Day by Day Current Affairs (July 16, 2018) | MCQs for CSS, PMS, NTS

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July 16, 2018

1. Kulbhushan case: Pakistan to submit reply in ICJ July 17, 2018

• Pakistan will submit its reply in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on July 17 with regard to the case of convicted Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav.
• Following Jadhav’s arrest and death sentencing by Pakistan in 2016, India had approached the world court to halt his execution. According to diplomatic sources, the reply will be submitted by Foreign Office Director India Dr Fareha Bugti, who has arrived at The Hague for the purpose.
• Dr Bugti had also submitted Pakistan’s counter-pleading in December last year. The sources said Pakistan’s response contains detailed replies to India’s submissions to the international court.
• Pakistan’s 400-page reply — a rejoinder to India’s last reply — has been prepared by a team of experts led by the attorney general, the sources said. On April 17 this year, India had submitted its reply to the ICJ after the world court, on January 23, directed India to do so. India had submitted its pleadings to the ICJ on September 13, 2017. The Indian stance was dismissed by Pakistan in its counter-pleadings, which were submitted on December 13 that year.
• In its counter-memorial, Pakistan had stated that Jadhav is not an ordinary person as he had entered the country with the intent of spying and carrying out sabotage activities. The reply also stated that Jadhav, who was a serving officer of the Indian Navy, does not fall under the purview of the Vienna Convention.
• Commander Jadhav — an on-duty Indian Navy officer working for Indian covert agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) — was arrested on March 3, 2016, from Balochistan, after he entered into Pakistan from Iran. Jadhav was tried in a military court which sentenced him to death for espionage and subversive activities.

2. World Cup 2018: France rule the world again

• Goals from Paul Pogba and Kylian Mbappe, as well as a controversial VAR-awarded penalty, helped France beat Croatia 4-2 in an incredible World Cup final in Moscow on July 15, 2018 to lift the trophy for the second time in their history.
• In a match that had a bit of everything, Mario Mandzukic scored the first ever own goal in a World Cup final to put France in front at the Luzhniki Stadium, only for Ivan Perisic to equalise.
• The first team to score four times in a final since Brazil in 1970, the French could even afford to see Mandzukic pull a goal back following a ridiculous goalkeeping mistake by Hugo Lloris.
• France joined Uruguay and Argentina in winning the World Cup for a second time, after their 1998 triumph over Brazil when Didier Deschamps — now the coach — was the captain.
• The game will be remembered as the highest-scoring World Cup final since England´s win over West Germany in 1966, and for Mbappe becoming the youngest player to score in the final since Pele in 1958.

3. PAF declared runner-up in UK air show

• A PAF C-130 aircraft has been adjudged a runner-up in the prestigious Royal International Air Tattoo Show-2018 in the UK. An aesthetically painted PAF C-130 was honoured out of 300 aircraft in the mega show.
• It was a moment of joy for the PAF when PAF C-130 aircraft was adjudged runner-up in the prestigious air show.
• Air Chief Marshal Mujahid Anwar Khan also witnessed the static display of the No 6 squadron’s Hercules.
• PAF C-130 stole the show with its attractive and artistically painted colour scheme. The participating military and civilian aircraft included USAF F-35A, French Air Force Rafale C, German Air Force Tornado IDS and RAF Red Arrows on display at the Royal International Air Tattoo.
• Earlier, the air chief attended Chief of the Air Staff’s Air Power Conference with a theme ‘Building the Next Generation Air Force’.
• The conference was the highlight of a week of events celebrating the Royal Air Force’s centenary in London.

4. CAA suspends Shaheen Air operations

• The Civil Aviation Authority has suspended international flight operations of Shaheen Air International (SAI), except to and from Saudi Arabia, for non-payment of its dues.
• If the SAI failed to pay various dues / arrears of over Rs1.5 billion to the CAA all its international flight operations will be suspended.
• The CAA had suspended some of the SAI`s flight operations to Dubai a few days ago to make it pay the dues. CAA spokesperson Pervez George told Dawn that owing to non-payment of nearly Rs1.5bn, services and facilities from all airports of the country to international flights of SAI, except Pakistan-Saudi Arabia-Pakistan sector, would be suspended from Monday.

5. Emirati prince flees to Qatar, criticises Abu Dhabi

• An Emirati prince has sought asylum in Qatar after fleeing the UAE saying he feared for his life because of a dispute with the rulers of oil-rich Abu Dhabi.
• Sheikh Rashid bin Hamad al-Sharqi, 31, is the second son of the emir of Fujairah, one of the seven monarchies making up the United Arab Emirates. He arrived in Doha on May 16. Abu Dhabi is the capital and richest emirate of the UAE.
• Sheikh Rashid accused Emirati rulers of blackmail and money laundering but did not offer evidence to back up his claims.
• The UAE and Saudi Arabia have led a campaign to isolate Qatar diplomatically and economically.
• Sheikh Rashid appeared to be the first time in the UAE`s nearly 47-year history that a member of one of its seven royal families had publicly criticised its rulers.

6. Moscow must `account for role` in MH17 tragedy, says G7

• Russia must `account for its role` in the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over Ukraine and cooperate with efforts to establish truth and justice, foreign ministers of the world`s industrial democracies said on July 15, 2018.
• The statement by the G7 ministers came on the eve of a summit between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, but also just before the anniversary of the July 17, 2014 air disaster which killed all 298 crew and passengers when the airliner was shot down.G7 ministers said a joint investigation into the crash had yielded `compelling, significant and deeply disturbing` findings on Russia`s involvement.
• The call came not only before the Putin-Trump summit in Helsinki but as the Russian leader was to meet France`s President Emmanuel Macron in Moscow, where he was attending the World Cup soccer final on Sunday.

7. Civilian deaths in Afghanistan have hit record high, says UN

• The number of Afghan civilians killed in the country`s longrunning conflict hit a record high in the first six months of this year, UN figures showed on July 15, 2018, with militant attacks and suicide bombs the leading causes of death.
• The toll of 1,692 fatalities was one per cent more than a year earlier and the highest for the period since the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) began keeping records in 2009.
• Another 3,430 people were wounded in the war, down five per cent from the same period last year, the report said. Overall civilian casualties 5,122 fell three per cent year on year.
• The record high death toll, meanwhile, came despite an unprecedented ceasefire by Afghan security forces and the Taliban last month that was largely respected by both sides, UNAMA said.

8. Obama to lead celebrations 100 years after Mandela’s birth

• South Africa celebrates the 100th anniversary of Nelson Mandela’s birth this week with a flagship speech by former US president Barack Obama and an outpouring of memories and tributes to the late anti-apartheid leader.
• Mandela, who died in 2013, remains a global icon for his long fight against white-minority rule and for his message of peace and reconciliation when he was released after 27 years in prison. His birthday on July 18 is marked annually around the world, and the Nelson Mandela Foundation called this year for people to “take action and inspire change” in Mandela’s name.
• Obama will set the tone for the celebrations with a speech in Johannesburg on July 17 that aides say will be his most important public address since leaving the White House in 2017. “It gives him an opportunity to lift up a message of tolerance, inclusivity and democracy at a time when there are obviously challenges to Mandela’s legacy around the world,” his aide Benjamin Rhodes told the New York Times.
• Obama will also host a town hall event on July 18 for 200 young leaders selected from across Africa to attend a five-day training programme. The former US president met Mandela only briefly in 2005 but gave a eulogy at his funeral saying Mandela “makes me want to be a better man” and hailing him as “the last great liberator of the 20th century”.

9. Trump brands Russia, China & EU `enemies

• US President Donald Trump branded Russia a `foe` as he prepared to go head to head with Vladimir Putin at a historic summit clouded by Moscow`s alleged manipulation of the 2016 US election.
• Summit in Helsinki will offer Putin, a former KGB spymaster, and Trump the chance to get the measure of each other on an array of fronts including Syria, Ukraine and nuclear disarmament.
• Trump left for Helsinki after labelling Russia `a foe`, along with the European Union and China, in an interview aired on the eve of his first one-on-one summit with the Kremlin boss.
• `Now, you wouldn`t think of the European Union but they`re a foe.
• Russia is a foe in certain respects.
• China is a foe economically, certainly they are a foe. But that doesn`t mean they are bad. It doesn`t mean anything. It means that they are competitive,` he told CBS.

10. Djokovic crowned Wimbledon champ for fourth time

• Novak Djokovic raced to a fourth Wimbledon title and 13th career Grand Slam crown on July 15, 2018 when he defeated a battling but exhausted Kevin Anderson 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (7-3).
• World number 21 Djokovic added the 2018 title to his wins in 2011, 2014 and 2015 as he became the lowest-ranked champion since Goran Ivanisevic in 2001.
• It also took his Grand Slam total to within one of Pete Sampras and just four behind the 17 of Rafael Nadal who he defeated in the semifinals.
• Anderson, the eighth seed, was the first South African in the final in 97 years and was bidding to become the first man from his country to be crowned Wimbledon champion.
• Victory was 31-year-old Djokovic`s first at the majors since he completed the career Grand Slam at Roland Garros in 2016.It also came just a month after he threatened to skip Wimbledon after a quarter-loss exit in Paris and withhis ranking atitslowestin over a decade.