Health News Roundup: Europe rolls out 'new weapon' vaccines in bid to slay COVID; South Africa's total COVID-19 cases cross 1 million mark and more

South Africa's total COVID-19 cases cross 1 million mark South Africa's total coronavirus infections since the first case in March crossed a million on Sunday, its Health Ministry said, just days after a new faster spreading variant was confirmed to be present in the country.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Beijing tightens COVID-19 curbs as cases detected across capital

Beijing has tightened COVID-19 curbs over concerns that China's mass travel during the holiday period could cause cases to spike in the capital, as it reported locally transmitted cases for a fourth straight day on Sunday. A meeting led by the capital's Communist party boss, Cai Qi, urged all districts in Beijing to enter an "emergency" mode, sealing off residential compounds and villages where infections are found.

Putin decides to receive coronavirus vaccine - Kremlin

Russia's president Vladimir Putin will receive the Sputnik V vaccine against the coronavirus, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a Russian state TV channel on Sunday. "He said he will be vaccinated, he made this decision and was waiting until all formalities are completed," the spokesman was quoted as saying to Rossiya 1 TV Channel on its website.

UK reports 30,501 new COVID cases on Sunday

The United Kingdom on Sunday reported 30,501 new COVID-19 cases, government statistics showed, with a further 316 deaths within 28 days of a positive coronavirus test. The government's coronavirus portal said the figures reflected data from England and Wales but said there was no new data from Northern Ireland and no new deaths data from Scotland owing to the Christmas holidays.

South Africa's total COVID-19 cases cross 1 million mark

South Africa's total coronavirus infections since the first case in March crossed a million on Sunday, its Health Ministry said, just days after a new faster spreading variant was confirmed to be present in the country. The grim milestone comes nine days after the country, the worst hit in Africa, reported 900,000 cases. The country had taken two weeks to reach 900,000 from the 800,000 seen early in December.

Europe rolls out 'new weapon' vaccines in bid to slay COVID

Europe launched a mass COVID-19 vaccination drive on Sunday with pensioners and medics lining up to get the first shots to see off a pandemic that has crippled economies and claimed more than 1.7 million lives worldwide. "Thank God," 96-year-old Araceli Hidalgo said as she became the first person in Spain to have a vaccine at her care home in Guadalajara, near the capital Madrid.

Cold chain doubts delay COVID-19 vaccinations in some German cities

Germany's coronavirus vaccination campaign faced delays in several cities on Sunday after temperature trackers showed that about 1,000 of the shots made by BioNTech and Pfizer may not have been kept cold enough during transit. "When reading the temperature loggers that were enclosed in the cool boxes, doubts arose about the compliance with the cold chain requirements," the district of Lichtenfels in the north of Germany's largest state, Bavaria, said in a statement.

Turkey says delivery of Sinovac vaccines postponed due to COVID-19 case in Beijing customs

The delivery of the first shipment of Sinovac's COVID-19 vaccine from China to Turkey has been postponed "1-2 days" due to a case of the coronavirus in Beijing customs, Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on Sunday. Turkey has agreed to purchase 50 million doses of Sinovac's CoronaVac and was expecting the first delivery of 3 million doses on Monday. It will also procure 4.5 million doses of the vaccine developed by BioNTech and Pifzer, with an option to get 30 million more doses later.

Israel speeds vaccines, locks down in hope of March exit from pandemic

Israel began what officials hope will be its last coronavirus lockdown on Sunday as they ramp up vaccinations to a pace Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said may allow an emergence from the pandemic by March. If realised, that could help Netanyahu's re-election hopes after missteps that include lifting a first lockdown with a premature declaration of victory in May, inconsistent enforcement of curbs and sluggish economic relief.

France's new coronavirus infections up as vaccine roll out begins

The French health ministry reported 8,822 new coronavirus infections over the past 24 hours on Sunday, sharply up from Saturday's 3,093 as the country, in unison with most of the EU, started its vaccination programme. France's cumulative total of cases now stands at 2,559,686, the fifth highest in the world.

Italy kicks off vaccinations against COVID-19 in Rome

Almost 10 months after the first Italian patient tested positive for the new coronavirus, Italy on Sunday vaccinated the first residents against COVID-19. Three health workers at the Rome Spallanzani hospital were inoculated shortly before 0700 GMT with the vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech, a statement by the commissioner for the epidemic Domenico Arcuri said.