Report Islamabad, June 6 At least 432 cases of sexual assault and kidnapping were registered by Pakistani police in Islamabad between January and May this year, local media reported. Citing police sources, Pakistan’s leading daily, Dawn, reported that a total of 55 cases of sexual assault were recorded during the reporting period. Among the 55 sexual assault cases, 15 were registered in the Soan Zone, followed by 13 in the Sadar Zone, 12 in the Rural Zone, 9 in the Industrial Area Zone, and 6 in the City Zone. Additionally, a zone-wise breakdown of the 377 kidnapping cases revealed that the Sadar Zone recorded the highest number at 99, followed by the Soan Zone with 89, the Rural Zone with 76, the City Zone with 44, and the Industrial Area Zone with 29 cases. Of the kidnapping cases, one involved a victim who was reportedly kidnapped from Islamabad and was later found murdered in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. In a separate incident, three persons allegedly raped a boy in the area of Pindorian on February 28 and recorded the heinous act.

The data further revealed a series of sexual assaults across Islamabad. In one incident, a girl was reportedly gang-raped by five persons in the area of I-16 on March 19, while another case involved sexual assault of a boy by three persons in Sihala on March 31. In another 24 cases of sexual assault registered during the period, the victims included 15 girls, three women, and a boy. It added that the 15-year-old boy was assaulted at gunpoint by two persons in Mehrban Town on April 15, Dawn reported. Reports suggest that police registered 69 cases under Section 365, which pertains to kidnapping or abduction with the intent to secretly and wrongfully confine a person.

The cases involved 64 male and five female victims. In one such incident, a man was allegedly abducted from outside his residence in Sector F-6/1 on May 4, and his body was recovered from Mardan the following day. Last month, a report highlighted that the sexual assault of a young 19-year-old mother in Pakistan’s Rawat area in Islamabad was not an isolated incident but reflected a broader pattern, raising concerns about systemic challenges in addressing gender-based violence in the country. It stressed that the case had brought attention to these interconnected issues, underscoring how structural weaknesses continue to shape the safety and security of women. According to the report in ‘Asian News Post,’ the persistence of sexual violence in Pakistan is closely connected to the “perception of impunity”, where perpetrators believe they can escape without facing consequences.

Washington, June 3: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that reconstruction of Gaza cannot move forward unless Hamas is demilitarised, arguing that governments and investors will not commit billions of dollars to rebuilding the territory while the militant group retains military capabilities.

At a Congressional hearing Rubio defended the Trump administration’s Gaza strategy amid criticism from Democratic lawmakers who questioned progress on a broader peace and reconstruction plan.

“The goal now is to demilitarise Hamas,” Rubio said. “That is the impediment that’s holding up the rest of it.”

The Secretary said international discussions on Gaza’s future continue, including efforts to secure financial commitments for reconstruction and establish a new governing structure for the territory.

According to Rubio, donor countries and private investors remain interested in participating in Gaza’s recovery, but security concerns remain the primary obstacle.

“No one is going to invest there as long as Hamas is militarised, because as long as Hamas is militarised, they know that there’s going to be a war in the future,” he said.

Rubio’s comments came during a sharp exchange with Representative Rosa DeLauro, who questioned the status of a broader US-backed peace initiative and expressed concern over worsening humanitarian conditions in Gaza.

The Secretary rejected suggestions that Washington had abandoned efforts to address the crisis.

“No one’s forgotten about it,” Rubio said.

He outlined a vision that would ultimately place Gaza under a non-Hamas Palestinian administration supported by international partners.

“What we want, and I think what the Israelis would ultimately want, is a Gaza that is governed by a non-Hamas” authority, Rubio said.

The Secretary said current discussions focus on creating conditions that would allow an international stabilisation force to enter Gaza and provide security while longer-term political and economic arrangements are developed.

“We should be having or want to have an international stabilisation force that goes in and provides the security,” he said.

Rubio added that several countries in the region are also pressuring Hamas to accept demilitarisation as part of a broader settlement.

“It’s not just the United States that’s complaining about it,” he said. “Many of our partners in the region are pressuring Hamas to enter the demilitarisation phase.”

During the hearing, lawmakers also questioned Rubio about recent comments attributed to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding control of parts of Gaza.

Rubio said such proposals were not part of the plan currently being pursued by Washington.

“That’s not part of this plan,” he said. “This plan doesn’t call for that.”

The Secretary also pushed back against criticism regarding humanitarian assistance, saying the United States had already committed substantial resources to relief efforts in Gaza.

“We spent hundreds of millions of dollars on humanitarian aid in Gaza already,” Rubio said.

The future of Gaza remains one of the most sensitive issues in Middle East diplomacy. International efforts have increasingly focused on securing a political arrangement that would prevent renewed conflict while allowing reconstruction of infrastructure, housing, healthcare facilities and public services damaged during years of fighting.

Washington, June 2: A federal jury in Los Angeles has found prominent stock analyst Andrew Left, founder of Citron Research, guilty of orchestrating a years-long scheme that prosecutors said manipulated stock prices and generated at least $21 million in illicit profits by trading against the very recommendations he promoted to investors.

Left, 55, formerly of Beverly Hills and now a resident of Boca Raton, Florida, was convicted of one count of securities fraud scheme and 12 counts of securities fraud after a 15-day trial, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.

Left leveraged his reputation as a market commentator and frequent guest on major business television networks to influence stock prices while secretly positioning himself to profit from short-term market movements, federal prosecutors alleged.

“Left used his TV appearances to disguise his intentions, manipulate the stock market, and pad his pockets,” said First Assistant United States Attorney Bill Essayli. “A fair and transparent securities market is a foundation of our nation’s financial system. We will continue to bring to justice individuals who abuse the public trust placed in financial advisors.”

Patrick Grandy, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office, said the case highlighted the damage caused by market manipulation.

“Frauds such as the one perpetrated by Left can erode investor confidence which impacts our capital markets,” Grandy said. “While this conviction cannot make up for the significant and emotional harm he inflicted upon his unwitting investors, it does send a message to those who may be looking to profit from similar schemes – think twice because the FBI has a proven track record of rooting out fraudsters who illegally tilt the playing field against honest investors and undermine confidence in our markets.”

According to trial evidence presented in court, Left, operating under the online brand Citron Research, published investment commentary through a website and social media accounts, routinely issued opinions on publicly traded companies, often accompanied by target prices and representations of his own trading positions.

Federal prosecutors alleged that Left knew Citron’s market-moving influence and exploited it. Before publishing commentary, he allegedly built long or short positions in targeted companies, frequently using short-dated options contracts designed to benefit from immediate price swings after his reports were released.

The government said he often closed those positions shortly after publication, sometimes at prices that differed sharply from the longer-term targets he publicly promoted. Behind the scenes, prosecutors argued, he was taking positions opposite to the message he was delivering to investors.

One example presented at trial involved chipmaker Nvidia in November 2018. Prosecutors said Left encouraged a portfolio manager to develop a bullish investment thesis, accumulated positions in the company, and then publicly posted on Citron’s social media account: “Citron buys $NVDA. This is the first time in 2 years stock offers an appealing risk-reward to investors . . . We see $165 before we see $120.” Despite that public projection, prosecutors said he sold his positions less than two hours later, earning more than $960,000 in profit.

The jury acquitted Left on four securities fraud counts related to trades involving four specific companies. He is scheduled to be sentenced on August 31 before US District Judge Virginia A. Phillips. Prosecutors said he faces a statutory maximum sentence of 25 years in federal prison on the securities fraud scheme count and up to 20 years on each securities fraud count.

Citron Research became one of Wall Street’s best-known activist research firms over the past two decades, often publishing reports that challenged valuations of publicly traded companies. Left gained widespread visibility through frequent appearances on financial television networks and developed a substantial following among retail and institutional investors.