Daily coronavirus cases in Israel dropped below 6,000 on Sunday for the first time since the Omicron infection wave began to decline, according to Health Ministry data. In the past 24 hours, 36,106 Israelis were screened for the virus, of whom 5,987 (16.58%) tested positive.
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There are 77,052 active cases in the country with 1,435 patients hospitalized. Of those, 646 are in serious condition. Currently, 11,891 Israelis are in quarantine.
Thus far, 726,052 Israelis have been vaccinated with four doses, 4,463,423 with three, 6,120,193 with two, and 6,698,931 have received one shot.
Israel has reported 3,618,445 cases, including 10,126 deaths, since the outbreak of the pandemic in March 2020.
Morbidity is also on the decline in the United Arab Emirates, where over the weekend the government ended obligatory quarantine for COVID contact cases and a requirement to wear face masks outdoors.
Fully-vaccinated passengers arriving in the country will no longer require PCR tests, the National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority said in updated guidance that went into effect on Saturday.
"For economic and tourist sectors, physical distancing has been cancelled while mask-wearing in closed places is still mandatory," it said.
The capital Abu Dhabi also dropped a border entry requirement for a negative PCR test for those coming from other UAE emirates.
Daily coronavirus cases in the country have fallen to some 600 from close to 3,000 in January.
Nevertheless, some countries continue to grapple with infections driven by Omicron. South Korea saw its deadliest day of the pandemic on Saturday, reporting 112 fatalities in the latest 24-hour period.
Health workers diagnosed 166,209 new cases, which came close to Wednesday's one-day record of 171,451 and represented more than a 37-fold increase from daily levels in mid-January, when omicron first emerged as the country's dominant strain.
Omicron has so far seemed less likely to cause serious illness or death than the delta strain that hit the country hard in December and early January. But hospitalizations and deaths are beginning to creep up amid a growing outbreak that is stretching worn-out health and public workers.
More than 640 virus patients were in serious or critical condition, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said, compared to around 200-300 in mid-February. The Health Ministry said about 44% of the country's intensive care units designated for COVID-19 patients are occupied.
Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum, Seoul's No. 2 official behind President Moon Jae-in, said Friday that health authorities anticipate the omicron wave will peak sometime in mid-March, when the country may see daily cases of around 250,000. There are concerns that transmissions could worsen with schools beginning new semesters in March and also because of political rallies ahead of the March 9 presidential election.
More than 86% of the country's population of more than 51 million have been fully vaccinated and around 60% have received booster shots. The country has been rolling out fourth vaccination shots to people at nursery homes and long-term care settings to protect them from the omicron surge. Officials on Wednesday approved Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 5 to 11 and plan to announce the rollout for that age group in March.
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