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February 22, 2019: National Current Affairs
1. India fails to answer critical questions in Jadhav case: Pakistan
• Thursday was the last day of the Kulbhushan Jadhav case hearing at the Peace Palace in The Hague.
• Khawar Qureshi, representing Pakistan, began his final rebuttal before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) by an unapologetic explanation of why Pakistan had to resort to `trenchant observations` in its rejoinder regarding India. Articulate and not one to mince his words, Qureshi once again chastised India for living in `wonderland` and persisting to the very end in seeking to `distract and deflect attention from its failure to answer critical questions by levelling accusations against Pakistan`.
• India claims this case is only about denial of consular access whereas `it`s far from it`, claimed an uncharacteristically unrushed Qureshi. He found it absurd how India was reduced to equating the words of the Lahore High Court Bar Association secretary to the official position taken by the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. He addressed what he termed as India`s `Kidnap Fiction` by highlighting Dr Mittal`s failure to identify any attempt by India to engage with Iranian authorities regarding Kulbhushan Jadhav`s alleged kidnapping. `Providing explanation will expose the fiction,` claimed Qureshi.
2. Pakistani General to lead UN Force in West Sahara
• United Nations Secretary General António Guterres has appointed Major General Zia-ur Rehman of the Pakistan Army as Force Commander of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO).
• In a press statement issued by the United Nations office, Maj Gen Rehman succeeds Maj Gen Xiaojun Wang of China, whose tour of duty ended on Feb 17.
• The UN secretary-general is grateful to Major General Wang for his exemplary service and contribution to the work of MINURSO.
• Maj Gen Rehman has 30 years of national and international military leadership experience, including as commander of military formations on operations and directing staff appointments at command, staff and war college levels.
• He possesses a range of experiences in other leadership roles, including as a military observer in the then United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC).
• From 2015 to 2016, he served as senior national representative in the United States Central Command Headquarters (CENTCOM) in Florida. Most recently, Maj Gen Rehman served as the commander of an infantry brigade from 2016 to 2017 and of an infantry division from 2017.
3. PIA starts flights for Sharjah, Al-Ain from Peshawar
• The Pakistan International Airlines launched its flight service from Peshawar to Sharjah and Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates.
• Chief Operating Officer and Airport Manager of Bacha Khan International Airport, Obaidur Rehman Abbasi, was the chief guest at the inaugural ceremony and saw off passengers from Peshawar to Sharjah.
• The introduction of Peshawar-Sharjah and Peshawar-Al-Ain flights were a longstanding demand of the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the new management of PIA fulfilled this demand. He said that expansion of BKIA, Peshawar, which was a state-of-the-art project, was in final stages and arrival facility would be opened for passengers by the end of March.-Bureau
4. Pakistan says it has no concern if India diverts water
• In response to an Indian minister`s statement that his country has decided to stop the flow of water to Pakistan from its share in the rivers under the Indus Water Treaty (IWT), Pakistan says it has no concern if India diverts water of eastern rivers (Ravi, Sutlej and Beas).
• Secretary of Pakistan`s Ministry of Water Resources Khawaja Shumall said: `We have neither concern nor objection if India diverts water of eastern rivers and supplies it to its people or uses it for other purposes, as the IWT allows it do so.
• As issuance of harsh statements by Indian authorities continues after the terrorist attack in Pulwama, Nitin Gadkari, India`s transport and water resources minister, said in a Twitter message earlier on Thursday: `Under the leadership of Honourable PM Sri Narendra Modi, our Government has decided to stop our share of water which used to flow toPakistan. We will divert water from Eastern Rivers and supply it to our people in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab.
5. Punjab unveils new education policy
• Chief Minister Punjab Usman Buzdar February 21, 2019 unveiled government’s school education policy titled ‘The New Deal 2018-23’.
• Under the new policy, the children up to primary level will be educated in Urdu while English language will also be taught at this level as a subject.
• Out-of-school children will be educated through Insaf Afternoon School Programme. Similarly, integrated management information system is also being introduced. Necessary amendments will be made to the relevant act for free and compulsory education.”
• a total of 12 million children at the primary level had been enrolled in 52,000 schools and the government wanted to secure their future through a composite strategy
February 22, 2019: International Current Affairs
6. Saudi crown prince arrives in China
• Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman arrived in Beijing on February 21, 2019 as the monarch aims to seal partnerships on a high-profile Asia tour following a diplomatic crisis over a journalist`s brutal murder.
• Mohammed is expected to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping on his two-day trip to the Chinese capital following visits to Pakistan and India.
• The tour has allowed him to show that Riyadh still has allies after the grisly murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi a fierce critic of Mohammed at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul tarnished the image of the kingdom and the prince.
• The Chinese foreign ministry said Beijing`s ambitious Belt and Road global trade infrastructure initiative will be on the agenda, as the two countries look to improve their economic ties.
7. US, China sketch outlines of deal to end trade war
• The United States and China have started to outline commitments in principle on the stickiest issues in their trade dispute, marking the most significant progress yet toward ending a seven-month trade war, according to sources familiar with the negotiations.
• The world`s two largest economies have slapped tit-for-tat tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars of goods, slowing global economic growth, skiing supply chains and disrupting manufacturing.
• The broad outline of what could make up a deal is beginning to emerge from the talks, the sources said, as the two sides push for an agreement by March 1. That marks the end of a 90-day truce that Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to when they met in Argentina late last year.
8. Australian researchers reveal new tool to track infectious diseases
• Australia’s peak scientific body has developed a tool to track how infectious diseases spread throughout the country.
• The tool, which is part of the Disease Networks and Mobility (DiNeMO) project being undertaken by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), identifies and tracks new cases of infection with a disease to its original source in Australia.
• Dean Pail, a researcher from the CSIRO, said that with the new tool the DiNeMo project could provide real-time alerts and a surveillance system for infectious diseases, protecting Australians against the increasing risk of dengue fever and measles.
9. World’s biggest bee found alive
• The world’s biggest bee has been re-discovered, after decades thought lost to science. The giant bee – which is as long as an adult’s thumb – was found on a little-explored Indonesian island.
• After days of searching, wildlife experts found a single live female, which they photographed and filmed. Known as Wallace’s giant bee, the insect is named after the British naturalist and explorer Alfred Russel Wallace, who described it in 1858. Scientists found several specimens in 1981, but it has not been seen since.
February 22, 2019: National Current Affairs
10. Hasan, Imam steer Zalmi to victory
• Peshawar Zalmi juggernaut exhibited its true class in overcoming a tough start before completing a resounding 44-run victory over a clueless Karachi Kings in an HBL Pakistan Super League fixture at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on February 21, 2019.
• Put in to bat after Imad Wasim won the toss on a lethargic pitch, Zalmi recovered from the early demise of Kamran Akmal (0). But Imam-ul-Haq and Umar Amin steadied the ship with a partnership of 44.
• Kings put the 2017 champions in real strife by taking three wickets for one run in seven balls, leaving their rivals tottering at 48 for four. But Pakistan opener Imam-ul-Haq stood firm and with Liam Dawson, resurrected the faltering Zalmi innings in a 52-ball stand that yielded 76 runs. The left-handed Imam, who was named Man of the Match, crossed 50 for the ninth time in T20 cricket before he saw Usman Khan Shinwari hold a high return to dismiss Dawson for a 33-ball 43 (four fours and one six).
