China: Two senior officials in Xi’an city dismissed after COVID-19 outbreak

Authorities dismissed officials, Sunday, from the northern Chinese city of Xi’an, where the number of coronavirus cases fell after 12 days of confinement, according to official figures released on Monday.

• Read also: China welcomes the decrease in the number of cases in the city of Xi’an

On Sunday evening, local authorities announced the dismissal of two senior representatives of the Communist Party from Yanta District from their posts in order to “strengthen the epidemic prevention and control work” in the district. ..

And last month, dozens of officials have already been punished for “inaccuracies in epidemic prevention and control.”

The city of Xi’an announced 90 new cases of coronavirus on Monday, up from 122 the day before, bringing the number of infections in the city to more than 1,600 since December 9.

“We have launched a general offensive,” said provincial official Liu Guozhong, according to an official note, adding that it was necessary to rid the community of the coronavirus as quickly as possible.

Xi’an, famous for its underground mud-brick army, is the new epicenter of the epidemic in the country, prompting authorities to impose a containment of its 13 million people and carry out extensive tracking operations.

China is pursuing a “zero COVID” strategy with very severe border restrictions and targeted closures as soon as cases emerge, but this approach has not stopped the spread of the local disease.

Xi’an residents have said in recent days they are struggling to find enough food, despite Chinese authorities insisting they are working to secure supplies.

A month before the Beijing Winter Olympics, China recorded infection numbers not seen since March 2020 in recent days, although the number of cases remains low compared to other countries in the world.