TOP HEADLINES

· Two doses of Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine appear to have given 70 percent protection against hospitalization in South Africa in recent weeks, according to a major real-world study, which suggests weaker efficacy against the new Omicron variant.

The study released on Tuesday by South Africa's largest private health insurance administrator, Discovery Health, was based on more than 211,000 positive COVID-19 test results. Around 78,000 of those results from November 15 to December 7 were attributed to Omicron.

· UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson faces a large rebellion among his Conservative lawmakers on Tuesday in a parliamentary vote over new restrictions to try to curb the spread of the new Omicron coronavirus variant.

The measures, including ordering people to work from home, to wear masks in public places and use COVID-19 passes to enter some venues, are expected to be approved by parliament but with Johnson relying on the opposition Labour Party for votes. 

Many of his lawmakers say the restrictions are draconian, with several questioning the introduction of vaccination certification, or "COVID passports," to enter some venues, such as night clubs.

· The UK Health Secretary Sajid Javid has said Omicron infections in the UK could be 200,000 a day.  

· Javid said England is to remove all 11 countries on its travel "red list"  from 4 a.m. local time on Wednesday because there is already community transmission of the variant. The countries are: Angola, Botswana, Eswantini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

· France is contemplating tightening controls for travelers coming from Britain, said French government spokesman Gabriel Attal.

"Regarding Britain, the current rule is to show a negative test less than 48 hours old in order to enter France," Attal told France Info radio on Tuesday.

"But we are always looking at means to tighten the framework, we are currently working on that and we should, I think, come to a conclusion in the coming days," he added.

· The Dutch government said it is considering closing schools a week early for Christmas this year as coronavirus infections remain high and hospitals struggle with a wave of COVID-19 patients.

Prime Minister Mark Rutte is expected to announce an extension of restrictions that have been in place since November 28 at a news conference on Tuesday evening. 

These include closing all restaurants, bars, non-essential stores, and other public places from 5 p.m. to 5 a.m., barring all spectators from sporting events, and advice to work from home as much as possible.

· Aston Villa manager Steven Gerrard said the English Premier League soccer club could discuss the vaccine status of potential signings when they look to bolster their squad during the January transfer window, as rising COVID-19 cases at clubs raised fears of a raft of postponed games.

The Premier League said on Monday it was reintroducing "emergency measures" after a record 42 cases among players and staff at clubs over the past week, shortly before Manchester United's game against Brentford was called off due to an outbreak at the Old Trafford club.

· Getting an initial course of COVID-19 vaccines to unprotected groups all over the world should remain a top priority before offering booster shots to vulnerable groups, World Health Organisation (WHO) Emergency Director Mike Ryan said.

· A Polish woman has tested positive for the Omicron variant in China, Poland's health ministry said on Tuesday, after Chinese media reported that the first case on the county's mainland had been detected in a Pole.

· Russia has still not handed over all the information needed for its flagship Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine to be approved by the WHO because of differences in regulatory standards, the Kremlin said on Tuesday.

Moscow rushed to approve the Sputnik V shot for domestic use last year, but it has still not been certified by either the WHO or the European Medicines Agency, the EU's drug regulator.

FROM OUR GLOBAL COLLEAGUES

CGTN EUROPE: UK coronavirus rules in balance as PM Johnson faces rebellion in parliament

CGTN ASIA: Tianjin reports case of Omicron infection, first in Chinese mainland

CGTN AMERICA: New York City to require vaccinations at religious and private schools

CGTN AFRICA: Health costs during pandemic pushed over half a billion people into poverty