Omicron does not appear to cause more severe disease than previous COVID variants and is "highly unlikely" to fully dodge vaccine protections, a top World Health Organization (WHO) official told AFP Tuesday.Speaking to AFP, the WHO’s second-in-command, said that while a lot remained to be learned about the new, heavily mutated variant of COVID-19, preliminary data indicated it did not make people sicker than Delta and other strains."The preliminary data doesn't indicate th

Here are the latest developments in the coronavirus crisis:Omicron 'Almost Certainly' Not Worse Top United States (US) scientist Anthony Fauci tells AFP that while it will take weeks to judge the severity of the new COVID-19 variant Omicron, early indications suggest it is not worse than prior strains, and possibly milder.Stocks, Oil RallyGlobal stock markets rally on fading fears over dangers arising from the new variant.

The rush by Asia-Pacific countries to slam borders shut in response to the Omicron variant has raised a sobering question: What if harsh restrictions like travel bans never truly end?Scientists widely agree the coronavirus will keep mutating indefinitely, with new variants emerging periodically for the rest of our lives.For Asia-Pacific countries that have retreated into isolation despite high vaccine coverage, that raises the prospect of a never-ending cycle of economically and socially dama

Myanmar's ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi was jailed for two years on Monday after being found guilty of incitement against the military and breaching COVID rules - in a ruling that drew swift international condemnation.A special court initially sentenced the 76-year-old Nobel laureate to four years in prison, but she was partially "pardoned" hours later by the junta chief, who halved the sentence to two years.Suu Kyi has been detained since the generals staged a coup and ousted

Myanmar's military seized power on 1 February, ousting the civilian government and arresting its leader, Aung San Suu Kyi.More than 1,300 people have since been killed and thousands of others arrested during the violent suppression of mass protests against junta rule.Here is a look back at the 10 months since the military brought Myanmar's nascent democracy to a sudden end:Pre-Dawn RaidsSoldiers detain Suu Kyi and her top allies during pre-dawn raids on 1 February, in a coup that en

The novel coronavirus has killed at least 5,249,851 people since the outbreak emerged in China in December 2019, according to a tally from official sources compiled by AFP at 1100 GMT on Sunday. At least 264,784,370 cases of coronavirus have been registered. The vast majority have recovered, though some have continued to experience symptoms weeks or even months later. The figures are based on daily reports provided by health authorities in each country.

Early indications of the severity of the Omicron COVID-19 variant are "a bit encouraging," top United States (US) pandemic advisor Anthony Fauci said Sunday, while cautioning more information was still needed.

No one knows how effective vaccines will be in stopping people catching the newly discovered and fast-spreading Omicron variant of COVID-19 or how well they will protect against severe illness.Lab tests are under way to determine vaccine efficacy against Omicron with results expected within weeks. In the meantime, the Delta variant remains dominant and experts, governments and vaccine makers are urging people to take advantage of booster jabs where they are available.Delta has proved

The emergence of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus is the "ultimate evidence" of the danger of unequal vaccination rates around the world, the head of the Red Cross said on Friday.In an interview with AFP during a visit to Moscow, Francesco Rocca, the president of the International Federation of Red Cross (IFRC) and Red Crescent Societies, also raised concerns about the politicisation of migrants and for the plight of civilians in Afghanistan as winter approaches.Asked about th

The Omicron variant has been detected in 38 countries but no deaths have yet been reported, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday, as authorities worldwide rushed to stem the heavily mutated COVID-19 strain's spread amid warnings that it could damage the global economic recovery.The United States (US) and Australia became the latest countries to confirm locally transmitted cases of the variant, as Omicron infections pushed South Africa's total cases past three million.T