Indian Sub-continent

ISLAMABAD, May 17 (APP): Pakistan and Saudi Arabia on Wednesday signed an agreement for the execution of “Road to Makkah” project aimed at simplifying the immigration process for Hajj and Umrah pilgrims.

The agreement was signed at the Prime Minister House during the visit of Deputy Interior Minister of Saudi Arabia Dr. Nasir Bin Abdul Aziz Al-Dawood here.

Minister for Interior Rana Sanaullah and Saudi deputy interior minister signed the document while Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Saudi Ambassador in Islamabad Nawaf bin Said Al-Malki witnessed the ceremony.

NEW DELHI, May 17 (NNN-PTI) – India yesterday described the U.S. report on international religious freedom as, one “based on misinformation and flawed understanding.”

The report talked about attacks on members of religious minority communities in India, in 2022, according to local media reports.

In response to media queries, regarding the U.S. report, spokesperson of India’s External Affairs Ministry, Arindam Bagchi, said that, it was “motivated.”

NEW DELHI, May 17 (NNN-PTI) – At least seven people were killed and five others injured, some of them critically, yesterday, from a firecracker factory blast, in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal, police said.

The blast took place in Egra area of East Medinipur district, about 130 km south of Kolkata, the capital city of West Bengal.

According to police, the factory was being illegally run, in a residential building, and the injured were immediately removed to the nearest health facility.

Police said, the building completely collapsed in the blast.

KABUL, May 17 (NNN-ANA) – Three kidnappers were killed, after personnel of General Directorate of Intelligence (GDI) or the country’s counter-intelligence agency, busted a group of abductors in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan, the agency said in a statement, today.

The GDI personnel rescued a hostage, who was abducted a month ago, from the kidnappers’ control, following an operation targeting the hideout of the kidnappers’ gang in Kabul, last night.

Kanpur: In a dispute over an e-rickshaw in Cantonment's Badlipurwa locality here on Tuesday morning, the infuriated uncle poured petrol on his nephew and set him on fire reportedly.

Seeing this scene, two women including his wife got burnt while saving the young man. After the incident, the accused fled from the spot reportedly.

The police on getting the information teacher the spot and admitted all four burnt people to the Burn ward of Ursala Hospital here.

Ramkumar (40), a resident of Badlipurwa in Cantt, lives with his wife Sapna (35).

NEW DELHI, May 16 (NNN-PTI) – Students of a school in New Delhi were evacuated today, after the school administration received an email about a bomb threat, police said.

The evacuation took place at Amrita School, in New Delhi’s Pushp Vihar locality. The school received the threatening email at around 6:35 a.m. local time today, according to the officials.

The email from the unknown sender sent a tizzy among the school administration, who alerted the police.

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Rescuers on Monday evacuated about 1,000 people trapped by seawater 3.6 meters (12 feet) deep along western Myanmar’s coast after a powerful cyclone injured hundreds and cut off communications. Six deaths were reported, but the true impact was not yet clear in one of Asia’s least developed countries.

GARDEZ, Afghanistan, May 15 (NNN-ANA) – The Afghan security forces have thwarted attempts to smuggle handguns and seized 77 pieces of pistols, in the eastern Paktia province, said a statement by the provincial Police office, yesterday.

The alleged smugglers were attempting to illegally move the weapons out of the province, but were intercepted by the police, during a routine check in Dand-e-Patan district, on Saturday night.

However, the smugglers managed to escape, the statement admitted, saying, efforts are underway to arrest and bring to justice the culprits.

KATHMANDU, May 15 (NNN-XINHUA) – A Nepal Army team summited Mount (Mt.) Qomolangma this morning, in order to collect waste, discarded by climbers on the world’s tallest peak.

Ten members of the team, led by Lieutenant Col Kishor Adhikari, including five Sherpa climbing guides, reached the top of the mountain at 10:05 a.m. local time.

“Ten of the 13-member team have conquered the peak. They will descend collecting the waste dumped en route to the mountain peak,” Nepal Army spokesman, Brig Gen Krishna Prasad Bhandari, told Xinhua.

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Convoys of buses and vehicles filled with Pakistani government supporters are flooding the main road leading to the country’s capital on Monday to protest the release of former Prime Minister Imran Khan.

Thousands are making their way to the Supreme Court for a rare sit-in against its decision last week in support of Khan, following his arrest in a graft case. The 70-year-old former premier was released on bail and given protection from arrest until later this month.