China declares ‘decisive victory’ over Covid-19

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China's top leaders declared a "decisive victory" over Covid-19, claiming the world's lowest fatality rate, although experts have questioned Beijing's data as the coronovirus tore across the country after largely being kept at bay for three years.

China abruptly ended its zero-Covid policy in early December, with 80% of its 1.4 billion population becoming infected, a prominent government scientist said last month.

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Though there were widespread reports of packed hospital wards and mortuaries, China recorded only about 80,000 Covid deaths in hospitals in the two months after dropping its curbs.

Some experts say the actual toll was far higher, as many patients die at home and doctors were widely reported to have been discouraged from reporting Covid as a cause of death.

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