WORLD
Russia imposes sanctions on US Vice Prez, Meta CEO
A total of 29 US citizens are included in Russia's "stop list" in response to the anti-Russian sanctions imposed by the US' Joe Biden administration, the ministry was quoted as saying by Xinhua news agency. "Top US leaders, businessmen, experts and journalists, who are pursuing a Russophobic agenda, as well as the spouses of a number of high-ranking officials" are among those added to the list, and they will be denied entry to Russia for an indefinite term.
At least 31 killed in four explosions across Afghanistan
At least 31 people were killed, and 87 were wounded, a health official told the BBC. The first explosion tore through a Shia mosque in the city of Mazar-e-Sharif. The Islamic State (IS) claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it had remotely detonated a booby-trapped bag when the building was packed with worshippers.
Imran sold Pakistan's economic sovereignty to US: Pak Minister
In the wake of the previous government's agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for reviving its $6 billion loan, it had committed to granting autonomous status to the central bank. For this purpose, the SBP Act, 1956 was amended through the SBP (Amendment) Act, 2021, for enhanced central bank autonomy, price stability, and accountability.
Chinese power producers shut down 1,980 MW production capacity in Pakistan
Pakistan's Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal has passed instructions to the concerned officials to begin the process for abolishing the authority. "We will move a summary seeking Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's approval to abolish the CPEC Authority," Iqbal confirmed to The Express Tribune.
India condemns US lawmaker's visit to PoK
At a briefing, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said that New Delhi has taken note of Ilhan Omar's visit to a part of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir which is currently occupied by Pakistan illegally. She met President Arif Alvi and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and discussed a range of issues pertaining to bilateral, regional and global issues.
At least 11 killed in blast at Shia mosque in Mazar-e-Sharif
Zia Zendani, spokesman for the provincial health authority in the city, said that 11 people have been killed and 32 wounded in the blast. A separate attack caused at least 11 more casualties in the northern Afghan city of Kunduz, according to a provincial health official. Earlier on Thursday, a roadside blast in Kabul injured at least two children, the fifth explosion this week in the Afghan capital.
5 killed, 65 injured as blast hits mosque in Afghanistan's Mazar-i-Sharif
"Five dead bodies and 65 injured persons have been taken to a hospital, and the number of casualties could change," health officials said, Xinhua news agency reported citing Tolonews. Police are yet to comment. An eyewitness, on condition of anonimity, said that the blast took place inside the mosque when scores of worshippers were offering prayers.
Deaths in Shanghai spark concern over vaccination rate among elderly
For China at large, it is also a strong reminder that the insufficient vaccination rate among the elderly is a towering obstacle to the country's move to ease Covid restrictions, said epidemiologists, Global Times reported. Shanghai reported seven new deaths on Tuesday, aged 60 to 101 years. The deceased were all unvaccinated, and the direct cause of death was their underlying conditions, said Wu Qianyu, an official from Shanghai's health authority.
Putin orders troops to block Azovstal plant in Mariupol
The order was given after Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu told Putin that the Russian military had controlled Mariupol apart from the plant where Ukrainian servicemen were still holed up, Xinhua news agency quoted the local media as saying. The last Ukrainian fighters are sheltering in the city's huge steel plant, reportedly with around 1,000 civilians living in dire conditions.
Russia says Ukraine's Mariupol city captured
However, more than 2,000 Ukrainian militants still remain entrenched at the Azovstal steel plant in the city, RT News reported citing Shoigu as saying.
When Mariupol was encircled in early March, some 8,100 Ukrainian soldiers, foreign mercenaries remained inside, according to the Minister's estimates. More than 1,400 militants have laid down their arms, Shoigu said, adding that over 142,000 civilians have also been evacuated from the city that has been under siege for weeks.
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