A year on from the ousting of Assad

Image
  Damascus, Syria — “Hold your head high, you’re a free Syrian.” The refrain of this Arabic song—now widely embraced as the unofficial anthem of a new Syria—echoes throughout Damascus. It blares from market loudspeakers, rings out during celebrations in the central square, and is even sung by the man offering traditional coffee to new arrivals at the airport. For decades, many Syrians lived with lowered gazes under the authoritarian rule of the Al-Assad family. The regime maintained an expansive surveillance system in which the feared Mukhabarat , the intelligence network, kept the population in check. Remaining silent was often the safest choice—until the Arab Spring ignited an uprising, and Assad’s fierce response plunged the nation into a ten-year civil war. Today, Syrians are openly and energetically marking the first anniversary of what they regard as their liberation from Assad’s government. The celebration follows a rapid rebel offensive on December 8 last year, led by fo...
Post a Comment

On Wednesday, PTI legislators will travel to NA to accept resignations.

 PTI leader Farrukh Habib said on Sunday that lawmakers from his party would be visiting the National Assembly on Wednesday for the acceptance of their resignations as members of the lower house of parliament.

The PTI had announced mass resignations from the NA in April this year, a day after party chief Imran Khan’s ouster as the prime minister through a no-confidence vote and shortly before Shehbaz Sharif was elected as his successor.

Then-NA deputy speaker Qasim Suri, in the capacity of the house’s acting speaker, had subsequently accepted the resignations of 123 PTI MNAs. However, incumbent Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf later decided to verify the resignations and eventually accepted the resignations of just 11 lawmakers on July 27, with the PTI taking an exception to the acceptance of a select few resignations.

While Ashraf maintains that he cannot approve any resignations unless he is satisfied that they are “voluntary and genuine”, on Thursday, he invited the party’s lawmakers to appear before for the verification of their resignations.

However, PTI Senator Shibli Faraz announced the same day that the party would be approaching the Supreme Court and not the speaker for the acceptance of the mass resignations.

Breaking from this stance, Habib while speaking to the media in Faisalabad today that “we are going to the National Assembly on Wednesday to get our resignations accepted”.

He maintained that all PTI lawmakers had submitted their resignations in writing.

“But they accepted just 11 resignations on the basis of mala fide [intentions],” he went on to say, adding, “Now accept our resignationa. Why are they being evasive?”

The PTI leader also remarked that this matter was also a “test for the Election Commission of Pakistan”.

Similar announcements of PTI lawmakers intending to go to the NA and approaching Ashraf were made by Imran and party leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi earlier this month as well.

Meanwhile, a decision on a plea by the PTI for setting aside the Islamabad High Court’s verdict declaring the acceptance of PTI lawmakers’ resignations by Suri unconstitutional remains pending in the Supreme Court.

Location: Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Japan tells residents to evacuate as powerful earthquake strikes north-east

Image
  Here is a fully rewritten (spun) version of your article while keeping the original meaning intact and avoiding added facts: A powerful 7.5-magnitude earthquake struck north-eastern Japan, triggering evacuation orders for roughly 90,000 people and prompting tsunami warnings that were later reduced to lower-level advisories. The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) initially warned that waves up to 3 metres (10ft) could reach the region’s coastline after the quake hit offshore at 11:15pm (2:15pm GMT) . Tsunami warnings were put in place for Hokkaido, Aomori, and Iwate , and waves measuring 20–70cm (7–27in) were recorded at several ports, according to the JMA. By early Tuesday morning, however, the agency downgraded those warnings to advisories , indicating that expected wave heights had decreased and the risk of coastal flooding had diminished. Here is a fully rewritten (spun) version of your text, keeping all the original facts but expressing them in new wording and st...
Read more

User Receives MSI RTX 5090 With GPU And VRAM Chips Torn Off PCB

Image
It would appear that the GPU was shipped to one of these Chinese labs, where the GPU and VRAM chips from the RTX 5090s are removed. Redditor Orders MSI RTX 5090 Ventus 3X From Amazon but Finds No Tamper Seal; Further Investigation Revealed Ripped GPU Chip and VRAM From the PCB  Fake GeForce RTX 5090 GPUs are flooding the market once more. Since we have witnessed and reported fraud of this kind on multiple occasions, it shouldn't come as a surprise that this one resembles something we have recently reported. The GeForce RTX 5090 is highly sought after, particularly in the AI market in China. The GPU can only enter the country through smuggling because the country has an official ban on it. Since his GPU did not include the components, which are typically extracted from the PCB in China, this Redditor appears to have been the victim of such fraud. Reddit user u/Nice-Screen-4193 says that he bought a brand new GPU from Amazon FR, "sold and shipped by Amazon", not just by any...
Read more

How AI Policy 2025 Can Shape a Digital Future for All

Image
 Artificial Intelligence is no longer just a buzzword — it's the backbone of the digital revolution. From healthcare diagnostics to autonomous vehicles and personalized education, AI is transforming industries and reshaping society. But with great power comes great responsibility. That’s where AI Policy 2025 comes in. As we move deeper into this technological era, clear, inclusive, and forward-thinking AI policy is essential. The decisions we make today will influence how equitable, ethical, and sustainable our digital future will be. Why AI Policy Matters Now More Than Ever In 2025, AI will not just be a tool — it will be an active decision-maker in critical infrastructure, economic systems, and daily life. Without guardrails, the risks include biased algorithms, loss of privacy, unchecked surveillance, job displacement, and widening inequality. With the right policies, however, AI can amplify human potential, close socioeconomic gaps, and promote global sustainability. 1. Ethica...
Read more