India has voiced deep concern over the safety of seven Indian nationals on a Houthi-seized United Arab Emirates-flagged cargo vessel, calling for the immediate release of the crew and the ship.

United Nations/Geneva: Harassment of Muslim women in India through social media apps such as "Sulli Deals" must be condemned and prosecuted as soon as they occur, a UN Special Rapporteur has said.

United Nations/Geneva: Omicron is quickly overtaking the Delta variant of COVID-19 and becoming dominant around the world, a senior WHO official has warned, with the global health agency cautioning that there is "increasing evidence" Omicron is able to evade immunity but has less disease severity as compared to other variants.

Beijing: A third Chinese city has locked down its residents because of a COVID-19 outbreak, raising the number confined to their homes in China to about 20 million people.

Baltimore (US): In a medical first, doctors transplanted a pig heart into a patient in a last-ditch effort to save his life and a Maryland hospital said Monday that he's doing well three days after the highly experimental surgery.

Kampala (Uganda): Uganda's schools reopened to students on Monday, ending the world's longest school disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

 A court in Myanmar sentenced ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi to four more years in prison on Monday after finding her guilty of illegally importing and possessing walkie-talkies and violating coronavirus restrictions, a legal official said.

 A malfunctioning electric space heater caused a fire that killed 19 people, including nine children, at a New York City apartment building in the Bronx, the fire commissioner said on Sunday.