• Migrant workers, who make up nearly half the Gulf’s workforce, are facing heightened risks as the conflict escalates
• ‘He kept asking me about Eid preparations, particularly about clothes and shoes for his daughters and son … I don’t know what Eid would be without him,’ says father of Pakistani man killed in Dubai

Aamir Latif and Sidrah Roghay

KARACHI, Pakistan

On what should be a time of celebration, families across Pakistan will instead be marking Eid in mourning, after their loved ones working in the Gulf were killed in the Iran conflict.

At least 23 workers from countries including Pakistan, India and Bangladesh have been killed or are reported missing since the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran, according to an Anadolu tally.

Muzaffar Ali, a 28-year-old from Pakistan’s Sindh province, was among those killed when shrapnel from a missile struck his car in Dubai. He left behind three young children, the eldest just 7 years old.

“He went to Dubai four years ago in search of a better life,” his uncle Abdul Hakim told Anadolu by phone. “He was paying off the loans he had taken from relatives for the move. The last time we spoke, he told me he had nearly paid off everything he owed. Now he could finally settle down.”

Ali was among three Pakistanis confirmed dead in the Middle East conflict. A fourth Pakistani fisherman was killed in Iranian waters after being struck by debris from an intercepted Israeli missile.

“Shrapnel wounded his face. He died at the hospital,” Hakim said. “I don’t know who will feed his family. He was the breadwinner.”

The nearly two dozen people from Asian nations killed or missing since the conflict began include six from India, four from Bangladesh, and one person each from China, Nepal and the Philippines. Three Indonesians and three Thais remain missing in waters off Oman and in the Strait of Hormuz.

Migrant workers on the front lines

Migrant workers account for nearly half the workforce in Gulf Cooperation Council countries – Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE – and make up the majority of the population in several of them. They are also present in large numbers in Jordan, Lebanon, Iran and Israel, according to the Coalition on Labor Justice for Migrants in the Gulf.

Many work under the restrictive kafala, or sponsorship, system, which ties them to employers and often limits their ability to leave or even hold their own passports. While Saudi Arabia has introduced reforms under its Vision 2030 program, similar systems remain in place elsewhere.

“This systemic lack of mobility further traps migrant workers in conflict zones, limiting their movement,” the migrant workers’ coalition says, warning that employers may withhold wages, deny leave or dismiss workers without compensation during the crisis, cutting off vital remittances to families across Asia and Africa.

Since the war began, several Gulf countries have introduced remote work and school closures as they contend with Iranian retaliatory strikes. Migrant workers, however, are far more likely to remain exposed, continuing jobs that require physical presence.

The Coalition on Labor Justice for Migrants in the Gulf also says that migrant workers are often excluded from emergency evacuation plans and denied access to shelters.

Eid without celebration

In Ganz, a small coastal village in Pakistan’s southwestern Gwadar region, the atmosphere is subdued as the family of 17-year-old Mohammad Tayyab struggles to process his death.

Tayyab, the youngest of four brothers, had left school after his father’s death to help support the family by smuggling cheaper Iranian petrol into Pakistan.

On March 7, as he returned home by boat with a helper, debris from an intercepted projectile struck their vessel in the Arabian Sea.

“I was about to break the fast when I received news that Tayyab’s boat was hit. The news fell like a bombshell,” his maternal uncle Asghar Hussain told Anadolu.

Since the start of the war, Pakistan has shut its border with Iran, cutting off livelihoods for thousands of fishermen and informal traders along Balochistan’s coast.

“We, especially Tayyab’s mother, are still struggling to overcome this shock. There will be no celebrations this Eid, just mourning,” Hussain said.

Miles away, in Pakistan’s northwestern Bannu district, 70-year-old Nadir Ali is mourning his son, Murib Zaman, who died when debris from an intercepted missile hit the building where he lived in Abu Dhabi.

Zaman, 48, had worked as a driver in the UAE for nearly eight years. A father of five, he had recently been discussing Eid preparations with his family.

“He kept asking me about Eid preparations, particularly about clothes and shoes for his daughters and son,” Nadir Ali said. “Don’t worry about the money,” he recalled his son telling him.

“The kids were his life. Every time he called, he first asked about their health, education and well-being,” he said, fighting back tears.

“I don’t know what Eid would be without him.”

Mehran Rashid, Zaman’s would-be son-in-law, said he had spoken to him just days before his death.

“He reminded me to take the kids shopping before Eid and to the park on Eid day,” Rashid said.

Now, he added, the children refuse to celebrate.

“They don’t want any new clothes or anything. They just look at pictures of their father several times a day.”

Read: Iran at War: Ancient Roots, Modern Conflicts

_______________

Courtesy: Anadolu Agency (Posted on 19.03.2026)

The post 23 Migrant Workers Killed in War first appeared on Sindh Courier.

 By Nazarul Islam | USA

A research article published in the prestigious journal ‘Annals of Internal Medicine’ states that the US hospitals which were acquired by private equity firms, have recorded patient death rates in the emergency departments rising by 13% compared with similar hospitals.

The research, which compared outcomes at hospitals over a 10-year period, adds fresh evidence to previous studies showing harmful patient outcomes and higher costs among health care entities owned by profit-oriented financiers.

The increased deaths in emergency departments at private equity-owned hospitals are most likely the result of reduced staffing levels after the acquisitions, which the study also measured, said Dr. Zirui Song, a co-author and associate professor of health care policy and medicine at Harvard Medical School.

After hospitals were acquired by private equity, the number of full-time employees fell by an average 11.6% compared with non-private equity facilities, the research found, and salary expenditures in the emergency departments and intensive care units declined by 18% and 16%, respectively.

“Most hospital care in the country remains a face-to-face, human, labor-intensive endeavor, especially in emergency departments and ICUs,” Song said in an interview. “When human labor is cut to this extent in staffing sensitive areas of the hospital, patient harm can plausibly ensue, including mortality.”

The new study have analyzed 1.0 million emergency department visits by Medicare patients at 49 private equity-owned hospitals from 2009 through 2019. The researchers compared the outcomes of those visits with more than 6 million visits at 293 matched hospitals — those of similar size and location — not acquired by private equity.

Read: A worrisome trend in American hospitals is hurting poor patients

The study’s co-authors, in addition to Song, are José R. Zubizarreta of Harvard University, Dr. Sneha Kannan of the University of Pittsburgh, Joseph Dov Bruch of the University of Chicago and Dr. Jennifer Stevens, director of the Center for Healthcare Delivery Science at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.

Song had pointed out that the new research differed from previous studies on private equity’s impact, which focused on patients who were admitted to the hospital. “There are far more patients who come into the emergency department than patients who are actually admitted into the wards of the hospital,” Song said, “so this study looks at a patient population that had not been examined in great depth before.”

Private equity firms are sophisticated financial operators that buy companies, typically loading them with large amounts of debt to pay for the acquisitions. The firms hope to sell the companies for profit a few years later. The private equity industry has poured over $1 trillion into health care companies in recent years.

Health care has been a focus of the financiers because it accounts for 18% of gross domestic product in the United States. Because their acquisitions add debt costs to the companies they buy, those operations must cut other expenses to offset the burden. Employees are often the first to be fired, and costs are often increased to generate higher profits.

Some hospitals owned by private-equity firms sell the land under their buildings, enriching the owners but saddling the facilities with higher rent costs. Dr. Robert McNamara, chairman of the department of emergency medicine at Temple University’s Lewis Katz School of Medicine, said the new research confirms what doctors in the field have long complained about: being stretched too thin by private equity owners.

“When private equity comes in, they try to jack up the revenues and then, when that reaches an end point, they start slashing expenses,” McNamara said in an interview. “Instead of people just losing their jobs, you have bad patient outcomes here. Less staff equals worse outcomes.”

The new research on increased deaths in emergency departments at private equity-owned hospitals aligns with a 2021 study that found 11% higher mortality rates at nursing homes owned by private equity. That study, by academics at New York University, the University of Chicago and the University of Pennsylvania, concluded that lower nursing staffs and declines in compliance with care standards contributed to the increased deaths at financier-owned homes.

Some states are enacting laws to rein in private equity’s impact on health care. In June, Oregon enacted a law limiting the control corporations and private equity can have over health care operations. And in Indiana, a new law expands the attorney general’s powers to investigate health care transactions and mandates reporting on ownership stakes in health care entities by private equity investors and other owners.

Read: Black Plague—Was it God’s Punishment?

_____________________

The Bengal-born writer Nazarul Islam is a senior educationist based in USA. He writes for Sindh Courier and the newspapers of Bangladesh, India and America. He is author of a recently published book ‘Chasing Hope’ – a compilation of his articles.

The post A matter of life and death first appeared on Sindh Courier.

Aamir Latif 

KARACHI, Sindh, Pakistan

A Chinese mountaineer has died after being hit by falling rocks at K2, the world’s second-highest peak, in northern Pakistan, the country’s official mountaineering association announced on Wednesday.

Guan Jing died on Tuesday night while descending from the summit of 8,611-meter (26,246-foot) K2, located in the scenic Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) region, which borders neighboring China, the Alpine Club of Pakistan said in a statement.

Her death marked the third fatal accident in less than a month in GB, home to five peaks above 8,000 meters.

German mountaineer and Olympic gold medalist Laura Dahlmeier died while attempting to scale Laila Peak in GB on July 30.

In another incident, a Pakistani climber, Iftikhar Hussain, was killed and three others, including foreign mountaineers, were injured after an avalanche hit their location on K2 on July 19.

The latest accident occurred on the Abruzzi Spur route between Camp I and Advanced Base Camp — a section notorious for frequent rockfalls.

Guan had reached the summit on Monday with a group of climbers before beginning her descent.

Rescuers have launched an operation to recover her body, while other climbers who also summited K2 that day are now returning safely to base camp.

In total, more than 30 climbers reached the top of K2 on Monday.

K2, located in Pakistan’s Karakoram Range, is considered one of the most dangerous peaks in the world due to its extreme weather and challenging climbing conditions.

Read: Pakistan Mountain Tragedy Claims German Life

___________________

Aamir Latif is a senior journalist based in Karachi, Sindh. He represents Anadolu, a Turkish news agency.

Courtesy: Anadolu Agency (Posted on 13.08.2025)

The post K2 Descent Claims Chinese Climber’s Life first appeared on Sindh Courier.

We are not meant to live forever, but we are meant to live well.

By Abdullah Usman Morai | Sweden

The Stillness of the Stone

On a cloudy afternoon, you find yourself walking through a graveyard. The gravel crunches under your feet, the wind stirs dry leaves across the stones, and names stare back from moss-covered slabs — each name a life once bursting with breath, laughter, dreams, and struggle.

Here lies someone who died at twenty, just months after celebrating their engagement. A few feet away, a mother who passed in her forties, leaving behind three children. A student who had just started university, a retired man who was planning to travel the world with his wife. All their plans, dreams, fears, and routines ended here. Abruptly. Quietly.

And yet, outside this place of truth, we live as if death is an exception, not a guarantee. We postpone joy. We delay healing. We forget how fragile we are.

To reckon with mortality — through graveyard visits, end-of-life conversations, or the difficult topic of voluntary euthanasia — is not morbid. It is one of the most deeply human things we can do. And perhaps, one of the most liberating.

The Graveyard as a Mirror

Graveyards do not lie. They do not flatter or exaggerate. They present the undeniable truth: everyone dies. But in that truth, there is a strange, unexpected gift — the chance to live better.

Take the story of a 33-year-old woman — let’s call her Ayesha — who had just started her own bakery business, finally pursuing her dream after years of working jobs she didn’t love. She had plans to expand, to open a second shop, to hire a small team. And then, within three months of her diagnosis with aggressive pancreatic cancer, she was gone. The walls of her shop still had her notes on recipe experiments when her brother had to pack up her belongings.

Or consider a young man — let’s call him Faraz — who had just received his acceptance to a prestigious PhD program abroad. On a morning jog, he collapsed from an undiagnosed heart condition. He never got to book his flight.

When you stand in a graveyard, you notice something peculiar: the dates. Some lived 90 years, others barely 9. The unpredictability shakes something inside you. You stop taking time for granted. You start asking, ‘What really matters?’ You think about whether the grudges, the social media drama, the late nights at the office, the arguments over nothing, were ever worth it.

Graveyards teach us that our legacy will not be our possessions but our presence. Not our resumes but our relationships.

Voluntary Euthanasia: Compassion and Complexity

And then there are those who know the end is coming — not suddenly, but slowly and painfully. They face not just mortality, but unbearable suffering. For them, the question is not whether death will come, but how.

Voluntary euthanasia, or assisted dying, is the choice to end one’s life with medical assistance when faced with terminal illness, extreme suffering, or irreversible deterioration. It remains highly controversial, ethically complex, and deeply personal.

Countries like the Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, Switzerland, and certain states in Australia and the United States (such as Oregon and California) have legalized forms of euthanasia or physician-assisted dying, often with strict regulations.

In Belgium, a man in his seventies — let’s call him Johan — who had lived with advanced multiple sclerosis for over a decade, opted for euthanasia after he lost the ability to speak and swallow. He had made his decision months in advance, discussed it openly with his family, and held their hands as he peacefully passed away, surrounded by love, not machinery.

In Canada, a woman named Elise, battling terminal ovarian cancer, chose medical assistance in dying (MAiD) after months of pain medications no longer worked. Her last days were not spent in a hospital bed, sedated and distant, but at home, laughing softly with her children, choosing her final hour with dignity.

Critics argue that such decisions can lead down slippery ethical slopes. Some fear abuse, coercion, or a weakening of society’s respect for life. Others argue that terminally ill patients deserve the right to choose a compassionate end.

And in truth, both sides are rooted in deep concern for human dignity. The difference lies in interpretation: is dignity in enduring to the last breath, or in choosing when and how to let go?

The Denial of Death in Modern Society

Despite death being the most universal experience, modern society hides it away. We avoid talking about it, preparing for it, or even acknowledging its inevitability. The elderly are often isolated, the dying medicated into silence, and grief is expected to be “managed” quickly.

We speak of “beating death” with technology, of reversing aging, of upgrading our bodies — all in a desperate attempt to dodge the truth that we are temporary.

This denial breeds a dangerous illusion of invincibility. It fosters selfishness, materialism, and emotional detachment. We invest so much energy in achieving, possessing, and appearing powerful — only to be undone by the smallest things: a virus, an accident, a cell mutation.

Our refusal to confront death not only leaves us unprepared for our own passing, but deeply unempathetic toward others. We don’t know how to talk to someone grieving. We don’t know how to sit in silence with the dying. We don’t even know how to say goodbye.

But if we allowed death back into the conversation — not as a horror, but as a companion — we might learn to live differently.

Embracing Mortality as Strength

Acknowledging death does not diminish life; it illuminates it. In many cultures, rituals around death are not morbid but sacred.

In Japan, Buddhist monks meditate on death to better cherish life. In Mexico, Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is a vibrant celebration that honors ancestors and keeps their memory alive. In Islam, visiting graveyards is recommended to remember one’s own return to dust and to foster humility. In Christianity, the phrase “from dust you came and to dust you shall return” is spoken during Ash Wednesday — a reminder of earthly impermanence.

Moreover, many spiritual traditions understand this well. Buddhism teaches meditating on death as a path to enlightenment. Sufism encourages “dying before death” — letting go of ego to touch the divine. In Christianity and Islam, grave visits are encouraged as acts of remembrance and humility. Judaism speaks of “Tikkun Olam” — the moral duty to repair the world during our fleeting time here. Even indigenous cultures honor ancestors to bridge life and death as one cycle.

These rituals teach us to hold life tenderly, to say “I love you” before it’s too late, to write the letter we’ve been meaning to send, to hug a little longer. Facing death makes life sacred again.

Even writing a living will, expressing your end-of-life wishes, or visiting a graveyard once a year — these acts can center us. They make us aware, compassionate, and awake.

The Fragility of Human Life and the Ties That Bind Us

We are so breakable. And yet, so connected.

One person’s passing affects dozens — sometimes hundreds. We are sons, daughters, lovers, friends, coworkers, teachers, neighbors. A death is never singular. It sends ripples through every life it touched.

Recognizing this should make us gentler. It should reduce our harshness, increase our patience, and remind us that everyone we meet is walking a path toward the same end.

It also puts euthanasia into a larger context. It’s not just about the right to die — it’s about how we, as a society, treat suffering. Whether we allow autonomy, compassion, and dignity. Whether we provide options, care, and understanding. Whether we recognize that fragility demands not control, but mercy.

The Final Whisper

As you walk out of the graveyard, something within you has shifted. The world looks the same — the sun shines, the cars pass, birds chirp — but you have heard the whisper of truth. Life is short. Death is certain. Love is what matters.

Ayesha never got to open her second bakery. Faraz never boarded that plane. Johan and Elise chose their final days with intention. Each of them leaves behind a lesson — not in how they died, but in how they lived, and how they prepared for the end.

So pause. Reflect. If your name were to be etched on stone tomorrow, what would you want remembered? What would you change today?

We are not meant to live forever, but we are meant to live well.

Final Reflective Question

If life is uncertain and death is certain, how will you choose to live your remaining days?

Read: Unveiling the Essence of Beauty

__________________

Abdullah Soomro, penname Abdullah Usman Morai, hailing from Moro town of Sindh, province of Pakistan, is based in Stockholm Sweden. Currently he is working as Groundwater Engineer in Stockholm Sweden. He did BE (Agriculture) from Sindh Agriculture University Tando Jam and MSc water systems technology from KTH Stockholm Sweden as well as MSc Management from Stockholm University. Beside this he also did masters in journalism and economics from Shah Abdul Latif University Khairpur Mirs, Sindh. He is author of a travelogue book named ‘Musafatoon’. His second book is in process. He writes articles from time to time. A frequent traveler, he also does podcast on YouTube with channel name: VASJE Podcast.

The post Walking Among the Departed first appeared on Sindh Courier.

• ‘Israeli forces have been deliberately targeting health facilities and medical professionals with open intention to kill more and more people,’ Dr. Ibrahim Elakkad

Aamir Latif 

KARACHI, Sindh, Pakistan

Many people in Gaza are dying due to a “totally” crippled health care system, a situation exacerbated by recent bombings by Tel Aviv that have further strained the enclave’s already limited medical resources, a Palestinian doctor said.

Speaking to Anadolu, Ibrahim Elakkad, who served as head of ENT department at Nasser Medical Complex, Gaza’s one of the largest hospitals, until February, said the public and private health systems almost “no longer exist.”

Elakkad is currently in Pakistan’s port city of Karachi.

“Israeli forces have been deliberately targeting health facilities and medical professionals with an open intention to kill more and more people,” Elakkad, whose brother and sister have been killed in Israeli bombing last year, said, recounting the harrowing scenes.

During the interview, he received the news about the killing of his cousin, and the latter’s children in Israeli bombing on the first day of Eid al-Fitr in Gaza.

Elakkad is currently residing in Egypt, and waiting for a pause in bombing to return to Gaza to join his duty.

Most of the big hospitals, he said, are dysfunctional now because of relentless Israeli bombing. The only one still working with 50% capacity is the Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis city.

Al-Shifa Hospital, Gaza’s largest health facility, located in the neighborhood of northern Rimal, has returned to its “minimal functionality” amid an acute shortage of doctors, equipment and medicines, he added.

Regarding the private health care centers, he said: “100% are out of work after being destroyed because of Israeli bombing.”

Most of the doctors, according to Elakkad, have either left Gaza, or have been killed and arrested by Israeli forces.

“There is an acute shortage of surgeons and specialists as they have either been evacuated to Egypt or sent to Israeli jails,” he further said.

⁠’Things are scarier than imagination’

Elakkad, who had studied at Sindh Medical University Karachi from 1985 to 1991, said that doctors, who are still serving in Gaza, are facing obstacles in performing their duties, ranging from a lack of equipment to a lack of disposables, and to shortages of medicines, including life-saving and anesthetic drugs.

“So many” patients, he noted, have died of septicemia, hemorrhage, and bleeding because of the unavailability of surgeons.

There are no MRI scanners — a crucial medical tool — in the whole Gaza Strip as they have all become damaged and were unable to be fixed due to the perpetual bombings.

Also, he added, operating on children with brain tumors and only having CT scans is really quite challenging.

“Things are scarier than your imagination. Injured and normal patients, writhing in pain, are being treated on the floor, in the corridors and even in the open air, meaning they are heavily prone to deadly infections, and septicemia,” Elakkad maintained.

“And even then, they are not safe as Israeli jets often bomb hospitals on the pretext of targeting fighters.”

“If you are lucky enough to escape bombing, then infections are there to kill you.”

Late last month, Israeli forces bombed Nasser hospital’s surgical department, killing two wounded Palestinians under treatment, dubbing one of them a Hamas fighter.

“He was not a (Hamas) leader or fighter. He was just a wounded person,” Elakkad said.

The Israeli army launched a surprise aerial campaign on the Gaza Strip on March 18, killing over 920 people, injuring more than 2,000 others and shattering the ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement. More than 50,250 Palestinians have been killed, mostly women and children, and over 114,000 injured in a brutal Israeli military onslaught on Gaza since October 2023.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.

Read: Resistance and resilience: Artists honor Palestinians facing horrors of Israel’s Gaza genocide

_______________________

Aamir Latif is a Karachi-based senior journalist. He represents Anadolu, a Turkish news agency.

Courtesy: Anadolu Agency (Posted on 31.03.2025)  

The post Healthcare Collapse: People Dying in Gaza first appeared on Sindh Courier.

And they had classified me

Among the slaves

Then I felt death offered

No deliverance.

Death was only a myth.

Dr. Jernail Singh Anand, a renowned poet and writer from Chandigarh, India, shares his poetry

Dr. Jernail Singh Anand, based in Chandigarh, is an Indian poet and scholar credited with 170 plus books of English literature, philosophy and spirituality. He won great Serbian Award Charter of Morava and his name adorns the Poets’ Rock in Serbia. He was honored with Seneca Award LAUDIS CHARTA by Academy of Arts & Philosophical Sciences, Bari, Italy 2024. He is Founder President of the International Academy of Ethics and conferred Doctor of Philosophy (Honoris Causa) by University of Engineering & Management, (UEM) Jaipur. Email anandjs55@yahoo.com 

DEATH IS ONLY A MYTH

When they were alive

Some mad heads of the world

They created havoc on earth

The skies too have not forgotten

The rent of the planes,

And the thunder of bombs.

The roar of tanks

And the cries of children

Who sank into silence

In concentration camps.

Post-death when they lowered me

Into the vaults of the earth,

I found the earth of God

Was no divided entity

Like water underside, or air above

It was a single entity

And sometimes I saw

The ants, and other insects

Shouting war cries.

It did not take me long to realize

Hitlers rule the underground as well

The ants who had eaten on them

Were now running a dark empire

Down under too.

They came to ask me

If I believed that the Aryans

Were the best race and if I was a Jew.

I shook my head in yes and then no

And they left satisfied.

Soon a team of doctors arrived

They took a sample to test my DNA

Next day, I came to know

They had declared me a pariah

For them,

I belonged to a lower race

And they had classified me

Among the slaves

Then I felt death offered

No deliverance.

Death was only a myth.

_________________  

Read: Of Passion and Compassion – Mystic Poetry from India

The post Death is only a Myth – Mystic Poetry from India first appeared on Sindh Courier.

Dr. Jernail S. Anand

*Animals are generally healthy because they eat organic food and think organic thoughts. And men are generally ailing, because we eat synthetic foods, and think carcinomic thoughts.

Is Life a Prolongated Death?

We are in the habit of thinking only of life or only of death. These two binaries, however, fail to describe life in its true factuality. Just as we go to another country with a visa which expires on a particular date, and we possess a return ticket too, we come on this earth also with a return ticket. Only we don’t know anything about the expiry date of the visa.  When gods are up to give life to a person, and before it is given, they inscribe the date of death also. So, we can say, where there is life, there is death. Or, there is no death if there is no life. Only those things die which possess life.  The mention of the word ‘death’ disturbs us. Death is not an enemy. It is no penalty, either. It is also not the wages of sin. Death delivers us from the fouls that we have committed during our life time. Death uses its scissors, and cuts off the string and all our travails are over.

I have a strong feeling that life and death are like two sisters which are lying in embrace.  You have lived one day. Where is it now? It is lying in the pool of death. Each moment, which we have lived, has gone to the trash basket. Open it, and you will see what is lying in your immediate past. Just as we recover documents from our trash box, from our past we summon our memories whenever we feel like. But that moment which we lived at that time, which is now dead, cannot come to life again.

Where there is life, there is death. Or, there is no death if there is no life. Only those things die which possess life.

So, it is not difficult to surmise that death is a constant friend. If a moment does not die, how can it be lived? Death makes it possible for us to step onward towards the completion of our journey. In between, whatever we do, that is our accomplishment. Death is a necessity, not a punishment. It is a punishment if it does not come to people who are in a state of physical disarray.

Gods and the Psychopathic Chill

I sometimes wonder why gods are developing some psychotic symptoms. A psychopath loves to kill and shed blood.  And gods nowadays, it appears, do not believe in simple death. They too are affected by the OTT bug. They try to make death a spectacular feast. Or it seems, some medical entrepreneurs have been able to seek access to gods, they might have bribed them, as it happens these days, and the contract now signed with the medical team is: don’t accept death in its positive degree, nor in comparative, but only in its superlative form.  Gods will take delivery of dead people from hospital wards, after post mortem, and only after a certificate that their vital organs have been duly removed. The medical teams invite godly inspection teams who ensure that no patient is allowed to die unless and until he spends a few days on the ventilator. In divine language, ventilator is a spring board which helps a dying man, reach his destination, without jerks. So, death these days is not easy. What can we say to gods?

Satanomia

Satan who was in cohoots with corrupt minds of this world, asked Eve to go for knowledge. And knowledge has brought us to this pass. The blood of an average person, when diagnosed, is found overflowing with satanomia. Some people in villages who were seen deficient in this element, which runs parallel to sodium, and potassium, were discovered to be sampling for peaceful lives. It was a dangerous symptom for jerkless collapse after which gods do not accept anybody back. So, they were kept on a heavy dose of satanomia, and when they started having blood pressure, and stress, they were released from the hospital. Now they are on drugs, to ensure they damage their health and then return to the hospital for their final plunge into ‘heaven’: on the Ventilator.

Beasts and Men

Men are reformed beasts, and their point of departure is: knowledge which makes them more beastly, and hence, unpardonable too. If animals act like beasts, they are excused. But if we men start behaving like mindlosts, we cannot be excused. I sometimes wonder it is men who have opened Veterinary Clinics in to which animals are forced when they fall ill. But the incidence of their falling ill is very rare. The wild animals do not fall ill. They are either alive, or eaten up by some more hungry species. Only those animals become ill, who come in close proximity to the radiations of knowledge which emanate from men [domesticated breeds]. Animals are generally healthy because they eat organic food and think organic thoughts. And men are generally ailing, because we eat synthetic foods, and think carcinomic thoughts. We are plagued by jealousy, hatred, religion, castes, communities, races, colours. Animals too have colours, but have you found them fist-fighting? Yes, they do fight over females. And that too, it is never a deadly fight as in our films. Revenge, blood, gore, extinction, elimination. Nothing. After some time, the female comes to them, because it is a commonwealth. So, no heart break. No stress. No sad songs. No K.L. Saigal.

But men are men. Their food is cooked with fire and treated with spices. So are their thoughts, cooked in hi-fi cockers. There is nothing original and organic in the life of a man these days. So, when eating and, then, thinking goes berserk, men are on direct route to hospitals. I don’t know how the gods have compromised with second quality men. What do they find in people who are diseased and they take served long sentences with doctors. And when turns on the Ventilator, what is left behind of them? All organs have failed. There must be a truck with the medical establishment.

Read: OUR SELF IS OUR SWEETEST DARLING: HOW WE MALTREAT OUR SELF?

We are helpless when it comes to gods. We are no more than snails, found moving on the earth after rains, and getting tossed, some spared and some crushed, under our feet, and we move on botherless. So are gods too powerful for men. They straddle the skies while we don’t even know what is happening to us and why.

[Note: Don’t visit Google, Pl.]

Satanomia is an imaginative state of sickness in which satanic elements are needed and there is deficiency of it.

Mindlosts: People who have lost their minds. If you like this word, it has no you can use it in your writing.

Copyright for both these words ‘Satanomia’ and ‘Mindlosts’ is with the author.

Read: THE WORLD BEYOND POETRY

________________

Dr. Jernail Singh Anand, President of the International Academy of Ethics, is author of 167 books in English poetry, fiction, non-fiction, philosophy and spirituality. He was awarded Charter of Morava, the great Award by Serbian Writers Association, Belgrade and his name was engraved on the Poets’ Rock in Serbia. The Academy of Arts and philosophical Sciences of Bari [Italy] honoured him with the award of an Honourable Academic.  Recently, he was awarded Doctor of Philosophy [Honoris Causa] by the University of Engineering and Management, Jaipur. Recently, he organized an International Conference on Contemporary Ethics at Chandigarh. His most phenomenal book is Lustus: The Prince of Darkness [first epic of the Mahkaal Trilogy]. Email: anandjs55@yahoo.com

Link Bibliography:

https://atunispoetry.com/2023/12/08/indian-author-dr-jernail-s-anand-honoured-at-the-60th-belgrade-international-meeting-of-writers/

https://sites.google.com/view/bibliography-dr-jernal-singh/home

The post ARE WE LIVING OR DYING AND SUFFERING OR NOT FROM ‘SATANOMIA’? first appeared on Sindh Courier.

Amir Latif Arain 

A Pakistani mountaineer was killed while descending from the 8,047-meter (26,400 feet) Broad Peak, raising the tally of climbers who died in Pakistan this year so far to six, an official told Anadolu on Monday.

Murad Sadpara was severely injured and later died during his descent when a loose rock struck him on the head a few days ago, said Karrar Haidri, the secretary-general of Alpine Club of Pakistan, the country’s official mountaineering body.

Despite the urgency of the situation, rescue efforts were hampered by the harsh conditions on the mountain, leading to a delay, Haidri added.

Sadpara was part of a successful mission involving multiple local and foreign climbers to bring back the body of a high-altitude porter, Hasan Shagri, from Broad Peak in northern Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) region, which is home to five of 14 highest peaks in the world.

Read: 2 more Japanese climbers die in Pakistan, taking tally to 5 this year

Shagri had fallen from a narrow trail while attempting to ascend 8,611-meter (28,251-foot) K2, the world’s second tallest mountain, during an expedition last year. His body, however, could be brought back last week by the rescue team.

Sadpara was widely recognized last year when he successfully retrieved the body of an Afghan mountaineer from K2.

The latest casualty occurred days after two Japanese climbers, who fell from K2, were officially declared dead.

Another three Japanese climbers were also killed while trying to scale the 7,027-meter (23,054 feet) Spantik Peak, also known as Golden Peak, in alpine style in June and July.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Read: 2 Japanese climbers fall from K2 in northern Pakistan

___________________

Aamir Latif is a Karachi-based senior journalist. He represents Anadolu, a Turkish news agency

Courtesy: Anadolu Agency (Posted on 12.08.2024) 

The post Prominent Pakistani mountaineer descends to death first appeared on Sindh Courier.

Aamir Latif Arain 

Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan

Two Japanese climbers who fell from K2, the world’s second-tallest mountain, have been officially declared dead, raising the number of the country’s mountaineers who died in Pakistan this year to five, a tour operator told Anadolu on Wednesday.

Kazuya Hiraide and Kenro Nakajima, who traveled to Pakistan’s northern Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) region to take on the challenge of the west face of K2, using the alpine style approach, fell from a height of 7,500 meters (24,606 feet) off the 8,611-meter (28,251 ft) peak K2 on July 28.

“Their death certificates have been issued (by Pakistani authorities) to their families, who (family members) arrived in Pakistan a few days ago, and are leaving today (Wednesday),” said Naiknam Kareem, the head of Naiknam Tours that arranged the deceased climbers’ expedition.

The climbers’ bodies were spotted last week but could not be recovered due to “extremely” dangerous nature of the K2’s west face terrain, he added.

Waliullah Falahi, the deputy commissioner of Shigar district of G-B, which is home to K2, however, told Anadolu that a ground operation could not be launched due to the difficult terrain.

A Pakistan army helicopter could not land to pick the mountaineers because of high altitude, he added.

Hiraide, a renowned mountaineer, had won three Piolets d’Or awards, the most prestigious accolade in the field of alpinism.

G-B is home to five of 14 highest peaks in the world. It has seen several mountain accidents involving Japanese climbers in recent months.

Apart from the fresh casualties, three Japanese climbers have been killed while trying to scale the 7,027-meter Spantik Peak, also known as Golden Peak, in alpine style since June.

Alpine style, characterized by minimal use of fixed ropes and support, emphasizes speed and efficiency, and is known for its high level of difficulty and risk.

Read: 2 Japanese climbers fall from K2 in northern Pakistan

____________________

Aamir Latif is a Karachi-based senior journalist. He represents Anadolu, a Turkish news agency

Courtesy: Anadolu Agency (Posted on 07.08.2024)  

The post 2 more Japanese climbers die in Pakistan, taking tally to 5 this year first appeared on Sindh Courier.

From Correspondent

Gadani, Balochistan

Two Bengali-origin workers died in a tragic accident while working in a shipbreaking yard at Gadani Shipbreaking industry of Balochistan province of Pakistan. The deceased workers were identified as Qasim and Mustafa.

The workers were working at Yard No. 60, owned by Diwana Rizwan, former Chairman Gadani Ship Breakers’ Association.

The ship, where the accident took place on January 16, 2024, is CATHERINE BRIGHT (IMO 9186924, MMSI 373056000), a Bulk Carrier built in 1998 (26 years old) and was sailing under the flag of Panama.

Read also: Shipbreaking workers stage rally for rights

It has been informed by the trade union representative that the laborers were working in bottom of the ship were they died by falling of heavy iron plate on them from above. They were forced to work without safety gadgets as usual.

Pakistan had recently ratified Hong Kong Convention which is mainly for better & safe working environment, unfortunately welling ness for implementation is nowhere.

The ship-owners, concerned government departments including police are in an alliance against workers as a result Gadani shipbreaking is practically declared as zone without any law.

The police is protecting Jamadar (contactors) and owner who are responsible for the death of two workers. The deceased workers were buried in last hours of night in clandestine manner without proper postmortem and criminal investigation, the National Trade Union Federation alleged in a statement.

Also read: Pakistan Ship-breaking Industry: 15000 vessels expected to be scrapped in 10 years

Shipbreaking Workers Union and National Trade Union Federation Pakistan (NTUF) strongly condemned anti-labor and inhuman practices at shipbreaking yards which resulted in tragedies and fatal accidents, and demanded the authorities to conduct though inquiry and responsible persons should be punished severely.

__________________

The post Two Bengali laborers die during work at Pakistan’s shipbreaking industry first appeared on Sindh Courier.