United States begins vaccination of covid 19 to children ages 5-11

Vaccination to children going on in a hospital in Los Angeles in USA .

The first COVID-19 vaccinations have been given to children ages 5 to 11 Wednesday as health officials launched an ambitious rollout to offer shots to 3.5 million kids in California.

The Western States Scientific Safety Review Workgroup, a coalition of public health experts from California, Nevada, Oregon and Washington, gave its green light to the vaccine Wednesday morning, formally clearing the way for vaccinations to be distributed in California. The move came after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended late Tuesday that more than 28 million children nationwide in that age group get the shots.

“This expanded eligibility for lifesaving vaccines moves us closer to ending the pandemic," Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement.

California's vaccination website, myturn.ca.gov, is expected to start offering appointments for the age group soon. Some national pharmacy chains began accepting appointments Wednesday, with Walgreens announcing it will begin administering shots Saturday and CVS on Sunday.

Vaccinations also will be available at pediatricians' offices.

It may, however, take some time before clinics ramp up to full capacity.

President Biden said in a statement that the government has secured enough vaccine supply "for every child in America."

 

 

 

Malaysian gynaecologist creates 'world's first unisex condom'

Founder and inventor of Wondaleaf Unisex Condom John Tang Ing Ching inspects the unisex condom at his factory in Sibu, Malaysia
 

A Malaysian gynaecologist has created what he says is the world's first unisex condom that can be worn by females or males and is made from a medical grade material usually used as a dressing for injuries and wounds.

Its inventor hopes the Wondaleaf Unisex Condom will empower people to take better control of their sexual health regardless of their sex or sexual orientation.

 

"It's basically a regular condom with an adhesive covering," said John Tang Ing Chinh, a gynaecologist at medical supplies firm Twin Catalyst.

"It's a condom with an adhesive covering that attaches to the vagina or penis, as well as covering the adjacent area for extra protection," Tang said.

The adhesive is only applied to one side of the condom, he added, meaning it can be reversed and used by either sex.

Each box of Wondaleaf contains two condoms, and will cost 14.99 ringgit ($3.61). The average price for a dozen condoms in Malaysia is 20-40 ringgit.

Tang makes the condoms using polyurethane, a material used in transparent wound dressings that is thin and flexible yet strong and waterproof. 

Tang said the Wondaleaf had gone through several rounds of clinical research and testing and would be available commercially via the firm's website this December . Source : Reuters .

 

 

 

Pakistani girl Noor Mukadam was raped and beheaded by Pakistani-American .

Noor Mukadam

The brutal murder of Noor Mukadam, 27, sparked protests across the country and calls for reform to Pakistan's gender violence laws.

Zahir Jaffer, 30, from a wealthy industrialist family, has denied killing Mukadam.

The 27-year-old Noor Mukadam was attacked after refusing a marriage proposal, attempting repeatedly to escape Jaffer's sprawling mansion in an upscale neighbourhood in Islamabad but blocked each time by his staff, a police report said.  

Above : Policemen escort Zahir Jaffer, a Pakistani-American man who went on trial accused of raping and beheading his girlfriend . Down : Women protesting on the street of Islamabad .

 

Jaffer raped and tortured her with a knuckle duster before beheading her with a "sharp-edged weapon", it added.

Eleven others have also been charged in connection to the murder, including some of Jaffer's household staff, his parents, and others who were allegedly asked to conceal evidence.

The murder of Mukadam, whose father served as Pakistan's ambassador to South Korea and Kazakhstan, is one of the most high-profile cases of violence against women since the government introduced new legislation designed to speed up justice for rape victims.  

Prime Minister Imran Khan has pledged that the accused would not escape justice for being part of the Pakistani elite and a dual national.

Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez vows to abolish prostitution .

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, on Sunday, pledged to outlaw prostitution- an act that one in every three Spanish men admitted to paying for.

While sexual exploitation and pimping are illegal in Spain, prostitution was decriminalised in 1995 and is unregulated.

Prostitution was decriminalised in Spain in 1995 and in 2016 the UN estimated the country's sex industry was worth €3.7bn (£3.1bn, $4.2bn).

A 2009 survey found that up to one in three Spanish men had paid for sex. 

However, another report published in 2009 suggested that the figure may be as high as 39% and a 2011 UN study cited Spain as the third biggest centre for prostitution in the world, behind Thailand and Puerto Rico.

Prostitution is currently unregulated in Spain, and there is no punishment for those who offer paid sexual services of their own will, as long as it does not take place in public spaces. However, pimping or acting as a proxy between a sex worker and a potential client is illegal .

Prostitution is legal in many European countries, including Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Greece. Supporters of decriminalization say it brings huge benefits to the women working in the trade and makes life safer for them. But  critics say countries that have legalized or decriminalized commercial sex often experience a surge in human trafficking, pimping and other related crimes.

The industry has boomed since its decriminalisation and it is commonly estimated that around 300,000 women work as prostitutes in Spain. 

In the 1980s, most sex workers in Spain were of Spanish origin. But by the early 2000s, the majority were migrants  from poor European countries, Latin America and Africa, making them vulnerable to exploitation. The issue has become a thorny political topic, partly because it is tied to concerns about illegal migration.

Prostitution is largely unregulated in Spain, and there is no punishment for those who offer paid sexual services of their own will as long as it does not take place in public spaces. But pimping or acting as a proxy between a sex worker and a potential client is illegal. That has created a legal loophole where businesses are able to obtain a license to establish clubs that may function as brothels but can’t hire sex workers directly; the sex workers are made to “rent” the rooms they work in — a situation that means they don’t have the legal benefits and protections of other workers.

 

 

Students Aged 12 to 17 years trial run for covid vaccine from today in Bangladesh

File Photo

 The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) will conduct a test run for Covid-19 vaccination for school students at the Colonel Malek Medical College Hospital in Manikganj district in Bangladesh .

As more and more countries around the world are beginning to roll out Covid vaccines to children aged over 12, Bangladesh will also join the list through today's vaccination.

According to DGHS officials, a total of 100 children will be inoculated as part of the test run.

After this test run, the vaccination campaign for school students will be launched in Dhaka on a broader scale, added the DGHS DG .

"We will inoculate a group of students, aged 12-17, from two schools with Pfizer vaccine. We will observe them for 10-14 days to see whether there is any side effect," DG added .

The DGHS has around 60 lakh doses of Pfizer vaccines in stock with which around 30 lakh schoolchildren will be vaccinated, Health Minister Zahid Maleque said at a press conference.

Sydney Lifted Covid-19 Restrictions After 106 Days .

 

Sydney exits lockdown .

 

Sydney has reopened after four months in lockdown, with people celebrating the lifting of restriction measures on 11th Oct. 

The city's five million residents have been subjected to a 106-day lockdown, designed to limit the spread of the highly transmissible Delta variant.

With new infections now falling – New South Wales state recorded 479 cases on Monday – the city is now reopening and businesses are set to welcome those who are vaccinated against the virus.

Measures are being lifted after New South Wales reached its milestone of fully vaccinating 70% of the over-16s last week.

Cafés, shops, and restaurants reopened their doors to anyone who could prove they were vaccinated, after being closed for non-essential workers since June.

 

Australia is one of the few countries that has taken such an extreme approach to managing the coronavirus, with unprecedented restrictions on personal freedom, including travelling more than five kilometres from home, visiting family, browsing in supermarkets, and attending funerals.

Some restrictions on mass gatherings, international borders closures, and schools will remain in force. Schools will not fully reopen for a few weeks .

The Australian Medical Association (AMA) is concerned that reopening will lead to a surge in cases and urged the authorities to keep a close eye on developments.

"The AMA supports gradual opening up of the economy and the loosening of restrictions, but it is critical to observe the impact of each step on transmission and case numbers," the doctors' body said. Source : euronews .

 

Women plead for basic rights in Afghanistan .

Afghan women's rights defenders and civil activists protest to call on the Taliban for the preservation of their achievements and education, in front of the presidential palace in Kabul, Afghanistan

 

As the Taliban increasingly excludes women from public life in Afghanistan, some are determined to speak out despite the threat of retribution from the hardline Islamist group.

The Taliban were notorious for their brutally oppressive rule from 1996 to 2001, when women were banned from going to school or work and only allowed to leave the house with a male chaperone.

They have promised to change, saying they would respect women’s rights within the framework of Islamic sharia law, but many remain sceptical.

In Kabul—the city that has seen the most change over the past 20 years—some young women, such as activist Shaqaiq Hakimi, refuse to be forced into exile by a return to Taliban rule.

“I want to fight and regain the rights that they took from us. We don’t need to go to another country. This is our homeland,” she told AFP.

“If we are not forced to leave, then we won’t go anywhere.”

The Taliban claim that blocks on women returning to work or girls going to secondary school will be lifted once new systems are established.

But this is an echo of the early days of the last regime, which never allowed women to return.

NGO worker Farkhunda Zahidbaig, 21, described how Taliban fighters entered her office to tell management that women employees should leave.

“After this, our boss made the decision that the rest of us shouldn’t come to the office,” she said.

“Women want to have a profession, but... they can’t continue in their jobs. The Taliban have taken away their freedom to work.”

‘We’re afraid’

Shabana, who asked to not be identified, is fearful she will never find a job again.

This would leave the 26-year-old unable to provide for loved ones.

“I am very worried because I was the sole breadwinner of the family,” said the former employee of a Swedish organisation.

Gains for women under the Western-backed government were largely confined to cities in the conservative country, but the Taliban have faced international censure for incrementally stripping them away.

Their all-male government has also shut down the former administration’s ministry of women’s affairs and replaced it with one that earned notoriety during their first stint in power for enforcing religious doctrine.

On top of the pressures of unemployment, women now fear going outside alone.

“We’re afraid that if we go out the Taliban might whip us or hit us,” said Shabana, who was travelling around Kabul with her father.

“We can’t even go to the bazaar alone.”

Hakimi said she would wait to see if the Taliban fulfil their promise to allow all Afghans to go back to work or school. Source : AFP

 

 

 

 

UK NHS commences Galleri blood test to detect 50 cancer types .

The National Health Service (NHS) in the UK has commenced the largest clinical trial for assessing healthcare company Grail’s Galleri blood test, which can identify more than 50 cancer types before symptoms emerge. 

The Galleri test can potentially detect chemical changes in fragments of genetic code-cell-free deoxyribonucleic acid (cfDNA) that leak from tumours into the bloodstream. 

The simple blood test can check for the initial signs of cancer in the blood, the NHS noted. 

The randomised control trial will be conducted by The Cancer Research UK and King’s College London Cancer Prevention Trials Unit, along with the NHS and Grail.

A first of its kind study, the NHS-Galleri trial plans to enrol 140,000 subjects in eight regions across England to assess the efficacy of the test for use in the NHS.

The blood samples from the first subjects in the trial will be obtained at mobile testing clinics in retail parks, as well as at various convenient community locations. 

The trial’s participants must not have had a cancer diagnosis in the last three years.  

“The Galleri blood test, if successful, could play a major part in achieving our NHS Long Term Plan ambition to catch three-quarters of cancers at an early stage, when they are easier to treat.”

According to research so far, the test was demonstrated to be effective at finding cancers that are usually difficult to detect in the early stages, such as head and neck, bowel, lung, pancreatic and throat cancers.

Grail Europe president Harpal Kumar said: “The Galleri test can not only detect a wide range of cancer types but can also predict where the cancer is in the body with a high degree of accuracy.

“The test is particularly strong at detecting deadly cancers and has a very low rate of false positives.” 

Patients whose cancer is detected in the early stages – either one or two – usually have a wider range of therapy options available, which can be curative and are less aggressive.

Preliminary results from the trial are anticipated to be reported in 2023. The NHS intends to expand the rollout to one million individuals in 2024 and 2025.

 

 

Explosion outside Kabul airport in Afghanistan killed at least 60 people . ISIS suspected

 Suicide bombers struck the crowded gates of Kabul airport with at least two explosions on Thursday, causing a bloodbath among civilians, killing four U.S. marines and effectively shutting down the Western airlift of Afghans desperate to flee.

Initial estimates of the total dead and wounded differed, and were rising quickly as different hospitals and officials reported in.  

One Afghan health official said at least 30 people were confirmed dead and at least 120 wounded. Another health official said at least 40 were dead and 120 wounded. Both officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because the Taliban told them not to brief the press, they said.

The Taliban spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, condemned the attack, and said that at least 13 civilians had been killed and 60 wounded.

According to BBC at least 60 people died and  more than 120 people injured in that deadly attack .

In one part of one hospital alone, a New York Times journalist saw dozens of severely wounded or killed people.

Even with such a specific warning, military officials said, it would be very difficult to pick out a suicide bomber with a concealed explosive vest in a huge throng of people, like that at the airport.

The attacks came after the United States and allies urged Afghans to leave the area because of a threat by Islamic State.

A massive airlift of foreign nationals and their families as well as some Afghans has been under way since the day before Taliban forces captured Kabul on Aug. 15, capping a swift advance across the country as U.S. and allied troops withdrew.

The United States has been racing to carry out the airlift before its military is set to fully withdraw from the country by Aug. 31. There was no indication from the White House that Biden plans to change the Aug. 31 withdrawal target as a result of the attacks, a source familiar with the situation told Reuters.

 

Before the Taliban takeover, Afghan security forces had long formed a so-called ring of steel around the capital city, with multiple checkpoints operating along main roads and a U.S.-led intelligence system tracking extremists. There have been a series of spectacular Taliban and ISIS attacks in Kabul over the years, but that old system has evaporated since the city’s fall to the Taliban, replaced by chaos and uncertainty, opening the city to attack .

 

Taliban is again in power in Afghanistan after two decades .

Taliban soldiers

The Taliban has begun the process of forming a government in Afghanistan after taking control of the capital Kabul and declaring that the war is over as Afghan forces surrendered and President Ashraf Ghani fled the country.
 

Despite two decades of US military presence in Afghanistan, and a war that cost over a trillion US dollars, Taliban insurgents arrived at the gates of Kabul on Sunday and took the capital, installing themselves in the presidential palace with little resistance.

The fall of Kabul to the Taliban on Sunday had followed weeks of fighting between insurgents and Afghan forces across Afghanistan after the swift pull out of US forces this summer. In recent weeks, key cities and regions across the country had fallen to the Taliban at unprecedented speed, and the capture of Kabul sealed their control over Afghanistan.

Naeem said the Taliban would now begin the process of forming a government and would work for a peaceful transition of power, both domestically and internationally, and would aim to maintain international diplomatic ties. “We ask all countries and entities to sit with us to settle any issues,” he said.

Many Afghan leaders in cities across the country formally handed over power to the Taliban and the group is expected to formally proclaim a new Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan in the coming days.

Afghan leaders, led by former president Hamid Karzai, said they had created a coordination council to meet with the Taliban and manage the transfer of the power.

 Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban’s deputy commander and chief negotiator who has been in peace negotiations with the Afghan government in Doha, Qatar since last year, said the Taliban wanted to build an “an open, inclusive Islamic government”.

President Ghani flew out of the country on Sunday night, stating that he wanted to avoid any more bloodshed. “If I had stayed, countless countrymen would have been martyred and Kabul city would have been ruined,” he wrote in a post on Facebook. Hours later, Taliban commanders, laden with arms, were photographed standing behind Ghani’s desk in the presidential palace, where they had been escorted inside by a government official . .

 

Taliban Capture major cities , approacing to Afghan Capital Kabul

The Taliban Fighters .

 

KABUL, Afghanistan — The Taliban have captured a large, heavily defended city in northern Afghanistan in a major setback for the government, and the insurgents are approaching the capital less than three weeks before the U.S. hopes to complete its troop withdrawal.

The fall of Mazar-e-Sharif, the country’s fourth largest city, which Afghan forces and two powerful former warlords had pledged to defend, hands the insurgents control over all of northern Afghanistan, confining the Western-backed government to the center and east. 

The Taliban captured all of Logar province Saturday — just south of Kabul — and have reached the Char Asyab district, just 7 miles south of the Afghan capital, according to The AP which cited local lawmakers. The insurgents also captured the capital of Paktika along Pakistan's western border.  

Taliban forces have gained control of 18 of 34 of Afghanistan's provincial capitals in just eight days — putting the insurgent group in control of about two-thirds of the nation's geography.

Addressing the Afghan public in a prerecorded statement released Saturday, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said the remobilization of national security forces was a "top priority" and vowed to prevent further instability in the country.

"I understand that you are worried about your future. I assure you as your president that I will concentrate on preventing expansion of instability, violence and displacement of my people," Ghani said .

Bangladesh hits anothere record death 264 in Covid in a day .

People carrying dead body who died in covid -19 in the graveyard .

 

264 fatalities reported in 24 hours as toll nears 22,000.

Bangladesh logged the highest daily Covid deaths of 264 people in 24 hours until Thursday morning.

The country also logged 12,744 fresh Covid cases in the timeline.

With the latest statistics, the total death toll hits 21,902 and infections to 13,22,654 since it had recorded the first Covid infection on March 8, 2020, and death from the viral disease on March 18, 2020.

The new record surpassed the previous high of 258 on July 27.

As many as 46,995 samples were tested across the country, with a positivity rate of 27.12%.

The health authorities in Bangladesh reported the first three cases of Covid-19, a severe acute respiratory illness caused by a strain of coronavirus named Sars-CoV-2, on March 8, 2020.

The fast spreading coronavirus has claimed more than 4.2 million lives and infected over 201 million people across the world till Thursday afternoon, according to Worldometer.

As many as 181.13 million people have recovered from Covid-19, which has spread to 220 countries and territories across the planet.

 

 

Lightning strikes bridal party in Bangladesh , killed 17 and several injured .

17 members of a bridal party were killed in lightning strikes at Telikhari Ghat of Padma river in Shibganj of Chapainawabganj on Wednesday afternoon.

Seven to eight more people got injured from a groom party who had just crossed the river on a boat. As they reached the ferry ghat and there was rain, they took shelter in a thatched shed at the ghat at around 12 noon. Suddenly, a thunder bolt hit them, killing 15 on the spot while two others died on the way to the hospital.

Although the detailed identify of all the deceased persons could not be known immediately, it was known that 16 of the victims are from sadar upazila and one is from Shibganj upazila, he said.

The injured were sent to the Chapainawabganj Sadar Hospital.

 

Bangladesh sees record highest death 258 in Covid -19 in a day .

Bangladesh has reported its highest single-day deaths from the coronavirus for two days in a row as the health authorities struggle to rein in Covid-19 transmission following the Eid holidays.

The country reported 258 deaths in the 24 hours to 8am on Tuesday, taking the total number of deaths to 19,779.

The country earlier witnessed the record high 231 COVID-10 deaths on July 19, while the highest 13,768 single-day cases on July 12.

The new record surpassed the previous high of 247 on Monday.

Dhaka counted 84 deaths, the highest among the eight divisions, followed by Chittagong with 61 fatalities and Khulna with 50.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has placed Bangladesh at 11th position in the list of countries witnessing higher deaths and on 12th position in terms of COVID-19 cases.

Bangladesh on Friday reimposed a 'stricter' 14-day nationwide shutdown to contain the spread of coronavirus, amid mounting fear that easing of restrictions ahead of Eid when tens of millions of people returned to their villages may result in a rise in COVID-19 cases.

CU beds filling up

According to the DGHS press release, there are only 217 beds vacant, some 16%, among 1,319 ICU beds available for critical patients across the country. 

On Sunday, 18% ICU beds were vacant while it was 19% on Saturday and 20% on Friday. 

Day by day, ICUs across the country are getting filled due to the surge caused by the Delta variant. 

The government said everyone must stay indoors as offices, courts, garment factories and all other export-oriented industries will remain closed.

"The stricter lockdown has been ordered for the next 14 days, unlike the previous restrictions export-oriented factories will come under its purview," a cabinet division spokesman said on Friday.

 

No end of the crisis- Again another record high covid deaths 230 in Bangladesh .

The graveyard is full of  covid dead body .

 

 

Two hundred and thirty people died from Covid-19 in 24 hours (till 8am today), according to a press release issued by the Directorate General of Health Services .

This is by far the highest number of deaths from Covid-19 in a single day in the country since the pandemic began last year.

 
 The health authorities reported  11,874 new  cases in 24 hours to 8am on Sunday.

The country recorded the highest number of fatalities only after two days. On Friday, it was 212 deaths.

Additionally, the number of single-day infection surpassed the previous high of 11,651 cases on Thursday.

As the country continues to reach new high of Covid deaths and cases in the past few weeks, DGHS spokesperson Robed Amin issued a warning saying the situation will take a turn for the worse in the next one week if the virus transmission cannot be brought under control.

The country recorded the highest number of fatalities only after two days. On Friday, it was 212 deaths.

Additionally, the number of single-day infection surpassed the previous high of 11,651 cases on Thursday.

With the latest development, the total number of deaths reached 15,419 while the number of total infections rose to 1,021,189 in the country, according to the latest figures by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).

As the country continues to reach new high of Covid deaths and cases in the past few weeks, DGHS spokesperson Robed Amin issued a warning saying the situation will take a turn for the worse in the next one week if the virus transmission cannot be brought under control.

“The existing variant is not causing death among the elderly only but among the young people as well,” he said in DGHS’s weekly bulletin on Sunday.

Meanwhile, as many as 40,015 samples were tested across the country, for a positivity rate of 29.67%.

In terms of cases per division, Dhaka logged the highest with 4,961 cases followed by Khulna with 1,991 cases, Chittagong with 1,953, and Rajshahi with 1,153.

On the other hand, Khulna division reported 66 deaths, the highest among the eight divisions, followed by Dhaka with 56 deaths. 

Chittagong division counted 39 deaths while Rajshahi 26, Rangpur 22, Barisal and Sylhet eight each, and Mymensingh five.  

Of the 230 deceased – 133 men and 97 women – 111 were aged above 60 years, 51 aged between 51 and 60, 42 aged between 41 and 50, 19 aged between 31 and 40, and seven in the 21-30 age group.

The pandemic has so far claimed the lives of 11,508 men (70.09%) and 4,911 women (29.91%). 

The mortality rate against the total number of cases detected so far stands at 1.61%.

 

Bangladesh see another highest 212 covid deaths , 11324 new cases .

Volunteers carry dead body of covid patients to bury in the graveyard .

 

Bangladesh on Friday touched the grim milestone of 10 lakh Covid cases while record 212 new deaths from the viral disease were logged around the country on the day.

This was the fifth day that Covid figures broke earlier records in a way or the other as over 11,000 Covid cases were registered for the fourth straight day while the top four daily infection figures were also recorded on these four days after the viral disease emerged in the country on March 8, 2020.

This was the second day that the daily death toll exceeded the 200 mark, two days after 201 deaths were recorded on July 7.

With the latest development, the total number of deaths reached 16,004, while the number of total infections rose to 1,000,543 in the country .  

The health authorities in Bangladesh reported the first three cases of Covid-19, a severe acute respiratory illness caused by a strain of coronavirus named Sars-CoV-2, on March 8, 2020.

Since November last year, five variants of the virus have been detected in Bangladesh including the Indian variant (B.1.617.2) being the latest. It was later renamed as the Delta variant.

 

 

Deadly Fire Engulfs Bangladesh City Narayangonj Killed 52 People .

Firefighters trying to put out the deadly fire at Narayngonj 

At least 52  people died in a fire that engulfed a food and beverage factory near capital city of Bangladesh .

The blaze began in thursday night at five stored Hashem food and beverage Ltd just outside Dhaka .

Meanwhile, on Friday evening, angry survivors of the factory fire and relatives, family members of the victims locked in clashes with police and Ansar members in Rupganj. Narayangonj .

The enraged workers also barricaded the Dhaka-Sylhet highway in the morning for the delay in rescue effort while they searched the factory for several dozens of missing people.

The agitated workers attacked on Ansar camp and looted three shotguns, which were later recovered by the Rapid Action Battalion.

The workers and family members broke into tears as fire-fighters started to bring out charred bodies of workers from the factory in the afternoon.

Many of those injured leapt for their lives from the upper floors in the complex, police said. It was unclear how many people were trapped inside.

Bangladesh faces record 201 deaths in Covid-19 in a day . 11162 new cases .

 Bangladesh is now passing the most dangerous stage of Covid-19 second wave . Authorities said a record 201 people had died in the previous 24 hours, while almost 11162 tested positive -- the most single day-infections since the first case was detected in March last year.

The government has decided to extend the ongoing strict “lockdown” for another week in a bid to stem the spread of Covid-19.

Khulna tallied 66 fatalities in a single-day count, the most among the eight divisions in the country. Dhaka was a close second with 58 deaths, followed by Chattogram with 21, Rajshahi with 18 and Rangpur with 14.

Dhaka logged the highest daily cases among the eight divisions with 4,732. Khulna saw 1,900, Chattogram 1,586 and Rajshahi 997, while Rangpur saw 571.

Under the lockdown imposed at the start of the month, and now extended until July 14, Bangladesh's 168 million people can only leave home for emergencies and to buy essentials.

The army and police are patrolling the streets, there is no public transport and shops and offices are shut. Food markets can open for a few hours a day.

In the capital Dhaka, home to some 20 million people, authorities have arrested more than 2,000 people for breaching lockdown rules.

Garment factories, a key pillar of Bangladesh's export-oriented economy, are exempted from the shutdown.

The health department said some 50 percent of infections are occurring outside the cities, with districts bordering India, where the Delta variant first originated, worst hit.

 

 

Bangladesh reports highest 153 death in Covid 19 .

Burying the body of a man who died due to the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) at a graveyard in Dhaka, Bangladesh, 

 

 

Three days after Bangladesh saw a record in daily Covid deaths it witnessed another on Sunday with 153 fatalities reported in the 24 hours till 8:00am on the day while the country’s overall death toll from the disease has topped the 15,000 mark.

The number of Sunday’s infections was also the highest in four days, with 8,661 people infected with the novel coronavirus during the same period as the Delta variant has become the dominant strain in circulation across the country.

The Covid-19 crisis in Bangladesh is showing no signs of improvement after four days of hard lockdown, as the country crosses the grim milestone of 15,000 deaths, while setting a new record for the highest fatalities in 24 hours - all on the same day. 

The new record surpassed the previous high of 143, which was recorded on Thursday.

The newest 1,000 deaths occurred in just nine days, showing the severity of the situation right now. 

Khulna division, the current Covid-19 hotspot, reported 51 deaths - the highest among the eight divisions, followed by Dhaka with 46 deaths.

Among the deceased, 96 are men and 57 women.

 

 

Indian Actor Amir Khan Divorced Kiran Rao After 15 Years of Marriage .

Amir Khan with Kiran Rao 

They met on sets of the Ashutosh Gowariker-directed Lagaan (2001), one of the most commercially successful Indian movies, where the former was an assistant director. Their romance, Khan said in some interviews, bloomed later when the actor was going through the process of legal separation from his first wife, Reena Dutta. Khan and Dutta, who have a son, Junaid, and a daughter, Ira, together, divorced in 2002.

The marriage of Kiran Rao and Aamir Khan — they tied the knot on December 28, 2005 — has been one of the most creative associations of Indian cinema, bringing together one of its biggest superstars and a cinema lover who aspired to make her mark as a writer-director.
 

Actor Aamir Khan and filmmaker Kiran Rao have announced their divorce after 15 years of marriage in a joint statement. The couple said that they will co-parent their son, Azad Rao Khan, as well as continue with their professional partnership on Paani Foundation and ‘other projects that (they) feel passionate about’.

In a joint statement, the couple said they were living separately yet sharing their lives the way an extended family does. “We will also continue to work as collaborators on films, Paani Foundation, and other projects that we feel passionate about,” the statement read.

Bangladesh Goes For 7 Days Strict Lockdown to Control Deadly Covid Delta Variant.

Law enforcers vigilant on country's street .

 

Bangladesh  residents woke up to deserted roads as Bangladesh entered a stringent lockdown on Thursday 1st July with patrol teams out there to convince people to stay off the streets.

The complete lockdown, which came into effect on Thursday morning to mitigate the spread of Covid-19, will continue till July 7 midnight.

Army personnel started patrolling the city streets in aid of the civil administration as the government scrambles to bring the Covid-19 situation under control.  

Police have set up barricades and check-posts at all important points of the city to monitor the movement of vehicles as well as people. So, most roads in the capital were found almost empty with fewer private vehicles moving.

However, slow-moving rickshaws were seen moving everywhere in the city.

Kitchen markets in the city remained open as the government allowed those to operate from 8 am to 5 pm.

However, the restriction will not be applicable for carrying goods, emergency services and production. But the offices related to air, maritime and river and land ports will remain out of the preview of the lockdown.

Industries and factories will remain open subject to maintaining health protocols.

Kitchen markets and shops with daily essentials will remain open from 9 am to 5 pm, and customers can purchase their goods following health safety protocols. Local administrations and the authorities concerned will ensure it.

No one will be allowed to venture out except for certain emergency needs (to purchase medicines, daily essentials, to take medical services and burial/ cremation of dead bodies, taking Covid-19 jabs etc). Legal action will be taken against those who will violate the restrictions.

Hotels and restaurants can operate from 8am to 8pm with takeaway/online services only.

Those who need to take vaccines can move after showing vaccine cards.

8,301 new cases reported in 24 hours with a positivity rate of 25.9%

The daily Covid-19 death toll in Bangladesh hit another high with 143 fatalities reported on Thursday as the country went into a strict lockdown with people confined to their homes, except for emergencies and to buy essentials.

The new record surpassed the previous peak of 119 on Sunday.

 

 

 

 

Triple Murder In Bangladesh .Daughter Killed Father , Mother And Sister in Capital city .

Girl name Mehjabin allegedly arrested for triple murder

 Police of Kadamtoli  , recovered bodies of a couple and their daughter from Muradpur in Kadamtoli area of the capital.

Elder daughter of the family Mehzabin Islam Moon has confessed to police in primary interrogation that she killed her family over a dispute. 

The three deceased were identified by relatives and police as Masud Rana, 50, his wife Mousumi Akter, 45, and their daughter Jannat, 18.

Meanwhile, sensational information has started to be leaked after Mehjabin was held.

According to relatives and locals, Mehjabin got married first in Keraniganj. She had been arrested in a case filed over her husband murder. She also served jail for five years in the case. Her parents were also sent to jail in the case. Later, she got married Shafiqul Islam Aranya.

Police quoted Mehazabin as saying that she had long been angry with her family members.

“Mehzabin claims her mother forced both the sisters into sex work in the absence of their father. After her marriage, she asked her mother to stop forcing her sister but the mother did not,” he added.

He further said Mehazabin claimed her younger sister was having an extramarital affair with her husband.

 

Indian doctors use antibody therapy to treat covid-19 patients successfully .

 Doctors of Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in New Delhi have successfully treated patients suffering from Covid-19 using monoclonal antibody therapy. The two patients who were administered the REGCov2, designed to produce resistance against the SARS-CoV-2, were discharged within 12 hours of being given the doses.

Monoclonal antibodies are identical copies of an antibody that targets one specific antigen. This treatment has previously been used in treating deadly pathogens like Ebola and HIV. The REGCov2 is developed by Regeneron which is conducting the phase-3 Covid-19 prevention trials.

Dr Pooja Khosla, senior consultant, department of medicine, SGRH said that the two patients who were given the antibody  were a 36-year-old healthcare worker, who was suffering from high-grade fever, cough, myalgia, severe weakness and low blood cell count, while the other was an 80-year man with comorbidities including diabetes and hypertension.

While Razdan's oxygen saturation was more than 95 per cent, a CT scan confirmed the presence of mild Covid-19. The doctors administered REGCov2 on both the patients, who showed a significant change in parameters within the next 12 hours. Source :India Today .

Pfizer begins COVID vaccine trials for children 5 to 11 years of age .

Pfizer announced it's expanding its clinical trials for younger children ages 5 to 11-years-old. 

 

 Pfizer announced it's expanding its clinical trials for younger children ages 5 to 11-years-old. Medical doctors are calling this the final frontier.

This is a 2-year study, where a subset of the children enrolled in the trial will receive the COVID-19 vaccine, and a second group will receive a placebo or salt water as part of the Phase 2/3 trials. The Pfizer vaccine injected in children is the same as the one injected in adults, but the dosage will be less.

Pfizer's trial is focused on detecting the antibody response to the COVID-19 vaccine, and verifying if a lower dosage produces enough immunity for this group. Children 5 to 11-years-old will be injected with 10 micro grams in each dose, as opposed to 30 micro grams those 12 and older received.

Dr. Yvone Maldonado is the principal investigator at Stanford University School of Medicine for the Pfizer trial. Dr. Maldonado said they've received an influx of interested families.

The End Of Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu Era : Opponents announced to Oust him .

Benjamin Netanyahu

 

The opponents of Israeal  announced Wednesday that they had reached an agreement to form a government and oust him from office, in all likelihood spelling the end of Benjamin Netanyahu era .

Centrist lawmaker Yair Lapid said in a statement that he had informed Israeli President Reuven Rivlin he had succeeded in forming a coalition government with Naftali Bennett, a former defense minister and onetime Netanyahu ally, as well as other parties.

Bennett, a former settler leader who shares many of Netanyahu’s hard-line views and heads the small religious Yamina party, is due to serve as prime minister for two years before handing over the reins to Lapid for two more.

But Mr. Netanyahu signaled early Thursday that he would not go down without a struggle, calling on lawmakers to oppose “this dangerous left-wing government.”

While he appeared to have few avenues to hang onto power, Mr. Netanyahu’s career has been marked by a keen instinct for political survival.

Under the last-minute agreement by a coalition of opposition parties,Naftali Bennett,  who opposes a Palestinian state and is a standard-bearer for religious nationalists, will serve as prime minister until 2023.

Should the new government hold together that long, the deal then calls for him to be replaced by Yair Lapid, a centrist former television host considered a standard-bearer for secular Israelis. Mr. Lapid would serve the remaining two years of the coalition’s term.

 

 

Serum Indstitute of India can produce 10 crore of Covid-19 Vaccine In June .

Serum Chief  Adar Poonawalla .

I: Serum Institute of India (SII) has informed the governmen ..

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Serum Institute of India (SII) has informed the government t ..

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 Serum Institute of India announced that it can manufacture 9 to 10 crore doses of Covishield in June 

In a recent letter to Amit Shah, Serum Institute said its staff has been working round the clock to meet the rising demand for the Covid vaccines in the country.

"We are pleased to inform that in the month of June we will be able to manufacture and supply nine to 10 crore doses of our Covishield vaccine to the country as compared to our production capacity of 6.5 crore doses in May," Prakash Kumar Singh, the Director of Government and Regulatory Affairs at SII, said in the letter.

Mr. Singh also thanked Shah for his "valuable guidance and continuous support" at various stages of their endeavour to make India 'aatmanirbhar' (self-sufficient) in COVID-19 vaccines and making it available for the people of the country.

India is currently using made-in-India vaccines -- Covishield manufactured by Serum Institute of India and Covaxin of Bharat Biotech -- in its COVID-19 immunisation programme.

The Russian Sputnik V is the third vaccine to get approval from the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) for emergency use and is being used in a few private hospitals. — PTI

 

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Mucormycosis Black fungus in Covid-19 patients .

 

Mucormycosis, a serious fungal infection but otherwise rare, has been observed in a number of Covid-19 patients recently. While there is no major outbreak, the national Covid task force has issued an advisory.

A rare but serious fungal infection, known as  mucormycosis  and colloquially as “Black fungus ”, is being detected relatively frequently among Covid-19 patients in some states. The disease often manifests in the skin and also affects the lungs and the brain. With a number of mucormycosis cases detected in  Indian state  Delhi, Maharashtra, Rajasthan  and Gujarat, experts in the national Covid-19 task force on Sunday issued an evidence-based advisory on the disease.

What is the disease?

Although rare, it is a serious infection. It is caused by a group of moulds known as mucormycetes present naturally in the environment. It mainly affects people who are on medication for health problems that reduces their ability to fight environmental pathogens, say experts from the Covid-19 task force task force.

Sinuses or lungs of such individuals get affected after they inhale fungal spores from the air. Doctors in some states have noted a rise in cases of mucormycosis among people hospitalized or recovering from Covid 19, with some requiring urgent surgery. Usually, mucormycetes does not pose a major threat to those with a healthy immune system.

What happens when one contracts it?

Warning signs include pain and redness around the eyes or nose, with fever, headache, coughing, shortness of breath, bloody vomits, and altered mental status. According to the advisory, infection with mucormycetes should be suspected when there is:

* Sinusitis — nasal blockade or congestion, nasal discharge (blackish/bloody);
* Local pain on the cheek bone, one-sided facial pain, numbness or swelling;
* Blackish discoloration over bridge of nose/palate;
* Loosening of teeth, jaw involvement;
* Blurred or double vision with pain;
* Thrombosis, necrosis, skin lesion;
* Chest pain, pleural effusion, worsening of respiratory symptoms.

Experts advise that one should not count all cases of blocked nose as cases of bacterial sinusitis, particularly in the context of immunosuppression and/or Covid-19 patients on immunomodulators. Do not hesitate to seek aggressive investigations for detecting fungal infection, they advise.

 

 

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan Tests Corona Virus Positive .

Imran Khan

 Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has tested positive for COVID-19, the country's health minister said on Saturday, two days after he got his vaccination.

Prime Minister   is now in Home Isolation . Imaran Khan who is now  68, has been holding regular and frequent meetings lately, including attending a security conference held in capital Islamabad that was attended by a large number of people.

He addressed the conference without wearing a mask, and attended another gathering to inaugurate a housing project for poor people in a similar fashion on Friday.

Mr Khan, a former captain of the national cricket team who became prime minister in August 2018, received Chinese-produced Sinopharm vaccine on Thursday.

Imran Khan was tested for coronavirus after developing a "slight cough", according to one of his senior advisers, and he now has a mild fever.

Vaccine hesitancy has been a major concern in Pakistan, and the prime minister's decision to broadcast footage of himself receiving the jab was praised as an attempt to encourage others to do the same.

Partial lockdown restrictions have recently been reintroduced in parts of the country following a rise in cases.

Pakistan began vaccinations for the general public on 10 March, starting with elderly people.

Along with Sinopharm, the country has approved the CanSinoBio, Oxford-AstraZeneca and Sputnik V vaccines for emergency use.

 

 

European countries to restart use of Oxford /AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine .

 
Germany, France, Italy and Spain said they would resume using the Oxford/AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine after the EU drugs regulator said there was a “clear scientific conclusion” that the jab was “safe and effective”.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) reviewed the jab after 13 European countries suspended use of the vaccine over fears of a link to blood clots.

It found the jab was "not associated" with a higher risk of clot.

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday called on countries to continue using the vaccine, and is due to release the results of its own review into the vaccine's safety on Friday.

The agency's investigation focused on a small number of cases of unusual blood disorders. In particular, it was looking at cases of cerebral venous thrombosis - blood clots in the head.

EMA officials said they could not “definitively” rule out a link between the vaccine and a rarer, and more serious, type of blood clot associated with a low platelet count. “A causal link with the vaccine is not proven, but is possibel and deserves further analysis,” the agency said. Cooke recommended an awareness campaign that aimed to “spot and mitigate any possible side effects” of the vaccine 

The suspensions this week by more than a dozen European countries including Germany and Spain dealt a fresh blow to the continent’s ailing vaccination campaign.

The Oxford  jab has faced multiple challenges. Early data generated by clinical trials were criticised by some experts as being inconsistent. 

At Least 10 European Countries Suspended Use Of Oxford - Astrazeneca Covid-19 Vaccine As Serious Side Effects Found .

 

Many European countries have temporarily suspended use of AstraZeneca vaccines after blood clots in some people who had been inoculated.

With at least 10 countries suspending the use of the Covid-19 vaccine by Astra- Zeneca-Oxford University amid concerns that it may be potentially causing dangerous blood clots in some recipients, India, too, has decided to review the hospitalisations and deaths in people who took Covishield,

Covishield is developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University and produced by Pune-based Serum Institute of India. Bharat Biotech has developed Covaxin in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research and the National Institute of Virology.

 Countries like Austria, Norway , Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Luxemburg have withdrawn the use of one batch of Astrazeneca vaccine, while others including Denmark have suspended the use of all its supply for two weeks, pending investigations. As per reports, at least 22 recipients of AstraZeneca had developed coagulation disorder and pulmonary embolism in various European countries. 

However, the World Health Organization on Friday said there was no reason to stop using AstraZeneca’s vaccine. Its vaccines advisory committee was looking at safety data and WHO stressed that no link had been established between the vaccine and clotting. Senior authorities in the Union health ministry and national committee on Adverse Event Following Immunisation said the development is assessed in India’s context. 

Police in China and South Africa have seized thousands of fake doses of Covid-19 vaccine.

South African police seized the fake vaccine in Germiston, Gauteng.

 

South African  police seized 400 ampoules, providing 2,400 doses, of a fake vaccine in Germiston, Gauteng, along with a big supply of fake 3M brand masks. They arrested a Zambian national and three Chinese suspects. 

That raid led to a second on a manufacturing premises in China, where police seized 3,000 fake vaccines and arrested 80 suspects.

The Chinese authorities believe they have dismantled an organised crime group making the fake drugs and distributing them abroad .

Police found 400 ampoules, which provide 2,400 doses, in South Africa. 

 

 

A Ministry of Public Security spokesman said: "The Chinese government attaches great importance to vaccine security.

"Chinese police are conducting a targeted campaign to prevent and crack down on crimes related to vaccines, proactively investigating and combating crimes related to vaccines in accordance with law."

Interpol, the international police organisation, said it was aware of fake vaccine scams aimed at nursing homes and warned that no approved vaccines were currently available for sale online.

Interpol said that in addition to the arrests in South Africa and China it was also receiving additional reports of fake vaccine distribution and scam attempts targeting health bodies such as nursing homes.

It warned that no approved vaccines were available for sale online.

In the US, Homeland Security agents recently seized 10 million fake 3M brand masks after counterfeits were sold to hospitals, other medical centres and government agencies in five states.

Since the pandemic began, US agents have seized $33 million worth of fake COVID-19 products and arrested 200 suspects.

 

FDA Approves Johnson & Johnson's One Shot Covid Vaccine For Emergency Use .

 The Food and Drug Administration United States  on Saturday authorized Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use. The vaccine is the third to be approved for use in the United States, and the first that requires only one shot.  

The FDA's Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) voted unanimously to recommend authorizing the vaccine by Janssen, a division of Johnson & Johnson, on Friday. The committee provides expert advice to the FDA but does not have final say on approval.

The FDA granted emergency use authorizations for the Pfizer and Moderna coronavirus vaccines in December, with vaccinations beginning just days later. Those vaccines are said to be 95% and 94% effective, respectively. Unlike the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, Johnson & Johnson's, also known as the Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine, requires only a single shot

The Johnson & Johnson vaccine has also shown 85 percent efficacy against severe forms of COVID-19 and 100 percent efficacy against hospitalization and death,

Johnson & Johnson has said it will provide the US with 100 million doses by the end of June, the Times reported, adding that the vaccine could start reaching Americans by early next week.

In early February, a week after announcing that its single-dose vaccine was 66% effective overall in preventing COVID-19 in a global clinical trial, Johnson & Johnson submitted an application requesting the FDA grant the emergency use authorization. 

British Supreme Court Verdicts That Islamic States Extremist Shamima Begum Cannot Return To UK

IS extremist Shamima Begum

The UK Supreme Court ruled Friday that "ISIS bride" Shamima Begum  cannot return to the United Kingdom to appeal the revocation of her UK citizenship.

Shamima Begum (born 25 August 1999)  is a British-born woman to parents of Bangladeshi heritage  who left the UK aged 15 to join the Islamic State of Syria and Iraq ( ISIS ).

As a teenager, Begum was married to an Isis fighter while she was embroiled in the Syrian conflict and had three children, all of whom have since died. As Isis was defeated, she was captured by the Syrian Kurds in 2019 and has been in their detention ever since at camps whose condition has been described as “dire”.

In February 2019, the British government issued an order revoking her British citizenship later stating that she would never be allowed to return to UK .

But former East London schoolgirl Shamima  Begum renewed her calls to return to the UK after she revealed she "hates" the terror group after all three of her babies died.

Speaking from a Syrian camp, the jihadi poster girl said she would rather be in a British jail so she could access education and psychiatric help.

Victims of Islamic State atrocities reacted furiously after three Court of Appeal judges said she could return here from a refugee camp in Syria. 

But The President of the Supreme Court, Lord Robert Reed, said that the UK Court of Appeal made four errors last year when it ruled that Begum should be allowed to return to the UK to carry out her appeal.

According to Reed, the Court of Appeal was mistaken in ruling that Begum's right to a fair hearing should prevail over other competing rights. 

Jhonson and Jhonson's Single Shot Vaccine Is Effective Against Covid-19 .

 

 

Johnson and Johnson's single-dose vaccine protects against COVID-19, according to an analysis by U.S. regulators.. The analysis sets the stage for a final decision on a new and easier-to-use shot to help tame the pandemic.

It paves the way for it to become the third Covid-19 vaccine to be authorised in the US, possibly within days.

The vaccine would be a cost-effective alternative to the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, and can be stored in a refrigerator instead of a freezer.

he Food and Drug Administration's scientists confirme that overall the vaccine is about 66% effective at preventing moderate to severe COVID-19. The agency also said J&J's shot — one that could help speed vaccinations by requiring just one dose instead of two — is safe to use.

However, Johnson & Johnson expects to    fall for short of its commitment to deliver 10 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine by the end of February, with under 4 million to be ready to ship. The disclosure of the shortfall by Johnson & Johnson is the first public measure of exactly how far the drug company has fallen behind its production goals. Johnson & Johnson promised to deliver another 25 million by the end of March.

Results from trials conducted in the US, South Africa and Brazil found its efficacy against the worst outcomes of the virus was "similarly high" but overall protection was lower in South Africa and Brazil, where virus variants have become dominant.

Data showed it was more than 85% effective at preventing serious illness, but only 66% effective overall when moderate cases were included, when considering cases at least 28 days after vaccination .