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BEIJING: China reported its first two Covid-19 deaths in more than a year on Saturday, the National Health Commission said, both coming in the northeastern province of Jilin as the country faces its worst case upsurge since the pandemic’s outset.
The fatalities were the first reported in China since January 26, 2021, and bring the country’s total death toll in the pandemic to 4,638.
In all, China reported 4,051 new cases on Saturday, down from 4,365 the day before, the commission said.
The country where the virus emerged in late 2019 has largely kept it under control thanks to a combination of strict border controls, lengthy quarantines and targeted lockdowns.
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But the highly transmissible Omicron variant is posing a stern challenge to that strategy, prompting authorities to close off cities including the southern tech hub of Shenzhen, home to 17.5 million people.
The world’s most populous country has gone from reporting under 100 daily infections just three weeks ago to well more than 1,000 per day for over a week.
Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Thursday the country will “stick with” its zero-Covid strategy, state TV reported.
