Web Desk

ISLAMABAD: Disney&rsquo;s television networks, including ESPN, ABC, FX, National Geographic, and Disney Channel, have gone dark on Google&rsquo;s YouTube TV after the two companies failed to reach a new licensing deal on Friday.&nbsp;The blackout was announced by YouTube TV on X, means subscribers will lose access to popular Disney-owned channels such as Disney Channel, Freeform, and the sports-heavy ESPN lineup, which features NFL, NBA, and college football games. Both companies said negotiations are continuing, but neither indicated when programming might return.&nbsp;YouTube TV said on Twitter, &lsquo;Despite our best efforts, we have not been able to reach a fair deal, and starting today, Disney programming will not be available on YouTube TV. This means you will no longer be able to watch channels like ABC and ESPN or access recordings from these networks in your Library.&rsquo;&rdquo;&nbsp;<div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; text-align: justify;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-0&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1984097065975345571&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2F&sessionId=a7720b4d6b6bf476034509171e38f12031c03db3&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 475px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;"></iframe></div></div>In another post, the company added, &ldquo;We know how disruptive it is to lose channels you enjoy, and we&rsquo;re committed to continuing to work with Disney to reach an agreement. If their content is unavailable for an extended period, we&#39;ll offer our members a $20 credit.&rdquo;<div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; text-align: justify;"> </div></div>YouTube TV, said Disney&rsquo;s proposed terms would raise prices for its customers while benefiting Disney&rsquo;s own live TV services, such as Hulu + Live TV. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ll not agree to terms that disadvantage our members,&rdquo; the platform stated.&nbsp;Disney, meanwhile, accused Google of using its market dominance to &ldquo;eliminate competition and undercut industry-standard terms,&rdquo; while expressing hope for a swift resolution.&nbsp;

Artificial Intelligence

Several Disney networks including ESPN, ABC, FX and Nat Geo were removed from YouTube TV after negotiations failed. YouTube said Disney’s terms would raise customer prices, while Disney accused Google of abusing its market power.

Disney networks go dark on YouTube TV after talks collapse

Port Sudan: Sudan&#39;s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces said they had arrested several fighters accused of abuses during the capture of El-Fasher, with the United Nations demanding an investigation on Friday into the &quot;horrendous accounts&quot; of atrocities emerging from the city.&nbsp;At war with the army since April 2023, the RSF seized El-Fasher on Sunday, dislodging the army&#39;s last stronghold in the western Darfur region after an 18-month siege marked by bombardment and starvation.&nbsp;Survivors who reached the nearby town of Tawila told AFP of mass killings, children shot before their parents, and civilians beaten and robbed as they fled.&nbsp;The RSF said late on Thursday it had detained several men accused of &quot;violations... during the liberation&quot; of El-Fasher, including one known as Abu Lulu who appeared in multiple TikTok videos committing summary executions.&nbsp;In one clip verified by AFP, he is seen shooting unarmed men at close range. Another shows him standing among fighters celebrating near dozens of bodies and burnt vehicles.&nbsp;The RSF released footage appearing to show Abu Lulu behind bars in what they claimed to be a North Darfur prison.&nbsp;It pledged to ensure &quot;military discipline during wartime,&quot; and promised a fair trial for those detained.&nbsp;Since El-Fasher&#39;s fall, videos circulating online have purportedly shown men in RSF uniforms carrying out summary executions around the city, which has been cut off from all communications.&nbsp;Emtithal Mahmoud, a US-based Sudanese poet from El-Fasher, told AFP she recognized her cousin, Nadifa, in a video shared by RSF accounts, lying dead on the ground.&nbsp;The UN said the death toll could reach the hundreds, while army allies have accused the RSF of killing over 2,000 civilians.&nbsp;&nbsp;&#39;Horror is continuing&#39;On Friday, the United Nations voiced alarm at emerging details of executions, gang rapes and abductions in El-Fasher.&nbsp;&quot;We have received horrendous accounts of summary executions, mass killings, rapes, attacks against humanitarian workers, looting, abductions and forced displacement,&quot; said UN rights office spokesperson Seif Magango.&nbsp;Magango called for &quot;independent, prompt, transparent and thorough investigations&quot; into all alleged breaches of international law.&nbsp;The World Health Organization, meanwhile, said it had verified that at least 460 patients and others were killed on Tuesday in attacks on the Saudi Maternity Hospital &mdash; one of the last still functioning in El-Fasher.&nbsp;On Thursday, UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher told the Security Council that &quot;the horror is continuing&quot; in El-Fasher, and questioned the RSF&#39;s commitment to investigating violations amid the &quot;appalling news&quot; from North Darfur.&nbsp;RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Daglo had earlier vowed accountability for &quot;anyone who has made a mistake&quot;, while an RSF-led coalition maintained many incriminating videos were &quot;fabricated&quot; by the army.&nbsp;Satellite imagery analyzed by Yale&#39;s Humanitarian Research Lab showed clusters in the city &quot;consistent with adult human bodies,&quot; and discoloration that may indicate &quot;pools of blood,&quot; its director told AFP.&nbsp;Sudanese analyst Kholood Khair said she was skeptical that the purported arrests would bring an end to the violence.&nbsp;&quot;We expect these atrocities to continue, particularly against non-Arab groups,&quot; she told AFP, citing communities such as the Zaghawa, Fur, Berti and Masalit in Darfur.&nbsp;In 2023, the RSF &mdash; descended from the Janjaweed Arab militias accused of genocide in Darfur two decades ago &mdash; was blamed for massacres against the Masalit tribe in West Darfur capital El-Geneina, killing up to 15,000 people.&nbsp;&quot;Overall, these patterns reflect a disturbing repetition of ethnic tensions from 20 years ago, now compounded by disputes over resource control and political power in the country,&quot; Khair said.&nbsp;More than 62,000 people have fled El-Fasher between Sunday and Wednesday, according to the UN&#39;s migration agency, while the fate of tens of thousands of civilians still trapped in the city remains unknown.&nbsp;Bloodshed in KordofanFletcher warned that the bloodshed was spreading beyond Darfur, with atrocities reported in the neighboring Kordofan region.&nbsp;According to UN figures, between Sunday and Wednesday, more than 35,000 people fled five localities in North Kordofan state, including Bara, which lies north of state capital El-Obeid on a key route to Darfur and which was overrun by paramilitaries on Saturday.&nbsp;Martha Pobee, the assistant UN secretary-general for Africa, highlighted &quot;reports of large-scale atrocities perpetrated&quot; by the RSF in Bara, including &quot;ethnically motivated&quot; reprisals.&nbsp;At least 50 civilians were killed there in recent days, both in fighting and executions, including five Red Crescent volunteers, according to the UN.&nbsp;Kordofan is &quot;clearly going to be the next area of military escalation&quot;, analyst Khair said.&nbsp;The RSF on Thursday accused the army of launching a drone attack on a school in eastern North Kordofan, claiming dozens of students and teachers were killed or injured &mdash; an allegation the army denied.&nbsp;AFP could not independently verify the attack.&nbsp;Both the army and the RSF have faced war crimes accusations over the course of the conflict.&nbsp;According to UN reports, the RSF has received weapons and drones from the UAE. Abu Dhabi has denied giving any support to the paramilitary group.&nbsp;Meanwhile, the army has drawn on support from Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Turkey.&nbsp;The US has previously determined that the RSF committed genocide in Darfur.&nbsp;El-Fasher&#39;s fall to the RSF gave it full control over all five state capitals in Darfur, effectively splitting Sudan along an east-west axis. The paramilitaries have established a self-declared rival government in Darfur.&nbsp;The army holds Sudan&#39;s north, east, and center.

Africa

UN says death toll can reach the hundreds, army allies have accused the RSF of killing over 2,000 civilians.

Sudan's RSF claims arrests as UN warns of 'horrendous' atrocities in Darfur

SANTIAGO DE CUBA: Hurricane Melissa was finally leaving the Caribbean on Friday after battering communities there for days, leaving a trail of devastation that killed around 50 people. The ferocious storm was expected to become a &quot;powerful post-tropical cyclone&quot; as it moved north, and a brief period of heavy rain and wind gusts was possible in eastern Canada, the US National Hurricane Center said in its latest and final advisory. &quot;After Melissa becomes post-tropical, a brief period of heavy rain and gusty winds is possible over the southern Avalon Peninsula of Newfoundland tonight,&quot; the NHC added. Flooding was expected to subside in the Bahamas, although high water could persist in Cuba, Jamaica, Haiti, and the neighboring Dominican Republic, the agency said. The storm, one of the most powerful ever recorded, was made four times more likely because of human-caused climate change, according to a study by Imperial College London. Melissa smashed into both Jamaica and Cuba with enormous force, and residents were assessing their losses and the long road to recovery. Jamaica&#39;s Information Minister Dana Morris Dixon told a briefing that authorities had &quot;quite credible&quot; reports of a potential five additional deaths, but had not yet been able to confirm. &quot;We&#39;re still at 19 confirmed, but we do expect that will change today,&quot; she said. Kingston&#39;s international airport, which re-opened on Thursday, has already received 13 cargo relief flights, Transportation Minister Daryl Vaz said, and expects at least 20 more to arrive on Friday. &quot;I would say to all of those persons who are still out here waiting and looking up in the sky that you will start to see&quot; and &quot;hear a lot of activity,&quot; Vaz said. &quot;You probably are feeling that you are forgotten. You are not forgotten.&quot; In impoverished Haiti, the country&#39;s civil defense agency said on Thursday that the death toll had risen to 30, with 20 people injured and another 20 missing. It said more than 1,000 homes have been flooded, with some 16,000 people in shelters. In the east of the communist island of Cuba, battling its worst economic crisis in decades, people struggled through inundated streets lined with flooded and collapsed homes. The storm smashed windows, downed power cables and mobile communications, and tore off roofs and tree branches. Cuban authorities said about 735,000 people had been evacuated &mdash; mainly in the provinces of Santiago de Cuba, Holguin, and Guantanamo. &#39;Everything is gone&#39;The United States, meanwhile, has mobilized disaster assistance response teams and urban search and rescue personnel, and the teams were currently on the ground in the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and the Bahamas, according to a State Department official. Teams were en route to Haiti, too. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also included ideological foe Havana, saying the United States is &quot;prepared to offer immediate humanitarian aid to the people of Cuba affected by the Hurricane.&quot; The UK government announced &pound;2.5 million (about $3.3 million) in emergency funding for the region, and also said it was chartering &quot;limited&quot; flights to help British nationals leave. Hurricane Melissa tied the 1935 record for the most intense storm ever to make landfall when it slammed Jamaica on Tuesday, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. In Seaford Town, farmer and businessman Christopher Hacker saw his restaurant and nearby banana plantations flattened. &quot;Everything is gone,&quot; he told AFP. Such mega-storms &quot;are a brutal reminder of the urgent need to step up climate action on all fronts,&quot; said UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell.

Americas

Ferocious storm expected to became a "powerful post-tropical cyclone" as it moves north, a brief period of heavy rain and wind gusts possible in eastern Canada.

Nearly 50 dead after Hurricane Melissa thrashes Caribbean

Gaitty Ara Anis

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump&rsquo;s announcement signaling a possible resumption of US nuclear testing after more than three decades has drawn mixed reactions from nuclear policy experts, who warned of legal hurdles and global security risks.&nbsp;Speaking aboard Air Force One, Trump told reporters the United States would conduct nuclear tests if other nations do.&nbsp;&ldquo;We&rsquo;re going to do some testing, yeah, and other countries do it,&rdquo; Trump said in response to a question from AFP. &ldquo;If they&rsquo;re going to do it, we&rsquo;re going to do it.&rdquo;&nbsp;He did not clarify whether he was referring to warhead tests, missile tests, or subcritical experiments.&nbsp;The statement came ahead of Trump&rsquo;s meeting with Chinese Premier Xi Jinping in South Korea, where both leaders were expected to discuss tariffs.&nbsp;Dr. Kelly Ross Coletti, a nuclear nonproliferation expert at the Carnegie Mellon Institute for Strategy and Technology, told Pakistan TV Digital that it was &ldquo;too early to call this announcement official.&rdquo;&nbsp;&ldquo;It is still a statement, not a policy,&rdquo; she said, noting that any resumption of nuclear explosive testing in the United States would require congressional approval and a lengthy authorization process.&nbsp;Miles Pomper, a senior fellow at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies in Washington, said the president&rsquo;s wording left critical questions unanswered.&nbsp;&ldquo;It&rsquo;s not clear whether he meant testing missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads or the warheads themselves,&rdquo; he said. Pomper noted that &ldquo;missiles are routinely tested in all nuclear states, including Pakistan.&rdquo;&nbsp;Dr. Coletti cautioned that US moves carry global ripple effects.&nbsp;&ldquo;The international system tends to look to the United States for leadership on nuclear nonproliferation,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;If the US begins the long process of resuming nuclear weapons testing, other countries will likely follow.&rdquo;&nbsp;Pomper acknowledged that US deterrence strategy plays a political role.&nbsp;&ldquo;Testing is the only way to know how aging plutonium pits perform,&rdquo; he said, adding that deterrence remains central to US strategic policy.&nbsp;Coletti urged Washington to honor its moratorium and ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty to &ldquo;demonstrate the US&rsquo; commitment to global peace.&rdquo; Pomper, meanwhile, suggested such a move would signal a shift back into &ldquo;an already ongoing arms race.&rdquo;&nbsp;Russia and China, both considered strategic competitors, have recently expanded their advanced weapons testing capabilities. Moscow recently announced tests of the Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile and the Poseidon underwater torpedo.&nbsp;Since 1992, the United States has relied on the Stockpile Stewardship and Management Program, using simulations and non-detonating experiments, to ensure the reliability of its arsenal without live testing.&nbsp;Coletti also emphasized that the president does not hold exclusive authority in approving nuclear explosive tests.&nbsp;&ldquo;The power lies with Congress,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;Even if proposed, the decision will take time to implement.&rdquo;&nbsp;On regional implications, experts said US testing would not immediately alter deterrence dynamics between Pakistan and India. However, Pomper noted it could &ldquo;provide Iran and North Korea with talking points,&rdquo; ahead of the 2026 Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty review conference.&nbsp;Environmental risks also remain contentious. While Pomper argued underground testing is &ldquo;not hazardous,&rdquo; Coletti warned of long-term groundwater contamination, pointing to the US National Cancer Institute&rsquo;s fallout risk assessments from Cold War&ndash;era tests.&nbsp;&ldquo;Even underground, radioactive materials can escape through cracks caused by the explosion,&rdquo; she said. With additional inputs from AFP

President Donald Trump signaled the US could resume nuclear testing if rivals do, prompting nonproliferation experts to warn of legal hurdles, environmental risks, and a potential renewed arms race, though some argue testing may support deterrence credibility.

Trump nuclear testing plan sparks expert concern

LAHORE: Pace bowlers Faheem Ashraf and Salman Mirza registered their best international T20 figures to guide Pakistan to a nine-wicket win over South Africa in Lahore on Friday. Ashraf grabbed 4-23 and Mirza snared 3-14 to dismiss South Africa for just 110 before opener Saim Ayub struck an unbeaten 71, helping Pakistan easily knock off the runs. The win levelled the series at 1-1 after South Africa won the first match in Rawalpindi by 55 runs on Tuesday. The third and final match is in Lahore on Saturday. Ayub&rsquo;s 38-ball burst featured six fours and five sixes, the last coming off Donovan Ferreira to seal the victory, with Babar Azam also not out on 11. Pakistan raced to 54 in the seventh over with Sahibzada Farhan smashing three sixes as he made 28 before he was trapped leg-before by Corbin Bosch. Azam became the highest run-scorer in T20 internationals, surpassing India batsman Rohit Sharma&rsquo;s total of 4,231 in 159 games. Azam now has 4,234 in 130 matches. Pakistan captain Salman Agha hopes his team can replicate their display in the series decider. &ldquo;I am happy with this win,&rdquo; said Agha. &ldquo;They outplayed us in the last game but today we bowled well up front and now I hope this good work continues in the next match.&rdquo; South African skipper Ferreira admitted the batting let his team down. &ldquo;We didn&rsquo;t give our bowlers enough to defend,&rdquo; said Ferreira. &ldquo;We don&rsquo;t have much time to reflect on this so we need to put this behind and come strong tomorrow.&rdquo; South Africa, sent in to bat, were jolted two balls into their innings when Mirza bowled Reeza Hendricks for nought. Naseem Shah had Quinton de Kock caught for seven before Mirza dismissed Tony de Zorzi (seven) and Matthew Breetzke (five) in successive overs. From 23-4, Dewald Brevis and Ferreira added the highest stand of the innings of 26 before Ashraf stopped any revival with a haul of four wickets. Brevis hit three sixes in his 16-ball 25 &mdash; South Africa&rsquo;s top score &mdash; as Ferreira added 15. Ashraf&rsquo;s previous best of 4-27 was against Afghanistan in Sharjah last month while Mirza&rsquo;s best of 3-20 came against Bangladesh in Dhaka earlier this year.

Cricket

Pakistan leveled the series 1-1 after Faheem Ashraf’s 4-23, Salman Mirza’s 3-14, and Saim Ayub’s unbeaten 71 led a nine-wicket win over South Africa in Lahore.

Ashraf and Mirza skittle South Africa as Pakistan win second T20

LONDON: A former British Army senior officer was sentenced to six months in prison on Friday for sexually assaulting a young woman soldier who later died by suicide.&nbsp;Jaysley Beck, 19, had complained to superiors in July 2021 that Michael Webber, then a battery sergeant major, had sexually assaulted her.&nbsp;Webber, now 43, later wrote Beck an apology letter, but her complaint was not taken forward or reported to police.&nbsp;Royal Artillery Gunner Beck was found hanged in her room at the army camp in December 2021. The British army apologized earlier this year after a coroner condemned its handling of the complaint.&nbsp;The army&rsquo;s failure to take sufficient action made a &ldquo;more than minimal&rdquo; contribution to Beck&rsquo;s death, an inquest into her death concluded this year.&nbsp;The inquest was also told that Beck had been subjected to intense harassment from a different superior in the months between the incident and her death.&nbsp;&ldquo;Your career continued completely unaffected and you were in due course promoted,&rdquo; Judge Alan Large told Webber, handing down the sentence at a military court in southern England.&nbsp;Webber will spend half his sentence in custody &mdash; so three months &mdash; and be placed on the sex offenders&rsquo; register for seven years, the judge said.&nbsp;&ldquo;Today&rsquo;s sentencing does not diminish the profound loss felt by her family, friends and the wider community, but it does represent an important step on the journey to justice,&rdquo; veterans minister Louise Sandher-Jones said in a statement Friday.&nbsp;A spokesperson told reporters after the sentencing that the army was &ldquo;profoundly sorry for the failings.&rdquo;&nbsp;But Beck&rsquo;s mother, Leighann McCready, said the army statement was &ldquo;empty words,&rdquo; and that &ldquo;no sentence will be enough&rdquo; to compensate for the loss of her daughter, according to the BBC.

United Kingdom

In London, former British Army officer Michael Webber received a six-month sentence for sexually assaulting 19-year-old soldier Jaysley Beck, whose complaint was mishandled before she died by suicide, prompting apologies and criticism of army failings.

British army ex-officer jailed for soldier’s sexual assault

Syed Maisam Ali

ISLAMABAD: A United Nations expert has warned that women and girls in Afghanistan are facing &ldquo;the most serious assault on gender equality of our time&rdquo; under Taliban rule. Richard Bennett, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan, told the UN General Assembly in his report that the Taliban has built an &ldquo;institutionalized system of gender persecution.&rdquo; He said urgent and united international action is needed to stop human rights violations instead of accepting the Taliban&rsquo;s rule as normal. Bennett said the Taliban&rsquo;s restrictions on women&rsquo;s education and jobs, including bans on women working for the UN and aid agencies, have made the humanitarian crisis even worse. He said cuts in international funding are leaving Afghans &ldquo;without the last lines of protection and support.&rdquo; <div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-0&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1983987783485321623&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Fmedia-library%2F&sessionId=e544ae16073ddbab59881416cdf458eff4bb230e&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 713px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;"></iframe></div></div>The UN expert also raised concern over an increase in public punishments, disappearances, and the shrinking space for media and civil society. He said the Taliban&rsquo;s mistreatment of ethnic and religious minorities is fueling tensions across the country. Bennett warned that the Taliban&rsquo;s harsh policies could radicalize a new generation living under oppression and poverty. &ldquo;What is happening in Afghanistan will not be contained within its borders,&rdquo; he cautioned. The expert also condemned the forced return of Afghan refugees from neighboring and European countries, urging respect for international law. Despite the grim situation, Bennett said Afghanistan is &ldquo;not a lost cause&rdquo; and called for continued accountability and support for Afghan-led human rights efforts.

Asia

UN expert Richard Bennett warned the Taliban’s rule poses “the most serious assault on gender equality,” citing rising abuses, restrictions on women, shrinking freedoms, and refugee deportations, urging urgent global action and sustained support for Afghan-led initiatives

UN expert warns of worsening human rights crisis in Afghanistan

Muhammad Usman Amin

PESHAWAR: Lal Chapoor stood at his raised platform as he had for forty years, a metal ladle in his hand, steam rising in soft clouds around him. His movements were measured and unhurried: dip, scoop, pour, filling bowl after bowl of slow-cooked mutton and potatoes. The bustle around him was constant, but he remained steady, the quiet center of a noisy, crowded world. Inside his shop, the sounds blended into a rhythm of their own: dishes clattering, tandoor flames roaring, and servers shouting orders as they navigated the tight space with trays lifted over customers&rsquo; heads. Outside, Karkhano Market churned with heat, bargaining voices, and the dust of Peshawar&rsquo;s old trade routes. Yet it was the savory aroma drifting from the shop&rsquo;s modest five-foot entrance that drew people in from nearby streets and faraway cities. Speaking to Pakistan TV Digital, Lal Chapoor said the secret to his famous Rosh was not in hidden spices or complicated recipes. &ldquo;It requires honesty,&rdquo; he explained, his tone calm. &ldquo;You can&rsquo;t cook it with dishonesty&hellip; the taste won&rsquo;t be there.&rdquo; His day began at sunrise. He supervised the butcher himself, inspecting every cut of meat. The ingredients were simple&mdash;mutton, potatoes, onions, and salt. The daig, a giant pot, was sealed with wet flour and left to cook slowly for hours, the steam locked inside until the meat fell apart at the touch. &ldquo;The magic is in how you make it,&rdquo; he said. Over the past few years, his shop had gone from a local secret to a nationwide destination. Food bloggers, vloggers, travelers, and families came after seeing his stew on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. Men like Muhammad Jaleel traveled seven hours from Upper Dir just to taste what they had seen online, and many nodded in quiet approval after their first bite. There were no reserved tables or restaurant d&eacute;cor. Customers sat shoulder to shoulder on mats spread across the floor. Students, traders, drivers, and businessmen all eating together. Hot naan arrived fresh from the tandoor next door, torn into pieces and dipped into the broth. In a city of fleeting trends and new eateries opening every month, Lal Chapoor had remained unchanged. The daig, the ingredients, the pace, the flavor: all the same as when he started. As he handed another steaming bowl to a server, he told Pakistan TV Digital, &ldquo;The work must stay the same. The taste must stay the same. If the taste changes, it is finished.&rdquo; Outside, the line continued to grow. Inside, the ladle kept moving. And the aroma continued to guide people through the crowd, just as it always had.

Food

In Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Lal Chapoor has spent four decades serving his famous Rosh in Peshawar’s Karkhano Market. He told Pakistan TV Digital the dish’s enduring flavor comes from “honesty,” drawing visitors from across the country


Lal Chapoor: The quiet master behind Peshawar’s famous Rosh

JIUQUAN: A new crew took off for China&rsquo;s space station on Friday, including the country&rsquo;s youngest ever astronaut and four lab mice. The Long March-2F rocket carrying the Shenzhou-21 mission crew lifted off at 11:44 p.m. (15:44 GMT) from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, AFP journalists saw. The Tiangong space station &mdash; crewed by teams of three astronauts that are exchanged every six months &mdash; is the crown jewel of China&rsquo;s space program, into which billions of dollars have been poured in a bid to catch up with the United States and Russia. China has bold plans to send a crewed mission to the Moon by the end of the decade and eventually to build a base on the lunar surface. Mission commander and veteran space pilot Zhang Lu is accompanied by 32-year-old flight engineer Wu Fei, China&rsquo;s youngest astronaut to undertake a space mission, and payload specialist Zhang Hongzhang, 39. The three astronauts waved goodbye to colleagues and family members at the remote launch base in the Gobi Desert as a band played a patriotic song. Zhang Lu told reporters on Thursday he was confident his team would &ldquo;report back to our motherland and its people with complete success.&rdquo; Space first-timer Wu told a news conference on Thursday that he felt &ldquo;incomparably lucky.&rdquo; Four mice &mdash; two male and two female &mdash; join them as the subjects of China&rsquo;s first in-orbit experiments on rodents. Shenzhou-21 is expected to dock with Tiangong around three-and-a-half hours after takeoff.&nbsp;&lsquo;Space dream&rsquo;Beijing&rsquo;s space program is the third to put humans in orbit, after the United States and the former Soviet Union. China has ramped up plans to achieve its &ldquo;space dream&rdquo; under President Xi Jinping, successfully landing its Chang&rsquo;e-4 probe on the far side of the Moon in 2019, the first spacecraft to do so. It then landed a small robot on Mars in 2021. The China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) outlined on Thursday a series of &ldquo;crucial upcoming tests&rdquo; it was undertaking in preparation for its 2030 Moon goal. In addition to advancing scientific research, the Shenzhou-21 crew is expected to go on spacewalks and install anti-debris shields on the exterior of the Tiangong space station. The astronauts are also expected to conduct &ldquo;popular science education,&rdquo; the CMSA said, as Beijing searches for future space talent both domestically and internationally. China has been excluded from the International Space Station since 2011, when the United States banned NASA from collaborating with Beijing. It has since sought to bring other countries into its space program and signed a deal with longtime ally Pakistan in February to recruit the first foreign &ldquo;taikonauts.&rdquo;

China

Excluded from the ISS since 2011 due to a US ban, China seeks partners, signing a deal with Pakistan to recruit its first taikonauts crew.

China sends youngest astronaut, mice to space station

Mariam Ellahi

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is hoping for a &ldquo;positive outcome&rdquo; in the next round of talks with the Afghan Taliban set for November 6, Foreign Office Spokesperson Tahir Hussain Andrabi said Friday, while calling on Kabul to honor its security commitments and prevent cross-border terrorism.&nbsp;Briefing reporters in Islamabad, Andrabi confirmed the conclusion of four-day discussions in Istanbul between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban, talks that were initially planned to last two days. He said Pakistan extended the negotiations &ldquo;in an effort to reach an amicable agreement.&rdquo;&nbsp;Responding to a Pakistan TV Digital question on the difference in tone between his remarks and those of Pakistan&rsquo;s defense minister, Andrabi said, &ldquo;It is our professional hazard to be optimistic.&rdquo;&nbsp;&ldquo;I would call it guarded optimism,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We have been engaged with the Taliban for four years.&nbsp;&ldquo;It&rsquo;s difficult to be optimistic, but one must remain hopeful.&rdquo;&nbsp;A joint statement issued by T&uuml;rkiye and Qatar on Thursday noted that Pakistan and Afghanistan agreed to a ceasefire mechanism along with a monitoring and verification framework intended to maintain peace and impose penalties for violations.&nbsp;Andrabi stressed that Pakistan had engaged &ldquo;positively&rdquo; without compromising its stance that Afghan soil must not be used for terrorism against Pakistan.&nbsp;He said Islamabad &ldquo;expects the Afghan Taliban regime to honor its commitments to the international community&rdquo; and take &ldquo;concrete and verifiable actions&rdquo; against terrorist groups, including the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), referred to by Pakistani officials as &ldquo;Fitna al-Khwarij,&rdquo; and militants linked to India, described as &ldquo;Fitna Al-Hindustan.&rdquo;&nbsp;He said Pakistan had repeatedly provided Kabul with credible intelligence on the presence of these groups inside Afghanistan, yet cross-border attacks had increased in recent months.&nbsp;The spokesperson referred to &ldquo;unprovoked aggression&rdquo; along the border in October, warning that Pakistan would respond &ldquo;resolutely&rdquo; if such provocations continued.&nbsp;Despite tensions, Andrabi said Pakistan remains committed to a stable relationship with its western neighbor, adding that Islamabad has supported Afghanistan through transit trade concessions, elevated diplomatic ties to ambassador level, and agreed to expand the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) into Afghanistan.&nbsp;Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, he noted, has visited Kabul three times this year, including to sign the Joint Feasibility Study for the Uzbekistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan railway project.&nbsp;&ldquo;The Government and armed forces of Pakistan stand ready to take all possible measures to protect Pakistan&rsquo;s sovereignty and ensure the safety and security of its people,&rdquo; Andrabi said, adding that Pakistan would continue to engage in mediation efforts.&nbsp;He thanked Qatar and T&uuml;rkiye for their &ldquo;constructive role.&rdquo;&nbsp;On GazaThe spokesperson said consultations on an international stabilization force for Gaza are ongoing among regional partners. Pakistan, he said, will continue working with Arab and Islamic countries to secure &ldquo;lasting peace&rdquo; and the Palestinians&rsquo; &ldquo;right to self-determination,&rdquo; while condemning renewed Israeli strikes as a &ldquo;flagrant&rdquo; violation of international law.&nbsp;On US sanctions waiver for India&nbsp;Regarding the US decision to allow India to operate Iran&rsquo;s Chabahar Port under a six-month sanctions waiver, Andrabi said Pakistan has &ldquo;taken note&rdquo; and &ldquo;welcomes any decision that leads to economic development in our brotherly country Iran,&rdquo; but cautioned that India must not &ldquo;abuse this opening to promote terrorism or subversion through adjacent borders.&rdquo;&nbsp;On US&ndash;India defense frameworkAndrabi described the recent US&ndash;India defense understanding as still under review, saying Islamabad is &ldquo;evaluating [it], particularly with reference to its impact on peace, security, and stability in South Asia,&rdquo; and would comment further at a later stage.&nbsp;Pakistan&ndash;EU migration dialogueThe spokesperson also discussed the third Pakistan&ndash;EU Migration and Mobility Dialogue held in Islamabad this week, in which both sides reviewed progress under the EU Readmission Agreement and Talent Partnership roadmap.&nbsp;He said both sides appreciated the &ldquo;growing level of cooperation&rdquo; and agreed to hold the next round in Brussels.

Foreign Affairs

During a Foreign Office press briefing in Islamabad, Spokesperson Tahir Hussain Andrabi says Pakistan expects meaningful progress in upcoming talks with the Afghan Taliban, urging Kabul to fulfill counterterrorism commitments and prevent cross-border attacks.

Disney networks go dark on YouTube TV after talks collapse

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