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

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."