Other Security News
COVID-19 Pandemic News

Other Security News

• Rights experts condemn 'unrelenting human rights violations' at Guantánamo Bay UN News 10 Jan 2022 -- A group of independent human rights experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council has condemned the continued operation of the Guantánamo Bay detention facility in Cuba as a site of "unparalleled notoriety" and "a stain on the US Government's commitment to the rule of law".
• US Cyber Officials Bracing for 'Log4j' Vulnerability Fallout VOA 10 Jan 2022 -- U.S. cybersecurity officials are still sounding an alarm about the so-called Log4j software vulnerability more than a month after it was first discovered, warning some criminals and nation state adversaries may be waiting to make use of their newfound access to critical systems.
• DOD Launches New University Consortium for Cybersecurity DoD News 10 Jan 2022 -- Senior cyber leaders from across the Defense Department, and beyond, recently gathered at Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, to mark the establishment of a new effort.

COVID-19 Pandemic News

United States

• DOD Awards Contracts to Purchase COVID-19 Antigen Over-the-Counter Test Kits in Support of POTUS' 500 Million Free At-Home COVID-19 Tests DoD 10 Jan 2022 -- This weekend, the Department of Defense (DoD), in coordination with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), awarded contracts to Atlantic Trading, LLC (Austin, Texas) and Medea Inc. (Pleasanton, California), purchasing a combined total of 27 million over-the-counter COVID-19 test kits. This effort supports the president's plan to deliver 500 million free at-home COVID-19 tests to the nation in response to the Omicron variant.
• Pentagon Moves to Health Protection Condition Charlie DoD News 10 Jan 2022 -- Due to recent increases in COVID-19 positivity case numbers, the Defense Department headquarters has moved to Health Protection Condition Charlie, Pentagon Press Secretary John F. Kirby said during a briefing today.
• U.S. COVID-19 cases surpass 60 mln: Johns Hopkins University People's Daily 10 Jan 2022 -- The total number of COVID-19 cases in the United States topped 60 million on Sunday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
• Omicron overwhelms hospitals in early hit cities across US Press TV 10 Jan 2022 -- The Omicron variant has overwhelmed hospitals in early hit cities across the United States, with experts saying this could be just the beginning.
• U.S. COVID-19 cases surpass 60 mln: Johns Hopkins University People's Daily 10 Jan 2022 -- The total number of COVID-19 cases in the United States topped 60 million on Sunday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

China

• Omicron infections spread from Tianjin to Henan Global Times 10 Jan 2022 -- As Omicron infections spread from Tianjin to Henan Province, several regions, including Beijing, urged residents to stay put during the upcoming Spring Festival, and tightened their COVID-19 prevention policies.
• COVID-19 cases in Xi'an surpass 2,000, largest domestically-transmitted epidemic since Wuhan outbreak Global Times 10 Jan 2022 -- Xi'an, the ancient city famous of Terracotta Warriors in Northwest China's Shaanxi Province, registered 2,004 confirmed COVID-19 cases in a month as of Sunday, becoming the domestically-transmitted outbreak with the largest number of confirmed cases on Chinese mainland since the Wuhan epidemic.
• Omicron infection from Tianjin spills over to Henan as 2 cases are found with the new variant Global Times 10 Jan 2022 -- Two people in Anyang, Central China's Henan Province, were found with the Omicron variant on Sunday, the same transmission chain with that found in Tianjin.
• Chinas current normalized anti-COVID measures still most effective against Omicron: epidemiologist Wu Zunyou Global Times 10 Jan 2022 -- Chinas current normalized epidemic control and prevention measures are still the most effective against the Omicron variant, said Wu Zunyou, the chief epidemiologist at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, amid the detection of Omicron in North Chinas Tianjin.
• Chinese test kit producers scramble to meet surging overseas orders Global Times 10 Jan 2022 -- Chinese test kit makers have ramped up workers recruiting and plant production amid booming overseas orders, especially from the US where the Omicron variant is spreading across the states.
• Nearly 2.9 bln COVID-19 vaccine doses administered on Chinese mainland People's Daily 10 Jan 2022 -- Nearly 2.9 billion COVID-19 vaccine doses had been administered on the Chinese mainland as of Sunday, data from the National Health Commission showed Monday.
• Two infected by COVID-19 Omicron variant in central China's Henan People's Daily 10 Jan 2022 -- Two COVID-19 local infections in Anyang City, central China's Henan Province, are confirmed to be caused by the Omicron variant, which has been classified as a member of Clade BA.1, local authorities said Monday.
• Chinese mainland reports 97 locally transmitted COVID-19 cases People's Daily 10 Jan 2022 -- The Chinese mainland on Sunday reported 97 new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases, the National Health Commission said in its daily report on Monday.
• China's Tianjin starts citywide COVID-19 testing People's Daily 10 Jan 2022 -- North China's Tianjin, a 13.86-million-people municipality that neighbors Beijing, has decided to start a citywide nucleic acid testing after 20 people tested positive for COVID-19, authorities said Sunday.
• China's Xi'an reports 30 new COVID-19 cases People's Daily 10 Jan 2022 -- Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, reported 30 locally transmitted COVID-19 cases on Saturday, local authorities said on Sunday.
• Hong Kong reports 33 new COVID-19 cases People's Daily 10 Jan 2022 -- Hong Kong on Sunday reported 33 new cases of COVID-19 over the past 24 hours, taking the total tally of confirmed cases to 12,935, data from the Center for Health Protection showed.
• Beijing steps up pressure on Hong Kong over COVID-19 party scandal, Cathay Pacific Radio Free Asia 10 Jan 2022 -- Beijing has asked Hong Kong's leader to "take swift action" against officials embroiled in a scandal around a birthday party at the center of a large cluster of COVID-19 cases, local media reported on Monday.
• China Records 157 New COVID-19 Cases SPA 10 Jan 2022 -- China reported 157 new coronavirus (COVID-19) cases.
• City Near China's Winter Olympics Site Has Omicron Outbreak VOA 10 Jan 2022 -- A city near Beijing, the site of next month's Winter Olympics, has begun a mass COVID testing campaign because of the discovery of at least 40 omicron cases over a two-day period. Officials have initiated restrictions on Tianjin's residents in an effort to prevent the spread of the outbreak. Bus and train services between Tianjin and Beijing have been suspended.
• COVID-19 infections in kids account for over half of cases in Tianjin Omicron-fueled outbreak Global Times 10 Jan 2022 -- The Omicron variant tends to infect children more easily, Chinese health experts said on Sunday, as more than half of the 40 COVID-19 cases in North China's Tianjin Municipality, a major gateway to the capital Beijing, host of the 2022 Olympics Winter Games, in less than a month, were middle and primary school students.
• Community spread of COVID-19 basically blocked in China's Xi'an People's Daily 10 Jan 2022 -- Xi'an, capital city of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, has basically stopped the spread of COVID-19 in communities one month after the resurgence of the epidemic hit the city, thanks to stringent containment measures such as city-level lockdown and rounds of mass nucleic acid testing.

Europe

• UK records another 141,472 new coronavirus cases People's Daily 10 Jan 2022 -- Britain reported another 141,472 coronavirus cases in the latest 24-hour period, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 14,475,192, according to official figures released Sunday.
• Overwhelmed by COVID-19, UK gov't turns to private companies for help Press TV 10 Jan 2022 -- The National Health Service (NHS), the publicly funded healthcare system in the UK, is seeking help from private health companies to deliver critical treatments such as cancer surgery, as the Omicron variant of COVID-19 keeps surging amid healthcare staff shortage.
• Britain Records 141,472 New Cases of COVID-19 SPA 10 Jan 2022 -- Britain recorded 141,472 new infections of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), along with 97 deaths in the past 24 hours.
• Spain PM Urges Europe to Treat COVID as More 'Endemic' Illness VOA 10 Jan 2022 -- Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said Monday he plans to ask European officials to consider treating COVID-19 more like an endemic illness — a regularly occurring milder disease like the flu — and move away from the detailed tracking system that the pandemic has required.

India

• India Turns to Boosters as It Battles Another COVID Surge VOA 10 Jan 2022 -- India began administering booster shots of COVID-19 vaccines to vulnerable groups on Monday, as infections surge to their highest levels in seven months fueled by the omicron variant and crowded cities like New Delhi and Mumbai reimpose restrictions to battle the third wave of the pandemic.
• India's Cumulative COVID-19 Vaccination Coverage exceeds 151.94 Cr India PIB 10 Jan 2022 -- With the administration of more than 29 lakh Doses (29,60,975) vaccine doses in the last 24 hours, India's COVID-19 vaccination coverage has exceeded 151
• COVID - 19 Vaccination Update - Day 360 India PIB 10 Jan 2022 -- On the first day of "Precaution Dose" for the identified categories of beneficiaries for COVID vaccination today, more than 9 lakh doses were administered to the eligible age group
• Update on COVID-19 Vaccine Availability in States/UTs India PIB 10 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 10 Jan 2022
• Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya reviews Public Health Preparedness to COVID19 and National COVID19 Vaccination Progress with 6 Western States/UTs India PIB 10 Jan 2022 -- "Let there be no lapses in our preparedness as we battle this surge of the pandemic

Iran

• COVID-19 kills 37 more Iranians over past 24 hours IRNA 10 Jan 2022 -- The number of deaths from the coronavirus pandemic in Iran increased to 131,915 with 37 more Iranians killed by the deadly disease over the past 24 hours, Iran's Health Ministry announced on Monday.

South Korea

• S.Korea Records 3,007 New Cases of COVID-19 SPA 10 Jan 2022 -- South Korea recorded 3,007 new cases of the novel coronavirus along with 34 deaths in the past 24 hours.

Saudi Arabia

• Ministry of Health Reports 4,778 New COVID-19 Cases, 893 Recoveries in Saudi Arabia SPA 10 Jan 2022 -- The Ministry of Health (MoH) announced the registration of 4,778 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 893 recoveries in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia during the past 24 hours.

Taiwan

• Domestic COVID-19 cases linked to airport climb to 30 (update) CNA 10 Jan 2022 -- Taiwan on Monday confirmed six new domestic COVID-19 cases, all linked to Taoyuan International Airport, and 26 new imported cases, according to the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC).
• New COVID-19 testing rules for long-haul flight arrivals set to begin CNA 10 Jan 2022 -- New COVID-19 testing rules for travelers arriving on long-haul flights to Taiwan will be carried out starting at midnight Monday night, according to the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC).
• Taiwan removes all 10 countries from "key high-risk" COVID-19 list CNA 10 Jan 2022 -- Ten African countries that were listed by Taiwan as "key high-risk" areas for COVID-19 in late November will be removed from the list on Jan. 12, allowing travelers more choice when deciding how to quarantine, but requiring them to cover the cost of their accommodation.
• Taiwan airport cluster infections climb to 25 People's Daily 10 Jan 2022 -- Taiwan reported 11 new locally-transmitted confirmed COVID-19 cases on Sunday, bringing the total confirmed cases related to the Taoyuan International Airport cluster infections to 25, the island's disease monitoring agency said.

Other Countries

• Africa's 10-mln COVID-19 cases highlight need to strengthen global solidarity against pandemic People's Daily 10 Jan 2022 -- The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Africa has exceeded the 10 million mark with the rapid transmission of the Omicron variant, which has surfaced in at least 33 African nations.
• Jordan Records 2,789 New Cases of Coronavirus SPA 10 Jan 2022 -- Jordan announced the registration of 2,789 new infections of the novel coronavirus in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of infections to 1,082,570.
• Morocco Records 2,622 New COVID-19 Cases SPA 10 Jan 2022 -- Morocco recorded 2,622 new cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in the past 24 hours, bringing the tally to 1,004,706.
• UAE Announces 2,562 New COVID-19 Cases SPA 10 Jan 2022 -- The Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced that it conducted 297,077 additional COVID-19 tests over the past 24 hours, using state-of-the-art medical testing equipment, according to WAM news agency.
• Kuwait Records 3,683 New Cases of COVID-19 SPA 10 Jan 2022 -- Kuwait recorded 3,683 new cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of infections to 437,602.
• Brazil Records 24,382 New Cases of COVID-19 SPA 10 Jan 2022 -- Brazil recorded 24,382 new infections of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), along with 44 deaths in the past 24 hours.
• Egypt Records 912 New Cases of COVID-19 SPA 10 Jan 2022 -- Egypt recorded 912 new cases afflicted with novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and 26 deaths in the past 24 hours.
• Uganda Reopens Schools After 2 Years of COVID-19 Lockdown VOA 10 Jan 2022 -- Uganda has reopened schools for the first time in two years, marking the end of the world's longest school closure from the COVID-19 pandemic.While many welcomed students' return to the classroom, a low turnout has raised concerns about the long-term impact on education.