World closes borders again as South Africa demands vaccines | The new variant was classified as “worrying” by the WHO

The WHO called the new Omicron variant “worrying” but advised countries against a “scientific, risk-based approach” to stop pending flights. However, more than a dozen countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany, have decided to close their airports for flights from South Africa and South Africa.

The South African government described the closure of the world’s major airports as “urgent” and called for a “fight together” so that the country could have access to mass vaccination, which the WHO is demanding of the most developed powers.

In South Africa, only 41% of adults are vaccinated and, along with India, the country is one of the promoters of patents.

The request has been locked up at the World Trade Organization (WTO) for more than a year, despite the commitment of several heads of state, including US President Joe Biden. “During these epidemics, we observed that banning travelers from countries where a new variant was reported did not have a significant effect,” the African Union said in a statement.

The closure of airports to and from South Africa will also affect South Africa’s neighbors Lesotho, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Namibia and Eswatini.

France, Spain, Italy, the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands, Singapore, Austria and Israel have already announced that they will close their borders, at least along with the entire European Union (EU). Two weeks. On the other side of the Atlantic, the United States, Canada and Guatemala announced similar action.

“We will stop the destructive power of the new variant through vaccinations, control mutations and save our summer because vaccines can fight against variations,” the South African government said, but it did not get the expected response.

In which countries was the Omigran variant found?

Omicron is on the verge of becoming a dominant virus in South Africa, with rapid outbreaks from the first cases detected in Gauteng province, but a few more cases outside the African continent.

The first of them was found in Hong Kong and on Friday it was also found in Israel and Belgium.

In Israel, it was discovered by a Malawian traveler who had been vaccinated against the corona virus, and there are two more suspicious cases in which they were vaccinated and are being held captive.

In Belgium, a person traveling from Egypt was diagnosed with the mutation and had not previously been vaccinated against the virus.

“We have a confirmed case of this variant. It came from abroad and tested positive on November 22 and was not vaccinated,” Belgian Health Minister Frank Vandenbrook told a news conference.

What danger does the new variant represent?

The new variant of Covit-19, first discovered in South Africa, is classified today as “Concerned” by the World Health Organization (WHO) due to its “high number of mutations” and potential for spread, and will bear its name. Omigron.

“Variation P1.1.529 was first reported by South Africa on November 24, 2021. It has a large number of mutations, some of which are worrying,” said a panel of experts from the health agency responsible for monitoring evolution. Virus and Omicron added alpha, beta, gamma and delta to the “worries” list.

“Early evidence suggests that there is a higher risk of re-infection with this variant compared to others,” the experts added, adding that “cases appear to be increasing in all the provinces of South Africa.”