just almost nonbelief. , beyond these tornadoes devoured everything in their path. a stunning rescue in hong kong, as first responders save more than a hundred people who were trapped on the roof of a burning building. it's 7 am in singapore, and ”pm in london, where a leading scientific advisor to the uk government has given a stark assessment of how effective the current vaccine measures are against the omicron strain of covid. professor neil ferguson has told the bbc that we now know that if you got two vaccine doses a few months ago, then you have very limited protection against being re—infected, or being infected with omicron. and he added that research suggests that if you were previously infected with either the alpha or delta strains, you probably only have about 20% protection against reinfection with omicron. his comments came on the day the uk recorded its highest ever number of confirmed covid infections. statistics compiled across the country show 78 thousand 610 new lab—confirmed cases in the latest 2a hour period. to put that in context — it's the highest daily total recorded in britain since the pandemic began. and it's also a jump of almost 20—thousand cases on the previous day. much of that is due to omicron — but the other variants, particularly delta, haven't gone away. the chief medical officer for england, chris whitty, says there are now effectively two pandemics happening at the same time. this is a really serious thought at the moment. how big a threat, there are several things we don't know but all the things we do know are bad. and the principal one being the speed at which this is moving, it's moving at an absolutely phenomenal pace. therefore, between the time of first asked to take off and will be able to see and the point when we get to very, very, very large numbers will be quite sure when. i think that is part of the issue. the uk's main weapon against omicron has been boosterjabs, a third shot of the pfizer or moderna vaccines for adults, as outlined by prime minister borisjohnson. keep going, let's keep giving omicron both barrels and let's slow it spread and give the vaccines more time. and of course it's notjust the uk which is seeing a spike in cases. we'll look at how omicron is affecting other parts of the world in just a moment — after this report on how britain is trying to respond — from our health editor, hugh pym. with the rapid spread of the new variant, the booster programme has been given new urgency. here, a gp in oxford visits elderly patients in their homes to give them the top—up jab. but it will give you a very good protection and boost your immunity. with evidence of that good protection against omicron infection, the booster roll—out will continue. but according to recent research, there's much less of a shield a few months after a second dose, and there's high level concern about how much case numbers could rise. probably the most significant threat we've had since the start of the pandemic, and i'm sure, for example, that the numbers that we see on data over the next few days will be quite staggering, compared to the rate of growth that we've seen in cases for previous variants. even if most of the extra cases are mild, that could result in more staff absences from key sectors of the economy and public services. and while omicron may cause less serious illness than delta, a surge in cases would mean at least some extra hospital admissions. one group of modellers has come up with a range of scenarios, depending on what happens with the virus and the ta ke—up of boosters. they say in the worst—case scenario in england, there could be more than 6,000 hospital admissions a day — compared with just under 4,000 at the peak last winter. in the best case, they say it would be around 2,000 admissions a day in england, and all of that assumes that previously announced restrictions haven't been changed. the picture seems bleaker, but vaccine coverage is much more widespread than in the january wave, deaths, for now, are a lot lower, and there are more therapies for covid patients. hugh pym, bbc news. so dire warnings in the uk. but of course, it's not just here that omicron is spreading rapidly. south africa — where the variant was first identified last month — has also reported a record number of daily infections. there were just under 27 thousand cases confirmed in the last 2a hours. that's more than the peak of the infection wave lastjuly — during the southern hemisphere winter — when the delta variant was prominent. italy has also reported an increase in infections, with more than eight thousand people in hospital — including 870 in intensive care. record numbers also in france. the philippines and cambodia have detected their first omicron cases. canada now says it is seeing omicron infections all across its territory. and the us has confirmed cases in 36 states — with the new variant currently making up about 3% of covid—19 cases in america. drjeremy faust is an emergency physician in health policy and public health at brigham and women's hospital in boston. wonderful to get you on the programme and what i imagine is a very busy time for you. thank you in advance for that. i have to say, and i'm sure many in our audience at the same thing, it feels like we've been here before. winter, rising covid cases, just this time it's omicron. how prepared potentially is the us for another wave?— for another wave? thank you for havin: for another wave? thank you for having me- _ for another wave? thank you for having me- i— for another wave? thank you for having me. ithink— for another wave? thank you for having me. i think our _ for another wave? thank you for i having me. i think our preparation is quite variable across this nation. there are some areas with a lot of vaccine coverage in the highest risk group in their areas where the virus is going to find out for itself that we don't have enough protection. i think that we've done a good job in getting nursing homes vaccinated in the early phase. and now we've seen that flag again. we seenin now we've seen that flag again. we seen in a lot of cases staff workers at nursing homes actually aren't highly vaccinated. these are areas where our mistakes are going to come back to haunt us right now. so i would say i think that we are in a very unusual situation which is there are some parts of the country that might be experiencing something like a flu season and there's some parts of the country that is still experiencing something along the lines of the pre—vaccine error. that's just remarkable to see that difference across different jurisdictions. iii difference across different jurisdictions.— difference across different jurisdictions. if we focus on vaccinated _ jurisdictions. if we focus on vaccinated people - jurisdictions. if we focus on vaccinated people for - jurisdictions. if we focus on - vaccinated people for instance, we are hearing from many medical professionals at boosters about moderna and pfizer could help provide protection. what is the outlook for vaccinated people then who do get a booster? that certainly de-ends who do get a booster? that certainly de ends on who do get a booster? that certainly depends on what _ who do get a booster? that certainly depends on what we _ who do get a booster? that certainly depends on what we learn _ who do get a booster? that certainly depends on what we learn in - who do get a booster? that certainly depends on what we learn in the - depends on what we learn in the coming days and weeks was also who the person is. i think it's very clear that this variant, the omicron variant will cause more infections among people who have been infected in the past and people who have been vaccinated and even boosted. the question is, are there groups for whom that implication of infection is really worse than it was in the previous errors? the delta error and before. certainly i think we will find that out soon. i don't want people to be at home thinking that you and three does series they have is no longer effective in terms of keeping them safe. i think many people will have that safety. but there will be some who will need added protection. ithink there will be some who will need added protection. i think that is where we are headed in the next few weeks, to figure out who those people are and how to best protect them. i think that infections will become more common. we need to find out what is the implication of those infections with up i do think in some cases we are a lot better off and in some areas we still have to catch up. and in some areas we still have to catch u -. �* , ., , and in some areas we still have to catchu.�* , . , catch up. briefly, what is the way out of this _ catch up. briefly, what is the way out of this then? _ catch up. briefly, what is the way out of this then? are _ catch up. briefly, what is the way out of this then? are we - catch up. briefly, what is the way out of this then? are we in - catch up. briefly, what is the way out of this then? are we in a - out of this then? are we in a potential holding pattern of more vaccinations, more boosters? yes. potential holding pattern of more vaccinations, more boosters? yes, i think every — vaccinations, more boosters? yes, i think every time _ vaccinations, more boosters? yes, i think every time a _ vaccinations, more boosters? yes, i think every time a new _ vaccinations, more boosters? yes, i think every time a new variant - vaccinations, more boosters? yes, i| think every time a new variant comes along it will always find the unvaccinated in terms of our statistics that's where we will see hospitalisations and more covid that we are trying to avoid. the question is i will be, do we have a lot of protection, immunity and our communities? i think it's time it happens i suspect it will be better and better at looking at the data as it comes in and responding and saying, what is the threat assessment here, do we have to change what were doing? we have things we didn't have before, we have more access to testing, the higher percentage of the population was some degree of protection if not a greater degree of protection. it's frustrated because we thought by now we would be better off. i think this virus continues to humble us. yes. virus continues to humble us. yes, that's a very _ virus continues to humble us. yes, that's a very good _ virus continues to humble us. yes, that's a very good way _ virus continues to humble us. yes, that's a very good way to _ virus continues to humble us. yes, that's a very good way to put it. thank you forjoining us on tuesday. you can get more about omicron online including attempts to answer the question that is on many of our lives, to read that and much more go to bbc .com/ news and click through to bbc .com/ news and click through to the coronavirus section oi’ orjust or just download orjust download the bbc news app. still to come a bit later in the program. a special report and how pakistan's government is now holding talks with the taliban groups responsible for killing more than hundred and 30 people. at a school in peshawar, seven years ago. but first... president biden was in kentucky on wednesday — to see for himself the damage caused by a series of deadly tornadoes. more than seventy people were killed and more 120 people are still missing. nomia iqbal is in kentucky, and sent this report. this is one of the poorest towns in the state. it has been left in an apocalyptic ruin, many people wondering now what's next. officials say 75% of the town has been destroyed. today president biden came to see the damage for himself. i intend to do whatever i take as long as it takes, as long as it takes to support your state, your local leaders and recover and rebuild because you will recover and you will rebuild. you know, the scope and scale of this destruction is almost beyond belief. look around here it's almost beyond belief. these tornadoes devoured everything in their path. president biden has signed an emergency declaration for the state. it will provide funds for the emergency management agency known as fema to help with search and rescue and provide food and water and generatos. but many have been relying on strangers for support. relying on strangers for sally's manage to find her wedding ring and pictures of her children. she is trying to clear up as much as she can ahead of another storm that's being forecast. we've recovered more than i think we first thought. at first it just looked like a big pile of rubble. as you dig through you are able to find some things and we have found some things that were very important to us. which makes me happier then, when you think everything is gone, it's quite heartbreaking. some people say they want more than just their neighbours helping. i went to a shelter earlier and someone there didn't want to speak to me on camera claim that the government response by fema has been really slow. they also say they hope the president is notjust here for a photo op. the president has also visited the town of mayfield, in our —— hour away. kentucky is a republican state how he and his democratic administration respond to the disaster will be scrutinised by conservatives, the very people he's trying to reach. nomia iqbal, kentucky. high drama in hong kong on wednesday — when more than a hundred people had to be rescued from the top of a skyscraper, after a fire broke out. thirteen people were treated in hospital after a blaze took hold around lunchtime in the world trade centre in the causeway bay area. our reporter martin yip sent this update from the scene. it was lunchtime when smoke started billowing into the shopping mall levels. this video shows diners in a buffet restaurant not sure what to do. a shopper told the bbc she heard no fire alarm. the fire department confirmed later that builders had informed them that they had to turn it off for renovation works. as people made their way out, some found it hard to go down the staircase because of the smoke. instead, they went up onto the podium. some office workers ended up on the roof more than 30 levels above ground. but it didn't take long before firefighters came to their rescue. the fire brigade spent around four hours to put everything under control. this new renovation was built in the 19705. it's a a building that stands on the hong kong island harbour front overlooking the famous victoria harbour and the scottish garden. our firemen discovered the fire scene was heavily smoked at the time of our arrival. so, to a fireman, we found it... it is one of the reason leading to distress of the arguments inside the building. the fire department says it will investigate further to determine the cause of the fire. martin yip, bbc news, hong kong. if you want to get in touch with me i'm on twitter — @bbckarishma you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme. as australia looks set to see scorching temperatures of 50 degrees this week, we speak to an extreme weather expert about how the heatwave is changing the way people live. saddam hussein is finished because he killed our people, our women, our children. the signatures took only a few minutes but they brought a formal end to three and a half years of conflict. conflict that is claimed more than 200,000 lives. before an audience of world leaders the presidents of bosnia and serbia and croatia put their names to peace agreement. the romanian border was sealedl and silent today, romania has cut itself off from the outside world in order to prevent the details. of the presumed massacre - in timisoara from leaking out. from sex at the white house to a trial for his political life, the lewinsky affair tonight guaranteed bill clinton his place in history as only the second president ever to be impeached. this is newsday on the bbc. our headlines... more than 78 thousand new cases were reported in the past 2a hours — as the growth rate of the new variant rises. president biden goes to kentucky to see the devastation caused by this weekend's tornadoes. let's turn to pakistan now — where seven years ago — on the 16th december 2014 — a school in peshawar in north—western pakistan was targeted by the pakistani taliban — also known as the ttp. 134 children were killed in what is regarded as the worst militant attack in the country in recent times. but now the authorities in pakistan have started a reconciliation process with the ttp — a group accused of being responsible for the deaths of more than 75—thousand people. shumaila jaffery reports. this man was shot in the head by the pakistani taliban, or the ttp, the day the army—run public school came under attack. he survived, but lost his mother, a schoolteacher. he says he will never be able to forgive and forget what he has been through. translation: why are their hearts are so filled _ with brutality and meanness? why give concessions to them or support for them and reconciliation with the ttp? those who deserve punishment must be punished, and it's our right that we should getjustice. the city has seen hundreds of terrorist attacks by the pakistani taliban. but the trauma the people experienced on the 16th of december 2014 is unforgettable. it was the day when seven gunmen affiliated with the ttp attacked the army public school. more than 130 children were among the dead. the attack is called a watershed moment in pakistan's fight against terrorism. it was followed by the numerous military operations in the tribal region. however, last month, pakistan announced it has started reconciliation talks with ttp. later, the taliban's visiting foreign minister confirmed that the process is being facilitated by them. translation: we welcome the talks and the cease-fire | between pakistan and the ttp. we will try to keep the process going and address the reasons for the conflict. the ttp is separate from the afghan taliban, but they share the same ideology and have close connections. pakistan claims that most of the ttp fighters are hiding in and operating from afghanistan. this man believes the talks have been started at the afghan taliban's behest and that they will fail. these ttp, they are all criminals. where they have been struggling, where they have been playing - football with their heads _ and in negotiations and agreements and those agreements have been violated. i the ttp has unilaterally ended a month—long cease—fire and has resumed its attacks. the major roadblock is the release of more than 100 ttp fighters, including this man. the government says it's negotiating from the position of strength, but the general sentiment here is against giving any concessions to the militants who people believe have the blood of thousands pakistanis on their hands. shumaila jaffery, bbc news. let's take a look at some other stories in the headlines. the former minneapolis police officer derek chauvin has pleaded guilty to federal charges of violating george floyd's civil rights. chauvin was sentenced to more than 22 years in prison for killing mr floyd by kneeling on his neck. america's biggest police department, in new york, is to be led by a woman for the first time in its history. keechant sewell has been appointed by mayor—elect eric adams. ms sewell said she wanted the department to �*look like the city it serves' — and promised to clamp down on gun crime. the us government has released thousands more pages of previously secret documents, relating to the assassination of president kennedy in 1963. the documents show how soviet intelligence, communist groups with links to africa, and the italian mafia, were all investigated. but researchers have, so far, not found anything to contradict the official finding that lee harvey oswald acted on his own when he shotjfk. let's turn to australia now — which may see record temperatures this week of 50 degrees celsius in the interior and that may possibly spread into the south of the country. while the southern hemisphere summer can be hot in the outback — the record would spark talk of bushfires two years ago — that drew on a combination of climate change and a near perfect mix of dry seasonal conditions. dr sarah perkins—kirkpatrick, who is a a chief investigator with the australian research council of excellence for climate extremes, is with me now. it's great to have you on the program, sarah. talk us through what the current weather conditions are right now in australia and what the worry is. in right now in australia and what the wor is. ., , ., worry is. in the northwest of australia — worry is. in the northwest of australia we _ worry is. in the northwest of australia we do _ worry is. in the northwest of australia we do have - worry is. in the northwest of australia we do have quite l worry is. in the northwest of- australia we do have quite severe heat wave developing. some parts of the far west are expected to see temperatures of about 50 degrees or so over the next couple of days for them whether or not that forecast eventuates to be that extreme remains to be seen. it is really hot, don't get me wrong, will not be too pleasant to experience. also it is summer here and it is very hard doing that hot part of the country during the summer. temperature is that high aren't completely out of the picture. but certainly chipping 50 degrees else he is or even breaking may very well be a record in some places. breaking may very well be a record in some places-_ in some places. australia has been throu~h in some places. australia has been through this _ in some places. australia has been through this many _ in some places. australia has been through this many times _ in some places. australia has been through this many times before, . through this many times before, hasn't it? what's the big concern of the big risk here?— the big risk here? absolutely. and sure many of— the big risk here? absolutely. and sure many of you _ the big risk here? absolutely. and sure many of you remember - the big risk here? absolutely. and sure many of you remember that i the big risk here? absolutely. and| sure many of you remember that in 2019, 2020 summer we had a bad summer here. we had record breaking temperatures, horrible bushfires in really bad air quality because of those bushfires it really tight link between that heat, consequential drought and also bushfire weather. at that summer a lot of those heat and bushfire conditions were actually limited to the southeast of australia for the places like melbourne thomas ne, cambria the really populated parts of australia this on the particular heat wave is occurring in the northwest because a much more sparsely populated it is certainly forecasting increased bushfire risk over that part of the country. we recently had some do not bushfires in perth although that's a lot further south than this current he's wave. lot further south than this current has wave-— lot further south than this current he's wave. ~ ., ., , .,, .,, he's wave. what are the people most concerned about _ he's wave. what are the people most concerned about right _ he's wave. what are the people most concerned about right now— he's wave. what are the people most concerned about right now and - he's wave. what are the people most concerned about right now and what. concerned about right now and what can people do as the weather becomes more volatile over the next few weeks? ~ ., .., more volatile over the next few weeks? ~ ., , ., . ~ weeks? what we call the black some “icama that weeks? what we call the black some jicama that was _ weeks? what we call the black some jicama that was a _ weeks? what we call the black some jicama that was a 2019-2020, - weeks? what we call the black some jicama that was a 2019-2020, it - jicama that was a 2019—2020, it was terrible, i live through it, i was living in sydney at the time the quality was a horrible, nobody could go outside. it was a real wake—up call to many peoplejust go outside. it was a real wake—up call to many people just how bad summers can get and will get in part due to climate change in this part of the world. it's those conditions occurring over the most popular parts of sydney. for us to experience that for the everyday australian has really put a negative spin on our summers with love the hot weather and we'd love to go and celebrate by going to the beach or having a barbecue with art mates, that sort of thing. now there is a much more nervousness going into summer. we worried will it be hot, how bad it will be, who will be affected? and yet the consequential changes around that too.— affected? and yet the consequential changes around that too. thank you. tellin: us changes around that too. thank you. telling us about _ changes around that too. thank you. telling us about the _ changes around that too. thank you. telling us about the situation - changes around that too. thank you. telling us about the situation in - telling us about the situation in australia. that's all the time we have for you on newsday at this hour. hello there. temperatures were as high as 14 degrees on wednesday, and the rest of the week will stay mild. i suspect many of us, though, will continue to see cloudy skies like this. there was some sunshine, though, across a good part of yorkshire and lincolnshire on wednesday, but these areas with those clearer skies are starting a bit colder on thursday morning. mild elsewhere underneath that blanket of cloud. could be some mist and fog patches with those clearer skies across parts of northern england, even down into norfolk as well. we'll see those mist and fog patches lifting, and the best of the sunshine more likely to be to the east of the pennines in the north east of england. a lot of cloud around elsewhere. there's a bit of rain and drizzle across northern parts of scotland becoming more confined towards the northern isles. whether you've got the cloud or not, though, it's still a mild day for the time of year. temperatures widely in double figures once again. now, high pressure is building in across the uk. that's why it's so quiet, but that high pressure is bringing with it a good deal of cloud. now, the cloud could just be thick enough to give one or two spots of drizzle across more southern parts of the uk, whereas again a mild start on friday. a little bit chillier across some eastern parts of scotland, the north east of england, perhaps even into the north west of wales, where there could be a few breaks overnight. but as you can see, not a great deal of sunshine on offer on friday. the winds are light in most places, just picking up a touch there in the far south west of england. and again, it's mild. 8—9 degrees more typically across northern parts of england and scotland, this time temperatures are starting to ebb awayjust a little. this weekend, though, we're going to hang on the cloudy skies for most of the country. a lot of dry weather around as well, of course. limited amounts of sunshine means a limited amount of frost. it will be turning a bit colder as the weekend goes on. you can see we may have some sunshine across the north east of scotland, perhaps west wales, into the far south west of england, where there's a bit more breeze on saturday. but otherwise, it looks cloudy once again. and we may just sneak those temperatures across southern parts in particular into double figures. there's the area of high pressure. it's really taking a shine to the uk. it's not going to move very far at all during this weekend. so, again, the winds are likely to be light, but as you can see again it looks like it's going to be quite cloudy. that cloud could be quite low as well, so some mist and some fog potentially over some higher parts of the uk. and those temperatures beginning to drop away a little bit. it will feel a little bit chillier on sunday. this is bbc news. the headlines — the uk has registered a record number of new coronavirus infections. more than 78,500 cases were reported in the past 24 hours, the highest figure since the pandemic began. president biden has been inspecting the devastation caused by tornadoes in the state of kentucky. he's promised federal aid to rebuild communities. at least 74 people died in the state and 14 others elsewhere. the former minneapolis police officer derek chauvin has pleaded guilty to federal charges of violating george floyd's civil rights. chauvin was sentenced to more than 22 years in prison for killing mr floyd by kneeling on his neck. more than 100 people have been rescued from the roof of a hong kong skyscaper after a fire broke out. 13 were taken to hospital following the blaze in the 38—storey world trade centre.