Rahm Emanuel leads confirmed Biden nominees in late-night logjam break

Ex-Obama chief of staff will go to Japan after deal for vote on Russia pipeline sanctions ends Republican Senate resistanceThe former Obama White House chief of staff and Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel was among more than 30 ambassadors and other Biden nom…

UK scientists: bring in curbs now or face up to 2m daily Covid infections as Omicron spreads

Deaths could hit 6,000 a day and delaying restrictions until New Year will cut effectiveness, say Sage expertsRead more: is there any good news at all on Omicron?The scale of the threat posed by the Omicron variant was laid bare by government scientist…

Coronavirus live: WHO warns Covid vaccines may be less effective against Omicron variant

Latest updates: Omicron risk remains ‘very high’, says latest WHO statement; Olaf Scholz vows to ‘win the fight’ against Covid in first major address to German parliament US passes 800,000 Covid-related deaths – highest in the worldUK Omicron infection…

Covid live: Thailand to speed up booster jab roll-out; SA president Ramaphosa has ‘mild symptoms’ after positive Covid test

Thailand halves to three months time between administering second shot and a booster; 69 year-old South African president tested positive for Covid-19 on SundayFauci urges Americans to get Covid booster as US nears 800,000 deathsNew Zealand investigate…

Iran nuclear deal pulled back from brink of collapse as talks resume in Vienna

Cautious optimism as Tehran revises its position after pressure from Russia and ChinaEfforts to revive the Iran nuclear deal have been hauled back from the brink of collapse as Tehran revised its stance after pressure from Russia and China and clear wa…