German biotechnology company BioNTech and US company Pfizer have started clinical trials of an Omicron-based Covid-19 vaccine candidate in healthy adults from 18 through 55 years of age, the companies have said. ....

The "nocebo effect" accounted for more than two-thirds of the common side effects people experience after a Covid-19 vaccination rather than the vaccine itself, according to a new study. ....

An epidemic prevention employee from Central China's Henan province reportedly conducted nucleic acid tests on local garlic sprouts growing in the greenhouse, triggering a discussion on Chinese social media platforms, the Global Times reported. ....

Armenian President Armen Sarkissian has announced his resignation, citing the lack of constitutional power for him to solve domestic and foreign policy problems. ....

Anthony Fauci, top US infectious disease expert, has said he is confident that most states in the country will reach a peak of Omicron infection cases by mid-February. ....

Pakistan Federal Interior Minister, Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed has said that talks with the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) broke down due to group's harsh conditions, Samaa TV reported. ....

Indian-origin Maju Varghese is leaving his position as the director of the White House Military Office, according to a media report quoting him. ....

All four persons found dead on the Canada side of the US-Canada border by the RCMP on Thursday were a Gujarati family. ....

More than 90 per cent of primary and lower-secondary students in Pakistan have only a weak or basic understanding of the mathematics and science they are required to learn, according to a nationwide study conducted by faculty at the Aga Khan Universitys Institute for Educational Development. ....

A powerful blast in Pakistan's Punjab province's provincial capital Lahore has claimed at least two lives and injured dozens, in what is being seen as a targeted terror attack. ....