China reports 12,658 COVID-19 deaths last week

ANKARA

China registered over 12,600 deaths from COVID-19 in the week leading up to the Lunar New Year holidays.

According to a statement from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention on Saturday, there were 12,658 COVID-19-linked deaths at hospitals between Jan. 13-19.

The world's most populated country reported 59,938 such deaths between Dec. 8 and Jan. 12.

Beijing's sudden dismantling of “Zero-Covid” restrictions in December propelled hundreds of millions of people headed home for the Lunar New Year holiday for the first time since 2019, spreading the virus to every corner of the country.

There were 471,739 coronavirus patients in already overwhelmed hospitals nationwide on Jan. 19, with 51,683 in critical condition.

In a nationwide video address last week, President Xi Jinping expressed concern about efforts to battle COVID-19 in the countryside.

Health experts fear that the virus could wreak havoc on the vulnerable in villages with a weak healthcare infrastructure.