DNA

ISLAMABAD, Dec. 5 : The Cloud signing ceremony of the Sino-Pakistan International Gene&Cell Technology Research & Transformation Center Project was held here, Gwadar Pro reported on Saturday.

The initiative by the Biotech & Biomedicine (Shenyang) Group and Dynamic Engineering and Automation Group Pakistan has added new impetus to deepening the cooperation between both countries in gene and cell health.

According to the report, it is a comprehensive project of Gene&Cell Technology Research& Transformation Center between the two countries.

Badar uz Zaman, Commercial Counsellor of the Pakistani Embassy in China, said at the occasion that through the epidemic, we realize that there is much room for improvement in medical technology in Pakistan.

“China has made important contributions to the world’s fight against the pandemic, we both sides are optimistic about the prospects for cooperation in the field of health care,” he said.

Li Junyuan, Deputy Director of Belt and Road Initiative Construction Promotion Center of National Development and Reform Commission, stressed that this collaboration is an important step for China to actively support Pakistan in responding to the epidemic and improving public health care.

It is also helpful to make new contributions to building a closer, more beneficial and higher-quality China-Pakistan community with a shared future.

Participants emphasized that the project can provide technical support for the research and development of various pathogen detection kits and rapid testing equipment, and effectively enhance the ability of epidemic prevention and control in Pakistan, which is of great significance.

A yellow fever outbreak in Nigeria has killed 172 people so far, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said Friday. The outbreak poses an extra challenge to the country’s health system as Africa’s most populous nation deals with the Covid-19 pandemic, several concurrent disease outbreaks and a humanitarian crisis in the northeast, the WHO said.

Nigeria has been battling successive yellow fever outbreaks since 2017. This latest outbreak was detected in November, WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic told reporters in Geneva.

“As of November 24, the outbreak has been reported in five states in Nigeria: Delta, Enugu, Bauchi, Benue and Ebonyi,” he said.

“A total of 530 suspected cases have been reported, including 48 that have been confirmed by lab testing.

“A total of 172 deaths have been reported out of those 530 suspected cases.”

He said sample testing was ongoing through national reference laboratories.

The spokesman said Nigerian national and state authorities were focused on the Covid-19 pandemic response, limiting the human resources required to conduct investigations and response activities for the yellow fever outbreaks.

Capacity has been increased in certain hospitals to help manage patients who develop yellow fever symptoms and complications.

Currently, 16 of Nigeria’s 36 states and the federal capital territory have completed vaccination campaigns.

Six more are expected to do so in the first quarter of 2021, with a further six set to do so by the end of next year, bringing the total to 28, the WHO said.

The percentage of people immunised against yellow fever remains low in many parts of Africa, even though the vaccine is nearly 100 per cent effective and relatively cheap.

There is no specific treatment for yellow fever, which is largely transmitted in urban settings by mosquitoes.

Nigeria, like the rest of Africa, has so far been spared the brunt of the coronavirus pandemic but authorities are wary of a fresh wave.

So far, more than 68,300 cases of Covid-19 have been registered, and 1,179 deaths.

DNA

ISLAMABAD, DEC 4 – Pakistan categorically rejected incorrect and misleading assertions made by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) regarding the legal proceedings currently taking place in the case of Indian Naval Commander Kulbhushan Sudhir Jadhav.

It is evident that by casting aspersions on the Indian High Commission’s own legal Counsel, the Indian government is looking for an escape from the legal proceedings in Commander Jadhav case.

The Government of India is reminded that in pursuance of the judgment of International Court of Justice (ICJ), Pakistan had invited the Indian High Commission to meet with Commander Jadhav and appoint a lawyer on his behalf so that proceedings to review and reconsider Commander Jadhav’s conviction could commence. However, during the course of diplomatic exchanges, the Indian High Commission refused to instruct a lawyer itself, as in their view this would amount to a waiver of India’s sovereign immunity. Resultantly, the government of Pakistan was constrained to initiate proceedings for appointment of a state counsel for Commander Jadhav.

During the course of the proceedings, to show the discrepancy in the Indian position,the Attorney-General for Pakistan cited the case of Mr. Muhammad Ismail, an Indian national currently in custody in Pakistan, where the Indian High Commission had instructed Mr. Noon as its lawyer.

Contrary to the false statement by the MEA, no attempt was made to link the cases of Commander Jadhav with another Indian prisoner Ismail. The two cases are and remain entirely distinct. Reference to the case of Mr. Ismail was only for purpose of showing the discrepancy and inconsistency in the Indian position.

It is reiterated that in line with the judgment of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), Pakistan has already provided consular access to the Indian High Commission twice and has taken all necessary steps for effective review and reconsideration in the case.The offer of a third consular access is still there.

The Indian side is once again urged to desist from the use of its usual diversionary and dilatory tactics and instead take practical steps so that legal proceedings could be duly concluded and full effect could be given to the judgment of ICJ.

NEW YORK, DEC 04 (DNA) – Reaffirming its full support to the Palestinians’ struggle for self-determination and against foreign occupation, Pakistan has urged the international community to help them establish an independent State of their own with Al-Quds al-Sharif as its capital.

“The tragedy of Palestine is the collective failure of the international community to uphold the fundamental principled provision of the UN Charter and the binding resolutions of the Security Council,” Pakistani delegate Saad warraich told the UN General Assembly.

Speaking in a debate on the Question on Palestine, he said that Palestine was the core issue in the Middle East conflict that has spawned regional instability and contributed the most to the anger and frustration among the peoples of the Arab and Islamic world.

“A just resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is essential for peace and stability throughout the Middle East region,” the Pakistani delegate said.

Since partition 73 years ago, he said the story of Palestine has been a tale of broken promises and unfulfilled rights that not only betrayed the hopes and aspirations of generations of Palestinians, but have also sowed seeds of endless hostility and discord in the Middle East.

“The question of Palestine is not a question of victor or vanquished; it is test of our commitment to the abiding principles of the UN Charter, based on the inherent dignity of an individual, and respect for fundamental human rights of all human beings including their right to self-determination.”

Warraich, a Counsellor at the Pakistan Mission, said that the fundamental structure of the two-State solution is being dismantled before the international community’s eyes, with many doubting if peace can be achieved at all, as illegal expansion of settlements into the occupied territory continued.

Meanwhile, he said that UNRWA, the world body’s agency entrusted to care for Palestinian refugees , faces financial constraints in serving more than 5 million refugees.

“The international community must assist the Palestinians to realize their rightful quest for the establishment of a sovereign, independent contiguous and viable State with Al-Quds al-Sharif as its capital,” the Pakistani delegate added. = DNA

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There will be no lockdown after this weekend’s parliamentary elections, prime minister Ludovic Orban told television station Romania TV, explaining that the economy can’t afford it.

“I guarantee [you] 100% there will be no lockdown. Romania can’t afford it; we can’t afford it from the point of view of the economy, from the point of view of the upcoming period. It will not happen. So, if anyone claims this, I say it is folly; it is actually a campaign lie meant to weaken the support for the [National Liberal Party] PNL. The president also said it very clearly: this is not on the table. Shutting down the economic activity is out of the question,” Orban said.

He also said that, over the past few days, the number of people recovering from Covid-19 exceeded that of the infected ones.

“For the past seven-eight days, we have seen a downward trend, and, what is more, in the past five days out of seven, the number of those recovering exceeded that of those infected. It is true that fewer tests were carried out because of the public holidays, and not all testing centers were open, but the testing activity restarts today under normal conditions, depending on the testing requests,” the PM said.

Romania reported 4,916 coronavirus cases on December 2 and a share of positive tests of 31.3%. Less than 17,000 daily tests were carried out between November 29 and December 2, when Romanians had a long, ‘bridge’ weekend because of two public holidays: St. Andrew on November 30 and the National Day on December 1. Fewer tests are usually carried out over the weekends as well.

The authorities introduced additional restrictions starting November 9. Schools and kindergartens are closed throughout the country and masks are mandatory in all public spaces, indoor and outdoor. People’s movement is restricted during the night (23:00 to 5:00) with some exceptions, while shops and large stores close at 21:00.