The Federal Emergency Crisis and Disasters Prosecution has warned public not to spread rumours or false information about the preventive measures adopted by authorities to curb the spread of COVID-19 and not to flout them.

“In light of the recent circulation of photos and videos on social media spreading information from some COVID-19 patients on the Al Hosn application, accompanied by comments and songs mocking the precautionary measures and calling on others to flout them, threatening the national efforts to address the pandemic, we, therefore, call upon members of the community to refrain from this behaviour, which is punishable by the law,” said the prosecution’s statement

The prosecution also pointed out such actions are punishable with administrative sanctions or the penal sanction stated in Federal Decree-Law No. 34 of 2021 on combatting rumours and cybercrimes.

The prosecution urged community members and social media users to act responsibly when sharing or circulating any COVID-19-related news, adhere to the precautionary measures and support the country’s related efforts.

The Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) on Monday announced that it conducted 297,077 additional COVID-19 tests over the past 24 hours, using state-of-the-art medical testing equipment.

In a statement, the ministry stressed its aim to continue expanding the scope of testing nationwide to facilitate the early detection of coronavirus cases and carry out the necessary treatment.

As part of its intensified testing campaign, MoHAP announced 2,562 new coronavirus cases, bringing the total number of recorded cases in the UAE to 788,187.

According to the ministry, the infected individuals are from various nationalities, are in a stable condition, and receiving the necessary care.

The ministry added that no COVID-19-related deaths have been recorded in the past 24 hours, and death toll remains unchanged at 2,174.

The MoHAP also noted that an additional 860 individuals had fully recovered from COVID-19, bringing the total number of recoveries to 753,893

Meanwhile, the MoHAP has announced that 20,669 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine were administered in the past 24 hours.

The total number of doses provided up to Monday stands at 22,902,473 with a rate of vaccine distribution of 231.56 doses per 100 people.

The vaccination drive is in line with the ministry’s plan to provide the vaccine to all members of society and acquire immunity, which will help reduce the number of cases and control the spread of the virus.

More than 304.97 million people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 5,834,631 have died, according to a Reuters tally on Monday.

Infections have been reported in more than 210 countries and territories since the first cases were identified in December 2019.

Earlier, experts said that while back pain has been a common symptom of viral diseases, doctors are witnessing an increase in the case of severe back pain among Omicron patients, even after recovery.

The four most common symptoms of the Omicron variant are cough, fatigue, congestion and runny nose, according to US CDC analysis.

Recently, the UK-based Zoe COVID-19 app study added new symptoms such as nausea and loss of appetite.

“Back pain, though common in most viral fevers, but compared to Delta, Omicron patients tend to have more back pain and less loss of smell and taste,” Dr Ann Mary, Consultant, General Medicine, Amrita Hospital, Kochi, said.

“A significant number of these patients are having back breaking pain in the lower back and severe myalgia which is adding to the patient’s woes,” Mary added.

Omicron is a variant of global concern due to its high transmissibility. Emerging research has revealed that the Omicron variant causes less damage to the lungs and less severe disease when compared to other variants.

WAM/IANS