China reported its biggest single-day jump in novel coronavirus deaths on Thursday, as confirmation that three Japanese evacuated from the outbreak’s epicentre were infected deepened fears about a global contagion.
The World Health Organisation, which initially downplayed the severity of a disease that has now killed 170 nationwide, warned all governments to be “on alert” as it weighed whether to declare a global health emergency.
As foreign countries evacuated their citizens from Wuhan, the locked-down city where the virus was first detected, concern over the economic impact has steadily intensified.
Airlines have suspended services to China and companies from Starbucks to Tesla have shuttered stores and production lines.
Chinese authorities have taken extraordinary steps to arrest the virus’s spread, including effectively locking down more than 50 million people in Wuhan and surrounding Hubei province.
But that was yet to pay dividends, with the government reporting 38 new deaths in the 24 hours to Thursday, the highest one-day total. All but one were in Hubei.
The number of confirmed new cases also grew steadily to 7,711, the National Health Commission said. Another 81,000 people were under observation for possible infection.
The pathogen is believed to have been spawned in a market that sold wild game, spreading far and wide by a Lunar New Year holiday season in which hundreds of millions of Chinese travel domestically or abroad.
Japan’s infection rate grew to 11 after three Japanese citizens among more than 200 on an evacuation flight Wednesday tested positive.
Officials had already confirmed two cases in which patients tested positive without having travelled to China, adding to anxiety over human-to-human transmission of the respiratory disease.
“We are in a truly new situation,” Health Minister Katsunobu Kato told parliament.
The fact that two of the three new confirmed Japanese cases showed no symptoms underscored the scale of the challenge for health workers.
The WHO has come under fire after it last week declined to declare a global health emergency.
The global health body’s chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus expressed regret for what he called a “human error” in the WHO’s assessment.
WHO’s Emergency Committee will meet Thursday to decide whether to declare an emergency – which could lead to travel or trade barriers.
“The whole world needs to take action,” Michael Ryan, head of the WHO Health Emergencies Programme, told reporters in Geneva.
A US charter flight from Wuhan arrived Wednesday at a California military base with nearly 200 consular staff and other Americans, who “cheered loudly” when the jet touched down, said an official with US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
All passengers were declared symptom-free but will remain isolated for days while they are monitored.
Some 250 French citizens and 100 other Europeans will be flown out of Wuhan on board two French planes this week.
Australia plans to house any citizens it evacuates from the city on an island normally used to detain asylum seekers.
A growing number of governments – including the United States, Britain and Germany – have advised their citizens to avoid non-essential travel to China.
China also has urged its own citizens to delay trips abroad, after more than 15 countries confirmed infections.
Major airlines that have suspended or pared back service to China include British Airways, German flag carrier Lufthansa, American Airlines, KLM, and United.
China efforts to halt the virus have seen the suspension of classes nationwide and an extension of the Lunar New Year holiday.
Most street traffic in and around Wuhan has been banned.
“This is the first day since the lockdown that I’ve had to go out,” a man in his 50s told AFP on the mostly deserted streets of the industrial city.
“I have no choice because I need to buy food.”
China’s football body meanwhile said it was postponing “all levels and all types of football matches across the country”, including the country’s top-tier Chinese Super League, in response to the outbreak.
Japanese automaker Toyota, Swedish furniture giant IKEA, tech giant Foxconn, Starbucks, Tesla and McDonald’s were among major corporate giants to temporarily freeze production or close large numbers of outlets in China.
As the “world’s factory”, the disruptions in China are expected to send ripples through supply chains globally, denting profits.
Millions quarantined as China scrambles to halt virus
US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said the new coronavirus posed a fresh risk to a fragile world economy, adding that the US central bank was on alert.
“There will clearly be implications at least in the near term for Chinese output and I would guess for some of their close neighbours,” Powell said.
The contagion has spread to nearly every corner of China, with remote Tibet reporting its first case on Thursday.
It has triggered fears in part due to its striking similarity to the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak of 2002-03, which also began in China and eventually killed nearly 800 people worldwide.
A short video clip has landed a young college teacher and his female student in trouble as they have been expelled by the administration for “violating discipline” after the clip went viral on social networking platforms.
The clip – which shows Rafaqat Hussain, an English lecturer at Postgraduate College Haripur, with his student Zainab Ali – was shared on TikTok, a popular video sharing social networking service, by “someone with ill-intent”.
It immediately went viral and has since been shared hundreds of times on other social networking sites. “They have been suspended for violating the college discipline by posting the indecent clip,” the college principal, Dr Muhammad Ishfaq,
Giving breakdown of the events, Dr Ishfaq said when the matter was reported to him, he formed a four-member committee, which found the teacher and the student had violated the college discipline.
The matter has been referred to the director colleges and education secretary of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa for further action. “Now, it’s for them to decide their fate,” Dr Ishfaq added. The pair has been banned from entering the college premises until then.
Lecturer Rafaqat said they didn’t violate the college discipline. He disclosed that he was in a relationship with his student Zainab, 24, and they were planning to tie the knot with the consent of their families.
He said that the 20-second duration clip was shot by Zainab with her cellphone at a fish-point. “Can somebody do something indecent or something against societal norms publicly at a fish point,” he asked while speaking to The Express Tribune.
Rafaqat said the clip wasn’t meant to be shared on TikTok, but someone hacked into Zainab’s cellphone, stole the clip and shared it on different social networking portals.
Zainab, a student at English Department, said it was absurd to expel her for “violating discipline” because the clip had nothing to do with the college. “I’m an adult and mature enough to take my decisions. It’s my right to choose who to spend my life with,”
Rafaqat said the clip wasn’t meant to be shared on TikTok, but someone hacked into Zainab’s cellphone, stole the clip and shared it on different social networking portals.
Zainab, a student at English Department, said it was absurd to expel her for “violating discipline” because the clip had nothing to do with the college. “I’m an adult and mature enough to take my decisions. It’s my right to choose who to spend my life with,” she told The Express Tribune.
Zainab further said that the college administration has not only expelled her but is also refusing to issue her a migration certificate so that she could continue her studies at some other college.
“Me and my family are in mental distress as my studies are being affected due to the unnecessary controversy created by the college administration,” she added.
Food at this year’s Oscar events will be almost entirely plant-based, the Academy of Motion Pictures said on Monday, in line with other celebrity dinners during Hollywood’s 2020 awards season.
Menus for the annual luncheon for Oscar nominees on Monday, as well as finger food served before the Academy Awards ceremony in Hollywood on Feb. 9, will be 100% plant-based, the academy said.
The menu for the Governors Ball, a glitzy event held immediately after the Oscar ceremony, will be 70% plant-based and 30% vegetarian, fish and meat.
Plastic water bottles and other beverages in plastic containers will be eliminated from all Oscar events, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said in a statement.
The academy, whose 8,000 members choose the Oscar winners, said it was an “organization of storytellers from around the world, and we owe our global membership a commitment to supporting the planet.”
The announcement follows entirely plant-based menus at the Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild awards dinners earlier this month for nominees, studio executives and guests.
“Joker” star Joaquin Phoenix, a strict vegan, suggested the change for the Golden Globes sit-down dinner, where the usual steak and fish was replaced with mushroom risotto and oyster mushroom scallops.
Eat a variety of foods
Base your diet on plenty of foods rich in carbohydrates
Replace saturated with unsaturated fat
Enjoy plenty of fruits and vegetables
Reduce salt and sugar intake
Eat regularly, control the portion size
Drink plenty of fluids
Maintain a healthy body weight
Get on the move, make it a habit!
Start now! And keep changing gradually.
1. Eat a variety of foods
For good health, we need more than 40 different nutrients, and no single food can supply them all. It is not about a single meal, it is about a balanced food choice over time that will make a difference!
A high-fat lunch could be followed by a low-fat dinner.
After a large meat portion at dinner, perhaps fish should be the next day’s choice?
2. Base your diet on plenty of foods rich in carbohydrates
About half the calories in our diet should come from foods rich in carbohydrates, such as cereals, rice, pasta, potatoes, and bread. It is a good idea to include at least one of these at every meal. Wholegrain foods, like wholegrain bread, pasta, and cereals, will increase our fibre intake.
3. Replace saturated with unsaturated fat
Fats are important for good health and proper functioning of the body. However, too much of it can negatively affect our weight and cardiovascular health. Different kinds of fats have different health effects, and some of these tips could help us keep the balance right:
We should limit the consumption of total and saturated fats (often coming from foods of animal origin), and completely avoid trans fats; reading the labels helps to identify the sources.
Eating fish 2-3 times a week, with at least one serving of oily fish, will contribute to our right intake of unsaturated fats.
When cooking, we should boil, steam or bake, rather than frying, remove the fatty part of meat, use vegetable oils.
. Enjoy plenty of fruits and vegetables
Fruits and vegetables are among the most important foods for giving us enough vitamins, minerals and fibre. We should try to eat at least 5 servings a day. For example, a glass of fresh fruit juice at breakfast, perhaps an apple and a piece of watermelon as snacks, and a good portion of different vegetables at each meal.
5. Reduce salt and sugar intake
A high salt intake can result in high blood pressure, and increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. There are different ways to reduce salt in the diet:
When shopping, we could choose products with lower sodium content.
When cooking, salt can be substituted with spices, increasing the variety of flavours and tastes.
When eating, it helps not to have salt at the table, or at least not to add salt before tasting.
Sugar provides sweetness and an attractive taste, but sugary foods and drinks are rich in energy, and are best enjoyed in moderation, as an occasional treat. We could use fruits instead, even to sweeten our foods and drinks.
6. Eat regularly, control the portion size
Eating a variety of foods, regularly, and in the right amounts is the best formula for a healthy diet.
Skipping meals, especially breakfast, can lead to out-of-control hunger, often resulting in helpless overeating. Snacking between meals can help control hunger, but snacking should not replace proper meals. For snacks, we could choose yoghurt, a handful of fresh or dried fruits or vegetables (like carrot sticks), unsalted nuts, or perhaps some bread with cheese.
Paying attention to portion size will help us not to consume too much calories, and will allow us to eat all the foods we enjoy, without having to eliminate any.
Cooking the right amount makes it easier to not overeat.
Some reasonable serving sizes are: 100 g of meat; one medium piece of fruit; half a cup of raw pasta.
Using smaller plates helps with smaller servings.
Packaged foods, with calorie values on the pack, could aid portion control.
If eating out, we could share a portion with a friend.
Top of the page
7. Drink plenty of fluids
Adults need to drink at least 1.5 litres of fluid a day! Or more if it's very hot or they are physically active. Water is the best source, of course, and we can use tap or mineral water, sparkling or non-sparkling, plain or flavoured. Fruit juices, tea, soft drinks, milk and other drinks, can all be okay - from time to time.
8. Maintain a healthy body weight
The right weight for each us depends on factors like our gender, height, age, and genes. Being affected by obesity and overweight increases the risks of a wide range of diseases, including diabetes, heart diseases, and cancer.
Excess body fat comes from eating more than we need. The extra calories can come from any caloric nutrient - protein, fat, carbohydrate, or alcohol, but fat is the most concentrated source of energy. Physical activity helps us spend the energy, and makes us feel good. The message is reasonably simple: if we are gaining weight, we need to eat less and be more active!
China virus, which has already claimed at least 17 lives in the city of Wuhan - which has since been put in lockdown, is feared to have spread to humans from bat soup.
China put millions of people on lockdown in two cities at the epicenter of a coronavirus outbreak that has so far infected more than 630, as authorities around the world worked to prevent a global pandemic.
Health officials fear the transmission rate will accelerate as hundreds of millions of Chinese travel at home and abroad during the week-long holidays for the Lunar New Year, which begins on Saturday.
The previously unknown virus strain is believed to have emerged late last year from illegally traded wildlife at an animal market in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, reports the international media.
Pakistan starts screening of passengers from China
Most transport in Wuhan, a city of 11 million people, was suspended on Thursday and people were told not to leave. Hourslater, neighboring Huanggang, a city of about 7 million people, announced a similar lockdown.
“The lockdown of 11 million people is unprecedented in public health history,” Gauden Galea, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) representative in Beijing, said. Other cities were also taking steps to restrict movement and contact.
Nearby Ezhou shut train stations. China’s Education Ministry said schools should not hold large events or exams. The capital canceled major public events, including two Lunar New Year temple fairs, the state-run Beijing News said.
Airports worldwide were screening passengers arriving from China. Hong Kong, which has two confirmed cases, is turning two holiday camps into quarantine stations as a precaution. Taiwan has banned anyone from Wuhan from going to the island.
These tips can help you avoid the Coronavirus
Chinese people had their own ways of protecting themselves. “I go straight to where I need to go, and then I go home,” said 79-year-old Li Meihua, from behind a mask, on the streets of Shanghai. “My nose is a bit runny already. I’m also maintaining a cleaner diet, I’ve turned vegetarian now.”
There is no vaccine for the virus, which can spread through respiratory transmission. Symptoms include fever, difficulty in breathing and cough, similar to many other respiratory illnesses.
Preliminary research suggested it was passed on to humans from snakes, but government medical adviser Zhong Nanshan has also identified badgers and rats as possible sources. Experts have warned the virus could as deadly as the post WWI Spanish flu which killed millions.
UK experts have said they believe the virus could already be in the UK. Latest analysis by Chinese scientists suggests virus passed from bats to snakes then humans. Bat soup is reported to be an unusual but popular dish particularly in Wuhan, where the virus is understood to have originated at an open air fish market.
Unconfirmed footage posted on social media show people eating soup from a bowl with a grinning dead bat on the side.
Another image appears to show a dead bat with its stomach removed and filled with a broth. A new study published in the China Science Bulletin earlier this week claimed that the new coronavirus shared a strain of virus found in bats.
Previous deadly outbreaks of SARS and Ebola were also believed to have originated in the flying mammal. Experts had thought the new virus wasn't capable of causing an epidemic as serious as those outbreaks because its genes were different.
The WHO will decide on Thursday whether to declare the outbreak a global health emergency, which would step up the international response. If it does so, it will be the sixth international public health emergency to be declared in the last decade. Its Emergency Committee meeting was under way in Geneva and a news conference was expected after 1800 GMT.
Some experts believe the virus is not as dangerous as previous coronaviruses such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome.
“The early evidence at this stage would suggest it’s not as severe,” Australia’s Chief Medical Officer Brendan Murphy said.
Giving the latest details on infections in China, state television said 634 cases had been confirmed. By the end of Wednesday, China’s National Health Commission confirmed 17 dead.
Of the known cases worldwide, Thailand has confirmed four, while Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and the United States have reported one each.
Imperial College London said on Wednesday it estimated a total of 4,000 cases in Wuhan alone as of Jan. 18, based on the number of cases reported in China and elsewhere.
To try to stem the outbreak, Wuhan shut down all urban transport networks and suspended outgoing flights from 10 a.m. (0200 GMT). Domestic media said some airlines were operating after the deadline, however.
Its Hankou rail station was nearly deserted, state broadcasts showed. State media reported highway toll booths around Wuhan were closing, effectively cutting off road exits. Guards were patrolling highways.
As the city slipped into isolation, residents thronged into hospitals for checks and scrambled for supplies, clearing out supermarket shelves and queuing for petrol.
Despite China’s response, world shares fell on Thursday, led by the biggest tumble in Chinese stocks in more than eight months, as concern mounted about the outbreak.
“Ultimately, the coronavirus is a slow-burning but important story for markets that is likely to last for months rather than just a few days,” said TD Securities’ European head of currency strategy, Ned Rumpeltin.
The economic impact of such outbreaks are hard to quantify but a 2006 estimate by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) calculated that SARS shaved just over 1 percentage point off the GDP of China in 2003.
Many Chinese were cancelling trips, buying face masks and avoiding shopping centers. The release of seven Chinese movies over the Lunar New Year has been postponed.
China is putting on lockdown a city of 11 million people considered the epicentre of the new coronavirus outbreak that has killed 17 and infected nearly 600 people, as health authorities around the world work to prevent a global pandemic.
Global health authorities fear the transmission rate will accelerate as hundreds of millions of Chinese travel at home and abroad during the week-long Lunar New Year holiday.
The previously unknown coronavirus strain is believed to have emerged late last year from illegally traded wildlife at an animal market in the central Chinese city of Wuhan. Cases have been detected as far away as the United States, stoking fears the virus is already spreading worldwide.
Wuhan’s local government said it would shut down all urban transport networks and suspend outgoing flights from the city as of 10 a.m. (0200 GMT) Thursday, state media reported. Local media reported some airlines were operating after the deadline.
The government is urging citizens to not leave the city in the absence of special circumstances.
Contrasting with its secrecy over the 2002-03 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), which killed nearly 800 people, China’s communist government has this time given regular updates to avoid panic ahead of the Chinese Lunar New Year holiday.
Chinese authorities have confirmed 571 cases and 17 deaths as of end-Wednesday, China’s National Health Commission said on Thursday. The commission said another 393 suspected cases had been reported.
There are eight other known cases around the world – Thailand has confirmed four cases, while the United States, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan have each reported one.
At least 16 people who had close contact with a Washington state man diagnosed with the virus and are being monitored.
Virus spreading
The Imperial College London said in a report on Wednesday that it estimated as of January 18 there was a total of 4,000 cases of the new coronavirus in Wuhan alone, an infection rate based on the number of reported cases in China and elsewhere.
Vice Premier Sun Chunlan said during a visit to Wuhan that authorities needed to be open about the spread of the virus and their efforts to contain it, the official Xinhua news agency reported on Thursday, comments likely to reassure global health experts.
After a meeting at its Geneva headquarters on Wednesday, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said it would decide on Thursday whether to declare the outbreak a global health emergency, which would step up the international response.
If it does so, it will be the sixth international public health emergency to be declared in the last decade.
Some experts believe the new virus is not as dangerous as previous coronaviruses like SARS and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), which has killed more than 700 people since 2012.
“The early evidence at this stage would suggest it’s not as severe a disease as SARS or MERS,” Australia’s Chief Medical Officer Brendan Murphy told reporters on Thursday.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters in Geneva that China’s actions so far were “very strong” but called on Beijing to take “more and significant measures to limit or minimise the international spread”.
“We stressed to them that by having a strong action not only they will control the outbreak in their country but they will also minimise the chances of this outbreak spreading internationally. So they recognise that,” he said.
Despite China’s response, stock markets across Asia were on the back foot on Thursday over the virus, led by drops of roughly 1.5% in Hong Kong and Shanghai while China’s yuan fell to a two-week low.
Flights, rail suspended
Wuhan, a city of about 11 million people, is a transportation hub as well as central China’s main industrial and commercial centre. The virus also has been reported in other major cities including Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong.
There is no known cure for the virus. Symptoms include fever, difficulty in breathing and cough, similar to many other respiratory illnesses, and can cause pneumonia.
Chinese authorities are still investigating the origins of the virus, though they confirmed the outbreak began at a market in Wuhan with illegal wildlife transactions, and that it can spread from one person to another via respiratory transmission. Among confirmed patients are 15 medical workers.
Many Chinese were cancelling trips, buying face masks, avoiding public places such as cinemas and shopping centres, and even turning to an online plague simulation game as a way to cope.
Taiwan’s China Airlines said it had suspended flights to Wuhan and Hong Kong’s MTR Corp said it had suspended sales of high-speed rail tickets to and from Wuhan.
A growing number of Chinese-listed companies – ranging from biotech firms, drugmakers, mask producers and thermometer manufacturers – say they are actively participating in a government-led war against Wuhan coronavirus.
Wuhan Guide Infrared Co told the official China Securities Journal that the company had donated 4 million yuan ($579,370) worth of infrared thermometer devices to the government of Hubei, the province at the centre of the outbreak.
Airports globally stepped up screening passengers from China and the European Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (ECDC) said in a risk assessment that further global spread of the virus was likely.
Britain joined other countries including Australia in advising citizens against all but essential travel to Wuhan.
EU Disinfo Lab, an independent NGO, has uncovered at least 265 “coordinated fake local media outlets” in more than 65 countries that are managed by the “Indian influence network”.
According to the report, the network was “designed to influence the EU and UN by repeatedly criticising Pakistan.”
The report said that the EU Disinformation Task Force revealed in October that a website “eptoday.com” had been re-publishing content from Russia Today and Voice of America. It added that EU Disinfo Lab “found a large number of articles and op-eds related to minorities in Pakistan as well as other India-related matters”.
It was discovered that the website was being managed by think tanks, NGOs and companies from the Indian Srivastava Group.
“We also found that the IP address of the Srivastava Group is also home to the obscure online media “New Delhi Times” and the International Institute for Non-Aligned Studies (IINS), which are all based at the same address in New Delhi, India,” the report said.
The report also identified “Times of Geneva”, an online newspaper, as a source of anti-Pakistan news stories. This online newspaper publishes the same type of content as EP Today and produces videos criticizing Pakistan’s role in the Kashmir conflict.
Here are some findings from these websites highlighted by the EU Disinfo Lab in its report:
Most of them are named after an extinct local newspaper or spoof real media outlets;
They republish content from several news agencies (KCNA, Voice of America, Interfax);
Coverage of the same Indian-related demonstrations and events;
Republications of anti-Pakistan content from the described Indian network (including EP Today, 4NewsAgency, Times Of Geneva, New Delhi Times);
Most websites have a Twitter account as well.
The report said that the creation of these fake media outlets is aimed at influencing “public perceptions of Pakistan” and influencing international institutions and elected representatives.
New video footage has emerged showing two Iranian missiles tearing through the night sky and hitting a Ukrainian passenger plane, sending the aircraft down in flames and killing all 176 passengers and crew on board.
The projectiles were fired 30 seconds apart and explain why the plane’s transponder was not working as it hurtled to the ground – it was disabled by the first strike, before being hit by a second, said the New York Times, which published the New video footage has emerged showing two Iranian missiles tearing through the night sky and hitting a Ukrainian passenger plane, sending the aircraft down in flames and killing all 176 passengers and crew on board.
The projectiles were fired 30 seconds apart and explain why the plane’s transponder was not working as it hurtled to the ground – it was disabled by the first strike, before being hit by a second, said the New York Times, which published the verified security camera footage Tuesday.
The blurry film, shot from a rooftop in a village four miles from an Iranian military site, shows the Kiev-bound plane on fire and circling back to Tehran’s airport, the Times said. Minutes later, the aircraft exploded and crashed.
Iran had for days denied Western claims that the Boeing 737 had been downed by its missiles.
Iran says it has made arrests over plane disaster
Tehran came clean on Saturday when Revolutionary Guards aerospace commander Brigadier General Amirali Hajizadeh acknowledged a missile operator had mistaken the Ukraine International Airlines plane for a cruise missile and opened fire.
The incident happened when Iran’s armed forces were on heightened alert after launching a volley of missiles at Iraqi bases hosting US troops in retaliation for the killing of top general Qasem Soleimani on January 3.
Iran has struggled to contain the fallout over its handling of the air disaster and the tragedy has seen hundreds of angry protesters, most of them students, take to the streets.
New videos circulating on social media purported to show fresh protests on Tuesday evening at universities in Tehran, along with clashes between students and Basij militia loyal to the establishment.
It was not possible to immediately verify the videos.
Earlier, AFP correspondents said around 200 mainly masked students gathered at Tehran University and were locked in a tense standoff with youths from the Basij.
Kept apart by security forces, the groups eventually parted ways.
Around 30 people have been arrested in the protests over the air disaster, according to judiciary spokesperson Gholamhossein Esmaili.
On Tuesday Tehran said it had made its first arrests over the shooting down of the plane, though it gave no details.
Recent protests have been much smaller than nationwide demonstrations against fuel price hikes that turned deadly in November.
But one commentator said the latest rallies showed there was a “real rift between the people and the authorities”.
Iran urges regional countries to expel US troops
“I hope that (police restraint) will continue and that no lives are lost, because this could be a catalyst for more protests,” Mehdi Rahmanian, director of reformist daily Shargh, told AFP.
In another sign of growing dissent, a group of artists cancelled their participation in the Fajr festival, held each year on the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, according to Hamshahri newspaper.
President Hassan Rouhani said Tuesday Iran’s judiciary “must form a special court with a high-ranking judge and dozens of experts… The whole world will be watching.”
“Anyone who should be punished must be punished”.
The office of Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he spoke to Canada’s premier Justin Trudeau on Tuesday for a third time since the crash, with the latter asking for help from Kiev in liaising with Iranian authorities to help identify bodies of Canadian citizens.
ve camera footage Tuesday.
The blurry film, shot from a rooftop in a village four miles from an Iranian military site, shows the Kiev-bound plane on fire and circling back to Tehran’s airport, the Times said. Minutes later, the aircraft exploded and crashed.
Iran had for days denied Western claims that the Boeing 737 had been downed by its missiles.
Tehran came clean on Saturday when Revolutionary Guards aerospace commander Brigadier General Amirali Hajizadeh acknowledged a missile operator had mistaken the Ukraine International Airlines plane for a cruise missile and opened fire.
The incident happened when Iran’s armed forces were on heightened alert after launching a volley of missiles at Iraqi bases hosting US troops in retaliation for the killing of top general Qasem Soleimani on January 3.
Iran has struggled to contain the fallout over its handling of the air disaster and the tragedy has seen hundreds of angry protesters, most of them students, take to the streets.
New videos circulating on social media purported to show fresh protests on Tuesday evening at universities in Tehran, along with clashes between students and Basij militia loyal to the establishment.
It was not possible to immediately verify the videos.
Earlier, AFP correspondents said around 200 mainly masked students gathered at Tehran University and were locked in a tense standoff with youths from the Basij.
Kept apart by security forces, the groups eventually parted ways.
Around 30 people have been arrested in the protests over the air disaster, according to judiciary spokesperson Gholamhossein Esmaili.
On Tuesday Tehran said it had made its first arrests over the shooting down of the plane, though it gave no details.
Recent protests have been much smaller than nationwide demonstrations against fuel price hikes that turned deadly in November.
But one commentator said the latest rallies showed there was a “real rift between the people and the authorities”.
“I hope that (police restraint) will continue and that no lives are lost, because this could be a catalyst for more protests,” Mehdi Rahmanian, director of reformist daily Shargh, told AFP.
In another sign of growing dissent, a group of artists cancelled their participation in the Fajr festival, held each year on the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, according to Hamshahri newspaper.
President Hassan Rouhani said Tuesday Iran’s judiciary “must form a special court with a high-ranking judge and dozens of experts… The whole world will be watching.”
“Anyone who should be punished must be punished”.
The office of Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he spoke to Canada’s premier Justin Trudeau on Tuesday for a third time since the crash, with the latter asking for help from Kiev in liaising with Iranian authorities to help identify bodies of Canadian citizens.
Khalilur Rehman Qamar, the writer and director of Meray Paas Tum Ho, recently became subject to second marriage rumours with TV actor Eshal Fayaz. Speculations regarding their relationship surfaced the internet three days ago, in response to which the latter uploaded a video denying all such claims.
“There is no truth in the rumours that are doing rounds since yesterday. I haven’t gotten married to anyone, I am very much single,’’ Fayaz said.
The actor added diligently, “My relationship with Khalil ur Rehman Qamar is that of one between an actor and a director, nothing more than that.”
Fayaz further specified that no one has the right to spread fake news about anyone without knowing them and she would announce her marriage plans herself when need be.
In a conversation with The Express Tribune, Qamar also rubbished the rumours, adding that it is a part of a propaganda to associate him with ‘such girls’.
“I strongly reject all such rumours as sheer propaganda. I am happy and satisfied in my life and also request everyone spreading these claims to not associate my name with such second-rate women,” said Qamar in a rather condescending tone.
“I have no intentions of marrying right now,” he added, “So I request the public to not believe in such things since I have no time to mingle with such people and issues in my life.”
As for their future endeavours, Qamar and Fayaz are both focused on their upcoming TV ventures.
In a bizarre instance, a 20-year-old woman in India has filed an application with the authorities seeking a divorce from her husband for not maintaining a hygienic lifestyle.
Woman belonging to Bihar’s Vaishali district has claimed in her application that her 23-year-old husband, Manish Ram stinks “because he does not shave, take a bath or brush his teeth regularly,” he complaint filed by Soni Devi, the State Women’s Commission (SWC) gave a two-month ultimatum to her husband to mend his ways or face the legal action for not complying with the orders.
SWC member Pratima Sinha said that the 20-year old petitioner approached the commission on Thursday and said she wanted a divorce from her husband.
“I was taken aback by reasons that was cited for seeking divorce,” the official was quoted as saying.
In her petition, Soni said she married Manish, who is a plumber by profession, in 2017.
“My husband stinks as he does not shave and bathe for nearly 10 days at a stretch. Moreover, he doesn’t brush his teeth. He also doesn’t have manners and follow etiquette,” the petitioner alleged.
The SWC member said that Soni was adamant on separating from her husband.
“I don’t want to live with my husband anymore. I can no longer bear the humiliation. Kindly get me rid of this man … he has ruined my life,” the official quoted the petitioner as saying.
Soni’s husband, however, said he did not want a divorce and wanted to live with her, adding that he would try his best to improve his lifestyle and win over his wife’s confidence.
