VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

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Pakistan will host the World Tourism Forum next year to tout the country's tourism potential around the globe, especially among the countries of the D-8 (developing 8) bloc. Addressing a press conference in the capital Islamabad on Sunday, Syed Zulfikar Bukhari, the prime minister's adviser on tourism and overseas Pakistanis, said the tourism ministers of all the D-8 member states, including Turkey, willl also participate in the forum in Islamabad. The event had been scheduled for this year but was delayed until next year due to the coronavirus pandemic. Over 1,000 foreign visitors will attend the five-day event. The World Tourism Forum is an organization based in Istanbul, Turkey dedicated to developing tourism around the world with its annual meetings. Islamabad will launch a tourism e-portal by the end of this year to better attract foreign and local tourists. From the snow-capped peaks in the north and glistening waters in the south, together with limitless opportunities to watch wildlife, sail in the mighty Indus river, and deep-sea diving in the Arabian Sea, Pakistan has a great deal to attract tourists. The region also boasts over 5,000 large and small glaciers and more than 100 lakes, which jointly make up the world’s largest freshwater reservoir. Eco-lovers can also witness the endangered snow leopard and brown bear, in addition to 300 species of wildlife in the breathtaking region//TheNation

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The show will go on for the Venice Film Festival in September, but with a few modifications due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Organizers said that they are pushing forward with plans for its 77th installment, which will include a slightly reduced number of films in the main competition as well as some outdoor and virtual screenings. If the schedule stays intact, it will be the first major film festival since COVID-19 essentially shut down the industry in mid-March. Festival director Alberto Barbera said in a statement that he is extremely pleased that the Biennale Cinema can be held with a minimum reduction of films and sections and that a significant number of directors and actors will accompany films to the Lido. There are 50 to 55 films in the official selection, which will be announced on July 28, and screenings will take place in the traditional venues as well as two outdoor arenas (at the Giardini della Biennale and a skating rink on the Lido), with adopted safety measures established by authorities. The Venice Film Festival runs from Sept. 2-12//AP

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Beijing on Tuesday reported zero new coronavirus cases for the first time since the emergence of a cluster in the Chinese capital in June that prompted fears of a domestic second wave. Localized lockdowns across the city have been eased in recent days, with people living in areas of the city considered "low risk" now allowed to travel freely again. The government has since also imposed a strict lockdown on nearly half a million people in neighboring Hubei province to contain a fresh cluster there, adopting the same strict measures imposed at the height of the pandemic in the epicenter of Wuhan city earlier this year//JP

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German Ambassador to the United Nations, Christoph Heusgen said on Tuesday (July7) that he is hopeful the UN Security Council will be able to reach a consensus and adopt a resolution re-authorizing the cross-border aid delivery mechanism in Syria. The 15-member UN Security Council is set to vote later on Tuesday on a draft resolution that would extend the cross-border authorization to bring humanitarian assistance from Turkey for an additional year until the existing authorization expires on July 10. The mechanism for cross-border aid delivery in the northwest of Syria was first adopted in 2014. Since, the initial number of four checkpoints was reduced to two, the checkpoints at Bab al-Hawa and Bab al-Salam//sputnik