Israel's prime minister on Monday called on world powers not to "give in to Iran's nuclear blackmail" as negotiations commenced in Vienna.

Naftali Bennett said in a video statement that was delivered to representatives of nations opening negotiations with Iran that Tehran seeks "to end sanctions in exchange for almost nothing" and keep its nuclear program intact while receiving hundreds of billions of dollars once sanctions are lifted. The video was obtained by The Associated Press.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says he plans to pay a return visit to the United Arab Emirates in February as the two countries move to put years of tense relations behind them.

Abu Dhabi's powerful crown prince visited Ankara last week, making his first official trip to Turkey since 2012 and the highest-level visit by an Emirati official since relations between the two countries hit a low.

Scores of protesters blocked major roads across Lebanon on Monday to express anger against the country's political class for the worsening economic crisis and harsh living conditions.

The road closures with burning tires were mainly in the capital Beirut, the northern city of Tripoli, the southern port city of Sidon, the eastern Bekaa valley and the Zouk highway.

Cases of the omicron variant of the coronavirus popped up in countries on opposite sides of the world Sunday and many governments rushed to close their borders even as scientists cautioned that it's not clear if the new variant is more alarming than other versions of the virus.

The variant was identified days ago by researchers in South Africa, and much is still not known about it, including whether it is more contagious, more likely to cause serious illness or more able to evade the protection of vaccines. But many countries rushed to act, reflecting anxiety about anything that could prolong the pandemic that has killed more than 5 million people.

Negotiators gathered in Vienna on Monday to resume talks over reviving Iran's 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, with hopes of quick progress muted after the arrival of a hard-line new government in Tehran led to a more than five-month hiatus.

The remaining signatories to the nuclear deal formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action — Iran, Russia, China, France, Germany and Britain — will convene at the Palais Coburg, the luxury hotel where the agreement was signed six years ago. The talks come as Austria remains locked down over the coronavirus, which start a week earlier over a surge in cases.

- WHAT IS THIS NEW COVID-19 VARIANT? -

South African scientists identified a new version of the coronavirus this week that they say is behind a recent spike in COVID-19 infections in Gauteng, the country's most populous province. It's unclear where the new variant first emerged, but scientists in South Africa first alerted the World Health Organization and it has now been seen in travelers to Belgium, Botswana, Hong Kong and Israel.

Germany's government refused to back calls Friday for a swift and sharp lockdown to curb the country's worsening coronavirus situation, which saw daily confirmed cases hit a new peak and is putting hospitals under severe strain.

Health Minister Jens Spahn said contacts between people need to be sharply reduced, warning that "the situation is dramatically serious, more serious than it's been at any point in the pandemic."

French fishing crews temporarily blocked French ports and ferry traffic across the English Channel on Friday to disrupt the flow of goods to the U.K., a symbolic riposte in a dispute over post-Brexit fishing licenses.

It's the latest tension point between the neighboring countries, who are also trading blame for not doing enough to prevent the deaths of at least 27 migrants whose boat sank Wednesday off Calais, in the choppy waters of the world's busiest shipping route.

Global stocks and oil prices tumbled Friday after South Africa found a fast-spreading coronavirus variant and the European Union proposed suspending air travel from southern Africa.

London's benchmark fell 3% and Tokyo lost 2.5%. Shanghai, Frankfurt and Hong Kong also declined sharply. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped more than 2%.

The deal struck in Sudan to reinstate the prime minister following a military coup is imperfect but has saved the country from sliding into civil strife, the U.N. envoy to Sudan said on Friday.

Volker Perthes was speaking of the agreement between Sudan's military leaders and Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok, who was deposed and put under house arrest following the coup last month that stirred an international outcry.