North Korea confirmed its first Covid-19 outbreak on Thursday, calling it the "gravest national emergency" and ordering a national lockdown, with state media reporting an Omicron variant had been detected in Pyongyang.

The first public admission of Covid-19 infections highlights the potential for a major crisis in a country that lacks medical resources and has refused international help with vaccinations and kept its borders shut.

As of March, no cases of Covid-19 have been reported....