Dave Sharma, the Liberal candidate and former Australian ambassador to Israel, has become the first Indian-origin lawmaker in the country’s Parliament after winning a seat in Sydney suburb in the federal election. Sharma, 43, defeated independent candidate Kerryn Phelps for the eastern suburb seat of Wentworthin district. Sharma, who had lost to Phelps in a by-election six months ago, claimed the seat of Wentworth with 51% of the vote. “Very humbled by the trust placed in me by the people of Wentworth. Look forward to being a voice for them in Parliament and the party room,” Sharma tweeted. He said the three main issues he wanted to focus on were national security, female workforce participation and making sure Australia remains at the high end of the value chain.
Mueenul Haq appointed as Pak High Commissioner to India
Pakistan announced that Mueenul Haq, a career diplomat, has been appointed as its new High Commissioner to India. "New Delhi, India, is very important...After consultation, I have decided to appoint Mueenul Haq, the current ambassador in France, who will be sent to (New) Delhi, and I hope that he (Haq) will deliver," Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said in a statement. Haq was appointed after Sohail Mehmood left the High Commissioner's post to join as foreign secretary. Qureshi has expressed hope that Haq would perform his "new job with the best of his abilities." Along with India, Pakistan has announced new ambassadors to several countries including China, Japan and Brussels. In Beijing, Naghmana Hashmi will replace Masood Khalid, the incumbent envoy to China, after completion of his tenure. Additional Secretary Imtiaz Ahmad has been appointed as ambassador to Japan, while Zaheer Janjua, currently serving as additional secretary in Europe, will look after the Pakistani mission in Brussels.
Zardari gets interim bail in corruption case
A Pakistani court has granted interim bail to former president Asif Ali Zardari in a case related to alleged award of illegal contracts, a media report said. The Islamabad high court granted bail till June 13 to Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) co-chairman against Rs 200,000 surety bonds. Zardari's counsel told the court the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had summoned Zardari on May 23 in an inquiry related to award of allegedly illegal contracts to a private firm in Sindh. According to the NAB, the Harish and Company was awarded a contract for water supply by the Sindh government but failed to complete the projects and the public funds were allegedly misused to meet the expense of the residence of the PPP leader. The NAB officials claim that Harish and Company was the front company to Park Lane Estate which led to a loss of Rs 60 million to the national exchequer.
6 arrested for collecting funds for militant groups
Pakistani police say six people have been arrested for allegedly collecting funds for two outlawed militant organizations. Muhammad Ashraf, an official with the Punjabi police's counterterrorism department, said that the arrests were part of crackdown against terror financing in the province. He said those arrested were raising money for Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, but did not disclose the amount of money recovered. The Pakistan-based group Jaish-e-Mohammed had claimed responsibility for the deadly Feb. 14 suicide attack in Kashmir. The attack raised tensions between India and Pakistan and brought the two nuclear rivals to the brink of war. The leader of Jaish-e-Mohammed was added to the United Nations' sanctions blacklist earlier this month.
Blast at a mosque in Quetta kills 3
A powerful explosion ripped through a mosque ahead of Friday prayers in Pakistan, killing at least three people and injuring 28 others in the restive Balochistan province. The blast, trigerred through an Improvised Explosive Device (IED), targeted the Rehmania Mosque in Pashtunabad area of the provincial capital Quetta. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. “Three people, including the prayer leader, died in the blast while 28 other worshipers were injured,” Balochistan deputy inspector general of Police said, adding the blast occurred just before the Friday prayers. President Arif Alvi and PM Imran Khan condemned the attack.
Heavy flooding kills 24 in Afghanistan
Heavy flooding in Afghanistan killed at least 24 people and injured 11 others last week as a new wave of heavy rains swept parts of the country, Afghan officials said. The flooding affected six of Afghanistan's 34 provinces, including the capital, Kabul. Around 500 people had been rescued in central Bamyan province's Sheber district. The floods destroyed over 220 homes and partially damaged 116 more. Heavy snowfall across Afghanistan this winter had cut off many areas. So far this year, around 150 people have died as heavy rains and flooding swept away homes in different provinces.
3 explosions rock Nepal, 4 killed
At least four people were killed in three consecutive blasts that took place in Kathmandu last week. The Nepal Police confirmed that blasts took place in Sukedhara, Ghattekulo and Naagdhunga areas of Kathmandu, whereas the Army defused bombs in Koteshwor, Satdobato, Gwarko and Lagankhel. A total of seven people have been injured in the blasts, police said. "At first we thought it was a gas cylinder explosion, but later it proved to be homemade bomb (explosion). Most of the bombs exploded while they were being made. We suspect a splinter Maoist group formerly led by Netra Bikram Chand is behind it. We have recovered bundles of pamphlets of the party from two blast sites," a police official who is investigating the issue said. At least nine people were arrested from various locations in and around Kathmandu in connection with the blast.
Yoga class of 30, trainer held in Iran for ‘indecency’
Authorities in Iran arrested around 30 people at a private yoga class in northeastern city of Gorgan after being tipped off by an advertisement on Instagram. A local justice justice department official said the men and women were arrested while practising yoga in a private home. Massoud Soleimani, deputy chief of the city’s Islamic Revolution Court, said that those arrested were wearing “inappropriate outfits” and had “behaved inappropriately”. Mixed gender sports are banned in Iran by the country’s conservative Islamic authorities. Although the practice of yoga isn’t officially forbidden in Iran, teaching at a professional level is.
Alien invasion? SpaceX sats spark Dutch UFO frenzy
A Dutch website set up to record UFO sightings was flooded with reports after a “train of stars” was spotted crossing the Netherlands’ skies, sparking fears of an alien invasion. But what some thought to be a close encounter of the third kind turned out to be a string of some 60 satellites launched by US-based SpaceX earlier as part of its “Starlink” constellation. The row of satellites which are part of a plan by billionaire Elon Musk’s firm to provide internet from space, glided across Dutch skies. Shortly afterwards, a Dutch website was inundated with more than 150 sighting reports. Are they UFOs? Seriously, I don’t know,” a witness said.
‘Cleaner’ breaks into a house, gives it good scrub
Whoever broke into a Massachusetts man’s home last week didn’t take a thing. They did, however, leave the house spotless. The 44-year-old homeowner noticed the beds were made, the rugs vacuumed and the toilets scrubbed. They even crafted origami roses on the toilet paper rolls. He called the experience “weird and creepy”.
