WORLD
British PM unveils plan to end final Covid-19 restrictions this month
Current Covid-19 restrictions were set to expire on March 24 but Johnson on Wednesday suggested rules could expire later this February, Xinhua news agency reported. "Providing the current encouraging trends in the data continue, it is my expectation that we will be able to end the last domestic restrictions, including the legal requirement to self-isolate if you test positive, a full month early," the Prime Minister told MPs.
UN Chief joins world leaders in calling for investment to end pandemic this year
The pandemic could be defeated this year but "only if vaccines, tests and treatments are made available to all people," Guterres said on Wednesday. The top UN official was among some world leaders calling for $23 billion to support the ACT-Accelerator, the landmark collaboration that makes these goods accessible to everyone globally, Xinhua news agency reported.
New York state to lift mask or vaccination mandate for indoor business
New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced on Wednesday that statewide indoor business mask-or-vaccine requirement will be lifted starting this Thursday and will remain optional for businesses, local governments and counties to enforce. The mask-or-vaccine protocol was implemented on December 10 as the Omicron variant caused a spike of cases in the state and extended to Thursday, Xinhua news agency reported.
CDC predicts up to 978,000 Covid-19 deaths in US by early March
The projection published Wednesday forecast that 5,800 to 21,700 new Covid-19 deaths will be reported during the week ending March 5, and that a total of 942,000 to 978,000 Covid-19 deaths will be reported by that date, Xinhua news agency reported. The state- and territory-level ensemble forecasts predict that over the next four weeks, the number of newly reported deaths per week will likely decrease in 18 US jurisdictions, according to the CDC.
Police investigating bomb threats to 6 schools around Washington, D.C.
The schools, including Dunbar High School, are currently being evacuated, the Metropolitan Police Department tweeted on Wednesday afternoon. The evacuations came a day after US second gentleman Doug Emhoff was escorted out of an event at Dunbar High School due to a bomb threat, Xinhua news agency reported.
Palestinian Central Council to terminate commitment to all agreements with Israel
The announcement was made on Wednesday at the end of the three-day PCC meetings held in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Xinhua news agency reported. "In view of Israel's ongoing denial of the signed agreements, the PCC decided to terminate the obligations of the PLO and the Palestinian Authority of all agreements signed with Israel," the statement said, adding that Israel's persistence in accelerating the confiscation of the Palestinian land also contributed to the decision.
Coronavirus claims over 80,000 lives in 2nd largest US state Texas
The official count based on death certificates is 80,005, according to the latest data. Nearly 190 Texans now are dying from the virus each day on average, Xinhua news agency reported. Moreover, the true cost of Omicron may not be known for months since hospitalisations and deaths lag weeks behind Covid-19 infections and it can take several weeks for fatalities to appear in official death tallies, said a report from the Houston Chronicle.
Taliban want to do away with perception that they are Pak proxy group
Five Pakistani soldiers were killed on Sunday at a north-western border post in Khurram district by militants inside Afghanistan in an attack claimed by the Pakistani Taliban, Tehreek-e-Taliban-Pakistan (TTP). After a ceasefire between the group and the Pakistani government collapsed within weeks, the Pakistani foreign minister, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, said Islamabad had told the Afghan Taliban leadership it considered TTP as a test case of its ability to control militants, the report said.
Soldiers martyred in Balochistan will get place in heaven, says Imran Khan in pep talk to jolted army
"All those soldiers who sacrificed their lives have a special place in heaven. It is an honour for the Muslims when they lay down their lives for their country," Express Tribune reported Khan as saying while addressing the troops at Naushki army base camp on Tuesday. Khan said that the martyrs have the second-highest place after the Prophets.
Two women gang-raped, paraded in the streets in Pakistan
A group of men assaulted the two women to "avenge humiliation" after a free-will marriage between the two members of Rajput and Tangri tribes, the report said. At least 12 men have been arrested, including constable Gulzar Tangri. The prime suspect Ali Nawaz Tangri is still at large.
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