The Belgian city of Antwerp has put its faith in monkey business to put kids at ease for their first COVID-19 jab.

With the expansion of the country's vaccination campaign to include children as young as 5, Belgian authorities are getting creative as they try to prevent kids getting spooked by the sight of vials and needles.

Most access to a major city adjacent to Beijing was suspended Thursday as China tried to contain an outbreak of the highly contagious omicron variant, which poses a test to its "zero-tolerance" COVID-19 policy and its ability to successfully host the Winter Olympics.

Tianjin, a port and manufacturing center with 14 million people, is one of a half-dozen cities where the government is imposing lockdowns and other restrictions as part of a policy that aims to track down every virus case. But the outbreak in a city so close to the Olympic host is particularly worrying.

British officials said Thursday the self-isolation period for people in England who test positive for COVID-19 will be reduced from next week to five full days, instead of seven.

Health Secretary Sajid Javid also said that early signs indicate that the rate of hospitalization from the coronavirus in the country is starting to slow.

The emirate of Ajman is warning its government employees that they will be penalized for coming into contact for a second time with anyone who has contracted COVID-19, state-linked media in the United Arab Emirates reported Thursday.

Local media outlets said federal employees in Ajman will not receive paid sick leave for quarantine if they come into close contact with infected people outside the workplace or home for a second time.

Paris Saint-Germain called off its upcoming trip to the Persian Gulf region on Wednesday because of coronavirus concerns.

The French league leader was scheduled to fly to Qatar for a three-day training camp starting Sunday and then play a friendly match in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, on Jan. 19.

Benjamin Whitely headed to a Safeway supermarket in Washington D.C. to grab some items for dinner. But he was disappointed to find the vegetable bins barren and a sparse selection of turkey, chicken and milk.

"Seems like I missed out on everything," Whitely, 67, said. "I'm going to have to hunt around for stuff now."

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has tried to calm Israelis anxious about the rapid spread of the omicron variant, insisting the government is managing the crisis better than most and ruling out a national shutdown.

Bennett said during an evening press conference that Israel was weathering an "unstoppable storm" of infection by protecting the most vulnerable people and keeping the economy open. He also called on people to take personal responsibility for protecting themselves, their children and older relatives.

Aviran Yael fetched rapid antigen kits from a pharmacy in Tel Aviv's busy center, placed them in the light blue bag strapped to the back of his motorbike and headed off to deliver them.

With that, Yael on Monday joined a growing army of couriers toting Wolt delivery boxes around Israel, a sight that has become ubiquitous in the three years since the Finnish company began operating here.

The United Arab Emirates has threatened to jail people who make fun of its anti-Covid measures after mocking photos and videos appeared online.

Pope Francis suggested Monday that getting vaccinated against the coronavirus was a "moral obligation" and denounced how people had been swayed by "baseless information" to refuse one of the most effective measures to save lives.

Francis used some of his strongest words yet calling for people to get vaccinated in a speech to ambassadors accredited to the Holy See, an annual event in which he takes stock of the world and sets out the Vatican's foreign policy goals for the year.