Page 3 - Beijing

US doesn't want any conflict with China, says White House official Kirby

Despite acknowledging the security challenges posed by China, White House official John Kirby has stated that Washington doesn't want to see a conflict with Beijing

Beijing witnesses rise in Covid-linked deaths after restrictions eased

Outside a funeral home in eastern Beijing, dozens of people were bundled up in parkas and hats against the freezing temperatures Friday evening as workers in full protective suits wheeled out coffins one by one. When an employee with a clipboard shouted the name of the dead, a relative trundled up to the coffin to examine the body. One of the relatives told The Associated Press their loved one had been infected with COVID-19. Deaths linked to the coronavirus are appearing in Beijing after weeks of China reporting no fatalities, even as the country is seeing a surge of cases. That surge comes as the government last week dramatically eased some of the world's strictest COVID-19 containment measures. On Wednesday, the government said it would stop reporting asymptomatic COVID-19 cases since they've become impossible to track with mass testing no longer required. That halt in reporting made it unclear how fast the virus is spreading. Social media posts, business closures and other ...

Chinese envoy blames 'foreign forces' for protests against Covid Zero

China started dismantling its zero-tolerance approach to eliminating Covid-19 last week. It no longer sends infected people to quarantine camps, and eased travel requirements

Beijing's Covid gloom deepens as China relaxes curbs after protests

Anecdotal evidence suggests that many businesses have been forced to close as infected workers quarantine at home while many other people are deciding not to go out

China strengthens hospitals, expands ICU facilities as Covid cases surge

Facing a surge in COVID-19 cases, China is setting up more intensive care facilities and trying to strengthen hospitals as Beijing rolls back anti-virus controls that confined millions of people to their homes, crushed economic growth and set off protests. President Xi Jinping's government is officially committed to stopping virus transmission, the last major country to try. But the latest moves suggest the ruling Communist Party will tolerate more cases without quarantines or shutting down travel or businesses as it winds down its zero-COVID strategy. A Cabinet meeting called Thursday for full mobilisation of hospitals including adding staff to ensure their combat effectiveness and increasing drug supplies, according to state media. Officials were told to keep track of the health of everyone in their area aged 65 and older. It isn't clear how much infection numbers have increased since Beijing last week ended mandatory testing as often as once a day in many areas. But interviews an

Beijing running out of fever medicine as Covid-19 pandemic spreads

Amid reports of panic buying of fever medicine, a financial news outlet, citing third-party data, said the average daily sales volume of home test kits had risen more than 400 times versus November

Majority of China's population may contract Covid, warns health adviser

About 80 to 90% of the Chinese population may eventually be infected with the virus

Amnesty International Canada says it was target of a China-sponsored hack

The Canadian branch of Amnesty International said Monday it was the target of a cyber attack sponsored by China. The human rights organization said it first detected the breach on October 5, and hired forensic investigators and cybersecurity experts to investigate. Ketty Nivyabandi, Secretary General of Amnesty International Canada, said the searches in their systems were specifically and solely related to China and Hong Kong, as well as a few prominent Chinese activists. The hack left the organization offline for nearly three weeks. US cybersecurity firm Secureworks said a threat group sponsored or tasked by the Chinese state was likely behind the attack because there was no attempt to monetize the access, the nature of the searches, the level of sophistication and the use of specific tools which are distinctive of China-sponsored actors. Nivyabandi encouraged activists and journalists to update their cybersecurity protocols in light of it. "As an organization advocating for huma

Beijing city relaxes Covid-19 test norms following widespread protests

For the first time in about two years, China's capital city Beijing relaxed its norms for coronavirus test requirements on Tuesday after unprecedented public protests against President Xi Jinping's stringent zero-Covid policy rocked the country. As per the new announcement, negative nucleic acid test results are no longer required to enter shopping malls, supermarkets, commercial buildings and residential compounds. However, Beijing residents will still require a negative Covid-19 test taken within 48 hours to enter restaurants, schools, bars, internet cafes, indoor gaming stadiums, nursing homes, welfare facilities, hospitals and medical institutions. The announcement was made ahead of the memorial meeting held here by the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) for former President of the country Jiang Zemin who passed away on November 30. Beijing continues to report a high number of Covid-19 cases. On Monday, the city reported 2,260 Covid infections. The Chinese mainland on Monda

Beijing and Tianjin scrap mandatory Covid-19 tests for public transport

Several Chinese cities like Beijing, Tianjin, Chengdu and Shenzhen on Saturday scrapped the mandatory COVID-19 tests for public transport, as authorities softened their stance on the stringent Zero-COVID policy amid a spate of anti-government protests across the country. Residents in Chengdu and Guangzhou no longer require to show Covid test results when entering most public places, the official media reported on Saturday. On Friday, authorities in Beijing announced that 48-hour valid nucleic acid tests are no longer needed on buses and subways starting next Monday. Passengers must, however, still keep their masks on, they said. Shopping malls in Beijing will be open starting from December 3, although some still cannot provide dine-in services, for which a 48-hour test is required. The marginal lifting of curbs came after last weekend's protests in several cities, including in Shanghai and Beijing against the draconian Zero-COVID lockdowns that are disrupting people's livelihoods.

City Council rejects China's plan to build new embassy near Tower of London

China originally bought the site for £255 million ($311 million) in May 2018, with the view of replacing its current embassy in the Marylebone neighborhood

Beijing sees record Covid cases at 5,006 as China wows small easing steps

The total number of infections in Beijing are still a relatively small number for a city of 22 million, but they've been enough to send panic through China's capital

China adjusts Covid-19 restrictions in city with key Apple iPhone plant

As of Nov 30, Zhengzhou will remove so-called mobility controls -- a euphemism for lockdown -- and replace them with "normal Covid-combating measures

China defends zero-Covid policy amid massive protests; Reports 40k cases

China on Monday dismissed concerns over its controversial zero-COVID policy in the face of unprecedented demonstrations, which have spread to Beijing even as it reported close to 40,000 coronavirus cases and authorities scrambled to contain the fresh surge in infections and protests against the Xi Jinping regime. The protests, which comes nearly a month after President Xi was elected as the ruling party's top leader for a third consecutive term, have spread to Shanghai, Beijing and many parts of the country in the last few days against the stringent policy under which cities and localities are kept under prolonged lockdowns and isolations. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian also defended the arrest of a BBC journalist covering the demonstrations in Shanghai, maintaining that the scribe did not present his media credentials. "What you mentioned does not reflect what has happened," Zhao told a media briefing when asked, given the widespread display of anger and frustration

Fear of quarantine camps, not Covid-19 pandemic, is shutting Beijing down

Going out in the capital of Beijing means having to scan a QR code to enter venues like shops and restaurants, or to even take public transportation

As China intensifies Covid-19 lockdowns, India gradually opens up

Data shows that spike in one country has not coincided with a rise the other

Panic-buying witnessed in Beijing as city adds new Covid quarantine centres

Residents of China's capital were emptying supermarket shelves and overwhelming delivery apps Friday as the city government ordered accelerated construction of COVID-19 quarantine centres and field hospitals. Uncertainty and scattered, unconfirmed reports of a lockdown on at least some Beijing districts have fuelled the demand for food and other supplies, something not seen in the city for months. Daily cases of COVID-19 across the country are hitting records, with 32,695 reported Friday. Of those, 1,860 were in Beijing, the majority of them asymptomatic. Improvised quarantine centres and field hospitals hastily thrown up in gymnasiums, exhibition centres and other large, open indoor spaces have become notorious for overcrowding, poor sanitation, scarce food supplies and lights that stay on 24 hours. Most residents of the city have already been advised not to leave their compounds, some of which are being fenced in. At entrances, workers clad head to toe in white hazmat suits stop

Covid surge in Beijing triggers panic buying, lockdown-like restrictions

The case increase, which has escalated from under 100 infections a day a fortnight ago, is leading to stepped-up controls in Beijing, a city of 22 million

China widens Covid curbs, Apple factory unrest adds to economy worries

In Beijing, malls and parks were shut and once-bustling areas of the capital resembled ghost towns as authorities urged people to stay home

China Covid-19 cases near record high since pandemic began: Report

Over 28,000 new infections reported nationwide; Beijing shuts businesses, schools in hard-hit districts, tightens rules for entering the city