China orders disinfection of international post, packages

BEIJING: China's postal service has ordered workers to disinfect international deliveries and urged the public to reduce orders from overseas after authorities claimed mail could be the source of recent coronavirus outbreaks.

China, where the virus first emerged in late 2019, has stuck to a strict policy of targeting zero Covid cases even as the rest of the world has reopened. But the country is now battling multiple small outbreaks, including one in Beijing as the capital prepares to host the Winter Olympics.

In recent days, Chinese officials have suggested that some people could have been infected by packages from abroad, including a woman in Beijing whom authorities said had no contact with other infected people but tested positive for a variant similar to those found in North America. China Post on Monday published a statement ordering workers to disinfect the outer packaging of all international mail.