The World Health Organization calls the new Omicron COVID19 variant a “very high” global risk. And because of this, the US restricted flights from southern African countries effective Monday. Countries include South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique, and Malawi.
United Airlines is scheduled to provide new flights to the region in the coming days. According to United Airlines, the new travel restrictions on African countries haven’t made changes in the airline’s schedule yet.
The carrier was set to offer flights between Washington and Lagos, Nigeria by Monday, the same day the new travel restrictions take effect. Plus, United initially announced that it is resuming flights between New York and Cape Town, South Africa by December 1.
In a statement, United said that it is monitoring the new travel restrictions.
Currently, United offers five flights per week to and from New York/Newark and Johannesburg, South Africa. In addition to this, United also offers three flights between Washington DC and Accra, Ghana.
According to the White House, there will be “no travel” from these southern African countries except for US citizens and permanent residents. Plus, US citizens and permanent residents entering the US will have to undergo testing.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases said that it isn’t surprising if the new variant is already in the US. According to officials, the omicron COVID19 variant is already in numerous countries including the UK, Belgium, and Israel.
Israel, Morocco, and Japan imposed a travel ban on foreigners over the new Omicron COVID19 variant. On the other hand, Australia delayed its plan to reopen its borders. However, Singapore and Malaysia continued their plan to open their land border.
Lots of things are still unknown about the omicron variant. However, initial studies suggest that the variant has more mutations to its spike proteins than the delta variant. Also, it is still not clear whether the omicron variant is resistant to the current COVID19 vaccines
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