People wearing protective masks to help curb the spread of the coronavirus walk along a pedestrian crossing, Nov 25, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (EUGENE HOSHIKO / AP PHOTO)
ANKARA / BEIRUT / MANILA / PHNOM PENH / SEOUL / SINGAPORE / SYDNEY / ULAN BATOR / TOKYO / ISTANBUL – Japan's health ministry said on Wednesday its panel of experts had agreed Moderna Inc's COVID-19 vaccines could be used for booster shots, setting the stage for official government approval.
Japan started administering booster shots this month with Pfizer Inc vaccines.
The panel agreed Moderna vaccines could be used on those aged 18 or older for booster shots, the ministry said. The same age restriction is being applied to Pfizer vaccines for booster shots.
Australia
Australia on Wednesday reopened borders to vaccinated skilled migrants and foreign students after a near two-year ban on their entry, in a bid to boost an economy hit by stop-start COVID-19 lockdowns and restart international travel.
The emergence of the new Omicron variant forced officials to delay the reopening by two weeks after health officials sought a temporary pause to get more information about the strain, which so far appears to show milder symptoms than other COVID-19 variants.
The return of foreign students, who are worth about A$35 billion ($25 billion) a year to the Australian economy, will help businesses to fill many casual jobs
The return of foreign students, who are worth about A$35 billion ($25 billion) a year to the Australian economy, will help businesses to fill many casual jobs. More than 235,000 foreigners, including about 160,000 students, held visas for Australia at the end of October, official data showed.
The easing in travel rules comes as the state of New South Wales, home to Sydney, lifted most restrictions from Wednesday for the unvaccinated, despite a steady rise in Omicron infections after a staggered reopening.
From Wednesday, mask wearing in NSW will no longer be mandatory in indoor settings, only on public transport. Further to this, non-essential retail venues such as restaurants and retail shops, would open to the unvaccinated from that day.
The state logged 1,360 new cases, the biggest daily rise in more than three months and since a nearly four-month lockdown ended in early October. Australia has recorded about 235,500 cases and 2,117 deaths since the pandemic began.
Cambodia
Cambodia has detected the country's first case of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus in a local woman who had traveled from Ghana, the ministry of health said.
The 23-year old woman had returned from Ghana via Dubai and Bangkok, the ministry said in a statement issued on Tuesday.
The woman, who was 15 weeks pregnant, had been admitted to hospital for treatment, it said.
Lebanon
The total number of confirmed cases of Omicron COVID-19 variant reached eight in Lebanon, Lebanese Health Minister Firas Abiad said on Tuesday.
Abiad noted that his ministry suspects the presence of 16 additional Omicron cases arriving from African countries, Britain, Spain, Turkey, the United States and the United Arab Emirates, the National News Agency reported.
Abiad said that he will be coordinating with the tourism ministry to implement strict measures in restaurants and other public places during the festive season, especially since hospitals in Lebanon are not well equipped for the new wave of COVID-19 amid the current financial crisis.
The number of COVID-19 cases in Lebanon increased on Tuesday by 1,474 to reach 692,315, while the death toll from the virus went up by 13 cases to 8,873.
Mongolia
Mongolia's COVID-19 tally has reached 387,161 after 335 new infections were registered over the past 24 hours, the country's health ministry said on Wednesday.
Six of the latest confirmed cases were imported from abroad, and the remaining ones were local transmissions, the ministry said.
Meanwhile, a COVID-19 patient died on Tuesday, bringing the national death toll to 1,966, it said.
The Philippines
The Philippines has detected two imported cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant of concern, its first reported cases, the Department of Health said on Wednesday.
The two Omicron variant cases, detected from 48 samples sequenced on Dec 14, were currently isolated in a quarantine facility, it said in a statement.
Singapore
Singapore reported 442 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, bringing the total tally in the country to 274,143.
Of the new cases, 401 were in the community, eight were in migrant worker dormitories and 33 were imported cases, according to statistics released by the Ministry of Health.
A total of 548 cases are currently warded in hospitals, with 31 cases being critically ill in the intensive care unit, and the current overall ICU utilization rate is 50.8 percent.
The ministry said in another press release on Tuesday that the detection of the Omicron variant in the country is "a matter of time" as the virus has been spreading worldwide.
Singapore will extend Vaccination-Differentiated Safe Management Measures (VDS) to more settings to better protect the vulnerable and at-risk groups while allowing specific concessions for fully vaccinated individuals to return safely to the workplace.
A traveler arrives at a COVID-19 testing center at the Incheon International Airport in Incheon, South Korea, Dec 1, 2021. (AHN YOUNG-JOON / AP)
South Korea
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency posted 7,850 cases for Tuesday, with the number of patients in serious condition also reaching a fresh high at 964.
Daily tallies of infections shot past 7,000 for the first time last week, just days after passing the 5,000 mark, putting ever greater strains on the country's medical capacity.
Total infections in the pandemic so far have risen to 536,495, including 128 cases of the Omicron variant, with 4,456 deaths, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency.
Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum warned on Wednesday that the government is considering reimposing strict distancing curbs including a ban on gatherings and a curfew on dining in eating establishments. An official announcement is expected on Friday.
Pedestrians wearing face masks walk on a street in Ankara, Turkey on Dec 12, 2021, amid the COVID-19 pandemic. (ADEM ALTAN / AFP)
Turkey
Turkish healthcare workers on Wednesday went on a one-day strike across the country, asking for the improvement of their working conditions amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Turkish Medical Association (TTB) said the medics have been requesting "humane working hours, healthy working environments, and a holistic law against occupational diseases, especially COVID-19."
They asked for an "effective and efficient regulation" on preventing the rising violence toward health workers in the country, TTB noted in a written statement.
"We demand a base salary with which we can make a living," the TTB statement read.
The physicians are also against the imposition of examinations at short time intervals, arguing that they should spare at least 20 minutes for their patients.
Currently, the inspection time in the state hospitals varies between five to 10 minutes.
Turkey on Tuesday reported 21,477 new COVID-19 cases, raising its tally of infections to 9,080,452, the country's health ministry said.
The death toll from the virus in Turkey rose by 181 to 79,503, while 24,042 more people recovered in the last 24 hours.
A total of 358,117 tests were conducted over the past day, it said.