JUDY WOODRUFF: There's fresh evidence
tonight that the Omicron spike in COVID-19

infections is hurting the U.S. job market.
New unemployment claims jumped 55,000

last week to 286,000. That's the
most since October. All told,

more than 1.6 million people
in the country are now
collecting jobless benefits.

The congressional committee investigating
the January 6 Capitol riot asked today to

interview Ivanka Trump. Members said they
want the former president's daughter and

adviser to discuss her actions
and conversations on that day.

Meanwhile, a district attorney in
Georgia asked for a grand jury to

help investigate whether Mr. Trump tried
to interfere with state election results.

President Biden marked one year
in office today with a new focus
on passing at least some of his

domestic agenda. His Build
Back Better bill, worth some
$2 trillion around health care,

home care, education and climate
was blocked in the U.S. Senate.

So, on Wednesday, he promoted
action on any chunks of it
that can win enough votes.

Today, the speaker of the
House, Nancy Pelosi, responded.

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): What
can we agree upon? And I'm
sure we can agree on something

significant. Call it a chunk if you want,

but whatever you call it, we want
it to be able to make a difference

in transforming the workplace
by honoring work, by respecting
the fact that there are families

that have to make decisions
between home and work and,
again, protecting the planet.

JUDY WOODRUFF: We will take a
longer look at the president's
first year after the news summary.

Police in Britain arrested two new people
today in connection with the standoff

at a Texas synagogue last Saturday.
It's unclear exactly how they
might be linked to the gunman

who held four people hostage
near Dallas before he was killed.
Meanwhile, a recording posted online

showed the gunman ranting against
Jews and U.S. wars in Afghanistan
and other Muslim nations.

The CIA has concluded that most
cases of so-called Havana Syndrome

were not caused by a foreign
government attack. Investigators
studied reports of headaches,

dizziness and nausea among U.S.
officials starting in Cuba in 2016.

They found most resulted
from environmental factors

and other medical conditions. Two
dozen cases are still under review.

The first disaster relief arrived
in Tonga today five days after
an undersea volcanic eruption.

Flights from New Zealand and Australia
were finally able to deliver much-needed

drinking water and other supplies.
They had wanted to -- or, rather,

they had waited for ash to be cleared from
the South Pacific nation's main airport.

KATIE GREENWOOD, International
Federation of Red Cross and
Red Crescent Societies: The

runway being open and able to accept
flights in with essential relief

items is one of the very good news
stories of this disaster response.

We had hundreds of volunteers come out
and manually clear the runway of debris

and ash to ensure that
those flights could land.

JUDY WOODRUFF: Across the Pacific,
Peru declared an emergency

as it battles a huge oil spill caused by
rogue waves from the volcano's eruption.

The spill has fouled nearly 7,000 square
miles of islands and fishing waters.

Back in this country, federal prosecutors
charged four officials in Belarus

with air piracy for diverting
a Ryanair flight last year. The
plane was crossing Belarusian

airspace when authorities used
a false bomb threat to force
it down. Then they arrested an

opposition journalist who was on
board. It's not clear if those
charged will ever stand trial.

The NCAA has announced a new policy on
transgender athletes in college sports.

Eligibility will now depend
on each sport's assessment of
athletes' testosterone levels.

The previous requirement was
the same across all sports.

This comes as more states have banned
transgender athletes from school sports.

Another sell-off hit Wall Street
today. Major stock indexes again
lost nearly 1 percent or more

amid continued concerns about
inflation and interest rates.
The Dow Jones industrial

average shed 313 points to close
at 34715. The Nasdaq fell 186
points. The S&P 500 dropped 50.

And 19-year-old Zara Rutherford
is now the youngest woman to
fly solo around the world.

The British-Belgian pilot landed her
microlight plane in Western Belgium

today after a trip that lasted
155 days. A crowd of family and
friends cheered her safe return.

And she's only 19.

Still to come on the "NewsHour": we
examine the Biden administration's
handling of the immigration

issue; a new report alleges
former Pope Benedict failed to
act against abusive priests;

director Adam McKay discusses
his allegorical film "Don't
Look Up"; plus much more.