Islamabad: The overall death toll in Pakistan from the devastating floods has increased to 1,596, with 12,863 others injured, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said. In the last 24 hours, 20 new fatalities were reported, reports Xinhua news agency citing the NDMA as saying. The victims included 17 children and most of the deaths were reported in the worst-hit Sindh province. The heavy monsoon rain-triggered flash floods since mid-June have also destroyed a total of 2,016,008 houses, while an estimated 1,040,735 livestock has perished in the rains across the country, according to the latest NDMA figures. It further added that 12,716 km of roads and 374 bridges were damaged. Rescue and relief operations by the NDMA, other government organisations, volunteers and NGOs were underway in the affected areas.&nbsp;
—IANS

The overall death toll in Pakistan from the devastating floods has increased to 1,596, with 12,863 others injured, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said.

 Death toll in devastating Pakistan flooding reaches 1,596

South Asia

Islamabad: The overall death toll in Pakistan from the devastating floods has increased to 1,559, with 12,850 others injured, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said. In the last 24 hours, 15 new fatalities were reported, all in the worst-hit Sindh province, reports Xinhua news agency citing the NDMA as saying. The victims included a child and three women. The heavy monsoon rain-triggered flash floods since mid-June have also destroyed a total of 1,979,485 houses, while an estimated 973,632 livestock has perished in the rains across the country, according to the latest NDMA figures. It further added that 12,716 km of roads and 374 bridges were damaged. Rescue and relief operations by the NDMA, other government organisations, volunteers and NGOs were underway in the affected areas.—IANS&nbsp;

The overall death toll in Pakistan from the devastating floods has increased to 1,559, with 12,850 others injured, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said.

Death toll in catastrophic Pakistan flooding reaches 1,559

United Nations: China has put a hold on a proposal moved at the United Nations by the United States and co-supported by India to designate Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorist Sajid Mir, one of India's most wanted terrorists and the main handler of the deadly 2008 Mumbai attacks, as a global terrorist.
It is learnt that Beijing put a hold Thursday on the proposal moved by the US and co-designated by India to blacklist Mir under the 1267 Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council as a global terrorist and subject him to assets freeze, travel ban and arms embargo.
Mir is one of India's most wanted terrorists and has a bounty of $5 million placed on his head by the US for his role in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.
In June this year, he was jailed for over 15 years in a terror-financing case by an anti-terrorism court in Pakistan, which is struggling to exit the grey list of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
Pakistani authorities had in the past claimed Mir had died, but Western countries remained unconvinced and demanded proof of his death.
This issue became a major sticking point in FATF's assessment of Pakistan's progress on the action plan late last year.
Mir is a senior member of the Pakistan-based LeT and is wanted for his involvement in the November 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai.
'Mir was LeT's operations manager for the attacks, playing a leading role in their planning, preparation and execution,' the US State Department has said.
Last month, China had put a hold on a proposal by the US and India at the United Nations to blacklist Abdul Rauf Azhar, the brother of Jaish-e Mohammed (JEM) chief Masood Azhar and a senior leader of the Pakistan-based terror organisation.
Abdul Rauf Azhar, born in 1974 in Pakistan, was sanctioned by the US in December 2010.
Beijing, an all-weather friend of Islamabad, has repeatedly put holds on listings to blacklist Pakistan-based terrorists under the sanctions committee of the UN Security Council.
In June this year, China had put a hold, at the last moment, on a joint proposal by India and the US to list Pakistan-based terrorist Abdul Rehman Makki under the 1267 Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council.
Makki is a US-designated terrorist and brother-in-law of Lashkar-e-Taiba head and 26/11 mastermind Hafiz Saeed.
New Delhi and Washington had put a joint proposal to designate Makki as a global terrorist under the 1267 Islamic State and Al Qaida Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council but Beijing placed a hold on this proposal at the last minute.
The State Department had said that Mir has been a senior member of LeT since approximately 2001.
From 2006 to 2011, Mir was in charge of LeT's external operations and planned and directed various terrorist attacks on behalf of the group.
Additionally, Mir allegedly conspired to commit a terrorist attack against a newspaper and its employees in Denmark between 2008 and 2009.
For his role in the Mumbai attacks, Mir was indicted in the United States in April 2011.
In August 2012, the US Department of the Treasury designated Mir as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist.
As a result of this designation, among other consequences, all property and interests in property of Mir that are subject to US jurisdiction are blocked, and US persons are generally prohibited from engaging in any transactions with Mir.
'Mir is on the FBI's Most Wanted Terrorists List. He is believed to reside in Pakistan,' according to information on the State Department website.
—PTI

China has put a hold on a proposal moved at the United Nations by the United States and co-supported by India to designate Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorist Sajid Mir, one of India's most wanted terrorists and the main handler of the deadly 2008 Mumbai attacks, as a global terrorist.

China Puts Hold On Proposal At UN To Blacklist 26/11 LeT Handler

New Delhi: India stands a good chance of filling in a suitable position in manufacturing, leaving behind several South Asian countries including China, according to the director of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Shishir Priyadarshi.
'Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan' attempts to correct this imbalance by incentivising manufacturers, addressing disabilities, and attracting global value chains. Shishir Priyadarshi believes that as far as the global value chain is concerned, most countries at present are not likely to be dependent on a single country.
Speaking to ANI on Tuesday, the WTO director said that most countries would not like to be dependent on a single country as far as sourcing the primary inputs for the global value chain is concerned.
"Most countries today globally would not like to be dependent on a single country as far as sourcing the primary inputs for the global value chain is concerned. And yes, China has been the predominant supplier for many of these countries who now want to diversify," Priyadarshi told ANI.
"And I think India stands a very good chance of filling in that niche. Provided India can ensure competitiveness and high technology and that can only come about if we can help ease business and cost of businesses in India", Priyadarshi told ANI.
He was addressing a session on Aatmanirbhar Bharat -- whether how and when India's indigenisation efforts will pay off.
"Will it slow or hasten our integration into global supply chains?" the WTO director asked while stressing the fact that we need to be clear if we want to "Make in India" or "Make for the world".
Further speaking about his assessment of India's recent pulling out of the trade-related negotiations pertaining to the United States-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF), the Director added that New Delhi's presence in all four verticals would be essential to have a strategic partnership with the other countries. "India has opted out from one of the pillars of this forum. It would have been much better if India was in the forum because then you can guide the discussions. But, I did read a specific statement from Piyush Goyal who seemed positive in that statement about the possibility of joining this trade pillar at a subsequent date. Overall, if we are to have a strategic partnership with the countries in this forum, then I think India's presence in all these four verticals would be important", said Priyadarshi.
Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) was formed jointly by the US and partner countries of the Indo-Pacific region on the sidelines of the Quad Summit in Tokyo on May 23 this year. India decided to join three pillars related to supply chains, tax and anti-corruption, and clean energy. but decided to opt out of the trade pillar. Priyadarshi who is one of the directors of WTO in Geneva was speaking at the 2022 edition of the Mindmine Summit in New Delhi. —ANI

India stands a good chance of filling in a suitable position in manufacturing, leaving behind several South Asian countries including China, according to the director of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Shishir Priyadarshi.

As Countries Move Out From China For Global Supply, India Stands Good Chance Of Filling Niche: WTO Director

Beijing: China is currently engaged in pampering the Taliban, which finds itself in a state of diplomatic isolation. Its focus is on business with hopes of a better deal.It is towards this end that China is walking the extra mile to offer a helping hand to the Taliban regime firstly in the matter of travel ban exemptions, and secondly, in grappling with its economic and humanitarian crisis, reported Al Arabiya Post.China's recent efforts to promote and support the Taliban 2.0 regime indicate that it is getting ready to recognize the government currently in place in Afghanistan. On the one hand, it is building a case for international recognition of the Taliban and for the continuance of the waiver of the travel ban on Taliban leaders. On the other hand, it is engaged in what is much more than business and cultural diplomacy to broaden its footprint in Afghanistan.The state-run Communist Party of China (CPC) media has, in recent months, run a concerted campaign to show how the Taliban 2.0 have fairly handled the security situation and taken steps to improve the economy in Afghanistan, reported Al Arabiya Post.These media report also highlight the contribution of China and its companies in bringing prosperity to the country. Business activity combined with cultural diplomacy suggests that China is getting ready to recognise Taliban 2.0.At the forefront of this "Taliban is good" campaign is the CPC mouthpiece, Global Times (GT), which under editor in Chief Hu Xijin launched the "wolf warrior" communication strategy.GT spread the 'word' that people across Afghanistan are saying that the security situation has improved and, violence had declined since the Taliban seized power. It, however, conceded that "tribal culture" still holds great sway in the Taliban's governing style while hastening to add that their administrative capabilities are "comparatively more advanced."Moreover, some media reports indicate that some progress has been made on Chinese investments and reconstruction projects. Chinese businessmen like Yu Minghui, who have stayed put after the US-led NATO's withdrawal, have reaped benefits. He has four steel processing lines, reported Al Arabiya Post.The China Town, a 10- storey building is the hub of Chinese business activity. An industrial estate is coming up in Kabul suburbs as the first Sino-Afghan joint venture at a cost of USD 216 million.Also, there is talk of extending the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor into Afghanistan and beyond. China has exempted 98 per cent of its Afghan buys from import duties. China Metallurgical Group will soon start exploration and extraction at the Aynak copper mine. It is the biggest copper mining project in the country. As of now, China's economic footprint is steadily expanding across Afghanistan, reported Al Arabiya Post.To ensure that it is business as usual in Kabul, China has chosen to keep quiet on the rights of ordinary women and distanced itself from the campaign of global human rights activists against the raw deal Afghan women and school-going girls have been getting.China is also pushing its cultural diplomacy befitting its position as the third largest trading partner of Afghanistan after Pakistan and Iran. It has deputed scholars to help protect Afghanistan's cultural heritage.The current focus is on the historical relics at the Mes Aynak copper mine (Logar Province) and the UNESCO heritage site, Bamyan Valley. —ANI

China is currently engaged in pampering the Taliban, which finds itself in a state of diplomatic isolation. Its focus is on business with hopes of a better deal.