Author: i2wtc

JERUSALEM: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday Israel plans to take full control of Gaza but does not intend to govern it, as he convened his security cabinet to discuss updated plans 22 months into the war. The cabinet meeting comes as Netanyahu faces mounting pressure at home and abroad for a truce deal to pull Gaza’s more than two million people back from the brink of famine and to spare hostages held by Palestinian militants. With tensions rising, Netanyahu took to the airwaves telling US network Fox News the government intends to seize complete control of the Gaza…

Listen to article MIRANSHAH: At least four civilians were martyred while 14 others, including two policemen, were injured in a remotely-detonated bomb attack on a police patrol vehicle in a bustling marketplace of South Waziristan tribal district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa on Thursday morning. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the deadly bombing, but similar attacks in the past were carried out by the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which officials claim is operating from its safe havens across the border in Afghanistan. The police vehicle suffered partial damage in the attack, police said, adding that most of the casualties were passersby and shopkeepers. The…

Ryu Young-sang, CEO of South Korean telecoms giant SK Telecom, told CNBC that AI is helping telecoms firms improve efficiency in their networks.Manaure Quintero | Afp | Getty ImagesSouth Korea has tasked some of its biggest companies and promising startups to build a national foundational AI model using mainly domestic technology, in a rare move to keep the country apace with the U.S. and China.The project will feature South Korean technologies from semiconductors to software, as Seoul looks to create a near self-sufficient AI industry and position itself as an alternative to China and the U.S.The Ministry of Science and…

BARCELONA: Barcelona stripped Marc-Andre ter Stegen of the captaincy on Thursday as a feud escalated between the Germany goalkeeper and the club over his injury status amid the Catalans’ attempts to register new signings. Ter Stegen’s place is under threat from one of the summer signings, 24-year-old Joan Garcia, and 35-year-old Wojciech Szczesny, the Polish veteran who has been rewarded with a contract extension for taking over during last season’s Liga title-winning campaign. Barca were likely expecting to sell Ter Stegen, 33, to make space in their wage bill for Garcia and Manchester United loanee Marcus Rashford. However, Ter Stegen…

Listen to article ISLAMABAD: The GSMA has noted that despite Pakistan’s digital ambitions and talent, the country risks falling behind in the region if urgent telecom policy reforms are not introduced. Without reform, investors may leave and citizens will suffer, it warned. At the GSMA Digital Nation Summit 2025, Julian Gorman, Head of Asia Pacific at GSMA, identified three key obstacles to Pakistan’s digital growth: high taxes, limited spectrum, and policy inconsistencies. It is pertinent to note that IT Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja skipped the high-profile GSMA conference, sparking frustration among telecom industry leaders. “It is unfortunate that the minister is not…

TAROUBA: Pakistan will enter the territory they reportedly tried their best to avoid recently when they take on the West Indies in the opening fixture of the three-match One-day International series in Tarouba, Trinidad and Tobago on Friday. The format hasn’t been Pakistan’s cup of tea lately. They had a disastrous run in the 2023 World Cup before they bounced back to beat Zimbabwe, Australia and South Africa on the road under Mohammad Rizwan’s captaincy. But failing to register a victory in the ICC Champions Trophy earlier this year before getting whitewashed by New Zealand away from home restored Pakistan’s…

Listen to article KARACHI: The foreign exchange reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) decreased by $72 million, reaching $14.23 billion, primarily due to scheduled external debt repayments, according to data released by the central bank on Thursday. Meanwhile, the net foreign exchange reserves held by commercial banks remained stable at $5.26 billion, bringing the country’s total liquid foreign reserves to $19.50 billion. Moreover, the Pakistani rupee posted a marginal gain against the US dollar, appreciating by 0.04% in the inter-bank market. By the end of trading, the local currency closed at 282.56, marking an improvement of Rs0.11 from the…

KUALA LUMPUR: Pakistan will face hosts Kyrgyzstan, Yemen, Laos, Cambodia and Guam in the six-team Group ‘B’ in the qualifiers for next year’s AFC Under-17 Asian Cup after the draw was conducted in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday. Matches will be held from Nov 22 to 30 in a single league format with the group winners of the seven qualifying groups progressing to the tournament finals in Saudi Arabia, where they will join the nine AFC representatives from the FIFA U-17 World Cup Qatar 2025 who have automatically qualified, namely Qatar, Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia, Korea Republic, DPR Korea, Japan, Tajikistan, United…

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday termed Pakistan’s annual population growth rate of 2.55 per cent, an alarming trend requiring immediate and coordinated policy action at the national level to address the issue. The prime minister chaired a high-level meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office to review the challenges posed by Pakistan’s rising population and to deliberate on effective strategies to manage it, a Prime Minister’s Office news release said. “We need comprehensive planning to ensure our growing population, especially the youth, becomes a productive part of the economy,” he stressed. “A large segment of our population comprises young…

Tesla’s vice president of hardware design engineering, Pete Bannon, is leaving the company after first joining in 2016 from Apple, CNBC has confirmed.Bannon was leading the development of Tesla’s Dojo supercomputer and reported directly to Musk. Bloomberg first reported on Bannon’s departure, and added that Musk ordered his team to shut down, with engineers in the group getting reassigned to other initiatives.Tesla didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.Since early last year, Musk has been trying to convince shareholders that Tesla, his only publicly traded business, is poised to become an an artificial intelligence and robotics powerhouse, and not…