Daily Top-10 Current Affairs MCQs / News (December 31, 2020) for CSS, PMS

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December 31, 2020: National / International Current Affairs

1. Air force inducts 14 locally-built JF-17Bs

• Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) formally handed over 14 state-of-the-art indigenously developed fourth generation JF-17 Thunder Block-III dual carrier fighter jets equipped with a long-range superior radar system and advance firing capability to Pakistan Air Force (PAF) at a simple ceremony on December 30, 2020.
• Terming the aircraft`s inclusion in the national fleet a `significant milestone` in the country`s history, Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Mujahid Anwar Khan said JF-17 Thunder was proved a battle-tested aircraft during the successful expression of mastery in Operation Swift Retort against Indian Air Force`s violation of territorial sovereignty on Feb 27, 2019

2. Pak Navy conducts live weapon firing of surface-to-air missiles

• In an impressive display of firepower, Pakistan Navy Air Defence Units demonstrated their combat readiness through live weapon firing of surface-to air missiles, Pakistan Navy said on December 30, 2020.
• Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Muhammad Amjad Khan Niazi graced the occasion as chief guest, according to the officials.
• During the live weapon firing, a PN press release said, the launched missiles successfully engaged the intended targets. The successful firings have re-affirmed Pakistan Navy’s war-fighting capability and combat potential

3. Mufti Muneeb removed as chairman of Ruet-i-Hilal Committee

• The Ministry of Religious Affairs and Inter-Faith Harmony on December 30, 2020 removed Mufti Muneebur Rehman from the post of chairman of Ruet-i-Hilal Committee and replaced him with Maulana Abdul Khabeer Azad, Khateeb of Badshahi Masjid, Lahore.
• The ministry also notified new members of the committee, which include 14 clerics and religious scholars belonging to the four mainstream schools of thought in the country, namely Brelvi, Deobandi, Shia and Ahle Hadis

4. 2 newly appointed additional judges of IHC take oath

• The two newly appointed additional judges of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) December 30, 2020 took oath of their office in a ceremony held at the IHC building.
• Chief Justice of IHC Justice Athar Minallah administered oath to Justice Tariq Mahmood Jahangiri and Justice Babar Sattar as additional judges of the high court.
• In this regard, a simple and graceful ceremony was held in the Islamabad High Court building and it was attended by the judges of the IHC, Attorney General for Pakistan, judicial officers of district judiciary, bar representatives, lawyers, distinguished guests and family members of the judges.

5. Brexit trade deal signed as UK MPs approve ratification

• Britain and the EU signed a post-Brexit trade deal on December 30, 2020, setting their seal on a drawn-out divorce just hours before the UK brings its half-century European experiment to an end.
• EU chiefs Ursula von der Leyen and Charles Michel, the heads of the European Commission and European Council, smiled at a brief televised ceremony to put their names to the 1,246page Trade and Cooperation Agreement in Brussels.

6. Spy Pollard gets hero`s welcome in Israel

• Jonathan Pollard, an American jailed in the United States in 1985 for spying for Israel, landed in the Jewish state on December 30, 2020 to a hero`s welcome led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
• Pollard, 66, served 30 years in prison for passing on classified documents when he served as a US Navy intelligence analyst, and had been confined to the United States under his parole terms since his 2015 release

7. Tehran to pay $150,000 to every family of downed plane victims

• Tehran will pay $150,000 to every family of the 176 victims killed when a Ukrainian passenger plane was mistakenly shot down by Iran in January, the presidency said on December 30, 2020.
• Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 crashed shortly after taking off from Tehran`s airport on Jan 8, killing all 176 people on board.
• Tehran admitted three days later that its forces had accidentally shot down the Kiev-bound Boeing 737-800 plane after firing two missiles, amid heightened US-Iran tensions.

8. UK watchdog approves use of `vaccine for the world`

• Britain authorised an easy-to-handle coronavirus vaccine on December 30, 2020 and decided to stretch out the time between doses to allow more people to get some level of protection faster as infections surge.
• The first green light for the shot dubbed the `vaccine for the world` brought a measure of hope that the pandemic could be brought under control

9. Frozen carcass of woolly rhino from Ice Age unearthed

• The frozen carcass of a juvenile woolly rhinoceros from the Ice Age — with its hazel-colored coat still intact — has been recovered from the permafrost of Siberia.
• The remains — which are 80 per cent intact and contain evidence of the animal’s last meal — were excavated in the Abyysky district of the Sakha Republic in August.
• They were found by local resident Alexei Savvin — and include various internal organs and structures, including teeth, part of the intestines and a lump of fat.

10. New Zealand end Pakistan`s defiance to seal thrilling Test win

• New Zealand beat Pakistan by 101 runs in the first Test which ended very late on the fifth day December 30, 2020, achieving their third straight win in three home Tests this summer and taking a 1-0 lead in the two match series.
• The win tentatively put New Zealand top of the world Test rankings and kept alive their chances of making the World Test Championship final

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