KEY COVID NOS. WORLDWIDE

Pos   /   Country   /   New Daily cases   /   Total Deaths   /        Daily Deaths /           Active Cases   /           Deaths/1M Pop.

               World    5,03,566              /             53,75,510            /             4,515     /             2,30,83,495               /             689.6

1             USA        1,14,776              /             8,28,168              /             391        /             1,05,47,825               /             2,481

2             UK          91,743   /             1,47,261              /             44           /             14,79,319            /               2,153

3             France   15,075   /             1,21,717              /             224        /             9,65,196              /               1,859

4             Russia    27,022   /             2,98,222              /             1,019     /             9,28,610              /               2,042

5             Germany              21,710   /             1,09,243              /             280        /             9,23,803               /             1,298

6             Netherlands        12,154   /             20,504   /             36           /             5,70,478              /               1,193

7             Belgium                              /             27,895   /                            /             4,84,347              /               2,392

8             Spain     26,568   /             88,793   /             29           /             4,61,204              /               1,898

9             Poland   9,609     /             91,514   /             29           /             4,18,066              /               2,422

10           Vietnam               14,977   /             29,791   /             225        /             4,15,765              /               302

11           Italy       16,213   /             1,35,778              /             137        /             3,69,703              /               2,251

12           Mexico  841        /             2,97,858              /             23           /             3,47,654              /               2,275

13           Turkey   18,762   /             80,591   /             176        /             2,99,193              /             941

14           Norway                /             1,207     /             3             /             2,60,265              /             220

15           Honduras                            /             10,428   /                            /             2,44,758              /               1,029

16           Switzerland         2,629     /             12,017   /             16           /             2,43,952              /               1,374

17           South Africa       8,511     /             90,453   /             105        /             1,99,847              /               1,497

18           Czechia 3,740     /             35,288   /             22           /             1,97,857              /               3,286

19           Brazil     2,094     /             6,17,873              /             35           /             1,83,665              /               2,877

20           Ukraine 2,536     /             93,262   /             157        /             1,78,870              /               2,151

28           India      6,478     /             4,77,554              /             47           /             82,260   /             341

80           Philippines           263        /             50,784   /             45           /             9,592     /             455

81           Pakistan               359        /             28,878   /             6             /             9,588     /             127

86           Sri Lanka              524        /             14,771   /             19           /             7,817     /             686

87           Bangladesh         260        /             28,050   /             2             /             7,486     /             168

IMRAN KHAN SPARKS UPROAR IN AF OVER IS TERROR REMARK

The acting Taliban foreign minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, defended the remarks of Pakistan PM Imran Khan on corruption, terrorism and cultural diversity in Afghanistan, which had created an uproar in the war-torn country.

Khan had claimed during his keynote address at the OIC meeting on Sunday that Daesh (Islamic State) has been threatening Pakistan from Afghanistan. “We have had attacks from the Afghan border, from IS, into Pakistan,” he had said. Khan had stated that due to years of corruption in Afghanistan, poverty was widespread in the landlocked country even before the collapse of the former government there. He also spoke on the human rights issue, saying that it should be understood in the context of prevalent cultural values in the country. “We must understand… when we talk about human rights, every society is different. Every society’s idea of human rights and women’s rights are different,” Khan said. “Culture in Kabul was always different from rural areas, just like we see in Peshawar where it is completely different from the districts on the border with Afghanistan.”

His remarks on IS, graft and human rights drew a sharp response from former Afghan president Hamid Karzai and other Afghan nationals online. Karzai called Khan’s remarks “an attempt to sow discord among Afghans, and an insult to the Afghan people”. “Allegations that IS is active in Afghanistan, threatening Pakistan from Afghanistan, is clear propaganda and in fact the opposite is true. The threat of IS has been directed from Pakistan against Afghanistan from the very onset,” he tweeted.

In Kabul on Monday, the interim Afghan foreign minster said he believed Khan’s remarks were not an insult to Afghanistan. “Imran Khan criticised the former (Afghan) governments. I think officials of the former governments felt obligated to react, I don’t see (Khan’s remarks) as insulting,” Muttaqi said.

OMICRON SPREADING FASTER THAN DELTA VARIANT, INFECTING THE VACCINATED, SAYS WHO

The Omicron variant of the coronavirus is spreading faster than the Delta variant and is causing infections in people already vaccinated or who have recovered from the COVID-19 disease, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday.

"There is now consistent evidence that Omicron is spreading significantly faster than the Delta variant," WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a news briefing for Geneva-based journalists, held at its new headquarters building.

"And it is more likely people vaccinated or recovered from COVID-19 could be infected or re-infected," Tedros said.

WHO chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan said that the variant was successfully evading some immune responses, meaning that the booster programmes being rolled out in many countries ought to be targeted towards people with weaker immune systems.

Omicron appears to be better at evading antibodies generated by some COVID-19 vaccines but there are other forms of immunity that may prevent infection and disease, WHO officials said.

"We do not believe that all vaccines will become completely ineffective," Swaminathan said.

Swaminathan, referring to a treatment for people with the disease, said: "Of course there is a challenge, many of the monoclonals will not work with Omicron." She gave no details.

But the WHO team also offered some hope to a world facing the new wave that 2022 would be the year that the pandemic, which already killed more than 5.6 million people worldwide, would end - with the development of second and third generation vaccines, further development of antimicrobial treatments and other innovations.

"(We) hope to consign this disease of a relatively mild disease that is easily prevented, that is easily treated ...and that able to cope easily with this disease into the future," Mike Ryan, the WHO's top emergency expert, told the briefing.

EU REGULATOR BACKS NOVAVAX SHOT AS REGION’S 5TH COVID VAX

The European Union’s drug regulator on Monday approved use of the Covid-19 vaccine from US-based Novavax in people 18 years and older, paving the way for a fifth shot in the region as the Omicron variant spreads.

Data from two large studies showed the vaccine has an efficacy of around 90%, the European Medicines Agency said, adding that there was currently limited data on its efficacy against some variants of concern, including Omicron. “After a thorough evaluation, EMA’s human medicines committee (CHMP) concluded by consensus that the data on the vaccine were robust and met the EU criteria for efficacy, safety and quality,” the regulator said. Novavax said it would start shipping vaccines to the EU’s 27 member states in January.

Vaccines from Pfizer-Bio-NTech, Moderna , AstraZeneca and J&J had already been approved for use in the EU. But faced with surging infections, EMA has been speeding up reviews of other shots.

Novavax’s protein-based vaccine uses alternative technology to the other four shots, which makes it more interesting to the EU as it has sought to diversify its portfolio of vaccines. The company has about eight manufacturing locations, including those of the Serum Institute of India, the world’s biggest vaccine maker. Production of the shot in India at SII has also been approved by EMA, an EU official said.On Friday, the WHO issued an emergency use listing to SII’s version of Novavax’s vaccine.

UK TO IMPOSE TOUGHER CURBS POST CHRISTMAS

Britain may impose new curbs to slow the spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant after Christmas, media reported on Monday, a day after the Netherlands began a fourth lockdown and as other European nations consider putting a squeeze on Christmas. The country recorded another daily high of Omicron cases at 12,133.

The total number of confirmed Omicron cases in the UK stands at 37,101, taking the overall Covid-19 infections tally to 82,886 on Sunday. A further 45 Covid-related deaths have been reported.

UK Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab, when asked about the lockdown, said, “I think we will have a much better Christmas than last year because of the vaccination level — both the overall vaccination level and particularly the impact of the booster campaign. People will need to be careful and cautious,” he said.

According to UK media reports, civil servants have produced three options for ministers to consider as future COVID measures, and they range in severity from stricter guidance on households mixing to early closures of shops and restaurants to limit gatherings.

PENTAGON ISSUES RULES AIMED AT STOPPING RISE OF EXTREMISM

Warning that extremism in the ranks is increasing, Pentagon officials are issuing detailed new rules prohibiting service members from actively engaging in extremist activities. The new guidelines come nearly a year after some current and former service members participated in the riot at the U.S. Capitol, triggering a broad department review.

Senior defense officials tell The Associated Press that fewer than 100 military members are known to have been involved in substantiated cases of extremist activity in the past year, but they warn that the number may grow given recent spikes in domestic violent extremism, particularly among veterans.

Officials said the new policy doesn't largely change what is prohibited, but is more of an effort to make sure troops are clear on what they can and can't do, while still protecting their First Amendment free speech rights. And for the first time, it is far more specific about social media.

The new policy lays out in detail the banned activities, which range from advocating terrorism or supporting the overthrow of the government to fundraising or rallying on behalf of an extremist group or “liking” or reposting extremist views on social media. The rules also specify that commanders must determine two things in order for someone to be held accountable: that the action was an extremist activity, as defined in the rules, and that the service member “actively participated” in that prohibited activity.

PAK, TURKEY & MALAYSIA TO LAUNCH TV CHANNEL

Pakistan, Turkey, and Malaysia will set up a joint television channel to promote media links among them, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry has said.

Chaudhry said that focal persons for media sharing have been designated and a joint media network will be developed, Radio Pakistan reported on Monday.

“Issues of extremism need to be tackled in Pakistan, Malaysia and other Muslim countries,” Chaudhry was quoted as saying.

In September 2019, Prime Minister Imran Khan had first announced that Pakistan, Turkey, Malaysia will jointly launch an English language television channel to correct misperceptions and confront the challenges posed by Islamophobia.

The three-nation channel would offer Muslims a dedicated media presence to help in “setting the record straight” on Islam and fighting the phenomenon of Islamophobia internationally, he had said.

Earlier this year, Pakistan and Turkey had announced that they are collectively bringing a period drama on the life of Salahuddin Ayyubi, a Muslim warrior and founder of the Ayyubid Dynasty in West Asia.

He also suggested that under the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) platform, a unit of scholars should be named to provide guidance on religious issues.

PAK OPPN RAISES PITCH FOR IMRAN'S RESIGNATION

Pakistan’s main opposition party has demanded resignation of Prime Minister Imran Khan for allegedly defaming the country and its political parties, only to hide his own corruption, at a time when foreign dignitaries were in the capital to attend a high-profile international summit.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) information secretary Marriyum Aurangzeb said that Khan-led government had already completed more than three years of its term, but it seemed that he had been suffering from “Sharif family phobia” as he kept on mentioning their names all the time. She was referring to the PM’s interview to Al Jazeera on Friday in which he had once again hit out at his political rivals from the powerful Bhutto and Sharif families, blaming them for promoting corruption and destroying the country.

Marriyum asked Khan to step down from the office, if he really wanted to provide relief to the masses.

PRO-BEIJING CANDIDATES SWEEP HK ELECTION; WEST ALLIES SAY OPPN ELIMINATED

Western allies condemned Hong Kong’s “patriots only” legislature vote on Monday, saying new rules imposed by Beijing that reduced directly elected seats and controlled who could stand had “eliminated” opposition. China has overseen a sweeping crackdown in Hong Kong in response to huge and often violent democracy protests two years ago. It imposed a national security law that criminalised much dissent and introduced political rules that vet the loyalty of anyone standing for office. The first public vote under this new order was held on Sunday for the city’s legislature, with a historic low turnout recorded and the number of those directly elected slashed from half to 22%. Figures showed just 30% of the electorate cast ballots, the lowest rate both of the period since Hong Kong’s 1997 handover to China and the British colonial era.

Britain, the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand rebuked the new system in a coordinated joint statement. “These changes eliminated any meaningful political opposition,” the five allies said. “We also remain gravely concerned at the wider chilling effect of the National Security Law and the growing restrictions on freedom of speech and freedom of assembly, which are being felt across civil society,” they added.

RUSSIA EXPELS TWO GERMAN ENVOYS

Russia on Monday expelled two German diplomats in response to a spat with Berlin over a German court’s ruling that Moscow had ordered the 2019 assassination of an ex-Chechen commander in a Berlin park.

“The German Ambassador was informed that two diplomatic employees of the German Embassy in Russia were declared “persona non grata’ as a symmetrical response,” Russia’s foreign ministry said in a statement.

The Ministry added that it had registered a “strong protest“ with the German envoy over Berlin’s expulsion of two Russian diplomats last week.