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PPP paid $100,000 to Washington lobbyist for Bilawal meetings

LONDON: The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) hired a lobbying firm in Washington for one month in February this year and paid $100,000 fees for setting up meetings and media interviews for Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.Papers available with The News – and filed with the US Department of Justice under Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) of 1938 - show that the payment was made by the PPP to lobbyist Jonathan Stember’s firm “Gunster Strategies Worldwide” just before the start of Bilawal Bhutto’s visit of Washington on 2nd February 2018. Jonathan P. Stember is President at Gunster Strategies Worldwide and describes himself as a political and strategic fixer.A spokesman of the lobbying firm as well as a PPP senior leader, requesting anonymity, confirmed to The News that the Gunster was hired from 2nd February 2018 till 2nd March 2018.Papers filed by the Gunster Strategies Worldwide (“registrant”) with the National Security Division (NSD) and US Department of Justice under Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) of 1938 as registrant note the name of Pakistan People’s Party (“client”) as the “foreign political party, registered at Parliament Lodges, Islamabad, Pakistan”. The Gunster Strategies Worldwide confirmed that it had been signed up to act on behalf of Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, chairman of the PPP.The lobbying firm said that the PPP was dedicated to “promoting democracy while supporting public ownership, egalitarianism, equality and a strong national defence”.The contract between the PPP and the Gunster outlined that that the registrant will assist “the foreign principal with regard to an upcoming visit by the chairman of the PPP, Mr Bilawal Butto Zaradi, registrant promises to arrange interaction between the chairman and various members of the congressional and executive branches. Registrant will also arrange media interview of the chairman with various media outlets”.The contract outlined that “the financial terms during the term of engagement fees for services provided by the Gunster Strategic Worldwide to PPP will be USD $1000,000.00” and confirmed that the payment will be made in advance on February 2, 2018.During his visit to the Washington DC, Bilawal Bhutto held many meetings arranged by the lobbying firm. Former Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani’s son Qasim Gilani and Shehryar Taseer posted pictures of the group travelling on a train. Its understood that Bilawal’s invitation to the National Prayer Breakfast was also arranged by the Gunster Worldwide. The PPP media cell and Bilawal posted pictures of himself with US Secretary of State Mr RexTillerson and his wife. Bhutto addressed the Woodrow Wilson Institute where he spoke about the need of a strong democracy in Pakistan to defeat terrorism and extremism.During the US trip this year, Bilawal met Congressman Brad Sherman of Democratic Party in Capitol Hill.PPP’s senior leader Farhatullah Babar confirmed to this correspondent that Gunster Strategies Worldwide was hired on “part time basis”.He said Bilawal Bhutto Zardari's week-long visit to Washington DC in February this year was in pursuance of the invitation to the National Breakfast Prayer events hosted every year by a bi-partisan US Congressional Committee.He added: “The primary purpose of the visit was to participate in the events surrounding the National Breakfast Prayer. However, taking advantage of it the Chairman PPP also met some US Congressmen, addressed private think tanks, met some members of Pakistani Diaspora and visited the office of USAID.“The PPP does not have a permanent lobbyist in the US. Most of the meetings during the visit therefore were arranged by friends of the family in the US at a personal level. The NBP Committee also arranges side meetings focusing on faith, peace and harmony. During this visit with a view to exploring whether it is worthwhile to hire lobbyists in the US in the future we also engaged services of a lobbyist on part time basis. The purpose of the meetings of course was to put across Pakistan's case on various issues and to seek support for human development projects in Pakistan as for instance in his meeting with USAID officials.”The PPP leadership has been relying on lobbyists in Washington to push forward its narrative. In 2011, the PPP govt had hired Locke Lord Strategies to launch a charm offensive at the Capitol Hill. Benazir Bhutto had hired Mark Siegel, a political operative who had been executive director of the Democratic National Committee, to act on behalf of the Pakistani government. The martyred Benazir Bhutto had also hired BKSH & Associates in 2007 to counter Pervez Musharraf who had grown too close to the then US administration.

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US General Joseph calls COAS General Bajwa, condoles death of Sabika Sheikh

RAWALPINDI: US Army General Joseph Votel, commander of the US Central Command USCENTCOM, called Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa and condoled unfortunate death of Pakistani student Sabika Sheikh in Texas school firing.According to Inter Services Public Relations, the media wing of the military, General Joseph Votel also conveyed his grief to the bereaved family on the loss of an innocent life.Pakistani student Sabika Sheikh was among the 10 students killed in a mass shooting when a student armed with a shotgun and revolver opened fire at Santa Fe high school in Texas on Friday.Sabika, resident of Karachi’s Gulshan-e-Iqbal area, was part of the Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study (YES) programme for her stay in the US and had to return home in June. She was among 75 Pakistani students who were selected to study abroad under the scholarship programme.

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Trainer / Consultant for Hotel Management

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Qureshi, Tareen trade barbs in PTI?s core group meeting

ISLAMABAD: Shah Mehmood Qureshi and Jehangir Tareen, two senior leaders of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), exchanged harsh words at party’s core group meeting here Tuesday.Sources said the cause of the barbs between two senior leaders was Rai Hassan Nawaz, another PTI leader, when his disqualification came under discussion during the meeting.According to sources, Shah Mehmood Qureshi challenged position of Rai Hassan Nawaz in PTI, saying he had objection over post and participation of Nawaz in the party meetings.Over this, Jehangir Tahreen interrupted, saying Qureshi’s remarks were indirectly aimed at him.“I will go home if party decides over it,” Jehangir told Qureshi according to sources.Later, Imran Khan intervened and announced to remove Rai Hassan Nawaz from PTI’s parliamentary board.The issue was resolved following the announcement of Imran Khan.

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Help animals beat the heat during heat wave

With Karachi and other parts of Pakistan being hit with the severest kind of heat wave, the animals inhabited in the country, similar to humans, are also exposed to the perils of the sweltering sun.Here are all the ways you can help keep animals safe in the blazing weather.Water:Make sure the animal has access to an abundant supply of clean and cool water. The water containers should be large enough for all animals to have an easy approach to it. The location of the water should be familiar to animals as well.Shade:Ensure your animal has a cool and shady spot to retreat to when the heat gets unbearable. Shelters constructed out of cloth and fluted iron or timber can help reflect the radiative rays of the sun. Apart from that trees with large canopies can also have a cooling effect.On the other hand, small indoor pets can be moved to cooler areas of the house. Cats are more likely to incline towards tiled surfaces like kitchen or bathroom floors.Trim the fur:Long furred animals are more likely to get affected by the sweltering heat, therefore giving them a trim will undeniably be of help. However, make sure to not shave the animal entirely as the fur also acts as a shield of protection for the skin.Wet them with a damp cloth:If you detect signs of overheating in an animal, the fastest way to cool them down is by running a damp cloth over their body. Repeating this number of times, throughout the day will give relief to the animal.Symptoms of heatstroke:Excessive panting, weariness, fever, vomiting, collapse or unconsciousness, elevated levels of respiration, increased salvation and loss of appetite, are all signs of heat stress in an animal.

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Cabinet approves placement of draft amendment for FATA s merger before Parliament

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Cabinet has approved the placement of draft constitutional amendment before the Parliament for the merger of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi chaired the Federal Cabinet meeting held here at PM Office on Tuesday. The cabinet was informed that Gilgit-Baltistan Council would be retained as an advisory body towards the functions of the Federal Government. It was also informed that with the devolution of greater administrative and financial powers to the Government of Gilgit-Balitistan, all the rights would be available to the citizens in GB as available to the people in other provinces of Pakistan.The meeting ratified the decisions of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet taken during its meetings held on May 8 and May 11, 2018. The decisions of the Cabinet Committee on Energy (CCoE) taken during its meeting on October 12, 2017 were also ratified.The Federal Cabinet ratified the agreement between Pakistan and Bosnia and Herzegovina on cooperation in the sphere of Defence Industry.It approved signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the Board of Investment, Government of Pakistan and Business France. The cabinet also approved signing of an MoU between Educational Scientific Productive Complex International of Kyrgyzstan and Allama Iqbal Open University of Pakistan in the field of distance education.It approved appointment of Ashtar Abbas, D&SJ (District and Sessions Judge) as Judge, Banking Court-IV, Lahore. The cabinet approved repatriation of Syed Zulfiqar Ali Shah, Judge Banking Court-IV Karachi to High Court of Sindh.Ijlal Hyder Memon, D&SJ Tando Muhammad Khan, has been appointed in his place. The cabinet approved extension in the tenure of Obaid Ahmed Khan, D&SJ as Special Court (Control of Narcotics Substance-II) Karachi for a further period of two years w.e.f.May 7, 2018. Appointment of Justice (Retd) Ch Shahid Saeed as Chairman of Copyright Board in IPO-Pakistan was approved.The meeting approved re-constitution of the Board of Directors of Pakistan National Shipping Corporation (PNSC) and also granted ex-post facto approval for the appointment of Chairman, PNSC, Karachi.Maximum retail prices of drugs were also approved during the meeting.A proposal for inclusion of various items in the Compulsory Certification Mark Scheme of Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA) was also approved.The cabinet also approved Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) Gas (Third Party Access) Rules, 2018. The meeting approved National Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Policy.The Federal Cabinet also approved Digital Pakistan Policy.The cabinet approved signing of an agreement for provision of Grant Facility for USD 14 million to Somalia.It also approved a proposal for creation of Jinnah Visiting Professorship at London School of Economics.Reconstitution of Board of Directors, Pakistan Expo Centres (Pvt) Limited was approved. The cabinet also approved nomination of private sector members for the Board of Directors of Trade Development Authority of Pakistan.

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NSA urges world to spurn ?double standards? in terror right

ISLAMABAD: National Security Adviser Lt. Gen. (Retd) Nasser Khan Janjua said that the fight against terrorism should be waged on the basis of norms and principles of international law; terrorism should not be associated with any religion, nationality or ethnicity; and all efforts against terrorism must be devoid of bias and “double standards”.He made the remarks while representing Pakistan at the meeting of the Secretaries of National Security Council of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Member States held in Beijing on 21-22 May 2018.The meeting was attended by representatives of National Security Councils SCO member states including Pakistan, China, Russia, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. This was the first time that Pakistan participated in this meeting after joining SCO as full member in June 2017. Addressing the meeting, the National Security Adviser General Janjua highlighted that as a new Member State of SCO, Pakistan fully subscribed to the Organization’s ideals and objectives for durable peace, stability and prosperity in the SCO region and beyond. He stated that given the scale and dimension of security challenges in the SCO region, Member States should enhance cooperation and develop comprehensive strategies to effectively counter the old and new threats to regional peace and security.Underscoring Pakistan’s commitment to the fight against terrorism and its achievements, the National Security Adviser said that over the last two decades, Pakistan has been at the forefront in fighting terrorism and had paid a heavy cost. However, neither the human nor the financial losses had diminished Pakistan’s resolve to fight this menace. General Janjua underscored the significance and urgent need to find an early settlement to the decades old conflict in neighboring Afghanistan.In this context, he assured that Pakistan would continue its efforts and cooperation for finding a peaceful and negotiated settlement to the Afghan conflict, under an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned process. He also assured of Pakistan’s cooperation and participation in all regional efforts to counter the menace of narcotics and illicit drugs in the region. At the conclusion of the meeting, the Secretaries signed the outcome document of the meeting. The Secretariat of the SCO issued a press release informing about the decisions made in the outcome document and expressing the common resolve of SCO countries to tackle the threats of terrorism and extremism in the SCO region.Later in the day, General Janjua along with Secretaries of other SCO member states paid a group call on President Xi Jumping in which they briefly exchanged views on regional security issues and SCO’s planes and activities to address the prevailing challenges in the region.On the sidelines of the SCO meeting, Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Janjua also held bilateral meetings with the Secretaries of the National Security Council of Russia, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. During these meetings, issues pertaining to bilateral security cooperation and mutual interest were discussed.

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Minor girl dies in Karachi shack fire

KARACHI: One girl was killed when shacks caught fire in Karachi's Gulshan-e-Iqbal town on Tuesday.The fire broke out due to explosion of a gas cylinder which burnt about 200 tents there, the fire department informed Geo News.Sources add that six fire trucks were tasked to cool down the blaze at Gulshan-e-Iqbal block 13-C in Karachi.The fire has been brought under control.

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Bilawal condoles with family of martyred colonel Sohail Abid

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari visited the residence of Shaheed Colonel Sohail Abid in Islamabad and condoled with his family including father and children in Islamabad on Tuesday.PPP Chairman offered fateha for the departed soul and shared the pain of the father and children of the brave martyr who laid down his life fighting terrorists in Quetta last week.Former Chairman Senate Nayyar Bukhari and Leader of the Opposition in the Senate Sherry Rehman also accompanied the PPP chairman.

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Two Pakistani brothers killed in South Africa robbery

JOHANNESBURG: Two Pakistani brothers were killed for resisting an armed robbery in South African city of Johannesburg on Monday, family said. Farooq, son of one of the two victims, said that his father Raza Al-Mustafa and his two brothers Raza Al-Atta and Raza Al-Murtaza were shot after they put up resistance. “My father, a former hockey player and uncle Raza Al-Murtaza died from bullet wounds. Raza Al-Atta is receiving medical treatment,” he told Geo TV.The three brothers had been living in Johannesburg for the past six years.Legal proceedings are underway to hand over the bodies to the family.

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