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India, Pak trade heavy fire along IB

India and Pakistan traded heavy mortar and gun fire along the international border with Pakistani troops targeting 60 outposts and 90 villagers overnight in Jammu, Samba and Kathua districts, leaving eight persons, including three BSF jawans, injured.

Pakistan Rangers shelled almost the entire 192-km border during the night. Nearly 30,000 people have been displaced following one of the worst violations of the 2003 ceasefire by Pakistan which has left eight people dead and 80 others, including nine security men, injured since October 1.
"Pakistani Rangers continued with unprovoked mortar shelling and heavy automatic weapon firing on BSF posts all along International Border (IB) since 2045 hours last night", a BSF spokesman said today.
"Almost the whole stretch of International Border in Samba, Hiranagar, Ramgarh, Arnia, R S Pura, Kanachak and Pargwal (Sub-sectors) was affected in the firing," he said.
"About 60 BSF border outposts were affected by the fire from Pakistan side," the spokesman said, adding BSF troops retaliated in a "calibrated manner".
Firing exchanges were continuing till this morning in Pargwal, Kanachak, Arnia and Samba sub-sectors.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh today said the defence forces were giving a "befitting" reply to the Pakistani onslaught and the country will not bow down before anyone.
"I want to assure the people that we will not let down our country," he said, a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that "everything will be fine soon" on Pakistan border.
"The Prime Minister is keeping a close eye on the situation. He does not need to speak as our Army and BSF personnel are giving a befitting response and we are satisfied with it," Singh said amid questions being raised by the Opposition on government's reponse to the ceasefire violations by Pakistan.
According to officials, over 90 border villages have been hit by mortar shelling and firing by Pakistan since last night. While 57 hamlets were hit in Kathua district, others have been targeted in Jammu and Samba districts.
"Five civilians and 3 BSF jawans were injured in shelling and firing," District Magistrate, Jammu, Ajeet Kumar Sahu told PTI.
Three of the civilians were injured in Kanachak belt.
However, the guns were silent along Line of Control (LoC) in Poonch district.
Over 30,000 people have been evacuated from border hamlets along IB in Jammu, Kathua and Samba to safer places in view of the shelling, the DM said, adding that relief camps have been set up for them.
"Over 20,000 people have migrated from border hamlets in Jammu," Sahu said. In Kathua and Samba, over 7,000 and 3,000 border people have migrated, officials said.
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23:12 | Category: , , , , | 0 comments

Ebola Victim Thomas Eric Duncan Passes Away -- But Not Because Drugs Failed

While I was finishing my morning post on brincidofovir’s preliminary efficacy in immune compromised patients with adenoidal infections, the announcement came that Thomas Eric Duncan had succumbed to Ebola Virus Disease in Dallas earlier this morning.
I’ve been asked for some feedback because Mr. Duncan was reported to have received the Chimerix antiviral drug on Saturday afternoon. Adam Feuerstein at TheStreet just expressed his disgust at the response of stock traders within minutes of the announcement of Mr. Duncan’s death, by driving the stock price of Chimerix down 9% and that of rival Tekmira up 4.7%.
Adam closes his post with the single word, “Gross.”
One of his commentators, however, wrote, “The market is reacting to news that brincidofovir failed in its first high profile test against Ebola, not cheering the death of an individual treated with it. Suggesting otherwise indicates the authors moral depravity.”
Well, I’m now compelled to add my own learned analysis of the trading – and that comment: “Stupid.”
More scientifically, n of 1 data do not support any hypothesis that brincidofovir either helped, hurt, or did nothing for Mr. Duncan.
Absolutely nothing can be learned about the effectiveness of brincidofovir from Mr. Duncan’s tragic death. Zero.
Remember, we don’t even know if ZMapp “worked” or “failed.” The highly-heralded antibody cocktail was given to seven patients that included Ebola survivors, Dr. Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebol. But other “high-profile” recipients, such as Spanish priest, Father Miguel Pajaraes, also received ZMapp – and died.
In the case of Mr. Duncan, he didn't receive the drug until 19 days after the day he was most likely infected with the virus. All non-human primate work done with any of the experimental treatments from any company have never extended beyond treatment four days post-infection.
I cannot hypothesize of any drug that would work if only started 19 days into an Ebola infection.
I even hesitate to turn on cable TV news right now. No one should be speculating on any aspect of Mr. Duncan’s case without comprehensive, firsthand knowledge of his medical care.
Say what you will about Mr. Duncan traveling to the U.S. But the man became infected while helping his landlord’s pregnant daughter to the hospital, then bringing her home after she was turned away. She ended up dying of Ebola hours later.
Mr. Duncan was a man from Liberia who lived, was loved, and is now dead. Those are the only data of which we are certain.


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22:50 | Category: , , , , | 0 comments