The US said it was seeking "security and prosperity" for Palestinians. The dialogue had not been convened since before the election of former President Donald Trump.

Government officials in Bangladesh denounced US sanctions but activists hailed them as a step forward for human rights in the country. The measures were implemented over rights abuses and extrajudicial killings.

The US Commerce Department sanctioned Chinese surveillance and biotechnology companies over rights abuses. The Biden administration expressed concern that US technology could be used in abusing Uyghur people.

Nobody was ever held responsible for strikes that killed thousands of civilians in Afghanistan and the Middle East, a New York Times report has found. A US strike cell routinely sidestepped safety procedures, it found.

The shutdown was initiated over fears of the rapid spread of the omicron variant. Meanwhile, Germany's health minister has ruled out a lockdown before Christmas. Follow DW for the latest.

US President Joe Biden has unveiled a new plan to tackle his country's COVID-19 emergency. Announcing the measures on his first full day in power, he said drastic action is needed.

A case of whether to uphold a Mississippi law that bans terminations of pregnancy after 15 weeks has made it to the country's highest court. A ruling could see the landmark 1973 'Roe versus Wade' case that legalized abortion overturned.

German doctors and their staff have been facing aggression and threats from vaccine opponents. They have described having frayed nerves as pandemic fatigue sets in among patients and medical staff.

The court has agreed to hear arguments about the Biden administration's vaccine or testing requirement for large employers, and a separate vaccine mandate for healthcare workers.

The head of the World Health Organization says rich countries are merely prolonging the pandemic by fueling vaccine inequality. "No country can boost its way out of the pandemic," he says.

Instead, mRNA vaccines use mRNA created in a laboratory to teach our cells how to make a protein—or even just a piece of a protein—that triggers an immune response inside our bodies. That immune response, which produces antibodies, is what protects us from getting infected if the real virus enters our bodies.

The latest polls find a majority of Americans regard the supply chain crisis as a major concern.