Daily Top-10 Current Affairs MCQs/News (Dec 09 2022) for CSS

Table of Contents

6. British publication apologises to PM

• British conservative newspaper Mail on Sunday, on December 8, 2022, issued an apology to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif over a 2019 article, in which it had alleged that he had siphoned off British aid money meant for earthquake victims.
• The development is being billed as a symbolic victory for both the ruling PML-N and PM Shehbaz, and comes on the heels of a defamation case initiated by Mr Sharif against the paper in the United Kingdom in 2020. The decision is the culmination of months of hearings and a constant back and forth between the lawyers of the paper and Mr Sharif.
• A brief statement published on the home page of the publication`s website on Thursday afternoon read, `In an article concerning Mr Shahbaz Sharif entitled `Did the family of Pakistani politician who has become the poster boy for British overseas aid STEAL funds meant for earthquake victims` published on 14 July 2019 we reported on an investigation by Pakistan`s National Accountability Bureau into Mr Sharif and suggested that the money under investigation included a not insubstantial sum of British public money that had been paid to the Punjab province in DFID grant aid

7. With $225m in blocked airline funds, Pakistan among top three on IATA`s list

• Pakistan has blocked some $225 million of airlines` dues, becoming one of the top countries restricting the industry from repatriating funds, the global airline association IATA said on Wednesday.
• Pakistan already became a `blocked fund` country in April along with Sri Lanka. The two countries were being monitored and flagged in IATA`s `watch list countries` in 2021.
• The amount of airline funds for repatriation being blocked by governments has risen by more than 25 per cent, or $394m, in the last six months to nearly $2 billion now, the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which represents some 300 airlines comprising 83pc of global air traffic, said in a statement on Wednesday

International Current Affairs MCQs News

8. China, Saudi Arabia sign $30bn deals

• Chinese President Xi Jinping and Saudi Arabia`s powerful crown prince met December 8, 2022 on an Arab outreach visit that has earned a rebuke from Washington, reaching deals in areas, including energy and infrastructure.
• Agreements worth about $30 billion were signed, Saudi state media said, as China seeks to shore up its Covid-hit economy and as the Saudis, long-term US allies, push to diversify their economic and political alliances.
• Xi and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the 37-year-old de factoruler of the world`s biggest oil exporter, met at Yamamah Palace in Riyadh, flanked by high-ranking of ficials wearing face masks, footage aired on state television showed

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9. Israeli troops kill three Palestinians in West Bank

• Israeli troops killed three Palestinians on December 8, 2022 in their latest deadly raid on the flashpoint city of Jenin, Palestinian health officials said, as violence surges in the occupied West Bank.
• Israeli forces said no troops were hurt in an exchange of Kre in Jenin, during one of scores of near-daily raids it has carried out in recent months following a series of deadly attacks on Israelis.
• The Palestinian health ministry said three people were killed `by bullets from the Israeli occupation during its aggression in Jenin at dawn today`.
• The Israeli military said troops entered Jenin to detain people `suspected of involvement in terrorist activity`

10. EU welcomes Croatia into Schengen

• The EU on December 8, 2022 approved Croatia as the newest member of the border check-free Schengen zone from next month, but Austria and the Netherlands blocked Romania and Bulgaria from joining.
• Croatia`s accession from January 1 will make it the 27th member of Schengen, which would then comprise 23 of the EU`s 27 countries, plus Switzerland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Iceland. The outcome was bitter news for Bulgaria and Romania, the EU`s two poorest nations, which have been trying for a decade to join Schengen and whose bids were linked together, unlike Croatia`s.
• Decisions on enlarging Schengen have to be taken unanimously, but Austria applied its veto, fearing that having Bulgaria and Romania in the Schengen area would increase already high inflows of asylum-seekers. The Netherlands was equally intent on keeping Bulgaria out, which impacted Romania`s twinned bid