Footage obtained by The Associated Press of a cruise ship in a rare-virus outbreak shows deserted decks and medical teams in protective gear as the vessel and its nearly 150 passengers and crew waited another day for help off West Africa.

The head of the World Health Organization says he will convene an expert group to determine if the increasing spread of the mpox virus in Africa warrants being declared a global emergency.

The World Health Organization says early evidence suggests the omicron variant of the coronavirus may be spreading faster than the highly transmissible delta variant and brings with it less severe disease — although it’s too early to make firm conclusions.

U.S. health officials say that while the omicron variant of the coronavirus is rapidly spreading in the country, early indications suggest it may be less dangerous than delta, which continues to drive a surge of hospitalizations.

British officials have identified a relative of the delta variant.

Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson speaks during a coronavirus press conference at 10 Downing Street in London, Friday Jan. 22, 2021. But Vallance stressed that “the evidence is not yet strong" and more research is needed. In contrast to that uncertainty, he said, there is growing confidence that the variant is more easily passed on than the original coronavirus strain. Many countries have closed their borders to travelers from Britain, and the U.K. has halted flights from Brazil and South Africa. The U.K. is currently in a lockdown in an attempt to slow the latest surge of the coronavirus outbreak.

Shoppers wear face masks as they walk in Regent Street, ahead of the new Tier-4 restriction measures, in London, Saturday, Dec. 19, 2020. Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson says Christmas gatherings cannot go ahead and non-essential shops must close in London and much of southern England as he imposed a new, higher level of coronavirus restrictions to curb rapidly spreading infections. “It is with a very heavy heart that I must tell you we cannot proceed with Christmas as planned,” Johnson said. While London fared relatively well in controlling the virus throughout the fall, the city now has the highest infection rates in England. The move will largely scrap Christmas gatherings in line with the rules for southern England.

(AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)NEW DELHI — Authorities in India are reporting 36,470 newly confirmed coronavirus infections — that’s the lowest one-day tally in more than three months in a continuing downward trend. The case number reported Tuesday is the lowest since India had 35,065 newly confirmed infections on July 17. The seven-day average for daily COVID-19 deaths has also been climbing from 12 to 22 over the past 10 days. ___ROME — Italy registered slightly more than 17,000 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on Monday. Italy’s total of known coronavirus infections during the pandemic now stands at 542,789.

GENEVA Just as millions of children are heading back to school, the World Health Organization says those aged 6 to 11 should wear masks in some cases to help fight the spread of coronavirus. The recommendations presented Monday follow the widespread belief that children under 12 are not considered as likely to propagate the virus as much as adults. Children in general face less severe virus symptoms than do adults, with the elderly the most vulnerable to severe infection and death. Now WHO says decisions about whether children aged 6 to 11 should wear masks should consider factors like whether COVID-19 transmission is widespread in the area where the child lives; the child's ability to safely use a mask; and adult supervision when taking the masks on or off. They said children are less likely to catch COVID-19 than adults and have an exceptionally low risk of dying from the disease.

The coronavirus driving the current pandemic can live on plastic and stainless steel surfaces for up to three days, researchers say in a study published as a letter to the editor in the New England Journal of Medicine. And it can linger in aerosols -- the suspension of tiny particles or droplets in the air -- for three hours, the study says. The results add to researchers' understanding of how long the new coronavirus can linger on surfaces and the air, though scientists have said more research is needed. Some highlights of the findings, according to Tuesday's letter:The new coronavirus was viable up to 72 hours after being placed on stainless steel and plastic. The study indicates that transmission of the new coronavirus is possible by aerosol and material, "since the virus can remain viable and infectious in aerosols for hours and on surfaces up to days," the researchers wrote.