Tokyo, 31 July 2021 (AlJazeera News)
Weightlifter Fares Elbakh shattered two Games records in Tokyo as he became Qatar’s first Olympic champion in history.
The 2019 world silver medalist dominated the men’s 96kg on Saturday, setting new marks for the clean and jerk (225kg) and total lift (402kg). “I’m very honoured to have won a gold medal during these Olympics,” said Elbakh, 23.
Keydomar Vallenilla took second for Venezuela with a total 387kg despite having his last lift ruled out for dropping the bar before he got the signal to do so.
Vallenilla lifted the same total as third-place Anton Pliesnoi of Georgia but was ranked above Pliesnoi because he made his best clean and jerk lift earlier in the competition.
Islamabad, 29 July 2021 (Daily Dawn)
Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that Pakistan cannot be held "responsible" for the actions of the Taliban in the aftermath of US and its allies' ongoing withdrawal from Afghanistan, adding that his government is not a spokesperson for the militant group.
"What the Taliban are doing or aren't doing has nothing to do with us. We are not responsible, neither are we spokespersons for the Taliban," he said in comments to Afghan media representatives that were aired on Thursday.
The premier's remarks were a continuation of Pakistan's repeated warnings that it would not accept the responsibility if it was blamed for any deterioration in the Afghan peace process.
PM Imran today again distanced Islamabad from the happenings in Kabul, saying: "All we want is peace in Afghanistan."
He said that the Afghans had a choice to make: to either pursue the US-backed military solution or to pursue a political settlement where there is an inclusive government. "[The latter] is the only solution," he said.
"There are three million Afghan refugees in Pakistan, almost all of them are Pashtuns and most will have sympathies with the Taliban. How is Pakistan supposed to check who is going over there to fight when we have about 30,000 people crossing into Afghanistan every day. How is Pakistan going to check that?"
"We have three million refugees in Pakistan [...] how can Pakistan be held responsible? There are refugee camps with 100,000 and 500,000 people."
He said it was not possible for Pakistan to sift through the refugee camps to find out who was pro-Taliban and who was not, adding that until recently there was no physical border between the two countries.
"The Durand Line was imaginary," he said, referring to the 2640-kilometre-long border between Afghanistan and Pakistan. He said that Pakistan has completed 90 per cent of the border fencing.
"We are trying our best, but it is not possible to hold Pakistan responsible when you have over three million refugees here."
He said that it was not in Pakistan's interest to have civil war break out in Afghanistan. "What interest could Pakistan have in backing someone to take over Afghanistan?"
What is clear is that no one party will be able to take over Afghanistan, he said.
PM Imran said that in the 90s Pakistan had pursued the policy of 'strategic depth' as it was wary of Indian influence in Afghanistan. "In those days we did try to have favourites. Now, and especially in my government, we believe that Afghanistan can never be controlled from the outside." So Pakistan will have good relations with whoever the Afghans choose, he said. "We have no favourites now."
29 July 2021, Bloomberg
Cash-strapped Pakistan’s bet that liquefied natural gas prices would go down has failed, forcing the South Asian nation to pay more than ever for the power plant fuel or risk blackouts.
Pakistan LNG this week bought four cargoes for September delivery at around $15 per million British thermal units, the highest since the nation began imports in 2015, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The importer scrapped a tender for September cargoes that closed earlier this month in a gamble that prices would fall.
Pakistan’s power generators will be the main consumers of the latest cargoes, without which there was a risk that the nation wouldn’t have enough electricity, according to the people, who requested anonymity to discuss private details. The high costs are also a strain on the budget, with surging energy and commodity prices pushing import costs to a record high in June.
The price hikes have come amid a global supply crunch of natural gas that has sent rates from the U.S. to Europe surging as importers compete for a finite amount of readily available fuel. Dutch gas, the benchmark for Europe, is trading at a record high as nations in the region struggle to refill rock-bottom inventories.
The high prices are a blow for Pakistan, which along with other developing nations built LNG import strategies on the premise that the fuel would be abundant and cheap for the foreseeable future, as it has for the past several years. That changed this year, and the current spot price for Asian LNG is trading roughly 67% above the 10-year average, according to Bloomberg calculations.
While domestic consumers are currently protected from the turbulent imported gas prices, the government in Islamabad is considering changing some of those regulations to pass on some of the added cost.
The energy ministry didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Doha, 30 July 2021
MoPH, State of Qatar has announced through it's web site the following updates regarding the Covid-19 travel and return policy, effective Mid Day of Monday, August 02, 2021.
For those coming from the following six East Asian countries - Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka :
Citizens and residents from a previous infection within the last 12 months are exempt from quarantine upon return from abroad, if they were asymptomatic, and their PCR test result is negative.
This rule shall apply to the individuals diagnosed in Qatar only, while those diagnosed in any of GCC countries who have received at least one dose of recognized vaccines by MoPH Qatar, shall be exempt from quarantine provided that a valid official certificate with a detailing the previous infection, issued by the local Ministry of Health in the GCC, is presented.
It is the responsibility of the individuals to make sure of any changes to the travel and return policy of the State of Qatar through the official sources and websites previously mentioned before planning travel.
Approved Vaccines
Pfizer / Bio NTech (Comirnaty); Moderna (Spikefax); AstraZeneca (Coveshield / Oxford / Vaxepheria); Jansen / Johnson & Johnson (only one dose)
Conditionally Approved Vaccine
Sinopharm
Doha, 30 July 2021
The Shura Council comprises of 45 members, 30 of whom are directly elected in a secret general ballot, remaining 15 to be appointed by Amir Of State of Qatar.
The Amir of State of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on Thursday issued Law No 6 of 2021, on the Shura Council’s Electoral system. The law is effective starting from its date of issuance and is to be published in the Official Gazette.
The Amir also issued Law No 7 of 2021 regarding the Shura Council. The Amir confirmed Shura Council elections will be held for the first time in Qatar in October. “Today, HH the Amir confirmed the shura Council Elections Law, which promotes civic participation in the elections, and which will be held for the first time in Qatar in October,” according to Qatar’s Government Communication Office (GCO).
According to the law, the right to vote has been expanded to include everyone who has acquired Qatari citizenship, provided that his grandfather is Qatari and
was born in Qatar. It also stipulates the following conditions for those who seek to run for the upcoming Shura Council elections :
The candidate has not been previously convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude or dishonesty, unless he has
been rehabilitated in accordance with the law.
The law on the electoral system for the Shura Council is in line with the Qatari Constitution and Qatar National Vision 2030, which aims to enhance the participation of citizens in the decision-making process.
The Shura Council of Qatar was established in 1972 in accordance with the provisions of an interim political order issued on April 19, 1972, concerning the regulation of the State’s new institutions, including the Shura Council. “the current Shura Council comprises a total of 45 members, 30 of whom are directly elected in a secret general ballot, whilst the remaining 15 are appointed by the Amir of Qatar.
The terms of service of the appointed members end either when they resign or when they are relieved from their posts,” the government Communications Office (GCO) said.
In November 2020, Amir of State of Qatar announced that the Shura Council will hold its first-ever elections in 2021. The Shura Council shall assume legislative authority, approve the general policy of the government and the budget, and shall exercise control over the executive authority as specified in this Constitution.
Every member of the Shura Council shall have the right to propose legislative bills, and every proposal shall be referred to the relevant committee of the Council for scrutiny
This committee will in turn submit recommendations to the Council. If the Council agrees to the amendments, the same shall be referred in draft form to the government for study and opinion. Such draft shall be returned to the Council during the same or the following session. (any legislative bill rejected by the Council may not be re-introduced during the same session.) the Shura Council shall have the right to forward proposals relative to public matters to the government. If the government is unable to comply with such aspirations, it must give its reasons to the Council. the Council may comment only once on the government’s statement.
Every member of the Shura Council may address a point of clarification to the Prime Minister and to any of the ministers pertaining to matters within their jurisdiction; only the person who raised the question has the right to comment once on the response.
Every member of the Shura Council may address an interpolation to ministers on matters within their jurisdiction. an interpolation may not be made unless it is agreed on by one-third of the members of the Council. Such an interpolation may not be discussed until at least ten days from the date of submission, save in urgent circumstances and provided the minister agrees to the reduction of this period.
The Council’s annual session lasts eight months, which commences and closes upon convocation by Amir Of State of Qatar in October of each year. The Amir or his deputy, opens the annual session by giving a comprehensive speech in which he addresses the affairs of the state.
The amir may issue a decree to convoke an extraordinary session by the Council, in cases of emergency or a request by a majority of the members. In extraordinary sessions, the Council may only look into matters that it was specifically convoked for.
Summoning and adjourning the ordinary and extraordinary sessions of the Council is done by a decree.
The sessions of the Council are public.
Closed sessions may be held upon a request of one third of the members of the Council or upon a request from the Council of Ministers. In order for sessions to be valid, the majority of the members, including the speaker or his deputy, must attend them. If the number is not complete, the session is postponed to the next
convocation date.
The decisions of the Council are made through absolute majority of present members – in cases where a special majority is not specified – and if the votes are equal, the Speaker’s vote determines the final decision.
The law in Qatar has criminalized foreign funding, especially in the elections of the Shura Council, and has established deterrent penalties in order to ensure the absence of such serious violations that affect legislative life, as it is punishable by imprisonment for a period not exceeding five years and a fine not exceeding ten
million riyals or one of these two penalties are for any candidate who requests, accepts, or receives movable or immovable funds, directly or indirectly, or obtains an advantage or benefit from any foreign person or entity, to support him or finance his electoral campaign, as well as confiscate the funds and benefits obtained
It must be re-elected if this candidate wins the elections in the district in which he won.
Prime Minister and Minister of interior, Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz al Thani has urged citizens to get themselves registered to vote in the upcoming Shura Council elections.
“By issuing a law on the electoral system for the Shura Council, we call on our citizens to register in the voter registration starting from August 1 to ensure a broad participation befitting this historic entitlement, which establishes a new stage of Qatari citizen participation in public affairs, and his contribution to making the future and prosperity of his country,” the PM said in a tweet on Thursday.
Doha, 30 July 2021
Qatar Airways in it's tweet today has asked the public to disregard any news or information issued by unofficial channels. The Tweet says ' Qatar Airways is aware of a fake info graphic being circulated referring to travel requirements for Qatar.
Qatar Airways urges all travellers, including citizens, residents and tourists, to monitor the official website and channels of Qatar's Ministry of Public Health for details relating to the travel and entry policy to the State of Qatar'.
Doha, 30 July 2021
THE Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) has decided to continue with the third phase of the gradual lifting of COViD-19 restrictions in August.
The lifting of COViD-19 restrictions was scheduled to be implemented in four phases. The first phase began on May 28, 2021, the second phase on June 18 and
the third phase on July 9.
The fourth phase was originally scheduled to begin on July 30 , which has now been delayed
In a statement, the MoPH said the third phase of the gradual easing of COV-iD-19 restrictions, currently in place, will continue until the new infections fall substantially.
The MoPH said the ministry continues to monitor key performance indicators to ensure a balance between the continuity of providing protection to the population on the one hand and restoring social and economic life to normal, on the other hand.
The ministry called on all people who are eligible to get vaccinated as soon as possible so that they can protect themselves, their families and members of the
society from the dangers of this disease and contribute to a speedy return to the normal life.
On other side, Indian Embassy in Qatar Tweeted around 1249 PM, alerting it's nationals with new travel guidelines for Qatar to come into effect from 2 August, with compulsory hotel quarantine reintroduces for visitors from India and some other countries:
However, as per Ministry of Health guidelines 30th July as reported in all Qatari English news papers are very clear that THIRD phase guidelines dated July 9, continues throughout August 2021.
Doha 30 July 2021 (Misc media reports)
Hendrick took 87 wickets in 30 Tests between 1974 and 1981, played domestically for Derbyshire between 1969 and 1981, later he spent time with Nottinghamshire between 1982 and 1984.
The Derbyshire-born bowler to his credit has 770 wickets throughout his first-class career. He served as coach with Ireland team in 1995 and later took over as bowling coach with Derbyshire.
Derbyshire released a statement saying ' "Derbyshire County Cricket Club is deeply saddened by the news of the death of Mike Hendrick, one of the county's finest post-war cricketers'.
Hendrick as teenager played for Leicestershire at second XI level, but was let go by the county and moved to Derbyshire, where he made his first-team debut in 1969.
In 1974, England Test against India, he recorded his best figures of 4-28 at Edgbaston. Renowned for his accuracy and his command of seam movement, Hendrick won the Ashes in 1977 and 1978-79.
Mike Hendrick played 22 one-day internationals, including the 1979 World Cup final against West Indies.
He played in the first and last Tests of the 1981 series win over Australia, then after the tour of South Africa in 1981-82, he was not selected.
He also won the NatWest Trophy with Derbyshire in 1981 before playing out the final years of his career at Nottinghamshire, got retirement in 1984.
Hendrick moved into coaching and served with Ireland, Scotland, Derbyshire and Notinghamshire.
He also appeared as an expert summariser on BBC Test Match Special.
Doha, 29 July 2021 (QT)
The Chinese embassy in Qatar held a virtual reception on Wednesday to celebrate the 94th anniversary of the founding of Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA). The first-of-its-kind reception was attended by senior officers of Qatari armed forces, Chinese Defense Attache in Qatar Colonel He Botao and other Doha based Defense attaches.
In his remarks, Ambassador of China to Qatar Zhou Jian thanked China’s friends for supporting the country’s national defense and military development.
Lauding the role of PLA, the envoy said that over the past 94 years, from armed struggle to the founding of the People’s Republic, from disaster relief to state construction, from defending the country to safeguarding the world peace, the PLA has made monumental contributions that shine through history.he said the PLA has become a powerful force with a competent leadership and commanding system, coordinated and balanced military branches, and relatively advanced weapons and equipment.
“It builds a ‘Steel Great Wall’ to defend national security and people’s interests, and also serves as a powerful force for safeguarding regional and world peace,” he said.he added that the fundamental goal of China’s national defence is to defend China’s sovereignty, security and development interests, stressing that China surpasses many countries in the number of neighbouring states, the length of land border and the complexity of maritime security environment.
“With a land area of 9.6 million square kilometres, China faces serious challenges in defending its sovereignty, territorial integrity and maritime interests. Moreover, at present, with the combined impact of COVID-19 and major changes unseen in a century, the world is entering a period of upheaval. hegemony
and unilateralism are on the rise, regional hotspot issues are heating up and non-traditional security issues such as extremism and terrorism are emerging one after another.
The world is far from peace and stability,” the envoy said. “We must build a strong national defense and a modernised army to effectively safeguard China’s national security and development interests, and ensure the smooth realisation of the second centenary goal. A strong country must have a strong army. Only
a strong army can ensure national security,” he added.
Ambassador Jian said that China follows the path of peaceful development and a defensive national defense policy, with a reasonable and appropriate defense expenditure accounting for less than two percent (2%) of its total GDP, lower than the world average of 2.6 percent. he said, “Our per capita defence expenditure is only 6.7 percent of that of the United States. China actively fulfils its international responsibilities and obligations, and is the largest troop-contributing country among the permanent members of UNSC and the second largest contributor to peacekeeping budget. From the Gulf of Aden to Somalia, Chinese escort fleets in the Indian Ocean have deterred the pirates and protected international sea routes.
“From South Sudan to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Chinese peacekeepers have helped to maintain peace with risks to their lives. From the Indo-China
Peninsula to the African continent, the Chinese Navy hospital ship Ark Peace has brought hope of life to over 230,000 people in more than 40 countries.”
Colonel He Botao thanked the guests for attending the event.he said the PLA, established on August 1, 1927, has become a pillar in defending China’s sovereignty, security and development interests, in upholding national dignity, and an important force in safeguarding regional and world peace.he added that since the
establishment of diplomatic ties in 1988, bilateral ties between Qatar and China have been developing into a strategic partnership, with increasing political trust and fruitful cooperation in various fields.
“As an important part of bilateral relations, the military relations between China and Qatar have been developing with increasing exchanges and cooperation. Last year, in particular, our two countries established Defence Attache offices in each other’s embassy, offering a new platform and a new stage of our future
cooperation,” he said.
Colonel Botao stressed that as the first defence attache of Chinese embassy in Qatar, he looked forward to working with his Qatari friends to promote mutual
exchanges and cooperation between both the armies, and push the bilateral relations forward.
Doha, 29 July 2021 (QT)
Communication skills are important in both self-character development and career advancement, Dtm Rauf Shahzad has said. The passionate toastmaster who
was recently elected Division C Director, District 116 (Qatar), Toastmaster International (TMI), praised Dr. Ralph C. Smedley, who founded TMI in 1924 in
Santa Ana, California, USA.
Today, Toastmaster International, a non-profit educational organisation, has more than 357,000 members and approximately 16,600 clubs in 143 countries, he noted.
The toastmasters fraternity in Qatar is proudly celebrating it's 25th anniversary and has been the world’s top district for the last three years in a row. Qatar is designated as D116, Region 11, TMI.
Division 'C' recently formed Executive Committee for 2021-2022 is having 18 members - Rauf Shahzad, DTM (Division Director), Nisha Shivaram, DTM (Program Quality Director), Nirmila Raghuraman, DTM (Club Growth Director), Pradeep Kumar (Area 9, Director), Uttam Vaidya (Area 10, Director), Lornalyn Tallod (Area 11, Director), Zainab Mallol (Area 12, Director), Priyanka Kavle (PR Manager), Pramod Shetty (Admin Manager), Vimal Raj, DTM (Finance Manager), Arun Kumar (Logistics Manager), Ashraf Siddiqui (Print Media Manager), Victor Fumo (Speaker Bureau Chair), Aishwarya Nair (Social Media Manager), Ghulam Nabi (TLI Chair), Muhammad Tawackol (Arabic Affairs Chair), Manojkumar (Award Committee Chair), Uttam Vaidya (Gavels Coordinator).
The executive committee members serve a one year term beginning July 1 and ending June 30.
Rauf Shahzad, DTM, said his primary focus would be to support and assist his areas in retaining more than 90% of their club memberships, increasing new membership by 20%, establishing at least one new club in each area, and establishing at least 17 President Distinguished and Select/Distinguished clubs by March 2022.