KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia reported 31,199 new COVID-19 infections in the highest daily spike as of midnight Wednesday, bringing the national total to 3,305,157, according to the health ministry. There are 119 new imported cases, with 31,080 being local transmissions, the ministry’s data showed. A further 55 deaths have been reported, bringing the death toll … Read more
WELLINGTON – New Zealand recorded 6,137 new community cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, the Ministry of Health said in a statement. More than half of the infections were reported in the largest city Auckland. In addition, eight new cases were detected at the New Zealand border. Currently 205 COVID-19 patients are being treated in New … Read more
ICC elite umpire Aleem Dar and PCB international umpire Ahsan Raza will be the on-field umpires for the historic Test series between Pakistan and Australia, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced today. ICC Chief Match Referee Ranjan Madugalle will lead the Playing Control Team, the statement further added. Madugalle, the former Sri Lanka captain, is … Read more
Pakistan in a landmark step has become the first country from South Asia to join the Global Plastic Action Partnership (GPAP). British High Commissioner to Pakistan Christian Turner urged the government and individuals in Pakistan to contribute towards a better plastic economy and congratulated the country for launching the National Plastic Action Partnership (NPAP). Taking … Read more
Sindh High Court on Thursday warned Chief Minister Sindh Murad Ali Shah of contempt of court proceedings for not implementing its orders regarding de-notifying the acting Vice-Chancellor (VC) Karachi University (KU) Khalid Iraqi, notifying the most senior professor as acting VC in his place and constituting a search committee for the appointment, within three months, … Read more
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Wednesday announced the revised squad for the home Test series against Australia scheduled to begin next month. All-rounder Mohammad Nawaz has been ruled out of the squad amid a foot injury. He will not be replaced by any player, the board stated. Fast bowler Naseem Shah and wicketkeeper-batsman Sarfaraz … Read more
HONG KONG: Hong Kong’s government invoked emergency powers on Thursday to allow doctors, nurses and other personnel from the Chinese mainland to help combat a spiraling coronavirus outbreak. The densely populated metropolis is in the throes of its worst-ever Covid wave, registering thousands of cases every day, overwhelming hospitals and government efforts to isolate all … Read more
NEW DELHI – The Omicron variant of COVID-19 has accounted for more deaths than the Delta variant in the United States, an Indian news agency Asian News International (ANI) reported. The ANI, quoting a local U.S. daily, The Seattle Times, reported that since Nov. 24 last year, when South Africa first reported the Omicron variant … Read more
SYDNEY – As active cases in the state of Western Australia (WA) tip past 2,000, the nation’s last COVID-19 stronghold has begun to ponder living with the virus as it plans to open its borders from March 3. WA recorded 617 new cases in the 24 hours till 8:00 p.m. Wednesday night (1200 GMT). It … Read more
SYDNEY – Australia hit Russia with a “second phase” of sanctions on Thursday over its assault on Ukraine, the first salvo in an expected battery of new international measures to punish Moscow. Prime Minister Scott Morrison condemned Russia’s “illegal invasion” as he announced sanctions against 25 individuals, four entities involved in developing and selling military … Read more
The health and safety procedures for the ongoing seventh edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) have been updated ahead of the seventh edition’s play-offs. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has amended the protocols in accordance with NCOC standards and the country’s current Covid-19 positivity trend. The PCB has decreased the asymptomatic cases’ isolation time … Read more
SRINAGAR: One of the most comprehensive NGO reports on decades of violence and killings in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) is Alleged Perpetrators, published by the most respected rights group in the disputed region. But clicking on the Greater Kashmir newspaper report it cites in the killing of a 16-year-old named Ishtiyaq Ahmad … Read more
ADDIS ABABA – The number of COVID-19 cases in Africa reached 11,146,001 on Wednesday evening, according to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC). The Africa CDC, the specialized healthcare agency of the African Union, said the overall death toll of the continent stands at 247,783. A total of 10,311,143 patients across … Read more
The Covid-19 positivity ratio witnessed a slight spike in the last 24 hours and reached 3.4% with 18 deaths in the country. The data shared by National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) revealed that a total of 42,396 tests were conducted in the last 24 hours of which 1,455 cases returned positive taking the total … Read more
CANBERRA – Spraying face masks with sanitizer reduces their effectiveness, Australian scientists have found. In a world-first study published on Thursday, a team from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) revealed that exposing N95 and P2 face masks to alcohol-based sanitizers risks “serious degradation” of their ability to protect from airborne hazards. Jurg … Read more
NEW DELHI – India’s COVID-19 tally rose to 42,881,179 on Thursday, as 14,148 new cases were registered during the past 24 hours across the country, showed the federal health ministry’s latest data. Besides, 302 deaths from the pandemic since Wednesday morning took the total death toll to 512,924. There are still 148,359 active COVID-19 cases … Read more
The United States said it had communicated its position to Pakistan regarding Russia’s further invasion of Ukraine, said State Department spokesperson Ned Price, Reuters reported. Read more: Russia’s Putin launches ‘military operation’ in Ukraine The US statement came on the day Prime Minister Imran Khan was heading to Moscow for talks with Russian President Vladimir … Read more
BEIJING – The Chinese mainland on Wednesday reported 85 locally transmitted COVID-19 cases, the National Health Commission said on Thursday. The commission’s daily report showed that Inner Mongolia reported 40 of the new local infections. Meanwhile, Hubei reported 10, Liaoning and Guangdong each reported eight, Sichuan reported six, Jiangsu, Guangxi and Yunnan each reported three, … Read more
BEIJING – The Chinese mainland on Wednesday reported 85 locally transmitted COVID-19 cases, the National Health Commission said on Thursday. The commission’s daily report showed that Inner Mongolia reported 40 of the new local infections. Meanwhile, Hubei reported 10, Liaoning and Guangdong each reported eight, Sichuan reported six, Jiangsu, Guangxi and Yunnan each reported three, … Read more
Lahore Qalandars’ power hitter Fakhar Zaman set a new milestone in the history of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) on Wednesday after he surpassed Karachi Kings’ skipper Babar Azam for most runs in a single and most number of half-centuries in a single edition. Fakhar is currently the leading run-scorer in the ongoing tournament with … Read more
SANTIAGO – Over 1 million people in Chile have received a second booster shot against COVID-19, amid a wave of infections triggered by the Omicron variant, the Health Ministry said Wednesday. In its report, the ministry said 1,006,329 doses of a second booster vaccine have been applied in the country since January. In the initial … Read more
ISLAMABAD: More light to moderate rain-wind/thunderstorm with snow over hills is expected in upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Islamabad, northeast Punjab, Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan. Temperature of some major cities recorded this morning: Islamabad nine degree centigrade, Lahore and Peshawar twelve, Karachi eighteen, Quetta five, Gilgit six, Murree three and Muzaffarabad seven degree centigrade. According to met office … Read more
GENEVA: The World Health Organization said Wednesday it would establish a global biomanufacturing training hub in South Korea to serve poorer countries wishing to produce their own vaccines, insulin and cancer treatments. Read more: Sindh health department decides to conduct Covid-19 tests at schools The move comes after the UN health agency helped create a … Read more
Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday was accorded a red carpet welcome upon his arrival to Russia on a two-day official visit. Imran Khan and his delegation were given a warm welcome at the airport by Deputy Russian Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov and the high officials of the Pakistan Embassy. He was also given a … Read more
THE HAGUE: The Netherlands has evacuated 294 Afghan citizens who arrived in neighbouring Pakistan over the last few days and will be flown soon to a Dutch destination, the foreign ministry said Wednesday. The group, consisting of translators, non-governmental workers and other people assisting Dutch missions to the war-torn country as well as their families, … Read more
Islamabad: European Union (EU) Special Representative for Human Rights Eamon Gilmore on Wednesday said that Pakistan is a safe country. He was in a meeting with Minister for Law and Justice Dr Farogh Naseem in Islamabad. During the session, the EU representative praised the minister for his efforts in enacting new laws. While Dr Farogh … Read more
ISLAMABAD: Russian Ambassador Danila Ganich has said that Russia is keen to assist Pakistan in energy sector besides expanding trade relations. Talking to PTV, he said it is a good opportunity for the Prime Minister of Pakistan to discuss everything as high level interaction between the two countries would help understand each other’s interest. He … Read more
KARACHI: The buying rate of 1 UAE Dirham to PKR was Rs48.300 and the selling rate of 1 AED to PKR was Rs49.00 in the interbank market on Feb 24, 2022. Meanwhile, the following are the rates of the US Dollar, Saudi Riyal, UAE Dirham, UK Pound, and other foreign currencies in the interbank market … Read more
