Britain, Germany and Italy detected new Omicron coronavirus cases on Saturday, November 27, 2021, even as British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced new steps to contain the virus, while More countries banned On a trip from Southern Africa.
explained | What is the new coronavirus version in South Africa?
The discovery of the variant has sparked global anxiety, a wave of travel restrictions or restrictions, and a sell-off in financial markets on Friday as investors worried that Omicron could stall a global recovery from a nearly two-year pandemic.
British Health Minister Sajid Javid said the two linked cases of the new variant detected in Britain were linked to travel to southern Africa.
Speaking later, Mr Johnson took measures that included stricter testing rules for people coming into the country, but stopped curbing social activities other than requiring the wearing of masks in some settings.
“We will require anyone entering the UK to have a PCR test by the end of the second day after arrival and self-isolate until a negative result comes in,” Johnson told a news conference.
Johnson said people who had come in contact with people who tested positive for a suspected case of Omicron would be isolated for 10 days and the government would tighten face-covering rules, in steps in three weeks. will be reviewed.
The Ministry of Health in the German state of Bavaria also announced two confirmed cases of the variant. The two men entered Germany at Munich airport on November 24, before Germany designated South Africa as a virus-variant zone, and were now isolated, the ministry said, clearly stating that Without that people had traveled from South Africa.
In Italy, the National Institutes of Health said a case of the new type was found in Milan, in a man arriving from Mozambique.
Czech health officials also said they were investigating a suspected case of the variant in a man who had spent time in Namibia.
Omicron, dubbed a “type of concern” by the World Health Organization, is potentially more severe than previous forms of the disease, although experts do not yet know whether it causes more or less severe COVID-19 than other strains. will be the reason.
England’s chief medical officer, Chris Vitti, said at the same news conference as Johnson that there was still a lot of uncertainty around O’Microon, but “there is a reasonable possibility that there is at least some degree of vaccine development with this version.” will be saved”.
The variant was first discovered in South Africa and has since been detected in Belgium, Botswana, Israel and Hong Kong.
flights to amsterdam
Dutch officials said 61 of the nearly 600 people who arrived in Amsterdam on two flights from South Africa on Friday had tested positive for the coronavirus. Health officials were conducting further tests to see if those cases involved the new variant.
Dutch photographer Paula Zimmermann, a passenger who had arrived from South Africa on Friday, said she tested negative but was worried for days to come.
“I’m told they expect a lot of people to test positive after five days. The thought is a little scary that you’re on a plane with a lot of people who have tested positive,” she said.
Financial markets fell on Friday, especially in shares of airlines and others in the travel sector, as investors worried that the variant could spark another surge in the pandemic. Oil prices fell by about $10 a barrel.
It may take weeks for scientists to fully understand the mutation of the variant and whether existing vaccines and treatments are effective against it.
travel ban
Although epidemiologists say travel restrictions may be too late to stop Omicron from spreading globally, several countries around the world – including the United States, Brazil, Canada and European Union countries – on Friday announced a travel ban or sanctions on Southern Africa.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the State Department on Saturday advised against travel to eight southern African countries in Washington’s previously announced travel restrictions.
Also on Saturday, Australia said it would ban non-citizens who have entered nine southern African countries and require a 14-day quarantine for Australians returning from there.
Japan said on Friday it would expand its tight border controls to three more African countries after banning travel from South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Zimbabwe, Namibia and Lesotho.
Britain also said it was expanding its “red list” to impose travel restrictions on countries in more southern Africa, while South Korea, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Oman, Kuwait and Hungary imposed travel restrictions on southern African countries. declare.
South Africa is concerned the sanctions will hurt tourism and other sectors of its economy, the foreign ministry said on Saturday, with the government engaging with countries that have imposed travel restrictions to persuade them to reconsider.
Omicron has emerged as many countries in Europe already grapple with a surge in COVID-19 infections, and some have resumed restrictions on social activities to try to contain the spread. Austria and Slovakia have entered lockdown.
vaccination
The new edition has also highlighted inequalities in vaccinating the world’s population. Even as many developed countries are offering third-dose boosters, less than 7% of people in low-income countries have received their first COVID-19 shot, according to medical and human rights groups.
Seth Berkeley, CEO of the GAVI Vaccine Alliance, which co-leads the COVAX initiative with the WHO to push for equitable distribution of vaccines, said this was necessary to prevent the emergence of more coronavirus variants.
“While we still need to learn more about Omicron, we do know that until large parts of the world’s population are vaccinated, variants will continue to appear, and epidemics will be prolonged,” he said. said in a statement to Reuters. ,
“We will only prevent the variant from emerging if we are able to protect all of the world’s population, not just the wealthy parts.”
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