Covid-19 has infected more than 269M people and killed over 5.3M worldwide. Here are some of the latest coronavirus-related developments:
Saturday, December 11, 2021
Taiwan confirms first cases of Omicron
Taiwan has confirmed its first cases of the Omicron variant of coronavirus, found in three people who had arrived from abroad.
The island's Central Epidemic Command Centre said the infections were found in travellers arriving from Britain, the southern African nation of Eswatini and the United States.
Like all entrants, they were tested on arrival and already subject to two weeks of quarantine.
The self-ruling island has a strict two-week quarantine on arrival and has sealed its borders off to all but residents and citizens, with few exceptions.
Mauritius records first two Omicron cases
The Indian Ocean island nation of Mauritius has recorded its first two infections of the Covid-19 Omicron variant, both linked to people returned from South Africa, with a dozen more contact cases feared.
Health Minister Kailesh Jagutpal told a press conference on Friday the pair were asymptomatic and had tested negative the day before.
"They have already gone home," he said.
He added that contract tracing for the two people had been carried out, revealing 12 positive cases with a missing S gene – a tell-tale sign of Omicron.
Health authorities were currently analysing the samples to determine if they are in fact Omicron.
Ukraine receives more World Bank funds to fight Covid
The World Bank has approved an additional $150 million loan to help Ukraine speed up vaccinations against Covid-19, the international lender's Ukrainian office said.
Ukraine's government will spend $120 million on 16.5 million vaccine doses and the rest will be used for IT, communications and public outreach, capacity building and cold chain and waste management equipment, the World Bank said.
The new funds add to $155 million provided this year through two projects to support Ukrainian healthcare in the pandemic.
UEFA cancels Covid-postponed Tottenham v Rennes tie
UEFA has announced the cancellation of Tottenham's Covid-postponed Europa Conference League game against Rennes.
The two clubs were unable to find a suitable date to reschedule Thursday's game and "as a consequence, the match can no longer be played", European football's governing body explained.
UEFA's disciplinary wing will determine a result for the scrapped fixture.
The ruling will please Group G winners Rennes.
Mexico reports 199 more Covid deaths
Mexico's
health ministry reported 199 more deaths from Covid-19 in the country,
bringing the official toll since the pandemic began to 296,385.
The health ministry has previously said that the real number is likely significantly higher.
Infections up by 37%, deaths 28% in US
The seven-day average of Covid-19 cases in the United States was up 37 percent and average deaths per day climbed 28 percent, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Rochelle Walensky said.
Initial data suggests that Covid-19 vaccine boosters help to bolster protection against the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, Walensky said at a White House briefing.
Brazil reports 234 more Covid related deaths
Brazil has had 7,765 new cases of the novel coronavirus reported in the past 24 hours, and 234 deaths from Covid-19, the health ministry said.
The South American country has now registered 22,184,824cases since the pandemic began, while the official death toll has risen to 616,691, according to ministry data, in the world's second-deadliest outbreak outside the United States.
Omicron pressures ICUs in France
France reports 2,498 people in intensive care units for Covid-19. The number is up by 37 in the last 24 hours.
The country also registered 141 more coronavirus-related fatalities which brings the death toll to 93,338 since the beginning of the pandemic.
The occupancy of the ICUs in the country is surging as cases rise while the fully vaccinated ratio of over 67 million people is at 71 percent.
Switzerland OKs Comirnaty jabs for children
The Swiss medicines agency Swissmedic approved the vaccination of children aged between five and 11 with Pfizer-Biontech's Comirnaty vaccine.
"Clinical trial results show that the vaccine is safe and effective in this age group," it said in a statement.
The Comirnaty vaccine is administered in two doses of ten micrograms three weeks apart.
An ongoing clinical trial of more than 1,500 people "shows that the Covid-19 vaccine offers almost complete protection against serious illness caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus in 5 to 11-year-olds,” it said.
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(With input from news agency language)
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