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Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, on Friday chaired a meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee to discuss a draft outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan for economic and social development and a draft government work report to be submitted by the State Council to the upcoming annual session of the national legislature for review. It was noted at the meeting that the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025) has marked a momentous and extraordinary period in China’s development. The CPC Central Committee with Xi at its core has united…

BEIJING :A press center for China’s annual sessions of its top legislature and political advisory body, known as the “two sessions,” opened on Friday at the Media Center Hotel in Beijing. The fourth session of the 14th National People’s Congress and the fourth session of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference will kick off in March. More than 3,000 journalists, including over 1,000 from China’s Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, and abroad, have registered to cover this year’s “two sessions,” according to the press center. A series of press conferences and events will be held, at…

KARACHI :  A reaction from an Islamic scholar on a private TV Ramadan transmission regarding Pakistani actress Urwa Hocane spelling her last name as “Hocane” instead of “Hussain” has gone viral on social media. During the ongoing Ramadan transmissions across various TV channels, scholars from different Islamic schools of thought discuss social and religious matters from an Islamic perspective. In a recent program, the topic of deliberately altering Islamic names or giving them modernized spellings was discussed. The host asked about the trend among celebrities to change the spelling of their names, citing Urwa’s example, and sought the religious viewpoint.…

CALIFORNIA: Photo and video sharing platform Instagram has introduced a new safety feature aimed at keeping parents informed about their teenagers’ online activities. The feature alerts parents when their children search for terms related to self-harm or suicide, enabling timely intervention. This addition strengthens Instagram’s existing safety controls, providing parents with tools to support their children’s mental well-being. Parents using Instagram’s supervision tools will receive real-time notifications and access to resources designed to help them effectively communicate with their children. The alerts aim to give early warning signs so parents can guide their children and act before potential risks escalate.…

Meta Platforms (META.O) has signed a multi-billion dollar deal to rent artificial intelligence chips from Google (GOOGL.O) to develop new AI models, The Information reported on Thursday, citing a person involved in the talks. The report of the multi-year deal comes as companies pour billions into chips and AI infrastructure to meet demand for artificial intelligence. Meta and Google declined Reuters’ request for comment. Earlier this week, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD.O) said it would sell up to $60 billion in AI chips to Meta. The Facebook owner earlier this month also signed a deal with Nvidia (NVDA.O) to buy its…

Russia urges Afghanistan and Pakistan to halt cross-border attacks immediately and resolve their differences through diplomatic means, the RIA news agency reported on Friday, citing the foreign ministry. Meanwhile, Iran offered to help “facilitate dialogue” to resolve the conflict. “The Islamic Republic of Iran stands ready to provide any assistance necessary to facilitate dialogue and to enhance understanding and cooperation between the two countries,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a post on X. The statements come amid escalating cross-border clashes. At least 133 Afghan Taliban operatives were killed, and more than 200 were injured after Pakistan’s security forces delivered an…

BEIJING: China called on Friday for a ceasefire between Afghanistan and Pakistan, adding it was talking to both sides to try to end violent clashes that had left Beijing “deeply concerned”. Pakistan is one of China’s closest partners in the region, but Beijing also calls itself a “friendly neighbour” of Afghanistan. Foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said China was “deeply concerned about the escalation of the conflict”, after Pakistan bombed major cities in Afghanistan including the capital Kabul on Friday. China “calls on both sides to remain calm and exercise restraint… achieve a ceasefire as soon as possible, and avoid…

Dr. Muhammad Ali Raza of the Gansu Academy of Agricultural Sciences has received the 2025 Dunhuang Award from the People’s Government of Gansu Province for advancing China-Pakistan agricultural cooperation and contributing to local development. A former student of Sichuan Agricultural University, he now leads research on water- and nutrient-efficient farming systems, symbolizing the growing academic and scientific collaboration between Pakistan and China.

MANILA: The navies of the Philippines, the US and Japan trained alongside each other in the South China Sea this week to ramp up cooperation among the military allies, the Philippines’ armed forces said on Friday. Since 2023, the Philippines has worked with a number of countries to assert its rights and maritime entitlements in the South China Sea. China claims most of the resource-rich waterway, rejecting a 2016 arbitral award that has voided its historical claims to the area. In a statement, the Philippine military said the joint activity “underscores the sustained commitment of partner forces to enhance interoperability,…

CAIRO: Israeli attacks killed five people in Gaza on Thursday, the territory’s health officials said, and the Israeli military said it killed one fighter in the south of the enclave. Medics said an Israeli airstrike against a group of Palestinians in Gaza City’s Tuffah neighbourhood in northern Gaza killed two people and wounded several others. Five people were killed and several others injured, some critically, in Israeli drone strikes on two police checkpoints in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis and in the Abu Hujair area northwest of the Bureij refugee camp later in the day, medics said. The Israeli military did not immediately…