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Jailed Former Pak PM Nawaz Sharif's Wife Dies In London Hospital

Agencies
September 12, 2018

London, Sept 12: Begum Kulsoom, the wife of Pakistan's jailed former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, died today in London after a long battle with cancer, her family said.

Begum Kulsoom, who was under treatment at London's Harley Street Clinic since June 2014, was placed on life support earlier Tuesday after her health deteriorated, Geo TV reported.

The health of the 68-year-old began deteriorating on Monday night as she had developed a lung problem again, the channel said.

Nawaz Sharif's brother and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz president Shehbaz Sharif confirmed her death in a tweet. "My sister-in-law and the wife of Nawaz Sharif sahib is no more amongst us. May God bless her soul," he tweeted in Urdu.

Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Captain (retd) Muhammad Safdar are currently serving jail terms in Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi after being convicted by an accountability court in a corruption case in July.

Citing sources, the channel said Nawaz Sharif, Maryam, and Muhammad Safdar have been informed about Begum Kulsoom's death.

According to sources, the Sharif family has decided to bring back Begum Kulsoom's body to Pakistan, it said. "She will be laid to rest in Pakistan," the family confirmed.

Prime Minister Imran Khan has condoled the death of Ms Kulsoom. In a statement, the prime minister said all facilities will be provided to the family and heirs of Begum Kulsoom as per law.

The prime minister has directed the Pakistan High Commission in London to assist in provision of all necessary facilities to Begum Kulsoom's family, the statement said.

Army Chief Gen. Qamar Jawed Bajwa also expressed grief over Ms Kulsoom's death and extended condolences to her family.

"COAS expresses his grief and heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family on sad demise of Begum Kulsoom Nawaz," the army spokesperson tweeted.

Ms Kulsoom was diagnosed with lymphoma (throat) cancer in August last and had been in London since, where she underwent multiple surgeries and at least five chemotherapy sessions.

She was placed on a ventilator in June following a cardiac arrest. Her family reported a slight improvement in her condition on July 12, a day before her husband Nawaz Sharif and Maryam were set to return to Pakistan after the accountability court sentenced them to jail.

She served as the first lady of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms from 1990-1993, 1997-1999 and 2013-2017.

She also served as the president of the PML-N from 1999 to 2002, after her husband's government was toppled by former military dictator Pervez Musharraf in a bloodless coup. She was also placed under house arrest following Sharif's ouster by Musharraf in 1999.

Ms Kulsoom was elected to Lahore's NA-120 constituency in a by-poll after her husband was disqualified from the seat by the Supreme Court last year. Due to her illness, she was unable to return and formally take oath for the seat.

She was born in 1950 in Lahore to a Kashmiri family. She graduated from the Forman Christian College in Lahore and received a Master's degree in Urdu from Punjab University in 1970.

From her maternal side, she was granddaughter of famous wrestler of the sub-continent Gama Pehlwan.

Ms Kulsoom married Nawaz Sharif in April 1971. She is survived by her husband and four children - Hassan, Hussain, Maryam and Asma.

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Agencies
July 29,2020

If everything goes as Russia’s expectation, it will be world’s first country to approve a coronavirus vaccine for widespread in the second week of August despite safety and efficacy concerns, according to a report. The adenoviral vector-based vaccine developed by Russian military and government researchers is currently in phase 2 trials.

According to a report from CNN, Russian officials are hoping to get approval for the COVID-19 vaccine developed by the Moscow-based Gamaleya Institute on Agust 10 or even before that. The officials told the outlet that the vaccine will be approved for public use with frontline healthcare workers receiving it first.

“It’s a Sputnik moment,” said Kirill Dmitriev, head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, which is financing Russian vaccine research, referring to the successful 1957 launch of the world’s first satellite by the Soviet Union, according to CNN.

“Americans were surprised when they heard Sputnik’s beeping. It’s the same with this vaccine. Russia will have got there first,” he was quoted as saying.

However, Russia is yet to release the scientific data on its coronavirus vaccine trials, hence, questions remain about the safety and efficacy of the vaccine, said the report. The vaccine is in the second phase of testing with developers planning to launch the phase 3 trials sometime after August 3.

Earlier, Interfax reported, citing Health Minister Mikhail Murashko, that the vaccine will be widely used in parallel with phase 3 trials. He said the country plans to vaccinate medics who are at high-risk for COVID-19 next month before clinical trials are completed.

Murashko added that individuals at higher risk of getting infected with the coronavirus such as older people or those with health conditions will also be prioritised for the vaccine, although he did not estimate or reveal when that would happen. The minister added 800 people will be recruited for the phase 3 trials.

Meanwhile, health officials were more cautious considering the fact that human testing of the vaccine is incomplete, and the state registration is expected to begin after August 3, reported The Moscow Times.

On Monday, Moderna and Pfizer announced the commencement of the final phase 3 trials of their candidate vaccines against the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which has so far claimed at least 654,477 lives and infected 16,514,500 people worldwide. 

Researchers will recruit up to 30,000 volunteers in separate trials both backed by the US government. India's first indigenous coronavirus vaccine, COVAXIN, is undergoing phase 1 human clinical trials across the country. More than 150 COVID-19 vaccines are being developed all over the world with at least six candidates already in late-stage clinical trials.

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News Network
June 24,2020

Jun 24: The coronavirus tally in Pakistan reached 188,926 with the detection of 3,892 new cases in the last 24 hours, the health ministry said on Wednesday.

Sixty more people died due to the viral infection, taking the death toll to 3,755.

As many as 3,337 patients are in critical condition across the country, the ministry said.

With the detection of 3,892 new cases in the last 24 hours, the coronavirus tally in the country now stands at 188,926, it said.

Sindh reported the maximum number of 72,656 cases, followed by 69,536 in Punjab, 23,388 in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, 11,483 in Islamabad, 9,634 in Balochistan, 1,337 in Gilgit-Baltistan and 892 in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (Pok).

Health authorities have so far conducted 1,150,141 coronavirus tests, including 23,380 in the last 24 hours.

A total of 77,754 patients have recovered so far from the disease.

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News Network
January 15,2020

Jammu, Jan 15: Fresh landslides kept the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway shut for the third consecutive day on Wednesday, leaving over 5000 vehicles stranded.

"There were four fresh landslides in Digdol and Panthiyal belts on the highway in Ramban district. The traffic on the highway remained closed for the third day today", a police officer told PTI.

On Monday, heavy rains triggered shooting of stones in Moumpassi, Digdole and Panthiyal areas, forcing a suspension of the traffic, the official said.

Snowfall in Kashmir side of the highway, including Jawahar Tunnel, since Sunday has resulted in blockade of the highway.

"No fresh traffic was allowed from Nagrota in Jammu for Kashmir", he said.

As a result of the blockade of the highway, over 5000 vehicles remained stranded at various places en route from Lakhanpur in Kathua district to Banihal belt of Ramban district and also on the Kashmir side.

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