Entertainment
Police assault journalists after storming National Press Club
- Police damage property, smash cameras during raid.
- Journalists beaten inside cafeteria without any reason.
- Employees and office holders also targeted, arrested.
ISLAMABAD: Islamabad police stormed the National Press Club (NPC) on Thursday afternoon during a protest organised by the Awami Action Committee, assaulting journalists and damaging property in what senior media representatives described as one of the “worst incidents in history”.
The protest was scheduled for around 3pm at the National Press Club. When demonstrators gathered outside, police arrested them.
Journalists on the scene began documenting the events with photos and videos, but police attempted to stop them, even trying to snatch cameras and mobile phones.
Minutes after the police were asked not to manhandle media personnel by senior journalists, police personnel forced open the doors of the press club, with some climbing the walls and entering the building as if “terrorists were inside”.
They attacked multiple journalists, smashed their equipment, and also stormed the cafeteria, beating journalists who were having tea.
Despite journalists repeatedly informing the police that no protesters were inside, the assault continued. Cameras were thrown to the ground, while media workers were assaulted.
Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) President Afzal Butt condemned the incident, saying police broke NPC’s furniture, assaulted both employees and office holders, and even arrested some of the staff.
He said the level of aggression displayed by police was unprecedented.
“Even during dictatorships, such behaviour was not witnessed. The police used to wait outside for a wanted person rather than raiding the Press Club,” Butt remarked.
He warned that Islamabad police would have to answer for the violence, otherwise, journalists would launch a strong protest.
Meanwhile, journalists at the NPC were holding discussions on their next course of action following the assault.
The interior minister took notice of the incident and sought a report from the Islamabad police chief. Ordering a probe, Naqvi said that subjecting the journalists to torture would not be tolerated.
He also issued directives for disciplinary action against the responsible cops.
Entertainment
When We Were Young Festival announces 2026 hiatus: ‘See you in 2027’
When We Were Young Festival is hitting pause this year.
Organizers of the Las Vegas-based emo and pop-punk fest announced via Instagram on February 27 that the event will take 2026 off — but emphasised the break is only temporary.
“To our When We Were Young Family,” the statement began. “The songs, the memories, the moments – none of it exists without you. After an unforgettable run in Las Vegas, we’ve decided to take 2026 off to give this festival the care it deserves and to make sure what comes next feels just as special as what came before.”
While no specific reason was given for the hiatus, fans were reassured the festival isn’t going anywhere. “When We Were Young Festival will return to Las Vegas in October 2027… This isn’t goodbye – it’s just a pause. We’ll see you in 2027.”
Since launching in 2022, the Live Nation-produced event has become a nostalgic pilgrimage for millennial music lovers, taking over the Las Vegas Festival Grounds each October. Past headliners have included Green Day, Blink-182, My Chemical Romance and the Killers.
The 2025 edition featured Blink-182 and a reunited Panic! at the Disco, marking a rare return following the band’s 2023 split. In 2024, My Chemical Romance delivered a full performance of The Black Parade, alongside a stacked lineup of scene favourites.
Entertainment
NAACP Image Award host Deon Cole issues Tourette warning after BAFTAs
Deon Cole hosted the NAACP Image Award at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium on Saturday, February 28, and opened his monologue with a joke about the racial slur mishap at the BAFTAs recently.
The 54-year-old comedian and actor jokingly prayed to God, saying, “Lord, before we go, if there are any white men out here in the audience with Tourette’s, I advise you to tell them they better read the room tonight, Lord. It might not go the way they thinketh. Whatever medicine they’re on, they better double up on it, Lord.
Cole referred to the controversy about Tourette’s activist John Davidson shouting a racial slur while Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo were presented an award on stage.
The Average Joe star also joked about Nicki Minaj and her recent political alliance with the MAGA movement, saying, “Lord, we want you to bless our sister Nicki Minaj. She’s been going through a lot lately and hasn’t been herself, Lord,” joking that her cosmetic injections have been “affecting her brain.”
NAACP Awards stand for National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People and celebrate the arts across different mediums including films, theatre, music, and literature, created every year.
Entertainment
Maggie Gyllenhaal details emotional reunion with brother Jake Gyllenhaal
Maggie Gyllenhaal and Jake Gyllenhaal are one of the most famous Hollywood siblings, yet fans are still surprised to learn they’re related.
In a new interview with The New York Times published February 28, the Oscar-nominated actress opened up about reuniting with her younger brother on-screen for her upcoming second directorial project, The Bride — marking their first time sharing the screen in over two decades.
“I remember asking him and tearing up alone in this hotel room I was in, because it meant so much to me. It meant so much for me to interact with him,” Maggie, 48, recalled, noting that for years, she had been focused on carving her own path “separate” from her famous family.
“We’ve never been estranged,” Maggie said of the Marvel star, “but we’ve never been as close as we are now. We’re finally, maybe in the last five years, more and more and more, even each day, really interacting…”
Both siblings began acting as children in the early ’90s with supporting roles in their dad’s films, and the last time they worked together was on the 2001 thriller Donnie Darko. Jake, now 45, quickly landed leading roles in films like October Sky — something Maggie now admits evoked feelings of “envy” towards her brother.
Hence, reaching out to him after all these years felt “honest” and “vulnerable.” The Dark Knight actress told NYT, “I waited until I was absolutely sure that asking him to do this part was the right thing to do.”
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