Latest News

New mpox strain identified in England

Published

2 months ago

2025/12/8

Priyan

A new strain of mpox, previously called monkeypox, has been detected in a person in England, say UK health officials.

The virus is a mix of two major types of the mpox virus, and was found in someone who recently returned from travelling in Asia.

Officials say they are still assessing the significance of the new strain.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) says it is normal for viruses to evolve. Getting vaccinated remains the best way to protect against severe disease – although an mpox infection is mild for many.

The new virus strain contains elements of two mpox strains, called clade Ib and clade IIb. It currently has no name.

UK health officials recently encouraged gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men to make sure they were vaccinated against mpox.

That call came as a strain called ‘clade Ib’ showed early signs of local spread in some European countries.

‘Clade IIb’ is linked to a global outbreak of mpox in 2022 which affected many countries worldwide.

In the UK, vaccination is available for groups of people at highest risk of catching mpox:

those who have multiple sexual partners
those who engage in group sex
those who visit sex-on-premises venues

Health officials say the vaccine is 75-80% effective at protecting against mpox.

There have been no studies on how well the vaccine protects against this latest strain, although it’s thought there will be a high degree of protection.

Dr Katy Sinka, head of sexually transmitted infections at UKHSA, said genomic testing had allowed it to be detected.

“It’s normal for viruses to evolve, and further analysis will help us understand more about how mpox is changing.

“Getting vaccinated is a proven effective way to protect yourself against severe disease, so please make sure to get the jab if you are eligible,” she said.

Prof Trudie Lang, director of the Global Health Network at the University of Oxford, said there were “excellent systems” to identify cases and control onward infection in the UK, but in other parts of the world, in more vulnerable populations, “this is harder to achieve”, where access to vaccines is not as reliable.

Prof Lang said if further cases of this strain appeared in the UK and elsewhere, it would be important to understand how it’s being spread and how ill it makes people, in order to assess whether it’s more or less dangerous than previous strains.

There have been nearly 48,000 confirmed cases of mpox globally in 2025, and 2,500 in the past month, with most occurring in central Africa.

Dr Boghuma Titanji, assistant professor of medicine at Emory University, said the new strain is what experts feared would happen if mpox continued to spread worldwide.

“The more mpox circulation we permit, the more opportunities the virus has to recombine and adapt, further entrenching mpox virus as a human pathogen that is not going away,” she said.

Mpox can be a unpleasant illness.

Common symptoms are lesions or a skin rash, which can last for two to four weeks, plus fever, headaches, back pain, muscle aches and tiredness.

The virus spreads from person to person through close physical contact, coughs or sneezes and touching infected clothing, bedding or towels.

UK Health officials say anyone who thinks they might have mpox, should contact NHS 111 for advice on what to do.

[BBC]

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Imran Khan to be moved to hospital amid rising health concerns

Published

1 min ago

2026/02/15

Priyan

Imran Khan has been in virtual solitary confinement in prison for several months [Cricinfo]

Former Pakistan captain and Prime Minister Imran Khan will be moved to hospital amid rising concerns about his health. A government minister, Tariq Fazal Chaudhary said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, that “considering his health, it has been decided to shift him to hospital and form a medical board”. The decision came amidst rising pressure on the government from the opposition, who have staged a parliamentary sit-in at Parliament House until appropriate medical care is provided to Imran. The sit-in is into its second day.

Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis have led calls for Imran to be allowed appropriate medical access in prison after reports have emerged that he has lost most of the vision in his right eye. Imran, 73, has been in virtual solitary confinement in prison for several months, and has suffered an eye infection that his legal team has claimed left him with severe vision loss.

Imran’s legal team has also asserted that his deteriorating health has been caused by the government’s neglect. Government spokespersons have denied these charges.

“It is heartbreaking to hear our skipper Imran Khan going through health issues,” Wasim, who has cited Imran as the biggest influence on his career, said on X, formerly Twitter. “I sincerely hope the authorities take this seriously and ensure he receives the best possible medical care. Wishing him strength, a speedy recovery, and a full return to good health.”

Waqar, who has similarly extolled Imran’s influence on his career, posted shortly after. “Putting politics aside, our national hero who gave us our greatest glory on the sporting field, a cancer hospital [which] helped so many, including my own mother, is suffering a health emergency and requires urgent treatment. I humbly request the related authorities he gets the appropriate treatment in a timely manner. Get well soon skipper.”

Shoaib Akhtar said earlier on Saturday that he had spent the last three months in the USA raising funds for Shaukat Khanum Cancer Hospital, which Imran fundraised and built in tribute to his mother who died of cancer. “I’m deeply saddened to hear the news of him losing vision in his eye,” Shoaib said. “I hope he gets the best treatment and I’m wishing him a speedy recovery.”

Shahid Afridi said right to medical access was a “basic right and should be provisioned”. Ramiz Rajaa, who took the catch off Imran’s bowling that won the 1992 World Cup for Pakistan, and later served as PCB chairman when Imran was Prime Minister, said he hoped “humanity prevails”. “Seeing Imran Khan suffer and lose vision in one eye is an emotional meltdown!” he posted.

Mohammad Hafeez has also joined calls wishing Imran well and asking for appropriate medical access to be provided.

The calls have not been confined to Pakistan, with former India batter Ajay Jadeja calling on Pakistan’s cricketers to show their support for Imran on Friday.

Imran was arrested in August 2023 and sentenced to several prison sentences on a slew of charges that he and his supporters have insisted are politically motivated.

[Cricinfo]

Latest News

India vs Pakistan is finally here. Over to cricket now

Published

4 hours ago

2026/02/15

Priyan

Hardik Pandya has been Pakistan's bogeyman [Cricinfo]

Well, everything about this game is big picture. If we needed a reminder of how much in cricket is sustained by this fixture, it came over the past two weeks, when it dangled over the precipice of not happening at all. The result of an India-Pakistan match might feel like it means everything, but, as the ICC view has appeared for at least the last decade and a half, it doesn’t have to mean anything at all. It just needs to happen.

And then there’s the rivalry. Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav triumphantly declared, after the second of three Asia Cup wins over Pakistan in Dubai, that this was no longer a rivalry, as if it were solely the cricket played within the boundary that had set its terms. India may now measure its cricketing standards against teams that play superior cricket to Pakistan, but crowds still pack stadiums more consistently against this side, and it draws more eyeballs than games against purportedly better competition. In Pakistan, meanwhile, there has never really been an attempt to deny that a win against India matters most of all.

Perhaps it is absence that has made Pakistan supporters’ hearts grow fonder. They have won three games against India in the past decade, and two of them have become iconic enough to be referred to in numerical shorthand. You’d need little further explanation in Pakistan beyond “180 runs” and “152-0” to know what you were talking about. But while they represent two of Pakistan’s three wins, the 17 defeats on the other side of the ledger have clustered into one sad muckheap.

The slightly smaller picture is that this game doesn’t have much riding on it from the tournament’s perspective. Both sides have come through scares to compile 2-0 records against less fancied opposition, and a defeat is unlikely to complicate progress to the next round for either. This, really, is a game that exists for its own sake, outside the context of the tournament it is a part of.

On the field, well, we know the score. India have both a cricketing and psychological edge, having won their three games against Pakistan at the Asia Cup in three different ways. They won with the ball in the first, the bat in the second, and the mind in the final, opening up further wounds in a rivalry whose tide Pakistan are struggling to find ways to reverse. India’s top order is uniquely devastating in T20Is, their middle order has heft, their spin has dazzling world-class variety, and their fast bowling has Jasprit Bumrah. There are increasingly few nits to pick with any of it.

It can feel bleak at times for Pakistan, but only those who know little about Pakistan cricket will assume they go in without hope. Curiously, for all the gulf that has opened up between these sides, Pakistan will be scratching their heads wondering how they don’t come into this match with a three-game T20 World Cup win streak over India. After their decisive win in 2021, they let victory slip from their hands in Melbourne in 2022 and in New York in 2024. It is where they will have learned how vast the difference between hope and belief is, and in moments where the match presents them with opportunities, as those two and last year’s Asia Cup final did, Pakistan will need to find a way to grasp them.

India against Pakistan gets talked about a lot, and almost never for the right reasons. But, for a few hours on Sunday, that’s exactly what could happen. That, in itself, is perhaps a good enough reason to get a game on Sunday, and, with any luck, a good one.

Perhaps no player in this India side loves playing against Pakistan more than Hardil Pandya. Against this opposition, he has a better bowling average, a better bowling economy rate and a better bowling strike rate than his overall T20I numbers. While his T20I batting numbers against Pakistan are not great, every Pakistan fan remembers his 43-ball 76 in a losing cause in the 2017 Champions Trophy final. In the last three games, he has dismissed Babar Azam, Saim Ayub and Fakhar Zaman, with his two-in-one credentials in this fixture offering India the ultimate luxury.

Shaibzada Farhan has played three matches against India, all within two weeks of each other. He scored 40 in the first, following up with two half-centuries, and helped Pakistan get off to dream starts in two games against India at the Asia Cup. Most famous was his relative comfort in dealing with Jasprit Bumrah, against whom he scored at a strike rate of 150 without once losing his wicket. He struck him for three sixes during that purple patch, more than any other batter has managed against Bumrah in their T20I careers. If Pakistan are to finally get over the line against India, they may require the same overperformance at the top, even if Bumrah is a hard man to keep down for long.

Abhishek Sharma has made a recovery in time for the game and will replace Sanju Samson. India wish to add another spin option, which likely means one of Washington Sundar or Kuldeep Yadav will come in for Arshdeep Singh.

India (probable): Ishan Kishan (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (capt), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah.

Pakistan have shown a willingness to stick with Babar Azam in the middle order, and with a commanding performance over USA, there is little immediate clamour for change. There remains a possibility of Fakhar Zaman being brought in, possibly as Usman Khan’s replacement, which would hand Farhan the gloves. Wholesale changes, however, are unlikely.

Pakistan (probable): Sahibzada Farhan (wk), Saim Ayub, Salman Agha (capt), Babar Azam, Shadab Khan, Usman Khan (wk)/Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usman Tariq, Abrar Ahmed

Business

“We Are Building a Stable, Transparent and Resilient Sri Lanka Ready for Sustainable Investment Partnerships” – PM

Published

4 hours ago

2026/02/15

Priyan

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya addressed members of the Chief Executives Organization (CEO) during a session held on Thursday [3 February 2026] at the Shangri-La Hotel, Colombo, as part of CEO’s Pearl of the Indian Ocean: Sri Lanka programme.

The Chief Executives Organization is a global network of business leaders representing diverse industries across more than 60 countries. The visiting delegation comprised leading entrepreneurs and executives exploring Sri Lanka’s economic prospects, investment climate, and development trajectory.

Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister emphasized that Sri Lanka’s reform agenda is anchored in structural transformation, transparency, and inclusive growth.

“We are committed not only to ensuring equitable access to education, but equitable access to quality education. Our reforms are designed to create flexible pathways for young people beyond general education and to build a skilled and adaptable workforce for the future.”

She highlighted that the Government is undertaking a fundamental pedagogical shift towards a more student-focused, less examination-driven system as part of a broader national transformation.

Reflecting on Sri Lanka’s recent political transition, the Prime Minister stated:

“The people gave us a mandate to restore accountability, strengthen democratic governance, and ensure that opportunity is not determined by patronage or privilege, but by fairness and merit. Sri Lanka is stabilizing. We have recorded positive growth, restored confidence in key sectors, and are committed to sustaining this momentum. But our objective is not short-term recovery it is long-term resilience.”

Addressing governance reforms aimed at improving the investment climate, she said:

“We are aligning our legislative and regulatory frameworks with international standards to provide predictability, investor protection, and institutional transparency. Sustainable investment requires trust, and trust requires reform.”

Turning to the recent impact of Cyclone Ditwa, which affected all 25 districts of the country, the Prime Minister underscored the urgency of climate resilience.

“Climate change is not a distant threat. It is a lived reality for our people. We are rebuilding not simply to recover, but to build resilience, strengthen disaster mitigation systems, and protect vulnerable communities.”

Inviting CEO members to consider Sri Lanka as a strategic partner in the Indo-Pacific region, she highlighted opportunities in value-added mineral exports, logistics and shipping, agro-processing, renewable energy, pharmaceuticals, and innovation-driven sectors.

“We are not looking for speculative gains. We are seeking long-term partners who share our commitment to transparency, sustainability, and inclusive development.”

She further emphasized collaboration in education, research, vocational training, and innovation as essential pillars for sustained economic growth.

Concluding her address, the Prime Minister expressed appreciation to the Chief Executives Organization for selecting Sri Lanka as part of its 2026 programme and reaffirmed the Government’s readiness to engage constructively with responsible global investors.

The event was attended by the Governor of the Western Province, Hanif Yusoof, and other distinguished guests.