China confirmed the first case of
sublineage of omicron BA.2, the BA.2.12.1,
which is gaining ground in countries like the United States, at a time when the Asian giant is going through a wave of outbreaks with record numbers of infections not seen since the start of the pandemic in 2020.
According to a weekly report from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), those infected with this subvariant, up to 27% more contagious than omicron BA.2, is a 27-year-old man who took a flight from Nairobi, Kenya, to the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou on April 23.
After testing positive for COVID four days later, The infected person was taken to a local hospital. for treatment, according to the center.
Unlike most of the world, which has already decided to live with the virus, China maintains for two years a strict zero tolerance policy once morest COVID with the argument to protect the elderly population, which in a high percentage is not vaccinated, or to avoid a hypothetical health collapse.
However, the harshness of the measures to stop the outbreaks -especially in the eastern metropolis of Shanghai, confined for almost two monthss- has provoked an unprecedented critical reaction in the population, that has spread innumerable complaints and videos of denunciation through the networks.
The Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Gebreyesus, stated last week that the restrictions put in place are not sustainable and recommended a change in strategy.
Chinese government spokesmen described their “irresponsible” statements alleging that the measures taken have managed to save millions of lives.
According to the latest official count of the health authorities published today, China reported a new death due to covid and 175 new positives, 162 of them by local contagion.
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