Latest news with #Misbah
Dubai Eye
3 days ago
- Dubai Eye
Dubai Police dismantles begging ring, arrests 41 people
Dubai Police on Friday announced it arrested 41 people for begging and seized AED 60,000 from their possession. Under an operation named 'Misbah' - meaning 'prayer bead' in Arabic - the authority found all the detainees living in the same hotel, which they allegedly used as a base for organised begging activities. Dubai Police began surveilling the location after receiving a tip and detained three individuals selling prayer beads and accessories, who confessed to being part of a wider operation during questioning. In coordination with hotel management, 28 suspects were arrested. The following day, 10 more were apprehended as they attempted to leave the hotel. All reportedly admitted to operating as an organised group for begging and were referred to the relevant authorities for legal action. Dubai Police urged the public to report any begging activity and warned that beggars often exploit religious occasions and holidays to provoke sympathy through professional and deceitful means - an act considered a criminal offence under UAE law. #News | Operation 'Al-Misbah': Dubai Police Arrest Organised Begging Ring of 41 Suspects Residing in Hotel Details: #SayNoToBegging #PoliceEye #CommunitySafety — Dubai Policeشرطة دبي (@DubaiPoliceHQ) May 30, 2025
Express Tribune
15-05-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
PCB removes mentors of domestic teams
The Pakistan Cricket Board has removed Waqar Younis, Misbah-ul-Haq, Shoaib Malik, Saqlain Mushtaq, and Sarfaraz Ahmed as mentors with the domestic teams as the former greats were not producing the desired results. With the yesteryears' stars failing to produce the desired results in return for the huge money they were being paid, the PCH decided to sack them, sources told Telecom Asia Sport ( The quintet, greats in their playing days, were tasked to help the domestic teams and players, both men and women, in August last year. But media and other former players criticised the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for paying a whopping five million rupees (18,000 US dollars) to each of them for the job. "PCB chairman has conveyed to the mentors that their services were no longer required as the desired results were not achieved," said sources. "The huge amount of money also has its implications with fears that the International Cricket Council's annual funding may be reduced in the wake of fears that television rights of international cricket may attract less price in the next cycle (2028-2032). Malik, having sensed PCB's imminent decision, had conveyed to the Board that he doesn't want to continue as mentor as he was finding it difficult to juggle between his commercial commitments and mentorship. Shockingly, the five mentors were also allowed to do media assignments during the Champions Trophy and Pakistan Super League – earning millions more from Pakistani channels. Malik was forced to defend his role as mentor during his appearance for national channel, the Pakistan Television, during the Champions Trophy. "We are not PCB's employees." Malik justified mentors' appearance on TV despite being involved with domestic teams. Pakistan's domestic cricket is considered as the main reason for the country's poor showings at the international level. Sources said Misbah and Sarfaraz will still be part of the PCB in new positions. Misbah is amongst the candidates to take over as red-ball head coach, having been Pakistan's most successful Test captain with 26 wins in 56 Tests.
Qatar Tribune
13-05-2025
- Business
- Qatar Tribune
PCB to sack Waqar, Malik and Misbah as mentors of domestic teams
Shahid Hashmi Telecom Asia Sport The Pakistan Cricket Board has removed Waqar Younis, Misbah-ul-Haq, Shoaib Malik, Saqlain Mushtaq, and Sarfaraz Ahmed as mentors with the domestic teams as the former greats were not producing the desired results. With the yesteryears' stars failing to produce the desired results in return for the huge money they were being paid, the PCH decided to sack them, sources told Telecom Asia Sport ( The quintet, greats in their playing days, were tasked to help the domestic teams and players, both men and women, in August last year. But media and other former players criticised the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for paying a whopping five million rupees (18,000 US dollars) to each of them for the job. 'PCB chairman has conveyed to the mentors that their services were no longer required as the desired results were not achieved,' said sources. 'The huge amount of money also has its implications with fears that the International Cricket Council's annual funding may be reduced in the wake of fears that television rights of international cricket may attract less price in the next cycle (2028-2032).' Malik, having sensed PCB's imminent decision, had conveyed to the Board that he doesn't want to continue as mentor as he was finding it difficult to juggle between his commercial commitments and mentorship. Shockingly, the five mentors were also allowed to do media assignments during the Champions Trophy and Pakistan Super League – earning millions more from Pakistani channels. Malik was forced to defend his role as mentor during his appearance for national channel, the Pakistan Television, during the Champions Trophy. 'We are not PCB's employees.' Malik justified mentors' appearance on TV despite being involved with domestic teams. Pakistan's domestic cricket is considered as the main reason for the country's poor showings at the international level. Sources said Misbah and Sarfaraz will still be part of the PCB in new positions. Misbah is amongst the candidates to take over as red-ball head coach, having been Pakistan's most successful Test captain with 26 wins in 56 Tests.
The Wire
01-05-2025
- General
- The Wire
Caught Between Borders and Broken Promises, Pakistani Woman's Journey Through J&K's Militant Rehab Policy
For the best experience, open on your mobile browser or Download our App. Next Support independent journalism. Donate Now Hundreds of Pakistani women, clinging to the dream of a normal life with their husbands who had once crossed the LoC, now find themselves trapped in a fading promise, sinking into the cold silence of bureaucratic abandonment. LoC wire between India and Pakistan. Photo: Wikimedia Commons Support Free & Independent Journalism Good evening, we need your help! Since 2015, The Wire has fearlessly delivered independent journalism, holding truth to power. Despite lawsuits and intimidation tactics, we persist with your support. Contribute as little as ₹ 200 a month and become a champion of free press in India. Yes, I want to contribute Gripping the cold iron fence meant to stop people like her from jumping, Misbah Mushtaq, 35, stands on a downtown Srinagar bridge, her other hand wrapped tightly around her 7-year-old son, Arhan. The River Jhelum roars beneath her – a restless current, like the storm inside her. In that moment of despair, she imagines surrendering herself to its pull. 'If only these waters could carry me home,' she yells, 'even if it's just my dead body that reaches there.' The river, originating at Verinag in the south of Kashmir, zigzags through the valley, flowing through the city of Srinagar, and enters Wular Lake in Bandipora before crossing into Pakistan-occupied Kashmir through a deep, narrow gorge. Several people, embittered by the miseries of life and unable to bear it any longer, have attempted suicide by jumping into the river from the city's bridges. For Misbah, home is on the other side of the Line of Control (LoC), where the Jhelum slips away into distance and memory – towards a place forever out of reach. Her gaze is fixed on the Jhelum's muddy swirl. She slips into reveries of the moment when fate bound her to a man who crossed the LoC for arms training, not knowing that one day, she would be the one caught in a battle far more intimate – longing for the land where she was born, where her parents still live, where she played with her friends, yet closed off by a conflict weighed down by history's burden – one that India and Pakistan continue to carry, but refuse to lay down. Mushtaq, her husband, who crossed into Pakistan for arms training via a route near his village, Qaimoh, in the north-western district of Kupwara in 2003, soon saw through the illusion. What had seemed like a call to ' jihad ' now looked to him like a game – a syndicate's ploy – and he wanted no part in taking up arms against the country he had been indoctrinated to see as the enemy. Also read: Of All the Responses Modi Can Come Up With to Pahalgam, Plunging India Into War is the Worst So, Mushtaq abandoned the militant camp and started a new life in Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, taking up residence in a house owned by Misbah's uncle. It was there that a Kashmiri family proposed marriage – one that her family readily accepted. 'There was a growing trend among Pakistanis to marry their daughters to men who had crossed over from Kashmir,' Misbah explains. 'Since these grooms were single and had no family around, they were considered a convenient choice – it spared families the usual complications of traditional marriages.' With the chief minister Omar Abdullah's 2010 militant rehabilitation policy in mind, Misbah's parents saw a future for their daughter with Mushtaq – and in 2013, they married her to him, believing he would return to Kashmir to live a normal life as envisaged in the policy. Hundreds of other Kashmiris living in Pakistan under similar circumstances – lured by the promise of starting life anew – left behind their wives and children, believing they would be welcomed back and rehabilitated into the system. The policy applied to those who had crossed over to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) or Pakistan between January 1, 1989, and December 31, 2009. Omar Abdullah's 2010 rehab policy, preceded by others in 1995 under Governor General K.V. Krishna Rao, in 2004 under N.N. Vohra, and tweaked in 2019 on the advice of Gov. S.P. Malik, was touted as a 'goodwill gesture.' Backed by the Union government, then-home minister P. Chidambaram expressed full support for the return of Kashmiris who wished to renounce militancy and live peacefully. Emphasising that 'Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK)' is part of India, Chidambaram said the government 'should make it easier for those who had crossed the LoC for various reasons to return.' Inspector General of Police, Kashmir, S.M. Sahai, acknowledged that those willing to renounce militancy were an integral part of society and emphasized that it was the moral responsibility of every citizen to support their rehabilitation. But for those married to men who had crossed the LoC, holding on to the hope of a normal life together, the promise of return unfolded into a perilous and uncertain journey – one that left hundreds of Pakistani women caught between the fading assurances of Chidambaram and Sahai, quickly sinking into bureaucratic quicksand. Returnees had to navigate a near-impossible maze of approaching the Indian High Commission in Islamabad or rely on relatives in Jammu and Kashmir to get their names listed. Each application underwent exhaustive security vetting, with final clearance resting with the Union home ministry. Officials reportedly admitted the process was so protracted that even genuine cases could take years, if not be lost entirely. The promise of return began to feel like a cruel illusion. The policy offered four official routes: two in Jammu and Kashmir, one in Delhi, and one in Punjab. However, most chose to return via Nepal, fearing retribution from Pakistani militant groups and the ISI if they used official transit points. 'Abandoning a militant camp would mean certain death for you and your family, as our return would serve as proof of how the state of Pakistan, ISI, and other militant outfits were responsible for running these training camps,' Mushtaq said. For India, official routes implied Pakistan's complicity, which it could use to show the international community that Pakistan supported terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir – a charge Pakistan has consistently denied. The Omar Abdullah government strongly advocated for Nepal to be recognised as an official route, but the Union government refused. Despite being used by many families, the Nepal route remained unofficial and technically illegal. The tussle between the Jammu and Kashmir government and the Centre over the Nepal route escalated when Liyaqat Ali Shah, a former militant, was arrested by Delhi Police in 2013. Omar Abdullah defended Liyaqat's actions, insisting that his return was legitimate under the state's policy. This political and security wrangle between the state and the Union government – and with Liyaqat caught in the middle – highlighted the complexities of reintegrating militants and the mistrust surrounding the rehabilitation policy. Misbah was part of a 16-member group of three families, arranged by a travel facilitator named Saleem, originally from Khanmoh, Srinagar, who allegedly charged each person between Rs 2.5-3 lakh. The group, carrying Pakistani passports with Nepali visas, took an Emirates flight from Islamabad to Sharjah. Misbah's husband, Mushtaq, held a Pakistani passport under the name Junaid-ul-Islam. When asked how her husband obtained a Pakistani passport, Misbah replied, 'For Pakistan, every citizen from Jammu and Kashmir is entitled to Pakistani citizenship, as it considers the region its own.' From Sharjah, they flew to Nepal, where an unnamed Kashmiri agent received them at the Kathmandu airport, already aware of their details. The agent took them to a pre-booked hotel, where they stayed for three nights. He locked the hotel from the outside whenever he would leave for some work. 'The agent demanded his fees and took whatever we had – cash in US dollars and gold,' Misbah said. 'One member also transferred money online to the agent's Jammu and Kashmir Bank account.' After seizing their documents, including nikah namas (marriage certificates) and anything connecting them to Pakistan, the agent bundled them into a lorry while riding a bike to guide the driver. He claimed the documents were safe but never returned them. 'When I think of the agent today, I wonder: Was he a Pakistani agent, an Indian, or a police conduit who erased our Pakistani identity while getting money transferred to his account?' Misbah said. The group reached the Sonali Border separating Nepal and India at 11:00 PM. 'Stripped of our identity, we were terrified and dreaded crossing at that hour,' she said. 'We decided to wait for the morning.' At 11 AM the next day, they crossed the Sonali Border into India, where a contingent of BSF and J&K Police's Counterinsurgency Unit (CIK) received them. After thorough frisking, they were placed in a house. Misbah alone carried 13 suitcases, and the search was torturous. 'They threw items everywhere without regard,' Misbah recounted. 'While the BSF treated us respectfully, offering tea and biscuits and lodging us in a Muslim hotel, the J&K Police's behaviour was shockingly indecent.' The police and BSF recorded everyone's details in their registers. From there, the group was taken to Delhi by bus; they paid with money they had managed to hide from the agent. They arrived at 7 AM, where CIK took their details again before loading them into a blue police van without offering refreshments. After an arduous journey, they reached Srinagar at 11 PM and were taken to CIK headquarters at Humhama. There, they were formally arrested for illegal border crossing under Section 14 of the Foreigners Act. 'Eight or nine agencies took the minutest details of our lives,' Misbah said. The men were handcuffed, and the group was taken for medical check-ups before being produced in the Srinagar court, where a challan was filed against them. Women and children were handed over to the men's relatives, who had been summoned by police. The proceedings were videotaped, with each member photographed with their name and FIR number on a slate hung around their neck. They stayed at CIK Humhama for three days. 'My husband was released on bail, and we headed to his village in Kupwara, where we lived relatively undisturbed for a while, though he was summoned to the local police station often,' Misbah said. The case was heard in Srinagar, then transferred to District Court, Sopore. Women were exempted from court appearances. Judge Aadil Mushtaq trashed the police's claim that they were arrested in Srinagar, noting no mention of Nepal. 'When the judge asked, 'Did you see them crossing from Pakistan?,' the police had no answer,' Misbah said. Eventually, they were released. However, she later learned that their lawyer had falsely claimed they weren't Pakistani citizens, further complicating the issue. It was at the funeral of a Pakistani woman, Ambreen, that Misbah learned of others like her. She met Bushra and Saira, and they formed a WhatsApp group that grew to 370 members. The group became active, protesting at venues across Kashmir, including Srinagar's Press Enclave, demanding repatriation or citizenship. In a protest video, Misbah passionately states, ' Hamain Ya To Goli Maar Do Ya Wapas Bejh Do! ' ('Shoot us or deport us!'), highlighting their desperation. Some excerpts from Misbah's protest video: If the government created this rehabilitation policy, why are we called illegal now? If we were illegal then, why weren't we sent back at Nepal? We have no identity, no citizenship here. They call our children 'Pakistanis' though their fathers are Kashmiris. If our children are registered as Pakistani, send us back—we're not asking for anything else. Just open the border. We are not terrorists. We are women and children. What have we done wrong? We have no citizenship. Our children have no future. We are already imprisoned. One day, while traveling in a Sumo taxi, a passenger suggested Misbah write to the ADG CID in Jammu, which she did, including her name, address and phone number. The letter was forwarded to the SSP Kupwara, Youghal Manhas, who promptly registered the returnees' details online. 'Thanks to Manhas, Saira, who entered via Wagah Border, was repatriated with her four children in October 2018,' Misbah said. However, her own ordeal worsened as she joined more protests by the day. She wrote to the Indian home ministry, foreign ministry, and Pakistan Embassy, but to no avail. 'We met Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, whose PA took our addresses, promising action within a fortnight,' she said. 'When nothing happened, we tried meeting him again but the cops arrested us near the Botanical Garden after the LG declined to meet us.' 'They took us to the Ram Munshi Bagh Police Station along with the auto drivers, but released us soon after.' A letter to the Pakistan high commissioner, forwarded to India's Ministry of External Affairs and CID Kashmir, yielded confusing responses. When Nasreen, Nusrat, Safiya Sayed and Salma Mushtaq visited the Pakistan High Commission, the Delhi Police reportedly arrested them but released them after they explained their motive and showed rehab documents. Misbah says politicians exploit their plight every now and then, promising much during the elections but delivering nothing. 'Can you imagine, two women became sarpanch after we got voter IDs, and one, Somia Sadaf, ran in DDC elections? When we complained to the Election Commission about Pakistani women in polls, counting stopped midway,' Misbah said. 'Our voter IDs were confiscated and cancelled later.' She said the Foreigners Registration Office (FRO) in Kupwara repeatedly tells them to first obtain Pakistani passports, pay a penalty, and only then can their exit from the country be processed. A desperate Misbah, standing at the bridge, stares at the Jhelum's gushing waters, wondering how their ordeal will end. She doesn't even remember the dates of the events that have brought her to this pass. 'They are leaving us no choice but to end our lives by suicide,' a distraught Misbah said. 'Jhelum is my last hope — it's this river that shall take me back home.' Farooq Shah is a Kashmir-based journalist. Politics Meitei Group Writes to Amit Shah About 'Unconstitutional Blockade' of Path to Pilgrimage Site View More
Arab News
17-02-2025
- Sport
- Arab News
Champions Trophy will rekindle Pakistan's love of cricket, say former captains
ISLAMABAD: Cricket fans in Pakistan are buzzing ahead of the Champions Trophy and hosting the elite one-day international tournament will rekindle the country's love affair with the sport, three former captains said. The event, which features the sport's top eight sides in the ODI format, begins on Wednesday with the hosts up against New Zealand in Karachi. It will be the first major global tournament hosted by Pakistan in nearly 30 years and former batting great Inzamam Ul Haq told Reuters there was no escaping the excitement in the lead-up to the event. 'Right now everyone is talking about the Champions Trophy, in schools, houses, markets, offices, everywhere,' he added. Pakistan spent nearly a decade in the wilderness after gunmen attacked the Sri Lankan cricket team's bus in Lahore in 2009, wounding six players. Top teams shunned Pakistan after the 2009 attack and it took the Pakistan Cricket Board years to convince foreign counterparts that it was safe to visit. 'The events of 2009 feel like a bad dream,' Inzamam said. 'We were punished for 10 years. Our cricket went backwards.' The national team, captained for the bulk of those years by Misbah Ul Haq, hosted its 'home' games in the United Arab Emirates and remained relatively successful until fixtures trickled back onto Pakistani soil in 2018. 'For fans and young cricketers to see the stars playing live is a big deal,' said Misbah, Pakistan's most successful test captain. 'Not having that meant the whole cricket machinery was jammed.' Former captain Aamer Sohail said the connection between fans and players was evident at Wednesday's warm-up game against South Africa where Pakistan reeled in the visitors' 352 to complete their highest successful ODI run chase. 'What was heartening in yesterday's game is that people turned up and then the players turned up. It was kind of reciprocating, wasn't it?' added Sohail. The Champions Trophy was discontinued by the International Cricket Council after the eighth edition in 2017, when Sarfaraz Ahmed's Pakistan beat India in the final. Should both teams reach the title decider when it returns to the calendar, Pakistan will not have the advantage of playing at home as India are playing all their matches in Dubai due to political tensions. 'A Pakistan-India match is not just a game of cricket, it's a game of expectations, of emotions,' said Misbah. Inzamam recalled a 2004 ODI against India in Karachi where he scored a thrilling hundred in a losing chase. 'I got a standing ovation but so did the Indian team for their performance,' he said. 'Supporters from both sides would have wanted to see this match.' Sohail will forever be remembered for one of the most famous on-field spats with Indian bowler Venkatesh Prasad in the 1996 World Cup quarter-finals, the last major event played in Pakistan. 'It's not just important for both the countries, I think this rivalry is important for international cricket,' he said.
