{"id":89538,"date":"2022-02-04T11:16:48","date_gmt":"2022-02-04T08:16:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/192.163.207.100\/~timesku1\/news\/?p=89538"},"modified":"2022-02-04T11:18:07","modified_gmt":"2022-02-04T08:18:07","slug":"europe-entering-covid-pandemic-ceasefire-says-who","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/timeskuwait.com\/news\/europe-entering-covid-pandemic-ceasefire-says-who\/","title":{"rendered":"Europe entering Covid pandemic ‘ceasefire’, says WHO"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The World Health Organization’s (WHO) Europe director says the continent could soon enter a “long period of tranquillity” in the Covid-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Dr Hans Kluge cited high vaccination rates, the end of winter and the less severe nature of the Omicron variant.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Speaking to reporters, he said: “This period of higher protection should be seen as a ‘ceasefire’ that could bring us enduring peace.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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It comes as a number of European nations end Covid-19 restrictions.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Dr Kluge said some 12 million new virus cases were detected across Europe last week – the highest recorded – but officials have not seen a significant spike in those needing critical hospital care.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Denmark became the first nation in the European Union to lift all rules, including the wearing of face masks, earlier this week.<\/p>\n

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While cases are still relatively high there, the authorities say the virus no longer qualifies as a “critical threat” with high vaccination rates helping to protect against serious illness despite the rapid spread of Omicron.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Norway has since announced its own relaxation, and Sweden announced on Thursday it would also lift almost all of its own domestic restrictions on 9 February.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“The pandemic is not over, but we are entering a whole new phase,” Sweden’s Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson told reporters.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Officials there vowed to remain “vigilant” against the virus, with some guidance remaining in place, such as staying home if you have Covid-19 symptoms. Unvaccinated people are also urged to avoid crowds, and some border entry restrictions are still in place.<\/p>\n

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Dr Kluge from the WHO on Thursday urged European nations to continue with their vaccination campaigns and surveillance of strains, despite his talk of a “ceasefire”.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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But he said he was confident the continent would be in a “better position… even with a more virulent variant” than Omicron.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“I believe that it is possible to respond to new variants that will inevitably emerge without re-installing the kind of disruptive measures we needed before,” Dr Kluge added.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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He urged individual responsibility, further protection of at-risk groups and what he described as a “drastic and uncompromising increase in vaccine sharing across borders” to help protection worldwide.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The easing of restrictions across Europe follows similar decisions in England and other UK nations in January.<\/p>\n

Source: BBC<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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