Pakistan’s Affan Salman, World Youth Scrabble champion, hopes for government support

Special Pakistan’s Affan Salman, World Youth Scrabble champion, hopes for government support
In this handout photo, released on September 11, 2024, Pakistan’s Affan Salman lifts the trophy of the World Youth Scrabble Championship in Sri Lanka. (Photo courtesy: Facebook/Pakistan Scrabble Association)
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Updated 13 September 2024
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Pakistan’s Affan Salman, World Youth Scrabble champion, hopes for government support

Pakistan’s Affan Salman, World Youth Scrabble champion, hopes for government support
  • 16-year-old studied words for six hours a day, practiced with siblings to prepare for the tournament
  • With Salman’s win, Pakistan has become the only country ever to win the world youth title five times

KARACHI: Pakistan’s Affan Salman, who brought home the World Youth Scrabble Championship (WYSC) 2024 trophy this month, said he hoped his win would motivate more kids to take the word game seriously and participate in global competitions, calling on the government to support the Pakistan Scrabble Association and provide funds for training and international travel.
The WYSC is organized by the World English-language Scrabble Players Association (WESPA) annually. The championship was first held in 2006, with the inaugural event taking place in Australia.
Salman,16, participated in the 19th edition of the WYSC held in Sri Lanka from September 6-8. This is the fifth time Pakistani players have claimed the championship title, which is a record.
“It was an unreal feeling and initially I couldn’t believe that I became the champion. But when everyone started congratulating me, I realized I have won,” Salman told Arab News in an interview this week.
Salman played 23 games out of 24 and was crowned the champion in the 19th round.
“In this tournament, I made a highest point-scoring word of 158 points and that word was almagest,” he said, spelling out the word for an influential treatise on astronomy written by the Greek astronomer and geographer Ptolemy in the second century AD.
Pakistan won two trophies, one for the championship title and the other for being the top-ranked team, with four of its players in the top ten. India’s Madhav Gopal Kamath, who stood fourth in the tournament, was one of the toughest opponents, Salman said.

“There were two tough opponents, the number one player of India, Madhav Gopal Kamath, and the number one player of Sri Lanka, Adheesha Dissanayake,” the Pakistani player said.
“I played with Adheesha three times [out of which] he beat me one time. He beat me at a very crucial time in the tournament, in the 23rd round and I could see the championship going away.”
“NO GOVERNMENT SUPPORT”
Born and raised in Karachi, Salman has three brothers and is currently in the 10th grade, with a special interest in Computer Sciences. His elder brother Ali Salman won the world youth scrabble title in 2022 while his younger brother was also competing with him in this year’s edition.
“My father introduced us to scrabble,” Salman said. “He told me to play it in my spare time. I didn’t know we would start playing on a professional level and start winning as well.”
He said his elder brother was his inspiration.

“He taught me everything when we got into the depth of this game. Throughout the tournament, he motivated me a lot.”
To prepare for competitions, Salman studied words six hours a day and also played practice games with his brothers.
“There are word lists as well as a specific software through which we study words. It schedules words every day. Until we learn those words, the software doesn’t spare us,” the champion explained.
In the future, Salman says he wants to pursue computer engineering at the college level. He also hopes to participate and win big at the World Scrabble Championship (WSC), played to determine the world champion in competitive English-language Scrabble.
But for that he said government support was key.
“The government should collaborate with the Pakistan Scrabble Association … they should provide funds. If they cannot provide funds, they can at least sponsor our trips, that would make it much easier for us” Salman said.
“More kids will get motivated and feel that there is scope in scrabble.”


Pakistan to face touring England in three-Test series as visitors target hosts’ losing streak

Pakistan to face touring England in three-Test series as visitors target hosts’ losing streak
Updated 05 October 2024
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Pakistan to face touring England in three-Test series as visitors target hosts’ losing streak

Pakistan to face touring England in three-Test series as visitors target hosts’ losing streak
  • England’s 3-0 whitewash on their 2022 Pakistan trip was the first clean sweep by any visiting team to the country
  • England will begin the series without talismanic leader Ben Stokes, who will miss the first Test due to hamstring

MULTAN: Pakistan play England in a three-Test series starting Monday in Multan with the visitors favorites to inflict more damage on a team mired in a painful losing streak.

England’s 3-0 whitewash on their last trip to Pakistan in 2022 was the first clean sweep by any visiting team to the country, and plunged the hosts into a slump that has left them winless in their last 10 home Tests.

The visitors will be buoyed by memories of that famous win, but begin the series without talismanic leader Ben Stokes, who will miss the first Test due to a hamstring injury.

While England sit in third place in the ICC Test rankings, five spots above Pakistan, they travel to South Asia with an inexperienced pace attack following the retirement of James Anderson and Stuart Broad.

Pakistan, meanwhile, are known for their unpredictability and will be desperate to wipe away the humiliation of a shock 2-0 defeat at the hands of low-ranked Bangladesh last month.

Captain Shan Masood, whose tenure has been marked by a run of five consecutive defeats, said his players were motivated to prove themselves.

“We took steps in the right direction in Australia despite losing, but we could not take them forward in the Bangladesh series,” Masood said this week.

“We are eager to stage a comeback in this important series.”

Pakistan cricket is flailing in all formats, with a revolving door of bosses and allegations of nepotism crushing the development of the nation’s most popular sport.

Superstar batsman Babar Azam relinquished the white-ball captaincy this week, saying he wanted to focus on his batting after a run-drought of 16 Test innings without a half-century.

The three Tests in Multan and Rawalpindi scheduled to wrap up on October 28 will be the first trial of the 29-year-old’s renewed commitment to his craft.

“We all know how good a player he is,” said Masood. “The good thing is that he is not out of form, and we can hope he is just one innings away from producing his best.”

While all eyes are on Azam to score big, Pakistan will hope pace spearheads Shaheen Shah Afridi -- who missed the 2022 Test with a knee injury -- and Naseem Shah can crack England’s robust batting order.

“We have told our fast bowlers that they are very important in taking 20 wickets,” said Masood.

Stokes will miss the first Test as he struggles to recover from a hamstring injury inflicted while playing for Northern Superchargers in The Hundred on August 11.

There are doubts over his return for the second match starting October 15, but England’s record has remained strong in his absence.

Top-order batter Ollie Pope led them to a 3-0 whitewash of the West Indies and a 2-1 win over Sri Lanka.

Two years ago, it was England’s batting that set the tone for the 3-0 victory on the very first day of the series, smashing 506-4 to set a new record for an opening day total in Tests.

Top batter Joe Root will also be eyeing the record books, needing just 71 runs to best Alastair Cook’s tally of 12,472, the most by any England batter.

Even without Stokes, England will have five pace bowlers led by fast-rising Gus Atkinson who has taken an impressive 34 wickets since his debut earlier this year. But the quintet will all be bowling for the first time in Pakistani conditions.

Experienced Jack Leach heads the spin attack, accompanied by Shoaib Bashir and Rehan Ahmed.

Harry Brook led the way with three hundreds in the 2022 series while Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett and Pope also feasted on slow and flat tracks.

“I know that Shan Masood has been asking for quicker, more lively wickets for their fast bowlers. Obviously last time we were there they were slow, dry and spun a bit,” Stokes said before arrival.

“So, we’ve got to go there with an open mind about what we’re going to get.”

 


Pakistani court bans ‘unlawful protests’ in Islamabad ahead of SCO summit

Pakistani court bans ‘unlawful protests’ in Islamabad ahead of SCO summit
Updated 05 October 2024
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Pakistani court bans ‘unlawful protests’ in Islamabad ahead of SCO summit

Pakistani court bans ‘unlawful protests’ in Islamabad ahead of SCO summit
  • Islamabad High Court says there should be no lockdown situation in the capital during the period of the summit
  • Court order comes in response to a petition by local businessmen who complained about Islamabad’s situation

ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani court issued a brief order in response to a petition on Saturday, saying no “unlawful protest” could be held in Islamabad during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit.

Pakistan will host the SCO conference in the federal capital on October 15 and 16, with several high-profile foreign dignitaries expected to participate from various regional countries. The government has already deployed the army in Islamabad, whose top officials will oversee the city’s security until October 17.

The Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration has also imposed Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code to prevent large gatherings, though former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party has ignored the legal provision while attempting to hold a protest near the parliament building.

“The respondents shall ensure that no unlawful protest is held in ICT that creates situation of lockdown or disrupt peace in ICT during the period of SCO Summit,” Islamabad High Court Chief Justice Aamir Farooq said in his written order.

The petition was filed by local businessmen who said life had come to a standstill in the federal capital, with the PTI trying to protest in the city and the government using shipping containers to block the roads in a bid to prevent the demonstration from taking place.

The court also observed in its order that people could not even access the airport or medical facilities under the circumstances.

Justice Farooq noted the Section 144 had already been imposed in the city, though he asked the Islamabad administration to allocated a place where the PTI could hold its protest.

The PTI has tried to hold the protest for the release of its founding leader, Imran Khan, at the D-Chowk in Islamabad which is located right next to some of the most sensitive government installations in the city.

The ruling administration has also accused the party of resorting to violence against police, adding that its supporters want to sabotage the SCO summit.

 


Indian minister Jaishankar rules out bilateral talks with Pakistan during SCO summit

Indian minister Jaishankar rules out bilateral talks with Pakistan during SCO summit
Updated 05 October 2024
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Indian minister Jaishankar rules out bilateral talks with Pakistan during SCO summit

Indian minister Jaishankar rules out bilateral talks with Pakistan during SCO summit
  • Pakistan had originally invited Narendra Modi along with other international leaders to the summit
  • Jaishankar says the Indian PM typically attends such high-level meetings, but it sometimes changes

ISLAMABAD: India’s External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said on Saturday he would not hold bilateral talks with Pakistan during his upcoming visit to Islamabad this month to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit.
His statement came only a day after the authorities in New Delhi announced his visit to Pakistan amid frosty relations between the two states to participate in the multilateral forum.
Pakistan had originally extended the invitation to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with other international leaders to attend the summit that will be held in Islamabad on October 15 and 16.
Jaishankar’s visit to Pakistan will be the first by a high-ranking Indian minister in nearly a decade. The last one was Sushma Swaraj, who traveled to Islamabad in December 2015 to attend a conference on Afghanistan.
“It (visit) will be for a multilateral event,” India Today quoted him as saying. “I’m not going there to discuss India-Pakistan relations. I’m going there to be a good member of the SCO.”
The Indian minister said Modi typically attended such high-level meetings involving heads of state, adding that the norm sometimes changes.
Relations between India and Pakistan hit a major low in 2019 when New Delhi revoked Article 370, which granted special autonomy to Muslim-majority state of Kashmir.
The South Asian neighbors have fought three wars, including two over control of the disputed Kashmir region in the Himalayas. New Delhi accuses Islamabad of aiding and abetting Islamist militants fighting Indian rule in the region, a charge Pakistan denies.
Last year in May, Pakistan’s former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari visited India to attend an SCO meeting in Goa.
While Bhutto-Zardari did not meet any Indian leaders, he and Jaishankar used the forum to trade blame for their strained relations.

With input from Reuters.


Imran Khan’s party says KP chief minister detained after clashes leave dozens of police injured

Imran Khan’s party says KP chief minister detained after clashes leave dozens of police injured
Updated 05 October 2024
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Imran Khan’s party says KP chief minister detained after clashes leave dozens of police injured

Imran Khan’s party says KP chief minister detained after clashes leave dozens of police injured
  • The development occurred shortly after the government blamed Ali Amin Gandapur for holding violent protests
  • PTI initially mentioned his arrest, but official sources denied the news that the CM had been taken into custody

ISLAMABAD: Police and paramilitary Rangers stormed the official guesthouse and administrative office for the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province in Islamabad on Saturday after federal authorities accused Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur of leading a violent protest to the capital and warned him not to “cross any more lines.”

Gandapur, a close aide of former prime minister Imran Khan, was said to be arrested by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, though local media quoted official sources as denying the news of his apprehension. The recent development happened as PTI announced a protest near the parliament building against proposed constitutional amendments that it claims are aimed at curtailing the independence of the judiciary, with the government repudiating the charge.

The PTI is also trying to mobilize supporters through protests and public gatherings to pressure the government for the release of Khan, who has been in prison since August last year and faces a slew of legal challenges.

Supporters and activists of former prime minister Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party take part in a protest in Islamabad on October 5, 2024. (AFP)

“Rangers have forcefully entered KP House and launched an aggressive attack in an attempt to arrest CM KPK Ali Amin Gandapur,” the PTI said in a social media post. “This blatant abuse of power is deeply shameful, raising serious concerns about the state of lawlessness in Pakistan.”

 

 

The federal government had suspended mobile services and placed shipping containers at the entry and exit points of Islamabad to prevent the PTI protest, describing it as an attempt to sabotage the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit in the capital this month.

Khan’s party said the government had failed to stop people from reaching Islamabad despite taking all such measures and had “now resorted to arresting a sitting Chief Minister of a province.”

Local media channels ran statements from official sources denying the arrest, even as they widely aired videos of heavy deployment of law enforcement and paramilitary personnel at the KP House in Islamabad.

Shortly before the development, Federal Minister for Interior Mohsin Naqvi blamed the PTI for carrying out violent protests and accused Gandapur of leading a “horde” to Islamabad.

“The responsibility for this [protest] definitely lies with the [PTI] leadership [Imran Khan] from where these instructions came,” he told the media. “After that, if someone is practically implementing them, it is the CM KPK [Gandapur] who is responsible. The CM KPK is responsible for the [current] situation since he is leading the horde that is marching on Islamabad.”

“I will say it to them once again that if they cross any more lines, it will force us to take extreme steps,” he added.

 

 

The minister also said the police had arrested 41 Afghan nationals during the clashes with the PTI and apprehended 120 Afghan citizens in the last 48 hours.

He maintained the PTI protesters had fired upon police personnel on their way to Islamabad and injured about 85 of them during clashes.

Naqvi stated that the government would not allow anyone to sabotage the SCO summit.

A day earlier, he had also maintained that the government’s decision to block roads and prevent the protest in Islamabad was aimed at ensuring an environment where adequate security could be provided to all state guests.


Cops injured, mobile phone services suspended in Islamabad as ex-PM Khan party moves ahead with protest plan

Cops injured, mobile phone services suspended in Islamabad as ex-PM Khan party moves ahead with protest plan
Updated 05 October 2024
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Cops injured, mobile phone services suspended in Islamabad as ex-PM Khan party moves ahead with protest plan

Cops injured, mobile phone services suspended in Islamabad as ex-PM Khan party moves ahead with protest plan
  • Khan’s PTI has announced protests in Islamabad, Lahore and all other districts across Punjab province on Saturday
  • Interior minister says nearly 80 policemen injured in firing incidents, 120 Afghans arrested in the last 48 hours

ISLAMABAD: Around 80 policemen have been injured as mobile phone services remained suspended and all roads leading to the Pakistani capital of Islamabad were blocked for a second consecutive day on Saturday amid a protest by former prime minister Imran Khan’s party, with Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi ruling out any talks with the protesters.
Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party has been holding protests across several Pakistani cities on Saturday against proposed constitutional amendments that it claims are aimed at curtailing the independence of the judiciary, a charge the government denies. The Pakistani opposition party is also trying to mobilize supporters through protests and large public gatherings to put pressure for the release of Khan, who has been in prison since August last year and faces a slew of legal challenges.
Speaking to reporters in Islamabad on Saturday, Naqvi said the protesters had fired upon police personnel on their way to Islamabad from the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province and injured 80-85 police, reiterating that the motive behind the PTI’s protest was to sabotage a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Heads of Government that is scheduled to take place in the Pakistani capital on October 15 and 16. He blamed KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur for the violence.
“We will not allow the SCO conference to be sabotaged in any case. We have an idea what exactly is their motive and how they plan to do all this,” Naqvi told reporters. “CM KPK is responsible for all this situation, because he is marching on Islamabad together with this horde, CM KPK is leading it.”


The interior minister said at least 120 Afghan nationals, who were part of the protest, had been arrested in the last 48 hours.
“Police was fired upon in Pathar Garh, where we had set up a blockade and from where CM KPK has moved ahead now, and they were constantly tear-gassing the police,” he said, warning the opposition party of not to force the government “to go to extreme steps.”
The PTI initially announced a protest at Islamabad’s D-Chowk square on Friday, but caravans of its supporters led by Gandapur failed to reach the capital the same day due to blockades of all roads and highways leading to Islamabad. Clashes erupted in Islamabad and nearby areas on Friday evening as Khan supporters tried to march toward the venue of the protest but were stopped by the police.
“CM KP Ali Amin’s convoy is currently being attacked with heavy tear-gas shelling,” the PTI said on X on Saturday noon.
Mobile phone and metro bus services remained suspended and schools and markets were closed in the capital for a second consecutive day on Saturday. The federal government also deployed army troops in the capital on Saturday to ensure security of the SCO summit.
Residents complained of immense difficulties in navigating the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi as all roads were blocked off with shipping containers.

Policemen fire tear gas shells and rubber bullets to disperse supporters of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party during a protest in Islamabad on October 5, 2024. (AFP
)

“You don’t want people to come into the city [Islamabad] and get to D-Chowk where the protest is but at least let people go outside the city,” taxi driver Arshad Shad, who was on foot, told Arab News. “Buses can’t move, there is no Internet, no mobile phone service. Families are stuck, they can’t come or go. So I don’t understand what the government is doing, they are only making life more difficult for the public.”
Zafar Iqbal, who deals in the sale and purchase of property, lamented frequent protests and their impact on businesses in the twin cities.
“Every fourth day there is a protest. This is very wrong. This shouldn’t happen. People’s businesses are getting affected and the public is being humiliated,” he told Arab News. “This is a curse for the public, for businessmen. There is already no business and people are worried.”
Protests in Punjab
The PTI also announced a protest in Lahore on Saturday, but Hammad Azhar, a key member of the party, announced on X that demonstrations would be held in all districts across Pakistan’s most populous province.
“Islamabad protest will continue,” he said on Saturday. “Apart from this, it is announced that protests will begin in all districts of Punjab from today. People from Lahore and its surroundings will join the protest in Lahore. There is a call for peaceful protests from today in all the rest of the districts of Punjab.”
Local news channels reported authorities had placed shipping containers on roads leading to the Minar-e-Pakistan monument in Lahore, where the PTI plans to hold the protest. The government has imposed Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, which allows the district administration to outlaw gatherings of more than four people on account of security threats, in various cities.