Thanks for joining us. That’s all from me, Samantha Lock, for today.
We will be launching another live Covid blog a little later today but in the meantime you can catch up with all the latest developments here.
Thanks for following along and, as always, I appreciate your tips and reader insights. You can email me at [email protected] or via Twitter @Samantha__Lock
Summary
Here’s a quick recap of all the international Covid developments:
Europe:
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England is going back to its “Plan A” Covid strategy by lifting virus restrictions, with commuters back to the office, masks no longer required in enclosed places and vaccine passports shelved.
- The EU’s drug regulator gave the green light to Pfizer Inc’s antiviral Covid-19 pill for treating adults at risk of severe illness.
- Booster shots could reduce future hospitalisations in Europe by at least half a million, the EU’s public health agency said.
- Finland will begin gradually easing restrictions from 1 February instead of mid-February as initially planned.
- The head of the Paris hospitals system has set off a fierce debate by questioning whether people who refuse to be vaccinated should continue to have their treatment covered by public health insurance.
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Spain’s north-eastern Catalonia region drops the need for a Covid passport to enter restaurants, bars and gyms.
- Sweden’s health authority says it will not recommend Covid-19 jabs for all five to 11 year olds, the country again choosing a different Covid policy to much of Europe.
- Many more Covid restrictions are being lifted on Friday in Wales, allowing nightclubs to reopen and some rules on social distancing to be scrapped.
Asia:
- Hong Kong will shorten its 21-day quarantine requirement to 14 days for incoming travellers starting from 5 February.
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New Delhi ends a weekend curfew, reopens restaurants and allows markets to operate at full capacity, as the Omicron variant outbreak slows.
Americas:
- Canadian truck drivers are meeting in Ottawa to protest a federal government vaccine mandate.
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Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau says he has been exposed to Covid-19 and will isolate for five days, in accordance with health rules for vaccinated people.
- The US government’s main health agency is failing to meet its responsibilities for leading the national response to public health emergencies, including the coronavirus pandemic, a federal watchdog said Thursday.
Middle East:
- A United Arab Emirates medical convoy of one million Covid-19 vaccines reached the Gaza Strip via the Rafah border crossing, state news agency WAM said.
- Morocco will reopen its airspace for international flights starting Feb. 7, the state news agency (MAP) reported on Thursday.
- Covid-19 boosters increase protection against death from the Omicron variant to 95% in people aged 50 or over, the UK Health Security Agency said.
- China’s Walvax Biotechnology has recruited most of the 28,000 participants needed for a large clinical trial of its mRNA Covid-19 vaccine candidate, a senior company official said.
