COVID digest: China locks down ahead of Winter Olympics

Beijing, Oct 25: China has imposed lockdowns and other restrictions as it seeks to get a grip on recent outbreaks of COVID-19 ahead of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.

Northern China has been the epicenter of the latest outbreak, accounting for the majority of cases and with mass testing underway in 11 provinces.

Officials issued a stay-at-home order for some 35,000 people in the Ejin county of Inner Mongolia. Among them are large numbers of tourists.

Tourist sites were closed in neighboring Gansu province, which lies along the ancient Silk Road, which boasts religious sites such as the Dunhuang grottoes. Numerous residential communities in Gansu were also placed under lockdown.

Mass testing is now underway in 11 northern provinces.

There have been 35 new cases of locally transmitted COVID in the past 24 hours in China, including 19 in Inner Mongolia and four in Gansu.

Although the incidence rates are rather low, China is committed to a zero-tolerance approach when it comes to the pandemic.

There are particular concerns that tour groups may serve as a vehicle for the disease to be spread, particularly ahead of the Winter Olympics in February.

Here are some more coronavirus headlines from around the world:

Europe

Germany's coronavirus infection figures climbed substantially once again on Monday, reaching 110.1 cases per 100,000 of the population.

Germany on Saturday exactly reached the threshold of 100 cases per 100,000 in the past seven days. That milestone was previously used for imposing a strict lockdown, although hospital admission rates are now viewed as a more meaningful indicator.

Poland's government has said it will consider tighter pandemic restrictions if average daily cases exceed 7,000.

Infections are rising rapidly there, in common with much of Central and Eastern Europe where vaccination rates are lower than in the rest of the continent.

"If, at the end of October, we are at an average level of over 7,000 cases per day, we will have to consider taking some more restrictive steps," Health Minister Adam Niedzielski was quoted as saying by state-run news agency PAP. "Decisions will be made at the beginning of November."

Niedzielski stressed that the government was not considering a lockdown.

Asia-Pacific

South Korea says it has achieved its target of vaccinating 70% of its 52 million people, apparently paving the way for a return-to-normal planned to begin next month.

In New Zealand, there were 109 new locally acquired cases on Monday, most of them in the archipelago nation's largest city, Auckland.

For New Zealanders, it's second worst day of daily infections since the pandemic began.

Americas

The United States' infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci has predicted that many 5- to 15-year-olds could be fully vaccinated by the end of the year. He said vaccines for the age group could be available in the first half of November.

"If all goes well, and we get the regulatory approval and the recommendation from the CDC, it's entirely possible if not very likely that vaccines will be available for children from 5 to 11 within the first week or two of November, the White House chief medical adviser told an interview with broadcaster ABC.

Canada has done away with a travel advisory that urged citizens to avoid non-essential foreign travel.

It comes at the same time that Ontario province issued a timeline to lift all remaining restrictions.

Its aim is to remove proof of vaccination and mask requirements by March 2022.

Source: DW