---
title: "U.S. orders some personnel to leave Shanghai consulate"
description: "WASHINGTON, April 11 (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department on Monday ordered non-emergency U.S. government workers to leave the consulate in Shanghai due to a surge in COVID cases and China's measures to control the virus."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "US orders personnel out of Shanghai"
author: "Reuters"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/reuters/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-04-12-u-s-orders-some-personnel-to-leave-shanghai-consulate/"
published: "2022-04-12T04:56:11"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 93
---

# U.S. orders some personnel to leave Shanghai consulate

> WASHINGTON, April 11 (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department on Monday ordered non-emergency U.S. government workers to leave the consulate in Shanghai due to a surge in COVID cases and China's measures to control the virus.

By Reuters · Published 12 April 2022, 06:56 SAST

## Content

On Friday, the State Department announced that non-emergency personnel could voluntarily leave the consulate. It is not clear why the departure of those workers has become mandatory.

The most controversial of Shanghai's practices had been separating COVID-positive children from their parents. Authorities have since made some concessions. [Read full story](https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL2N2W800W&linkedFromStory=true)

The State Department cited the risk of parents and children being separated in Monday's announcement.

Shanghai is fighting China's worst COVID-19 outbreak since the virus first emerged in Wuhan in late 2019.

(Reporting by Eric Beech, editing by Dan Whitcomb and Kim Coghill)