Anadolu Agency's Morning Briefing - Nov. 27, 2021

Anadolu Agency is here with a rundown of the latest developments in Turkey, around the world, and the coronavirus pandemic.

Developments in Turkey, coronavirus pandemic and other news

Turkey has administered over 119.9 million coronavirus vaccine doses since it launched an immunization drive in January, according to the latest figures.

Turkey imposed a ban on travel from five African countries after the emergence of a new coronavirus variant.

The Turkish foreign minister discussed the latest situation in Ethiopia with his Ethiopian counterpart via telephone, according to diplomatic sources.

Turkey rescued 29 asylum seekers who were illegally pushed back by Greece into Turkish waters in the Aegean Sea.

World

Iraq's Transport Ministry announced that the country has evacuated 608 refugees who were stranded on the border between Belarus and Poland.

The WHO said it convened a special meeting to discuss a new COVID-19 variant discovered in South Africa and declared it a "variant of concern," and named it Omicron.

South Africa said it will engage with the UK to persuade officials there to reconsider a decision to ban flights from the country because of the variant.

Kenyan Health Ministry's director-general said the East African nation would place passengers from places with the new variant in quarantine.

Belgium recorded the first case of the variant from southern Africa, the country's health minister announced.

US President Joe Biden ordered air travel restrictions from South Africa and seven other countries because of the variant, the White House announced in a statement.

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates suspended flights from seven southern African nations as the European Commission said it will propose to EU states to stop air travel from southern Africa to stem the spread of the new variant.

Israel announced it banned travel to most African nations, excluding the north of the continent, because of the emergence of the variant.

Germany registered a record number of coronavirus cases for the third day in a row, as the country battles a brutal fourth wave of the pandemic.

A new study estimates that COVID-19 vaccination in 33 countries across the World Health Organization (WHO) European Region has saved 470,000 lives for those aged 60 and older.

The United Nations mission in Libya condemned an attack on a court in the southwestern city of Sebha.

Tunisian coast guard units rescued 487 asylum seekers who were trying to reach Europe, according to its Defense Ministry.

Azerbaijan handed over two Armenian detainees to Yerevan, citing "principles of humanism," according to a state authority.

The Russian president regretted that armed clashes continue on and off in the Nagorno-Karabakh region despite existing peace treaties, leading to more casualties.

Spanish police arrested a man for domestic abuse after his wife flashed a viral hand signal increasingly used to discreetly warn of domestic violence. -