BRUSSELS: Digital companies will have nowhere to hide after the EU’s landmark content law enters into full force from Saturday, with the risk of heavy fines for any violations. The new rules, known as the Digital Services Act (DSA), kicked in last year for the world’s largest platforms, inclu­ding Facebook and TikTok, but will now apply to all except the …

Alexei Navalny, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s most formidable opponent, collapsed and died on Friday after a walk at the “Polar Wolf” Arctic penal colony where he was serving a three-decade jail term, the Russian prison service said. The death of Navalny, a 47-year-old former lawyer, robs the disparate Russian opposition of its most courageous leader as Putin prepares for an …

BERLIN: Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a security deal with Germany on Friday in Berlin, hailed by Chancellor Olaf Scholz as a “historic step” anchoring sustained support for Kyiv in its raging battles against Russia. Hours later, Zelensky and his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron also signed a similar security pact calling for French military and civilian aid for Kyiv in …

NEW YORK: A judge ruled on Friday that Donald Trump must pay $354.9 million in penalties for fraudulently overstating his net worth to dupe lenders, handing the former US president another legal setback in a civil case that imperils his real estate empire. Justice Arthur Engoron also banned Trump from serving as an officer or director of any New York …

ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office on Friday said Pakistan will participate in the upcoming meeting of special envoys on Afghanistan. The meeting being held from Feb 18 to 19 in Qatar capital Doha has been convened by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres for deliberating on the approaches to international engagement with Taliban administration. Pakistan’s Special Representative on Afghanistan Amb Asif Durrani will …

Hundreds of protesters, many of them Russian emigres, gathered in cities across Europe and beyond on Friday to express their outrage over the death of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny. Often gathering outside Russian embassies, they chanted slogans critical of Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom they blamed for the activist’s death, holding up signs calling him a “killer” and demanding accountability.   A …

PESHAWAR: Two militants, including a key commander, were killed and two others were arrested, while a police officer em­­b­raced martyrdom in a joint operation carried out by se­­curity forces and Co­­un­ter Terrorism Depart­m­ent (CTD) of the police in district Tank, the police said. According to an official statement issued by the CTD on Friday, the militants were involved in attacks …

TOBA TEK SINGH: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) arrested on Friday two members of a fraudulent gang operating in Toba Tek Singh and Faisalabad. The suspects, identified as Imran Ali and Ghulam Murtaza, were involved in a scam amounting to millions of rupees, targeting people seeking vehicles on lease. The FIA spokesperson said the duo collected funds on behalf of …

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court will take up next Monday a petition seeking a declaration that the general elections held on Feb 8 are null and void due to alleged flagrant violations of democratic norms and electoral integrity. Headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa, a three-judge bench, comprising Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar and Justice Mussarat Hilali, will …

ISLAMABAD: The investigation officers (IOs) and staff of police stations have been ordered to refrain from arresting any accused from the premises of courts as it deprives them of their basic right to get justice and also violates the sanctity of courts. Police officers told Dawn that the order had been issued keeping in view the verdicts of superior courts. According to …