>> the world health organization's warning of a very high global risk from the omicron variant of covid-19 and severe consequences if there is a surgeon cases. pres. biden: this variant is a cause for concern, not a cause for panic. >> president biden rules out lockdowns, but there are warnings the new covid variant could pose a risk to the economy.

this is al jazeera live from delhi. british socialite, just lane maxwell, is accused of preying on young girls were jeffrey epstein. as the trail gets underway in new york. barbados prepares to cut ties with the british monarchy to become the world's newest republic. the newest covid-19 variant poses a high risk of a surgeon infections -- that's the latest warning from the world health organization. the u.n. chief says he's concerned about southern africa isolation. he says the region cannot be blamed for its lack of vaccines. countries from japan to israel are focusing on vaccinations.

u.k. is offering booster jabs to stop the spread. in the u.s., president joe biden's urging vigilance but asking people not to panic. he says no new measures or lockdowns are needed to tackle the new variant. pres. biden: this variant is a cause for concern, not because for panic. we have the best vaccine in the world, the best medicines, the best scientists, and we are learning more every single day. if needed, my team is already working with officials at pfizer, but dharna, and johnson & johnson -- pfizer, moderna, and johnson & johnson if boosters are needed. anchor: the chief medical officer says it is not all doom and gloom. the government is rolling out its vaccine booster program to all adults. reporter: written was the first country to restrict travel from southern africa after the emergence of the new covid-19 variant.

the government has admitted omicron could pose a greater threat than the delta variant. >> close contacts of anyone who tests positive with a suspected case of omicron must self-isolate for 10 days, regardless of whether they have been vaccinated or not. face coverings will also be made compulsory in shops and public transport in england unless an individual has a medical exemption. >> this is not all doom and gloom at the stage and i do not want people to panic at this stage. if vaccine effectiveness is reduced, as seems pretty likely, to some extent, the biggest effects are likely to be in preventing infections and hopefully, there will be smaller effects on preventing severe disease. reporter: at the same time, the government's scientific advisors are recommending people are

offered booster jabs just three months after their second vaccinations. the program has been extended to anyone aged 12 or older. in portugal, they have identified 13 cases of omicron among team members of the professional soccer club. only one had recently traveled to south africa. as more countries place restrictions on people traveling from south africa and the region, the united nations has urged the world but to penalize countries for identifying and sharing crucial science information -- a theme taken up by the world health organization. >> omicron demonstrates just why the world needs a new accord on pandemics. our current system this incentivizes countries from alerting -- disincentive isis -- dis-incentivizes countries from alerting. reporter: in milan, people have

to wear face coverings between 10 in the morning it 10 -- and 10 at night. but the call is getting louder to ensure developing countries can access vaccines. anchor: iran says it is optimistic after the first day of talks in vienna aimed at salvaging the nuclear deal. representative's from china, russia, germany and u.k. met with iranian officials. the u.s. is there, but only holding talks indirectly. iran wants sanctions lifted and returns for limits on its nuclear program. >> i think it is a great achievement all the countries of the p4 plus one have excepted dearer -- excepted the islamic republic's right. it must be put into focus and clarified. only then will there be discussed men -- discussion and assessment held for the

remaining nationals. reporter: this is seen as the very beginning of what could be the newly appointed team from iran and the government is headed by the iranian deputy foreign ministry and his team of 38 men who are very well-versed in the country's economy. they are specialists in iran's economy from various divisions of the government. they are here to find out what the other side would likely do in terms of moving forward. they are trying to gauge the move and i've spoken to services in tehran looking -- sources in tehran saying they are seeing members on teams from all sides that are very well-versed in terms of the security of the country. iranians are expecting iran

other programs, not just the nuclear program, will be brought up. that is something they said they will not do. they say they are here only to discuss how the americans will lift the sanctions they've imposed on iran. the deputy foreign minister says the program and other programs as well as he runs regional -- iran's regional involvement is not up for discussion. that these talks are not going to go on forever, that there needs to be some kind of resolution as soon as possible. anchor: opening statements have begun in the trial of british socialite, ghislaine maxwell. she has pleaded not guilty to the charges. reporter: jeffrey epstein and ghislaine maxwell met a young girl on a park bench, and later sexually abuse her.

prosecutors called her jane. she was 14 years old. the abuse went on for years and occurred in several of epstein's homes. florida, new mexico, and new york. that was just one of the accusations a prosecutor made in opening statements at maxwell's trail. they accused maxwell of, in their words, serving up young women for epstein's abuse. she put them at ease and made them feel safe, also they could be sexually abused by a middle-age man, prosecutors said. they called maxwell a predator who preyed on vulnerable young girls and manipulated them. but epstein committed suicide, so he is not on trial. maxwell is. analysts say prosecutors over the next few weeks will need to show how she recruited, groomed, and participated in the abuse of the girls. >> we are not in the courtroom this week determining whether or not these victims were victims

of sex crimes at the hands of mr. epstein. that is not what this trail is about. this trail is about miss maxwell's alleged activities to enable mr. epstein to abuse these kids. reporter: for women are expected to testify they were recruited and groomed by maxwell for abuse, including jane, that 14-year-old prosecutors say was one of the victims. jane is now an adult. she plans to tell the jury everything she says happened to her. in their opening statement, maxwell's attorney told the jury she's being used as a scapegoat for epstein's alleged crimes. she's filling the hole and filling an empty chair. she is a convenient stand-in for the man who cannot be here. monday was a day for the lawyers on both sides to lay out their case. now it goes to witnesses in a trial that likely will not

conclude until at least january. anchor: the caribbean island nation of barbados will become a republic on tuesday when it cuts ties with the british monarchy. barbados gained independence in 1966 but retained elizabeth as its head of state. the monarch will be replaced by a president elect. let's go live now to the capital where our latin american editor is live. i has barbados decided to do this? -- why has barbados decided to do this? reporter: there's not a simple answer to that, but i can tell you the road to becoming a republic has been a long one for this island nation. it started shortly after this country became independent 55 years ago, and there were constant calls for barbados to cut its colonial ties definitively. that would mean cutting ties with the monarchy, which as you

know, quick elizabeth is still the head of state of this country or at least she will be until a little under four hours from now. at midnight, the island will not turn into a pumpkin, but into a republic, officially. some people say this is something that is going to modernize the country and bring it up today with the tummy for century. that being a constitutional monarchy makes no sense anymore. others are even emotional about the fact they are going to lose their status as a constitutional monarchy, though this country will remain part of the british commonwealth. what they are still celebrating. there have been parties behind me. there is a steel pan orchestra behind me -- beautiful music to my right. there will soon be a ceremony with prince charles attending. it is a very, very big day for this island nation, one many say they have been waiting for for decades.

barbados, known as little england, is the most eastern caribbean island. it was a slave colony, known for its vast sugar fields and gained independence only 55 years ago. our betas has been one of the queens 16 realms, countries where she is head of state. >> there were demonstrations, but they were of enthusiasm and loyalty. reporter: but for many, it was time to cut the umbilical cord with the monarchy and declare barbados a republic. >> i feel positive one of us is able to run the country, make some decisions. >> we are trying to be independent, trying to be on our own. reporter: but others say the decision to break with the

monarchy was imposed on them by the prime minister without consultation. >> just one day she says it's a republic and that was it. reporter: it is, in fact, more symbolic than anything else. the new president will have a largely ceremonial role and barbados will remain part of the british commonwealth under its current prime minister. prince charles is here as guest of honor. it is not his first trip to barbados, but as the representative of the monarchy, it will be his last. this former plantation has been the residence of the governor general, the queens representative for the last 55 years. now it will be the residence of the country's new president, making barbados the world's youngest republic, at least for now. in fact, other former caribbean colonies like grenada and jamaica may just decide they want to be next.

this is the first time i've ever been to barbados and i can tell you one of the things that has struck me the most is how proud they are of their country. whether they agree or not with the decision to become a republic, they really do identify as bajans. when this army takes place at midnight, that is friends to all, satellites of none -- that is something they have been repeating for years and most likely will say that again as they break their last official ties with the monarchy. anchor: still ahead, why the twitter ceo quit and handed power over to the social networking sites acknowledging chief. gorges former president faces

court after years in exile as hundreds of protesters show their support. -- georgia's former president faces court after years in exile as hundreds of protesters show their support. >> look forward to brighter skies -- the weather, sponsored by qatar >> airways. here is your world weather report -- for india, we are keeping tabs on this intensifying disturbance. as it pivots toward the north, it will throw more rain. here we are on wednesday and by wednesday, we will be under weather alerts and could see 100-200 millimeters of rain. flooding will be a concern. the western side of sri lanka getting hit with rain. heavy rain still coming at you

for central and southern parts of vietnam. for the rest of southeast asia, the eastern part of java, a lot of rain as of late. the other side of the island will power up some thunderstorms for jakarta with a high of 27 degrees. a solid band of rain across the korean peninsula slamming into southern japan. a lot of rain as a result of this. behind this system, we will see the cooler air infiltrate, so it goes from 10 degrees down to two degrees in seoul. bundle up. see you soon. >> the weather, sponsored by qa tar airways. >> in the light of the open seas hides a dark secret -- men forced to work without pay, enslaved for years. but a glimmer of hope remains for the forgotten fishermen as a group of activists delve deep

into the fishing industry, demanding justice and freedom. ghost street -- a witness documentary on al jazeera. anchor: hello again. a reminder of our top stories -- the world health organization's warning the newest covid-19 variant poses a very high risk of a surgeon infections. iran says it is optimistic after the first day of talks in vienna aimed at salvaging the 2015 nuclear deal. representatives from russia,

china, germany, france and the u.k. that with iranian officials. the u.s. is there, but only holding talks indirectly. the trial of british socialite, ghislaine maxwell has begun in new york. she's convicting of assisting at a file jeffrey epstein. she denies the charges. u.s. president joe biden has held talks with ceos of several major retailers to talk about how best to tackle the nation's supply chain problems. the federal reserve chairman has warned the new variant could slow the economy recovery and add to inflation worries. let's talk more about this with the associate director and member of the economics research group moody's analytics. he joins us from west chester, pennsylvania in the u.s. to what extent -- these supply chain problems have been around

for several months now. to what extent is this new omicron variant of covid going to potentially add to that? guest: thanks for having me. it is a significant risk factor. we have seen from previous waves , the delta variant, closures, factory closures can have a significant effect on the supply chain issues we are seeing today. in particular, should the report closures in china as well as other manufacturing hubs all around the world due to spikes because of the omicron virus, that would pose a challenge in terms of getting containers in and out of ports. with factory closures, we have seen how detrimental they can be to things like auto production. the recent delta spikes in southeast asia is a testament to that.

to the extent the omicron variant produces similar spikes, in different countries around the world, it will worsen the disruptions we are seeing now. anchor: as you are pointing out, these global supply chain disruptions, it is a global phenomenon. what can the u.s. do from its end? to what extent can they try to resolve these issues? guest: that is a great point. but the president has done is produced tangible results domestically. but i agree 100% that there needs to be more international coordination. the difficulty lies in the fact that supply chain's have multiple links. but the president has done very well over the last couple of months is try to unlock some of the bottlenecks along the different links within the supply chain to mystically. he started with operating the

ports 24/7 in long beach and l.a., and california. he worked with union workers as well as union pacific, a railway operator, to make sure there would be a handover of goods from the ports to the railway stations and warehouses and so forth. today, meeting with the ceos is a further testament -- the walmart ceo has said things have increased over 25% following these efforts. the difficulty is there's differences in the way countries have handled covid. there are countries up until recently, few countries that had a covid zero policy, which means there are cases being detected. that is very different from a lot of countries in the west.

these differences in policy, the global nature of the supply chain is going to exacerbate any issues within each of these links. anchor: good to talk to you. thank you for your analysis. irregularities claimed in sunday's poll -- we have more from the capital. reporter: care to stand tall entry election -- observers say that country has potential but needs improvement. >> yesterday's parliamentarian elections were competitive. fundamental freedoms were generally respected during the campaign.

authorities displayed the political will for a key elections. however strict enforcement of subsequent issues led to candidates campaigning with caution. reporter: most polling stations were well organized and the day was peaceful, but voter engagement was minimal. significant vote counting problems, opposition parties say, are signs of government fraud. the security council blamed problems on technical glitches, possibly hackers. do you intend on carrying out more rallies? will you bring more protesters to the street or will you debate these results in the halls of government? >> we don't have other forms of protesting. we will appeal to our courts but we have not trusted them. that is why we and our citizens only have the option to conduct a rally. it is our constitutional right.

we don't have any intentions to act radically because we are demanding things written in the law. reporter: far from conceding, those who lost her planting the seeds of distrust. in both automated and manual vote counts. rally was peaceful, small, and short, but it's only the first day after elections. if these rallies continue, if they get here, if they spread, that could become a problem and could take the country down a fuel your path. political dialogue in this country can unravel quickly and spill into the streets. but heated debate and protesters raising flags incident fists all, still, so far hallmarks of democracy. anchor: the former president of georgia has appeared in court on charges of abuse of office. he's been held in jail since returning from exile last month. he faces six years in prison but says that charges are politically motivated. we have this report from capital

-- the capital, to please see. reporter: this was his first public appearance since his return from exile and arrest. the former president is accused of violently dispersing antigovernment protesters and rating and opposition tv channel while in office. weekend by a 50 day hunger strike, he addressed the international community in english about his prison treatment. >> this was a classical case of torture, in human and degrading behavior that inflicted lots of damage on the personally and on my nation. reporter: outside the court, his supporters listened to the proceedings on social media. they believe it is a show trial. >> this is a disgrace for the country, for the institution of the president, and for our

ability to go forward as a society and pursue our goals. the prospect of georgia joining the european union look rather grim when presidents are being prosecuted on political grounds. reporter: there were scuffles as police disperse protesters who block traffic. 15 people were arrested. the drama of the proceedings going on inside the court have been somewhat overshadowed by the chaos ensuing outside where police did their best to try to stop supporters from blocking both roads into and out of the city. he came back to georgia from ukraine after eight years in exile and was arrested on the first of october. he has returned to a divided country, between those who believe georgia is controlled by a pro-russian oligarch and those

who want him to serve time for crimes they say he has committed. the government insists that he will get a fair trial. >>'s rights will be fully protected by the legislature of georgia. he has had the opportunity to appear in court for the georgian to tishri. reporter: his supporters don't expect justice. his best offense was this confession. >> it was a mistake that in government we failed to create an independent justice system. it affected many of my compatriots and now, it affects me. reporter: the former president use this opportunity to address the georgian public directly. his hope is that somehow, they come out the courts, will decide his fate. anchor: the united nations is

urging the philippines government to withdraw travel restrictions on a nobel winning journalist so she can accept her award in norway next month. she's the first nobel laureate from the philippines. she shares the prize with a russian investigative journalist . a movie scene as an endorsement of free speech rights worldwide. she has face setbacks and legal action for scrutiny of the philippines government with her website. >> we are very concerned about the travel restrictions placed on the government of the philippines preventing her from traveling in person to receive the nobel peace prize. we encourage the government of the philippines to allow her to travel to oslo. anchor: twitter cofounder jack dorsey has stepped down as ceo. he faced internal questions to reside -- to resign and will be replaced by the chief technology officer. in a statement on twitter, he

said it was finally time to leave. reporter: jack dorsey has been at the helm in some form or another from 2006 when the company started. he stepped down for a while and was put back on. he has been under pressure since last year to go after some major shareholders raised questions about whether or not he should still be the ceo of twitter while at the same time serving as the ceo of