A pregnant Pakistani woman had a nail hammered into her head by a faith healer who said it would guarantee she gave birth to a boy, a doctor said. The woman arrived at a hospital in Peshawar after trying to extract the nail herself, doctor Haider Khan said. “She was conscious, but in immense pain,” he said. The mother of three daughters said she was pregnant with another girl, he added. An X-ray showed the 2 inch nail had pierced her forehead but missed her brain. Police are trying to track down the faith healer. “We’ll soon catch the sorcerer,” police officials said.
Differences between Pak PM, wife?
A close friend of Pakistan’s first lady Bushra Bibi dismissed rumours about any differences between PM Imran Khan and his wife, clarifying that the couple is living together. Farah Khan, a close friend of Bushra Bibi, took to Twitter to announce that the first lady was living with her husband at their home in Islamabad. “Fake propaganda was being spread through WhatsApp messages about the first couple,” she said. Khan's spokesman Shahbaz Gill also rejected the rumours. “Legal action will be taken against those who are still spreading false news,” he said. Gill also said “we are already in court against (journalist) Najam Sethi for giving false news about the PM and first lady. ” Sethi had claimed in 2019 that the first couple was passing through a rough patch and living apart.
Lanka resumes on-arrival visa for tourists
Sri Lanka has announced resumption of visa on arrival facility for international tourists, except travellers from 10 countries, including Pakistan and Nepal. The facility for foreign tourists was on hold since the pandemic broke out in 2020. The move is expected to give a much-needed boost to the island nation’s tourism industry, a major source of forex revenue, which has been badly hit by the pandemic. “Issuance of on arrival electronic travel authorisation for tourists at the port of entry to Sri Lanka has been activated from 8 February. This is to facilitate the tourists who experience difficulties when obtaining the online visa due to the time constraints of arranging their journey to Sri Lanka,” according to a government statement. Sri Lanka is one of Asia’s most popular travel destinations. In the pre-pandemic days, India was Lanka’s biggest inbound tourism market.
Bomb threat at event Harris’ hubby attended
US second gentleman Doug Emhoff was escorted out of an event at a high school in Washington due to a bomb threat. Emhoff, married to US VicePresident Kamala Harris, was visiting Dunbar High school to celebrate Black History Month, dedicated to honouring achievements and struggles of African-Americans throughout US history. He was attending a presentation when Secret Service agents ushered him off stage and out of the building. Teachers and students at the school were ordered to evacuate shortly afterwards.
Chinese worker dies of excessive work
Claims that another Chinese tech worker has died after excessive overtime has reignited debate over the industry’s “996 culture”. The company denied that it overworked the employee, but said it would pay more attention to the health of its employees. The 25-year-old reportedly died in hospital soon after he was taken to hospital from his home. The video platform Bilibili, where the man was employed as a content auditor, said company representatives went to the hospital to assist and then notified his family. Bilibili released an internal memo rejecting claims the employee - who reportedly died of a brain haemorrhage - was overworked. It said the man had worked from 9. 30 am. to 6.30 pm. for the past week, with no overtime, the report said.
Truck driver rams cars, 31 damaged
An intoxicated truck driver rammed his vehicle into parked cars after ignoring a red light in southern Germany, shoving cars up against buildings and causing some of them to catch fire, police said. Three people were slightly injured and 31 vehicles damaged in the incident in Fuerth, just outside Nuremberg. The truck driver skipped a red light, touching a car in the process, and carried on without stopping, according to a police statement. Shortly afterward, the truck rammed several parked cars and pushed them forward, some of them into the walls of buildings.
NZ truckers protest Covid curbs, vax
A convoy of trucks and campervans blocked streets near New Zealand’s parliament in Wellington to protest against Covid restrictions and vaccinations, inspired by a similar demonstration in Canada. Hundreds of vehicles parked in streets surrounding the parliament building. Hundreds more drove around the city centre with their horns blaring as over 1,000 protesters on foot listened to speeches. PM Jacinda Ardern said she had no intention of entering discussions with protesters.
Uganda seeks to make Covid vax mandatory
Ugandan authorities are seeking to legally mandate vaccines in draft legislation aimed at boosting the East African country's drive to inoculate more people against Covid-19. The proposed bill, which is subject to changes as it faces scrutiny by a parliamentary health committee, calls for a six-month jail term for failure to comply with vaccination requirements during disease outbreaks. “It is the right thing to do,” said Alfred Driwale, a public official who leads Uganda’s vaccination efforts, speaking of the proposed changes to the country's public health law. Attempts by Ugandan officials in recent months to enforce limited mandates have been unsuccessful.
Libyan PM survives assassination bid
Assailants struck Libyan Prime Minister Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah's car with bullets but he escaped unharmed, a source close to him said, amid intense factional wrangling over control of the government. The source said the incident happened as Dbeibah was returning home, describing it as a clear assassination attempt, but the attackers fled and the incident has been referred for investigation. No immediate photos or footage of the incident has been released. If confirmed, an attempt to assassinate Dbeibah could aggravate the crisis over control of Libya after he said he will ignore a vote scheduled by the eastern-based parliament to replace him. Armed forces have mobilised more fighters and equipment in the capital over recent weeks, raising fears the political crisis could trigger fighting.
'Bored' security guard ruins £747,000 painting
A 'bored' security guard allegedly ruined a £747,000 painting on his first day at work - by drawing eyes on its faceless figures. The painting, called 'Three Figures' (1932-1934) from the Tretyakov Gallery collection, by Anna Leporskaya shows was hung at the Yeltsin Centre in the Sverdlovsk Oblast region of west-central Russia. It is alleged that the bored security guard drew eyes with a ballpoint pen on the faces of two of the three figures depicted in the painting. The security guard reportedly has been fired. After the incident, the police started an investigation for vandalism, which comes with a RUB-40,000 (Rs 39,900) fine and a one-year correctional labour sentence. The damage to the painting has been estimated at RUB 250,000 (Rs 2,49,500).
