News Wrap: WHO says surge in omicron cases will help Europe bring pandemic’s endgame

Judy Woodruff:

In the days other news: The Biden administration made fresh accusations that Russia is plotting a fake attack by Ukrainian forces as a pretext to invading Ukraine.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said US intelligence shows Moscow is willing to go to elaborate lengths.

Jonh Kirby, Pentagon Press Secretary:

We believe that Russia would produce a very graphic propaganda video, which would include corpses and actors that would be depicting mourners, and images of destroyed locations, as well as military equipment.

Judy Woodruff:

The allegations came as Ukraine's President Zelensky met in Kyiv with Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has offered to mediate.

And Russia's defense minister met with the president of Belarus, as Russian troops mass there near Ukraine's border. In Washington, the secretaries of state and defense briefed Congress today. We will focus on that after the news summary.

At the Winter Olympics today, organizers of the Beijing Games dismissed allegations of human rights violations in China. A spokesman said all such claims are a lie.

Meanwhile, activists protested outside the International Olympic Committee building in Lausanne, Switzerland. They cited China's treatment of Muslim Uyghurs and of Tibet.

The World Health Organization now says Europe could be nearing a cease-fire in its battle with COVID. The agency's European director said today that the ongoing surge of Omicron cases will actually help bring on the pandemic's endgame.

Dr. Hans Klughe, World Health Organization:

We here in the European region have a unique situation, first and foremost, that once the Omicron wave will subside, there will be a large capital of immunity, be it thanks to the vaccine or due to the infection.

Judy Woodruff:

A number of European nations have dropped nearly all of their COVID restrictions.

Back in this country, the former Chicago police officer who killed a Black teenager, Laquan McDonald, was released from prison today. Jason Van Dyke shot McDonald 16 times and was convicted of second-degree murder. He got six years and nine months behind bars, but he served less than half that due to good behavior.

The owner of the Washington pro football franchise, Dan Snyder, is facing new allegations of sexual harassment by former employees. At a congressional hearing today, one woman said Snyder groped her thigh at a dinner. Others talked of a toxic atmosphere, with team executives even hiring prostitutes after one event.

Rachel Engleson, Former Marketing Director, Washington Football Team:

I worked at the Washington football team for eight years. And I can't recall a time that I didn't experience or fear sexual harassment. It was just a pervasive part of the culture and an unavoidable rite of passage, being a woman who worked there.

Judy Woodruff:

Snyder said the allegations against him are — quote — "outright lies."

All of this came a day after the team rolled out its new name, the Washington Commanders.

Tesla has announced a U.S. recall for the second time this week. This time, it involves more than 817,000 vehicles. Their seat belt reminder chimes may not sound when they're supposed to. Earlier this week, Tesla recalled 54,000 vehicles because self-driving software can let them roll through stop signs.

And a tough day on Wall Street. Shares in Facebook's parent company, Meta, plunged 26 percent after fourth-quarter profits fell. That's the biggest one-day decline for any U.S. company ever, and it took the rest of the market down. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 518 points, nearly 1.5 percent, to close at 35111. The Nasdaq fell 538 points, 3.7 percent. The S&P 500 dropped 112 points, 2.4 percent.