Asia

China promises change but sticks to severe 'zero COVID' plan BEIJING (AP) — Chinese leaders promised Thursday to improve quarantine and other anti-virus policies after public frustration boiled over into protests but said they will stick to a severe “zero COVID” strategy that has confined millions of people to their homes and disrupted the economy. AP NEWS

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Residents clash with Chinese authorities over COVID rules BEIJING (AP) — Police in northeastern China said that seven people have been arrested following a clash between residents and authorities enforcing COVID-19 quarantine restrictions. The violence comes as China reports new cases nationwide, with 2,230 cases reported Tuesday in the southern manufacturing and technology hub of Guangzhou. AP NEWS

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Reports say China aiming for less disruptive COVID policies BEIJING (AP) — Chinese officials are trying to quell an outcry over the death of a 3-year-old boy from a quarantined residential compound that added to public anger at anti-virus controls that have confined millions of people to their homes. AP NEWS

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The boy died at a hospital in Lanzhou of carbon monoxide poisoning blamed on a gas leak. His father accused health workers who were enforcing the closure of the compound of refusing to help and trying to stop him as he rushed his son to the hospital.

Philippine schools ordered to reopen after virus lockdowns MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Millions of students trooped back to public schools across the Philippines on Wednesday as the government enforced the mandatory resumption of in-person classes after more than two years of coronavirus pandemic lockdowns. AP NEWS

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Nearly 29 million students enrolled for the school year, including in privately owned schools, which can decide whether to resume in-person classes or maintain a mix of face-to-face or online classes each week.

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