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Ahram Online
“The new COVID-19 ‘Omicron’ variant poses very high risk globally, despite uncertainties about the danger and contagion levels of the new strain”, the World Health Organization warned on Monday.
The UN health agency noted; “the Covid strain first discovered in South Africa was a highly divergent variant with a high number of mutations… some of which are concerning and may be associated with immune escape potential and higher transmissibility”.
“The recently discovered ‘Omicron’ variant is likely to fuel a surge in South Africa’s COVID-19 infections this week, which could see infections treble”, a top infectious disease epidemiologist warned on Monday.
“The likelihood of potential further spread of Omicron at the global level is high. To date, no deaths associated with the Omicron variant have been reported”, WHO cautioned in a technical note.
The WHO urged the world to enhance their surveillance to form a clear overview of where and how fast it is spreading. It also called for accelerating the COVID-19 vaccination programmes, especially among vulnerable populations who have yet to receive any jabs.
It cautioned against imposing travel bans, fearing that blocking travel from countries where new variants are first spotted could be unfair and dissuade surveillance.
“However, even if the new variant does not prove more dangerous or deadly than previous ones, if it spreads more easily it will spark more cases and more pressure on health systems, and thus more deaths”, the WHO added.
A growing list of countries have already imposed travel restrictions on South Africa, including Britain, Indonesia, Kuwait, the Netherlands, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United States.
