WASHINGTON: A pill developed by US drugmaker Merck could halve the chances of dying or being hospitalised for those most at risk of contracting severe Covid-19, with experts hailing it as a potential breakthrough in how the virus is treated. If it gets authorisation, molnupiravir, which is designed to introduce errors into the genetic code of the virus, would be …

KABUL: Taliban fighters raided a hideout of the militant Islamic State (IS) group north of the Afghan capital on Friday, killing and arresting an unspecified number of militants, a Taliban spokesman said. Since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in mid-August, there has been an increase in attacks by IS militants targeting Taliban members. The Taliban and IS are enemies, and …

GENEVA: Pakistan wants the European Union to revise its plan to step up human rights monitoring under the new Taliban leadership in Afghanistan, in part by taking into account socioeconomic concerns in a country hoping to emerge from decades of war and instability. Islamabad says further improvements to a resolution at the UN’s top human rights body are needed, including …

Former US President Donald Trump asked a federal judge in Florida on Friday to ask Twitter to restore his account, which the company removed in January citing a risk of incitement of violence. Trump filed a request for preliminary injunction against Twitter in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida, arguing the social media company was “coerced” by members …

ISLAMABAD: Covid-19 positivity ratio in the country fell below three per cent for the first time since July, with 1,411 new cases repor­ted over the last 24 hours. On the other hand, as per the decision of the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), restrictions on unvaccinated people came into force on Friday. Meanwhile, the forum announced that the quarantine …

SWABI: The police on Friday recovered a woman chained by her family for three years in Manki village of Chota Lahor tehsil here. District police officer Mohammad Shoaib Khan told reporters that the woman’s father, Mohammad Ayub, and brothers Fazalullah and Saifullah were taken into custody and were booked under sections 354, 344, 506 and 34 of the Pakistan Penal …

ISLAMABAD: Three days after the government filed a review petition in the Supreme Court against the sacking of , the Federal Directorate of Education (FDE) on Friday terminated the services of over 500 teachers, creating a crisis-like situation in the educational institutions of Islamabad. There are 530 teachers and around 120 non-teaching staff who were hired in the ‘90s by …

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday directed the authorities concerned to take steps to exploit full potential of exports diversification in salt and pharmaceutical sectors. Chairing a meeting of the National Export Development Board, the prime minister said the government was focused on creating business-friendly environment in the country for strengthening economy and increasing employment opportunities. The prime minister …

KARACHI: The days of anxiety and panic in Karachi were finally over on Friday when cyclone Shaheen moved away from Sindh’s coast, though it did induce high winds, light to moderate rainfall, at times isolated heavy falls, in the city that remained on the edge due to the threat of urban flooding and inundation of coastal areas. According to the …

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday dismissed a petition filed against the presidential ordinance that required lawmakers to take the oath within 60 days after the first sitting of a legislature. The opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) invoked the jurisdiction of this court challenging the vires of the Election (Third Amend­ment) Ordinance, 2021, which was notified in the …