More omicron cases pop up as world rushes to learn more
Cases of the omicron variant of the coronavirus popped up in countries on opposite sides of the world Sunday and many governments rushed to close their borders even as scientists cautioned that it's not clear if the new variant is more alarming than other versions of the virus.
Rally in Belgrade demands end to alarming air pollution
Thousands of people rallied in Belgrade on Sunday to demand an end to Serbia's alarming levels of air pollution. The rally came a day after another environmental protest in which demonstrators blocked bridges and roads in different parts of the country and scuffled with riot police.
In French Pantheon, Josephine Baker makes history yet again
France is inducting Josephine Baker — Missouri-born cabaret dancer, French World War II spy and civil rights activist — into its Pantheon, the first Black woman honored in the final resting place of France's most revered luminaries.
Sports
Frank Williams, founder of Formula One team, dies at 79
Frank Williams, the founder and former team principal of Formula One's Williams Racing, has died. He was 79.
World
Drug gang behind attack that killed feminist in north Mexico
Authorities in northern Mexico said Sunday that a drug gang was behind the shooting attack on a city hall that killed a feminist activist and a bodyguard.
Business
WHO criticizes travel bans on southern African countries
The World Health Organization on Sunday urged countries around the world not to impose flight bans on southern African nations due to concerns over the new omicron variant.
World
Honduran election could oust long-ruling National party
Hondurans voted Sunday for a successor to deeply unpopular President Juan Orlando Hernández in elections that could oust his National Party after 12 years in power.
World
Sudan says 6 soldiers killed in Ethiopia border fighting
Sudan's armed forces said on Sunday that six of its forces were killed in fighting in the country's border region with Ethiopia.
World
Mexicans hope for recovery of monarch butterflies
Communal farmers and butterfly guides are hoping for a rebound in the number of monarch butterflies — and tourists — at their wintering grounds in central Mexico after a bad year for both last year.
Business
Morocco halts all incoming flights because of virus variant
Morocco is suspending all incoming air travel from around the world starting Monday for two weeks because of the rapid spread of the new omicron variant, the government's committee in charge of monitoring COVID-19 announced Sunday.
World
Kyrgyzstan's parliamentary vote boosts president's clout
Kyrgyzstan held a parliamentary election Sunday just over a year after a forceful change of government in the ex-Soviet Central Asian nation and voters backed parties supporting the country's new president, according to early results.
Variety
In omicron hot spot, somber mood as S Africa faces variant
The overcast, drizzly skies match the somber mood at the Tshwane University of Technology, a hot spot in South Africa's latest surge of COVID-19 cases, apparently driven by the new omicron variant that is leading countries around the world to impose new restrictions.
Business
Asian leaders at economic summit vow to help Afghanistan
The leaders of several Asian countries called for boosting their economic ties and pledged to provide assistance to Afghanistan during a summit in Turkmenistan on Sunday.
World
Israel to allow 3,000 Ethiopian Jews to immigrate
Israel's government on Sunday approved the immigration of several thousand Jews from war-torn Ethiopia, some of whom have waited for decades to join their relatives in Israel.
World
EXPLAINER: What we know and don't know on new COVID variant
South African scientists identified a new version of the coronavirus that they say is behind a recent spike in COVID-19 infections in Gauteng, the country's most populous province.
World
In Iraq, family mourns daughter who drowned crossing to UK
Snow globes, teddy bears and makeup brushes — these were the trinkets left behind in northern Iraq by Maryam Nouri who perished this week along with at least 26 others in an ill-fated voyage with dreams of reaching the United Kingdom.
World
EU plane to monitor migrants on Channel shores after deaths
The EU's border agency will dispatch a plane to monitor the shores of the English Channel for migrant activity after 27 people died when their overcrowded, inflatable boat sank en route to Britain, the deadliest migration accident on record on the treacherous crossing.
World
Israeli president celebrates Hanukkah at West Bank site
Israel's president on Sunday visited one of the most contentious spots in the occupied West Bank to celebrate the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah, sparking scuffles between Israeli security forces and protesters.
World
Cambodian prince and politician Norodom Ranariddh dies at 77
Cambodia's Prince Norodom Ranariddh, former prime minister and the son of the late King Norodom Sihanouk, died Sunday in France, Information Minister Khieu Kanharith announced on his Facebook page. He was 77.
World
Swiss vote to approve COVID restrictions as infections rise
Swiss voters on Sunday gave clear backing to legislation that introduced a system with special COVID-19 certificates under which only people who have been vaccinated, recovered or tested negative can attend public events and gatherings.
Business
Dutch impose new tighter lockdown amid spiking infections
The Netherlands moved into a tougher lockdown Sunday that was announced amid spiking infections even before the country recorded its first confirmed cases of the new, more highly transmissible omicron virus variant.
World
Tens of thousands without power in UK in storm's wake
Tens of thousands of people in Scotland and northern England remained without power Sunday after a storm brought sleet, subzero temperatures and disruptions across much of the U.K.
World
New vents open up, lava surges from Spanish island's volcano
Several new volcanic vents have opened up on the Spanish island of La Palma, releasing new lava that is speeding down a ridge and threatening to widen the damages on evacuated land, roads and homes, authorities said Sunday.
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