8 killed in Philippines fire
Manila, Feb 27: Eight people were killed in a nighttime fire in the Philippine capital region that gutted a three-story residential building early Thursday in less than an hour, officials said. The fire, which also injured at least one resident, broke out after midnight in the building, which was mostly made of wood, as people slept in San Isidro Galas village in suburban Quezon city, officials said. An investigation was underway to determine the cause of the fire. (AP)
US grants emergency visa interview to father of critical Indian student
New Delhi, Feb 27: The United States has scheduled an emergency visa interview for the father of Nilam Shinde, a 35-year-old Indian student who has been in a coma at a California hospital following a road accident on February 14. The interview will take place at 9 a.m. on Friday. The development came after the American division of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) reached out to the US government. While emergency travel permits for medical reasons are usually granted swiftly, it remains unclear what caused the delay in this case, NDTV reported, citing sources. (PTI)
Philippine govt arrest over 400 people in suspected cybercrime hub
Manila, Feb 27: More than 400 people, half of them from China, were arrested by Philippine authorities in a raid on a suspected online gambling and scam hub in a busy commercial district in the capital, officials said Thursday. The 401 detained included 207 Chinese and 132 Vietnamese nationals who were arrested in a condo building in Pasay city on Wednesday night. They were suspected by Philippine authorities of involvement in illegal online gaming operations, along with cryptocurrency, romance and investment scams, according to a government report. Other arrested suspects were from South Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar and Madagascar, according to the report. (AP)
Two Afghans get jail for plotting to attack Swedish parliament
Berlin, Feb 27: A German court sentenced two Afghan men to several years in prison on Thursday for planning an attack on the Swedish parliament and killing lawmakers in response to the burning of copies of the Quran, German news agency dpa reported. The Jena Higher Regional Court found the men guilty of, among other things, membership or support of a terrorist organisation abroad and conspiracy to commit murder. The court handed one of them, aged 30, a prison sentence of five years and six months and the other, aged 24, a term of four years and two month. (AP)