A city council member has announced her run as a Democrat to represent District 90 in Tennessee’s State Senate. Varanasi-born Seema Singh will bid for the seat held by Representative Gloria Johnson, a fellow Democrat, who is now running for the US Senate seat held by Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn. Singh became the first Indian American to be elected to any public office in East Tennessee when she was elected and sworn in as a member of the Knoxville City Council for the third District in 2017 and again in 2021. Singh now has positions on the boards of the Metropolitan Drug Centre Gateway Advisory Board, the YMCA of East Tennessee Board, the Knox County Domestic Assault Death Review Team, and the Coordinated Community Response team for the Knoxville Family Justice Centre.
Pak anti-graft body to reopen 4 cases against Nawaz
Pakistan’s anti-graft body is reopening at least four corruption cases against former PM Nawaz Sharif as he is scheduled to return to the country next month, ending four years of self-exile in the UK, an official said. The National Accountability Bureau in the light of a Supreme Court ruling which struck down amendments made to the accountability laws by the previous government led by Nawaz’s brother Shehbaz Sharif, is reopening four pending probes against Nawaz related to illegal plots and land allotment, dubious transfer of shares of his sugar mills and Toshakhana. Meanwhile, Nawaz’s close aide Mian Javed Latif said PML-N has stopped “demanding accountability of former army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa and former ISI head Gen Faiz Hameed” for conspiring against Nawaz to topple his government in 2017.
Imran’s judicial remand extended
A Pakistan special court extended the judicial remand of former prime minister Imran Khan for another 14 days in the Cipher case, blighting the chances of his early release. Khan was detained last month after a complaint was made against him for allegedly breaking the Official Secrets Act by revealing a classified diplomatic cable (cypher) issued by the nation's embassy in Washington in March of last year. It is the third time that Khan, 70, has been sent to jail on remand. Hearings were held in the district jail Attock, where Khan has been detained since August 5 following his detention following conviction in the Toshakhana case, under the supervision of the special court judge Abual Hasnat Zulqernain.
Fire at a wedding hall in Iraq kills 100, injures 150
Around 100 people were killed and 150 others were injured when a roaring fire in northern Iraq destroyed a hall full of guests and appeared to have been started by fireworks fired off to celebrate a Christian wedding. Authorities said flammable building materials also contributed to the disaster. The fire happened in the Hamdaniya area of Nineveh province. Multiple witnesses said the fire started as the bride and groom began their slow dance. The flames raced through plastic decorations and the ceiling started collapsing., Youssef said. It was unclear whether the bride and groom were wounded. PM Mohammed Shia al-Sudani ordered an investigation and requested assistance from the interior and health departments.
Rocket shell blast in Pak kills 9 people
At least nine people, including five children, of the same family were killed when a rocket launcher’s shell exploded at a house when the kids were playing with the ammunition in Pakistan’s Sindh province. Kashmore-Kandhkot SSP said children found a rocket shell while playing and brought it home where it exploded. He said besides the casualties, five others were injured and rushed to hospital. “This is an area on the riverine belt and the rocket shell must have been left there by dacoits who hide out deep into the riverine belt areas,” SSP added. Sindh chief minister sought a “detailed report” into the incident from the provincial inspector general.
Storm pounds NYC, floods subways
A potent rush-hour rainstorm swamped the New York metropolitan area, shutting down parts of the city’s subway system, flooding streets, highways, and delaying flights into La Guardia airport. Up to 13 cm of rain fell in some areas overnight, and as much as 18 cm more was expected throughout the day, NY Governor Kathy Hochul said. Traffic was at a standstill, with water above cars’ tyres. Some drivers abandoned their vehicles. Photos and video posted on social media showed water pouring into subway stations & basements. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which runs subway and commuter rail lines, urged residents to stay home if they could. Virtually every subway line was at least partly suspended, rerouted or running with delays.
Biden’s dog bites another SS agent
President Joe Biden’s dog Commander bit a member of the Secret Service at the White House, the latest in a series of episodes in which one of the Biden family’s pets has bitten people since the president took office in January 2021. “The officer was treated by medical personnel on complex and is doing well,” a spokesperson for the agency said. The 2-year-old German Shepherd has bit or otherwise attacked Secret Service personnel at least 10 other times between October 2022 and January, including one incident that required a hospital visit by the injured law enforcement officer. One of Biden’s other dogs, Major, was sent to live away from the White House so on after the president took office because of what was described at the time as a “biting incident” with a White House staff member.
Nightclub fire kills at least 13 in Spain
At least 13 people have been killed in a fire in adjoining nightclubs in Murcia in southeast Spain, emergency services said, adding that rescuers were still searching for people unaccounted for after the blaze. Diego Seral of Spain’s National Police said the dead were found in the Fonda nightclub, one of three adjoining clubs, which had sustained the majority of fire damage, including the collapse of its roof. The collapse was making it difficult to locate victims, and it was difficult to pinpoint yet where exactly the fire started, he said.
Taiwan reveals first domestically made submarine
Taiwan unveiled its first domestically developed submarine, a major step in a project aimed at strengthening the island’s deterrence against the Chinese navy, though it won’t enter service for another two years. “In the past, a domestically developed submarine was considered an impossible task. But, today, a submarine manufactured by our country’s people sits before our eyes,” an official said, adding that it would play an important role in strengthening the navy’s “asymmetric warfare” capabilities. China’s defence ministry, responding to a question, said Taiwan was “over-rating itself and attempting something impossible”.