A seven-year-old Indian boy with third stage cancer met Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, after his post on social media that he wanted to see his “idol” went viral, media reported. Abdullah Hussain from Hyderabad was featured in a news report, where he said: “Sheikh Hamdan is so cool, adventurous and so kind. I want to meet his pets and I want to see his dresses,” Gulf News reported. In the video, he carried a banner that read: “I am your fan Sheikh Hamdan. I want to meet you.” Sheikh Hamdan posted a picture with Abdullah on Instagram with the caption “Met this courageous boy today”. The boy’s mother told Gulf News that Abdullah’s fondness for Shaikh Hamdan began after he watched a video of the crown prince on YouTube and instantly became his fan.
Tornadoes kill 23 in Tennessee
Tornadoes ripped through Tennessee, claiming at least 23 lives as they destroyed buildings and toppled power lines, hours before the southern US state voted in Super Tuesday primaries. Devastation could be seen across the rubble-strewn state capital Nashville, where a tornado touched down shortly after midnight. Residents described running for their lives as their homes came down around them, with the authorities reporting that tens of thousands were without power. Footage broadcast by the local ABC affiliate showed cars piled up, hangars destroyed and what appeared to be dozens of aircraft smashed into each other at Nashville's John C. Tune Airport. The Nashville police department circulated aerial photographs of many buildings missing roofs and, in at least one neighborhood, homes reduced to piles of rubble standing next to houses that escaped damage.
Gunmen kill 29 at Kabul political rally
At least 29 people were killed and dozen more were injured when gunmen opened fire at a ceremony in Afghanistan’s capital attended by prominent political leaders. Two attackers were killed by police, officials said. The Taliban denied they were behind the attack, which came less than a week after the US and the group signed a peace deal that lays out a path for the withdrawal of American forces from the country. While no one has claimed responsibility for the bloodshed, Afghanistan’s upstart Islamic State affiliate has declared war on the country’s minority Shia. Many of those at the ceremony were Shias because it was commemorating the 1995 slaying of Abdul Ali Mazari, the leader of Afghanistan’s ethnic Hazaras, who are mostly Shia. There were conflicting accounts of the number of casualties in the attack in the Dasht-e-Barchi neighborhood of Kabul. The health ministry reported 32 people were killed and 58 were wounded, while the interior ministry reported 29 dead and 61 wounded.
Four dead, 22 injured in Karachi building collapse
At least four people were killed and 22 others injured when a five-storey residential building collapsed in Karachi, according to media reports. The building collapsed in the city's Gulbahar area.
Of the four deceased, one was suspected to be a woman, a Geo News report said. Karachi Mayor Wasim Akhtar has ordered that the 22 injured be provided with the best possible medical care. The fallen structure's permit has come into question with Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah seeking a detailed report on the building's construction. Geo News reported that while one building was completely destroyed, there was extensive damage to two other buildings in the vicinity.
Blast outside US embassy in Tunisia
Two militants on a motorbike blew themselves up outside the US embassy in Tunisia, wounding five police officers, authorities said, in the country’s most serious attack in months. The explosion took place near the embassy’s main gate. The interior ministry said two militants were killed carrying out the attack, and five policemen were injured. “We heard a very powerful explosion ... we saw the remains of the terrorist lying on the ground after he went on the motorbike towards the police,” said Amira, a shopkeeper. The American embassy in a tweet urged people to avoid the area.
Saudi Arabia reopens area around Sacred Kaaba
Saudi Arabia reopened the area around the sacred Kaaba in Mecca's Grand Mosque, Islam's holiest site, reversing one of a series of measures introduced to combat the coronavirus outbreak. Saudi authorities this week suspended the year-round umrah pilgrimage, during which worshippers circle the Kaaba seven times, and also announced the temporary closure of the area around the cube structure. But King Salman has "allowed for the opening of the Mataf (where people circle the Kaaba) for non-umrah performers," the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported. Hundreds of Muslims were seen rotating around the Kaaba, but the area between two hills that pilgrims must go between seven times to complete umrah remained closed. Barricades blocked access to the Kaaba, draped in a gold-embroidered black cloth, while men in green uniforms cleaned the white-tiled floor. Authorities had emptied the Grand Mosque for sterilisation earlier.
Saudi detains 3 senior royals over ‘coup plot’
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has moved to consolidate his power by detaining three members of the royal family, including a brother of the king and a former crown prince for allegedly planning a coup, reports said. Those detained include Prince Ahmed bin Abdulaziz, the younger brother of King Salman, and Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, the king’s nephew. Sources said Prince Ahmed and Mohammed bin Nayef were detained in the latest operation. Sources said Mohammed bin Nayef and his half-brother, Nawaf, were picked up at a private desert camp. Crown Prince Mohammed “accused them of conducting contacts with foreign powers, including the Americans and others, to carry out a coup d’etat”, sources said.
Elizabeth Warren ends prez bid
Elizabeth Warren, who electrified progressives with her “plan for everything” and strong message of economic populism, dropped out of the Democratic presidential race, according to a person familiar with her plans. The exit came days after the onetime front-runner couldn’t win a single Super Tuesday state, not even her own. The Massachusetts senator has spoken with Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden, the leading candidates in the race, according to their campaigns. She is assessing who would best uphold her agenda, according to another person. Warren’s exit all but extinguished hopes that Democrats would get another try at putting a female nominee up against President Donald Trump.
Venezuelan women urged to have six kids
President Nicols Maduro wants Venezuelan women to have many children as a way to boost the country, which has seen millions of people flee in recent years to escape its economic crisis. Maduro made the exhortation during a televised event for a government program promoting various birth methods. God bless you for giving the country six little boys and girls, the socialist president told a woman at the event. 'All women to have six children, all. Let the homeland grow!' The comments drew criticism from human rights activists and others who noted Venezuelans already are struggling to provide food, clothes and health care for their families. "It is irresponsible, on the part of a president of the Republic, to encourage women to have six children simply to make a homeland, when there is a homeland that does not guarantee children their lives," said Oscar Misle, founder of CECODAP, a group that defends the rights of young people.
Woman tended plastic plant for two years
One California woman was a proud plant parent for two years before realizing her beautiful succulent was actually a piece of plastic. Caelie Wilkes, a stay-at-home mom, shared her story on Facebook. “I’ve had this beautiful succulent for about 2 years now. I was so proud of this plant. It was full, beautiful coloring, just an over all perfect plant,” she wrote. It wasn’t until she was transplanting her succulent into a new vessel that she made a shocking discovery. “I go to pull it from the original plastic container it was purchased with to learn this plant was FAKE,” wrote Wilkes. “I put so much love into this plant! I washed its leaves. Tried my hardest to keep it looking it’s best, and it’s completely plastic!”
Australian man tasered in toilet paper scrap
A fight over toilet roll ended with a man being tasered, Australian police said, as coronavirus concerns drive panic buying. Police were called to a store in the New South Wales town of Tamworth, after the man allegedly lashed out and attacked another customer and a worker. Over 50 people have been confirmed to have the virus in Australia so far with the latest cases including an eight-month-old baby in Adelaide. Coronavirus fears have triggered runs on several products, including hand sanitisers and face masks, with images of shoppers stacking trolleys with toilet rolls spreading on social media. A fiery truck crash in Brisbane further fuelled concerns after it was revealed it to be carrying loo roll. But supermarkets and manufacturers urged calm, reassuring customers that deliveries were increasing to compensate for the demand.
Brazil sacks official who tied rock music to Satanism
Seeking to clean up an office embroiled in scandal, Brazil’s new culture secretary started her tenure by firing six top officials, including one who said rock music pushes people toward Satanism. Now on his fifth culture secretary in just over a year, far-right President Jair Bolsonaro has tapped Regina Duarte, a soap opera actress, to restore calm at what has become one of the most controversial posts. She announced the firing of Dante Mantovani. Mantovani, an orchestra conductor and self-declared believer in a flat Earth, had gained notoriety over a YouTube video in which he said, “Rock music leads to drugs, which leads to sex, which leads to the abortion industry, which leads to something much worse, which is Satanism.”
Ice-cream licker in US jailed
A 24-year-old man in Texas who filmed himself licking ice cream and putting it back in the freezer of a Walmart supermarket has been jailed for 30 days and fined $1,000, according to US media reports. The video of D’Adrien Anderson licking the ice cream was shared on social media last August. After the video went viral, several health and safety questions were raised. The clip received over 157,000 views on Facebook before it was taken down, The Port Arthur News reported. Surveillance cameras at the outlet showed he later took the ice cream back out of the freezer and bought it. He was also given a six-month suspended sentence, 100 hours of unpaid work, a $1,000 fine, and was ordered to pay $1,565 to the ice cream company.
Oz news site ditches comments after ‘vile’ abuse
Constant “trolling” and “disgraceful commentary” of female Australian rules football players has driven a major news website to indefinitely close its comment sections on articles. The Herald Sun website, which is the digital arm of one of Melbourne’s largest newspapers, said it had closed comments on women’s Australian rules reports following harassment of female footballers and sports writers. “After reading screeds of vile posts by readers - one story contained almost 300 comments of a grossly sexist tone, which were moderated out of publication - the Herald Sun has chosen to close reader feedback on AFLW (Australian Football League Women’s) reports except in rare circumstances,” Herald Sun head of sport Matt Kitchin told the paper in an article explaining the move.
US woman goes to jail for her 100th birthday
For her 100th birthday, Ruth Bryant crossed a significant item off her bucket list. She went to jail. The Person County sheriff’s office helped fulfill Bryant’s unusual wish when two deputies showed up at her assisted living facility to serve her a warrant charging her with indecent exposure, news outlets reported. The two deputies handcuffed Bryant to her walker and placed her in a patrol car, giving her the full experience with lights and sirens flashing and blaring.
Beatles’ stage to be auctioned
The wooden stage of the small UK venue where the Beatles performed before they rocketed to fame is going up for auction, along with Paul McCartney’s scribbled notes for a studio recording of the hit song “Hey Jude”. The stage and the lyrics are among 300 items of Beatles memorabilia being sold in New York on April 10. The stage was removed from Lathom Hall in Liverpool, where the band gave its first advertised performance in May 1960. It is expected to sell for $10,000 to $20,000.
No female James Bond: Producer
Producer Barbara Broccoli has ruled out the possibility of a female James Bond. The 59-year-old said the person who will be cast as the spy when Daniel Craig leaves the role after “Not Time to Die”can be of “any colour”, but the makers are not considering giving a gender switch to the character. “Bond can be of any colour, but he is male. I’m not interested in taking a male character and having a woman play it,” she said.
Ayatollah latest to slam India
Three days after India summoned the Iranian ambassador to lodge a strongly worded protest against Iran foreign minister Javad Zarif’s comments on the Delhi riots, the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, slammed India on the violence. Using the hashtag #Indian-MuslimsInDanger, the Ayatollah tweeted, “The hearts of Muslims all over the world are grieving over the massacre of Muslims in India. The government of India should confront extremist Hindus and their parties and stop the massacre of Muslims in order to prevent India’s isolation from the world of Islam.” This comes even as the government urged the international community to refrain from “irresponsible comments” on last week’s violence.
Lego’s colourful plastic bricks to go green
There may be a global revolt against plastic, but Danish toymaker Lego, famous for its multi-coloured plastic building bricks, remains a raging success. However, the firm said it aims to go green. Lego has vowed that its iconic bricks will be 100% sustainable by 2030.
