Day by Day Current Affairs (August 5, 2018) | MCQs for CSS, PMS, NTS

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August 5, 2018

1. US Congresswoman assures support to incoming PTI govt

• In his first interaction with any US lawmaker after PTI got victory in July 25 elections, prime minister-in-waiting Imran Khan on August 4, 2018 had a telephonic conversation with senior United States Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee.
• The telephonic conversation between the two sides was made possible with the efforts of senior PTI leader and member-elect of the National Assembly Imran Ismail.
• The US Congresswoman, who sits on three Congressional committees, congratulated prime minister-in-waiting for his party’s victory in the election and expressed her best wishes for the next PTI-led federal government.
• Ms Lee fully supported the new government and assured her full support to it. She vowed her resolve to visit Pakistan along with a delegation soon after the formation of the government.
• In response, Khan thanked the Congresswoman for her wishes and welcomed the visit of US delegation to Pakistan.

2. Yaum-i-Shuhada-i-Police was observed

• Yaum-i-Shuhada-i-Police was observed on August 4, 2018 to commemorate the personnel who laid down their lives in the line of duty.
• Brave police officers had sacrinced their livesfor the security of the masses and now it was the government`s responsibility to provide their families all possible help.

3. US sets up security assistance fund to counter China

• US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo on August 4, 2018 announced the intent to provide nearly $300 million of security assistance for nations in the Indo-Pacific region.
• This includes $290.5 million to improve security relationships across the region. The funding will cover projects in Bangladesh, Indonesia, Mongolia, Nepal, the Pacific Islands, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Vietnam.
• The administration was now making ef forts to `right` this unf air policy.

4. Woman fined $156 for wearing face veil in Denmark

• A 28-year-old woman wearing a face veil has become the first person in Denmark to be fined for violating a new law banning such garments in public places.
• Police were called to a shopping centre in Horsholm, a city of some 46,000 inhabitants close to Copenhagen, on August 3, 2018 to confront a woman wearing a nigab garment covering her f ace.
• The woman was slapped with a fine of 1,000 Danish kroner ($156) and requested to either remove the veil or leave the premises. She opted to leave.
• Since Aug1, the country`s much-debated `Burqa Ban` has prohibited full-body burgas, as well the nigab Muslim dress which only shows the eyes. Both are rare in Denmark. Other European countries have similar bans.

5. Hassan Daud new CPEC projects spokesman

• Ministry of Planning, Development and Reforms has appointed Hassan Daud as spokesperson on matters related to China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
• Hassan Daud who is Project Director CPEC Support Project is authorized to issue statements on status of CPEC projects to all forums if required after due approval.

6. North Korea has not stopped nuclear, missile programs: UN

• North Korea has pressed ahead with its nuclear and missile programs and continues to evade UN sanctions through increased illegal ship-to-ship transfers of oil products at sea, a UN report has said.
• In a 62-page report sent to the Security Council, the UN panel of experts also listed violations of a ban on North Korean exports of coal, iron, seafood and other products that generate millions of dollars in revenue for Kim Jong Un’s regime.
• Pyongyang “has not stopped its nuclear and missile programs and continued to defy Security Council resolutions through a massive increase in illicit ship-to-ship transfers of petroleum products, as well as through transfers of coal at sea during 2018,” said the report.
• The transfer of petroleum products to North Korean tankers at sea remains “a primary method of sanctions evasion” involving 40 vessels and 130 associated companies, it added. The violations have rendered the latest batch of sanctions “ineffective” by flouting the cap on oil, fuel and coal imposed in a raft of UN resolutions adopted last year, it added.
• Meanwhile, North Korea on August 4, 2018 said the US was acting with “alarming” impatience on the issue of denuclearisation, after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stressed the need to maintain full sanctions pressure on Pyongyang. The contrasting comments at a security forum in Singapore came after a new UN report showed Pyongyang was continuing with its nuclear and missile programmes and evading sanctions through ship-to-ship oil transfers.

7. Eritrean Airlines makes first flight to Ethiopia in 20 years

• Eritrea’s national airline on August 4, 2018 made its first commercial flight in two decades to Addis Ababa, the capital of neighboring Ethiopia, the latest step in a surprise peace process between the former foes that began just two months ago.
• An Eritrean Airlines plane carrying the country’s transport and tourism ministers landed at the Addis Ababa Bole International Airport, where it was welcomed by senior Ethiopian officials.
• Already last month, the Ethiopia’s own flag carrier, Ethiopian Airlines, had made its first commercial flight in the other direction, landing in Asmara International Airport on July 18. Once a province of Ethiopia, Eritrea seceded in 1993 after a long independence struggle. A row over the demarcation of the shared border triggered a brutal 1998-2000 conflict which left 80,000 people dead before evolving into a bitter cold war.
• But in a surprise move in June, Ethiopia’s new reformist Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced he would finally accept a 2002 United Nations-backed border demarcation, paving the way for peace between the two nations.
• Eritrean Airlines currently has only one leased airplane.

8. Nasa names astronauts for new era

• Nasa named the first nine astronauts who will fly to space on Boeing and SpaceX vehicles in 2019 – a mix of novices and veterans who are tasked with restoring America’s ability to send humans into orbit.
• These pioneering flights to the International Space Station aboard commercially built crew capsules will be the first leaving US soil to put people into orbit since the iconic space shuttle program ended in 2011.
• For the past seven years, Nasa astronauts have hitched rides to the orbiting outpost on Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft – at a cost of some $80 million a seat.
• An unmanned Boeing flight test is scheduled for later this year, with the first crew on board in mid-2019, Nasa said.

9. Haris wins Hong Kong U-17 squash title

• Pakistan`s Haris Qasim won the Hong Kong Junior Under-17 Squash Championship in Hong Kong on August 4, 2018.
• Haris beat Lee Min Woo of South Korea 11-5, 11-3, 11-9 in the final.
• Uzair Rasheed and Farhan Hashmi also participated in this event in which 128 players from many countries including Hong Kong, India, Australia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Jordan, Thailand, China, Egypt, Canada, US, Taiwan etc competed.-

10. Pakistan qualify for Asian rugby plate semis

• Pakistan have qualified for the plate semifinals of the Asian Seven Rugby Championship in Singapore on August 4, 2018.
• Pakistan won their first match of the day against Brunei by 19-5. For Pakistan, Nasir Mehmood scored two tries while Khalid Bhatti made one try. Ahmed Wasim and Nasir Mehmood each converted one try, too.
• In the second match Pakistan carved out 19-12 win against Bangladesh.
• In the last league match Pakistan, however, lost to hot favorite and host Singapore 7-26. Now Pakistan team is second in the pool `C` and it will face Jordan in the plate semifinal.