The Omicron coronavirus variant has been designated as a “variant of concern” but it was important not to panic, the spokesperson for the World Health Organization has said.
The aim is to get the world alert, step-up surveillance and public health measures, but not overreact, Dr Margaret Harris told BBC World News’s Yalda Hakim.
Read more: Is Omicron more harmful than other Covid variants? And other questions.
São Paulo Governor João Doria has described President Jair Bolsonaro as a “crazy guy” who is making the country’s coronavirus situation worse. Speaking to the BBC, he said Brazil’s health system was “on the verge of collapse” amid a spike in cases and deaths. “Brazil is fighting two viruses – the coronavirus and the Bolsonaro…
Luca Maggiora, the owner of London’s Cuckoo Club, said he was fighting for survival after the government’s decision to delay the easing of restrictions. He said the closure of nightclubs during the pandemic had forced him to go into £700,000 debt, whilst the government have provided him with just £46,000 in support during the period….
Charlize Theron says countries have to start sharing vaccines if we are to reach the World Health Organization’s goal of vaccinating 70% of the planet next year. The actress, who has joined the social justice organisation Ford Foundation, wants the World Trade Organization to agree a waiver on vaccine patents – so countries can manufacture…
There’s growing evidence of a lack of support for Afghans who’ve arrived in Britain. Organisations supporting them say they fear many will have to live in hotel accommodation for up to a year. Schools have begun trying to help where they can. Watch as the BBC’s Home Editor, Mark Easton, visits a school in London…
White House coronavirus adviser Dr Anthony Fauci is urging more Americans to get vaccinated as confirmed cases and deaths from Covid-19 continue to rise. He said some 70 million Americans entitled to the vaccine had not taken it, so this was “an outbreak of the unvaccinated”. Dr Fauci told BBC World News: “If ever there…
The trial of Derek Chauvin, the US police officer accused of killing George Floyd in May, has wide implications, Prof David Schultz, of Hamline University, says. He set out how he expected the prosecution and defence to outline their cases and told BBC World News: “It is always easy for people to say there is…
