The UAE reported 1,537 new cases of Covid-19 on Monday, taking its total tally of infections to 683,914. There were 1,492 recoveries in the 24-hour reporting period, bringing the number of patients who beat the virus to 661,156. Health officials said 1,956 deaths have been reported since the beginning of the pandemic after five patients died overnight. The country carried out 266,834 additional tests in the past 24 hours. More than 66 million tests have been conducted since the first was reported on January 29, 2020. In latest developments, the Health Ministry approved the Sinopharm vaccine for use on children aged between three and 17. The move followed a trial on 900 children in Abu Dhabi. "The decision comes after clinical trials and extensive evaluations and is based on the emergency use authorisation and local evaluations," the Ministry of Health and Prevention said. More than 16.8 million vaccines have been administered. Authorities confirmed that at least 78.95 per cent of the UAE population have received one Covid-19 vaccine dose, while 70.57 per cent are fully vaccinated.
