Here are the latest developments in the coronavirus crisis:
Germany Plans 'Freedom Day'
Germany will start rolling back most of its coronavirus restrictions in three stages as falling infection rates suggest the Omicron-fuelled wave has peaked, Chancellor Olaf Scholz says. Media-dubbed "Freedom Day" is slated for 20 March.
Austria, Switzerland Drop Restrictions
Switzerland and Austria become the latest European countries to drop almost all of their COVID-19 restrictions despite the virus still circulating strongly.
Dutch Response Slammed
The Dutch government was insufficiently prepared for the COVID pandemic, leaving care homes unprotected and undermining its own messages on masks, an independent probe finds.
Mobile Vaccine Labs For Africa
Germany's BioNTech unveils mobile vaccine production units housed in shipping containers, aimed at bringing manufacturing to Africa.
Xi's Hong Kong Order
Chinese leader Xi Jinping tells Hong Kong to take "all necessary measures" to control an Omicron-fuelled outbreak a day after the city's leader Carrie Lam ruled out a China-style hard lockdown.
Jabs For UK 5-11-Year-Olds
All children aged five to 11 in England will be offered a COVID-19 vaccine, the United Kingdom (UK) government says, following similar announcements in the rest of the UK.
Over 5.8 million Dead
The coronavirus has killed at least 5,838,469 people since the outbreak emerged in China in December 2019, according to an AFP tally compiled from official sources Wednesday at 1800 GMT.
The United States has recorded the most COVID deaths with 925,815, followed by Brazil with 639,689, and India 509,872.
Taking into account excess mortality linked to COVID-19, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates the true death toll could be two to three times higher.