The COVID-19 Omicron variant poses a very high risk of infection “surges” that could have “severe consequences” in some parts of the world, World Health Organization (WHO) director-general Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Monday. He said the new variant highlights the need for a new accord on pandemics, adding that the current system “disincentivizes countries from alerting others” to potential threats.