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Geopolitics

Pakistan's Bloody Thursday: Three Days Of Mourning For More Than 100 Killed

AL JAZEERA, BBC, LAHORE TIMES (Pakistan)

Worldcrunch

KARACHI/QUETTA/SWAT- Pakistan has declared three days of mourning after a string of bombings killed more than 100 people, while nine others died in separate shootings.

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Photo: CIA via Wikipedia

In the northwest city of Quetta, a suicide bomber entered a snooker club on Thursday that was close to a police station and a Shia mosque. As soon as the blast went off, the building collapsed. As rescue teams and reporters rushed to the scene, a second blast went off.

More than 80 people died and more than 120 were reported injured. Al Jazeera reports that Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, a Sunni Muslim extremist group, has claimed responsibility for the double bombing.

According to The Lahore Times, included in the death toll are four police officers, four rescue workers, a camera man and a news agency photographer.

A senior government official told the BBC that he believed the bombings were the group's reaction to incidents on Wednesday when a Sunni cleric was killed, and arms and ammunition were seized from a suspected Lashkar-e-Jhangvi hideout.

Another explosion at a religious gathering north of Peshawar, in the Swat Valley, killed 25 and wounded at least 70. The explosion occurred during a Muslim leader's speech where 1,500 people were gathered. The Lahore Times says that 25 kilograms of explosive material was used.

In addition to the explosions, nine people were shot in separate incidents in Karachi, the southern seaport and Pakistan's largest city.

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Society

Tales From A Blushing Nation: Exploring India's 'Issues' With Love And Sex

Why is it that this nation of a billion-plus has such problems with intimacy and romance?

Photo of Indian romance statues

Indian romance statues

Sreemanti Sengupta

KOLKATA — To a foreigner, India may seem to be a country obsessed with romance. What with the booming Bollywood film industry which tirelessly churns out tales of love and glory clothed in brilliant dance and action sequences, a history etched with ideal romantics like Laila-Majnu or the fact that the Taj Mahal has immortalised the love between king Shahjahan and queen Mumtaz.

It is difficult to fathom how this country with a billion-plus population routinely gets red in the face at the slightest hint or mention of sex.

It therefore may have come as a shock to many when the ‘couple-friendly’ hospitality brand OYO announced that they are “extremely humbled to share that we observed a record 90.57% increase in Valentine’s Day bookings across India.”

What does that say about India’s romantic culture?

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