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China’s local Covid-19 cases at two-month low as it braces for Lunar New Year, Winter Olympics
- Past two days’ tallies of 18 local symptomatic cases apiece are lowest since November, but separately 15 infections are found in Olympics ‘closed loop’
- 2 million tested in Fengtai district in Beijing, which has new cases, as the capital maintains caution before the Games
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China on Tuesday reported 18 local symptomatic Covid-19 infections, the same as the previous day, as it kept local cases at their lowest level since November 25.
The National Health Commission also reported two local asymptomatic cases and 52 imported cases, 27 of them symptomatic – excluding cases related to the Beijing Winter Olympics, of which 15 more were detected.
The country has begun its annual mass migration for Lunar New Year, and is intensifying efforts to contain any outbreaks before the Olympics, which begins next week.
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Dozens of positive Covid cases found in Beijing Olympic bubble and airport ahead of Winter Olympics
Dozens of positive Covid cases found in Beijing Olympic bubble and airport ahead of Winter Olympics
The municipality of Beijing has been on high alert, checking the health codes of anyone entering from elsewhere in China and keeping Olympic participants in a “closed loop” to minimise the risks after outbreaks of the Omicron and Delta variants in the capital.
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The city accounted for five of the new symptomatic local cases, with four of them found in the Fengtai district, which on Tuesday was testing all of its 2 million residents.
There was also one case in the neighbouring Hebei province, whose city of Zhangjiakou will co-host the Winter Games.
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As of Sunday, 78 cases had been found among Olympics-related arrivals in testing of athletes, team officials, journalists and Games partners.
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