JAN 9: Provincial official Kan Quancheng revealed the figure - amounting to about 88.5 million people - at a press conference.
China is battling an unprecedented surge in cases after abandoning zero-Covid policies in December.
The move foll
JAN 6: When Mr Chen's 85-year-old father fell ill with Covid in December, it was impossible to get an ambulance or see a doctor.
They went to Chaoyang Hospital in Beijing, where they were told to either try other hospitals or sit in the corridor with an IV drip.
JAN 5: Travel in and out of China gets easier from Sunday, as part of the scrapping of the "zero-Covid" policy.
China is currently seeing a surge in Covid cases, with reports of hospitals and crematoriums being overwhelmed.
Some E
DEC 29: Hospitals across the country appear to be filling up amid a fresh wave of infections, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
How many Covid cases and deaths are there in China?
Officially, there have only been seven Covid deaths this week (up until 21 D
India's health minister has called for a return to Covid-appropriate behaviour, including wearing masks in public, as the country steps up surveillance of cases. Top health officials have also asked people to get vaccinated and take booster doses.
NOV 28: Demonstrators gathered in the capital Beijing and the financial hub Shanghai.
Many held up blank pieces of paper to express their discontent and acknowledge the censorship. Some have, however, gone as far as calling for President Xi Jinping to step down.
Millions have been affected by nearly three years of mass testing, quarantines and snap lockdowns.
It is very unusual for people to publicly vent their anger at Communist Party leaders in China, where any direct government criticism can result in harsh penalties.
The police have largely allowed the rallies to continue, but in Shanghai officers arrested several people and cordoned off streets on Sunday.
Hundreds of people gathered on the banks of a river in the capital Beijing for several hours on Sunday, singing the national anthem and listening to speeches.
Earlier in Beijing's prestigious Tsinghua University, dozens held a peaceful protest and sung the national anthem, according to pictures and video posted on social media.
Protests also took place during the day in the south-western city of Chengdu and central cities of Xi'an and also Wuhan - where the Covid outbreak originated nearly three years ago.
Videos posted on social media appear to show hundreds of Wuhan residents taking to the streets, with some protesters pictured knocking down barricades and smashing metal gates.
The latest unrest follows a protest in the north-western city of Urumqi, where lockdown rules were blamed for hampering rescue efforts after a tower block fire in which 10 people died. China's authorities have denied those claims.
'Xi Jinping, step down'
In Shanghai - China's biggest city and a global financial hub - police kept a heavy presence in the area of Wulumuqi Road, where a candlelight vigil the day before turned into protests.
The BBC saw police officers, private security guards and plain-clothed police officers on the streets, confronting protesters who assembled for a second day.
But in the afternoon, hundreds had come back to the same area with blank sheets of paper to hold what appeared to be a silent protest, an eyewitness told the AFP news agency.
During Saturday night's protest in the city people were heard openly shouting slogans such as "Xi Jinping, step down" and "Communist party, step down".
Such demands are highly unusual in China.
But the government appears to have drastically underestimated growing discontent towards the zero-Covid approach, a policy inextricably linked to President Xi who recently pledged there would be no swerving from it.
One protester in Shanghai told the BBC that he felt "shocked and a bit excited" to see people out on the streets, calling it the first time he'd seen such large-scale dissent in China.
He said lockdowns made him feel "sad, angry and hopeless", and had left him unable to see his unwell mother, who was undergoing cancer treatment.
The zero-Covid strategy is the last policy of its kind among the world's major economies, and is partly due to China's relatively low vaccination levels and an effort to protect elderly people.
Snap lockdowns have caused anger across the country - and Covid restrictions more broadly have trigged recent violent protests from Zhengzhou to Guangzhou. In spite of the stringent measures, China's case numbers this week hit all-time records since the pandemic began.
Taking to the streets in numbers and calling for President Xi to step down was thought to be unthinkable not so long ago.
However, after a recent dramatic protest on a Beijing bridge that stunned many, a bar appears to have been set for the expression of more open and sharper dissent.
Others have also chosen to wave the Chinese flag and sing the national anthem - its lyrics espousing revolutionary ideals and urging the people to "rise up, rise up".
It is a show of patriotism that could also be read as a pointed expression of solidarity with fellow Chinese suffering under the zero-Covid policy - and a call to action. (With inputs from BBC)
NOV 24: China has recorded its highest number of daily Covid cases since the pandemic began, despite stringent measures designed to eliminate the virus.
There are outbreaks in several major cities including the capital Beijing and southern trade hub Guangzhou.
On Wednesday, the country recorded 31,527 cases - higher than the about 28,000 peak recorded in April, when its largest city Shanghai was locked down.
It comes as strict lockdowns continue to spark episodes of unrest.
China's zero-Covid policy has saved lives in the country of 1.4 billion people but also dealt a punishing blow to the economy and ordinary people's lives.
However the rising wave of cases also comes weeks after the country slightly relaxed some of its Covid restrictions.
It cut quarantine for close contacts from seven days in a state facility to five days and three days at home, and stopped recording secondary contacts which allowed many more people to avoid having to quarantine.
Officials have also sought to avoid enforcing blanket lockdowns of the kind endured by Shanghai earlier this year.
But faced with a renewed surge in cases in Beijing, as well as the first deaths from the virus in months, officials have already implemented some restrictions in several districts, with shops, schools and restaurants closed.
The central city of Zhengzhou is also to enforce an effective lockdown for 6 million residents from Friday, officials announced.
It follows violent protests at a vast industrial complex belonging to iPhone manufacturer Foxconn. The firm has apologised for a "technical error" in its payment systems.
Other stories of suffering and desperation have also been shared online where they've fuelled public resentment.
Last week, reports that a baby in Zhengzhou died because her medical care was delayed by Covid restrictions prompted huge outcry.
China is the last major economy still pursuing a Covid eradication process with mass testing and lockdown rules.
However virus cases are now being recorded in 31 provinces.
President Xi Jinping has said strict curbs are needed to protect the country's large elderly population. Vaccination levels are lower than other developed nations, and only half of people aged over 80 have their primary vaccinations.
While China is seeing an increase in infections now, the rate is still far lower than many other advanced economies at their pandemic peak.
China's official death toll has remained low at just over 5,200 deaths since the pandemic began.
That equates to three Covid deaths in every million in China, compared with 3,000 per million in the US and 2,400 per million in the UK. (with inputs from BBC)
