Police, health officials removed after Pakistan polio vaccinator says she was raped on duty

A health worker (R) administers polio vaccine drops to a child during a polio vaccination campaign in Karachi on June 3, 2024. (AFP/File)
Short Url
Updated 17 September 2024
Follow

Police, health officials removed after Pakistan polio vaccinator says she was raped on duty

  • Incident occurred in Allah Baksh Jakhrani village of Jacobabad, with vaccinator telling a court she was raped while on duty
  • Deputy Commissioner, Senior Superintendent of Police, District Health Officer in Jacobabad removed from positions

KARACHI: The government of the southern Sindh province said on Tuesday it had removed senior police and health officials in response to accusations of rape by a polio vaccinator in the Jacobabad district.

The incident occurred in the Allah Baksh Jakhrani village of Jacobabad, with the polio vaccinator testifying before a local court last week that she was raped while on duty.

“The Sindh Government has taken strict action following the reported negligence in the security and arrangements for polio workers in Jacobabad,” the government said in a statement.

“As a result, the Deputy Commissioner (DC) Jacobabad, the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Jacobabad, and the District Health Officer (DHO) Jacobabad have been removed from their positions.”

On Monday, Provincial Health Minister Dr. Azra Fazal Pechuho took notice of the alleged rape and instructed police to provide her round-the-clock security.

“Our female polio workers are the backbone of the polio program and protecting them has always been the utmost priority of the program,” Dr. Pechuho said. “I am taking every necessary action to ensure that she gets the justice she deserves.”

On Sept. 9, Pakistan launched a week-long, nationwide polio vaccine campaign as the disease has spread this year beyond its traditional hot spots to areas once largely untouched by the virus.

Last week, health officials reported the first polio case in the capital, Islamabad, in 16 years. Since January, Pakistan has reported 17 new cases of polio.

One of only two countries in the world where the virus remains endemic, Pakistan recorded no new infections for a little over a year starting in 2021, the longest virus-free stretch the country had ever experienced.

Anti-polio campaigns in Pakistan are regularly marred by violence as militants target vaccination teams and police assigned to protect them, claiming that the campaigns are a Western conspiracy to sterilize children. 


Pakistani cabinet approves setting up PM’s relief fund for Palestine and Lebanon

Updated 8 sec ago
Follow

Pakistani cabinet approves setting up PM’s relief fund for Palestine and Lebanon

  • After 12 months of Gaza war, Israel has shifted its focus to Lebanon where Hezbollah has been firing rockets into Israel in support of Hamas
  • An all parties conference in Pakistan on Monday called on the Organization of Islamic Cooperation to convene a summit on the situation in Gaza

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s federal cabinet has approved the establishment of a special relief fund for Palestine and Lebanon, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s office said on Tuesday, a day after the South Asian country held an all-parties conference on Israel’s war on Gaza which has widened to Lebanon and other regional countries.
Pakistan does not recognize nor have diplomatic relations with Israel and calls for an independent Palestinian state based on “internationally agreed parameters” and the pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.
After 12 months of war against the Palestinian group Hamas in Gaza, Israel has shifted its focus to Lebanon where Hezbollah has been firing rockets into Israel in support of Hamas. The Israeli military has also conducted strikes in Yemen and Syria.
In the aftermath of the destruction in Palestine and Lebanon, the Pakistani cabinet approved the establishment of the PM’s Relief Fund for Palestine and Lebanon and instructed the Pakistani central bank to open an account, according to PM Sharif’s office.
“Federal Minister of Planning Ahsan Iqbal will supervise the relief operations regarding Palestine and Lebanon,” the PM’s office said in a statement.
The development came a day after an all parties conference (APC) in Pakistan called on the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to convene an emergency summit to address the situation in Palestine.
“Pakistan has decided to form a special working group which will go to different lobbies and reach out to other countries in the Islamic world to raise a collective voice against Israeli atrocities,” PM Sharif said at the APC.
“The first priority should be to stop the bloodshed in Palestine, which is a foremost duty and for this, the platform of the OIC is available.”
Since the beginning of Israel’s war on Gaza, Pakistan has repeatedly raised the issue at the United Nations, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and other multilateral platforms and demanded international powers and bodies stop Israeli military actions in Gaza. The South Asian country has also dispatched several aid consignments for the Palestinians.


Pakistan dismissed for 556 after Salman Agha hits hundred in first Test

Updated 25 min 52 sec ago
Follow

Pakistan dismissed for 556 after Salman Agha hits hundred in first Test

  • Left-arm spinner Jack Leach was the most successful of all English bowlers with 3-160
  • Agha remained unbeaten on 104 as last man Abrar Ahmed was caught by Ben Duckett

MULTAN: Pakistan were dismissed for a mammoth 556 in their first innings on the second day of the opening Test against England on Tuesday, after Salman Agha hit a century.

Agha remained unbeaten on 104 – his third Test hundred – as last man Abrar Ahmed was caught by Ben Duckett off Joe Root for three after Pakistan resumed the day in Multan at 328-4.

Pakistan lost Naseem Shah (33) and Mohammad Rizwan (naught) in the first session. Saud Shakeel scored 82 while Shaheen Shah Afridi made 26.

Left-arm spinner Jack Leach was the most successful English bowler with 3-160 while Gus Atkinson and Brydon Carse took two wickets apiece.


Imran Khan, KP chief minister named in police complaint over constable’s death in Islamabad

Updated 08 October 2024
Follow

Imran Khan, KP chief minister named in police complaint over constable’s death in Islamabad

  • The cop lost his life during a clash with PTI supporters who wanted to protest for Khan’s release in the capital
  • Police specifically mention the PTI president of Islamabad, accusing him of torturing the constable who died

ISLAMABAD: Former Prime Minister Imran Khan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur have been named in a police complaint after the death of a constable in Islamabad during the recent protest by Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party.
Clashes erupted in the federal capital and nearby cities on Friday and Saturday as police tried to stop PTI supporters from entering Islamabad, with officials accusing protesters of throwing stones, firing bullets and launching tear gas shells, causing dozens of injuries and one death.
PTI supporters, mainly arriving from KP under Gandapur’s leadership, were responding to Khan’s call to gather in Islamabad and protest near the parliament building.
The police complaint, filed over the weekend and reported by the media on Tuesday, also named PTI stalwarts Omar Ayub, Azam Swati and Islamabad president Aamir Mughal, accusing some of inciting the violent protests while others of actively participating in them.
“Through court orders, Imran Khan has been given unusual and unnecessary contact and meeting facilities outside of the jail manual, due to which he continues to incite his political workers to violence against the state and its institutions,” the police complaint read.
“He directs the PTI to lead such violent crowds that could create chaos and disorder in the country,” it added. “Acting on these orders, Ali Amin Gandapur, using provincial government resources, provided support and directly and indirectly led the protesters, ordering them to reach D-Chowk [in Islamabad for protest] and attack or kill any security personnel who stood in their way to free Imran Khan.”
The official document particularly mentioned the PTI’s Islamabad president, accusing him of direct involvement in the death of the police constable.
“Aamir Mughal, along with other participants, forcibly grabbed Constable Abdul Hameed and assaulted him with kicks, punches, sticks and stones,” it said while referring to a clash at the entry point of the capital.
The police said that violence occurred despite warnings to PTI supporters that the government had imposed Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code, which prohibits large gatherings.
It claimed that Constable Hameed was “kidnapped” and tortured.
He was later found unconscious by his colleagues but succumbed to his injuries.


Pakistan to sign agreements worth over $2 billion with Saudis later this week — PM

Updated 20 min 6 sec ago
Follow

Pakistan to sign agreements worth over $2 billion with Saudis later this week — PM

  • Saudi Arabia’s investment minister is scheduled to visit Pakistan from Oct. 9-11 with high-level delegation 
  • PM Shehbaz Sharif vows government will not let opposition “sabotage” Pakistan’s economic progress 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will sign agreements worth over $2 billion with an incoming delegation from Saudi Arabia later this week, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Tuesday, vowing that his government will not let the opposition derail the country from its path to economic progress. 

Saudi Arabia’s Investment Minister Khalid bin Abdulaziz Al-Falih is scheduled to visit Pakistan with a high-level delegation from Oct. 9-11, Pakistan’s foreign office confirmed on Monday. The Saudi delegation will arrive in Islamabad ahead of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit scheduled to be held in the capital from Oct. 15-16. Pakistan’s foreign office said the Saudi delegation’s visit is aimed at boosting economic cooperation between the two countries. 

Addressing his cabinet members, Sharif took aim at former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, saying that its protests last week were aimed at hurting the country’s current economic gains. 

“And now that a Saudi delegation is coming and we are to sign agreements or MoUs worth more than $2 billion with them, to sabotage all these efforts is the biggest enmity against Pakistan,” the prime minister said during his televised address. 

“We will not allow this, we will not tolerate this and under no circumstances this will be allowed. Under any rate, under any cost,” he added. 

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have been closely working in recent months to increase bilateral trade and investment deals, with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman reaffirming the Kingdom’s commitment to expedite an investment package of $5 billion to the South Asian country earlier this year.

Pakistan has been eyeing closer cooperation in trade, defense, energy and other sectors of the economy with regional allies as it seeks to escape a prolonged economic crisis that has drained its foreign exchange reserves and weakened its currency. 

The South Asian country formed the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), a hybrid civil-military body, last year to fast-track decisions related to investment. The SIFC seeks to attract foreign investment, particularly from Gulf countries, for its viral economic sectors. 

‘UNBREACHABLE SECURITY’

The Pakistani prime minister also spoke about the Karachi blast on Sunday night that killed three people, including two Chinese nationals. The separatist Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), which routinely targets Chinese interests in Pakistan, had claimed responsibility for the incident.

Sharif said when a suicide bomber killed five Chinese engineers working on a hydropower project in Pakistan during March this year, the Chinese government sent Pakistan a “concerning” message, asking Islamabad to strengthen security measures for its citizens. 

The Pakistani prime minister said he had informed Chinese officials that Pakistan regretted the incident and was embarrassed by it. 

“But this does not mean that we will let go of matters. Our spirits are higher than they were before,” Sharif said. “And we will not spare any effort in strengthening these matters and to make security unbreachable [for Chinese nationals],” he added. 

The Pakistani prime minister said he had informed China’s ambassador in Islamabad regarding the security measures being taken by Pakistan ahead of the SCO summit. 

China is a major ally and investor in Pakistan, having pledged over $65 billion in road, infrastructure and development projects in Pakistan under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a part of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative, that aims to connect China to the Arabian Sea and help Islamabad expand and modernize its economy.


Pakistani woman, cousin arrested for poisoning 13 family members over marriage dispute

Updated 08 October 2024
Follow

Pakistani woman, cousin arrested for poisoning 13 family members over marriage dispute

  • Incident took place in a settlement in Sindh after the girl’s father opposed the marriage
  • Police initially suspected that the family had died after consuming contaminated milk

KARACHI: Pakistani police have arrested a woman and her cousin for allegedly poisoning 13 family members to death after facing opposition to their marriage, a police official said on Tuesday.

Ameer Bux Brohi and Shaista Brohi, cousins from a small settlement in Sindh, had hoped to marry each other, but their families disapproved of their decision. Last month, Ameer brought poison, which Shaista mixed into the dough, killing six people instantly. Seven more died later while receiving medical treatment.

Initially, authorities believed the victims had died from consuming contaminated milk. However, chemical analysis conducted by the Sukkur Chemical Laboratory confirmed the presence of toxic substances, including insecticide and benzodiazepine, in the bodies of the deceased.

“We have arrested both Ameer Bux Brohi and Shaista Brohi, who have confessed to their crime,” Dr. Samiullah Soomro, Senior Superintendent of Police in Khairpur, told Arab News. “They told the police that they loved each other and together poisoned their family members.”

Talib Hussain Junejo, Station House Officer in the area where the incident happened, said both families lived together in the same house and consumed the poisoned food. He also informed that 15 members of both families, including Ameer and Shaista, were present when the meals were served, making the law enforcement officials suspicious.
The couple informed the police that Gul Baig, Shaista’s father, had refused the marriage.

“We both decided not to flee to get married,” the police officer said while quoting the suspects’ statement. “Instead, we chose to kill everyone so we could marry freely.”

Junejo said that man and the woman also expressed regret over the actions during the interrogation.

The incident echoes a similar case from 2017, when 21-year-old Aasia Bibi was accused of poisoning her husband’s milk, resulting in the deaths of 17 members of his extended family.

Bibi had repeatedly rejected the man’s marriage proposal but was ultimately forced to marry him. After the wedding, she decided to poison her husband but also caused the death of the rest of the family.