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information sur l'origine d'une flambée épidémique locale au coronavirus."> Beijing (AFP) – A Chinese city located on the Russian border is offering 100,000 yuan (13,500 euros) as a reward for any information on the origin of a local outbreak of the coronavirus.
China, where Covid-19 was first detected almost two years ago, has largely controlled the contagion with the help of radical measures: systematic screening, border closures, vaccination.
But the country is facing sporadic epidemic resurgence, especially since the end of October in its northern part. The authorities are reacting firmly, wishing to stop the contamination in the run-up to the Beijing Olympics next February.
In this context, the city of Heihe (pronounced: “Ré-reu”), separated from Russia by the Amur river, declared a “people’s war” against the virus, after having detected several dozen cases of contamination in recent years. days.
Local authorities are particularly concerned about a risk of transmission of the virus from Russia by cross-border smugglers, poachers or fishermen.
Such activities must be immediately denounced, hammered Monday in an opinion the vast municipality of 1.5 million inhabitants.
“In order to find out as quickly as possible the source of the contamination and the chain of transmission, it is necessary to wage a popular war of epidemic control and prevention”, explained the municipality.
The number of cases detected daily in China is out of proportion with the reports announced in many countries. Beijing on Tuesday reported 43 cases in the past 24 hours nationwide.
But the latest epidemic upsurge has led to the quarantine of millions of inhabitants. In Beijing, residents are invited not to leave the capital unless there is an imperative need.
A renowned virologist has also risked criticizing government policy and questioning the effectiveness of Chinese vaccines.
In an interview with Phoenix TV, Guan Yi, a professor at the University of Hong Kong, called on Chinese manufacturers to report regularly on their vaccine data.
China has so far conditionally approved five vaccines rated between 50% and 82% efficacy, below the sera manufactured by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna.
© 2021 AFP
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