PARIS: Thousands of health workers across France have been suspended without pay for failing to get vaccinated against Covid-19 ahead of a deadline this week, Health Minister Olivier Veran said on Thursday. France’s national public health agency estimated last week that roughly 12 per cent of hospital staff and around six per cent of doctors in private practices have yet …

SYDNEY: The United States announced a new alliance on Wednesday with Australia and Britain to strengthen military capabilities in the face of a rising China, with Canberra to get a nuclear submarine fleet and American cruise missiles. President Joe Biden, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his British counterpart Boris Johnson did not mention China in unveiling their alliance, dubbed …

KARACHI: Strained relations between the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government and the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) witnessed another low on Thursday when a key member of the federal cabinet sought an unconditional apology from the constitutional body for issuing him a notice which, he said, was contrary to facts about electioneering for the recent cantonment board polls in Karachi. Minister …

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has directed the Ministry of Interior to provide required documents for restarting the pending delimitation process for the upcoming local government elections in Islamabad. The local government completed its five-year term in February this year. Later, the ECP was informed by the interior ministry that in the past there would be 50 union …

LAHORE: The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) has decided to hold a long march from Quetta to Islamabad in early November against the proposed Pakistan Media Development Authority (PDMA) bill. The decision was taken at PFUJ’s three-day federal executive council meeting at the Lahore Press Club with president Shahzada Zulfiqar in chair on Thursday. It was meeting’s second day. …

RAWALPINDI: As many as 4,000 police personnel will be deployed for the cricket series being played between Pakistan and New Zealand at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium from Sept 17 (today). Besides, cricket fans would go through metal detectors, biometric checking and walk-through gates. A security official said though there was no specific threat in Rawalpindi, the law enforcement agencies were not …

ISLAMABAD: The leak of a letter written by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) over internet voting has sparked a new controversy. The letter reveals that Nadra intends to engage the ECP in a new contract amounting to Rs2.4 billion for the development of an i-voting system, though the existing agreement still …

ISLAMABAD: While several countries have controlled casualties despite being severely affected by Covid-19, Pakistan continues to report a large number of casualties because it has vaccinated hardly 25 per cent of its population, according to an expert. On the other hand, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Health Dr Faisal Sultan seems satisfied with the country’s performance and …

ISLAMABAD: The opposition parties on Thursday rejected the increase in prices of petroleum products. Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said in a statement that Prime Minister Imran Khan had robbed people by raising the petrol price to the highest level in the country’s history. “Khan Sahib petrol price has risen by Rs5 per litre; will the nation witness …

HARIPUR: A teenage boy was killed when a pistol held by his cousin went off accidentally while making a TikTok video in Hattar village, police said on Thursday. Sharif Akhtar, a resident of Hattar, told the police that his son Raqeebur Rehman, 17, and nephew Usman were at their shop in Dohriyan area when Usman was making a video for …