Cleric, 2 others killed in Pakistan
Islamabad, Feb 28: A prominent local Pakistani cleric associated with Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl has been shot dead along with his son and a seminary student by unknown gunmen on the outskirts of the capital Islamabad, police said on Sunday. The incident took place late Saturday night in the Bhara Kahu area when Mufti Ikramur Rehman was going towards his car and came under the attack. His 13-year-old son Samiullah and the student were also killed. At least three gunmen fired at them and fled after the attack, local police officer Shahzad Khan told the media, adding that the victims succumbed to multiple bullet injuries at a hospital. So far, no one has taken responsibility for the attack which appears to be a targeted killing. (PTI)
HK detains 47 activists
Hong Kong, Feb 28: Hong Kong police on Sunday detained 47 pro-democracy activists on charges of conspiracy to commit subversion under the sweeping national security law. The former lawmakers and democracy advocates had been previously arrested in January but were released. They are currently detained again and will appear in court on Monday, police said in a statement. They allegedly violated the new national security law that was imposed by Beijing for participating in unofficial election primaries for the semi-autonomous territory’s legislature last year. The defendants include 39 men and eight women aged between 23 and 64, police said. (AP)
Global Covid-19 cases top 113 mn
Washington, Feb 28: The total number of global Covid-19 cases has topped 113 million, while the deaths have surged to more than 2.52 million, according to the Johns Hopkins University. In its latest update on Sunday morning, the University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed that the current global caseload and death toll stood at 113,749,295 and 2,524,159 respectively. The US is the worst-hit country with the world’s highest number of cases and deaths at 28,554,177 and 511,994 respectively, according to the CSSE. India comes in second place in terms of cases at 11,079,979. (IANS)