A sweet video of the former United States President Barak Obama's interaction with a little girl at a vaccination centre in the country will make your day.&nbsp;

Obama visited the vaccine site in Kimball Elementary School in southeast Washington with Dr Anthony Fauci, who is the White House Chief Medical Advisor.&nbsp;

ALSO READ | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/watch-police-nab-four-arab-lemon-smugglers-seize-consignment-worth-158-million-in-dubai-439578">Watch: Police nab four Arab ‘lemon’ smugglers, seize consignment worth $15.8 million in Dubai</a>

During the visit, Obama interacted with a girl and they discussed their fondness for a book named 'Green Eggs and Ham', which is written by Dr Seuss.

The fun conversation took place when Obama asked the girl: "Do you have any favourite book?" She replied: "Green Eggs and Ham." Obama then said, "That's one of my favourite too…That is a classic."

Watch the video here:

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I thought I knew Green Eggs and Ham better than most people, but at Kimball Elementary’s vaccination site earlier this month I finally met my match. <a href="https://t.co/4MI1BcIsPZ">pic.twitter.com/4MI1BcIsPZ</a>
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) <a href="https://twitter.com/BarackObama/status/1473745362112372744?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 22, 2021</a></blockquote>
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Obama posted the cute video on his official Twitter handle, he captioned it as: "I thought I knew Green Eggs and Ham better than most people, but at Kimball Elementary’s vaccination site earlier this month I finally met my match."

Since being uploaded, the video has garnered 858.3K views. After watching the wholesome video, social media users dropped in comments to praise the former President and his rapport with kids.&nbsp;

Recently, Obama shared his list of favourites from 2021. His list of favourite films include Steven Spielberg's 'West Side Story,' Rebecca Hall's 'Passing,' Jane Campion's 'The Power of the Dog,' Joel Coen's 'The Tragedy of MacBeth' and Mike Mills' 'C'mon, C'mon'. The list also includes 'Judas and the Black Messiah' and 'Pig'. &nbsp;

See the list here:

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A sweet video of the former United States President Barak Obama's interaction with a little girl at a vaccination centre in the country will make your day. Obama visited the vaccine site in Kimball Elementary School in southeast Washington with Dr Anthony Fauci, who is the White House Chief Medical Advisor.

A sweet video of the former United States President Barak Obama's interaction with a little girl at a vaccination centre in the country will make your day. Obama visited the vaccine site in Kimball Elementary School in southeast Washington with Dr Anthony Fauci, who is the White House Chief Medical Advisor. ALSO READ | Watch: Police nab four Arab ‘lemon’ smugglers, seize consignment worth $15.8 million in Dubai During the visit, Obama interacted with a girl and they discussed their fondness for a book named 'Green Eggs and Ham', which is written by Dr Seuss. The fun conversation took place when Obama asked the girl: "Do you have any favourite book?" She replied: "Green Eggs and Ham." Obama then said, "That's one of my favourite too…That is a classic." Watch the video here: I thought I knew Green Eggs and Ham better than most people, but at Kimball Elementary’s vaccination site earlier this month I finally met my match. pic.twitter.com/4MI1BcIsPZ — Barack Obama (@BarackObama) December 22, 2021 × Obama posted the cute video on his official Twitter handle, he captioned it as: "I thought I knew Green Eggs and Ham better than most people, but at Kimball Elementary’s vaccination site earlier this month I finally met my match." Since being uploaded, the video has garnered 858.3K views. After watching the wholesome video, social media users dropped in comments to praise the former President and his rapport with kids. Recently, Obama shared his list of favourites from 2021. His list of favourite films include Steven Spielberg's 'West Side Story,' Rebecca Hall's 'Passing,' Jane Campion's 'The Power of the Dog,' Joel Coen's 'The Tragedy of MacBeth' and Mike Mills' 'C'mon, C'mon'. The list also includes 'Judas and the Black Messiah' and 'Pig'. See the list here: View this post on Instagram A post shared by Barack Obama (@barackobama) ×

Watch: Former US President Barak Obama's super cute interaction with small girl about favourite book

It is easy to recall the 1980s as being a boom time for the United States economy — a time of gleaming excess that, among other things, powered Ronald Reagan to a landslide reelection in 1984.

But the decade didn’t start out quite so sunny. And understanding the history of how the economy went from bust to boom in the early 1980s offers a surprising model for optimism about how the U.S. economy could progress in the next couple of years.

All it would take is for the Federal Reserve to pull off a delicate economic pivot that is the mirror image of the one it managed four decades ago.

Now, high inflation and a seemingly never-ending pandemic are depressing Americans’ attitudes about the economy. By contrast, in December 1981 — when Reagan had been president for 11 months, just as President Joe Biden has now — conditions were by most measures substantially worse. The unemployment rate was 8.5% and would keep rising throughout 1982. Inflation was 8.9%, and indexes of consumer sentiment were abysmal.

In an issue of Time magazine published this month 40 years ago, if you flip past a cover story that ranks the performance of Reagan’s Cabinet and an advertisement pitching a Smith-Corona typewriter as a holiday gift for your child, you see just how bad the vibes were.

“Gathering Gloom for Workers,” goes the headline, reporting that “A spreading slump swells the long gray line of the unemployed.” The article said joblessness was so high in Detroit that community leaders “fear that they are sitting on a smoldering powder keg of urban unrest.”

If nothing else, this chronology is a reminder that conditions can change surprisingly quickly. By the time Reagan was reelected in 1984, the jobless rate was 7.2% and falling and inflation was down to 4.2%.

Some commentators have argued that Biden has the opportunity to be an inverse of Reagan politically (much of this commentary, it should be noted, came before Sen. Joe Manchin pulled his support from the president’s signature Build Back Better bill ). And there is of course no telling what the next three years will bring politically, regardless of what happens to the economy.

But in terms of the economic backdrop, it is important to understand the “why” of the Reagan economic reversal.

Those gloomy unemployment numbers in Reagan’s first two years were a consequence of aggressive tightening of monetary policy by Fed Chair Paul Volcker, who was aiming to end the high inflation of the 1970s.

Over the course of the previous decade, high inflation had come to seem inevitable. This led labor unions and individual workers to demand higher pay raises and made businesses willing to pay more and charge more for their products. This had settled into a vicious cycle, with deep social and political ramifications.

“Inflation wasn’t just an economic problem,” said Mike Konczal, director of macroeconomic analysis at the Roosevelt Institute. “It gave people the impression of a social and political breakdown, that the system was not working.”

Volcker wanted to break that psychology. He did it with steep interest rate increases that, in the service of inflation control, brought the worst downturn in five decades.

Across the government, including in the Reagan administration, there was a concerted focus on breaking inflation, even as the job market worsened. “What I find startling about this downturn is that so few politicians are calling for federal job training or the extension of unemployment benefits,” said Alan Greenspan, a former presidential adviser who would go on to succeed Volcker, in the 1981 Time article. “Five years ago, politicians would have been stumbling all over themselves to demand anti-recession spending.”

By late 1981, there were signs it was starting to work. That same article, for example, notes that Teamsters who had managed a 31.5% pay raise in 1979 promised to be “reasonable” in the next negotiations, and that employees at major airlines had agreed to a 10% wage reduction.

With this progress against inflation, Volcker was ready to relent and begin lowering interest rates. This enabled a speedy recovery from the recession, powering the Reagan boom and a period in which both unemployment and inflation were steadily falling.

As the Fed chair now, Jerome Powell has until recently faced the opposite problem.

For most of the 2010s, inflation was lower than the Fed aims for and the job market was persistently weak. And for the first nine months or so of the pandemic, too-low inflation and too few jobs appeared to be the predominant economic problem. Just one year ago, in December 2020, bond market prices implied that inflation would remain below the Fed’s 2% target for years to come, and the jobless rate was still 6.7%.

Powell and the Fed organized their strategy for monetary policy around building the Fed’s credibility that it would no longer allow a persistently too-low inflation and a too-weak job market. A new “flexible average inflation targeting” strategy introduced in 2020 was built on allowing inflation to sometimes overshoot 2%.

That, in turn, helps explain why the Fed has been slow to move toward tighter money this year, even as inflation soared and the job market recovered quickly. Only this month, after year-over-year inflation reached a whopping 6.8%, did Powell undertake a clear shift toward tighter money. He signaled the Fed would speed up the end of its bond-buying program and could begin raising interest rates in the first part of 2022.

Just as Volcker was willing to allow a recession to take hold to break the high-inflation cycle of the 1970s, Powell has, until recently, emphasized that an inflationary surge that started earlier this year was likely to be temporary and that the urgency of achieving full employment was paramount.

The Powell pivot to tighter money in 2021 is the equivalent of Volcker’s 1981 move: By then Volcker was ready to relent and, in effect, declare victory, cutting interest rates and setting the stage for the economy to recover. The signs that inflationary pressures were shifting downward was sufficiently compelling that the psychology had broken.

“It was a nasty, nasty fall, but Volcker stuck the landing to the point that many parts of the macroeconomic landscape could be changed and tilted toward prosperity and markets,” said Paul McCulley, an economist and senior fellow at Cornell Law School.

What would a full reverse Reagan economy look like over the next few years?

Over the course of 2022, inflation starts to fade. Consumers shift some of their spending back toward services and away from physical goods, corporate supply chain managers figure out how to adjust to whatever changes in demand prove permanent, and demand moderates as the Fed moves toward somewhat higher interest rates and Congress does not repeat its pandemic spending binge of the first half of 2021.

But, crucially, in the best-case scenario for Biden and the Democrats, the Fed doesn’t overdo it. Just as the Volcker Fed was able to achieve a simultaneous drop in unemployment and inflation in 1983 and 1984, the Powell Fed faces the delicate task of trying to bring down inflation while not acting so aggressively as to undermine further improvement in the job market.

The goal is to achieve something of a Goldilocks scenario for the economy by late 2022. In projections released this month, for example, the median Fed leader expected an unemployment rate of a mere 3.5% and 2.6% inflation in the final months of next year, with a strong labor market and gradually receding inflation continuing through 2024.

“If the Fed, through skill and fate and luck, gets this thing settled down in the next year or two, you can make a pretty strong case that the underlying progressive agenda, which is to deal with income and wealth inequality, could actually flourish,” said McCulley.

If that were to happen, it would be an economy in which the favorable aspects of the 2021 economy — workers empowered, wages rising, and so on — persist, while the high inflation that has overwhelmed those gains in the minds of many Americans fades.

It would be no easy task to achieve. History is littered with examples of the Fed raising interest rates to rein in inflation, only to cause a recession; indeed, it was a more common pattern than not in the decades immediately following World War II. In a pessimistic scenario, the inflationary forces that have taken hold will prove sufficiently profound that they won’t go away absent a recession.

But the experience of the 1980s shows that things can get better, and that the economic and political fortunes can change faster than it might seem in a gloomy December.

It is easy to recall the 1980s as being a boom time for the United States economy — a time of gleaming excess that, among other things, powered Ronald Reagan to a landslide reelection in 1984.

It is easy to recall the 1980s as being a boom time for the United States economy — a time of gleaming excess that, among other things, powered Ronald Reagan to a landslide reelection in 1984. But the decade didn’t start out quite so sunny. And understanding the history of how the economy went from bust to boom in the early 1980s offers a surprising model for optimism about how the U.S. economy could progress in the next couple of years. All it would take is for the Federal Reserve to pull off a delicate economic pivot that is the mirror image of the one it managed four decades ago. Now, high inflation and a seemingly never-ending pandemic are depressing Americans’ attitudes about the economy. By contrast, in December 1981 — when Reagan had been president for 11 months, just as President Joe Biden has now — conditions were by most measures substantially worse. The unemployment rate was 8.5% and would keep rising throughout 1982. Inflation was 8.9%, and indexes of consumer sentiment were abysmal. In an issue of Time magazine published this month 40 years ago, if you flip past a cover story that ranks the performance of Reagan’s Cabinet and an advertisement pitching a Smith-Corona typewriter as a holiday gift for your child, you see just how bad the vibes were. “Gathering Gloom for Workers,” goes the headline, reporting that “A spreading slump swells the long gray line of the unemployed.” The article said joblessness was so high in Detroit that community leaders “fear that they are sitting on a smoldering powder keg of urban unrest.” If nothing else, this chronology is a reminder that conditions can change surprisingly quickly. By the time Reagan was reelected in 1984, the jobless rate was 7.2% and falling and inflation was down to 4.2%. Some commentators have argued that Biden has the opportunity to be an inverse of Reagan politically (much of this commentary, it should be noted, came before Sen. Joe Manchin pulled his support from the president’s signature Build Back Better bill ). And there is of course no telling what the next three years will bring politically, regardless of what happens to the economy. But in terms of the economic backdrop, it is important to understand the “why” of the Reagan economic reversal. Those gloomy unemployment numbers in Reagan’s first two years were a consequence of aggressive tightening of monetary policy by Fed Chair Paul Volcker, who was aiming to end the high inflation of the 1970s. Over the course of the previous decade, high inflation had come to seem inevitable. This led labor unions and individual workers to demand higher pay raises and made businesses willing to pay more and charge more for their products. This had settled into a vicious cycle, with deep social and political ramifications. “Inflation wasn’t just an economic problem,” said Mike Konczal, director of macroeconomic analysis at the Roosevelt Institute. “It gave people the impression of a social and political breakdown, that the system was not working.” Volcker wanted to break that psychology. He did it with steep interest rate increases that, in the service of inflation control, brought the worst downturn in five decades. Across the government, including in the Reagan administration, there was a concerted focus on breaking inflation, even as the job market worsened. “What I find startling about this downturn is that so few politicians are calling for federal job training or the extension of unemployment benefits,” said Alan Greenspan, a former presidential adviser who would go on to succeed Volcker, in the 1981 Time article. “Five years ago, politicians would have been stumbling all over themselves to demand anti-recession spending.” By late 1981, there were signs it was starting to work. That same article, for example, notes that Teamsters who had managed a 31.5% pay raise in 1979 promised to be “reasonable” in the next negotiations, and that employees at major airlines had agreed to a 10% wage reduction. With this progress against inflation, Volcker was ready to relent and begin lowering interest rates. This enabled a speedy recovery from the recession, powering the Reagan boom and a period in which both unemployment and inflation were steadily falling. As the Fed chair now, Jerome Powell has until recently faced the opposite problem. For most of the 2010s, inflation was lower than the Fed aims for and the job market was persistently weak. And for the first nine months or so of the pandemic, too-low inflation and too few jobs appeared to be the predominant economic problem. Just one year ago, in December 2020, bond market prices implied that inflation would remain below the Fed’s 2% target for years to come, and the jobless rate was still 6.7%. Powell and the Fed organized their strategy for monetary policy around building the Fed’s credibility that it would no longer allow a persistently too-low inflation and a too-weak job market. A new “flexible average inflation targeting” strategy introduced in 2020 was built on allowing inflation to sometimes overshoot 2%. That, in turn, helps explain why the Fed has been slow to move toward tighter money this year, even as inflation soared and the job market recovered quickly. Only this month, after year-over-year inflation reached a whopping 6.8%, did Powell undertake a clear shift toward tighter money. He signaled the Fed would speed up the end of its bond-buying program and could begin raising interest rates in the first part of 2022. Just as Volcker was willing to allow a recession to take hold to break the high-inflation cycle of the 1970s, Powell has, until recently, emphasized that an inflationary surge that started earlier this year was likely to be temporary and that the urgency of achieving full employment was paramount. The Powell pivot to tighter money in 2021 is the equivalent of Volcker’s 1981 move: By then Volcker was ready to relent and, in effect, declare victory, cutting interest rates and setting the stage for the economy to recover. The signs that inflationary pressures were shifting downward was sufficiently compelling that the psychology had broken. “It was a nasty, nasty fall, but Volcker stuck the landing to the point that many parts of the macroeconomic landscape could be changed and tilted toward prosperity and markets,” said Paul McCulley, an economist and senior fellow at Cornell Law School. What would a full reverse Reagan economy look like over the next few years? Over the course of 2022, inflation starts to fade. Consumers shift some of their spending back toward services and away from physical goods, corporate supply chain managers figure out how to adjust to whatever changes in demand prove permanent, and demand moderates as the Fed moves toward somewhat higher interest rates and Congress does not repeat its pandemic spending binge of the first half of 2021. But, crucially, in the best-case scenario for Biden and the Democrats, the Fed doesn’t overdo it. Just as the Volcker Fed was able to achieve a simultaneous drop in unemployment and inflation in 1983 and 1984, the Powell Fed faces the delicate task of trying to bring down inflation while not acting so aggressively as to undermine further improvement in the job market. The goal is to achieve something of a Goldilocks scenario for the economy by late 2022. In projections released this month, for example, the median Fed leader expected an unemployment rate of a mere 3.5% and 2.6% inflation in the final months of next year, with a strong labor market and gradually receding inflation continuing through 2024. “If the Fed, through skill and fate and luck, gets this thing settled down in the next year or two, you can make a pretty strong case that the underlying progressive agenda, which is to deal with income and wealth inequality, could actually flourish,” said McCulley. If that were to happen, it would be an economy in which the favorable aspects of the 2021 economy — workers empowered, wages rising, and so on — persist, while the high inflation that has overwhelmed those gains in the minds of many Americans fades. It would be no easy task to achieve. History is littered with examples of the Fed raising interest rates to rein in inflation, only to cause a recession; indeed, it was a more common pattern than not in the decades immediately following World War II. In a pessimistic scenario, the inflationary forces that have taken hold will prove sufficiently profound that they won’t go away absent a recession. But the experience of the 1980s shows that things can get better, and that the economic and political fortunes can change faster than it might seem in a gloomy December.

How the 2020s economy could resemble the 1980s

The Biden administration appointed a US diplomat of Indian origin Uzra Zeya as a Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues, a move that has naturally drawn a stern warning from China.

Biden administration appoints Uzra Zeya ​as Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues

Verónica Cruz spent years defying the law in Mexico, helping thousands of women get abortions. Now that Mexico has declared that abortion is no longer a crime, Cruz and activists like her are planning to bring their mission to a country moving in the opposite direction: the United States.

Abortion restrictions have been multiplying across the United States for years, including just over Mexico’s border in Texas. Now the Supreme Court is considering a case that could diminish or completely overrule Roe v. Wade, the 1973 ruling that established a constitutional right to abortion. That would likely set off new restrictions in at least 20 states.

But in much of Latin America, where access to abortion has long been severely limited, highly organized feminist groups have distributed abortion-inducing drugs for years, making it harder for governments to enforce bans on the procedure.

Cruz and other activists are planning to help shuttle Texans and other Americans seeking abortions into Mexico, and to build networks to ferry the abortion pills north of the border or send them by mail — something they’ve already started doing and now plan to expand.

“We aren’t afraid,” Cruz said. “We are willing to face criminalization, because women’s lives matter more than their law.”

The strategy is highly contentious, because it involves foreign activists working directly to undermine U.S. law. It also illustrates what activists on both sides of the abortion debate see as a new frontier of the battle: the government’s ability to control abortion when women can perform them in the privacy of their homes, with pills that are becoming more widely available than ever.

On Thursday, the Food and Drug Administration said that abortion drugs can be delivered by mail, making permanent a measure enacted because of the pandemic and broadening access for women who find it difficult to travel to a provider to end their pregnancies.

But several states ban the delivery of these pills by mail, or still require that the drugs be dispensed by providers in person, on top of other restrictions on their use.

In Texas, a new law bars doctors from providing pills to induce abortions after seven weeks of pregnancy, and adds penalties of jail time and a fine of up to $10,000 for anyone who mails or delivers the medication.

Legal experts say such laws may be challenged after the FDA decision, but for now, these state measures could discourage U.S. doctors from sending pills to parts of the country with restrictive regulations.

“For the first time, Texas does have a way to protect women, through our criminal law, from people bringing dangerous abortion pills,” said Joe Pojman, executive director of the Texas Alliance for Life, an organization that helped craft the measure. “We’ll have to wait to see how well it is enforced in the coming months.”

Anti-abortion groups acknowledge that criminally punishing activists who distribute the pills, especially if they are from Mexico, may prove difficult. They would have to be caught and arrested in Texas, or extradited, experts say.

“This is a really terrible, lawless attack on life,” John Seago, the legislative director for Texas Right to Life, said of the Mexican activists’ plan to help women in Texas get abortions, adding that such efforts would “make it absolutely more difficult to do it, to enforce these laws.”

Dr. Rebecca Gomperts, the leader of Aid Access, an Austria-based group that provides abortion pills to women across the world, confirmed she has been prescribing the medication to women in Texas — who then receive the drugs by mail from a pharmacy in India — even after the state’s law went into effect this month.

The drug misoprostol, originally created to treat stomach ulcers, but which also induces abortions, has upended access to the procedure around the globe by giving women a safe, effective and often cheap method of ending their pregnancies in private.

Taking the drug, either alone or in combination with another called mifepristone, causes what is called a “medication abortion.”

Across Latin America, networks of activists who work on the margins of the legal system deliver the pills to women and walk them through using the medication to end pregnancies.

The groups, often in coordination with allies in the medical community, use a model now known as “accompaniment,” in which they disseminate pills and also provide medical counseling and psychological support to women in a deeply Catholic region where abortions are often shunned and outlawed.

The arrival of misoprostol and mifepristone was “revolutionary,” said Giselle Carino, CEO of Fòs Feminista, an international alliance of health groups. “But it wouldn’t have been so effective in saving women’s lives without the feminist networks of accompaniment and health professionals willing to engage in civil disobedience.”

Cruz, the Mexican activist, helped found an organization called Las Libres, which means “the free ones,” in 2000. She began knocking on gynecologists’ doors in her conservative state of Guanajuato, asking them to provide free abortions to rape victims.

A few years later, one of the doctors she had been working with came back from a conference with some news: There was a pill that could safely cause abortions at home. Misoprostol can be obtained without a prescription in Mexico, and the World Health Organization has a protocol for administering it to perform abortions in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.

“That’s when I knew we had a solution,” Cruz said. “We didn’t need doctors anymore.”

At the time, the pills were prohibitively expensive. So, Cruz said, she came up with a strategy: A woman who could afford to buy the medication would keep the pills left over after her procedure, then pass the box on to the next woman who needed it, while coaching her through the process.

“And that’s how the first networks were formed, organically,” Cruz said. The goal, she says, was never to just provide abortions. It was to turn every Mexican woman into someone who could help someone else get an abortion.

The handful of employees who work with Las Libres have boxes of the drugs, which they buy or receive as donations, strewn everywhere — in their cars, their homes, even their pockets. Each woman who reaches out to the group is assigned a “companion” to bring her pills and then follow her, through video calls, phone calls or WhatsApp messages, through every step of the abortion.

A recent study of more than 900 people in Nigeria and Argentina, published in The Lancet medical journal, found that accompanying patients as they manage their own abortions is “highly effective and safe.” It led to complete abortions — not requiring follow-up surgical intervention to finish — for 97% of those surveyed. For women living under strict abortion bans, it is also difficult to detect.

Erika Sandoval, 23, said she had an abortion at home this month in Mexico after texting an activist with Cruz’s group. She got the medication from the activist’s brother, followed instructions delivered in a voice memo and finished the process two days later.

“All this from a voice memo,” she said two days after she took her last pill.

Sofía, also 23, said she took the medicine in the house she shares with her parents in Mexico, closing the door of her room while she texted with a woman from Cruz’s group. When she finished, she said, she told her parents she had been feeling ill after eating tacos.

“They made me chicken soup,” she said. Her parents never realized what had happened, and Sofía asked to only be identified by her first name so they wouldn’t find out.

In September, days after Texas began enacting a new ban on abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, Mexico’s Supreme Court ruled that abortion could no longer be treated as a crime. Cruz and her colleagues soon hatched a plan to work with Texas reproductive groups on making it easier for women in the state to end their pregnancies at home.

Dozens of activists are meeting in January to work out the strategy. One of them, Crystal P. Lira, said she has already brought pills from Tijuana to California, and then shipped them to Georgia, Indiana, Massachusetts and Texas.

Cruz said the new Texas laws would not stop them from crossing the border with abortion drugs — even if it means risking jail time.

“If that’s the only way that people will become conscious that what the government is doing is a major violation of human rights,” she said, “then yes.”

Verónica Cruz spent years defying the law in Mexico, helping thousands of women get abortions. Now that Mexico has declared that abortion is no longer a crime, Cruz and activists like her are planning to bring their mission to a country moving in the opposite direction: the United States.

Verónica Cruz spent years defying the law in Mexico, helping thousands of women get abortions. Now that Mexico has declared that abortion is no longer a crime, Cruz and activists like her are planning to bring their mission to a country moving in the opposite direction: the United States. Abortion restrictions have been multiplying across the United States for years, including just over Mexico’s border in Texas. Now the Supreme Court is considering a case that could diminish or completely overrule Roe v. Wade, the 1973 ruling that established a constitutional right to abortion. That would likely set off new restrictions in at least 20 states. But in much of Latin America, where access to abortion has long been severely limited, highly organized feminist groups have distributed abortion-inducing drugs for years, making it harder for governments to enforce bans on the procedure. Cruz and other activists are planning to help shuttle Texans and other Americans seeking abortions into Mexico, and to build networks to ferry the abortion pills north of the border or send them by mail — something they’ve already started doing and now plan to expand. “We aren’t afraid,” Cruz said. “We are willing to face criminalization, because women’s lives matter more than their law.” The strategy is highly contentious, because it involves foreign activists working directly to undermine U.S. law. It also illustrates what activists on both sides of the abortion debate see as a new frontier of the battle: the government’s ability to control abortion when women can perform them in the privacy of their homes, with pills that are becoming more widely available than ever. On Thursday, the Food and Drug Administration said that abortion drugs can be delivered by mail, making permanent a measure enacted because of the pandemic and broadening access for women who find it difficult to travel to a provider to end their pregnancies. But several states ban the delivery of these pills by mail, or still require that the drugs be dispensed by providers in person, on top of other restrictions on their use. In Texas, a new law bars doctors from providing pills to induce abortions after seven weeks of pregnancy, and adds penalties of jail time and a fine of up to $10,000 for anyone who mails or delivers the medication. Legal experts say such laws may be challenged after the FDA decision, but for now, these state measures could discourage U.S. doctors from sending pills to parts of the country with restrictive regulations. “For the first time, Texas does have a way to protect women, through our criminal law, from people bringing dangerous abortion pills,” said Joe Pojman, executive director of the Texas Alliance for Life, an organization that helped craft the measure. “We’ll have to wait to see how well it is enforced in the coming months.” Anti-abortion groups acknowledge that criminally punishing activists who distribute the pills, especially if they are from Mexico, may prove difficult. They would have to be caught and arrested in Texas, or extradited, experts say. “This is a really terrible, lawless attack on life,” John Seago, the legislative director for Texas Right to Life, said of the Mexican activists’ plan to help women in Texas get abortions, adding that such efforts would “make it absolutely more difficult to do it, to enforce these laws.” Dr. Rebecca Gomperts, the leader of Aid Access, an Austria-based group that provides abortion pills to women across the world, confirmed she has been prescribing the medication to women in Texas — who then receive the drugs by mail from a pharmacy in India — even after the state’s law went into effect this month. The drug misoprostol, originally created to treat stomach ulcers, but which also induces abortions, has upended access to the procedure around the globe by giving women a safe, effective and often cheap method of ending their pregnancies in private. Taking the drug, either alone or in combination with another called mifepristone, causes what is called a “medication abortion.” Across Latin America, networks of activists who work on the margins of the legal system deliver the pills to women and walk them through using the medication to end pregnancies. The groups, often in coordination with allies in the medical community, use a model now known as “accompaniment,” in which they disseminate pills and also provide medical counseling and psychological support to women in a deeply Catholic region where abortions are often shunned and outlawed. The arrival of misoprostol and mifepristone was “revolutionary,” said Giselle Carino, CEO of Fòs Feminista, an international alliance of health groups. “But it wouldn’t have been so effective in saving women’s lives without the feminist networks of accompaniment and health professionals willing to engage in civil disobedience.” Cruz, the Mexican activist, helped found an organization called Las Libres, which means “the free ones,” in 2000. She began knocking on gynecologists’ doors in her conservative state of Guanajuato, asking them to provide free abortions to rape victims. A few years later, one of the doctors she had been working with came back from a conference with some news: There was a pill that could safely cause abortions at home. Misoprostol can be obtained without a prescription in Mexico, and the World Health Organization has a protocol for administering it to perform abortions in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. “That’s when I knew we had a solution,” Cruz said. “We didn’t need doctors anymore.” At the time, the pills were prohibitively expensive. So, Cruz said, she came up with a strategy: A woman who could afford to buy the medication would keep the pills left over after her procedure, then pass the box on to the next woman who needed it, while coaching her through the process. “And that’s how the first networks were formed, organically,” Cruz said. The goal, she says, was never to just provide abortions. It was to turn every Mexican woman into someone who could help someone else get an abortion. The handful of employees who work with Las Libres have boxes of the drugs, which they buy or receive as donations, strewn everywhere — in their cars, their homes, even their pockets. Each woman who reaches out to the group is assigned a “companion” to bring her pills and then follow her, through video calls, phone calls or WhatsApp messages, through every step of the abortion. A recent study of more than 900 people in Nigeria and Argentina, published in The Lancet medical journal, found that accompanying patients as they manage their own abortions is “highly effective and safe.” It led to complete abortions — not requiring follow-up surgical intervention to finish — for 97% of those surveyed. For women living under strict abortion bans, it is also difficult to detect. Erika Sandoval, 23, said she had an abortion at home this month in Mexico after texting an activist with Cruz’s group. She got the medication from the activist’s brother, followed instructions delivered in a voice memo and finished the process two days later. “All this from a voice memo,” she said two days after she took her last pill. Sofía, also 23, said she took the medicine in the house she shares with her parents in Mexico, closing the door of her room while she texted with a woman from Cruz’s group. When she finished, she said, she told her parents she had been feeling ill after eating tacos. “They made me chicken soup,” she said. Her parents never realized what had happened, and Sofía asked to only be identified by her first name so they wouldn’t find out. In September, days after Texas began enacting a new ban on abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, Mexico’s Supreme Court ruled that abortion could no longer be treated as a crime. Cruz and her colleagues soon hatched a plan to work with Texas reproductive groups on making it easier for women in the state to end their pregnancies at home. Dozens of activists are meeting in January to work out the strategy. One of them, Crystal P. Lira, said she has already brought pills from Tijuana to California, and then shipped them to Georgia, Indiana, Massachusetts and Texas. Cruz said the new Texas laws would not stop them from crossing the border with abortion drugs — even if it means risking jail time. “If that’s the only way that people will become conscious that what the government is doing is a major violation of human rights,” she said, “then yes.”

A plan forms in Mexico: Help Americans get abortions

SenseTime, a Chinese artificial intelligence start-up, has revived its initial public offering, proceeding with Hong Kong listing on Monday (December 20).&nbsp;

The decision comes a week after it was blacklisted by the United States over accusations of racial profiling via its facial recognition technology. The implication is that the company's technology helped identify or do suveillence of Uyghur Muslims, thereby assisting China's &nbsp;alleged human rights abuses and genocide in the Xinjiang region.&nbsp;

The company has filed a revised listing with the Hong Kong stock exchange on Monday.&nbsp;The trading is expected to start on December 30.&nbsp;

"Due to the dynamic and evolving nature of the relevant US regulations, we have required to exclude US investors," the company wrote.

Bloomberg News reported that SenseTime had secured about $512 million from nine cornerstone investors, including state-backed Mixed-Ownership Reform Fund and Shanghai Xuhui Capital Investment Company.

The company is still planning to hit the pre-blacklisting $767 million target with 1.5 billion shares at HK$3.85 to HK$3.99 per share.

Why did the US blacklist SenseTime?&nbsp;

US accuses SenseTime of being part of China's "military-industrial complex" that provides technology for mass surveillance in Xinjiang.&nbsp;

It says SenseTime has developed and deployed facial recognition software that can determine a person's ethnicity, including whether someone looks Uyghur.

SenseTime refuted the blacklisting, saying that the accusations were unfounded and emphasised that the company was "caught in the middle of geopolitical tension".

SenseTime, a Chinese artificial intelligence start-up, has revived its initial public offering, proceeding with Hong Kong listing on Monday (December 20). The decision comes a week after it was blacklisted by the United States over accusations of racial profiling via its facial recognition technology.

SenseTime, a Chinese artificial intelligence start-up, has revived its initial public offering, proceeding with Hong Kong listing on Monday (December 20). The decision comes a week after it was blacklisted by the United States over accusations of racial profiling via its facial recognition technology. The implication is that the company's technology helped identify or do suveillence of Uyghur Muslims, thereby assisting China's alleged human rights abuses and genocide in the Xinjiang region. The company has filed a revised listing with the Hong Kong stock exchange on Monday. The trading is expected to start on December 30. "Due to the dynamic and evolving nature of the relevant US regulations, we have required to exclude US investors," the company wrote. Bloomberg News reported that SenseTime had secured about $512 million from nine cornerstone investors, including state-backed Mixed-Ownership Reform Fund and Shanghai Xuhui Capital Investment Company. The company is still planning to hit the pre-blacklisting $767 million target with 1.5 billion shares at HK$3.85 to HK$3.99 per share. Why did the US blacklist SenseTime? US accuses SenseTime of being part of China's "military-industrial complex" that provides technology for mass surveillance in Xinjiang. It says SenseTime has developed and deployed facial recognition software that can determine a person's ethnicity, including whether someone looks Uyghur. SenseTime refuted the blacklisting, saying that the accusations were unfounded and emphasised that the company was "caught in the middle of geopolitical tension".

China AI firm whose facial recognition tech helps in racial profiling relists IPO in HK after US crackdown

Barbara F Walter, who is a political science professor at the University of California at San Diego, said that the United States is closer to "civil war than any of us would like to believe".&nbsp;

Walter's remark appeared to be quite alarming for a democratic country that recently hosted the 'Summit of Democracy' with an aim to strengthen democracy and defend against authoritarianism globally.&nbsp;

Is American democracy in crisis?

Walter, who serves on a CIA advisory panel called the Political Instability Task Force, has given an analytical opinion of the US politics&nbsp;in a book, "How Civil Wars Start," which will be out in January.&nbsp;

However, a report has been published by The Washington Post, detailing what Walter has assessed about the country's political situation and how it might pan out in the near future.&nbsp;

ALSO READ | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/white-house-reacts-after-joe-manchin-says-he-wont-vote-for-joe-bidens-build-back-better-bill-438390">White House reacts after Joe Manchin says he won't vote for Joe Biden's Build Back Better bill</a>

The Post mentioned that Walter has studied conflicts in Syria, Lebanon, Northern Ireland, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Rwanda, Angola, Nicaragua during her career.&nbsp;

It is understood that the Political Instability Task Force monitors countries around the world and speculates over a possibility of political instability.&nbsp;

"We are closer to civil war than any of us would like to believe. No one wants to believe that their beloved democracy is in decline, or headed toward war," Walter wrote in the to-be-published book, as quoted by The Washington Post.&nbsp;

Weighing in on the political situation of America, Walter said that "if you were an analyst in a foreign country looking at events in America — the same way you'd look at events in Ukraine or the Ivory Coast or Venezuela — you would go down a checklist, assessing each of the conditions that make civil war likely."

"And what you would find is that the United States, a democracy founded more than two centuries ago, has entered very dangerous territory," she added.&nbsp;

ALSO READ | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/in-memo-us-air-force-gives-green-signal-to-gender-pronouns-use-for-internal-communication-438165">In memo, US Air Force gives green signal to gender pronouns’ use for internal communication</a>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
The CIA actually has a Task Force designed to try to predict where and when political instability and conflict is likely to break out around the world. It's just not legally allowed to look at the U.S. That means we are blind to the risk factors that are rapidly emerging here. <a href="https://t.co/86UMVwhi3C">pic.twitter.com/86UMVwhi3C</a>
— Barbara F Walter (@bfwalter) <a href="https://twitter.com/bfwalter/status/1463667263832211457?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 25, 2021</a></blockquote>
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We know why democracies decline and ethnic factions emerge. We also know it can be driven by extremists with their own political agendas. Whether these extremists succeed depends on whether we, the American people, challenge them or not. <a href="https://t.co/L9TmIk6pGC">https://t.co/L9TmIk6pGC</a> <a href="https://t.co/Y0qn1v5Jn8">pic.twitter.com/Y0qn1v5Jn8</a>
— Barbara F Walter (@bfwalter) <a href="https://twitter.com/bfwalter/status/1470823914951655425?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 14, 2021</a></blockquote>
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If we talk about US politics, the past two-three years have been topsy-turvy — a phase when the administration also changed as Joe Biden was sworn in as 46th US president.&nbsp;

The election was chaotic as former President Donald Trump multiple times claimed that there were some discrepancies in the counting of votes.&nbsp;

On January 6, the deadly attack on the US Capitol also turned out to be a black chapter in the political history of the US.&nbsp;

As mentioned by Walter, the US is now an "anocracy," somewhere between a democracy and an autocratic state.&nbsp;

Barbara F Walter, who is a political science professor at the University of California at San Diego, said that the United States is closer to "civil war than any of us would like to believe".

Barbara F Walter, who is a political science professor at the University of California at San Diego, said that the United States is closer to "civil war than any of us would like to believe". Walter's remark appeared to be quite alarming for a democratic country that recently hosted the 'Summit of Democracy' with an aim to strengthen democracy and defend against authoritarianism globally. Is American democracy in crisis? Walter, who serves on a CIA advisory panel called the Political Instability Task Force, has given an analytical opinion of the US politics in a book, "How Civil Wars Start," which will be out in January. However, a report has been published by The Washington Post, detailing what Walter has assessed about the country's political situation and how it might pan out in the near future. ALSO READ | White House reacts after Joe Manchin says he won't vote for Joe Biden's Build Back Better bill The Post mentioned that Walter has studied conflicts in Syria, Lebanon, Northern Ireland, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Rwanda, Angola, Nicaragua during her career. It is understood that the Political Instability Task Force monitors countries around the world and speculates over a possibility of political instability. "We are closer to civil war than any of us would like to believe. No one wants to believe that their beloved democracy is in decline, or headed toward war," Walter wrote in the to-be-published book, as quoted by The Washington Post. Weighing in on the political situation of America, Walter said that "if you were an analyst in a foreign country looking at events in America — the same way you'd look at events in Ukraine or the Ivory Coast or Venezuela — you would go down a checklist, assessing each of the conditions that make civil war likely." "And what you would find is that the United States, a democracy founded more than two centuries ago, has entered very dangerous territory," she added. ALSO READ | In memo, US Air Force gives green signal to gender pronouns’ use for internal communication The CIA actually has a Task Force designed to try to predict where and when political instability and conflict is likely to break out around the world. It's just not legally allowed to look at the U.S. That means we are blind to the risk factors that are rapidly emerging here. pic.twitter.com/86UMVwhi3C — Barbara F Walter (@bfwalter) November 25, 2021 × We know why democracies decline and ethnic factions emerge. We also know it can be driven by extremists with their own political agendas. Whether these extremists succeed depends on whether we, the American people, challenge them or not. https://t.co/L9TmIk6pGC pic.twitter.com/Y0qn1v5Jn8 — Barbara F Walter (@bfwalter) December 14, 2021 × If we talk about US politics, the past two-three years have been topsy-turvy — a phase when the administration also changed as Joe Biden was sworn in as 46th US president. The election was chaotic as former President Donald Trump multiple times claimed that there were some discrepancies in the counting of votes. On January 6, the deadly attack on the US Capitol also turned out to be a black chapter in the political history of the US. As mentioned by Walter, the US is now an "anocracy," somewhere between a democracy and an autocratic state.

Is United States on the cusp of a civil war? Member of CIA panel thinks so

The Omicron variant was first reported in South Africa in November. The covid variant Omicron has been identified in dozens of countries and now is the most dominant strain in the United States.

Covid-19 Latest News | 73%  Omicron infections in United States last week

Russia on Monday expelled two German diplomats in a tit-for-tat move,&nbsp;Taiwan has slammed China over Foreign Minister Wang Yi's remark and the World Economic Forum (WEF) said that it "will defer its annual meeting in Davos... in the light of continued uncertainty over the Omicron" variant of coronavirus. Here are top news stories from across the world. Click on the links to read more.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/berlin-park-murder-now-russia-expels-german-diplomats-438523">Berlin park murder: Now, Russia expels German diplomats</a> 
Russia on Monday expelled two German diplomats after Berlin ordered two Russian&nbsp;diplomats&nbsp;to leave the country over the German court verdict last week which said Russian authorities were involved in the assassination of an ex-Chechen commander in a Berlin park two years ago.

<img alt="Russia" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="a043acea-4a2d-4d77-a8ac-1f270b7764f1" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Russia%20%285%29.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/neither-a-wanderer-nor-a-chess-piece-taiwan-slams-china-over-wang-yis-remark-438450">'Neither a wanderer nor a chess piece': Taiwan slams China over Wang Yi's remark</a> 
Taiwan has slammed China after Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Monday (December 20) said that Taiwan is a "wanderer" who will eventually "return home". Re-emphasising on the unification of China, the country's top diplomat also said that Taiwan "should not be used as a pawn".&nbsp;

<img alt="Wang Yi" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="0b9e2bb1-4ee4-4f7b-9b22-dc62dd463f03" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Wang%20Yi.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/iran-witnesses-rare-anti-government-protest-after-execution-of-kurdish-prisoner-438428">Iran witnesses rare anti-government protest after execution of Kurdish prisoner</a> 
Iran witnessed a rare anti-government protest and sloganeering after authorities executed a Kurdish man. The crowd gathered in the hometown of Heidar Ghorbani, the executed man and raised anti-government slogans.

<img alt="Iran" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="049dbd73-8dde-457e-96b9-9c1826742a74" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Iran_2.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/watch-pakistan-pm-imran-khan-faces-online-flak-for-defending-talibans-mistreatment-of-women-438358">Watch | Pakistan PM Imran Khan faces online flak for defending Taliban's mistreatment of women</a> 
Imran Khan, the Pakistani Prime Minister, has done it again, as he has been doing for several years: Supporting the Taliban and their actions while rationalising all forms of discrimination, especially against women.

<img alt="Imran Khan" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="522781f0-ae18-4563-a2b2-a82321030f8d" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Imran%20Khan.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/chinas-northwest-region-hit-with-hemorrhagic-fever-438362">China's northwest region hit with hemorrhagic fever</a> 
According to China's state-run Global Times, the country's northwest Shaanxi province has witnessed several cases of hemorrhagic fever. The Chinese newspaper said it is a "natural epidemic disease with high fatality rate". However, there is no confirmation on the exact number of fatalities.

<img alt="China" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="8dac0a98-402f-435a-9d80-20267a2f27d0" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/China%20%282%29.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/need-to-also-move-away-from-fear-australian-pm-wants-sensible-approach-to-fight-virus-438508">'Need to also move away from fear': Australian PM wants 'sensible' approach to fight virus</a> 
Amid new coronavirus cases, New South Wales leader Dominic Perrottet asserted that people "need to also move away from fear". "There will always be new variants of this virus," Dominic Perrottet said. New South Wales has been hit hard due to the virus even as the state recorded 2,501 new coronavirus cases on Monday. On Sunday, the state had recorded 2,566 new COVID-19 cases.

<img alt="New South Wales" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="a180cbb8-6d20-4bf1-97da-ed59bb829e0d" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/New%20South%20Wales.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/davos-meeting-deferred-over-omicron-uncertainty-world-economic-forum-438480">Davos meeting deferred over Omicron uncertainty: World Economic Forum</a> 
The World Economic Forum (WEF) said Monday it "will defer its annual meeting in Davos... in the light of continued uncertainty over the Omicron" variant of coronavirus. The high-powered meeting scheduled for January 17-21, which usually draws leading figures from business, politics and diplomacy, will instead be held in "early summer", the organisers said.

<img alt="World Economic Forum" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="42d65ddc-94e8-4df8-9bb7-da0124f6f18a" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/World%20Economic%20Forum.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/white-house-reacts-after-joe-manchin-says-he-wont-vote-for-joe-bidens-build-back-better-bill-438390">White House reacts after Joe Manchin says he won't vote for Joe Biden's Build Back Better bill</a> 
The White House has issued a statement after Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia said that he could not support the legislation's passage of the massive social spending bill. It is a big blow to United States President Joe Biden's $1.75 trillion Build Back Better plans as Manchin's vote is deemed crucial to getting the bill through the Senate. It is understood that Democrats have spent weeks trying to secure his support.&nbsp;

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<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/death-toll-surges-to-375-as-typhoon-rai-causes-destruction-in-philippines-438442">Death toll surges to 375 as typhoon Rai causes destruction in Philippines</a> 
The death toll from Typhoon Rai in the Philippines has reached 375 with over 50 people missing. A "complete carnage" situation has been reported by the Red Cross society as hospitals and schools have been "ripped to shreds."&nbsp;

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<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/moderna-says-its-booster-shot-is-effective-against-omicron-variant-438395">Moderna says its booster shot is effective against Omicron variant</a> 
Moderna Inc has claimed that its vaccine helps prevent the rapidly spreading Omicron variant. First discovered in South Africa, the new Covid variant has now spread into 89 countries in total. The company further said that the current version of the vaccine would &nbsp;be Moderna’s "first line of defence against Omicron."

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Russia on Monday expelled two German diplomats in a tit-for-tat move, Taiwan has slammed China over Foreign Minister Wang Yi's remark and the World Economic Forum (WEF) said that it "will defer its annual meeting in Davos.

Russia on Monday expelled two German diplomats in a tit-for-tat move, Taiwan has slammed China over Foreign Minister Wang Yi's remark and the World Economic Forum (WEF) said that it "will defer its annual meeting in Davos... in the light of continued uncertainty over the Omicron" variant of coronavirus. Here are top news stories from across the world. Click on the links to read more. Berlin park murder: Now, Russia expels German diplomats Russia on Monday expelled two German diplomats after Berlin ordered two Russian diplomats to leave the country over the German court verdict last week which said Russian authorities were involved in the assassination of an ex-Chechen commander in a Berlin park two years ago. 'Neither a wanderer nor a chess piece': Taiwan slams China over Wang Yi's remark Taiwan has slammed China after Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Monday (December 20) said that Taiwan is a "wanderer" who will eventually "return home". Re-emphasising on the unification of China, the country's top diplomat also said that Taiwan "should not be used as a pawn". Iran witnesses rare anti-government protest after execution of Kurdish prisoner Iran witnessed a rare anti-government protest and sloganeering after authorities executed a Kurdish man. The crowd gathered in the hometown of Heidar Ghorbani, the executed man and raised anti-government slogans. Watch | Pakistan PM Imran Khan faces online flak for defending Taliban's mistreatment of women Imran Khan, the Pakistani Prime Minister, has done it again, as he has been doing for several years: Supporting the Taliban and their actions while rationalising all forms of discrimination, especially against women. China's northwest region hit with hemorrhagic fever According to China's state-run Global Times, the country's northwest Shaanxi province has witnessed several cases of hemorrhagic fever. The Chinese newspaper said it is a "natural epidemic disease with high fatality rate". However, there is no confirmation on the exact number of fatalities. 'Need to also move away from fear': Australian PM wants 'sensible' approach to fight virus Amid new coronavirus cases, New South Wales leader Dominic Perrottet asserted that people "need to also move away from fear". "There will always be new variants of this virus," Dominic Perrottet said. New South Wales has been hit hard due to the virus even as the state recorded 2,501 new coronavirus cases on Monday. On Sunday, the state had recorded 2,566 new COVID-19 cases. Davos meeting deferred over Omicron uncertainty: World Economic Forum The World Economic Forum (WEF) said Monday it "will defer its annual meeting in Davos... in the light of continued uncertainty over the Omicron" variant of coronavirus. The high-powered meeting scheduled for January 17-21, which usually draws leading figures from business, politics and diplomacy, will instead be held in "early summer", the organisers said. White House reacts after Joe Manchin says he won't vote for Joe Biden's Build Back Better bill The White House has issued a statement after Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia said that he could not support the legislation's passage of the massive social spending bill. It is a big blow to United States President Joe Biden's $1.75 trillion Build Back Better plans as Manchin's vote is deemed crucial to getting the bill through the Senate. It is understood that Democrats have spent weeks trying to secure his support. Death toll surges to 375 as typhoon Rai causes destruction in Philippines The death toll from Typhoon Rai in the Philippines has reached 375 with over 50 people missing. A "complete carnage" situation has been reported by the Red Cross society as hospitals and schools have been "ripped to shreds." Moderna says its booster shot is effective against Omicron variant Moderna Inc has claimed that its vaccine helps prevent the rapidly spreading Omicron variant. First discovered in South Africa, the new Covid variant has now spread into 89 countries in total. The company further said that the current version of the vaccine would be Moderna’s "first line of defence against Omicron."

Top 10 World News: Russia expels German diplomats, Taiwan slams China and more

There's a massive Christmas time headache for US president Joe Biden and it has been delivered by a prominent member of his own party Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginian who claimed that he won't be able to support Biden's Build Back Better.

United States: Democrat Senator Joe Manchin kills Biden's mega Build Back Better bill

Taiwan has slammed China after Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Monday (December 20) said that Taiwan is a "wanderer" who will eventually "return home".

Re-emphasising on the unification of China, the country's top diplomat also said that Taiwan "should not be used as a pawn".&nbsp;

Wang was speaking during an opening ceremony at a Beijing-based symposium on international affairs and China's diplomacy in 2021.

On Taiwan-US ties, Wang&nbsp;said that the cause of current tensions was the Taiwan government's attempts to "rely on the United States for independence".&nbsp;

ALSO READ | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/china-is-on-a-school-building-spree-in-iraq-over-1000-by-two-firms-438380">China is on a school-building spree in Iraq. Over 1,000 by two firms</a>

"It is these perverse actions that have changed the status quo and undermined the peace in the Taiwan Strait, violating the consensus of the international community and the basic norms of international relations," said Wang, who is a former head of China's Taiwan Affairs Office.&nbsp;

Meanwhile, reacting to Wang's statement, Taiwan's China-policymaking Mainland Affairs Council said that the island had never been a part of the People's Republic of China.&nbsp;

"It is neither a wanderer nor a chess piece. Only the 23 million people of Taiwan have the right to decide Taiwan's future, and absolutely will not accept a path laid out by an autocratic political system," it said in a statement sent to Reuters.&nbsp;

ALSO READ | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/chinas-northwest-region-hit-with-hemorrhagic-fever-438362">China's northwest region hit with hemorrhagic fever</a>

China claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and has in the past two years increased military and diplomatic pressure to assert its sovereignty claims.&nbsp;

WATCH |&nbsp;Taiwan's four contentious referendums were rejected as low voter turnout resulted in nullification

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(With inputs from agencies)

Taiwan has slammed China after Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Monday (December 20) said that Taiwan is a "wanderer" who will eventually "return home".

Taiwan has slammed China after Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Monday (December 20) said that Taiwan is a "wanderer" who will eventually "return home". Re-emphasising on the unification of China, the country's top diplomat also said that Taiwan "should not be used as a pawn". Wang was speaking during an opening ceremony at a Beijing-based symposium on international affairs and China's diplomacy in 2021. On Taiwan-US ties, Wang said that the cause of current tensions was the Taiwan government's attempts to "rely on the United States for independence". ALSO READ | China is on a school-building spree in Iraq. Over 1,000 by two firms "It is these perverse actions that have changed the status quo and undermined the peace in the Taiwan Strait, violating the consensus of the international community and the basic norms of international relations," said Wang, who is a former head of China's Taiwan Affairs Office. Meanwhile, reacting to Wang's statement, Taiwan's China-policymaking Mainland Affairs Council said that the island had never been a part of the People's Republic of China. "It is neither a wanderer nor a chess piece. Only the 23 million people of Taiwan have the right to decide Taiwan's future, and absolutely will not accept a path laid out by an autocratic political system," it said in a statement sent to Reuters. ALSO READ | China's northwest region hit with hemorrhagic fever China claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and has in the past two years increased military and diplomatic pressure to assert its sovereignty claims. WATCH | Taiwan's four contentious referendums were rejected as low voter turnout resulted in nullification × (With inputs from agencies)

'Neither a wanderer nor a chess piece': Taiwan slams China over Wang Yi's remark

The omicron variant has taken the world by storm, there is not much known about the virus' effects but one does know that it is spreading fast. 24 countries have reported the presence of new covid-19 mutation, the latest to them is the United States.

United States: First Omicron infection detected in California

The Delta variant continues to wreak havoc across the United States, top health experts have now warned of a looming Omcron wave that could sweep across the US.

United States: Omicron to dominate new cases in coming weeks

The White House has issued a statement after Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia said that he could not support the legislation's passage of the massive social spending bill.&nbsp;

It is a big blow to United States President Joe Biden's $1.75 trillion Build Back Better plans as Manchin's vote is deemed crucial to getting the bill through the Senate. It is understood that Democrats have spent weeks trying to secure his support.&nbsp;

Manchin told Fox News Sunday: "I can't vote for it and I cannot vote to continue with this piece of legislation. I just can't. I've tried everything humanly possible, I can't get there... This is a no."

The bill is focused on funnelling funds toward lowering the cost of child care and prescription drugs, supporting the purchasing power of households and investing in the transition to clean energy.&nbsp;

WATCH |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/watch-in-a-gaffe-us-president-joe-biden-calls-kamala-harris-as-president-harris-438379">In a gaffe, US President Joe Biden calls Kamala Harris as ‘President Harris’</a>

After the interview, Manchin's office released a statement in which the Senator reiterated that he couldn't support the legislation. The statement read: "I have always said, 'If I can't go back home and explain it, I can't vote for it.'"

"Despite my best efforts, I cannot explain the sweeping Build Back Better Act in West Virginia and I cannot vote to move forward on this mammoth piece of legislation," it added.&nbsp;

The Senator has raised multiple concerns about the bill regarding paid family leave, a methane fee on emissions, medicare expansion, taxes, climate provisions, etc.&nbsp;

Manchin praised Biden but said that right now, the government should be directing the attention towards the Omicron variant and the threat is coming back in "so many different aspects in different ways". He also said that the present Covid situation is "affecting our lives again."

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ALSO READ | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/christmas-travel-can-lead-to-doubling-of-omicron-cases-fauci-438291">Christmas travel can lead to doubling of Omicron cases: Fauci</a>

White House reacts

Responding to the same, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said that Manchin's statements are "at odds with his discussions this week with the President".&nbsp;

The lengthy statement further read: "Weeks ago, Senator Manchin committed to the President, at his home in Wilmington, to support the Build Back Better framework that the President then subsequently announced."

"If his comments on FOX and written statement indicate an end to that effort, they represent a sudden and inexplicable reversal in his position, and a breach of his commitments to the President and the Senator’s colleagues in the House and Senate," Psaki's statement added.&nbsp;Manchin has been facing criticism from some party members.&nbsp;

Senator Bernie Sanders said that the Democrats would take the bill to a vote.&nbsp;"I hope that we will bring a strong bill to the floor of the Senate as soon as we can and let Mr. Manchin explain to the people of West Virginia why he doesn't have the guts to stand up to powerful special interests," he told CNN.&nbsp;

WATCH:&nbsp;Top health experts warn of looming Omicron wave in United States

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&nbsp;

The White House has issued a statement after Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia said that he could not support the legislation's passage of the massive social spending bill.

The White House has issued a statement after Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia said that he could not support the legislation's passage of the massive social spending bill. It is a big blow to United States President Joe Biden's $1.75 trillion Build Back Better plans as Manchin's vote is deemed crucial to getting the bill through the Senate. It is understood that Democrats have spent weeks trying to secure his support. Manchin told Fox News Sunday: "I can't vote for it and I cannot vote to continue with this piece of legislation. I just can't. I've tried everything humanly possible, I can't get there... This is a no." The bill is focused on funnelling funds toward lowering the cost of child care and prescription drugs, supporting the purchasing power of households and investing in the transition to clean energy. WATCH | In a gaffe, US President Joe Biden calls Kamala Harris as ‘President Harris’ After the interview, Manchin's office released a statement in which the Senator reiterated that he couldn't support the legislation. The statement read: "I have always said, 'If I can't go back home and explain it, I can't vote for it.'" "Despite my best efforts, I cannot explain the sweeping Build Back Better Act in West Virginia and I cannot vote to move forward on this mammoth piece of legislation," it added. The Senator has raised multiple concerns about the bill regarding paid family leave, a methane fee on emissions, medicare expansion, taxes, climate provisions, etc. Manchin praised Biden but said that right now, the government should be directing the attention towards the Omicron variant and the threat is coming back in "so many different aspects in different ways". He also said that the present Covid situation is "affecting our lives again." pic.twitter.com/0fmAXbcRHn — Senator Joe Manchin (@Sen_JoeManchin) December 14, 2021 × ALSO READ | Christmas travel can lead to doubling of Omicron cases: Fauci White House reacts Responding to the same, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said that Manchin's statements are "at odds with his discussions this week with the President". The lengthy statement further read: "Weeks ago, Senator Manchin committed to the President, at his home in Wilmington, to support the Build Back Better framework that the President then subsequently announced." "If his comments on FOX and written statement indicate an end to that effort, they represent a sudden and inexplicable reversal in his position, and a breach of his commitments to the President and the Senator’s colleagues in the House and Senate," Psaki's statement added. Manchin has been facing criticism from some party members. Senator Bernie Sanders said that the Democrats would take the bill to a vote. "I hope that we will bring a strong bill to the floor of the Senate as soon as we can and let Mr. Manchin explain to the people of West Virginia why he doesn't have the guts to stand up to powerful special interests," he told CNN. WATCH: Top health experts warn of looming Omicron wave in United States ×

White House reacts after Joe Manchin says he won't vote for Joe Biden's Build Back Better bill

Haji Rozi Khan stood outside the gate of the bullet-pocked building that housed the Marjah district’s government offices, staring through the slotted steel door into the compound. Taliban guards stared back. They were not who he was looking for.

Khan had trekked to Marjah’s district center in Helmand province from his village several miles away by motorbike, kicking up powdered dust as he navigated the unpaved roads, long damaged by the war. He was searching for a figure who had been even more elusive since the Taliban took power in August: an aid worker.

“We have nothing to eat,” he said in an interview last month.

Once, Marjah was the site of one of the biggest battles of the two-decade war, part of the United States’ counterinsurgency campaign to weaken the Taliban and build up a local government. But today, the grid-like patch of mud-walled hamlets and canals looks much like it did at the outset of the invasion in 2001: barely navigable roads, understaffed and damaged schools and clinics and withered crops, crippled by one of the worst droughts in decades.

As Afghanistan sinks deeper into a humanitarian crisis, Marjah’s residents are still caught in the war’s aftershocks. Amid a crashing economy and ruined harvests, in a place where most people barely live above the poverty line, many are just now realizing how dependent they were on foreign aid, their lifeline for 20 years, which was cut off practically overnight. They’re growing increasingly desperate for help, a frustration that has morphed into anger that the international community has seemingly abandoned them.

Marjah residents are also coming to terms with a new Taliban government that may have brought peace, but with dwindling cash and the squelching of foreign aid has been able to deliver on little else.

“The government isn’t able to help themselves and we’re not able to help ourselves,” Khan said, as a small group of farmers gathered outside the district center to voice similar complaints to the local government.

It is a tragic but almost inevitable turn for a district in southern Afghanistan that has since become emblematic of the multi-trillion-dollar nation-building effort by the West that crumbled even before the Americans fully withdrew from the country in August. Many in Marjah were happy to see the foreign occupation end and the Taliban take power, because it brought stability to the region after years of fighting that took countless civilian lives and wrought widespread destruction.

Khan had lived for nearly 30 years at the edge of Marjah, where he grew wheat, cotton and corn until his crop was battered last year by the drought. That same year, his nephew was killed by a roadside bomb.

This year’s turmoil has been deepened by the arrival of roughly 20 displaced families from central Afghanistan. They were hungry and homeless, he said, so he gave them what little food he could spare before making his way to the district center in hopes of finding someone else who could help.

“We are so tired,” Khan said, his blue shalwar kameez flapping in the morning breeze.

In recent weeks, the United States and the European Union have pledged to provide $1.29 billion more in aid to Afghanistan. The World Bank’s board moved in late November to free up $280 million in frozen donor funding, but U.S. sanctions against the Taliban continue to make it extremely difficult for aid organizations to get money into the country.

Aside from the sanctions, the Taliban government’s inability to provide for its people also stems from its inexperience in governance, which was clearly illustrated in a visit to the district office in Marjah.

Inside the squat government building that was refurbished by the Americans a decade ago and nearly destroyed by fighting in the decade since, sat Mullah Abdul Salam Hussaini, 37, Marjah’s district governor. The newly appointed local leader had spent the better part of the past 20 years — essentially his entire adulthood — trying to kill U.S. and NATO forces as a Taliban fighter.

Now he found himself governing a district of around 80,000 people mired in crisis, with little in the way of funds, infrastructure or public-service experience to support his constituents.

People lined up at the compound gates with a litany of complaints and requests: Do something about the displaced refugees; build a new health clinic; help farmers whose crops were destroyed and find more teachers for what may be the only remaining school in Marjah.

“Whatever people ask, I am asking that, too, because we are not in a situation to do it ourselves,” Hussaini said quietly, surrounded by Talibs who looked far more comfortable behind a rifle than a desk. “We need the help of foreigners because they did it before and we’re asking them to do it again.”

Inside the governor’s dimly lit office, walls and window sill adorned with Kalashnikov rifles and other weapons captured from the previous government, sat a representative from a local aid group who had come to survey the district and its food needs for the World Food Program. The organization is still distributing basic food staples, but the rising demand has far exceeded their supplies.

For years, the insurgent group controlled pockets of Afghanistan, and fueled a shadow economy by leeching off the previous government’s foreign-filled coffers through taxes on everyone in their territory, including truck drivers and aid workers. But those sorts of activities cannot make up for the loss of outside help.

“The Taliban don’t seem to have had a sense of how dependent the economy was on foreign support, which they benefited from as did everyone else,” said Kate Clark, the co-director of Afghanistan Analysts Network. “Even under the areas under Taliban control they weren’t funding the schools and the clinics.”

Marjah, a district long reliant on growing poppy for its own illicit economy that the Taliban also taxed, was built by the United States in the late 1950s and 1960s as an agricultural project that diverted water from the Helmand River into a series of distinct grids.

In 2010, during the height of President Barack Obama’s troop surge, thousands of Western and Afghan troops secured the network of canals and fields in a major military offensive and then made promises of roads, schools and a functioning local government. Considered the last Taliban stronghold in central Helmand, Marjah was a strategically important district in the eyes of military planners, who decided a victory there would be crucial to Obama’s new counterinsurgency strategy.

The Koru Chareh bazaar, a cluster of shoddy low-slung, steel-door shops, was where some of the first U.S. troops arrived in 2010.

“They came at night,” recalled Abdul Kabir, a young shopkeeper who was 9 when the first helicopters landed nearby.

As a boy, he watched as the Marines in desert tan uniforms walked by, saying nothing to him.

But, this November, the only visible signs of the Americans’ occupation was a “Trump 2020 Keep America Great” flag draped from a shopkeeper’s peanut stand and a Confederate battle flag hanging from a shed nearby. A paved road that bisects Marjah from north to south is arguably the most prominent U.S. piece of infrastructure in the district, built as part of the more than $4 billion in stabilization funds that the United States poured into the country.

“It’s good the fighting is over,” Kabir said, standing next to his money exchange stand, where he focused on changing afghanis into Pakistani rupees.

Few people ambled by. He had lived in Marjah his whole life, an arc that followed the entire U.S. occupation.

Kabir was one of several residents who praised the security situation but lamented the economic downturn.

“There is no money and everything is expensive,” he added.

With fluctuating border restrictions, higher import costs and a cash shortage, basic products in the bazaar, such as cooking oil, are three times as expensive as they once were.

To the vendors, who have distinct memories of fighting outside their homes, and explosions and gunshots that killed their friends, the economic crunch and the United States’ unwillingness to recognize the Taliban feel like punishments against them, not the new government.

Ali Mohammed, 27, who runs a chicken stand at the main intersection of the bazaar, has carried the weight of the war for years. He watched as a friend was gunned down by the Americans in a field just a few hundred yards from where he now sells his underfed birds. To him, his country’s situation was simply a new phase of the conflict.

“The foreigners say they are not here anymore,” he said. “But they didn’t finish the war against us.”

Haji Rozi Khan stood outside the gate of the bullet-pocked building that housed the Marjah district’s government offices, staring through the slotted steel door into the compound.

Haji Rozi Khan stood outside the gate of the bullet-pocked building that housed the Marjah district’s government offices, staring through the slotted steel door into the compound. Taliban guards stared back. They were not who he was looking for. Khan had trekked to Marjah’s district center in Helmand province from his village several miles away by motorbike, kicking up powdered dust as he navigated the unpaved roads, long damaged by the war. He was searching for a figure who had been even more elusive since the Taliban took power in August: an aid worker. “We have nothing to eat,” he said in an interview last month. Once, Marjah was the site of one of the biggest battles of the two-decade war, part of the United States’ counterinsurgency campaign to weaken the Taliban and build up a local government. But today, the grid-like patch of mud-walled hamlets and canals looks much like it did at the outset of the invasion in 2001: barely navigable roads, understaffed and damaged schools and clinics and withered crops, crippled by one of the worst droughts in decades. As Afghanistan sinks deeper into a humanitarian crisis, Marjah’s residents are still caught in the war’s aftershocks. Amid a crashing economy and ruined harvests, in a place where most people barely live above the poverty line, many are just now realizing how dependent they were on foreign aid, their lifeline for 20 years, which was cut off practically overnight. They’re growing increasingly desperate for help, a frustration that has morphed into anger that the international community has seemingly abandoned them. Marjah residents are also coming to terms with a new Taliban government that may have brought peace, but with dwindling cash and the squelching of foreign aid has been able to deliver on little else. “The government isn’t able to help themselves and we’re not able to help ourselves,” Khan said, as a small group of farmers gathered outside the district center to voice similar complaints to the local government. It is a tragic but almost inevitable turn for a district in southern Afghanistan that has since become emblematic of the multi-trillion-dollar nation-building effort by the West that crumbled even before the Americans fully withdrew from the country in August. Many in Marjah were happy to see the foreign occupation end and the Taliban take power, because it brought stability to the region after years of fighting that took countless civilian lives and wrought widespread destruction. Khan had lived for nearly 30 years at the edge of Marjah, where he grew wheat, cotton and corn until his crop was battered last year by the drought. That same year, his nephew was killed by a roadside bomb. This year’s turmoil has been deepened by the arrival of roughly 20 displaced families from central Afghanistan. They were hungry and homeless, he said, so he gave them what little food he could spare before making his way to the district center in hopes of finding someone else who could help. “We are so tired,” Khan said, his blue shalwar kameez flapping in the morning breeze. In recent weeks, the United States and the European Union have pledged to provide $1.29 billion more in aid to Afghanistan. The World Bank’s board moved in late November to free up $280 million in frozen donor funding, but U.S. sanctions against the Taliban continue to make it extremely difficult for aid organizations to get money into the country. Aside from the sanctions, the Taliban government’s inability to provide for its people also stems from its inexperience in governance, which was clearly illustrated in a visit to the district office in Marjah. Inside the squat government building that was refurbished by the Americans a decade ago and nearly destroyed by fighting in the decade since, sat Mullah Abdul Salam Hussaini, 37, Marjah’s district governor. The newly appointed local leader had spent the better part of the past 20 years — essentially his entire adulthood — trying to kill U.S. and NATO forces as a Taliban fighter. Now he found himself governing a district of around 80,000 people mired in crisis, with little in the way of funds, infrastructure or public-service experience to support his constituents. People lined up at the compound gates with a litany of complaints and requests: Do something about the displaced refugees; build a new health clinic; help farmers whose crops were destroyed and find more teachers for what may be the only remaining school in Marjah. “Whatever people ask, I am asking that, too, because we are not in a situation to do it ourselves,” Hussaini said quietly, surrounded by Talibs who looked far more comfortable behind a rifle than a desk. “We need the help of foreigners because they did it before and we’re asking them to do it again.” Inside the governor’s dimly lit office, walls and window sill adorned with Kalashnikov rifles and other weapons captured from the previous government, sat a representative from a local aid group who had come to survey the district and its food needs for the World Food Program. The organization is still distributing basic food staples, but the rising demand has far exceeded their supplies. For years, the insurgent group controlled pockets of Afghanistan, and fueled a shadow economy by leeching off the previous government’s foreign-filled coffers through taxes on everyone in their territory, including truck drivers and aid workers. But those sorts of activities cannot make up for the loss of outside help. “The Taliban don’t seem to have had a sense of how dependent the economy was on foreign support, which they benefited from as did everyone else,” said Kate Clark, the co-director of Afghanistan Analysts Network. “Even under the areas under Taliban control they weren’t funding the schools and the clinics.” Marjah, a district long reliant on growing poppy for its own illicit economy that the Taliban also taxed, was built by the United States in the late 1950s and 1960s as an agricultural project that diverted water from the Helmand River into a series of distinct grids. In 2010, during the height of President Barack Obama’s troop surge, thousands of Western and Afghan troops secured the network of canals and fields in a major military offensive and then made promises of roads, schools and a functioning local government. Considered the last Taliban stronghold in central Helmand, Marjah was a strategically important district in the eyes of military planners, who decided a victory there would be crucial to Obama’s new counterinsurgency strategy. The Koru Chareh bazaar, a cluster of shoddy low-slung, steel-door shops, was where some of the first U.S. troops arrived in 2010. “They came at night,” recalled Abdul Kabir, a young shopkeeper who was 9 when the first helicopters landed nearby. As a boy, he watched as the Marines in desert tan uniforms walked by, saying nothing to him. But, this November, the only visible signs of the Americans’ occupation was a “Trump 2020 Keep America Great” flag draped from a shopkeeper’s peanut stand and a Confederate battle flag hanging from a shed nearby. A paved road that bisects Marjah from north to south is arguably the most prominent U.S. piece of infrastructure in the district, built as part of the more than $4 billion in stabilization funds that the United States poured into the country. “It’s good the fighting is over,” Kabir said, standing next to his money exchange stand, where he focused on changing afghanis into Pakistani rupees. Few people ambled by. He had lived in Marjah his whole life, an arc that followed the entire U.S. occupation. Kabir was one of several residents who praised the security situation but lamented the economic downturn. “There is no money and everything is expensive,” he added. With fluctuating border restrictions, higher import costs and a cash shortage, basic products in the bazaar, such as cooking oil, are three times as expensive as they once were. To the vendors, who have distinct memories of fighting outside their homes, and explosions and gunshots that killed their friends, the economic crunch and the United States’ unwillingness to recognize the Taliban feel like punishments against them, not the new government. Ali Mohammed, 27, who runs a chicken stand at the main intersection of the bazaar, has carried the weight of the war for years. He watched as a friend was gunned down by the Americans in a field just a few hundred yards from where he now sells his underfed birds. To him, his country’s situation was simply a new phase of the conflict. “The foreigners say they are not here anymore,” he said. “But they didn’t finish the war against us.”

Once a symbol of US strength, an Afghan district now faces dire times

Pentagon documents show that the US air wars in the Middle East have been marked by "deeply flawed intelligence" and resulted in thousands of civilian deaths, including children.

Pentagon report: Civilian deaths undercounted | US Air Drone Strikes

From updates on the summit of Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC) to Coronavirus trends across the world, read top 10 news headlines at this hour. Click on the links to read the full report.&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/former-afghan-president-hamid-karzai-slams-pakistani-propaganda-on-afghanistan-438204">Former Afghan president Hamid Karzai slams Pakistani 'propaganda' on Afghanistan</a> 
Former Afghanistan president Hamid Karzai on Sunday lashed out at Pakistan and called out what he said was "obvious propaganda against Afghanistan". Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan in his speech at the summit of Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC), said that Pakistan faced threat from Islamic State in Afghanistan.

<img alt="Hamid Karzai " data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="99531155-cbb4-4886-a180-cd1f040cec30" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Afg-Pak.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/russia-cannot-dictate-to-nato-says-germany-438184">Russia cannot 'dictate' to NATO, says Germany</a> 
Germany came out strongly against Russia on Sunday and said that Moscow could not 'dictate' to Russia. German Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht's statement came even as tensions are high between Russia and the West over conflict in Ukraine. Lambrecht spoke during a visit to Lithuania.

<img alt="Germany" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="4578a478-209a-46e5-9566-c860a837218d" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Germany%20%282%29.jpg" />

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United Kingdom's Health Minister Sajid Javid said that there is much "we still don't know" about the Omicron variant of coronavirus (COVID-19) and also warned that "it may be too late to react" as virus cases are rising in the country.&nbsp;

<img alt="COVID-19" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b88de9a3-bfd3-4373-bb91-25eb3cc37f83" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/COVID-19%20%282%29.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-pays-fine-in-russia-over-content-deemed-illegal-438157">Facebook pays fine in Russia over content deemed illegal</a> 
Facebook has paid USD 229,643 in fines in Russia over content Moscow deemed illegal, Interfax news agency has reported. There is looming threat of larger fines over the tech giant. Meta and Alphabet, parent companies of Facebook and Google respectively face a court case next week. &nbsp;They face allegations of violation of Russian legislation. A fine equal to their annual revenue in Russia may be imposed.

<img alt="Facebook" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="108a6d7d-aa99-48db-b5e8-4459e9a1a9bf" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Facebook_1.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/australias-bouncy-castle-tragedy-11-year-boy-dies-in-hospital-death-toll-reaches-six-438205">Australia's bouncy castle tragedy: 11-year-boy dies in hospital, death toll reaches six</a> 
Police have informed that the death toll from Australia's bouncy castle tragedy increased to six after an 11-year-boy died in hospital on Sunday (December 19) over three days after the accident. Two other children remain in critical condition in hospital and one is recovering at home.&nbsp;

<img alt="Australia" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="15b91930-42e7-4023-a499-4e66d892c5cf" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Hillcrest%20Primary%20School.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/netherlands-starts-omicron-lockdown-just-as-christmas-season-approaches-438175">Netherlands starts Omicron lockdown just as Christmas season approaches</a> 
The Netherlands began lockdown to prevent spread of Omicron variant on Sunday. The restrictions have come just as Christmas season approaches. Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced the sudden shut-down on Saturday evening, ordering the closure of all but the most essential stores, as well as restaurants, hairdressers, gyms, museums and other public places from Sunday until at least Jan. 14.

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<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/in-memo-us-air-force-gives-green-signal-to-gender-pronouns-use-for-internal-communication-438165">In memo, US Air Force gives green signal to gender pronouns’ use for internal communication</a> 
In what can open a can of worms, the United States Air Force has approved the usage of gender pronouns in electronic signature boxes for internal communication. On December 9, the US Air Force correspondence, said, "This guidance provides approval for the use of pronouns in electronic signature blocks and expands on written communication by providing official templates posted on e-publishing website available for download." &nbsp;

<img alt="United States" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="117127d4-90b2-4859-bc8f-891ecd2729c4" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/United%20States.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/india-an-example-and-role-model-for-religious-harmony-says-dalai-lama-438177">India an example and role model for religious harmony, says Dalai Lama</a> 
India is a role model of religious harmony in the world, said Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama during his address in a virtual event on 'Maha Satipatthana Sutta' for Theravada Sangha held in Colombo, Sri Lanka. He said that when he came to exile in India as a refugee the practice of non-violence and religious harmony he found in Indian is "excellent".&nbsp;

<img alt="dalai lama" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b9bc840d-fb05-409e-a938-fe24594c5594" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Dalai%20Lama.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/biden-pays-respects-on-first-wife-daughters-graves-on-crashs-49th-anniversary-438161">Biden pays respects on first wife, daughter’s graves on crash’s 49th anniversary</a> 
US President Joe Biden visited graves of first wife and infant daughter, who had died in a car crash, on Saturday. To pay respects to loved ones lost on the 49th anniversary of the mishap, Biden and family members thronged Saint Joseph on the Brandywine Roman Catholic church in Delaware, which is his home state. &nbsp;

<img alt="Joe Biden" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="989c3348-ec30-43dc-a208-7f23a558f924" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Joe%20Biden_3.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/abundance-of-caution-cnn-closes-us-offices-for-non-essential-workers-amid-a-surge-in-covid-cases-438154">'Abundance of caution': CNN closes US offices for non-essential workers amid a surge in Covid cases</a> 
CNN is closing its offices for all the non-essential workers in the United States amid a surge in Covid cases. Network President Jeff Zucker in a memo said, "Given the recent, sudden surge in Covid cases around the country, and within our teams at CNN, Turner Sports &amp; WarnerMedia Studios, as of tonight we are CLOSING our offices to all employees who do not have to be in the office to do their jobs."

<img alt="CNN" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b458c24a-2d65-4ab4-8a07-b4f555709702" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/CNN.jpg" />

From updates on the summit of Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC) to Coronavirus trends across the world, read top 10 news headlines at this hour. Click on the links to read the full report.

From updates on the summit of Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC) to Coronavirus trends across the world, read top 10 news headlines at this hour. Click on the links to read the full report. Former Afghan president Hamid Karzai slams Pakistani 'propaganda' on Afghanistan Former Afghanistan president Hamid Karzai on Sunday lashed out at Pakistan and called out what he said was "obvious propaganda against Afghanistan". Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan in his speech at the summit of Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC), said that Pakistan faced threat from Islamic State in Afghanistan. Russia cannot 'dictate' to NATO, says Germany Germany came out strongly against Russia on Sunday and said that Moscow could not 'dictate' to Russia. German Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht's statement came even as tensions are high between Russia and the West over conflict in Ukraine. Lambrecht spoke during a visit to Lithuania. UK health minister says it may be 'too late to react' to Omicron as COVID-19 cases continue to rise United Kingdom's Health Minister Sajid Javid said that there is much "we still don't know" about the Omicron variant of coronavirus (COVID-19) and also warned that "it may be too late to react" as virus cases are rising in the country. Facebook pays fine in Russia over content deemed illegal Facebook has paid USD 229,643 in fines in Russia over content Moscow deemed illegal, Interfax news agency has reported. There is looming threat of larger fines over the tech giant. Meta and Alphabet, parent companies of Facebook and Google respectively face a court case next week. They face allegations of violation of Russian legislation. A fine equal to their annual revenue in Russia may be imposed. Australia's bouncy castle tragedy: 11-year-boy dies in hospital, death toll reaches six Police have informed that the death toll from Australia's bouncy castle tragedy increased to six after an 11-year-boy died in hospital on Sunday (December 19) over three days after the accident. Two other children remain in critical condition in hospital and one is recovering at home. Netherlands starts Omicron lockdown just as Christmas season approaches The Netherlands began lockdown to prevent spread of Omicron variant on Sunday. The restrictions have come just as Christmas season approaches. Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced the sudden shut-down on Saturday evening, ordering the closure of all but the most essential stores, as well as restaurants, hairdressers, gyms, museums and other public places from Sunday until at least Jan. 14. In memo, US Air Force gives green signal to gender pronouns’ use for internal communication In what can open a can of worms, the United States Air Force has approved the usage of gender pronouns in electronic signature boxes for internal communication. On December 9, the US Air Force correspondence, said, "This guidance provides approval for the use of pronouns in electronic signature blocks and expands on written communication by providing official templates posted on e-publishing website available for download." India an example and role model for religious harmony, says Dalai Lama India is a role model of religious harmony in the world, said Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama during his address in a virtual event on 'Maha Satipatthana Sutta' for Theravada Sangha held in Colombo, Sri Lanka. He said that when he came to exile in India as a refugee the practice of non-violence and religious harmony he found in Indian is "excellent". Biden pays respects on first wife, daughter’s graves on crash’s 49th anniversary US President Joe Biden visited graves of first wife and infant daughter, who had died in a car crash, on Saturday. To pay respects to loved ones lost on the 49th anniversary of the mishap, Biden and family members thronged Saint Joseph on the Brandywine Roman Catholic church in Delaware, which is his home state. 'Abundance of caution': CNN closes US offices for non-essential workers amid a surge in Covid cases CNN is closing its offices for all the non-essential workers in the United States amid a surge in Covid cases. Network President Jeff Zucker in a memo said, "Given the recent, sudden surge in Covid cases around the country, and within our teams at CNN, Turner Sports & WarnerMedia Studios, as of tonight we are CLOSING our offices to all employees who do not have to be in the office to do their jobs."

Top 10 World News: Hamid Karzai slams Pakistan, Netherlands starts Omicron lockdown and more

US State Department report on global terrorism revealed that Pakistan made "limited progress" on the most difficult aspects of its 2015 National Action Plan to counter-terrorism as it had pledged to dismantle terrorist organisations operating inside the country without "delay or discrimination".&nbsp;

The 2020 Country Reports on Terrorism, which was issued on Thursday (December 16), stated that terrorist groups continued to operate from Pakistan regionally.&nbsp;

The report mentioned that groups targeting India, including LeT and its affiliated front organisations and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) continued to operate from Pakistani territory.&nbsp;

ALSO READ | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/gwadar-protesters-call-off-stir-after-pakistan-govt-accepts-all-of-their-demands-437514">Gwadar protesters call off stir after Pakistan govt accepts ‘all of their demands’</a>

The report specifically mentioned that Pakistan did not take action against JeM founder and UN-designated terrorist Masood Azhar and 2008 Mumbai attack "project manager" Sajid Mir. As per the report, both are believed to remain free in Pakistan.&nbsp;

Although, the report does mention that Pakistan contributed to the Afghanistan peace process. Pakistan made additional progress in 2020 toward completing its Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Action Plan. However, &nbsp;the country remained on the FATF "gray list" as it did not complete all Action Plan items.&nbsp;

The report also highlighted the functioning of some madrassas in Pakistan, which has remained a matter of discussion over the years. The report stated that such that some unregulated madrassas continued to teach violent extremist doctrine.

ALSO READ | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/rewind-2021-when-taliban-in-afghanistan-became-the-new-normal-437572">Rewind 2021: When Taliban in Afghanistan became the 'new normal'</a>

"While the government continued efforts to increase madrassa regulation, some analysts and madrassa reform proponents observed that many madrassas failed to register with the government, provide documentation of their sources of funding, or comply with laws governing acceptance of foreign students," a part of the report read.&nbsp;

On the release of the report, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, "The report's Annex of Statistical Info shows that both the number&nbsp;of terrorist attacks and&nbsp;overall number&nbsp;of fatalities resulting from those attacks increased by more than 10% in 2020 compared with 2019."&nbsp;

Indian counterterrorism forces

Mentioning the Indian counterterrorism forces, such as the National Investigation Agency (NIA), the report commended India for actively detecting and disrupting transnational and regional terror forces.

"Indian counterterrorism forces, at the federal and state levels, actively detected and disrupted transnational and regional terror forces," the report read.&nbsp;

"The National Investigation Agency (NIA) examined 34 terrorism-related cases related to ISIS and arrested 160 persons, including 10 alleged al-Qaeda operatives from Kerala and West Bengal, in September,"? the report added.

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US-India cooperation

Mentioning the cooperation with India, the report stated that the United States continues to build strategic partnerships with India. Through bilateral engagements such as the 17th Counterterrorism Joint Working Group and Third Designations Dialogue in September, as well as the third 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue in October.&nbsp;

Overall, the report stated that during 2020, the United States and its partners made significant major strides against terrorist organisations. It added that the terrorism threat has become more geographically dispersed in regions around the world.&nbsp;

US State Department report on global terrorism revealed that Pakistan made "limited progress" on the most difficult aspects of its 2015 National Action Plan to counter-terrorism as it had pledged to dismantle terrorist organisations operating inside the country without "delay or discrimination".

US State Department report on global terrorism revealed that Pakistan made "limited progress" on the most difficult aspects of its 2015 National Action Plan to counter-terrorism as it had pledged to dismantle terrorist organisations operating inside the country without "delay or discrimination". The 2020 Country Reports on Terrorism, which was issued on Thursday (December 16), stated that terrorist groups continued to operate from Pakistan regionally. The report mentioned that groups targeting India, including LeT and its affiliated front organisations and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) continued to operate from Pakistani territory. ALSO READ | Gwadar protesters call off stir after Pakistan govt accepts ‘all of their demands’ The report specifically mentioned that Pakistan did not take action against JeM founder and UN-designated terrorist Masood Azhar and 2008 Mumbai attack "project manager" Sajid Mir. As per the report, both are believed to remain free in Pakistan. Although, the report does mention that Pakistan contributed to the Afghanistan peace process. Pakistan made additional progress in 2020 toward completing its Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Action Plan. However, the country remained on the FATF "gray list" as it did not complete all Action Plan items. The report also highlighted the functioning of some madrassas in Pakistan, which has remained a matter of discussion over the years. The report stated that such that some unregulated madrassas continued to teach violent extremist doctrine. ALSO READ | Rewind 2021: When Taliban in Afghanistan became the 'new normal' "While the government continued efforts to increase madrassa regulation, some analysts and madrassa reform proponents observed that many madrassas failed to register with the government, provide documentation of their sources of funding, or comply with laws governing acceptance of foreign students," a part of the report read. On the release of the report, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, "The report's Annex of Statistical Info shows that both the number of terrorist attacks and overall number of fatalities resulting from those attacks increased by more than 10% in 2020 compared with 2019." Indian counterterrorism forces Mentioning the Indian counterterrorism forces, such as the National Investigation Agency (NIA), the report commended India for actively detecting and disrupting transnational and regional terror forces. "Indian counterterrorism forces, at the federal and state levels, actively detected and disrupted transnational and regional terror forces," the report read. "The National Investigation Agency (NIA) examined 34 terrorism-related cases related to ISIS and arrested 160 persons, including 10 alleged al-Qaeda operatives from Kerala and West Bengal, in September,"? the report added. × US-India cooperation Mentioning the cooperation with India, the report stated that the United States continues to build strategic partnerships with India. Through bilateral engagements such as the 17th Counterterrorism Joint Working Group and Third Designations Dialogue in September, as well as the third 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue in October. Overall, the report stated that during 2020, the United States and its partners made significant major strides against terrorist organisations. It added that the terrorism threat has become more geographically dispersed in regions around the world.

Pakistan didn't take action against terrorists as groups targeting India continue to operate: US report

From updates on the Russia-Ukraine situation to the latest on COVID-19 cases worldwide. Also read why Tesla has been hit by a lawsuit. And do not miss our explainer on what is Russia's draft treaty on security guarantees. Clicks on the links to read the full report

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-vice-president-kamala-harris-admits-biden-admin-failed-to-see-omicron-variant-coming-437918">US Vice President Kamala Harris admits Biden admin ‘failed to see Omicron variant coming’</a> 
US Vice President Kamala Harris has acknowledged that the Biden administration couldn’t anticipate the emergence of variants like Omicron and Delta. Speaking to Los Angeles Times newspaper on the Covid situation in the country, Harris on Friday said, “We didn't see Delta coming…We didn't see Omicron coming. And that's the nature of what this, this awful virus has been, which as it turns out, has mutations and variants.”

<img alt="Kamala Harris" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="00a4b064-2ed2-4e30-851b-170de7b8dc8d" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Kamala%20Harris_0.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/amid-ukraine-crisis-kremlin-says-tensions-between-russia-and-us-not-at-lowest-point-yet-437956">Amid Ukraine crisis, Kremlin says tensions between Russia and US not at lowest point yet</a> 
Despite tensions simmering between the US-led NATO allies and Russia over Ukraine, Moscow believes that their relations with Washington are not at their lowest point yet. According to Interfax news agency, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov on Saturday said that Kremlin needed stable and predictable relations with Washington.&nbsp;

<img alt="Russia" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="28bc38b4-05da-4846-b153-4c0c37a047c1" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Russia%20%283%29.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/pakistan-at-least-14-people-dead-several-injured-in-powerful-gas-explosion-in-karachi-437932">Pakistan: At least 14 people dead, several injured in powerful gas explosion in Karachi</a> 
At least fourteen people were killed and several others were injured in a powerful gas explosion in Pakistan's Sindh province on Saturday (December 18) as reported by DAWN, citing a statement issued by Sindh Home Department Secretary Qazi Shahid Pervaiz. The blast took place near Karachi's Paracha Chowk in the Shershah area.&nbsp;

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<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/explainer-putins-red-line-what-is-russias-draft-treaty-on-security-guarantees-437995">Explainer: Putin's red line-What is Russia's draft treaty on security guarantees?</a> 
Russia submitted a draft document on legal security guarantees to the Biden administration to "ensure the security of the Russian Federation and member states of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO)." The Russian foreign ministry said it "provided detailed explanations regarding the logic of the Russian approach."

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<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/electric-car-making-company-tesla-hit-by-lawsuit-over-tweets-by-ceo-elon-musk-437910">Electric car making company Tesla hit by lawsuit over tweets by CEO Elon Musk</a> 
Electric car producer Tesla has been hit by a lawsuit because of tweets by CEO Elon Musk. Famous for making eye-popping statements on social media, Musk had asked in a poll on Twitter if people thought he should sell 10 percent of his stake in Tesla.&nbsp;

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<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/chinese-aircraft-carrier-enters-pacific-amid-tensions-with-taiwan-437904">Chinese aircraft carrier enters Pacific amid tensions with Taiwan</a> 
According to reports, China sent an aircraft carrier battle group through the Pacific Ocean amid tensions with Taiwan. Japan's defence ministry had said China had sent the Liaoning aircraft carrier along with Nanchang destroyer including a supply ship.

<img alt="Pacific Ocean" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="78aa0496-a19c-4201-989c-4dc9100d74f4" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Pacific%20Ocean.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/can-omicron-and-delta-unite-to-create-an-even-worse-covid-19-variant-expert-has-the-answer-437905">Can Omicron and Delta unite to create an even worse COVID-19 variant? Expert has the answer</a> 
The world has already faced the lethal Delta variant and is currently facing the latest Omicron variant, which is quite new for the scientists to understand its nature and mutations. But what if the Delta and Omicron variants combine? Will it create a super strain of COVID-19?&nbsp;

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<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/china-introduces-drastic-changes-in-hong-kongs-election-437988">China introduces drastic changes in Hong Kong's election</a> 
China has introduced drastic changes in elections for Hong Kong’s Legislative Council. Voters in the Chinese finance hub will pick new lawmakers under rules that have cut the number of directly elected seats in the legislature to 20 from a total of 90 seats.

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<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/uk-cabinet-secretary-simon-case-distances-himself-from-christmas-party-investigation-437958">UK Cabinet Secretary Simon Case distances himself from Christmas party investigation</a> 
UK Cabinet Secretary Simon Case has removed himself from the role of the head of the committee that is probing the alleged claims of parties held in Downing Street during last Christmas. "To ensure the ongoing investigation retains public confidence the cabinet secretary has recused himself for the remainder of the process," said a statement from the office.

<img alt="Simon Case" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="ba543c10-2717-4bca-81de-f3a61146d9a0" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Simon%20Case.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/49-year-old-italian-man-nabbed-with-1-mn-child-pornography-files-437959">49-year-old Italian man nabbed with 1 mn child pornography files</a> 
In a bizarre incident, a 49-year-old man has been arrested by Italian police on Saturday for possession of over one million files of child pornography. The man, who is a musician in the coastal city of Ancona in Italy's Marche region, had numerous photographs and videos, depicting children in objectionable acts with adults. &nbsp;

<img alt="Italy" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="73867dfb-7155-48d5-a225-37a033409dbe" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Italy.jpg" />

From updates on the Russia-Ukraine situation to the latest on COVID-19 cases worldwide. Also read why Tesla has been hit by a lawsuit. And do not miss our explainer on what is Russia's draft treaty on security guarantees.

From updates on the Russia-Ukraine situation to the latest on COVID-19 cases worldwide. Also read why Tesla has been hit by a lawsuit. And do not miss our explainer on what is Russia's draft treaty on security guarantees. Clicks on the links to read the full report US Vice President Kamala Harris admits Biden admin ‘failed to see Omicron variant coming’ US Vice President Kamala Harris has acknowledged that the Biden administration couldn’t anticipate the emergence of variants like Omicron and Delta. Speaking to Los Angeles Times newspaper on the Covid situation in the country, Harris on Friday said, “We didn't see Delta coming…We didn't see Omicron coming. And that's the nature of what this, this awful virus has been, which as it turns out, has mutations and variants.” Amid Ukraine crisis, Kremlin says tensions between Russia and US not at lowest point yet Despite tensions simmering between the US-led NATO allies and Russia over Ukraine, Moscow believes that their relations with Washington are not at their lowest point yet. According to Interfax news agency, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov on Saturday said that Kremlin needed stable and predictable relations with Washington. Pakistan: At least 14 people dead, several injured in powerful gas explosion in Karachi At least fourteen people were killed and several others were injured in a powerful gas explosion in Pakistan's Sindh province on Saturday (December 18) as reported by DAWN, citing a statement issued by Sindh Home Department Secretary Qazi Shahid Pervaiz. The blast took place near Karachi's Paracha Chowk in the Shershah area. Explainer: Putin's red line-What is Russia's draft treaty on security guarantees? Russia submitted a draft document on legal security guarantees to the Biden administration to "ensure the security of the Russian Federation and member states of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO)." The Russian foreign ministry said it "provided detailed explanations regarding the logic of the Russian approach." Electric car making company Tesla hit by lawsuit over tweets by CEO Elon Musk Electric car producer Tesla has been hit by a lawsuit because of tweets by CEO Elon Musk. Famous for making eye-popping statements on social media, Musk had asked in a poll on Twitter if people thought he should sell 10 percent of his stake in Tesla. Chinese aircraft carrier enters Pacific amid tensions with Taiwan According to reports, China sent an aircraft carrier battle group through the Pacific Ocean amid tensions with Taiwan. Japan's defence ministry had said China had sent the Liaoning aircraft carrier along with Nanchang destroyer including a supply ship. Can Omicron and Delta unite to create an even worse COVID-19 variant? Expert has the answer The world has already faced the lethal Delta variant and is currently facing the latest Omicron variant, which is quite new for the scientists to understand its nature and mutations. But what if the Delta and Omicron variants combine? Will it create a super strain of COVID-19? China introduces drastic changes in Hong Kong's election China has introduced drastic changes in elections for Hong Kong’s Legislative Council. Voters in the Chinese finance hub will pick new lawmakers under rules that have cut the number of directly elected seats in the legislature to 20 from a total of 90 seats. UK Cabinet Secretary Simon Case distances himself from Christmas party investigation UK Cabinet Secretary Simon Case has removed himself from the role of the head of the committee that is probing the alleged claims of parties held in Downing Street during last Christmas. "To ensure the ongoing investigation retains public confidence the cabinet secretary has recused himself for the remainder of the process," said a statement from the office. 49-year-old Italian man nabbed with 1 mn child pornography files In a bizarre incident, a 49-year-old man has been arrested by Italian police on Saturday for possession of over one million files of child pornography. The man, who is a musician in the coastal city of Ancona in Italy's Marche region, had numerous photographs and videos, depicting children in objectionable acts with adults.

Top 10 World News: Biden admin 'failed to see' Omicron variant, Kremlin on Russia-US tensions

Amid a crop of disputes, the United States has been ramping up pressure on China. The US Senate has unanimously voted to make it the first country to virtually ban all imports from Xinjiang. WION's Susan Tehrani brings in more latest on this.

US imposes new investment restrictions on China over human rights violation

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has urged China to cease “aggressive actions” in the Indo-Pacific, speaking during a visit to the region but Beijing has rejected Blinken's assertion. VOA's senior diplomatic correspondent sheds light on it.

Indo-Pacific: Blinken urges China to stop 'aggressive actions

From US State Department report on global terrorism to coronavirus (COVID-19) updates from across the world, here are top news headlines. Click on the links to read the respective report.&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/pakistan-didnt-take-action-against-terrorists-as-groups-targeting-india-continue-to-operate-us-report-437657">Pakistan didn't take action against terrorists as groups targeting India continue to operate: US Report</a> 
US State Department report on global terrorism revealed that Pakistan made "limited progress" on the most difficult aspects of its 2015 National Action Plan to counter-terrorism as it had pledged to dismantle terrorist organisations operating inside the country without "delay or discrimination".&nbsp;

<img alt="Masood Azhar" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="5c8ef212-972a-46c6-aa2a-1f6fc2894532" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Masood%20Azhar.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/germany-warns-of-massive-fifth-wave-as-omicron-cases-surge-in-europe-437731">Germany warns of 'massive fifth wave' as Omicron cases surge in Europe</a> 
As Europe continues to battle against the virus, Germany's health minister Karl Lauterbach said the country is facing a "massive fifth wave" due to the Omicron variant. Lauterbach added that Germany is facing a "challenge" it hadn't witnessed earlier. Germany has moved to clamp down on public gatherings in sports stadiums due to the daily death toll rising in the country.&nbsp;

<img alt="Germany" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="959e2fcf-2626-480a-91e2-817c215eefd0" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Germany.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-general-elections-2019/who-gives-approval-to-novavax-serum-institutes-covavax-covid-vaccine-for-emergency-use-437737">WHO gives approval to Novavax-Serum Institute's Covavax Covid vaccine for emergency use</a> 
The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Friday gave emergency approval to Covovax, Serum Institute of India’s version of Novavax Inc`s COVID-19 vaccine. CEO of the Pune-based world's largest manufacturer Adar Poonawalla shared the news on Twitter.

<img alt="World Health Organisation" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="e98976fa-d892-4eeb-ab36-7be92655cef3" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/World%20Health%20Organisation.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/south-koreans-presidential-nominee-sorry-after-wife-is-accused-of-fabricating-resume-for-teaching-job-437650">South Korean’s presidential nominee sorry after wife is accused of fabricating resume for teaching job</a> 
South Korean opposition party’s presidential nominee apologised on Friday following allegations that his wife lied on her resume to land a teaching job several years ago. Yoon Suk-yeol, the candidate from the main conservative opposition People Power Party (PPP), is facing off against the ruling Democratic Party’s Lee Jae-myung.

<img alt="South Korea" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="2dfd10f6-8f03-4009-a888-68a5ea215a5b" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/South%20Korea.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/former-first-lady-melania-trump-unveils-parler-powered-nft-platform-437646">Former first lady Melania Trump unveils Parler-powered NFT platform</a> 
Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) seem to be on everyone’s mind nowadays. The craze is such that former first lady Melania Trump has launched a new platform, which will release NFTs regularly. The platform, which is powered by Parler, will sell an NFT titled 'Melania's Vision' as the first offering, Melania Trump announced on Thursday. &nbsp;

<img alt="Melania Trump" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="a3970ce0-416e-4505-92ae-cce5a4641b38" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Melania%20Trump.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/amid-threat-of-omicron-wave-americans-rush-to-get-covid-19-boosters-437648">Amid threat of Omicron wave, Americans rush to get COVID-19 boosters</a> 
Reports claim there has been a rush for booster doses in Ameican amid warning of an Omicron wave. US President Joe Biden had warned about "winter of severe illness and death" due to the rise in Omicron cases. The White House had also insisted on booster doses as COVID-19 cases continue to rise.

<img alt="COVID-19" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="4aaec1b5-0d14-4314-b7dd-6b6b36f17ec5" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/COVID-19.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/by-the-time-they-find-an-antidote-russia-targets-new-hypersonic-missile-systems-437698">'By the time they find an antidote': Russia targets new hypersonic missile systems</a> 
Russia's commander of strategic missile forces has said the country's defence forces are developing new hypersonic strategic systems as the US moves to find an "antidote" for the sophisticated missiles. "We must understand this and do it and go further in hypersonic weapons. By the time they find an antidote, we must have found another solution to this," Colonel-General Sergei Karakaev told Russia's TASS news agency.

<img alt="Russia" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b1a48584-d8ba-4d70-93ac-5a9ad6c5d285" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Russia.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/101-cases-of-omicron-variant-detected-in-india-so-far-says-health-department-official-437703">101 cases of Omicron variant detected in India so far, says health department official</a> 
India has detected 101 cases of Omicron variant of the Covid virus, the health authorities said on Friday, while asking people to keep new year celebrations a low-key affair. While addressing reporters on the daily bulletin, join secretary of the health department, Lav Agarwal, said that the Omicron cases have been recorded in 11 states and union territories so far.&nbsp;

<img alt="Omicron variant" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="8f9fa04a-502e-449a-bb54-24d8f8a9ac97" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Omicron%20variant.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/preference-for-russia-india-china-in-person-summit-russian-envoy-nikolay-kudashev-437712">Preference for Russia, India, China in-person summit: Russian envoy Nikolay Kudashev</a> 
Close on the heels of Putin's foreign policy adviser, Yuri Ushakov mentioning about Russia, India and China summit at leaders level in the near future, the Russian envoy in Delhi has stated that the summit can happen "in near future. This is my professional and personal expectations" with preference for in-person meet.

<img alt="Russia" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="e26c785d-a547-421b-8b9b-06490fe47c36" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Russia%20%282%29.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/meta-bans-array-of-cyber-mercenary-groups-warns-50000-people-that-were-targeted-437600">Meta bans array of 'cyber mercenary' groups, warns 50,000 people that were targeted</a> 
Meta, the parent company of Facebook, banned an array of "cyber mercenary" groups on Thursday, alerting 50,000 users who may have been targeted by firms that spy on activists, dissidents, and journalists. Meta shut down 1,500 Facebook and Instagram webpages linked to groups with services ranging from snooping up public information online to building trust with targets with fake personas to performing digital snooping via hacking attacks.

<img alt="Meta" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="980d31d2-efd0-4cfb-a759-cd455d56a23b" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Meta.jpg" />

From US State Department report on global terrorism to coronavirus (COVID-19) updates from across the world, here are top news headlines. Click on the links to read the respective report.

From US State Department report on global terrorism to coronavirus (COVID-19) updates from across the world, here are top news headlines. Click on the links to read the respective report. Pakistan didn't take action against terrorists as groups targeting India continue to operate: US Report US State Department report on global terrorism revealed that Pakistan made "limited progress" on the most difficult aspects of its 2015 National Action Plan to counter-terrorism as it had pledged to dismantle terrorist organisations operating inside the country without "delay or discrimination". Germany warns of 'massive fifth wave' as Omicron cases surge in Europe As Europe continues to battle against the virus, Germany's health minister Karl Lauterbach said the country is facing a "massive fifth wave" due to the Omicron variant. Lauterbach added that Germany is facing a "challenge" it hadn't witnessed earlier. Germany has moved to clamp down on public gatherings in sports stadiums due to the daily death toll rising in the country. WHO gives approval to Novavax-Serum Institute's Covavax Covid vaccine for emergency use The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Friday gave emergency approval to Covovax, Serum Institute of India’s version of Novavax Inc`s COVID-19 vaccine. CEO of the Pune-based world's largest manufacturer Adar Poonawalla shared the news on Twitter. South Korean’s presidential nominee sorry after wife is accused of fabricating resume for teaching job South Korean opposition party’s presidential nominee apologised on Friday following allegations that his wife lied on her resume to land a teaching job several years ago. Yoon Suk-yeol, the candidate from the main conservative opposition People Power Party (PPP), is facing off against the ruling Democratic Party’s Lee Jae-myung. Former first lady Melania Trump unveils Parler-powered NFT platform Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) seem to be on everyone’s mind nowadays. The craze is such that former first lady Melania Trump has launched a new platform, which will release NFTs regularly. The platform, which is powered by Parler, will sell an NFT titled 'Melania's Vision' as the first offering, Melania Trump announced on Thursday. Amid threat of Omicron wave, Americans rush to get COVID-19 boosters Reports claim there has been a rush for booster doses in Ameican amid warning of an Omicron wave. US President Joe Biden had warned about "winter of severe illness and death" due to the rise in Omicron cases. The White House had also insisted on booster doses as COVID-19 cases continue to rise. 'By the time they find an antidote': Russia targets new hypersonic missile systems Russia's commander of strategic missile forces has said the country's defence forces are developing new hypersonic strategic systems as the US moves to find an "antidote" for the sophisticated missiles. "We must understand this and do it and go further in hypersonic weapons. By the time they find an antidote, we must have found another solution to this," Colonel-General Sergei Karakaev told Russia's TASS news agency. 101 cases of Omicron variant detected in India so far, says health department official India has detected 101 cases of Omicron variant of the Covid virus, the health authorities said on Friday, while asking people to keep new year celebrations a low-key affair. While addressing reporters on the daily bulletin, join secretary of the health department, Lav Agarwal, said that the Omicron cases have been recorded in 11 states and union territories so far. Preference for Russia, India, China in-person summit: Russian envoy Nikolay Kudashev Close on the heels of Putin's foreign policy adviser, Yuri Ushakov mentioning about Russia, India and China summit at leaders level in the near future, the Russian envoy in Delhi has stated that the summit can happen "in near future. This is my professional and personal expectations" with preference for in-person meet. Meta bans array of 'cyber mercenary' groups, warns 50,000 people that were targeted Meta, the parent company of Facebook, banned an array of "cyber mercenary" groups on Thursday, alerting 50,000 users who may have been targeted by firms that spy on activists, dissidents, and journalists. Meta shut down 1,500 Facebook and Instagram webpages linked to groups with services ranging from snooping up public information online to building trust with targets with fake personas to performing digital snooping via hacking attacks.

Top 10 World News: Germany warns of 'massive' fifth wave, WHO approves Covavax jab for emergency use and more

Tensions continue to simmer between Russia and the West, amid possibilities of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In the latest, the Western allies rejected Russia's attempt at thwarting Ukraine's ambition of joining the NATO alliance.

Russia hands draft security pacts to US, expects talks

Two days after Christmas last year, Richard P. Donoghue, a top Justice Department official in the waning days of the Trump administration, saw an unknown number appear on his phone.

Donoghue had spent weeks fielding calls, emails and in-person requests from President Donald Trump and his allies, all of whom asked the Justice Department to declare, falsely, that the election was corrupt. The lame-duck president had surrounded himself with a crew of unscrupulous lawyers, conspiracy theorists, even the chief executive of MyPillow — and they were stoking his election lies.

Trump had been handing out Donoghue’s cellphone number so that people could pass on rumors of election fraud. Who could be calling him now?

It turned out to be a member of Congress: Rep. Scott Perry, R-Pa., who began pressing the president’s case. Perry said he had compiled a dossier of voter fraud allegations that the department needed to vet. Jeffrey Clark, a Justice Department lawyer who had found favor with Trump, could “do something” about the president’s claims, Perry said, even if others in the department would not.

The message was delivered by an obscure lawmaker who was doing Trump’s bidding. Justice Department officials viewed it as outrageous political pressure from a White House that had become consumed by conspiracy theories.

It was also one example of how a half-dozen right-wing members of Congress became key foot soldiers in Trump’s effort to overturn the election, according to dozens of interviews and a review of hundreds of pages of congressional testimony about the attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6.

The lawmakers — all of them members of the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus — worked closely with the White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows, whose central role in Trump’s efforts to overturn a democratic election is coming into focus as the congressional investigation into Jan. 6 gains traction.

There was Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, the pugnacious former wrestler who bolstered his national profile by defending Trump on cable television; Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona, whose political ascent was padded by a $10 million sweepstakes win; and Rep. Paul Gosar, an Arizona dentist who trafficked in conspiracy theories and spoke at a white nationalist rally.

They were joined by Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas, who was known for fiery speeches delivered to an empty House chamber and unsuccessfully sued Vice President Mike Pence over his refusal to interfere in the election certification; and Rep. Mo Brooks of Alabama, a lawyer who rode the Tea Party wave to Congress and was later sued by a Democratic congressman for inciting the Jan. 6 riot.

Perry, a former Army helicopter pilot who is close to Jordan and Meadows, acted as a de facto sergeant. He coordinated many of the efforts to keep Trump in office, including a plan to replace the acting attorney general with a more compliant official. His colleagues call him General Perry.

Meadows, a former congressman from North Carolina who co-founded the Freedom Caucus in 2015, knew the six lawmakers well. His role as Trump’s right-hand man helped to remarkably empower the group in the president’s final, chaotic weeks in office.

Congressional Republicans have fought the Jan. 6 committee’s investigation at every turn, but it is increasingly clear that Trump relied on the lawmakers to help his attempts to retain power. When Justice Department officials said they could not find evidence of widespread fraud, Trump was unconcerned: “Just say that the election was corrupt + leave the rest to me and the R. Congressmen,” he said, according to Donoghue’s notes of the call.

November

On Nov. 9, two days after The Associated Press called the race for Biden, crisis meetings were underway at Trump campaign headquarters in Arlington, Virginia.

Perry and Jordan huddled with senior White House officials, including Meadows; Stephen Miller, a top Trump adviser; Bill Stepien, the campaign manager; and Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary.

According to two people familiar with the meetings, which have not been previously reported, the group settled on a strategy that would become a blueprint for Trump’s supporters in Congress: Hammer home the idea that the election was tainted, announce legal actions being taken by the campaign, and bolster the case with allegations of fraud.

Gosar embraced the fraud claims so closely that his chief of staff, Tom Van Flein, rushed to an airplane hangar parking lot in Phoenix after a conspiracy theory began circulating that a suspicious jet carrying ballots from South Korea was about to land, perhaps in a bid to steal the election from Trump, according to court documents filed by one of the participants. The claim turned out to be baseless.

December

On Dec. 1, 2020, Attorney General William Barr said publicly what he knew to be true: The Justice Department had found no evidence of widespread election fraud. Biden was the lawful winner.

The attorney general’s declaration seemed only to energize the six lawmakers. Gohmert suggested that the FBI in Washington could not be trusted to investigate election fraud. Biggs said that Trump’s allies needed “the imprimatur, quite frankly of the DOJ,” to win their lawsuits claiming fraud.

They turned their attention to Jan. 6, when Pence was to officially certify Biden’s victory. Jordan, asked if the president should concede, replied, “No way.”

On Dec. 21, Trump met with members of the Freedom Caucus to discuss their plans. Jordan, Gosar, Biggs, Brooks and Meadows were there.

“This sedition will be stopped,” Gosar wrote on Twitter.

January

On Jan. 5, Jordan was still pushing. That day, he forwarded Meadows a text message he had received from a lawyer and former Pentagon inspector general outlining a legal strategy to overturn the election.

“On January 6, 2021, Vice President Mike Pence, as President of the Senate, should call out all the electoral votes that he believes are unconstitutional as no electoral votes at all — in accordance with guidance from founding father Alexander Hamilton and judicial precedence,” the text read.

On Jan. 6, Washington was overcast and breezy as thousands of people gathered at the Ellipse to hear Trump and his allies spread a lie that has become a rallying cry in the months since: that the election was stolen.

Brooks, wearing body armor, took the stage in the morning, saying he was speaking at the behest of the White House. The crowd began to swell.

“Today is the day American patriots start taking down names and kicking ass,” Brooks said. “Are you willing to do what it takes to fight for America?”

Trump approached the dais soon after. “We will never give up,” Trump said. “We will never concede.”

Roaring their approval, many in the crowd began the walk down Pennsylvania Avenue toward the Capitol, where the certification proceeding was underway. Amped up by the speakers at the rally, the crowd taunted the officers who guarded the Capitol and pushed toward the building’s staircases and entry points, eventually breaching security along the perimeter just after 1 p.m.

By this point, the six lawmakers were inside the Capitol, ready to protest the certification. Gosar was speaking at 2:16 p.m. when security forces entered the chamber because rioters were in the building.

As the melee erupted, Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, yelled to his colleagues who were planning to challenge the election: “This is what you’ve gotten, guys.”

When Jordan tried to help Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., move to safety, she smacked his hand away, according to a congressional aide briefed on the exchange.

“Get away from me,” she told him. “You fucking did this."

A spokesman for Jordan disputed parts of the account, saying that Cheney did not curse at the congressman or slap him.

The back-and-forth was reported earlier by Washington Post reporters Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker in their book “I Alone Can Fix It.”

The Aftermath

Perry was recently elected leader of the Freedom Caucus, elevating him to an influential leadership post as Republicans could regain control of the House in 2022. The stolen election claim is now a litmus test for the party, with Trump and his allies working to oust those who refuse to back it.

All six lawmakers are poised to be key supporters should Trump maintain his political clout before the midterm and general elections. Brooks is running for Senate in Alabama, and Gohmert is running for Texas attorney general.Some, like Jordan, are in line to become committee chairs if Republicans take back the House.

In many ways, they have tried to rewrite history. Several of the men have argued that the Jan. 6 attack was akin to a tourist visit to the Capitol. Gosar cast the attackers as “peaceful patriots across the country." A Pew research poll found that nearly two-thirds of Republicans said their party should not accept elected officials who criticize Trump.

Still, the House select committee investigating the Capitol attack appears to be picking up steam, voting this week to recommend that Meadows be charged with criminal contempt of Congress.

Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss. and the chairman of the committee, said the panel would follow the facts wherever they led, including to members of Congress.

“Nobody,” he said, “is off-limits.”

Two days after Christmas last year, Richard P. Donoghue, a top Justice Department official in the waning days of the Trump administration, saw an unknown number appear on his phone.

Two days after Christmas last year, Richard P. Donoghue, a top Justice Department official in the waning days of the Trump administration, saw an unknown number appear on his phone. Donoghue had spent weeks fielding calls, emails and in-person requests from President Donald Trump and his allies, all of whom asked the Justice Department to declare, falsely, that the election was corrupt. The lame-duck president had surrounded himself with a crew of unscrupulous lawyers, conspiracy theorists, even the chief executive of MyPillow — and they were stoking his election lies. Trump had been handing out Donoghue’s cellphone number so that people could pass on rumors of election fraud. Who could be calling him now? It turned out to be a member of Congress: Rep. Scott Perry, R-Pa., who began pressing the president’s case. Perry said he had compiled a dossier of voter fraud allegations that the department needed to vet. Jeffrey Clark, a Justice Department lawyer who had found favor with Trump, could “do something” about the president’s claims, Perry said, even if others in the department would not. The message was delivered by an obscure lawmaker who was doing Trump’s bidding. Justice Department officials viewed it as outrageous political pressure from a White House that had become consumed by conspiracy theories. It was also one example of how a half-dozen right-wing members of Congress became key foot soldiers in Trump’s effort to overturn the election, according to dozens of interviews and a review of hundreds of pages of congressional testimony about the attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6. The lawmakers — all of them members of the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus — worked closely with the White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows, whose central role in Trump’s efforts to overturn a democratic election is coming into focus as the congressional investigation into Jan. 6 gains traction. There was Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, the pugnacious former wrestler who bolstered his national profile by defending Trump on cable television; Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona, whose political ascent was padded by a $10 million sweepstakes win; and Rep. Paul Gosar, an Arizona dentist who trafficked in conspiracy theories and spoke at a white nationalist rally. They were joined by Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas, who was known for fiery speeches delivered to an empty House chamber and unsuccessfully sued Vice President Mike Pence over his refusal to interfere in the election certification; and Rep. Mo Brooks of Alabama, a lawyer who rode the Tea Party wave to Congress and was later sued by a Democratic congressman for inciting the Jan. 6 riot. Perry, a former Army helicopter pilot who is close to Jordan and Meadows, acted as a de facto sergeant. He coordinated many of the efforts to keep Trump in office, including a plan to replace the acting attorney general with a more compliant official. His colleagues call him General Perry. Meadows, a former congressman from North Carolina who co-founded the Freedom Caucus in 2015, knew the six lawmakers well. His role as Trump’s right-hand man helped to remarkably empower the group in the president’s final, chaotic weeks in office. Congressional Republicans have fought the Jan. 6 committee’s investigation at every turn, but it is increasingly clear that Trump relied on the lawmakers to help his attempts to retain power. When Justice Department officials said they could not find evidence of widespread fraud, Trump was unconcerned: “Just say that the election was corrupt + leave the rest to me and the R. Congressmen,” he said, according to Donoghue’s notes of the call. November On Nov. 9, two days after The Associated Press called the race for Biden, crisis meetings were underway at Trump campaign headquarters in Arlington, Virginia. Perry and Jordan huddled with senior White House officials, including Meadows; Stephen Miller, a top Trump adviser; Bill Stepien, the campaign manager; and Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary. According to two people familiar with the meetings, which have not been previously reported, the group settled on a strategy that would become a blueprint for Trump’s supporters in Congress: Hammer home the idea that the election was tainted, announce legal actions being taken by the campaign, and bolster the case with allegations of fraud. Gosar embraced the fraud claims so closely that his chief of staff, Tom Van Flein, rushed to an airplane hangar parking lot in Phoenix after a conspiracy theory began circulating that a suspicious jet carrying ballots from South Korea was about to land, perhaps in a bid to steal the election from Trump, according to court documents filed by one of the participants. The claim turned out to be baseless. December On Dec. 1, 2020, Attorney General William Barr said publicly what he knew to be true: The Justice Department had found no evidence of widespread election fraud. Biden was the lawful winner. The attorney general’s declaration seemed only to energize the six lawmakers. Gohmert suggested that the FBI in Washington could not be trusted to investigate election fraud. Biggs said that Trump’s allies needed “the imprimatur, quite frankly of the DOJ,” to win their lawsuits claiming fraud. They turned their attention to Jan. 6, when Pence was to officially certify Biden’s victory. Jordan, asked if the president should concede, replied, “No way.” On Dec. 21, Trump met with members of the Freedom Caucus to discuss their plans. Jordan, Gosar, Biggs, Brooks and Meadows were there. “This sedition will be stopped,” Gosar wrote on Twitter. January On Jan. 5, Jordan was still pushing. That day, he forwarded Meadows a text message he had received from a lawyer and former Pentagon inspector general outlining a legal strategy to overturn the election. “On January 6, 2021, Vice President Mike Pence, as President of the Senate, should call out all the electoral votes that he believes are unconstitutional as no electoral votes at all — in accordance with guidance from founding father Alexander Hamilton and judicial precedence,” the text read. On Jan. 6, Washington was overcast and breezy as thousands of people gathered at the Ellipse to hear Trump and his allies spread a lie that has become a rallying cry in the months since: that the election was stolen. Brooks, wearing body armor, took the stage in the morning, saying he was speaking at the behest of the White House. The crowd began to swell. “Today is the day American patriots start taking down names and kicking ass,” Brooks said. “Are you willing to do what it takes to fight for America?” Trump approached the dais soon after. “We will never give up,” Trump said. “We will never concede.” Roaring their approval, many in the crowd began the walk down Pennsylvania Avenue toward the Capitol, where the certification proceeding was underway. Amped up by the speakers at the rally, the crowd taunted the officers who guarded the Capitol and pushed toward the building’s staircases and entry points, eventually breaching security along the perimeter just after 1 p.m. By this point, the six lawmakers were inside the Capitol, ready to protest the certification. Gosar was speaking at 2:16 p.m. when security forces entered the chamber because rioters were in the building. As the melee erupted, Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, yelled to his colleagues who were planning to challenge the election: “This is what you’ve gotten, guys.” When Jordan tried to help Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., move to safety, she smacked his hand away, according to a congressional aide briefed on the exchange. “Get away from me,” she told him. “You fucking did this." A spokesman for Jordan disputed parts of the account, saying that Cheney did not curse at the congressman or slap him. The back-and-forth was reported earlier by Washington Post reporters Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker in their book “I Alone Can Fix It.” The Aftermath Perry was recently elected leader of the Freedom Caucus, elevating him to an influential leadership post as Republicans could regain control of the House in 2022. The stolen election claim is now a litmus test for the party, with Trump and his allies working to oust those who refuse to back it. All six lawmakers are poised to be key supporters should Trump maintain his political clout before the midterm and general elections. Brooks is running for Senate in Alabama, and Gohmert is running for Texas attorney general.Some, like Jordan, are in line to become committee chairs if Republicans take back the House. In many ways, they have tried to rewrite history. Several of the men have argued that the Jan. 6 attack was akin to a tourist visit to the Capitol. Gosar cast the attackers as “peaceful patriots across the country." A Pew research poll found that nearly two-thirds of Republicans said their party should not accept elected officials who criticize Trump. Still, the House select committee investigating the Capitol attack appears to be picking up steam, voting this week to recommend that Meadows be charged with criminal contempt of Congress. Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss. and the chairman of the committee, said the panel would follow the facts wherever they led, including to members of Congress. “Nobody,” he said, “is off-limits.”

Meadows and the band of loyalists: How they fought to keep Trump in power

From Victory Day (Vijay Divas) celebrations in Bangladesh to the United States blacklisting Chinese biotech firms for trying to seek surveillance on the Uyghur minority and top Coronavirus (COVID-19) updates from across the world. Here's a compilation of top 10 world news:&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/live-bangladesh-celebrates-50-years-of-victory-437277">India and Bangladesh celebrate 50 years of victory against Pakistan</a>&nbsp;

India and Bangladesh are celebrating Victory Day (Vijay Divas) today. On this day in 1971, Bangladesh emerged as an independent country following a nine-month-long bloodstained War of Liberation against the Pakistani forces.&nbsp;

<img alt="India and Bangladesh" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="91472ace-2f68-4a24-ae4f-39a4d32c649b" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/India%20and%20Bangladesh.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/purported-brain-control-weaponry-us-blacklists-chinese-biotech-firms-over-uyghur-surveillance-437470">'Purported brain-control weaponry': US blacklists Chinese biotech firms over Uyghur surveillance</a>

The United States has blacklisted Chinese biotech firms for trying to seek surveillance on the Uyghur minority. Trade with the Academy of Military Medical Sciences and 11 of its research institutes has been restricted by the US Commerce Department over its biotechnology work including "purported brain-control weaponry."

<img alt="US-China" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="50f41952-73ea-4b25-97fc-b514cc2567b4" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/US-China.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/uk-reports-more-than-78000-covid-cases-highest-daily-since-pandemic-began-437395">UK reports more than 78,000 Covid cases, highest daily since pandemic began</a>

The UK has reported 78,610 Covid cases in the last 24 hours, the highest daily since the pandemic began. The previous highest daily spike was on January 8 this year, when 68,053 cases were recorded.

<img alt="Covid cases" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="62ecf37a-712c-420b-8f4d-658f0f7963c0" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Covid%20cases.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/france-tightens-travel-curbs-for-uk-travellers-amid-omicron-surge-437463">France tightens travel curbs for UK travellers amid Omicron surge</a>

France has banned non-essential travel to and from UK, which has been reporting a spike in Covid cases ever since it reported the first case of the Omicron variant. Only those with “compelling reasons” will be allowed to travel between the two countries, the French government said in a statement.

<img alt="France" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="994f5527-f168-47ce-906d-4161a6bf1966" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/France_0.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/covid-vaccines-likely-to-be-less-effective-against-omicron-variant-who-437383">Covid vaccines likely to be less effective against Omicron variant: WHO</a>

Based on a preliminary study, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said that the COVID-19 vaccines may be less effective against the Omicron variant— which has a higher chance of reinfection. The WHO said further research is required to get a clearer sense of how the omicron variant may penetrate immunity gained from the vaccines, which have generally proved effective against the coronavirus, Reuters reported.

<img alt="COVID" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="4085b6e8-d9d0-4d9e-998f-ce7d639ecc47" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/covid.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/from-strong-winds-to-raging-floodwaters-typhoon-rai-hits-philippines-437420#category-5-storm-437408">From strong winds to raging floodwaters: Typhoon Rai hits Philippines</a>&nbsp;

Strong winds, heavy rain, and flooding were seen across parts of central and southern Philippines as Typhoon Rai rapidly intensified to a Category 5 storm, forcing mass evacuations and flight cancellations.

<img alt="Philippines" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="88fdeff6-519f-4c79-90a8-aff08bbe0c1b" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Philippines_0.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/horrific-tragedy-five-children-die-after-jumping-castle-blown-into-air-at-australian-school-437373">'Horrific tragedy': Five children die after jumping castle blown into air at Australian school</a>&nbsp;

At least five school children were killed and some were badly injured in an accident in Australia as their jumping castle was thrown into the air after a gust of wind picked it up. The heartbreaking incident happened on Thursday (December 16) during an end-of-year party when they were celebrating the last week of class before Christmas break in a primary school in Devonport, northern Tasmania.

<img alt="Australia" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="edc18ac9-e974-44e4-b607-c8c5ef673df9" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Tasmanian%20school.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/canada-to-ask-people-to-avoid-international-travel-amid-concerns-of-omicron-437353">Canada to ask people to avoid international travel amid concerns of Omicron</a>

To battle the growing Covid cases, Canada will be advising its population to avoid international travel as much as possible. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government is expected to advise Canadians to avoid non-essential international travel, claims a report by Reuters. As of now, Canada has travel bans on 10 African countries due to the Omicron variant.&nbsp;

<img alt="Covid cases" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="c6c81367-0ed5-4099-9a19-f68463e342ad" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Covid%20cases%20%282%29.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/trending/photos-lost-in-kentucky-tornado-found-in-town-225-kms-away-437446">Photos lost in Kentucky tornado found in town 225 kms away</a>

A natural calamity brings destruction to any community. People are always helpless when the elements decide to turn from their nurturing selves to destructing ones. It's recovery from troubles that defines human spirit and small things give a boost to the communities which are holding hands to stand up again after a calamity.

The state of Kentucky is US is gathering itself after it was hit by a tornado. The storm was deadliest in Kentucky's history. As people recover from damage to their property and things, some unbelievable stories are coming to light.

<img alt="Kentucky" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="c1de4979-ca6d-4eec-a209-1b681813e72e" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Kentucky%20%283%29.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/uks-highest-court-rejects-campaigner-christie-elan-canes-appeal-of-gender-neutral-passports-437449">UK's highest court rejects campaigner Christie Elan-Cane's appeal of gender-neutral passports</a>&nbsp;

The Supreme of the United Kingdom has rejected British campaigner Christie Elan-Cane's appeal of granting approval to ''genderless'' passports. Elan-Cane, who identifies as "non-gendered," has accused Britain's passport application process of being "inherently discriminatory".

<img alt="United Kingdom" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="35810704-f07f-4e03-8f17-31cb2daa5579" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/United%20Kingdom.jpg" />

From Victory Day (Vijay Divas) celebrations in Bangladesh to the United States blacklisting Chinese biotech firms for trying to seek surveillance on the Uyghur minority and top Coronavirus (COVID-19) updates from across the world.

From Victory Day (Vijay Divas) celebrations in Bangladesh to the United States blacklisting Chinese biotech firms for trying to seek surveillance on the Uyghur minority and top Coronavirus (COVID-19) updates from across the world. Here's a compilation of top 10 world news: India and Bangladesh celebrate 50 years of victory against Pakistan India and Bangladesh are celebrating Victory Day (Vijay Divas) today. On this day in 1971, Bangladesh emerged as an independent country following a nine-month-long bloodstained War of Liberation against the Pakistani forces. 'Purported brain-control weaponry': US blacklists Chinese biotech firms over Uyghur surveillance The United States has blacklisted Chinese biotech firms for trying to seek surveillance on the Uyghur minority. Trade with the Academy of Military Medical Sciences and 11 of its research institutes has been restricted by the US Commerce Department over its biotechnology work including "purported brain-control weaponry." UK reports more than 78,000 Covid cases, highest daily since pandemic began The UK has reported 78,610 Covid cases in the last 24 hours, the highest daily since the pandemic began. The previous highest daily spike was on January 8 this year, when 68,053 cases were recorded. France tightens travel curbs for UK travellers amid Omicron surge France has banned non-essential travel to and from UK, which has been reporting a spike in Covid cases ever since it reported the first case of the Omicron variant. Only those with “compelling reasons” will be allowed to travel between the two countries, the French government said in a statement. Covid vaccines likely to be less effective against Omicron variant: WHO Based on a preliminary study, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said that the COVID-19 vaccines may be less effective against the Omicron variant— which has a higher chance of reinfection. The WHO said further research is required to get a clearer sense of how the omicron variant may penetrate immunity gained from the vaccines, which have generally proved effective against the coronavirus, Reuters reported. From strong winds to raging floodwaters: Typhoon Rai hits Philippines Strong winds, heavy rain, and flooding were seen across parts of central and southern Philippines as Typhoon Rai rapidly intensified to a Category 5 storm, forcing mass evacuations and flight cancellations. 'Horrific tragedy': Five children die after jumping castle blown into air at Australian school At least five school children were killed and some were badly injured in an accident in Australia as their jumping castle was thrown into the air after a gust of wind picked it up. The heartbreaking incident happened on Thursday (December 16) during an end-of-year party when they were celebrating the last week of class before Christmas break in a primary school in Devonport, northern Tasmania. Canada to ask people to avoid international travel amid concerns of Omicron To battle the growing Covid cases, Canada will be advising its population to avoid international travel as much as possible. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government is expected to advise Canadians to avoid non-essential international travel, claims a report by Reuters. As of now, Canada has travel bans on 10 African countries due to the Omicron variant. Photos lost in Kentucky tornado found in town 225 kms away A natural calamity brings destruction to any community. People are always helpless when the elements decide to turn from their nurturing selves to destructing ones. It's recovery from troubles that defines human spirit and small things give a boost to the communities which are holding hands to stand up again after a calamity. The state of Kentucky is US is gathering itself after it was hit by a tornado. The storm was deadliest in Kentucky's history. As people recover from damage to their property and things, some unbelievable stories are coming to light. UK's highest court rejects campaigner Christie Elan-Cane's appeal of gender-neutral passports The Supreme of the United Kingdom has rejected British campaigner Christie Elan-Cane's appeal of granting approval to ''genderless'' passports. Elan-Cane, who identifies as "non-gendered," has accused Britain's passport application process of being "inherently discriminatory".

Top 10 World News: US blacklists Chinese biotech firms, rise in Covid cases in UK and more

As the US economy nears full employment and the Central bank copes with a surge of inflation, the central bank federal reserve would end its pandemic-era bond purchases.

United States: Fed signals three rate hikes in 2022

COVID-19 cases in Canada may rapidly rise in the coming days due to community spread of the Omicron variant, mirroring the situation in the country's most populous province, of Ontario, Canada's top health official said on Monday.

The surge of COVID-19 cases in Ontario, which accounts for almost 40% of Canada's population of 39 million people, has prompted the provincial government to suspend the easing of restrictions that were planned to be lifted ahead of the holiday season.

The province reported 1,536 cases of COVID-19 on Monday, a more-than 70% jump from a week ago, including 80 cases of the Omicron variant, which has spread across over 60 countries since being first detected last month.

The World Health Organization has said that the Omicron coronavirus variant poses a "very high" global risk, with some evidence that it evades vaccine protection, but clinical data on its severity is limited.

At least one patient has died in the United Kingdom after contracting the Omicron variant, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday.

Ontario has directed government staff, who started gradually returning to their offices in November, to go back to working from home at least until early-February, CTV news reported Monday.

"So what we're seeing in Ontario, I expect to be seen in other areas of the country, as has been seen in Europe and other areas of the world," chief public health officer Theresa Tam told a news conference.

"But for sure, we are seeing community transmission, possibly in its early stages, but this can rapidly escalate in the days to come," she added, responding to questions from reporters after she announced recommendations to improve the Canadian public health system in a report to the parliament.

Canada needs to hire of more health workers, improve technology and governance, as well as provide more stable funding, she said in the report.

"Canada's public health system is not perfect, and significant work lies ahead in terms of our transformation process, we must get ready to roll our sleeves up," Tam said.

COVID-19 cases in Canada may rapidly rise in the coming days due to community spread of the Omicron variant, mirroring the situation in the country's most populous province, of Ontario, Canada's top health official said on Monday.

COVID-19 cases in Canada may rapidly rise in the coming days due to community spread of the Omicron variant, mirroring the situation in the country's most populous province, of Ontario, Canada's top health official said on Monday. The surge of COVID-19 cases in Ontario, which accounts for almost 40% of Canada's population of 39 million people, has prompted the provincial government to suspend the easing of restrictions that were planned to be lifted ahead of the holiday season. The province reported 1,536 cases of COVID-19 on Monday, a more-than 70% jump from a week ago, including 80 cases of the Omicron variant, which has spread across over 60 countries since being first detected last month. The World Health Organization has said that the Omicron coronavirus variant poses a "very high" global risk, with some evidence that it evades vaccine protection, but clinical data on its severity is limited. At least one patient has died in the United Kingdom after contracting the Omicron variant, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday. Ontario has directed government staff, who started gradually returning to their offices in November, to go back to working from home at least until early-February, CTV news reported Monday. "So what we're seeing in Ontario, I expect to be seen in other areas of the country, as has been seen in Europe and other areas of the world," chief public health officer Theresa Tam told a news conference. "But for sure, we are seeing community transmission, possibly in its early stages, but this can rapidly escalate in the days to come," she added, responding to questions from reporters after she announced recommendations to improve the Canadian public health system in a report to the parliament. Canada needs to hire of more health workers, improve technology and governance, as well as provide more stable funding, she said in the report. "Canada's public health system is not perfect, and significant work lies ahead in terms of our transformation process, we must get ready to roll our sleeves up," Tam said.

Canada could soon see a rapid surge in COVID-19 cases as Omicron spreads locally 

US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released data related to the latest coronavirus (COVID-19) variant Omicron, which has a large number of mutations, said to be posing a bigger threat than previous variants.&nbsp;

In a report published by CDC, an analysis of Omicron-led Covid cases in the country has been done. Data revealed the situation in the first week after the emergence of the first Omicron case in the US was detected.&nbsp;

The reports mentioned that on December 1, the first case attributed to the Omicron variant was reported in the United States. As of December 8, a total of 22 states identified at least one Omicron variant case.&nbsp;

ALSO READ | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/chronic-diseases-documents-reveal-nearly-160000-adverse-effects-of-pfizer-covid-vaccine-436459">Chronic diseases: Documents reveal nearly 160,000 adverse effects of Pfizer Covid vaccine</a>

The report mentioned that among 43 cases with initial follow-up, one was hospitalised and none of the patients died due to the Omicron variant.&nbsp;

The report mentioned that among 43 cases with initial follow-up, one was hospitalised due to Omicron variant. Out of total cases, 34 were fully vaccinated and 14 took their booster shots, revealed the agency's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).&nbsp;

The report summarised US surveillance for variants, characteristics of the initial persons investigated with COVID-19 attributed to the Omicron variant and public health measures implemented to slow the spread of Omicron in the United States.&nbsp;

The report mentioned that implementation of current preventive measures, such as vaccination, masking, increased ventilation, testing, quarantine and isolation are recommended against the Omicron variant.&nbsp;

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As per CDC data, the most common symptoms were cough, fatigue and congestion or a runny nose. The first cases appeared to be mild, but the report warned that "as with all variants, a lag exists between infection and more severe outcomes".

"Even if most infections are mild, a highly transmissible variant could result in enough cases to overwhelm health systems. The clinical severity of infection with the Omicron variant will become better understood as additional cases are identified and investigated," the authors warned.&nbsp;

Meanwhile, the data on the severity of Omicron is still limited but preliminary findings from South Africa suggest it may be less severe than Delta.&nbsp;

But the initial probe suggests a reduction in vaccine efficacy against infection and transmission associated with Omicron.&nbsp;

As per the report, from August 13 to November 19, 18.7 million older adults have received a booster or additional primary dose of Covid in the US.&nbsp;

Meanwhile, scientists have urged Americans to get vaccinated and take a booster dose if eligible.&nbsp;

US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released data related to the latest coronavirus (COVID-19) variant Omicron, which has a large number of mutations, said to be posing a bigger threat than previous variants.

US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released data related to the latest coronavirus (COVID-19) variant Omicron, which has a large number of mutations, said to be posing a bigger threat than previous variants. In a report published by CDC, an analysis of Omicron-led Covid cases in the country has been done. Data revealed the situation in the first week after the emergence of the first Omicron case in the US was detected. The reports mentioned that on December 1, the first case attributed to the Omicron variant was reported in the United States. As of December 8, a total of 22 states identified at least one Omicron variant case. ALSO READ | Chronic diseases: Documents reveal nearly 160,000 adverse effects of Pfizer Covid vaccine The report mentioned that among 43 cases with initial follow-up, one was hospitalised and none of the patients died due to the Omicron variant. The report mentioned that among 43 cases with initial follow-up, one was hospitalised due to Omicron variant. Out of total cases, 34 were fully vaccinated and 14 took their booster shots, revealed the agency's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR). The report summarised US surveillance for variants, characteristics of the initial persons investigated with COVID-19 attributed to the Omicron variant and public health measures implemented to slow the spread of Omicron in the United States. The report mentioned that implementation of current preventive measures, such as vaccination, masking, increased ventilation, testing, quarantine and isolation are recommended against the Omicron variant. × As per CDC data, the most common symptoms were cough, fatigue and congestion or a runny nose. The first cases appeared to be mild, but the report warned that "as with all variants, a lag exists between infection and more severe outcomes". "Even if most infections are mild, a highly transmissible variant could result in enough cases to overwhelm health systems. The clinical severity of infection with the Omicron variant will become better understood as additional cases are identified and investigated," the authors warned. Meanwhile, the data on the severity of Omicron is still limited but preliminary findings from South Africa suggest it may be less severe than Delta. But the initial probe suggests a reduction in vaccine efficacy against infection and transmission associated with Omicron. As per the report, from August 13 to November 19, 18.7 million older adults have received a booster or additional primary dose of Covid in the US. Meanwhile, scientists have urged Americans to get vaccinated and take a booster dose if eligible.

CDC report on COVID-19 situation after initial detection of Omicron variant in the United States

United Nations President Joe Biden has asked the government's agency Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to find out whether the deadly tornadoes were caused by the climate crisis.&nbsp;

Dozens of tornadoes ripped through at least six states (Kentucky, Arkansas, Illinois, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee) late Friday and early Saturday, causing massive destruction of life and property.&nbsp;

The latest information from the US authorities confirmed that the death toll in the worst-affected state Kentucky stood at 64 on Monday (December 13). At least 14 people were killed in four other US states

Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said, "There will be more. We believe it will certainly be above 70, maybe even 80."&nbsp;

IN PICS | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/tornadoes-in-us-before-and-after-satellite-images-show-massive-destruction-436366#massive-destruction-436357">Tornadoes in US: Before and after satellite images show massive destruction</a>

Biden also confirmed that he will visit Kentucky on Wednesday (December 15) to survey the damage. It has been conveyed by the White House that Biden would travel to Fort Campbell, Kentucky, for a storm briefing, and Mayfield and Dawson Springs, Kentucky.&nbsp;

When the initial damages were reported, Biden had asked EPA to find whether climate crisis has played a role in the devastating tornadoes.&nbsp;

"The specific impact on these specific storms, I can't say at this point. I'm going to be asking the EPA and others to take a look at that," Biden said in a briefing.&nbsp;

He added, "But the fact is that we know everything is more intense when the climate is warming. And obviously, it has some impact here."

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Victor Gensini, a professor in geographic and atmospheric sciences at Northern Illinois University said that unusually high temperatures and humidity created the environment for such an extreme weather event at this time of year.&nbsp;

In recent years, analysts have been working to find out the links between an increase in global temperatures and how it is becoming a catalyst for the rising intensity of unseasonal severe weather events.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)

United Nations President Joe Biden has asked the government's agency Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to find out whether the deadly tornadoes were caused by the climate crisis.

United Nations President Joe Biden has asked the government's agency Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to find out whether the deadly tornadoes were caused by the climate crisis. Dozens of tornadoes ripped through at least six states (Kentucky, Arkansas, Illinois, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee) late Friday and early Saturday, causing massive destruction of life and property. The latest information from the US authorities confirmed that the death toll in the worst-affected state Kentucky stood at 64 on Monday (December 13). At least 14 people were killed in four other US states Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said, "There will be more. We believe it will certainly be above 70, maybe even 80." IN PICS | Tornadoes in US: Before and after satellite images show massive destruction Biden also confirmed that he will visit Kentucky on Wednesday (December 15) to survey the damage. It has been conveyed by the White House that Biden would travel to Fort Campbell, Kentucky, for a storm briefing, and Mayfield and Dawson Springs, Kentucky. When the initial damages were reported, Biden had asked EPA to find whether climate crisis has played a role in the devastating tornadoes. "The specific impact on these specific storms, I can't say at this point. I'm going to be asking the EPA and others to take a look at that," Biden said in a briefing. He added, "But the fact is that we know everything is more intense when the climate is warming. And obviously, it has some impact here." × Victor Gensini, a professor in geographic and atmospheric sciences at Northern Illinois University said that unusually high temperatures and humidity created the environment for such an extreme weather event at this time of year. In recent years, analysts have been working to find out the links between an increase in global temperatures and how it is becoming a catalyst for the rising intensity of unseasonal severe weather events. (With inputs from agencies)

US President Joe Biden asks EPA to probe role of climate crisis in deadly tornadoes

Tornadoes in US: Before and after satellite images show massive destruction

Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear revealed a grim reality of the region that was left devastated after powerful tornadoes ripped through at least six states in the US late Friday and early Saturday.

Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear revealed a grim reality of the region that was left devastated after powerful tornadoes ripped through at least six states in the US late Friday and early Saturday. The tornadoes caused massive destruction of life and property, leaving at least 100 people dead. "The confirmation process is slow. I can tell you from reports that I've received, I know we've lost more than 80 Kentuckians. That number is going to exceed more than 100," Beshear told CNN. Beshear said that most of "morgues aren't big enough" so the coroners are coming in from all over the state to help as the catastrophic tornadoes killed more than 80 in Kentucky alone. He added that he expects the death toll in the state to surpass 100 from the disaster. "One of our challenges is we're losing so many people in this, most of our morgues aren't big enough so our coroners from all over the state are coming in to help," Beshear told NBC's 'Meet The Press'. IN PICS | Tornadoes in US: Before and after satellite images show massive destruction On Sunday (December 12), Several Kentucky residents woke up without power, gas or even a roof over their heads after the tornadoes destroyed homes and businesses. Videos and satellite images showed the scale of devastation across the town of 10,000 people in the state's southwestern corner. People are hoping to find those who are missing as footage revealed that homes were flattened, leaving many homeless. A candle factory n Mayfield was reduced to a pile of rubble, where about 110 people were inside when the storm hit as Beshear said about 40 workers from there. ALSO READ | Collapse at Amazon warehouse sparks debate on phone ban; employees say they will quit In a trembling voice, Beshear during NBC's 'Meet The Press' said that emergency warnings were given in the area but the size and power of the tornadoes were devastating. "It is that devastating. I mean homes totally, totally gone and the people inside them totally gone too. This is something so devastating. The warnings were there. I don't fault anybody for that," he said. What exactly happened? It has been reported that it was a series of thunderstorms, including a supercell storm that formed in northeast Arkansas. That storm moved from Arkansas and Missouri and into Tennessee and Kentucky. Victor Gensini, a professor in geographic and atmospheric sciences at Northern Illinois University said that unusually high temperatures and humidity created the environment for such an extreme weather event at this time of year. United States President Joe Biden told reporters he would ask the Environmental Protection Agency to examine what role climate change may have played in fueling the storms. × (With inputs from agencies)

US: 'Our morgues aren't big enough,' says Kentucky governor as death toll rises after powerful tornadoes

Read the latest information on devastating tornadoes in the United States, UK's warning to Russia over Ukraine situation, Julian Assange's partner revealed that the Wikileaks founder suffered a stroke.&nbsp;

Here are top 10 world news headlines:&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/it-looks-like-a-bomb-has-exploded-survivors-tell-horrifying-experiences-of-deadliest-tornadoes-in-us-436328">'It looks like a bomb has exploded': Survivors tell horrifying experiences of 'deadliest' tornadoes in US</a>

Rescue teams are working in a desperate search for survivors in the aftermath of devastating tornadoes in the United States that left at least 83 people dead and dozens still missing.&nbsp;

At least 30 tornadoes ripped through at least six states late Friday and early Saturday, causing massive destruction of life and property and those who survived are stunned after losing their house and business.

<img alt="tornado" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="bfd45895-2038-4bf2-a577-07622421aa19" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Kentucky.jpg" />&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/russia-will-face-massive-consequences-over-ukraine-incursion-warns-g7-436311">Russia will face 'massive consequences' over Ukraine incursion, warns G7</a>

Britain's foreign secretary Liz Truss while speaking at the G7 foreign ministers meeting warned that Russia would face "massive consequences in case of an incursion into Ukraine".

Western leaders have sought to put pressure on President Putin after reports claimed Russian troops have been massing troops on Ukraine's border.

<img alt="russia" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="8ee9ddf9-d14b-46f5-9763-99102a8fc062" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/russia-ukraine.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/it-looks-like-a-bomb-has-exploded-survivors-tell-horrifying-experiences-of-deadliest-tornadoes-in-us-436328">Assange suffered a stroke in prison during UK court hearing, says fiancee</a>

Julian Assange's partner Stella Moris has said the Wikileaks founder suffered a stroke on the first day of the UK High Court appeal hearing on October 27.

Assange, 50, is holed up in UK's Belmarsh prison. Moris told the press that the stroke could lead to a "major attack".

<img alt="Julian Assange" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="0e2875f4-1cf3-4a2f-8f0f-a3963e465739" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Julian%20Assange.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/social-media-threat-to-todays-democracy-says-turkey-president-erdogan-436322">Social media threat to today’s democracy, says Turkey President Erdogan</a>

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared today that social media is a "threat to today’s democracy".

“Social media, which was described as a symbol of freedom when it first appeared, has turned into one of the main sources of threat to today’s democracy,” Erodgan said.

<img alt="Tayyip Erdogan" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="2eb4abc6-58f7-4266-afce-0ac5b4a4674b" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Tayyip%20Erdogan.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/israeli-pm-naftali-bennett-to-make-historic-visit-to-uae-will-discuss-economic-and-regional-issues-436285">Israeli PM Naftali Bennett to make historic visit to UAE, will discuss economic and regional issues</a>

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett will depart on his first official visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), his office announced in a press release on Sunday (December 12).&nbsp;

The press release noted that Bennett is expected to meet tomorrow with the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed during the historic visit.&nbsp;

<img alt="Naftali Bennett" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="31de2818-4454-4f33-81ce-0b8007f5d4fd" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Naftali%20Bennett.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/italy-at-least-3-dead-after-gas-explosion-in-sicily-drone-video-shows-scale-of-devastation-436335">Italy: At least 3 dead after gas explosion in Sicily, drone video shows scale of devastation</a>

Multiple residential buildings collapsed, killing at least three people in Sicily, Italy in a gas explosion on Saturday (December 12). Six people are reportedly missing as search and rescue work is underway.&nbsp;

<img alt="Italy" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="7d53feaf-f346-483c-be05-ad51bf578b0a" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Ravanusa%2C%20Italy.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/uks-foreign-secretary-says-last-chance-for-iran-to-come-to-the-negotiating-table-and-save-nuclear-deal-436316">UK's foreign secretary says 'last chance' for Iran to come to the negotiating table and save nuclear deal</a>

Britain's Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has warned Iran over the nuclear deal as she said resumed talks in Vienna to save the Iran nuclear deal is the Islamic republic's "last chance" to take a "serious" position.&nbsp;

<img alt="Liz Truss" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="543442ef-770a-4c84-99d6-3ed8a70bc06b" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Liz%20Truss.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/software-flaw-log4shell-may-be-worst-computer-vulnerability-in-a-decade-436306">Software flaw 'Log4Shell' may be worst computer vulnerability in a decade</a>

In what may be the worst computer vulnerability found in years, the flaw, which is dubbed “Log4Shell”, is risking several organisations around the world. The critical vulnerability, which is present in a widely used software tool, is emerging to be a major threat. &nbsp;

<img alt="Log4Shell" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="f2e858b2-ebac-4ea0-8a39-213dbae146fc" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Log4Shell.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/uk-invites-locals-over-30-to-register-for-booster-jabs-amid-omicron-surge-436239">UK invites locals over 30 to register for booster jabs amid Omicron surge</a>

As the Omicron variant is spreading more rapidly across the country, UK’s National Health Service (NHS) has invited locals aged 30 and above to book their Covid boosters, starting from Monday.

<img alt="Omicron" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="4190cbc4-7886-460c-88ed-b0632b72e73b" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Omicron.jpg" />

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/max-verstappen-wins-formula-one-world-title-after-beating-lewis-hamilton-to-clinch-abu-dhabi-grand-prix-436341">Max Verstappen wins Formula One world title after beating Lewis Hamilton to clinch Abu Dhabi Grand Prix</a>

Max Verstappen became the first Dutchman ever to win the Formula One world championship title when he won a dramatic season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday.

The Red Bull driver notched up a 10th victory of the season when he took advantage of a second safety car to overtake seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton on the final lap after Nicholas Latifi crashed.

<img alt="Max Verstappen" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="02f770ef-2f1c-4cfb-a479-7bb9fa959878" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Max%20Verstappen_0.jpg" />

Read the latest information on devastating tornadoes in the United States, UK's warning to Russia over Ukraine situation, Julian Assange's partner revealed that the Wikileaks founder suffered a stroke.

Read the latest information on devastating tornadoes in the United States, UK's warning to Russia over Ukraine situation, Julian Assange's partner revealed that the Wikileaks founder suffered a stroke. Here are top 10 world news headlines: 'It looks like a bomb has exploded': Survivors tell horrifying experiences of 'deadliest' tornadoes in US Rescue teams are working in a desperate search for survivors in the aftermath of devastating tornadoes in the United States that left at least 83 people dead and dozens still missing. At least 30 tornadoes ripped through at least six states late Friday and early Saturday, causing massive destruction of life and property and those who survived are stunned after losing their house and business. Russia will face 'massive consequences' over Ukraine incursion, warns G7 Britain's foreign secretary Liz Truss while speaking at the G7 foreign ministers meeting warned that Russia would face "massive consequences in case of an incursion into Ukraine". Western leaders have sought to put pressure on President Putin after reports claimed Russian troops have been massing troops on Ukraine's border. Assange suffered a stroke in prison during UK court hearing, says fiancee Julian Assange's partner Stella Moris has said the Wikileaks founder suffered a stroke on the first day of the UK High Court appeal hearing on October 27. Assange, 50, is holed up in UK's Belmarsh prison. Moris told the press that the stroke could lead to a "major attack". Social media threat to today’s democracy, says Turkey President Erdogan Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared today that social media is a "threat to today’s democracy". “Social media, which was described as a symbol of freedom when it first appeared, has turned into one of the main sources of threat to today’s democracy,” Erodgan said. Israeli PM Naftali Bennett to make historic visit to UAE, will discuss economic and regional issues Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett will depart on his first official visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), his office announced in a press release on Sunday (December 12). The press release noted that Bennett is expected to meet tomorrow with the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed during the historic visit. Italy: At least 3 dead after gas explosion in Sicily, drone video shows scale of devastation Multiple residential buildings collapsed, killing at least three people in Sicily, Italy in a gas explosion on Saturday (December 12). Six people are reportedly missing as search and rescue work is underway. UK's foreign secretary says 'last chance' for Iran to come to the negotiating table and save nuclear deal Britain's Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has warned Iran over the nuclear deal as she said resumed talks in Vienna to save the Iran nuclear deal is the Islamic republic's "last chance" to take a "serious" position. Software flaw 'Log4Shell' may be worst computer vulnerability in a decade In what may be the worst computer vulnerability found in years, the flaw, which is dubbed “Log4Shell”, is risking several organisations around the world. The critical vulnerability, which is present in a widely used software tool, is emerging to be a major threat. UK invites locals over 30 to register for booster jabs amid Omicron surge As the Omicron variant is spreading more rapidly across the country, UK’s National Health Service (NHS) has invited locals aged 30 and above to book their Covid boosters, starting from Monday. Max Verstappen wins Formula One world title after beating Lewis Hamilton to clinch Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Max Verstappen became the first Dutchman ever to win the Formula One world championship title when he won a dramatic season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday. The Red Bull driver notched up a 10th victory of the season when he took advantage of a second safety car to overtake seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton on the final lap after Nicholas Latifi crashed.

Top 10 world news: G7 warns Russia over Ukraine, tornado survivors tell horrifying experiences, and more

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