Coronavirus live news: Hong Kong clears Sinovac vaccine for children aged 3 to 17, Rotterdam riots doomed | World news

Visitors will need to show proof of their Covid status to access Belfast Christmas market, which opens on Saturdays.

All visitors will need to show proof of their Covid vaccination, a negative test or lateral flow test taken within the last 48 hours, or proof of a positive PCR test taken within the previous 30 to 180 days, in order to ” attend the market, which takes place inside Belfast City Hall.

Organizers previously said the rule would only apply on busiest days and weekends. But they announced on Friday that it would apply at all times.

The decision was made before North Ireland‘s Covid passport regime, which is expected to go into effect on November 29.

Organizers said the safety of staff and customers was “of paramount importance,” and also recommend that visitors wear face masks and pay by card where possible.

The mayor of Rotterdam condemned “an orgy of violence” during protests against Covid measures in the Dutch port city, in which seven people were injured and more than 20 arrested.

Reuters reports that crowds of several hundred rioters set cars on fire, set off fireworks and threw stones at police during Friday night’s protests. The police responded with warning shots and water cannons.

Read more: Rotterdam police open fire as Covid protest turns violent

“The police were forced to draw their weapons and even fire direct shots”, the mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb said at a press conference early Saturday.

When asked to characterize the event, Aboutaleb said it was “an orgy of violence, I can’t think of another way to describe it”.

Authorities say they have arrested more than 20 people and expect to arrest more, as the city center where the riots took place is heavily monitored by security cameras.

Protesters had gathered to oppose government plans to restrict access to indoor sites to people with a “corona pass”, showing they have been vaccinated or have recently recovered from an infection.

The pass is also accessible to people who have not been vaccinated, but who have a negative test.

The Netherlands reimposed some lockdown measures last weekend for the initial three weeks in a bid to slow a resurgence of the coronavirus, but daily infections have remained at their highest level since the start of the pandemic.

Authorities on Thursday reported a record high of more than 23,000 new cases, well above the previous daily high of 13,000 reached in December 2020.

Related: Netherlands Imposes Lockdown Measures As Covid Cases Reach New High

Hong Kong has approved lowering the age limit for Chinese company Sinovac Biotech’s Covid vaccine to three, from 18, as it continues a broader campaign to urge its 7.5 million residents to get vaccinated, Reuters reports.

“Adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17 will be given priority to receive the CoronaVac vaccine, with a view to extending it to children of a younger age group at a later stage,” said the food secretary and Hong Kong Health Care Center (SFH). Sophie chan said in a statement released on Saturday.

According to the statement, SFH said the benefits of approving the extension of the eligibility age to cover people aged three to 17 “outweigh the risks.”

A Hong Kong government advisory group on Covid vaccines previously recommended SFH approve the new age limit, the statement added.

The extension of the age of eligibility comes as the vaccination campaign in the Asian financial center that began in February has lagged behind many other developed economies, with around 67% of the population vaccinated with two injections of Sinovac or BioNTech in Germany.

On Friday, in a separate statement, the city government said it had purchased 1 million additional doses of BioNTech vaccine for the implementation of the third dose of the Covid vaccination.

Hong Kong has followed Beijing’s lead by maintaining strict travel restrictions to curb new outbreaks, unlike a global trend to open up and live with the coronavirus.

International business lobby groups have warned that Hong Kong could lose talent and investment, as well as competitive ground to compete with financial centers such as Singaporeunless he eases his travel restrictions.

Despite virtually no recent local cases and a virtually Covid-free environment, Hong Kong has imposed a mandatory hotel quarantine of up to 21 days for arrivals from most countries at the expense of travelers.