WASHINGTON/LONDON: Thousands of protesters held a “red line” rally near the White House on Saturday, voicing anger at US President Joe Biden’s tolerance of Israel’s brutal military campaign against Hamas. Chanting “From DC to Palestine, we are the red line”, the demonstrators held a long banner scribbled with the names of Palestinians killed by Israeli forces.     In London …

BEIRUT: Israeli strikes on Saturday killed two people and sparked wildfires in southern Lebanon, state media said, with Hezbollah announcing the death of one fighter. Hezbollah, a Hamas ally, has traded near-daily fire with Israeli forces in the eight months since the Gaza conflict began, triggered by Hamas’ October 7 raid. The deadly clashes have intensified in recent weeks, causing …

GAZA: Israel pressed its bombardment of Gaza as strikes rattled various neighbourhoods and appeared to be focused on central areas of the Palestinian territory. The onslaught persisted, despite scrutiny on Israel after its warplanes carried out an attack on a UN-run school that a Gaza hospital said killed at least 37 people. The Israeli military acknowledged it conducted the strike …

UNITED NATIONS: Human rights groups have welcomed the United Nations decision to place Israel on a ‘List of Shame’ of countries that fail to protect children in war. The UN informed Israel about the move on Friday. Israel has killed tens of thousands of Palestinian children and maimed many more in its brutal bombing on Gaza, sparking global outrage against …

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to be sworn in on Sunday for a third term after worse than expected election results left him reliant on coalition partners to govern. With Modi yet to announce the makeup of this cabinet, the ceremony at the presidential palace on Sunday evening (13:45 GMT) will be keenly watched when some 30 ministers-to-be also take …

LONDON: In a historic first, Israr Kakar, a student from Baloc­hi­stan, has been elected as president of the Oxford Union. He is the third Pakistani and first from Balochistan to hold this prestigious position. The Oxford Union, founded in 1823, is one of the oldest and most esteemed debating societies in the world. Mr Kakar hails from a small village …

SAHIWAL: A devastating fire broke out in the pediatric medicine ward of Sahiwal Teaching Hospital (STH) on Saturday morning due to a short circuit in the air conditioning system. Four infants, who were in critical condition according to the hospital MS, died while 74 were rescued by parents, hospital staff, security personnel, and Rescue 1122 teams. Chief Minister Mariam Nawaz …

RAWALPINDI: While the fiscal year 2023-24 is about to end, the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) launched only two projects while two others remained on papers only during the year. The two projects were Rawalpindi Ring Road worth Rs38 billion and Asghar Mall Road reconstruction worth Rs129 million. A senior official of the RDA told Dawn that in the last fiscal year the …

LAHORE: The Punjab government has imposed a complete ban on the operation and functioning of mechanical and mobile rides (swings, slides, etc in parks and elsewhere) during Eid holidays to avoid accidents and ensure the safety of citizens. In the past, several accidents have been reported due to malfunctioning and falling mechanical rides, resulting in the loss of lives, including children, and …

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court’s (IHC) registrar has raised objections on a petition filed by Bushra Bibi, the wife of ex-PM Imran Khan, to suspend her sentence in the Iddat case and release her on bail. In the application, Ms Bibi contended that her sentence was unsustainable due to “weak evidence” and contradictions in the prosecution’s case. The petition said Ms Bibi …