China reports less than 4,000 new symptomatic local COVID-19 cases nationwide for December 22, and no new COVID-19 deaths for a third consecutive day China is expecting a peak in COVID-19 infections within a week, a health official said, with authorities predicting extra strain on the country’s health system even as they downplay the disease’s severity and continue to report no new deaths. In the face of a surging outbreak and widespread protests against its “zero-COVID” regime of lockdowns and testing, China began dismantling it this month, becoming the last major country to move towards living with the virus. Its…