Category: World

  • China reports world’s first human case of H10N3

    China has reported the first case of human infection with the H10N3 strain of bird flu from the country’s eastern Jiangsu province, China’s National Health Commission said on Tuesday.

    The patient, a 41-year-old man from Zhenjiang city, is currently in a stable condition and meets discharge standards, the state-run CGTN TV reported. Health authorities played down the outbreak, saying the case was a sporadic virus transmission from poultry to humans, and the risk of causing a pandemic was extremely low.

    The patient was diagnosed as having the H10N3 avian influenza virus on May 28, National Health Commission said in a statement without elaborating on how the man had got infected with the virus.

    No other cases of human infection with H10N3 have previously been reported globally, it said.

    H10N3 is a low pathogenic or relatively less severe strain of the virus in poultry and the risk of it spreading on a large scale is very low.There are many different strains of avian influenza in China and some sporadically infect people, generally those working with poultry. H5N8 is a subtype of the Influenza A virus (also known as the bird flu virus). While H5N8 only presents a low risk to humans, it is highly lethal to wild birds and poultry.

    In April, a highly pathogenic H5N6 avian flu was found in wild birds in northeast China’s Shenyang city.

    PTI

  • Global Covid-19 caseload tops 168.1 mn; Deaths surge to more than 3.49 mn

    Washington, May 27: The overall global Covid-19 caseload has topped 168.1 million, while the deaths have surged to more than 3.49 million, according to the Johns Hopkins University.

    In its latest update on Thursday morning, the University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed that the current global caseload and death toll stood at 168,181,146 and 3,494,001, respectively.

    The US continues to be the worst-hit country with the world’s highest number of cases and deaths at 33,190,016 and 591,947, respectively, according to the CSSE.

    In terms of infections, India follows in the second place with 27,157,795 cases.

    The other worst countries with over 3 million cases are Brazil (16,274,695), France (5,683,143), Turkey (5,212,123), Russia (4,968,421), the UK (4,486,168), Italy (4,201,827), Germany (3,667,041), Spain (3,657,886), Argentina (3,622,135) and Colombia (3,294,101), the CSSE figures showed.

    In terms of deaths, Brazil comes second with 454,429 fatalities.

    Nations with a death toll of over 100,000 are India (311,388), Mexico (221,963), the UK (128,010), Italy (125,622), Russia (117,595) and France (109,185).—(IANS)

  • Mecca Grand Mosque pulpit attacker claims to be awaited ‘Imam Mahdi’

    Saudi suspect in his 40s was arrested while attempting to attack imam at mosque

    Dubai: Initial investigations conducted by Mecca police have revealed that the suspect who attacked Mecca’s Grand Mosque imam pulpit is a Saudi man claiming to be the awaited Mahdi, local media reported.

    The armed man, in his 40s, was detained after attempting to attack the imam in on Friday.

    According to Saudi media, the public prosecution was notified of the incident and launched immediate investigation to discover the motives behind the attempted attack.

    The man has also subjected to medical examinations to check his mental abilitity.

    Who is the awaited Mahdi?

    In Islam, the anticipated Mahdi is the prophesied redeemer of Islam who will rule for seven, nine or nineteen years (according to various interpretations) before the Day of Judgment and will rid the world of evil.

    All Islamic groups agree that Mahdi will appear at the end of time to fill the world with justice and equity and establish the government of righteousness over all parts of the earth.

    1979 siege of Mecca
    It is not the first time that a man has claimed to be the Mahdi. In the early hours of November 20, 1979, some 50,000 faithful from all over the world gathered for dawn prayers in the huge courtyard surrounding the sacred Kaaba in Mecca, Islam’s holiest place. Among them mingled 200 men led by a charismatic 40-year-old preacher called Juhayman Al Otaybi.

    As, the imam finished the prayers, Juhayman and his followers pushed him aside and seized the microphone.

    They had placed closed coffins in the centre of the yard, a traditional act of seeking blessings for the recently deceased. But when the coffins were opened, they revealed handguns and rifles, which were quickly distributed among the men.

    One of them began to read a speech: “Fellow Muslims, we announce today the coming of the Mahdi who shall reign with justice and fairness on Earth after it has been filled with injustice and oppression.”

    The siege lasted more than two weeks before special forces broke into the mosque. Many people were killed; Al Otaybi and at least 66 others were later executed in public.

    Gulf News

  • China to provide ₹7,29,10,500.00 to Palestine as humanitarian aid

    China will provide a cash transfer of 1 million U.S. dollars to Palestine as an emergency humanitarian aid, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said on Friday.

    Another 1 million U.S. dollars and 200,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines will also be donated to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, Zhao told the press.

    Tian Lin, a spokesperson for the China International Development Cooperation Agency (CIDCA), earlier announced that China will provide humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian government for treating the injured and relocating the homeless.

    China launched an emergency response mechanism for humanitarian assistance on Thursday.

    Smoke rises following Israeli airstrike, in Gaza City, May 20, 2021. /CFP

    Israel and Hamas have accepted an Egyptian-brokered deal to cease fighting at 2 a.m. Friday local time (2300 GMT Thursday) to end the 11-day bloodshed.

    Israel has been launching massive raids on the Palestinian enclave with airstrikes, artillery shellings and drone attacks since May 10. The response comes to counter rockets fired by Palestinian militants in Gaza to retaliate for Israel’s violation of the sacred Islamic holy site of Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.

    The escalation had led to the heaviest fighting between Israel and Gaza militants since 2014, killing 232 Palestinians, including 65 children and 39 women, and 12 Israelis.

    (With input from Xinhua)

    (Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Kashmir Today staff and is published from a syndicated feed.).

  • Israeli police, Palestinians in fresh clashes at Al-Aqsa compound.

    UPDATE: Fresh clashes between Palestinians and Israeli police broke out at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa mosque compound on Friday, two weeks after unrest at the sensitive religious site triggered deadly hostilities in Gaza

  • 52K Palestinians take refuge in UN-run schools in Gaza: UN report

    A UN report said on Tuesday that 52,000 Palestinians took refuge at schools run by the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in the Gaza Strip, as a round of probably heaviest fighting between Israel and Gaza since 2014 has lasted nine days, the Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.

    The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a press statement that Israeli fighter jets destroyed, either totally or partially, 448 constructions in the Palestinian coastal enclave since May 10, Xinhua reported.

    Jens Laerke, a spokesman for OCHA, said in the statement that 132 buildings were completely destroyed and 316 partially destroyed, including six hospitals and nine healthcare centres.

    Meanwhile, the government press office in Gaza said Israeli fighter jets carried out at least 1,615 airstrikes on the Gaza Strip in the last nine days, targeting homes, buildings, government establishments and infrastructure.

    An Israeli military statement said 60 fighter jets were sent to bomb underground tunnels belonging to Hamas in Gaza while more than 100 missiles were fired in 35 minutes early on Tuesday morning.

    Meanwhile, militant groups led by Hamas fired over 100 rockets from Gaza at Israeli towns and cities, but 70 of them were intercepted, the statement added.

    According to a statement by the health ministry in Gaza, a total of 213 Palestinians, including 61 children and 36 women, were killed and 1,442 others injured in the recent Israeli air attacks on the besieged Palestinian enclave.

    IANS

  • Biden, in phone call with Netanyahu, supports Israel’s right to self defence

    Washington, May 18: US President Joe Biden, in a telephonic call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, supported Israel’s “right to defend itself” against indiscriminate rocket attacks and encouraged him to make every effort to ensure the protection of innocent civilians, the White House has said.

    Biden welcomed efforts to address inter-communal violence and to bring calm to Jerusalem, the White House said in a readout of the call.

    During the phone call on Monday, Biden reiterated his firm support for Israel’s “right to defend itself” against indiscriminate rocket attacks, it said.

    He encouraged Israel to make every effort to ensure the protection of innocent civilians, it said.

    The two leaders discussed progress in Israel’s military operations against Hamas and other terrorist groups in Gaza, the White House said.

    “The President expressed his support for a ceasefire and discussed the US engagement with Egypt and other partners towards that end,” said the readout.

    Palestinian militant group Hamas has fired more than 3,000 rockets over Israel during the past seven days, pushing more than half of Israel’s population into shelter houses and Israel has carried out hundreds of devastating retaliatory attacks in Gaza.

    More than 200 people have been killed in the recent escalation in the region, including a caregiver from India.

    US Secretary of State Tony Blinken, who is travelling right now, also spoke to his Israeli counterpart, Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi and discussed America’s efforts to bring an end to the violence, which has claimed the lives of Israeli and Palestinian civilians, including children, said State Department Spokesperson Ned Price.

    “Blinken also expressed deep concern at the inter-communal violence. The two discussed the path forward, and the Secretary noted that the United States would remain engaged with Israel, the Palestinian Authority, and other regional stakeholders as part of our diplomacy to ease tensions and put an end to the hostilities,” Price said.

    During her daily news conference, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said that over the weekend, Biden spoke with the leaders of both Israel and Palestine.

    “And in those calls, he stressed the need for Hamas to cease firing rockets into Israel and affirmed, again, Israel’s right to defend itself against terrorist attacks. As I would note from the reports, there have been more than 3,000 rockets that have been shot from Hamas into Israel over the last several days,” she said.

    Biden also expressed his concern that this current period of conflict has tragically claimed the lives of Israeli and Palestinian civilians, including children.

    He raised his concern about the safety of journalists, including those who had to leave the building where The Associated Press was based – and reinforced the need to ensure their protection, she said.

    The goal of the Biden administration, she said, is to reduce the violence and bring an end to the conflict on the ground.

    “There are times, in diplomacy, we’ll need to keep those conversations quieter, where we won’t read out every component of it. But that is our objective, and that is the prism through which every action and every comment is being made,” Psaki added.

    Last week, an Israeli airstrike targeted and destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other international media outlets. AP’s president and CEO Gary Pruitt said the agency was “shocked and horrified” at the strike. (PTI)

  • Pandemic 2nd year set to be ‘far more deadly’: WHO chief

    (The Kashmir Today) – The WHO said Friday that the Covid-19 pandemic’s second year was on track to be its deadliest, as he urged rich countries to donate vaccines rather than jab children.

    “We’re on track for the second year of this pandemic to be far more deadly than the first,” the World Health Organization’s director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference.

    “I understand why some countries want to vaccinate their children and adolescents, but right now I urge them to reconsider and to instead donate vaccines to Covax”, he added.

    AFP

  • All Muslims should observe one day qadha fasting: Former Chairman Hilal Committee; Mufti Muneeb-ur-Rehman

    Karachi: Mufti Muneeb-ur-Rehman, former chairman of Central Ruwit Hilal Committee, has said that he has been crying all night over the decision of Ruwit Hilal Committee.

    Mufti Muneeb-ur-Rehman objected to the Ruwit-e-Hilal Committee and said that the government needed a puppet Ruwit-e-Hilal Committee. Did they do it too? I have been crying all night over the decision of the Ruwit Hilal Committee.

    https://twitter.com/TLPFanAccount/status/1392724068693159937

    Mufti Muneeb further said that no minister in our meeting had the courage to sit down.

    https://twitter.com/Umer_Ze/status/1392724433681502209