Another Chinese city detects Omicron case

Omicron has brought fresh challenges to China's strategy to quickly extinguish local outbreaks, an approach that has taken on extra urgency in the run-up to the Winter Olympics starting on February 4, as well as the Lunar New Year holiday peak travel season beginning later this month.

Tianjin, located in northern China around 100 km (62 miles) from the capital Beijing, reported 41 domestically transmitted infections with confirmed symptoms on Wednesday (January 12), up from 33 a day earlier, data from the National Health Commission showed on Thursday.

The northeastern city of Dalian also reported that an individual arriving from Tianjin had also contracted the Omicron variant, state television said late on Wednesday.