Experts pore over vaccine safety data

Thailand's Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha holds up a vial of the AstraZeneca coronavirus disease vaccine before receiving an injection at the Government House in Bangkok, Thailand, March 16, 2021. [Reuters]

Global health experts were under increasing pressure to clear up questions over the safety of AstraZeneca's Covid-19 shot on Tuesday, as Sweden and Latvia joined countries suspending their use in a further blow to Europe's vaccination rollout.

A World Health Organisation (WHO) committee of experts was reviewing isolated cases of bleeding, blood clots and low platelet counts in people vaccinated and was in dialogue with the European Medicines Agency (EMA).