China's calamity is a great calamity! Is it really in a worsening health crisis? Or is her health condition normal, but the Western media is keen to distort the image, and draw another unreal picture of what is happening in China? It is the custom of Chinese officials to remain politely silent; Unless he blows up their opponents in their dispute. And the last thing that the Western media discussed during the past two days: Will the current exacerbation in the number of new viral cases in China result in the emergence of a “giant” genetically mutated strain that could return the world to its war on the new Corona virus three years ago? It seems that the use of the term "giant" to describe the dynasty whose emergence is feared came as a matter of exaggeration, intimidation, and "vilification" of China. Yesterday, Bloomberg reported that a global report confirmed that the increase in the number of new infections in China is led by genetic mutations that already exist on the planet. The report was issued by the GSAID laboratory, which includes dozens of scientists from countries around the world who are investigating the genetic sequence of corona infections all over the world. The laboratory said that there are no indications of any new genetic mutations in the strains that are devouring China. The laboratory indicated that China had referred it to 25 new samples from injuries in Beijing, Inner Mongolia, and Guangju. The laboratory added that its scientists investigated the genetic sequence of the Chinese samples, and it became clear to them that they contain only small natural mutations that occur for each virus.
However, the Associated Press approached the issue from a purely American perspective. I wrote yesterday, under the title: “Rise in Covid-19 infections in China increases the possibility of the emergence of a new variant of the new Corona virus,” that scientists do not know an accurate answer to what could happen. “It could be a strain similar to the now common Omicron mutants. It may be a mixture of strains. It could be something completely different.” The Associated Press cited an infectious disease control expert at Johns Hopkins University, Dr. Stuart Campbell Ray, who said, “China is populated by a very large population, and there is limited immune immunity. And it seems that these are the circumstances in which we may see the explosion of a new mutant. The analysis of the American expert concluded that every new infection with corona provides an opportunity for the virus to mutate genetically. He said that although the rate of vaccination with Covid-19 vaccines in China is very high; However, the level of use of the booster dose of vaccines is low, especially among the elderly. In addition, Chinese-made vaccines have been shown to be less effective against serious infections than Western vaccines that use messenger RNA (mRNA) technology. The result is that the soil is fertile in China for the virus to mutate. Dr. Ray added that the higher the number of new cases, the more likely it is followed by the emergence of new variants. The agency quoted a professor of virology at Ohio State University, Dr. Shan Lu Liu, as saying that most of the strains of Omicron were discovered in China, including the BF.7 strain, which is believed to be able to evade the effectiveness of the vaccine-derived immunity. It is also believed that it is behind the acceleration of the outbreak that China is currently witnessing. The deputy director of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Sun Yang, said, in a closed press briefing last Wednesday, that about 250 million Chinese were infected with the virus during the first 20 days of this December, and that 37 million were infected last Tuesday alone. The Chinese health official believed that half of the population of Beijing and Sichuan had been infected with the virus, according to a report published by the British Financial Times. Also in London, the Irfinity company, which specializes in publishing health data, said that the number of new infections in China may reach one million cases per day, in addition to about 5 thousand deaths per day.
Will any possible new mutant cause an exacerbation of the disease of the infected person? It's a question no one knows an answer to. Dr. Ray said there is no well-established biological reason for the virus to become less severe over time. And he added: The reason for the moderate severity of the virus that the world witnessed during the past 6 to 12 months is the accumulation of immunity resulting from vaccines or infection with the virus, and not because the virus itself has changed. The official of the Chinese Center for Disease Control, Xu Wenbo, said that 50 of the nearly 130 subspecies of Omicron discovered in China led to an accelerating outbreak in the country. And the Chinese health authorities decided to go from house to house to pay sums of money to anyone over 60 years of age, in exchange for them agreeing to obtain the stimulus dose of Covid-19 vaccines. However, many Chinese elderly people avoid vaccinations, fearing post-vaccination fever, and reports of people having blood clots after being vaccinated.
Whatever is said about China in this critical period; The undeniable fact remains that China has abandoned the “zero Covid” strategy calling for the complete eradication of the virus to a strategy of “coexistence” with the virus, even if coexistence has accelerated the spread and exacerbated the number of new infections and deaths.. It is a brave step that the world should take. He welcomes it, and helps China to overcome it peacefully.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo said yesterday that Indonesia will lift the last remaining health restrictions aimed at combating the outbreak of the new Corona virus, if it is informed of the survey related to the presence of antibodies in a sufficient number in the population. He explained that the government is currently reviewing the results of the latest survey to measure the number of antibodies for each citizen. He added that this survey will continue until it is completed before the end of the current year. It is noteworthy that Indonesia ranks 20th in the world in terms of the number of Covid-19 infections. The cumulative number of her injuries yesterday (Monday) reached 6.72 million, which led to 160,537 deaths.
Britain stops publishing epidemiological information
The chief data scientist at the British government health security agency, Dr. Nick Watkins, announced yesterday that the agency will stop publishing model data related to the new Corona virus epidemic, starting next January. He said that publishing such data is no longer necessary, because the United Kingdom is coexisting well with the virus, thanks to the vaccines and medicines available to repel the virus. The Health Insurance Agency has been publishing data on the rate of infection reproduction and its growth rates in the county of England on a weekly basis at the height of the health crisis, and on a monthly basis, starting in April 2022. And that data has been published in all counties of the United Kingdom since May 2020. And in April 2021 it was decided be confined to the situation in England alone. The virus's rate of reproduction refers to the number of people an infected person can infect. The Health Insurance Agency announced that the latest data related to COVID-19 will be published on January 6, 2023. But it stressed that the data will remain publicly available through the National Statistical Office. Dr. Watkins said that the infection rate data and infection growth rates were an important indicator for educating the public about the reality of the health situation, and helping the government to take appropriate decisions to address epidemiological developments. He added that the Health Insurance Agency will continue to monitor the situation and monitor data, as it does with regard to other diseases.
Yassin Ahmed (London) @OKAZ_online
