The Latest: Britain's queen calls vaccine 'quite harmless'

People line up to receive the China's Sinovac COVID-19 coronavirus vaccine at a community vaccination centre in Hong Kong, Friday, Feb. 26, 2021. Hong Kong began administering its first COVID-19 vaccines to the public Friday, kicking off its program offering free vaccinations to all 7.5 million residents. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

A pedestrian in a face covering walks past the sign plastered on the windows of a restaurant to announce that it is open after closure because of the coronavirus Thursday, Feb. 25, 2021, in Boulder, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

In this Feb. 15, 2014, photo released by the U.S. Navy, the guided-missile cruiser USS Philippine Sea leaves Naval Station Mayport in Mayport, Florida. Two U.S. Navy warships operating in the Mideast have been affected by the coronavirus, authorities said Friday, Feb. 26, 2021, with one already at port in Bahrain and another heading to port. The Philippine Sea will head to a port that the Navy declined to name over "operational security." (Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Marcus L. Stanley/U.S. Navy, via AP)

A health worker wearing a face mask and face shield gestures as they call on the government to give them a vaccine with the safest, highest efficacy and effectivity during a a protest outside the Philippine General Hospital in Manila, Philippines on Friday, Feb. 26, 2021. The group is opposing a plan by the government to have health workers vaccinated with China's Sinovac which is expected to arrive this weekend. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

A cyclist wears a face mask while riding on a trail after more than a foot of snow was left by a late winter storm that swept over the region Thursday, Feb. 25, 2021, in Boulder, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

South Korean President Moon Jae-in, second from left, watches a doctor receives a shot of AstraZeneca vaccine at a public health center in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Feb. 26, 2021. South Korea on Friday administered its first available shots of coronavirus vaccines to people at long-term care facilities, launching a mass immunization campaign that health authorities hope will restore some level of normalcy by the end of the year.(Choe Jae-koo/Yonhap via AP)

Commuters wearing face masks to protect against the spread of the coronavirus walk through turnstiles in a subway station during the evening rush hour in Beijing, Friday, Feb. 26, 2021. China has been regularly reporting no locally transmitted cases of COVID-19 as it works to maintain control of the pandemic within its borders. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

In this Monday, Jan. 25, 2021 file photo, an Israeli man receives the second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at a coronavirus vaccination center in Tel Aviv, Israel. Governments say getting a shot and a ‘green passport’ are the path to recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. But that's only for people with the access and the desire to get the shot, raising the prospect that the certifications could divide the world between wealthy countries and those who can't pay their own way to herd immunity. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty, File)

LONDON — Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II is encouraging people to be vaccinated against COVID-19, saying the shot is quick, harmless and will help protect others against the disease.

In a video call with the officials responsible for rolling out the vaccine, the 94-year-old monarch compared the effort that’s gone into Britain’s national vaccination campaign to the way people worked together during World War II.

“Well, once you’ve had the vaccine you have a feeling of, you know, you’re protected, which is, I think, very important,” the queen said on a tape of the call broadcast Friday. “And as far as I can make out it was quite harmless, very quick. And I’ve had lots of letters from people who’ve been very surprised by how easy it was to get the vaccine.”

The queen also highlighted the fact that being vaccinated helps protect everyone, not just the person who gets the shot.

“It is obviously difficult for people, if they’ve never had a vaccine, because they ought to think about other people rather than themselves,” she said.

The queen and her husband, Prince Philip, 99, received their first dose of the vaccine last month. He was admitted to the private King Edward VII’s Hospital on Feb. 16 in what royal officials called a precautionary measure.

Buckingham Palace said Tuesday that he was being treated for an infection.

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THE VIRUS OUTBREAK:

— Vaccination ‘passports’ may open society, but inequity looms

— 2 US Navy warships in Mideast affected by coronavirus

— South Korea starts vaccinating, but people over 65 must wait

— Movie ticket sales in China set February record despite theaters running at half capacity and require masks and registration with a tracking app. That’s smashing China’s box office records, setting a new high mark for ticket sales in February

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Follow all of AP’s pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic, https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak

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HERE’S WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — A Dutch appeals court ruled Friday that the government was entitled to use an emergency law to underpin its coronavirus curfew. The ruling overturned a judge’s decision earlier this month that the government overstepped its legal powers.

In a clear victory for the government over a group called Viruswaarheid — Virustruth — that opposes the lockdown, the appeals court also said that the 9 p.m.-4:30 a.m. curfew introduced on Jan. 23 was a proportional measure to tackle the COVID-19 crisis.

The outcome will have little effect on the government’s attempts to rein in the virus as it rushed fresh legislation through parliament to empower the curfew after a judge banned the measure, which sparked rioting when it was initially introduced.

The Hague Court of Appeal said in a statement announcing Friday’s decision that the curfew’s limitation of constitutional freedoms “is justified” to tackle the COVID-19 crisis.

The ruling comes with public support declining in the lockdown-weary Netherlands for the government’s attempts to prevent the spread of the virus that has killed more than 15,500 people in the country and infected nearly 1.1 million.

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SINGAPORE — A British man has been sentenced to two weeks in jail and fined for breaking a coronavirus quarantine order in Singapore.

Nigel Skea is the first British citizen to be jailed for flouting coronavirus rules in the city-state. A handful had their work passes revoked and paid fines.

Skea pleaded guilty to two charges of flouting the rules. .He left his hotel room three times last September, one one occasion climbing an emergency stairwell to enter a room booked by his fiancée.

He arrived at the State Courts on Friday with Agatha Maghesh Eyamalai, whom he has since married. She pleaded guilty to aiding Skea and was sentenced to a week in jail.

The judge said the sentences were meant to send a “clear message” that virus restrictions should be followed.

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HONG KONG — Hong Kong has begun administering its first COVID-19 vaccines to the public, kicking off its mass inoculation targeting all 7.5 million residents.

People age 60 and older and health care workers are among some 2.4 million people prioritized to receive vaccines at community centers and outpatient clinics across Hong Kong.

The government said Friday registrations for the first two weeks of the program are full.

Participants so far will be receiving the vaccine by Chinese biopharmaceutical firm Sinovac. A million doses arrived in the city last week, and Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam and other top government officials were vaccinated first in a bid to bolster confidence in the program.

Hong Kong has struck deals to buy 22.5 million doses of vaccines from Sinovac, AstraZeneca and Fosun Pharma, which will deliver the shots developed by Pfizer-BioNTech.

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SAO PAULO — On the same day Brazil reached the grim milestone of 250,000 deaths by COVID-19, the country’s health ministry signed a deal with Indian pharmaceutical company Bharat Biotech for the purchase of 20 million doses of the Covaxin vaccine, which is yet to be approved by local regulators.

The administration of President Jair Bolsonaro said the first 8 million Covaxin shots, which will be made by Brazilian company Precisa Medicamentos, will arrive in March. A second batch of another 8 million doses is expected for April and in May, another 4 million doses will be available.

So far Brazil has vaccinated less than 4% of its population of 210 million people, with some cities stopping immunization campaigns last week due to shortages.

Neither Precisa nor Bharat confirmed the deal or the delivery dates.

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HELENA, Mont. -- The Montana House failed Thursday to advance a bill that would ban discrimination based on vaccination status and prohibit the use of vaccination status to grant or deny services or access to businesses.

The Republican-controlled House split on the bill in a 50-50 vote, with several Republicans joining Democrats in opposing the measure.

Under the bill, employers — including health care facilities — would have been banned from mandating vaccinations as a condition for employment. Public schools and child care facilities would be required to allow for medical and religious exemptions for all vaccination requirements.

The bill’s supporters say it would protect freedom and privacy regarding medical choices. Opponents say mandatory vaccinations ensure the health of children and prevent disease outbreaks.

The bill would also have prohibited the use of vaccine passports — or documents that prove an individual’s vaccination status.

Vaccine passports have not been implemented in Montana or by the U.S. federal government. They are being considered by several countries and airlines to allow those inoculated against COVID-19 to travel internationally.

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WATERBURY, Conn. - Connecticut school districts around the state have begun organizing their own COVID-19 vaccination clinics, preparing for the official rollout of vaccines for teachers and other school staff on Monday.

Waterbury Mayor Neil O’Leary said a special vaccination appointment hotline for the roughly 4,000 eligible workers in his city’s school system will become available on Friday morning. He said there will be a special section at the mass vaccination clinic at Waterbury Arts Magnet School just for those employees.

“We’re going to get you done very, very quickly,” O’Leary said. “We are very excited to get you in, get your your shot, schedule your second shot. Let’s go.”

Waterbury is distributing the hotline number of school employees via email.

Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont, who appeared with the Democratic mayor and local officials at a news conference on Thursday, said Waterbury is the first school district in the state that has said it’s ready to begin vaccinations for teachers and other employees at public and private schools. He said he expects other will soon follow. Residents age 55 and older will be allowed to register for vaccination appointments on Monday as well.