KEY COVID NOS. WORLDWIDE

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

               World    23,64,311            /             54,81,337            /             6,859     /             3,57,29,550               /             703.2

1             USA        5,42,856              /             8,53,358              /             1,568     /             1,58,00,620               /             2,555

2             UK          1,94,747              /             1,49,284              /             343        /             31,18,378               /             2,182

3             France   3,32,252              /             1,24,809              /             246        /             24,60,799               /             1,906

4             Spain     1,37,180              /             89,837   /             148        /             17,08,408            /               1,920

5             Italy       1,89,109              /             1,38,276              /             183        /             14,21,117               /             2,292

6             Russia    15,772   /             3,13,015              /             828        /             6,72,241              /               2,144

7             Germany              63,191   /             1,13,902              /             431        /             6,46,514               /             1,353

8             Netherlands        24,490   /             21,029   /             39           /             4,50,367              /               1,223

9             Turkey   66,467   /             83,075   /             143        /             4,43,619              /             969

10           Argentina            95,159   /             1,17,346              /             52           /             4,07,825               /             2,561

11           Mexico  15,184   /             2,99,711              /             130        /             3,90,294              /               2,288

12           Poland   17,196   /             98,666   /             632        /             3,88,690              /               2,611

13           Canada 39,447   /             30,524   /             68           /             3,60,396              /             798

14           Vietnam               17,017   /             33,475   /             230        /             3,48,200              /               339

15           Switzerland         15,375   /             12,389   /             11           /             3,47,827              /               1,416

16           Norway 8,385     /             1,349     /                            /             3,30,556              /             246

17           Greece  43,386   /             21,115   /             62           /             3,24,004              /               2,041

18           Australia              64,735   /             2,290     /             19           /             3,18,948              /               88

19           Belgium               18,630   /             28,407   /             22           /             3,09,131              /               2,435

20           Ireland  17,656   /             5,952     /             40           /             2,87,654              /               1,185

21           India      90,928   /             4,82,876              /             96           /             2,85,401              /               345

53           Philippines           10,775   /             51,662   /             58           /             39,974   /             462

93           Sri Lanka              550        /             15,065   /             10           /             13,002   /             699

96           Pakistan               898        /             28,950   /             5             /             12,213   /             127

99           Bangladesh         892        /             28,090   /             3             /             10,549   /             168

COVID: FRENCH UPROAR AS MACRON VOWS TO 'PISS OFF' UNVACCINATED

French President Emmanuel Macron has been accused of using divisive, vulgar language after he used a slang term to say he wanted to make life difficult for unvaccinated people.

"I really want to piss them off, and we'll carry on doing this - to the end," he told Le Parisien newspaper.

Three months ahead of a presidential election, opponents of Mr Macron said his words were unworthy of a president.

MPs halted debate on a law barring the unvaccinated from much of public life.

The session in the National Assembly was brought to a standstill for a second night running on Tuesday as opposition delegates complained about the president's language, with one leading figure describing it as "unworthy, irresponsible and premeditated".

The legislation is expected to be approved in a vote this week, but it has angered vaccine opponents and several French MPs have said they have received death threats over the issue.

DJOKOVIC'S VACCINE EXEMPTION ENTRY INTO AUSTRALIA DELAYED DUE TO VISA ISSUES

World Number 1 Novak Djokovic's entry into Australia on a vaccine exemption for this month's Grand Slam on Wednesday was delayed due to visa issues.

The 20-time grand slam winner arrived at Melbourne Airport on Wednesday evening local time, where authorities noticed a separate issue with his visa. A member of his team had applied for a sub-class of visa which does not allow medical exemptions for being unvaccinated.

The country's border force had sought clarification from the Victorian state government about his application but Acting Sports Minister Jaala Pulford confirmed that his government would not support his visa application to compete in the Australian Open.

"The Federal Government has asked if we will support Novak Djokovic's visa application to enter Australia. We will not be providing Novak Djokovic with individual visa application support to participate in the 2022 Australian Open Grand Slam," Pulford said in a tweet.

"We've always been clear on two points: visa approvals are a matter for the Federal Government, and medical exemptions are a matter for doctors," she added.

The star player was reportedly quizzed in a room in Melbourne's Tullamarine Airport. His current whereabouts and visa status remain unclear.

Earlier in the day, Australia Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that Djokovic will be sent back home if he can't provide 'sufficient' evidence to support his exemption from COVID-19 vaccination.

MANY COUNTRIES STILL NOT SEQUENCING OMICRON: WHO CHIEF SCIENTIST

Chief scientist of the World Health Organization Dr Soumya Swaminathan on Wednesday said many countries are still not sequencing Omicron while the variant of SARS-CoV-2 is becoming the dominant Covid variant worldwide. According to data, Omicron, the variant first identified in South Africa, has spread to 139 countries. Over 4.70 lakh cases and 108 deaths have been recorded across the world, with the United Kingdom leading the chart with maximum cases. Next are Denmark, the United States, Germany, Canada, Norway, Australia etc. Though there has been a sharp surge in the number of cases across countries, hospitalisations remained relatively lower as compared to earlier surges.

The mapping of the global share of Omicron cases, analysed by Global Health Strategies, shows there is no data available from countries in Africa and the middle-east regarding Omicron.

Omicron has already overtaken Delta in the US, UK. India is not among the top 10 countries in the number of overall Omicron cases, but the variant is causing rapid spread of the infection. In cities, Omicron is the dominant variant, experts have confirmed.

KAZAKHSTAN DECLARES STATE OF EMERGENCY NATIONWIDE

Kazakhstan on Wed-nesday declared a nationwide state of emergency after protests over a fuel price hike erupted into clashes and saw demonstrators storm government buildings.

Russian news agencies Interfax, TASS and RIA Novosti reported the state of emergency, quoting a statement shown on Kazakh state television. States of emergency had earlier been imposed in the epicentres of the rallies - financial capital Almaty, the Mangystau province, and capital Nur-Sultan.

Earlier in the day, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev vowed to take tough action to quell deadly protests that posed into the biggest challenge to the country’s leadership in decades. The demonstrations started over the weekend in western Kazakhstan over a jump in fuel prices but quickly spilled into broader discontent drawing thousands to the streets across the country.

In the former capital, Almaty, both city hall and the president’s residence were ablaze after protesters stormed the buildings on Wednesday, Interfax reported.

“I intend to act as harshly as possible,” Tokayev said in a national address, law-enforcement officers were killed in the line of duty, he said, blaming the protests on “financially motivated conspirators”.

PAK RULING PARTY TRIED TO CONCEAL FOREIGN FUNDING FROM POLL PANEL: REPORT

Islamabad: PM Imran Khan’s ruling Pakistan Tehreeki-Insaf party grossly underreported funds received from foreign nationals, firms, and also concealed its bank accounts, a media report said on Wednesday, quoting a damning report compiled by the Election Commission. The ruling party has under-reported an amount of PKR 312 million over a four-year period, between FY 2009-10 and FY 2012-13. The year-wise details reveal that an amount in excess of PKR 145 million was under-reported in FY 2012-13 alone, the Dawn newspaper reported.

According to the data provided to Scrutiny Committee of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) by the State Bank of Pakistan, the PTI had 26 bank accounts, Dawn reported. Between 2008 to 2013, the party had disclosed funds to the tune of PKR 1. 33 billion to the ECP, whereas a report by the SBP, the central bank of Pakistan, shows the actual amount to be PKR 1. 64 billion, the committee’s report said. The party also failed to disclose details of three banks in documentation provided to the ECP, it said. The report stated that around 1,414 companies in Pakistan, 47 foreign companies and 119 potential companies provided funds to Khan’s

PTI. It had also received $2. 3 million as funds from the US, but the committee couldn’t access the party’s US bank accounts, the report said. Of those to have contributed these funds include 4,755 Pakistanis, 41 non-Pakistanis and 230 foreign companies. Khan’s party also received funds from Dubai, UK, Europe, Denmark, Japan, Canada and Australia, the report said. But the committee could not get details into these transactions, it said.

I&B minister Fawad Chaudry termed the scrutiny committee’s report as ‘inaccurate’ and demanded an inquiry into the accounts of opposition parties PML-N and PPP. According to Dawn, the report was tabled as the ECP resumed hearing of a foreign funding case against PTI on Tuesday after nine months.

ROCKETS FIRED AT U.S. BASE IN EASTERN SYRIA

Pro-Iran militia fighters fired shells towards a U.S. base in eastern Syria’s Al-Omar oil field on Wednesday, causing damage but no casualties, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The development came one day after the U.S.-led coalition fighting the Islamic State in Syria said they had foiled a rocket attack on a U.S. base called “Green Village” in the eastern Deir Ezzor region.

Wednesday’s attack, also in Deir Ezzor, saw at least three shells land in Al-Omar, according to the Observatory, which relies on a network of sources inside Syria. One fell on a helicopter landing pad, while the two others hit an open area, the Observatory said.

The war monitor blamed the attack on pro-Iran militia groups that are active in the Deir Ezzor region which borders Iraq.

It said coalition forces retaliated by striking the source of the artillery fire outside the eastern town of Al-Mayadeen which is a hub for Tehran and its Syria proxies.

There were no immediate reports of casualties.

TALIBAN ORDER SHOPS TO BEHEAD MANNEQUINS

The Taliban have ordered shop owners in western Afghanistan to cut off the heads of mannequins, insisting the human figures violate Islamic law.

A video clip showing men sawing the plastic heads off women figures went viral on social media.

“We have ordered the shopkeepers to cut the heads off mannequins as this is against (Islamic) Sharia law,” Aziz Rahman, head of the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice in the city of Herat, said on Wednesday.

“If they just cover the head or hide the entire mannequin, the angel of Allah will not enter their shop or house and bless them,” he added, after some clothes vendors initially responded by covering the heads of mannequins with plastic bags or headscarves.

The Taliban have so far issued no national policy on mannequins or statues.

Under the former militants’ strict interpretation of Islamic law, depictions of the human figure are forbidden.

HONG KONG BARS FLIGHTS FROM INDIA, SEVEN OTHER COUNTRIES

Hong Kong on Wednesday barred flights from India and seven other nations for two weeks, part of a raft of new measures to tackle the spread of the Omicron variant.

While most of Hong Kong’s 114 reported Omicron cases have been imported, the Special Administrative Region (SAR) is currently battling its first local spread in many months.

Health authorities said on Wednesday, explaining the new restrictions, including a ban on dining in restaurants after 6 p.m. and the closure of gyms and bars, that they feared community transmission as they have not been able to entirely determine the routes of spread of the cases.

As part of the measures, travellers and flights from eight countries have been barred for two weeks. The countries are India, U.S., U.K., Australia, Canada, France, Pakistan and the Philippines. The new more transmissible variants have challenged the “zero COVID” policy in place in both Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland, which has been dealing with a recent spread of cases in several cities, most notably in Xian.

AIR NEW ZEALAND WORLD'S SAFEST AIRLINE FOR 2022

Air New Zealand has topped an annual list of the safest airlines in the world for 2022 as coronavirus disease (Covid-19) continue to dominate the conversation around air safety. AirlineRatings.com, an airline safety and product review website, announced its top 20 safest airlines in the world and top ten safest low-cost airlines for 2022 from the 385 airlines it monitors.

“Air New Zealand is a stand-out airline with a firm focus on safety and its customers and over the past 18 months, Covid-19 has brought another new dimension to the challenges the industry faces,” Airlineratings.com editor-in-chief Geoffrey Thomas said, as quoted by the Australia-based website.

“Air New Zealand has excelled across the broad safety spectrum never losing sight of the smallest detail while caring for its flight crews who have worked under significant stress,” Thomas added.

Qantas was at the top position in the safest airlines in the world last year but slipped to seventh due to an incident at Perth Airport in 2018. The portal said that the report on the serious incident was not issued till late 2020, due to which it was left out from the 2021 safety rankings.

The remaining list includes 2.Etihad Airways, 3.Qatar Airways, 4.Singapore Airlines, 5.TAP Air Portugal, 6.SAS, 7.Qantas, 8.Alaska Airlines, 9.EVA Air and 10.Virgin Australia/Atlantic.

Factors like incident records over the past two years, crash records over the past five years, results of audits conducted by the International Civil Aviation Organisation have been considered to decide the top 10 safest low-cost airlines.

N KOREA FIRES MISSILE AS SOUTH BREAKS GROUND FOR ‘PEACE’ RAIL

Seoul: North Korea fired what the US said was a ballistic missile on Wednesday, just hours before South Korean President Moon Jae-in attended a groundbreaking ceremony for a rail line he hopes will eventually connect the divided Korean peninsula. Nuclear-armed North Korea’s first test launch since October underscored leader Kim Jong-un’s New Year vow to bolster the military tocounter an unstable international situation amid stalled talks with South Korea and the US.

The US Indo-Pacific Command called it a ballistic missile launch and the US state department condemned it. “This launch is in violation of multiple UN Security Council Resolutions and poses a threat to the DPRK’s neighbours and the international community,” a state department spokesperson using the initials of North Korea’s official name. The launch took place at 8. 10am (2310 GMT) from an east coast inland location into the sea, South Korea’s joint chiefs of staff said. Japan’s defence minister said the suspected ballistic missile had flown an estimated 500km.

Hours later, Moon visited the South Korean east coast city of Goseong, near the border with North Korea, where he broke ground for a new rail line that he called “a stepping stone for peace and regional balance” on the Korean peninsula. Moon acknowledged the launch raised concerns of tensions, and called for North Korea to make sincere efforts for dialogue. “We should not give up the hope for dialogue in order to fundamentally overcome this situation,” he said. “If both Koreas work together, build trust, peace would be achieved one day. ”

TAIWAN PLEDGES TO INVEST IN LITHUANIA AMID CHINA PRESSURE

Vilnius (Lithuania): Taiwan is creating an investment fund and planning other measures to help Lithuania as it faces major economic pressure from China for allowing the island to open a representative office in the country, Taiwanese officials said on Wednesday. “The $200 million fund will be used for investments into the Lithuanian economy and help its business, primarily into semiconductors, laser technology, biotech and other key industries,” Eric Huang, representative of the Taiwanese mission to Lithuania, told reporters in Vilnius. Lithuania broke with diplomatic custom by agreeing that the Taiwanese office in Vilnius would bear the name Taiwan instead of Chinese Taipei, a term used by other countries to avoid offending Beijing. China considers Taiwan part of its territory with no right to diplomatic recognition. The office, a de facto embassy, opened in November, and Lithuania is planning to open its own trade office in Taiwan later this year. It has infuriated China, which withdrew its ambassador to Vilnius and expelled the Lithuanian ambassador to Beijing.