TOP HEADLINES

· The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said it would be dangerous to assume that the world was in the 'end game' of the pandemic. However Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said it was possible to exit the acute phase of the pandemic this year if strategies and tools such as testing and vaccines are used comprehensively.

· The WHO is asking member-states and donors for an additional $480 million for its next two-year budget period. This includes $430 million for its emergencies program to coordinate the global response to the pandemic. "If the current funding model continues, the WHO is being set up to fail," Tedros told delegates in Geneva, Monday. The WHO's budget for the 2020-2021 period was initially $5.8 billion, but it has been significantly increased in response to COVID-19. 

· A WHO official said on Monday that the global body would postpone a decision on Ethiopia's request to investigate Tedros for allegedly supporting rebel forces fighting the Ethiopian government. WHO Executive Board chair Patrick Amoth made the statement at a meeting of the board in Geneva where Tedros' bid for a second term as head of the U.N. agency is due to be discussed. Tedros, an Ethiopian national, said earlier this month that aid was being blocked from getting through to his home region of Tigray, where rebel forces are fighting the central government.

·Police in Brussels fired water cannon and tear gas to disperse protesters near the European Commission's headquarters on Sunday, after a protest involving some 50,000 people opposing restrictions turned violent. Although Belgium announced a slight easing of the current measures on Friday, the government also said people must have booster shots after five months to maintain the COVID-19 passes, which allow them to access venues such as bars or cinemas. The passes, which are mandatory for anyone wishing to enter a restaurant, museum, or many other public spaces, have sparked fierce opposition among some Belgians.

·Russia on Monday reported a new record number of cases confirmed in the past 24 hours as the Omicron variant of the virus spread across the country, the government coronavirus task force said. Daily new cases jumped to 65,109, from 63,205 a day earlier. The task force also reported 655 deaths.

·Merck's antiviral pill will be evaluated in a large British trial as a possible treatment for patients who have been hospitalized by the virus. The pill, named molnupiravir, has been approved for use in the UK for people with mild to moderate symptoms. It is unknown whether it would work in patients hospitalized with severe illness, and the trial, dubbed RECOVERY, will look into that, scientists said. 

·People arriving in England from abroad will no longer have to take tests if they have been vaccinated, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said. Johnson told reporters the rule change was designed to show that the country was open for business and to travelers. He did not say when the requirement would change, but further details are expected to be given later on Monday. 

·Protesters attacked police with stones in the early hours of Monday as police moved in to clear out some blockades on Guadeloupe, the authority on the French Caribbean island said, amid ongoing protests against COVID-19 protocols. Officials said police had been attacked at the Riviere-des-Peres part of the island as they tried to clear out roads that had been blockaded.

· Watchmaker Hublot, a sponsor of Novak Djokovic, believes getting vaccinated is a personal choice, the Swiss luxury group told Reuters, in its first public response since the world men's tennis No. 1 was kicked out of Australia this month.

The Serbian player, who is not vaccinated, was deported on January 16, ahead of the Australian Open, after a federal court dismissed his appeal to stay in the country and play the tournament.

FROM OUR GLOBAL COLLEAGUES

CGTN Europe: 'Total contempt': French teachers protest over looser COVID-19 rules

CGTN China: Chinese mainland records 57 confirmed COVID-19 cases

CGTN America: COVID-19 cases, deaths soar again at U.S. nursing homes

CGTN Africa: Kenya has administered more than 100,000 COVID-19 booster shots