Covid-19 surge: China slaps lockdown on millions
News Desk
Millions of people across China endured lockdowns yesterday as virus cases doubled to nearly 3,400 and anxiety mounted over the resilience of the country’s ‘zero-Covid’ approach in the face of the worst outbreak in two years.
A nationwide surge in cases has seen authorities close schools in Shanghai, lock down southern tech powerhouse of Shenzhen as well as whole northeastern cities, as almost 18 provinces battle clusters of the Omicron and Delta variants.
Shenzhen, home to 17 million people, was put under a citywide lockdown yesterday after it reported 66 new coronavirus cases.
The city of Changchun — an industrial base of nine million people — was locked down Friday, while at least three other small cities have been locked down since March 1.