COPENHAGEN: The WHO on Thursday slammed Europe’s “unacceptably slow” vaccine rollout, warning of a worrying surge in cases as France became the latest country to impose new restrictions to combat mounting infections. As European nations scrambled to contain third waves across the continent, Brazil marked a grim milestone with more than 66,000 deaths in March — by far the highest …

DHAKA: A teenager has been detained under Bangladesh’s harsh internet laws for making a music video mocking Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi, police said on Thursday. Rabiul Islam, 19, was arrested on Wednesday in a northern town after a pro-government youth leader filed a complaint under the law, local police chief Abdullah Al-Mamun said. “He …

WASHINGTON: The US State Department said on Thursday that Washington looked forward to working with Islamabad on the climate crisis at different levels. The department announced earlier in the day that Special Presidential Envoy for climate John Kerry would travel to Abu Dhabi, New Delhi, and Dhaka from April 1 to 9 for consultations on the matter. The schedule, however, …

PITTSBURGH: President Joe Biden outlined a huge $2.3 trillion plan on Wednesday to re-engineer the United States infrastructure in what he billed as a once-in-a-generation investment that would undo his predecessor’s signature legislative achievement — giant tax cuts for corporations — in the process. Speaking at a carpenters union training centre in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Biden drew comparisons between his proposed …

KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah said on Thursday that he had proposed to the federal government to ban inter-city transport to break the Covid-19 chain, and Asad Umar, the minister concerned, had promised to consider the proposal at the next NCOC meeting. “I am not advocating a lockdown, just … a ban on inter-city bus transport service; …

ISLAMABAD: The family of 10-year-old Farishta, who was raped and murdered two years ago, on Thursday said that they had been running from pillar to post for justice, but there was still no hope for it. Addressing a press conference held at the National Press Club (NPC), Gul Nabi, father of Farishta – accompanied by his family said all of …

RAWALPINDI: At least 12 commercial buildings were gutted and two razed to ground after a massive fire ripped through the old Urdu Bazaar on Thursday. The bazaar is located not far from Lal Haveli, the public secretariat of Awami Muslim League (AML) of Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed. The over 12 buildings that were damaged in the fire housed stationery …

ISLAMABAD: While experts are of mixed opinion about the UK variant of Covid-19 being more transmissible in children, data shows cases have increased in children more rapidly compared to adults and elderly people. However, they say there are fewer chances in children to translate the infection into a disease. A double variant virus has been reported in India which showed …

KARACHI: A local pharmaceutical company has signed a deal with a Chinese giant that allowed it to supply and produce an upcoming Covid-19 vaccine in Pakistan, an official announcement said on Thursday. This has emerged in a letter written by M/s Searle Company Limited to the Pakistan Stock Exchange, saying it had concluded an agreement with China’s Livzon Mapharm Inc. …

ISLAMABAD: The opposition on Thursday blocked the government’s move to present a resolution in the National Assembly authorising the speaker to constitute a parliamentary committee on electoral reforms, saying it would not become part of it without prior consultations and at a time when opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif and others were still in jail. Amid a noisy protest by opposition …