Other Security News
COVID-19 Pandemic News

Other Security News

• Attorney General Merrick B. Garland Delivers Remarks on the First Anniversary of the Attack on the Capitol US Dept. of Justice 05 Jan 2022
• US Attorney General: Officials 'at Any Level' Linked to US Capitol Riot Will Be Pursued VOA 05 Jan 2022 -- U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland vowed Wednesday that Justice Department prosecutors will pursue officials "at any level" responsible for last January's riot by supporters of then-President Donald Trump at the U.S. Capitol.
• US AG Garland vows prosecutions 'at any level' over Jan. 6 Press TV 05 Jan 2022 -- US Attorney General Merrick Garland says the Justice Department is resolved to hold accountable all the individuals that were involved in the January 6 attacks, including those who never set foot in the Capitol building.

COVID-19 Pandemic News

• Press Briefing by White House COVID-⁠19 Response Team and Public Health Officials The White House 05 Jan 2022
• White House Ramps Up Anti-COVID Efforts as Omicron Threatens to Swamp Hospitals VOA 05 Jan 2022 -- U.S. President Joe Biden's administration is ramping up its national coronavirus containment campaign as record-high infections fueled by the omicron variant threaten to overwhelm hospitals and disrupt some school reopening plans.
• Daily COVID-19 cases in US up 98% from last week as Omicron rages on Press TV 05 Jan 2022 -- The current seven-day daily average of COVID-19 cases in the United States is 491,700 per day — marking a 98% increase over the previous week, according to the top federal health agency.
• WHO still recommends 14-day quarantine for COVID-19 patients People's Daily 05 Jan 2022 -- Although most people recover from COVID-19 within five to seven days of the onset of symptoms, the World Health Organization (WHO) still recommends a 14-day quarantine, an official from the organization told a press briefing on Tuesday.

United States

• Over 100,000 hospitalized with COVID-19 in U.S. for 1st time in 4 months People's Daily 05 Jan 2022 -- More than 103,000 people are currently hospitalized with COVID-19 in the United States, the first time the total has reached six figures in nearly four months, CNN on Tuesday quoted the latest data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as saying.
• New pandemic records hit as U.S. struggles against Omicron People's Daily 05 Jan 2022 -- As the United States sees new records of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations with the surge of the Omicron variant of COVID-19, large parts of the country are increasingly intimidated by the virus and schools are caught in a predicament.

China

• Drop in Xi'an cases indicates light of hope amid hard lockdown Global Times 05 Jan 2022 -- Xi'an, capital city of Northwest China's Shaanxi Province which was hit hard by a COVID-19 epidemic flare-up in the past weeks, saw a dim light of winning the battle against the resurgence as it reported 35 infections on Wednesday, a sharp drop from the previous day's 95 cases.
• Henan cities restrict travel, close schools amid COVID-19 spike Global Times 05 Jan 2022 -- Central China's Henan Province has stepped up efforts to control the latest round of the COVID-19 outbreak, as all cross-provincial travel was paused on Wednesday, while several epidemic-hit cities have sealed off key regions and partially suspended schools and public venues to curb the virus' spread.
• HK imposes new restrictions, banning flights amid Omicron resurgence Global Times 05 Jan 2022 -- Hong Kong would ban flights from eight countries starting Saturday as part of its enhanced anti-epidemic measures to prevent a potential fifth-wave epidemic caused by Omicron. Experts said the measures were "excessively strict" but very likely to succeed to snuff out a potential outbreak in as soon as two weeks as the regional government is actively promoting the reopening of the border between Hong Kong and the mainland.
• C. China's Henan halts cross-provincial travel amid fresh COVID-19 spike Global Times 05 Jan 2022 -- Central China's Henan Province, home to about 110 million people, has hit pause on cross-provincial travel on Wednesday, following a fresh COVID-19 case surge in the region. A partial lockdown and suspension of public venues have also been put in place to curb further virus spread.
• Hong Kong to suspend flights from 8 countries over COVID-19 People's Daily 05 Jan 2022 -- The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government announced on Wednesday that incoming passenger flights from eight countries will be banned from landing in Hong Kong starting from Jan. 8 for 14 days.
• Chinese mainland reports 41 locally transmitted COVID-19 cases People's Daily 05 Jan 2022 -- The Chinese mainland on Tuesday reported 41 new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases, the National Health Commission said in its daily report on Wednesday.
• China's Xi'an reports 95 local COVID-19 cases Monday People's Daily 05 Jan 2022 -- Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, reported 95 locally transmitted COVID-19 cases on Monday, local authorities said Tuesday.
• Hong Kong reports 39 new COVID-19 cases People's Daily 05 Jan 2022 -- Hong Kong on Tuesday reported 39 new cases of COVID-19 over the past 24 hours, taking the total tally to 12,761, data from the Center for Health Protection showed.
• Community spread of COVID-19 under control in China's Xi'an People's Daily 05 Jan 2022 -- The community spread of COVID-19 in Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, has been brought under control, local authorities said on Tuesday.
• East China city reports 26 COVID-19 cases, community spread under control People's Daily 05 Jan 2022 -- The city of Ningbo in east China's Zhejiang Province has reported a total of 26 locally transmitted COVID-19 cases in Beilun District since Jan. 1, local authorities said on Tuesday night.
• Xi'an authorities ban 'negative' lockdown posts, photos or video on social media Radio Free Asia 05 Jan 2022 -- Authorities in the northern Chinese city of Xi'an have banned "negative news" on social media as many residents took to social media to complain about a citywide lockdown that has left many stranded at home without enough food or access to medical treatment.
• Hong Kong Fluey: Territory Under New COVID-19 Lockdown After Omicron Outbreak Sputnik 05 Jan 2022 -- The two-week public health restrictions and urgent search across Hong Kong for contacts of the first suspected patient with the Omicron variant are aimed at containing the virus ahead of Chinese New Year celebrations on 1 February.
• China Records 91 New COVID-19 Cases SPA 05 Jan 2022 -- China reported 91 new coronavirus (COVID-19) cases.

Europe

• Backlash after Macron says his COVID strategy aims to 'annoy' the unvaccinated Press TV 05 Jan 2022 -- French President Emmanuel Macron has generated major furor after insisting his government's COVID vaccination strategy was aimed at "annoying" the unvaccinated and ardently making life harder for them.
• Bulgaria's Foreign Minister Tests Positive For COVID As Cases Spike RFE/RL 05 Jan 2022 -- Bulgaria's foreign minister, Teodora Genchovska, has tested positive for COVID-19 amid a spike in coronavirus cases that has seen a sharp rise in new infections.
• Poland's President Andrzej Duda Tests Positive For COVID-19 Sputnik 05 Jan 2022 -- On Monday, Polish Health Minister Adam Niedzielski said that Warsaw might impose new COVID restrictions if coronavirus infections continue to increase.
• UK Labour Leader Keir Starmer Tests Positive For COVID-19 Sputnik 05 Jan 2022 -- This comes after 218,724 COVID-19 infections were registered in the UK on Tuesday, the highest daily total since the coronavirus pandemic began a couple of years ago.

India

• India Expands COVID-19 Vaccinations to 15 Year Olds VOA 05 Jan 2022 -- As a third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic looms in India, driven by the omicron variant of coronavirus, authorities have begun giving shots to 15 to 18 year olds.
• India's Cumulative COVID-19 Vaccination Coverage exceeds 147.72 Cr India PIB 05 Jan 2022 -- With the administration of more than 96 lakh Doses (96,43,238) vaccine doses in the last 24 hours, India's COVID-19 vaccination coverage has exceeded 147
• COVID-19 Vaccination Update - Day 355 India PIB 05 Jan 2022 -- In a landmark achievement, more than 1 Cr (1,24,02,515) COVID-19 Vaccine Doses administered among adolescents between 15-18 age group that too on the 3rd day of vaccination drive for adolescents
• Update on COVID-19 Vaccine Availability in States/UTs India PIB 05 Jan 2022 -- The Union Government is committed to accelerating the pace and expanding the scope of COVID-19 vaccination throughout the country
• COVID-19 UPDATE India PIB 05 Jan 2022

Iran

• COVID-19 kills 42 more Iranians over past 24 hours IRNA 05 Jan 2022 -- The number of deaths from the coronavirus pandemic in Iran increased to 131,778 with 42 more Iranians killed by the deadly disease over the past 24 hours, Iran's Health Ministry announced on Wednesday.

Japan

• Japan's Okinawa considers COVID emergency amid virus spread from US base Press TV 05 Jan 2022 -- Japan is considering declaring a state of emergency in the southern island of Okinawa, after the region emerged as the epicenter of a new coronavirus surge, with officials saying the virus keeps spreading from US bases.

Saudi Arabia

• Ministry of Health Reports 3,045 New COVID-19 Cases, 424 Recoveries in Saudi Arabia SPA 05 Jan 2022 -- The Ministry of Health (MoH) announced the registration of 3,045 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 424 recoveries in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia during the past 24 hours.

Taiwan

• Taiwan records new domestic COVID-19 case (update) CNA 05 Jan 2022 -- Taiwan on Wednesday reported one new domestic COVID-19 case involving a cleaner who works at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, according to the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC).
• COVID-19 cluster confirmed at Taipei quarantine hotel CNA 05 Jan 2022 -- The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) on Wednesday confirmed that two COVID-19 cases reported at a quarantine hotel in Taipei comprised a cluster infection.
• Three more domestic COVID-19 cases at Taoyuan airport confirmed CNA 05 Jan 2022 -- The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) has confirmed three more domestic COVID-19 cases linked to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, bringing the total reported this week to eight.<

  Other Countries

• Governments Worldwide Continue Imposing COVID Measures, 2 Years After Pandemic's Start VOA 05 Jan 2022 -- Exactly two years after the World Health Organization issued an alert about "a cluster of cases of pneumonia of unknown cause" in the central Chinese city of Wuhan that evolved into the global COVID-19 pandemic, the world is now struggling under the weight of the fast-moving omicron variant of the coronavirus that sparked the disease.
• Morocco Detects 5,618 New Cases of COVID-19 SPA 05 Jan 2022 -- Morocco recorded, in the past 24 hours, 5,618 new infections with the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19), bringing the total number of infections to 977,579.
• Egypt Records 769 New Infections of Coronavirus SPA 05 Jan 2022 -- Egypt recorded 769 new infections of the novel coronavirus "COVID-19", along with 19 deaths in the past 24 hours.
• Mexico's Confirmed COVID-19 Cases Pass 4 Million SPA 05 Jan 2022 -- Mexico registered 15,184 coronavirus cases and 130 more deaths on Tuesday, according to health ministry data, bringing the overall death toll to 299,711 and the total number of confirmed cases to 4,008,648, Reuters reported.
• Record Number of COVID-19 Infections Reported in Australia VOA 05 Jan 2022 -- Australia recorded on Wednesday a new daily record of more than 50,000 COVID-19 cases. Hospital admissions continue to rise.