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ARCHIVED - Spain suspends travel with South Africa due to new Covid variant
Travellers from other risk countries will require Covid tests as well as vaccinations to enter Spain
The new variant of coronavirus, B.1.1.529, dubbed the ‘Omicron variant’, has set alarm bells ringing in the European Union, with Brussels recommending that the 27 member states restrict flights to South Africa and Botswana, where this strain has first been detected. On Friday afternoon, November 26, Spain’s Minister of Health, Carolina Darias, has heeded this advice and suspended all travel with these countries.
The UK has also restricted flights with these African countries.
Spanish health authorities have confirmed that so far no cases of Omicron have been detected in Spain, but as a preventative measure, it will now be mandatory for travellers arriving from other “risk countries” to present a negative PCR or antigen test, as well as proof of a full vaccination schedule.
The Ministry has not yet specified which countries it considers high risk, although several countries including France, Italy and the United Kingdom, have already vetoed flights from Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini and Zimbabwe, in addition to South Africa and Botswana.
Although few concrete details are known about the Omicron strain (so named according to the Greek alphabet), the European Centre for Disease Control (ECDC) has declared it a variant of interest and it is believed to be highly contagious with a great ability to mutate. Up to 32 mutations of nu Covid have already been registered and the main fear of experts is that the strain may be resistant to the current coronavirus vaccines.
Correction: It was originally thought that the new variant would be named ‘nu’ for the next letter in the Greek alphabet, but the WHO has decided to skip over this letter and go to the next one, ‘Omicron’, reportedly to avoid upsetting the Chinese. The article has been updated to reflect this.
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