OVERVIEW: Rate of new coronavirus cases declining around the world, WHO says

The global number of new coronavirus cases has declined by 16 percent over the past week, the World Health Organization said, even as more virulent strains of the virus spurred outbreaks in multiple regions.

There has been a 10 percent reduction in the global number of deaths over the past week, the agency added. Europe and the Americas, including the United States, in particular, have seen the greatest drops in new cases reported. The number of new U.S. infections has fallen by 23.7 percent in the past week, while nearly 28 million cases and 486,000 deaths have been reported in the past year. ...

In other developments:

• Concern about the spread of coronavirus variants in eastern France has prompted calls to suspend the rollout of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine to health-care workers.
• Japan on Wednesday began vaccinating health-care workers as it races to immunize enough people ahead of the Olympic Games in Tokyo this summer.
• The first coronavirus vaccines reached the Gaza Strip Wednesday, after Palestinian officials accused Israel of blocking the shipment for political purposes. ...
  

       From  Reuters Roundup:

* South Korea’s intelligence agency has said North Korea attempted to steal information on coronavirus vaccines and treatments by hacking Pfizer, a lawmaker briefed by the agency said.

* Russia has extended a ban on flights to and from Britain until the end of March 16 due to a new variant of the coronavirus first detected in the UK, Russia’s coronavirus taskforce said.

* The Dutch government’s coronavirus policy was dealt a serious blow when a court ordered it to scrap a controversial night-time curfew meant to limit the spread of COVID-19.

* The first 550,000 doses of the Sinopharm vaccine have arrived in Budapest, a leading health official said, as Hungary prepares to become the first EU country to roll out the Chinese shot.

* Britain will provide vaccine COVID-19 certificates for its residents if they are required by other countries, although it is not planning to introduce them for use at home, vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi said. ...

* India has detected both the South African and Brazilian coronavirus variants and people returning from those countries may be tested more aggressively, health officials said. ...