Covid-19: France records more than 100,000 daily viral infections for the first time

People line up to get a nasal swab at a Covid-19 mobile testing site on the Champs Elysees in Paris on Christmas Eve.  More than one in 100 people in the Paris region tested positive last week.

Michel Euler / AP

People line up to get a nasal swab at a Covid-19 mobile testing site on the Champs Elysees in Paris on Christmas Eve. More than one in 100 people in the Paris region tested positive last week.

France has recorded more than 100,000 viral infections in a single day for the first time in the pandemic and hospitalizations for Covid-19 have doubled in the past month as the rapidly spreading Omicron variant complicates the French government’s efforts to avoid re-locking.

More than one in 100 people in the Paris region tested positive last week, according to the regional health service.

Most of the new infections are linked to the Omicron variant, which government experts say will be dominant in France in the coming days. Omicron is already dominant in Great Britain, across the Channel.

Emergency nurse Sonia Harrat takes a break on Christmas Day at La Timone hospital in Marseille, in the south of France.  The hospital has resisted wave after wave of Covid-19.

Daniel Cole / AP

Emergency nurse Sonia Harrat takes a break on Christmas Day at La Timone hospital in Marseille, in the south of France. The hospital has resisted wave after wave of Covid-19.

READ MORE:
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* “Rapidly changing situation”: more Omicron cases expected in Sydney
* Covid-19: the Omicron variant shows that the pandemic is not over, everyone should be “wide awake” to the threat, according to the boss of the WHO

Meanwhile, an increase in Delta variant infections in recent months is pushing up hospitalizations in France and putting pressure on intensive care units again during the Christmas holidays.

More than 1,000 people in France infected with the virus have died in the past week, bringing the country’s total death toll to more than 122,000.

President Emmanuel Macron’s government is holding emergency meetings on Monday to discuss next steps in the fight against the virus. Some scientists and educators have urged delaying going back to school after the holidays or suggesting reimposing a curfew.

Hospital worker Houda Mokrani takes a selfie with her colleagues on Christmas Day in the Covid-19 intensive care unit at La Timone hospital in Marseille.

Daniel Cole / AP

Hospital worker Houda Mokrani takes a selfie with her colleagues on Christmas Day in the Covid-19 intensive care unit at La Timone hospital in Marseille.

But France’s education minister said schools are expected to open as usual on January 3, and other government officials are working to avoid measures that would hamper the country’s economic recovery.

Instead, the French government is hoping that the boosted vaccinations will be enough.

The government is pushing a bill that would require vaccinations to enter all restaurants and many public places, instead of the current health card system that allows people to produce a negative test or proof of recovery if they don’t. are not vaccinated.

In neighboring Belgium, the government imposed new measures from Sunday ordering the closure of cultural places such as cinemas and concert halls.

Performers, cinema operators, event planners and others came to Brussels on Sunday to protest the government's decision to shut down the country's cultural life to stem the spread of the burgeoning variant of the Omicron.

Virginie Mayo / AP

Performers, cinema operators, event planners and others came to Brussels on Sunday to protest the government’s decision to shut down the country’s cultural life to stem the spread of the burgeoning variant of the Omicron.

Some venues have defied the ban and thousands of artists, event planners and others demonstrated in Brussels against the decision on Sunday, carrying signs reading “The Show Must Go On” or “No Culture No Future “.

They accuse the Belgian government of double standards because it allowed Christmas markets, with their noisy crowds and mulled wine consumption, to remain open, as well as restaurants and bars.

Even the scientific committee advising the Belgian government had not called for the closure of the culture industry, leaving the virologist Marc Van Ranst to question the fact that in Belgium, “gluhwein [mulled wine] beat the culture.

Children hold signs referring to performances canceled during the Brussels demonstration.

Virginie Mayo / AP

Children hold signs referring to performances canceled during the Brussels demonstration.

Meanwhile, in the Netherlands, the Dutch government has gone further than most European countries and closed all non-essential shops, restaurants and bars and extended school holidays in a new partial lockdown.

In Britain, where the Omicron variant has dominated for days, government demands have been largely voluntary and milder than those on the mainland, but the Tory government has said it may impose further restrictions after Christmas. The UK hit a new high of 122,186 daily infections on Friday, but did not release figures for Christmas.

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland on Sunday imposed new restrictions on socialization, mainly limiting the size of gatherings, measures that the restaurant, pub and nightclub industries have described as economically devastating .

Thousands of people defied the ban in Belgium to attend the demonstration in Brussels.

Virginie Mayo / AP

Thousands of people defied the ban in Belgium to attend the demonstration in Brussels.

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