Covid Live: US reports highest seven-day average cases since January; UK ‘considering home vaccinations’ | World news

The volume of traffic in the streets UK Boxing Day may have been affected by new coronavirus restrictions that went into effect in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland on Sunday, including the wearing of masks in all stores and limiting the size of groups of six inside.

Attendance in Northern Ireland was 73% below 2019 levels, 63% below in Wales and almost 50% below in Scotland, reports the AP.

France reported 27,697 new cases of the coronavirus, Reuters reports.

Yesterday, the country recorded a record 104,611 Covid-19 infections on Saturday, surpassing the 100,000 threshold for the first time since the start of the pandemic.

Arsenal football club at England announced that their next Premier League game against Wolves on Tuesday has been postponed due to “a number of Wolves squad players testing positive for Covid-19”.

The club said: “This match will be rescheduled in due course and any tickets and / or hospitality packages purchased for this match will be valid for the rescheduled date.”

The use of the Oxford / AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine in vulnerable people may lead to a drop in the number of deaths in the UK compared to Europe, according to the former head of the country’s vaccine task force.

Clive Dix said the long-lasting cellular immune response produced by the AZ jab has the potential to “last a lifetime.”

The Oxford / AstraZeneca jab was approved last December and vaccines were initially rolled out among the oldest and most vulnerable in society.

Dix told the Daily Telegraph: “If you look across Europe, with the increase in cases, there is also a corresponding lagged increase in deaths, but not in the UK, and we have to understand that. “

He added: “I personally think it is because most of our vulnerable people have received the AstraZeneca vaccine.”

A Israeli The hospital will begin administering a fourth Covid-19 vaccine to 150 staff on Monday as part of a trial to assess whether a second booster is needed nationwide.

Sheba Medical Center near Tel Aviv said its trial would shed light on the effectiveness of a fourth dose and help policymakers shape health policy in Israel and abroad.

Israel has reported 1,118 confirmed cases of the Omicron variant, with the number of people infected doubling every two days.

A panel of health ministry experts recommended offering a fourth dose of the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine to Israelis aged 60 and over who received a booster at least four months ago.

But final approval by the ministry’s chief executive is still pending amid a public debate over whether sufficient scientific information is available to justify a new recall campaign, Reuters reports.

A White House official, who requested anonymity, said despite the chaos at some airports that “we are in a better place than last Christmas” and noted that “only a small percentage of flights are affected” .

“But any cancellations can be painful and delay a reunion with family and friends, so the Department of Transportation and the FAA are monitoring this closely,” the official said, referring to the Federal Aviation Administration.

Commercial airlines on Sunday canceled more than 720 flights within, to or from the United States, according to a tally posted on the flight tracking website FlightAware.com.

United Airlines canceled 98 flights on Sunday, a spokesperson said, adding that a small portion of the average 4,000 daily flights remained, Reuters reports.

Iran has banned the entry of travelers from Britain, France, Denmark and Norway for 15 days as part of the fight against coronaviruses, Reuters reports.

State television said on Sunday that a similar ban imposed in late November on travelers from South Africa and seven neighboring countries was also extended by 15 days.

Health officials have also indefinitely halted overland travel to neighboring Turkey, a popular tourist destination, the broadcaster said.

Iran, the epicenter of the pandemic in the Middle East, has so far reported only 14 confirmed cases of Omicron, but media said detection kits were not widely available and officials warned of possible rapid spread within weeks.

the from the United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to review crucial hospital data on Monday before any further announcement on Covid measures, but has no plans to recall his cabinet as ministers are still deeply skeptical of new legal restrictions.

Sources said the Prime Minister would “take stock” after being encouraged by improved data on Friday, a sign that No 10 is moving away from tighter restrictions in England, but sources in Downing Street have said ‘He would act quickly if there were new causes of concern.

Instead, Johnson will only receive his regular data briefing during the public holiday with England’s chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty – who is expected to be knighted in New Year’s honors – and the science adviser. in chief, Sir Patrick Vallance.

that of New York Acting State Health Commissioner Dr Mary Bassett said the “striking increase” in hospitalizations of children with Covid-19 that the state has recorded over the past three weeks has shown that urgent action was needed.

All children over the age of five should be fully immunized, she said, while those under the age of five should be protected by ensuring those around them are protected with immunizations, boosters, wearing masks, avoiding crowds and testing, reports Reuters.

“The risks of Covid-19 for children are real,” Bassett said in a statement.

The state health department said the increases were concentrated in New York City and surrounding areas where Omicron is spreading rapidly.

A reduced Boxing Day trail hunting program will take place in parts of the UK this year despite the worsening Covid situation and growing calls to ban the practice on public lands, the Countryside Alliance said.

The majority of Boxing Day hunts are scheduled to take place on December 27, as that year’s public holiday falls on a Sunday, traditionally a day of rest for the hunting community.

Restrictions designed to slow the spread of the virus in Scotland and Wales have forced many packs to cancel public gatherings linked to their meetings.

France reported 95,609 coronavirus deaths in hospital, an increase of 96.

He also reported that 3,299 people are in intensive care units with coronavirus, up from 17, Reuters reports.

British consumers have largely stayed away from traditional Boxing Day sales over concerns over the Omicron Covid variant, with visits to main streets, malls and shopping parks down more than 45% per compared to pre-pandemic levels, according to industry figures.

Fears over the virus, as well as several key retailers including John Lewis, Marks & Spencer and Next, deciding to keep their stores closed, and the traditional one-off shopping day falling on a Sunday this year, have all held back sales.

By lunchtime on Sunday, the numbers were only up just over a quarter from a year ago, when main streets across the UK were locked, according to the latest data from the group of Springboard purchasing tracking.