastating floods have wreaked havoc on the country’s agricultural sector, particularly in Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P). Initial estimates and a grim comparison with the 2022 flood crisis paint a worrying picture for consumers already grappling with economic challenges. The rising water levels, which have submerged vast swathes of fertile land and displaced thousands, are expected to lead to severe shortages and price hikes for essential food items. “Food prices are likely to pick up in the coming months due to losses and disruptions owing…
India has submitted a bid to host the 2030 Commonwealth Games in Ahmedabad, hoping it will bolster its credentials to stage the 2036 Olympic Games, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) said. An IOA delegation submitted the bid proposal at the Commonwealth Sport headquarters in London on Friday. “This is not just a bid to stage a sporting event — it is our commitment to the Commonwealth family to deliver Games that are athlete-centred, inclusive, sustainable, and future-facing,” IOA Executive Council member Harpal Singh said in a telephone call from London. “Our vision is to use this milestone not only to…
RAWALPINDI: Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir on Friday reaffirmed the state’s commitment to protecting minority communities and religious heritage, vowing to fully restore all religious sites damaged by the ongoing floods, including the revered Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur, the military’s media wing said in a statement. During his visit to the flood-hit areas of Punjab — covering Sialkot Sector, Shakargarh, Narowal, and Kartarpur — the army chief reviewed ongoing rescue and relief operations and received detailed briefings on the situation and preparations ahead of the expected new rain spell. Located in Narowal district, Darbar Sahib Kartarpur, one of…