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For locals living in densely populated areas of the rain-prone city, the initiation of a reconstruction project for expanding the local drainage network would surely be a welcome move however, when the resulting repair work requires them to suffocate on dust and bear with incessant traffic jams for more than three long years, many would hope the project was never announced in the first place.

During the financial year 2021-22, the PTI government had initiated a million-rupee project to construct a new sewage drain from Sabzazar Scheme Mor to Kharak Nala since the old drain between Main Boulevard and Sabzazar had become inadequate for catering to the disposal needs of the growing population. Even though work on the Rs337 million initiative started soon after, within a few months a dispute between the Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) and the Lahore Development Authority (LDA) over the disbursement of funds caused the project to come to a standstill, leaving the local population of more than 2.5 million residents in a tormenting state.

With one side of the main boulevard road closed since the past four months due to the reinstallation of pipes, thousands of vehicles have been forced to ply both ways on a single side of the road. To add to the load of traffic on the road, dozens of roadside food shops and stalls have turned into mini food streets, with shoppers parking their cars and bikes on the roadside, resulting in regular accidents and quarrels. Furthermore, several feet of rainwater have accumulated on the road while the dust from the broken road has been making the residents of the area sick for several months.

“The delays in the construction work have instigated frequent traffic jams. Moreover, the air in our area has become so dusty that it is difficult to breathe. It seems that the present government is not interested in completing this project since it was initiated by the previous regime. Surprisingly, even the caretaker Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi, known for his ‘Mohsin Speed’, did not pay attention to the problem facing millions of people,” resented Nabila Shahid and Anbrin Malik, locals from the area.

Similarly, Asim Khawaja, a shop owner at Liaquat Chowk, revealed that the long-running project had significantly diminished the sales of hundreds of traders like him. “Since one side of the road is in an unusable condition, customers have little or no access to our shops,” said Khawaja.

According to Muhammad Umar, a resident of Sabzazar, Sabzazar is a very important area of Lahore as residents of Murghazar, Awan Town, Hasan Town, Syedpur, Dabanpura, Hafiz Town and several other areas use the Main Boulevard to access the highway from Babu Sabu Chowk, but since the past four years this entire area has been left in ruins due to the conflict between WASA and LDA.

It is worth mentioning that Rs300 million have been spent on the project till January 2024 while the overall cost of the project is expected to increase due to the increasing costs of construction material and labour over the years.

Talking to the Express Tribune, PML-N Member Punjab Assembly Khalid Khokhar and National Assembly ticket holder Hafiz Nauman said, “There was a disagreement between WASA and LDA over the issue of funds which has now been resolved. We have met the DG of LDA and apprised him of the plight of the people. We have been assured that work on the project will resume in September as soon as the monsoon season is over. A tender is being issued for the outstanding work.”

Hollywood star Tom Cruise is reportedly preparing to perform an epic stunt at the closing ceremony of the Paris Olympic Games, setting the stage for the next Summer Olympics in Los Angeles in four years.

Widely known as one of the most recognisable faces globally and an acclaimed actor with multiple Academy Award nominations, is also renowned for his love of adrenaline-fueled stunts. His latest venture might cement his reputation as one of the biggest thrill-seekers in history, on par with legendary stunt performer Evel Knievel.

The 62-year-old actor is said to be closing the 2024 Games and passing the flag over to Los Angeles for the 2028 Olympics. According to TMZ, the stunt will involve Cruise descending from the top of the Stade de France, landing on the stadium’s field with the Olympic flag in hand.

The televised broadcast will then cut to a pre-recorded film of Cruise flying with the Olympic flag from France to Los Angeles. In the final segment of the stunt, Cruise will skydive down to the iconic Hollywood sign, a feat that was already filmed on a Saturday morning in March. At the time, it was widely assumed that the stunt was for one of his movies, but its true purpose has since been revealed.

Cruise has already been seen in Paris, supporting top athletes and preparing for his role in the closing ceremony. Photos of Cruise’s skydiving stunt were captured by paparazzi back in March, though the connection to the Olympic Games was not made until now. Following the Hollywood sign jump, the film will show Cruise passing the Olympic flag to other athletes, including a cyclist, a skateboarder, and a volleyball player.

The entire stunt concept was devised by Cruise himself, although the Olympic Committee initially approached him to perform a series of stunts linking the Paris and Los Angeles Games. Cruise’s involvement with the Olympics is not new; in 2004, he participated in the torch relay through Los Angeles as part of the lead-up to the Athens Games.

This ambitious stunt is expected to be a highlight of the Paris Olympics closing ceremony, showcasing Cruise’s unique blend of creativity and daredevilry, while symbolically bridging the transition from Paris to Los Angeles for the upcoming 2028 Games.

Ethiopia’s Tamirat Tola claimed gold in the men’s marathon at the Paris Olympics on Saturday, while Kenya’s Eliud Kipchoge, who was aiming for an unprecedented third consecutive Olympic title, failed to finish the race. Belgium’s Bashir Abdi secured silver, improving on his bronze from the Tokyo Games, and Kenya’s Benson Kipruto took bronze.

Tola established a strong lead early on and finished the race in two hours, six minutes, and 26 seconds, setting an Olympic record. This achievement was particularly noteworthy given the challenging nature of the course, described by World Athletics as the toughest in any Olympics or championship.

Tola explained that his initial strategy was to stay with the leading pack but eventually decided to push ahead on his own. He admitted facing difficulties on the uphill sections but gained confidence after passing the 41-kilometre mark, realising he had just one kilometre left. Until that point, he was cautious and frequently looked back, uncertain of his lead.

Throughout the race, Tola emerged as the strongest runner from a group of frontrunners, particularly during the first steep ascent of the hilly course. As others began to falter, Tola only seemed to grow stronger, especially on the second hill, which allowed him to extend his lead and secure the gold medal.

“My intention was just to keep up with the people who were going out and then after some point I decided to try to push on my own,” Tola said.

Tola had an 18-second lead by the 35km mark, which he extended as the Eiffel Tower came into sight and crowds lining the streets roared him on. He became the first Ethiopian winner of the Olympic men’s marathon in 24 years.

Tola’s victory was all the more sweet given he was not initially on the team, having been called up after Sisay Lemma withdrew due to a hamstring injury.

Tola, 32, won the New York marathon last year in a course record.

He crossed the finish line cheered on by Haile Gebrselassie, Ethiopia’s former double Olympic 10,000m champion, whom he has cited as one of his inspirations to become a marathon runner.

Kipchoge, widely considered the greatest marathon runner of all time, failed to bag a third consecutive gold, defeated by the first ascent of the course that took athletes out to Versailles.

He had been among the frontrunners but that hill broke up the leading pack and proved too much for the 39-year-old, who was participating in his fifth Olympics.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has cancelled a planned holiday to focus on his government’s response to recent racist riots targeting Muslims and migrants, according to a Downing Street source. Thousands of police officers remained on duty over the weekend as a precaution against further violence, though for the fourth consecutive day on Saturday, counter-protesters outnumbered anti-migration demonstrators in several towns and cities.

The anonymous source confirmed that Starmer would not be going on holiday next week. The government has expedited the processing of those arrested and charged in connection with the riots. As of Friday, 741 arrests had been made since the unrest began, with 302 individuals charged. Police indicated that arrests would likely continue for months.

On Saturday, the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) announced that specialist officers were tasked with pursuing online offenders and influencers who spread hate and incited violence. Chris Haward, the NPCC’s lead for serious and organised crime, stated that online crimes would be treated as seriously as physical violence.

At least two people were recently jailed for inciting racial hatred through social media messages. The riots were sparked by false online claims that the suspected killer of three young girls in a knife attack on 29 July in Southport, northwest England, was an Islamist migrant.

King Charles, on Friday, called for mutual respect and understanding, praising community groups for countering the “aggression and criminality from a few,” according to a Buckingham Palace spokesperson.

The campaign team of Republican US presidential candidate Donald Trump announced on Saturday that some of its internal communications had been hacked, attributing the breach to the Iranian government. The campaign did not present direct evidence but referred to previous tensions between Trump and Iran.

This statement followed a report by Politico, which disclosed that it had received emails in July from an anonymous source offering genuine documents from within Trump’s campaign. These documents included a report outlining the “potential vulnerabilities” of Trump’s running mate, JD Vance. Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung claimed that these documents were illegally obtained by foreign entities hostile to the United States, with the intention of disrupting the 2024 election and causing chaos in the democratic process.

Reuters has not been able to independently confirm the identity of the hackers or their motivations.

The Trump campaign also pointed to a report released on Friday by Microsoft researchers, which indicated that hackers linked to the Iranian government attempted to breach the account of a “high-ranking official” in a US presidential campaign in June. The hackers reportedly took control of an account belonging to a former political advisor and used it to target the official. The report did not provide specific details about the identities of the targets.

A Microsoft spokesperson declined to disclose the names of the officials targeted or provide further information following the publication of the report.

Iran’s foreign ministry and its UN representative did not immediately respond to requests for comment. However, in response to Microsoft’s findings, Iran’s mission to the UN stated on Friday that its cyber capabilities are “defensive and proportionate to the threats it faces” and that it does not intend to conduct cyberattacks. The mission also emphasised that the US presidential election is an internal matter in which Iran does not interfere.

During his presidency, Trump had a strained relationship with Iran, including ordering the killing of Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani in 2020 and withdrawing the United States from the Iran nuclear deal. Cheung asserted that the Iranian government is aware that Trump would end their “reign of terror” as he did during his first term in office.

Some members of the US Congress have called for sanctions against Bangladeshi officials associated with Sheikh Hasina, who recently resigned as prime minister and fled the country. Meanwhile, the US government has welcomed the establishment of a new caretaker government in Bangladesh.

The interim government, led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus, was sworn in on Thursday with the mandate to oversee upcoming elections. Bangladesh has been gripped by protests and violence following student-led demonstrations against quotas that allocated a large portion of government jobs to specific groups. These protests evolved into a broader movement demanding the removal of Hasina, who secured a fourth consecutive term in January in an election boycotted by the opposition and criticised by the US State Department as neither free nor fair.

Hasina’s departure followed a violent crackdown on demonstrators that resulted in the deaths of at least 300 people, many of whom were students.

US Senator Van Hollen, a Democratic member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, stated, “The Bangladeshi leaders who orchestrated this brutal crackdown must be held accountable,” and urged sanctions against former Home Affairs Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal and Obaidul Quader, the general secretary of Hasina’s Awami League party.

Van Hollen, along with five other Democratic lawmakers, sent a letter to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, advocating for sanctions on these officials. The State Department has not commented on potential sanctions.

Secretary Blinken expressed his support for the new interim government, led by Dr. Muhammad Yunus, on social media, endorsing his appeal for calm and peace. Human rights organisations had previously accused Hasina of using excessive force against protesters, allegations she denied.

Following Hasina’s departure, the student protests have expanded, now calling for the removal of more officials appointed during her tenure. Hasina fled to New Delhi, ending her 15-year rule over Bangladesh, a nation of 170 million people. Her fall from power has led to both celebrations and violence, including attacks on her official residence, the destruction of statues of her father, and reported violence against minority communities.

Former Bollywood actress and author Twinkle Khanna has playfully warned her husband, Akshay Kumar, about the consequences of remarriage, even before the thought could cross his mind.

According to Indian media, Twinkle Khanna shared an amusing anecdote in her latest blog about her recent vacation with Akshay Kumar. During their trip, the couple engaged in a light-hearted conversation about the possibility of Akshay marrying again.

In her blog, Twinkle revealed that one evening, as they were heading back to their camp, their tour guide introduced them to a pair of birds known as ‘tick-tock.’

The guide explained that these birds are so devoted to each other that if one dies, the other consumes poisonous grass to end its own life.

This story prompted Twinkle to jokingly tell Akshay that if she were to pass away first, he should follow the bird’s example and eat the poisonous grass too. She added, “Because if you remarry after my death and I see you two together, I promise I will haunt both of you!”

Twinkle shared that Akshay, with a nod and a smile, humorously responded, “I’d rather eat the poisonous grass now so I don’t have to listen to this nonsense.”

It is worth noting that Akshay Kumar and Twinkle Khanna tied the knot in 2001 and have two children together.

Walt Disney Experiences Chairman Josh D’Amaro laid out an ambitious growth plan for the company’s theme parks on Saturday at the D23 fan convention, announcing plans for four new cruise ships and details about six new themed lands.

Forthcoming plans include a new Disney villains land at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom in Orlando, Florida, a doubling of the size of the Avengers Campus at the Disney California Adventure Park in Anaheim, California, and details about its partnership with Fortnite creator Epic Games.

“This, for us, is an unprecedented era of growth,” D’Amaro said.

The two new attractions at its Marvel-themed Avengers Campus at California Adventure will be Avengers: Infinity Defense and the Stark Flight Lab, the company said.

California Adventure will also add a new ‘Avatar’ experience at the California Adventure, based on the second film in the science fiction franchise, “Avatar: The Way of Water”, it said.

To commemorate the 70th anniversary next year of the Disneyland park in Anaheim, a show based on the life of Walt Disney featuring an audio-animatronic figure of the company’s founder will be opened.

Disney also unveiled two attractions for the new Tropical Americas expansion coming to Disney’s Animal Kingdom park in Orlando, Florida. One follows Indiana Jones on an exploration of a Mayan temple. Another is inspired by the Disney animated film “Encanto” and follows the character Antonio on the day he received his magical gift. Tropical Americas is set to open in 2027.

Actor Billy Crystal took the stage to announce an area at Disney’s Hollywood Studios dedicated to the Pixar film, “Monsters, Inc”. The area, known as a land in Disney theme park parlance, will feature a suspended roller coaster designed to simulate zooming through the door vault at the Laugh Factory, just like characters Mike and Sulley in the film.

Pixar’s “Cars” film franchise also comes to the Magic Kingdom in Orlando, in a re-imagined area of Frontierland, with two new attractions planned. One will take guests on an off-road thrill ride into the wilderness beyond the film’s fictional Radiator Springs setting. Construction is scheduled to begin early next year.

The fan favorite announcement, based on the audience reaction, was D’Amaro’s statement Disney will create a new area devoted to Disney’s villains at the Magic Kingdom, with two attractions, dining and shopping.

These announcements reveal how the company will begin $60 billion in capital investments, nearly doubling spending over the next decade to improve attractions at its 12 parks and increase cruise line capacity.

“Everything that we’re going to share with you tonight is in active development,” D’Amaro said. “This means that plans are drawn. This means that dirt is moving. I just want to be clear with all the fans out there. This isn’t blue sky.”

Cruise fleet expands

Disney also said it will add four cruise ships to its growing fleet, capitalizing on an industry that has been enjoying a rebound from the global shutdown during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The company currently has five cruise ships in operation, and previously announced four others, including one Tokyo-based vessel and another that will set sail from Singapore in 2025. These new vessels will start operating between 2027 and 2031.

D’Amaro was joined onstage by the company’s creative leads to discuss Disney’s collaboration with video-game maker Epic Games. The company invested $1.5 billion in Epic earlier this year, giving Disney an equity stake in the creator of Fortnite and Unreal Engine.

Disney announced new characters and stories are coming to the online game, including Disney villains as well as characters from the Pixar superhero film, “The Incredibles,” and the Disney+ series “The Mandalorian” about a lone bounty hunter from the Star Wars universe.

Disney’s parks have become a reliable profit engine, helping cushion the impact of declines in traditional television and losses in its video streaming business, which last quarter turned a profit.

The experiences unit, which includes parks, cruise ships and consumer products, contributed 60% of the company’s operating profit in the most recent quarter – up from 30% just a decade ago.

A drone attack that killed over 200 fleeing Rohingya Muslims near the Bangladesh border on Monday has forced hundreds to return to their hometowns, while thousands are still taking shelter in paddy fields awaiting to cross into neighboring Bangladesh, a rights group said on Sunday.

Risking their lives, a few hundred have moved toward areas held by the rebel group, which is accused of carrying out the deadly drone attack near the Naf River that makes a natural boundary between Bangladesh and Myanmar.

“Rohingya in Maungdaw (town) are still trying to flee to Bangladesh. Some are fleeing to areas controlled by the Arakan Army as they don’t see any other alternative, Nay San Lwin, the co-founder of Free Rohingya Coalition, told Anadolu.

Free Rohingya Coalition is a global network of Rohingya activists.

Monday’s deadly attack took place in Maungdaw township of Myanmar’s Rakhine state, which borders Bangladesh.

Videos posted on social media showed piles of bodies strewn across muddy ground, with their luggage scattered around them.

The latest attack, viewed as part of an ongoing onslaught by the rebel group on Rohingya, has raised fears of further escalation in violence against the fleeing people, who have already been reeling from a systemic cleansing operation by Myanmar’s military junta.

Thousands of Rohingya had fled to Maungdaw township following the capture of adjoining Buthidaung town by rebels in May this year.

Buthidaung has the largest Rohingya population since the massive wave of violence against the Rohingya in 2017 by the Myanmar army.

‘Forceful’ conscription

The Arakan Army is “forcibly” conscripting Rohingya youth in Buthudaung, aside from committing “numerous” other abuses, according to Nay.

“In recent days, the Arakan Army has ordered two villages — Sein Hynin Pyar and Hpon Nyo Leik — to provide them with at least 100 Rohingya youth,” he said.

The rebel group, according to him, threatened that the Rohingya’s villages would be burned down if the youth were not provided for its force.

Families are being forced to pay huge amounts to avoid forced conscription, he further said.

The Arakan Army after killing almost 2,000 Rohingya and burning thousands of Rohingya houses in Buthidaung in May, began targeting the Muslim community in Maungdaw in early June, according to Nay.

Since then, he added, at least 400 Rohingya have been killed in Maungdaw.

“The Rohingya in Maungdaw are still fleeing, but due to Bangladesh’s strict policy of not allowing new refugees, many have been turned away at the border, and some have been sent back to Myanmar recently,” Nay maintained.

As of now, some Rohingya are fleeing to areas controlled by the Arakan Army.

“The humanitarian situation is very dire. The suffering in Buthidaung is beyond imagination,” he observed.

Some 600,000 members of the mostly Muslim ethnic group remain in the state, while more than 750,000 Rohingya refugees, mostly women, and children, fled Myanmar and crossed into Bangladesh after Myanmar forces launched a crackdown on the minority Muslim community in August 2017, pushing the number of persecuted people in Bangladesh above 1.2 million.

The Arakan Army suspended a cease-fire agreement in November that had been in place since the February 2021 military coup d’etat.