KABUL -- The death toll of the deadly road accident, which occurred in Afghanistan's western Herat province on Tuesday night, has reached 79, including women and children, spokesman for the Ministry of Interior Affairs Abdul Mateen Qani said Wednesday.
Among the victims, 19 are children, the official added.
The bloody road mishap took place after a passenger bus carrying Afghan returnees from Iran collided with a motorbike and a mini-truck on a road linking the neighboring Iran to Herat city in Afghanistan on Tuesday night. (Afghanistan-Road Accident)
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ISLAMABAD -- At least 11 people were killed and 10 others injured in rain-related incidents in Pakistan's southern port city of Karachi as record downpours turned neighborhoods into lakes, disrupted flights, and caused power shutdowns, local authorities said Wednesday.
According to the state-run Rescue 1122 department, victims died in electrocutions, drownings, and wall collapses across Karachi, the capital city of southern Sindh province, after heavy rain struck the city since Tuesday morning. (Pakistan-Rain Incidents)
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GAZA -- At least 36 Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, Gaza's civil defense authority said, as ongoing Israeli operations in Gaza City sparked widespread panic among Palestinians.
The Israel Defense Forces said in a statement on Wednesday that over the last few days, the army has resumed operations in the Jabalia area and on the outskirts of Gaza City.
Meanwhile, Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, confirmed on Wednesday the killing and wounding of some Israeli soldiers in an attack on a military site on the outskirts of Khan Younis.
Israel began calling up around 60,000 reservists on Wednesday ahead of a planned offensive to take over Gaza City and displace its population, an Israeli army spokesperson said. (Gaza Strip-Israeli Attacks)
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NEW DELHI -- At least 50 schools in the Indian capital Delhi on Wednesday received bomb threats, prompting authorities to rush police teams, fire services personnel and bomb disposal squads to these educational institutions, officials said.
The threats turned out to be hoaxes.
Local media reports quoting police officials said a group identifying itself as "Terrorisers 111" sent an email to those schools demanding 25,000 U.S. dollars from each one.
The schools were quickly evacuated as a safety measure. (India-Bomb Threats) ■
