Navigating the ethical landscape of AI on the road

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif confirmed on Friday the government would seek the extradition from the UAE of real estate tycoon Malik Riaz Hussain who is charged in a land corruption case involving former prime minister Imran Khan, promising to bring him back to Pakistan to stand trial.

Hussain is one of Pakistan’s wealthiest and most influential businessmen and the country’s largest private employers. He is best known as the chairman of Bahria Town Limited, which claims to be Asia’s largest private real estate developer. Hussain currently lives in Dubai. 

Last week, a Pakistani court sentenced ex-premier Khan to 14 years in prison and his wife, Bushra, to seven years in a case in which they are accused of receiving land as a bribe from Hussain through the Al-Qadir charitable trust during Khan’s premiership from 2018 to 2022 in exchange for illegal favors. All three deny any wrongdoing. 

Khan says he and his wife were trustees and did not benefit from the land transaction. Hussain has also denied any wrongdoing related to the case.

“His [Hussain’s] extradition will also be carried out now on a state-to-state level,” Asif told reporters at a press conference. “We have an extradition treaty with the UAE. A mafia cannot be allowed to run as a parallel state.”

The defense minister said Hussain had used his immense wealth and influence to seize land from the poor and widows for his housing societies across the country, saying Bahria Town’s transactions over the past 25-30 years were “not transparent.”

“You will see flaws in the approvals of all the land bought by Hussain for his housing societies,” he added.

Earlier this week, Pakistan’s anti-corruption watchdog, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), had cautioned people against investing in Hussain’s new real estate venture to build luxury apartments in Dubai.

“If the general public at large invests in the stated project, their actions would be tantamount to money laundering, for which they may face criminal and legal proceedings.”

Responding to NAB on X, Hussain said “fake cases, blackmailing and greed of officers” had forced him to relocate from country because he was not willing to be a “political pawn,”

AL-QADIR CASE

In 2019, Britain’s National Crime Agency (NCA) said Hussain had agreed to hand over 190 million pounds held in Britain to settle a UK investigation into whether the money was from the proceeds of crime.

The NCA said it had agreed to a settlement in which Hussain would hand over a property, 1 Hyde Park Place, valued at 50 million pounds, and cash frozen in British bank accounts. 

The NCA had previously secured nine freezing orders covering 140 million pounds in the accounts on the grounds that the money may have been acquired illegally.

The agency said the assets would be passed to the government of Pakistan and the settlement with Hussain was “a civil matter, and does not represent a finding of guilt.”

The case against Hussain and ex-PM Khan now is that instead of putting the tycoon’s settlement money in Pakistan’s treasury, Khan’s government used the money to pay fines levied by a court against Hussain for illegal acquisition of government lands at below-market value for development in Karachi.

DAVOS: Iraq’s President Abdul Latif Rashid has called for more action on desertification, amid global concerns of land degradation that has affected agricultural productivity, caused pollution in waterways and resulted in increased frequency of droughts.

“We attend many conferences, joined many groups for solving desertification but unfortunately the actual achievement has been very little to show for. I appeal to you, once we make decisions for decreasing desertification, let us act on it,” Rashid said on Friday.

Speaking during a World Economic Forum panel “On Firmer Ground with Land Restoration,” the Iraqi leader told participants that land restoration was not just an environmental imperative but also a moral duty.

“In Iraq, we face the consequences of environmental challenges. Nearly 40 percent of our land is affected by desertification, and our water resources essential for agriculture and livelihood are under severe strain. These problems are made worse by climate change, rising temperatures, reduced river flows from our neighboring countries,” the president, a British-educated engineer, said.

Iraq is the world’s fifth most vulnerable country to climate change, and there are grave concerns regarding water and food security, according to the UN.

The depletion of water resources and the spread of desertification are exacerbating Iraq’s problems, leading to conditions including scorching temperatures exceeding 50°C — recorded in 2023 — coupled with water scarcity, desertification and reduced rainfall, the global body said.

Government figures show that desertification has ravaged 71 percent of the nation’s arable land, with an additional 10,000 hectares becoming barren each year. This degradation has reduced the amount of cultivable land to just 1.4 million hectares and has led to a 70 percent decline in agricultural output.

“Iraq is taking bold and good steps to combat these challenges,” according to Rashid, who was the Iraqi minister of water resources from 2003-2010.

One of these steps was the implementation of a 10-year program to combat desertification that prioritizes reforestation, soil preservation and sustainable agricultural practice, Rashid said.

Iraq needs to plant 15 billion trees to combat desertification, establish forests and reduce greenhouse gases, its agriculture ministry said, considering the country’s forest area is only 8,250 sq km, or just 2 percent of its total area.

“We are establishing a buffer zone around our cities to prevent desertification by planting native and drought-resistant vegetation. These efforts are not just environmental but economic. Land restoration is integral to Iraq’s long-term economic plan … (our) development particularly in agriculture, energy and water security,” Rashid said.

“Additionally, we are promoting smart agriculture, diversifying crops, encouraging organic and regenerating farming and mandating sustainable land use practices through legislation,” the Iraqi leader added.

“Sustainable development is key to growth without compromising our environmental health.”

The Iraqi leader also emphasized the need for cross-border cooperation and collaboration with its neighbors — Turkiye and Iran — particularly on water resource matters.

“Iraq is engaged with negotiations in upstream countries including Turkiye and Iran to secure (an) equitable water-sharing agreement for the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. These negotiations are essential for the future of our region,” he said.

Turkish and Iranian dams upstream on the shared Tigris and Euphrates rivers are cutting Iraq off from much-needed water relief. It is estimated that Turkiye’s various dam and hydropower construction projects have reduced Iraq’s water supply along the two rivers by 80 percent since 1975.

Meanwhile, Iran’s development push has led to the proliferation of dams, impacting Iraq, to about 647 in 2018 from only 316 in 2012.

“Iraq is working with many international organizations to adopt climate resilient agriculture … gaining access to expertise for funding need to succeed. Ultimately, we know that lasting solutions require local actions; mobilizing communities is at the heart of our strategy,” Rashid said.