Day: June 27, 2022

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Pakistani army says shootout with militants killed 2 troops

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Al-Araby

A shootout between Pakistani soldiers and militants in the country’s northwest, near the border with Afghanistan, has killed two soldiers and seven militants, the army said. According to a military statement, the exchange took place on Sunday in Ghulam Khan, a border town in North Waziristan, a district of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The area, along the Afghanistan border, is a former stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban and other militant groups. The military gave no further details. Lately, an increasing number of attacks on Pakistani troops and the military’s raids on militant hideouts … Continue reading “Pakistani army says shootout with militants killed 2 troops”

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Cloudbeds Acquires Whistle, Moves to Solve Friction in Guest Journey

No. 1 PMS and No. 1 guest messaging platform join forces to integrate guest engagement solutions seamlessly into day-to-day lodging business operations

Cloudbeds Acquires Whistle

No. 1 PMS and No. 1 guest messaging platform join forces to integrate guest engagement solutions seamlessly into day-to-day lodging business operations

SAN DIEGO, June 27, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Cloudbeds, the hospitality management platform powering more reservations and happier guests for lodging businesses around the globe, announced today at HITEC 2022 the acquisition of the industry’s leading guest engagement solution, Whistle. Together, the companies will integrate their best-in-class technologies to remove friction points in the guest journey through a single platform.

“The term contactless is becoming far too synonymous with hospitality,” said Richard Castle, COO and Co-Founder of Cloudbeds. “We want more contact between lodging businesses and their guests to create purposeful touchpoints, answer questions and provide guidance through the entire guest journey. Research shows that engaged guests spend more, leave better reviews and the majority prefer to communicate via digital channels — Whistle makes it all possible. Whether it’s a booking engine chat or front desk text request, Whistle positions Cloudbeds customers to be a part of the guest journey from discovery to post-stay, removing barriers that might hinder a booking or positive review.”

Whistle leads the industry in guest engagement with unified communication tools, digitized arrival experiences and more. Current customers include major hospitality brands and hoteliers around the world, including Choice Hotels, Accor, IHG and Four Sisters Inns, among others. Founded in 2015, the company has been rated the no. 1 guest messaging software by Hotel Tech Report for five consecutive years.

Whistle will play an important role in the company’s vision for creating a fully frictionless solution that enables guests to engage with lodging businesses on their own terms. Simultaneously, it will give lodging businesses a unified platform to more efficiently manage points of contact throughout the entire guest journey.

“Our goal has always been to give lodging businesses a unique, easy-to-use solution that simplifies and streamlines the way they communicate,” said Christopher Hovanessian, CEO and Co-Founder of Whistle. “Cloudbeds has a clear vision for building a better, more frictionless hospitality experience via a unified platform. Together, we can make a greater impact on the industry that benefits not only the guest, but also the property staff and the lodging business itself.”

Following its Series D funding announcement in November, Cloudbeds has doubled down on its commitment to “more reservations, happier guests” with three acquisitions and the introduction of several new product offerings to address major pain points for both operators and guests. Driven by an aggressive product roadmap, the company has nearly tripled in size over the past year, with more solutions set to roll out in Q3 designed to help hoteliers grow their businesses.

For more information, visit cloudbeds.com/whistle.

Cloudbeds will share further details about the acquisition at HITEC 2022 in Orlando, during a press event at 1:30 p.m. ET in Booth # 1701 on Tuesday, June 28.

About Cloudbeds
Cloudbeds provides the platform that powers hospitality, driving streamlined operations, increasing reservations and revenue, and enabling memorable guest experiences for lodging businesses of all sizes and types across the globe. The award-winning Cloudbeds Hospitality Platform seamlessly combines solutions for front desk, revenue, distribution, guest acquisition, and guest engagement in a single unified system, enhanced by a marketplace of third-party integrations. Cloudbeds was named No. 1 PMS and No. 1 Hotel Management System by Hotel Tech Report in 2022 and recognized by Deloitte’s Technology Fast 500 in 2021. For more information, visit www.cloudbeds.com.

Contact:
Angela Petersen
[email protected]

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at: https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ea0d94df-2649-42d8-8e49-c59efe9665e5

 

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At least 155 children killed in Afghanistan earthquake

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Al-Araby

The death toll of children in last week’s devastating earthquake in southeastern Afghanistan has risen to at least 155, the United Nations said as the scope of the deadliest quake to hit the impoverished country in two decades comes into focus. The UN’s humanitarian coordination organization, OCHA, said on Sunday that another 250 children were injured in the magnitude 6 temblor that struck the mountainous villages in the Paktika and Khost provinces near the country’s border with Pakistan, flattening homes and triggering landslides. Most of the children died in Paktika’s hard-hit Gayan district… Continue reading “At least 155 children killed in Afghanistan earthquake”

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Pakistan orders masks on flights as Covid numbers rise

Published by
Al-Araby

Pakistan’s aviation regulator has made masks mandatory on domestic flights given a gradual rise in the number of Covid-19 cases across the country, it said a statement. The order comes a day after Pakistan’s biggest city, Karachi, reported that its Covid-19 positivity ratio, or the rate of positive cases out of all tests conducted, rose to 21 percent compared with a national rate of 2.8 percent. After a slight change in Covid-19 cases in some cities, the NCOC has recommended mask-wearing on all domestic flights, railways, and public transport within the country is mandatory. So all citizens ar… Continue reading “Pakistan orders masks on flights as Covid numbers rise”

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LHC orders notifying members on Punjab reserved seats

LAHORE: Lahore High Court (LHC) Monday directed the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to notify the members on the Punjab Assembly’s reserved seats after accepting a plea registered by the PTI.

The PTI had approached the LHC against the ECP’s decision deferring the issuance of a notification on the reserved assembly seats till the by-elections on 20 vacant seats. The five reserved seats fell vacant after the ECP disqualified four members of the provincial assembly who joined the Punjab assembly on reserved seats on PTI’s symbol over their defection to the PML-N for the election of the new chief minister.

The PTI had filed a petition in the LHC on May 28 requesting it to direct the ECP to notify the five new MPAs and “summon [them] personally”. Subsequently, the high court had given the ECP a deadline for June 2 to decide on the matter. The electoral watchdog had, however, decided that the notification would be stayed until by-elections were held.

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Pakistan congratulates China on successful hosting of BRICS meetings

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has congratulated China on the successful hosting of the BRICS meetings.

Foreign Office Spokesperson Asim Iftikhar Ahmad while responding to media queries about a ‘High-level Dialogue on Global Development’ held virtually on sidelines of the BRICS meetings, said we appreciate China’s role in promoting the interests of the developing countries.

He said Pakistan stands ready to with all developing countries, including the BRICS members for addressing the challenges faced by the global community. Asim Iftikhar Ahmad said together with China, Pakistan has been a strong voice for global peace, shared prosperity and inclusive development.

The Spokesperson said Pakistan and China are all-weather strategic partners and our iron brotherhood remains rock solid. He further said the two countries are fully committed to take our all-round cooperation to higher levels both bilaterally and multilaterally.

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PTI defeats ANP in PK-7 Swat by-election

PESHAWAR: The ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa defeated Awami National Party in PK-7 Swat by-election, according to a report on Monday.

PTI candidate Fazl Mula secured 17,395 votes while ANP’s Hussain Ahmed is at second position with 14,604 votes, according to unofficial results from 124 polling stations.

The ANP candidate lost the by-poll despite having support from 13 political parties, including PML-N, PPP, QWP, JUI-F and others. The PK-7 Swat seat fell vacant after ANP’s member of the provincial assembly (MPA) Waqar Ahmad Khan died on April 30, this year.

Back in 2018, ANP flipped the PK-7 when it snatched the seat from PTI after it fell vacant following the resignation of Shah Farman, incumbent governor of KPK.

Meanwhile, ANP has cried foul after the unofficial results surfaced, stating that it would challenge the results after holding consultations in this regard.

ANP leader Aimal Wali Khan claimed that the results given to polling agents on Form 45 did not match the ones announced by the government.

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Action demanded against irregularities in B’stan Directorate Culture

QUETTA: Spokesperson for “All Mekran Artists Welfare Society”, has called on the high-ups of NAB and Anti-Smuggling to take notice of the irregularities being committed in the Directorate Culture, Balochistan.

In a statement issued here on Monday, he said that ever-since, the Director assumed charge of the post of Director Culture Balochistan, artists of the province, particularly of Mekran region, were being exploited.

He said that no artist of Mekran belt had been included in the EXPO held in Dubai the previous year, rather, he added that grade-17 officers of culture department were provided opportunity to represent the province as artists in Dubai EXPO.

The spokesperson said that millions of rupees were released to the Directorate Culture Balochistan amid the outbreak of novel corona virus, but it was not known as to how and where the released amount had gone. He called on the authorities of National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and Anti-Corruption, Balochistan to take notice of the irregularities being committed in the Directorate Culture Balochistan.

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Another shock: NEPRA raises electricity rate by Rs7.90

ISLAMABAD: In another bolt from the blue for the inflation-stricken people, the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) on Monday approved another hike in power tariff by Rs7.90 per unit.

According to a notification issued by the power regulatory authority, the increase was made under fuel adjustment charges (FAC) for the month of May, following demand from CPPAG for a hike of Rs7.96 per unit. The power regulatory authority took the decision after conducting a hearing on the plea of Central Power Purchasing Agency (CCPA) today.

The amount will be received in the bills of July, it said and added that life consumers and K-Electric are exempted from the tariff hike. It is pertinent to mention here that the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has already fixed the power tariff at Rs24.82 per unit for the fiscal year of 2022-23 after a massive hike of Rs7.91 per unit.

On June 24, the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) approved a hike in electricity tariff for K-electric consumers by Rs5.27 per unit. According to a handout issued by NEPRA, the K-Electric sought an increase in power tariff by Rs5.31 as fuel adjustment charges for April, however, the power authority approved an Rs5.25 hike.