Live updates: follow the latest news on Covid-19 variant Omicron
Early data from the centre of the Omicron coronavirus variant outbreak in South Africa does not appear to show a significant surge in hospital admissions, US President Joe Biden's chief medical adviser said on Sunday night.
“Thus far, it doesn’t look like there’s a great degree of severity to it,” Dr Anthony Fauci said of the new breakout variant, although experts have said it will take more time to get the full picture.
However, South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Monday that the country was preparing hospitals for more admissions as Omicron appeared to account for new infections in most provinces.
"We will soon be convening a meeting of the National Coronavirus Command Council to review the state of the pandemic. This will enable us to take whatever further measures are needed to keep people safe and healthy," he said, urging people to get vaccinated.
"We are keeping a close eye on the rates of infection and hospitalisation," Mr Ramaphosa said.
The World Health Organisation has sounded the alarm over the Omicron variant that was first detected in southern Africa in recent weeks but may have been circulating in Europe and elsewhere for some time.
A lot remains unknown about Omicron, which has more than twice the number of mutations as the Delta variant, with the bulk found in the spike – the crown-like protein on the surface of the virus that vaccines train our bodies to attack.
The main concern is around these mutations that scientists worry will help it evade the protection offered by vaccinations or past infections by other variants. President of vaccine manufacturer Moderna, Stephen Hoge, has said there is a “real risk” that existing vaccines will be less effective against Omicron.
Several drug companies, including Moderna, have begun to tweak their vaccines in the hope it will prevent the worst impacts of this new breakout version but the introduction of these new shots will take months.
The appearance of such a highly mutated virus nearly two years into the pandemic caught the scientific community by surprise, as many had hypothesised that the ultra-contagious Delta variant might mark the last major wave, peaking and then eventually burning out, much like the 1918 influenza pandemic.
The US has detected Omicron in about a third of its states but even as countries around the world tighten rules around gatherings and travel, Dr Fauci said the Biden administration is re-evaluating its own ban on arrivals from southern African countries as more information becomes available.
Many of the cases in the US, Dr Fauci said, were among fully vaccinated individuals but that they exhibited only mild symptoms.
In contrast to the US, tougher border measures in Japan have boosted voter support for the country’s new prime minister, Fumio Kishida, the Yomiuri Shimbun daily said on Monday.
Japan took some of the world's strictest steps on November 29 by closing its borders to new foreign entrants for about a month. A day later, it discovered its first Omicron infection in a Namibian diplomat who had arrived on November 28.
Support for Mr Kishida's government has risen from 56 per cent a month ago to 62 per cent today, the Yomiuri poll showed. More than 89 per cent of respondents expressed a positive view of the new Covid-19 measures.
Singapore said it will begin vaccinating children aged 5-11 soon, as the country with one of the world’s highest inoculation rates moves to cover one of its last remaining demographics.
More Omicron cases were found in New South Wales, Australia, which has been getting back to normal after months of lockdown.
Meanwhile, a new study has shown that non-severe Covid-19 cases during pregnancy had no visible effect on the foetus’s brain.
Foetal MRI scans of 33 pregnant women with mild to moderate Covid-19 infections showed "normal age-appropriate brain development" in all cases, lead researcher Dr Sophia Stoecklein said. "There were no findings indicative of infection of the foetal brain."
Only mothers who did not require hospital admission were included in the study.
"Since the impact of severe infection on brain development in the foetus has not been conclusively determined, active protection against SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy remains important," Dr Stoecklein said.
Additional reporting by agencies
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
North Pole stats
Distance covered: 160km
Temperature: -40°C
Weight of equipment: 45kg
Altitude (metres above sea level): 0
Terrain: Ice rock
South Pole stats
Distance covered: 130km
Temperature: -50°C
Weight of equipment: 50kg
Altitude (metres above sea level): 3,300
Terrain: Flat ice
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, Group B
Barcelona v Inter Milan
Camp Nou, Barcelona
Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
If you go...
Fly from Dubai or Abu Dhabi to Chiang Mai in Thailand, via Bangkok, before taking a five-hour bus ride across the Laos border to Huay Xai. The land border crossing at Huay Xai is a well-trodden route, meaning entry is swift, though travellers should be aware of visa requirements for both countries.
Flights from Dubai start at Dh4,000 return with Emirates, while Etihad flights from Abu Dhabi start at Dh2,000. Local buses can be booked in Chiang Mai from around Dh50
Golden Shoe top five (as of March 1):
Harry Kane, Tottenham, Premier League, 24 goals, 48 points
Edinson Cavani, PSG, Ligue 1, 24 goals, 48 points
Ciro Immobile, Lazio, Serie A, 23 goals, 46 points
Mohamed Salah, Liverpool, Premier League, 23 goals, 46 points
Lionel Messi, Barcelona, La Liga, 22 goals, 44 points
How to join and use Abu Dhabi’s public libraries
• There are six libraries in Abu Dhabi emirate run by the Department of Culture and Tourism, including one in Al Ain and Al Dhafra.
• Libraries are free to visit and visitors can consult books, use online resources and study there. Most are open from 8am to 8pm on weekdays, closed on Fridays and have variable hours on Saturdays, except for Qasr Al Watan which is open from 10am to 8pm every day.
• In order to borrow books, visitors must join the service by providing a passport photograph, Emirates ID and a refundable deposit of Dh400. Members can borrow five books for three weeks, all of which are renewable up to two times online.
• If users do not wish to pay the fee, they can still use the library’s electronic resources for free by simply registering on the website. Once registered, a username and password is provided, allowing remote access.
• For more information visit the library network's website.
The Pope's itinerary
Sunday, February 3, 2019 - Rome to Abu Dhabi
1pm: departure by plane from Rome / Fiumicino to Abu Dhabi
10pm: arrival at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
Monday, February 4
12pm: welcome ceremony at the main entrance of the Presidential Palace
12.20pm: visit Abu Dhabi Crown Prince at Presidential Palace
5pm: private meeting with Muslim Council of Elders at Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
6.10pm: Inter-religious in the Founder's Memorial
Tuesday, February 5 - Abu Dhabi to Rome
9.15am: private visit to undisclosed cathedral
10.30am: public mass at Zayed Sports City – with a homily by Pope Francis
12.40pm: farewell at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
1pm: departure by plane to Rome
5pm: arrival at the Rome / Ciampino International Airport
Tour de France 2017: Stage 5
Vittel - La Planche de Belles Filles, 160.5km
It is a shorter stage, but one that will lead to a brutal uphill finish. This is the third visit in six editions since it was introduced to the race in 2012. Reigning champion Chris Froome won that race.
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TOP 5 DRIVERS 2019
1 Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, 10 wins 387 points
2 Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes, 4 wins, 314 points
3 Max Verstappen, Red Bull, 3 wins, 260 points
4 Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, 2 wins, 249 points
5 Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari, 1 win, 230 points
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
WIDE%20VIEW
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Evacuations to France hit by controversy
- Over 500 Gazans have been evacuated to France since November 2023
- Evacuations were paused after a student already in France posted anti-Semitic content and was subsequently expelled to Qatar
- The Foreign Ministry launched a review to determine how authorities failed to detect the posts before her entry
- Artists and researchers fall under a programme called Pause that began in 2017
- It has benefited more than 700 people from 44 countries, including Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Sudan
- Since the start of the Gaza war, it has also included 45 Gazan beneficiaries
- Unlike students, they are allowed to bring their families to France
