ISLAMABAD: According an influential Israeli newspaper “Jerusalem Post” Mufti Abu Hisham Masood, a Pakistani Muslim cleric affiliated with the TTP, which has been widely designated as a...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly Secretariat has advised all the members to go for COVID-19 tests prior to attending the session commencing from Monday, May 11.According to an announcement, the...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

PESHAWAR: Speaker Provincial Assembly Mushtaq Ahmed Ghani visited Khyber Teaching Hospital to take of situation with regard to coronavirus on Friday.He was received by Medical Director Prof Dr Aamir...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly Secretariat has advised all the members to go for COVID-19 tests prior to attending the session commencing from Monday, May 11. According to an announcement, the...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

SUKKUR: The DG NAB has decided to file corruption references against some government officials allegedly involved in corruption, including Anees-ur-Rehman Mahar the-then deputy director food Sukkur,...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

LAHORE: In the first phases of corona tests of the employees of Punjab Institute of Neuro Sciences, two employees tested positive during testing of initially 50 employees of PINS. In a statement on...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

LAHORE: The Pakistan Medical Association has expressed serious concern over the increasing number of coronavirus patients and rising death toll of Covid-19 patients in the country.“We are very...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

NEW DELHI: Pakistan is projected to record five million births in the nine months since the COVID-19 was declared pandemic in March and these births expected to take place between March and December,...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Courteney Cox's former husband reveals he recorded behind the scene footage from 'Friends'

Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt are more cordial than ever before

British Rapper Ty has died aged 47 after contracting coronavirus. Ty's death was confirmed by his team on Thursday.

In his first post-prison track 'Gooba,' Tekashi 6ix9ine flaunted his jaw-dropping performance accompanied by six women and a puppy

Beyonce’s mother Tina Lawson said: 'We all got tested. We’ve gotten the results back and everybody is okay'

RAMALLAH: The United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees launched an emergency coronavirus appeal Friday, saying Palestinians across the Middle East were suffering a devastating socio-economic impact.The agency appealed for $93.4 million for the next three months to provide food and cash...

PARIS: In his ninth-floor office on Paris’s Avenue Montaigne, Europe’s wealthiest man, Bernard Arnault, is spending long hours plotting a post-virus future for his luxury goods empire, LVMH. At 71, the billionaire has lived through several crises, but none quite like this one, with his...

AHMEDABAD: Hundreds of paramilitary forces have been deployed in coronavirus-hotspot Gujarat state as India on Friday faced a surge in the number of deaths and infections from the outbreak. Official data show the deadly disease is taking a growing toll in the country of 1.3 billion people even as...

AHMEDABAD, India: Hundreds of paramilitary forces have been deployed in coronavirus-hotspot Gujarat state as India on Friday faced a surge in the number of deaths and infections from the outbreak.Official data show the deadly disease is taking a growing toll in the country of 1.3 billion people...

A second White House worker this week has tested positive for coronavirus, officials said Friday, even as President Donald Trump continued to go mask-free at a World War II commemoration with veterans in their 90s.

The World Health Organization (WHO) plans to launch an app this month to enable people in under-resourced countries to assess whether they may have the novel coronavirus, and is considering a Bluetooth-based contact tracing feature too, an official told Reuters Friday.

The biggest threat to Brazil's ability to successfully combat the spread of the coronavirus and tackle the unfolding public health crisis is the country's president, Jair Bolsonaro, according to British medical journal The Lancet.

ISLAMABAD/LAHORE: Pakistan’s position in the global ranking in respect of COVID-19 dropped from 24th to 22nd on Friday after the number of positive cases increased to 26,806 with addition of 1,791 new cases.The country ranked 20th and 29th in the global ranking on May 6 after reporting 1,000...

Ag APPISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s position in the global ranking in respect of COVID-19 dropped from 24th to 22nd on Friday after the number of positive cases increased to 26,806 with addition of 1,791 new cases.The country ranked 20th and 29th in the global ranking on May 6 after reporting 1,000...

The NCC, under Imran Khan, had decided to substantially ease the lockdown from Saturday (today) after detailed deliberations and consultations with the provinces

After a disappointing 2019 United Nations Climate Change Conference, there is a need to restore confidence that the intergovernmental process can deliver on mitigation, adaptation, and finance.

The Asia-Pacific region has the expertise and resources to take a leadership role in not only developing a COVID-19 vaccine but distributing it to those who need it most.

The Environment Ministry is fining Mercedes-Benz W77.6 billion for illegally tampering with emissions tests, the biggest fine ever for a carmaker here (US$1=W1,225). The ministry on Wednesday said Mercedes-Benz, Nissan and Porsche tampered with the emissions of around 40,000 diesel cars sold in Kore...

The Trump administration is defending its decision not to release a detailed coronavirus reopening plan for the U.S., maintaining they would have been too narrowly-focused for the country's 50 states.The administration's defense comes in response to an Associated Press report that it shelved a repor...

Korea's exports of coronavirus test kits last month amounted to more than US$200 million, or eight times the month before, according to the Korea Customs Service on Thursday.They were exported to 103 countries.Brazil imported US$30 million worth of test kits, which is the biggest proportion of 13 pe...

Prime Minister Boris Johnson will keep Britain under a coronavirus lockdown until at least next month -- to the frustration of some in his Cabinet, who behind the scenes are arguing that Downing Street now needs to prioritize the economy, which is heading for its worst recession in 300 years.Cabinet...

A roundup of stay-at-home orders in Colorado due to the coronavirus outbreak. Read the details of the orders in San Miguel County, Denver, Boulder, Piktin County and the Southern Ute Tribe.

Islamabad: Chairman of the United International Group, Mian Shahid said Friday that the current economic meltdown because of coronavirus may impact the business volumes of the industry, which are yet to be ascertained.Speaking on the development, Mian Shahid said that we have planned to generate...

Islamabad : Iran, China, India, Pakistan, Indonesia and the Philippines have the most cases of COVID-19 and related deaths in the Asia Pacific region.The COVID-19 situation of Asia Pacific was highlighted in the Second COVID-19 Situation Report Asia Pacific released by United Nations Population...

Rawalpindi : It was really a horrible experience to bury a confirmed patient of COVID-19, the disease caused by 2019 novel coronavirus as it was painful for the family members including sons who were unable to attend the funeral that was managed in a sense as a crime was committed, at least the...

With more five people falling victim to the novel coronavirus in a day, the death toll rose to 176 in Sindh on Friday. Four out of the deceased diagnosed with the COVID-9 belonged to Karachi. The new coronavirus cases which emerged in the province on Friday were 598.“Today is another...

Environmental monitoring reports describe the environmental issues or mitigation measures of a project. This document dated May 2020 is provided for the ADB project 43319-022 in the Lao People's Democratic Republic.

Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri Thursday dismissed as not useful the meeting held the previous day at Baabda Palace to discuss the economic financial rescue plan which he and his parliamentary Future bloc boycotted.

Lebanon confirms one new coronavirus death, 12 more infections

Lebanon registered one new death due to coronavirus Friday, and 12 new infections, raising the total number of registered cases to 796.

The governments of Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan on Friday announced the partial easing of lockdown measures imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus, even as the number of infections in the country registered a record daily increase.

On Thursday, Prime Minister Imran Khan had announced the lifting of the countrywide lockdown in phases from Saturday by reopening all construction-related industries and shopping centres for five days a week from Fajr (early morning) till 5pm and outpatient departments (OPDs) in hospitals.

The premier, who had announced the decision after a meeting of the National Coordination Committee (NCC) attended by the chief ministers of the four provinces, had acknowledged that the lockdown was being eased "at a time when our curve is going up" but maintained that "it is not edging up as we were expecting.”

The trend continued on Friday, with the country recording 1,807 cases of Covid-19 from the three provinces of Punjab, Sindh and KP alone, and the national tally nearing 27,000. It is the highest daily increase in the number of infections since Pakistan confirmed its first case on February 26.

Also read: Pakistan's Covid-19 death toll doubles in last 10 days

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

A notification issued by the KP relief department said businesses associated with the construction industry will be exempt from closure subject to them following the standard operating procedures (SOPs) already issued for industrial units and sale points.

Businesses of steel and PVC pipes, electric appliances, manufacturers of steel and aluminium equipment, ceramic and paint industries, sanitary, paints, steel and aluminium works, and hardware stores will be allowed to open four days a week, not later than 4:00pm. They will remain closed on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

All factories which are not included in the negative lists of factories will also be allowed to resume operations.

According to the notification, all shops will be allowed to remain open for four days a week and not later than 4:00pm, subject to their implementation of the government's SOPs.

Meanwhile, Adviser to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister on information, Ajmal Wazir, told a press conference in Peshawar that educational institutions in the province will reopen as per the federal government's instructions and the province will not take an independent decision in this regard.

He added that discussions were being held on inter-district and intra-district transport with transporters and the decision will be shared with the public whenever it is taken.

Punjab

Punjab Information Minister Fayyazul Hassan Chohan said that the provincial government will submit a recommendation to the Centre for not lifting the lockdown in the province's major cities.

Speaking to reporters in Lahore, he said: "We have seen that there is a hype about coronavirus in some big cities. Therefore, we are submitting this recommendation to the federal government and if it is approved, then the lockdown and standard operating procedures will remain in big cities like Lahore, Rawalpindi, Multan and Gujranwala."

Examine: The lockdown dilemma

He added that higher secondary board examinations in Punjab will be cancelled and students will be promoted based on last year's grades. Schools will reopen on July 15.

As per the federal government's decision, OPDs in the province will open from May 9, Chohan said.

He added that the SOPs for congregational and Taraweeh prayers in mosques as announced by President Arif Alvi will remain in place.

The first session of the Punjab Assembly since the pandemic began was also to be held today.

Sindh

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah told a press conference in Karachi that under "phase two" of the easing of the restrictions, businesses linked to construction industries will be allowed to open while observing the preventive guidelines. Selective OPDs will also be allowed to resume services.

Industries will no longer be required to submit an application to resume operations; however, they will have to submit an undertaking and forward the details of their employees to the government.

Shops will be allowed to open after sehri (dawn) and will be required to close at 5pm. They will remain closed on Saturdays and Sundays which will be "safe days with 100 per cent lockdown", the chief minister said.

The businesses permitted to resume from Monday include shops in rural areas and neighbourhood shops situated in residential localities, excluding large market places.

Shah said marriage halls, shopping malls, hotels and restaurants in the province will remain closed and there will be no congregations or sports events either.

"These guidelines will remain applicable until May 31. This is what the federal government has outlined and we are ready to comply with these directives," he said.

The chief minister appealed to citizens to stay at home as much as possible. "If you are allowed to leave your homes, according to the directives issued by the government, then make sure to follow standard operating procedures. Wear a mask," he said.

Referring to the increase in Covid-19 infections, he added: "I am seeing the rise in cases, but for national integrity and uniform policy we are going along."

In a statement released by the CM House later in the day, Shah denied media reports stating that the lockdown will end on Monday, saying: "We are entering the second phase of the lockdown with some extra restrictions, particularly at hotspots."

He maintained that air, train and public transport will continue to remain suspended.

Balochistan

In Balochistan, a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Jam Kamal Khan approved the move to turn the lockdown imposed in the province into a 'smart lockdown', under which restrictions are enforced in virus hotspots only, according to Balochistan government spokesperson Liaquat Shahwani.

He announced that markets will be allowed to open from 3am till 5 in the evening.

Shopkeepers and traders will be bound to implement SOPs for precautionary measures while legal action will be taken against the violators, Shahwani said in a tweet.

LAHORE: A sharp increase in confirmed Covid-19 cases across Punjab has further burdened state-run health facilities, taking their bed occupancy ratio to 54 per cent.

The rate increased during the last two weeks or so due to widespread transmission of the virus.

Official figures reported by the health department portray a grim picture as 3,693 people contracted the virus during the last seven days in the province.

Punjab had reported around 3,686 positive cases for the virus during a period of one month starting from March 15, when the first Covid-19 case was spotted.

Most of the confirmed patients were taken care of in Lahore where the 1,000-bed Expo Centre Field Hospital is housing 450 patients, with 45pc bed occupancy.

Ratio may touch 80pc in two weeks

Similarly, the Mayo Hospital houses 420 patients (70pc bed occupancy) while the Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institution 100 patients (100pc bed occupancy).

The health authorities believe that this percentage is likely to reach 80pc in coming two weeks if cases continue to grow at the same rate.

The Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) is very much concerned over the increasing number of coronavirus patients and rising death toll.

“We are extremely disturbed that how our hospitals would mange the load of corona patients in future because of the scale of transmission of the virus,” said PMA Secretary Dr Qaisar Sajjad.

He said the government would have to revisit the current health system in order to remove flaws and create more space for coronavirus patients, keeping in view the future requirements.

While sharing the fresh report, a spokesperson for the Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department said Punjab reported a record 961 confirmed cases of the virus on Friday and it was the highest figure in a single day so far since the pandemic surfaced in the province.

“The government has allocated 7,753 beds for the corona patients at all the teaching, district and other field hospitals across the province,” he said. Of them, 4,239 had been occupied by the patients.

“We have 6,744 beds for corona patients at all the teaching and field hospitals that fall under the specialised healthcare and medical education department in Punjab,” SH&MED Additional Secretary (development) Nadir Chattha said.

He said 3,370 of them were allocated in teaching hospitals and 3,374 at field hospitals. Of the 6,744 beds, he said 2,261 (34pc) had been occupied by the patients.

“We are going to make available 984 more beds in coming days,” he said.

Of the total admitted patients, Mr Chattha said 40 were in a critical condition, with 34 of them on ventilators. He said so far 186 corona patients had died in Punjab.

On the other hand, of the total 961 confirmed cases on Friday, 488 were reported from Lahore which was also another record number (of people testing positive) in the provincial capital in just a day. Of them, 87 were reported from Gujrat, 77 from Rawalpindi, 60 Faisalabad, 45 Multan and 67 from Muzaffargarrh besides some other cities.

The total number of confirmed cases in Lahore and Punjab rose to 3,856 and 10,033, respectively, on Friday.

Surprisingly, the health department said only one patient died (in Muzaffargarh) of coronavirus in Punjab during the last 24 hours.

Published in Dawn, May 9th, 2020

ISLAMABAD: The country witnessed a record rise in Covid-19 cases on Friday, a day before lifting of the nationwide lockdown in phases announced by Prime Minister Imran Khan.

Although the decision to lift the lockdown from Saturday was taken in consultation with all the provinces, Punjab and Sindh on Friday expressed their desire to extend the lockdown restrictions for some more time.

With the addition of 2,000 new cases during the last 24 hours, the total number of infections in the country on Friday stood at 26,954.

Prime Minister Khan, after chairing a meeting of the National Coordination Committee (NCC) on Thursday, announced the lifting of the lockdown by opening several industries, businesses and markets from Saturday (today).

Punjab, Sindh express wish to extend lockdown restrictions; Umar dismisses Murad’s claim about unilateral decisions by Centre; PM reviews economic situation

On Friday, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and Punjab Information Minister Fayyazul Hassan Chohan said they wanted to extend the lockdown but agreed to the Centre’s call at the NCC meeting that the restrictions should be lifted from Saturday.

“It was our desire that the lockdown should be extended, but we agreed to whatever decided at the NCC meeting on Thursday,” CM Shah said at a press briefing.

The PTI-led Punjab government took a step forward and recommended that major cities of the province should remain under lockdown as there was an increasing trend of the viral disease there. “We want continuation of lockdown in eight to 10 cities, including Lahore, Rawalpindi, Multan and Gujranwala,” Mr Chohan said at a press conference.

In a related development, the federal government expressed its surprise and dismay over Sindh chief minister’s remarks that Islamabad was imposing its decision regarding ending the lockdown. Federal Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar, who also heads the National Command and Operation Centre, in a television programme categorically on Friday evening, said that all decisions were made with the approval of the provincial governments. He even said that some of the federal government’s proposals on which there were objections, or difference of opinion, were not included as the government wanted to have complete consensus on the matter.

Prime Minister Khan has urged people to follow the standard operating procedures (SOPs) evolved by the government when the lockdown is lifted, otherwise there will be trajectory of Covid-19 and then the government will have no option but to enforce another lockdown.

The prime minister presided over a meeting on Friday to review the economic situation and its future outlook in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. The finance ministry briefed the meeting on the overall situation and the performance of various macroeconomic indicators during the last nine months of the current financial year, as well as the impact of coronavirus on the economy, an official press release said.

The meeting reviewed the progress and impact of the Rs1.25 trillion economic stimulus package announced by the government to provide relief to the poor and vulnerable segments of society and support various sectors of the economy affected by the pandemic.

The prime minister appreciated the efforts made by the finance ministry to ensure financial discipline and provision of relief during the Coved-19 situation. He emphasised that greater attention should be paid to supporting small and medium enterprises and the agriculture sector, enabling them to create greater job opportunities for people. “The process of reforming public sector organisations should be expedited to plug leakages of the economy,” he added.

The prime minister said the process of provision of subsidies should also be reviewed to make these interventions more effective and target-oriented. “Out of the box solutions are needed to meet the present day economic challenges,” he emphasised.

Reviewing the future economic outlook, Mr Khan said all-out efforts should be made to provide maximum possible relief to the people. He emphasised that priorities and targets for the next Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) should be clearly defined with a focus on completion of projects rather than mere initiation. He stressed the need for maximum utilisation of the public-private partnership model and involving international development partners to enhance and broaden the PSDP scope.

Meanwhile, Special Assistant to the PM on Health Dr Zafar Mirza said the government had signed a memorandum of understanding with the International Organisation of Migration, which helps connect countries with expatriates.

At a press conference, he said the government wanted to develop a networking system with overseas Pakistani doctors in order to learn from their experiences and expertise even after the coronavirus crisis is over.

Published in Dawn, May 9th, 2020

Since the start of India's COVID-19 lockdown on March 25, 2020, instances of Islamophobia have intensified, threatening the life, rights, and integrity of millions of Muslims.

Colorado Republican Party Chair Ken Buck, a U.S. representative from Windsor, pressured a local party official to submit incorrect election results to set the primary ballot for a state Senate seat, according to an audio recording of a conference call obtained by The Denver Post.

A document created by the nation's top disease investigators with step-by-step advice to local authorities on how and when to reopen restaurants and other public places during the still-raging outbreak has been shelved by the Trump administration.

The decision to wear a mask in public is becoming a political statement — a moment to pick sides in a brewing culture war over containing the coronavirus.

The Weld County GOP chairman has filed a complaint with the local district attorney and the Secretary of State’s Office accusing an aide to Republican U.S. Rep. Ken Buck and three others of election fraud and corruption.

The United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) launched an emergency coronavirus appeal Friday, saying Palestinians across the Middle East were suffering a devastating socio-economic impact.

The number of coronavirus cases in Saudi Arabia exceeded 35,000 on Friday as the kingdom struggles to get to grips with rising numbers of new infections.

Kuwait will enact a "total curfew" from 4pm (1300 GMT) Sunday through to May 30 to help to curb the spread of the new coronavirus, the Information Ministry said on Twitter Friday.

Hackers linked to Iran have targeted staff at U.S. drugmaker Gilead Sciences Inc in recent weeks, according to publicly-available web archives reviewed by Reuters and three cybersecurity researchers, as the company races to deploy a treatment for the COVID-19 virus.