UAE: 42,924 Covid vaccine doses administered in 24 hours

The UAE has administered 42,924 doses of the Covid-19 vaccine in the past 24 hours.

The country's Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) said the total doses administered now stand at 22.9 million.

This takes the rate of doses to 232.52 doses per 100 people.

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France announced it was slightly easing Covid-19 protocols for vaccinated travellers from Britain, dropping a requirement for proof of an essential reason for the trip and for obligatory self-isolation upon arrival.

The demand for a negative Covid-19 test, conducted 24 hours before a trip, remains in place, the French government added on Thursday. The measures will take effect from Friday morning.

France had tightened entry conditions for people coming from Britain in December, when the coronavirus Omicron variant was raging in the UK but had not yet hit France.

The number of daily new infections has since reached record levels in both countries but seems to be past its peak in Britain, while that is not yet the case in France.

Meanwhile, South Korea will begin treating coronavirus patients with Pfizer's antiviral pills on Friday, health officials said, as concern mounts over the spread of the highly contagious Omicron variant.

At least 21,000 of the pills, called Paxlovid, will arrive on Thursday and be sent out to some 280 pharmacies and 90 residential treatment centres, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.

The medication will be used to treat more than 1,000 people a day, with priority groups including patients with a high chance of developing critical symptoms, those aged 65 or older and those with reduced immunity, the KDCA said.

Another 10,000 of the pills are expected to arrive later in the month.

• Dubai
• Abu Dhabi