Tel Aviv: The new COVID-19 variant with multiple mutants has been detected in Israel.
The Israeli Health ministry said on Friday that it has detected the country’s first case of B.1.1.529 coronavirus variant in a traveller who returned from Malawi. The passenger, along with two other suspected cases, have been placed in isolation.
A number of cases of the new variant have been detected in South Africa. Scientists say it’s a concern because of its unusually high number of mutations and rapid spread among young people in the country’s most populous province Gauteng.
Israel has declared South Africa and six other African nations as “red countries” from which foreign nationals are barred from travelling to the country. If any Israeli wants to return from those countries, he/she must undergo a stipulated period of isolation.
Israel has carried out one of the world’s most successful vaccination campaigns, with nearly half the population having already received a booster shot. Recently, Israel included five-year-old children in its inoculation programme.
Despite these measures, Israel saw a spike in fresh coronavirus cases in recent months, driven by the Delta variant.
