Shehbaz Sharif set for 2nd term as Pakistan PM.
- As PM Nawaz Sharif has stepped aside from the race, elder brother Shezbaz Sharif is set for a second term as prime minister.
- Pakistan's just finished parliamentary elections yielded a divided mandate, with the largest single block being formed by independent candidates backed by the party of former prime minister Imran Khan.
- Even though independents received 101 seats in the national parliament, only a recognized party or coalition of parties is able to create a government, therefore in order for them to form a meaningful bloc, they would need to join another organization.
Former Pakistani Prime Minister Sharif and his friends decide to unite in a coalition.
- After no party was able to secure a simple majority in parliamentary elections last week, the party of former Pakistani prime minister Nawaz Sharif and its allies said late on Tuesday that they would work together to create a coalition government. This puts an end to the uncertainty.
- The most recent event occurred a few hours after the parties, who are all adversaries of the nation's former prime minister Imran Khan, convened in Islamabad.
read more: https://apnews.com/article/pakistan-main-party-challenge-imran-khan-75f23a7abec21d385c129c7133a78665
Farmers' Protest: Punjab is ready for the February 15 Rail Roko protest
- Joginder Singh Ugrahan, the state president of BKU (Ugrahan), has announced that on February 15, from 12pm to 4pm, there will be a Rail Roko protest throughout Punjab. This action is a reaction to reports that farmers were mistreated by the government and police while traveling to Delhi.
- Rail Roko' is a protest tactic in which protesters block railway rails, impeding regular train operations. "Rail Roko" aims to cause disruptions to the transport system in order to draw attention to the protestors' cause; these disruptions frequently result in inconvenience to commuters and financial losses for railway authorities.
read more: https://apacnewsnetwork.com/2024/02/farmers-protest-punjab-braces-for-rail-roko-protest-on-feb-15/
Storms in Victoria, Australia, cause damaging winds and start wildfires.
- Strong winds in Australia's second-most populated state have killed one person and caused extensive damage, according to officials on Wednesday.
- The winds also caused 530,000 homes and businesses to lose electricity and stoked fires that destroyed homes and injured five firemen.
- Six electrical transmission towers were toppled by winds as high as 157 kph (98 mph) on Tuesday, leading to one of the most power disruptions Victoria state has ever seen, according to Emergency Management Commissioner Rick Nugent.
The South Korean military reports that North Korea fired multiple cruise missiles off its East coast.
- The South Korean military reported that North Korea fired several cruise missiles off its east coast on Wednesday.
- The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said that the missiles were fired off the eastern coastal city of Wonsan at approximately nine in the morning on Wednesday (0000 Tuesday GMT)
North Korea's longtime ally, Cuba, and South Korea establish diplomatic relations
- The South Korean foreign ministry said on Wednesday that South Korea had established diplomatic ties with Cuba, an ally of North Korea during the Cold War.
- The two nations have decided to establish diplomatic ties at the ambassadorial level after their UN officials exchanged letters in New York, the ministry said in a statement.
- Since their establishment in 1960, Cuba and North Korea have maintained tight connections, facilitated by their common socialist ideology and animosity towards the United States. There is an embassy of Cuba in Pyongyang.
China's maglev train breaks 623 km/h speed record in ‘significant breakthrough’
- According to the China aerospace science and industry corporation (CASIC), the maglev train has surpassed its previous record of 623 km/h, hailing the test as a significant breakthrough.
- It was the first time the ultra-fast hyperloop train achieved stable levitation while traveling in a low-vacuum tube.
- The high-speed train project involves the integration of aerospace and terrestrial rail transport technologies, with a designed speed of up to 1000 km/h, thus aiming to surpass commercial aviation speeds.
Two Seoul police officers convicted over deadly Halloween crush
- Regarding the 2022 deadly Halloween crush , two former police officers have been sentenced for destroying evidence.
- On october 29,2022 tens of thousands of people were out mostly in their 20s and 30s ,the first post pandemic holiday celebration.
- They are the first police officials to be sentenced over the disaster.
News bits compiled and drafted by:
Poulina Banerjee (B.A. I.R., 2nd Year)
Published by:
