News Desk Shirin Nazirmadova, a doctor from southern Tajikistan, has been saving for years to afford the hajj pilgrimage that all able Muslims are required to make once in their lives. But like millions of others, Nazirmadova’s dream journey of a lifetime was shattered when Saudi Arabia decided last month to bar international visitors from making the pilgrimage this year …

Yamga Wakhani Museum is a treasure trove of artefacts, pottery, musical instruments and various objects invented by or remained in use of the Mubarak Wakhani Farman Ali Mubarakkadam Ibn Abdullo, popularly known as Mubarak Wakhani, was a multi-faceted personality — a philosopher, poet, musician, astronomer, art teacher, and Sufi (mystic) scholar — from Badakhshan, Tajikistan. Born in 1839 in a small village …

HRCP, PAC, WDF and WAF call for the immediate release of Professor Sajid Soomro and an end to the vicious campaign against Dr Arfana Mallah Herald Report Academia, human rights activists, writers and lawyers have expressed concerns at the shrinking space for dissenting voices in Pakistan and abuse of draconian laws against intellectuals and teachers. Professor Sajid Soomro of Shah …

WDF, WAF, AAM and other feminist and women rights organisations condemn threats hurled by JUI to Dr Arfana Mallah; demand release of Dr Sajid Soomro and others   Herald Report Islamabad, June 12: Pakistan’s leading feminist organisations have condemned the harassment of a prominent academic and activist through a malicious campaign by religious zealots in Sindh. In a joint statement …

News Desk Disabled women in Afghanistan have complained of widespread discrimination they suffer in their country, which has one of the highest proportions of disabled people in the world. Their accounts come as Human Rights Watch reports that many also face sexual harassment from government officials. https://www.rferl.org/a/denied-treatment-education-and-jobs-afghanistan-s-disabled-women/30581580.html?ltflags=mailer Human Rights Watch (HRW) says Afghan women and girls with disabilities are being confronted …

Political, social, human rights activists condemn Maulana Tariq Jameel for insulting 220m people, women and media   High Asia Herald Report ISLAMABAD: Political, social and rights activists condemn Maulana Tariq Jameel for his misogynistic and hateful comments linking “women’s immodesty” to coronavirus spread in Pakistan. They sought an unconditional apology from the preacher for his controversial remarks on a TV …

Tajikistan, where around 65 per cent of the population works in agriculture, claims to not have any cases of coronavirus. President Emomali Rahmon urges farmers not to fast in Ramazan citing disease   Tajik President Emomali Rahmon has urged farmers in the predominately Muslim country not to fast during the holy month of Ramadan so they can stay healthy and …

‘Politics is the art of broadening possibilities and choices,’ writes Amir Hussain in his latest column in the News on Friday. He, however, questions the PTI-led government’s stance of mistaking politics for economics and diminishing returns on its political investments. If there is any law of diminishing returns in politics (as in economics), none other than our sitting government should deserve the …

Doctors, WHO, and HRCP warn the government against the spike in Coronavirus cases if religious congregations allowed   High Asia Herald Report   Islamabad/Lahore/Gilgit: Doctors, world health watchdog, and a premier human rights body have alarmed at the spike in coronavirus cases in Pakistan and urged the government to enforce a complete lockdown. They have also asked the PTI-led government …

By Mesum Qasmi Insistence on offering prayers in mosques during the pandemic, knowing you can contract a virus and spread around is something very dangerous expression on irresponsible behaviour. Does it make one non-religious or infidel if he stays at home and thinks about others who can fall prey to the virus because of him? Is a very pertinent question …

The suspects are said to be members of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group   News Desk Germany has detained five suspected members of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group alleged to be planning an attack on US military facilities and an unidentified individual. Prosecutors said four of the suspects — all from Tajikistan — were arrested early on April …

The social solidarity across the globe is the main measure to stop the episode of COVID-19 By Zahra Arshad Before the emergence of the pandemic as a global challenge, an unknown sickness was first recognized in Wuhan, China in December 2019.  It was called a Chinese novel virus. Across the globe, it was considered that this virus is a confined …

by Aurangzaib Khan   https://twitter.com/i/status/1249731834294030339 Days before Mashal Khan’s death, his mother Syeda Bibi had a nightmare. She saw him standing by a tower about to collapse. It crashed, burying him alive. But this being a mother’s nightmare, the son rose up from beneath the concrete rubble, unscathed. She held him close and said, unbelievingly, “You’re alive?” seeking his confirmation …

PAKATAN, PUNJAB: Muhimman proudly writes his name slowly, carefully, one letter at a time, grinning broadly as he finishes. He’s just 11 years old and was a good student who had dreams of being a doctor. School frightens him now. Earlier this year, a cleric at the religious school he faithfully attended in the southern Punjab town of Pakpattan took …

Ismat Shahjehan, president Women Democratic Front holding Mashal Khan’s portrait and other activists at the Student Solidarity March at Islamabad on Friday.–Photo by PrSF by Waseem Altaf   Mashal Khan was my friend on Facebook and would often ask me to recommend him books for reading. He was lynched to death by a group of religious fanatics on this day …