Does not mean virus is unstoppable: WHO

Commuters wear masks to protect against Covid-19 while walking through the La Defense business district transportation hub in Paris on Wednesday. Pic/AP

Early data indicates the Omicron Covid variant may more easily reinfect people who have already had the virus or been vaccinated than previous variants, but could also cause milder disease, the WHO said Wednesday. "Emerging data from South Africa suggests increased risk of reinfection with Omicron," World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters, adding that "there is also some evidence that Omicron causes milder disease than Delta".

But he stressed that more data was needed before drawing firm conclusions, and urged countries everywhere to boost their surveillance to help provide a clearer picture of how Omicron is behaving. The hopeful assessments came as global concern grew over the heavily mutated variant, which has forced dozens of nations to re-impose border restrictions and raised the possibility of a return to economically punishing lockdowns.

Even if it does turn out that Omicron causes less severe disease, Tedros warned against slacking off vigilance against the virus. "Any complacency now will cost lives," he warned. WHO emergencies director Michael Ryan agreed, pointing out that so far the data indicates the variant is "efficiently transmitting, and probably more efficiently transmitting even than the Delta variant." "That does not mean that the virus is unstoppable," he said.

"But it means the virus is more efficient at transmitting between human beings. And therefore we have to redouble our efforts to break those chains of transmission to protect ourselves to protect others." Even if the new variant turns out to be less dangerous than previous variants, if it transmits more rapidly, it could still sicken more people, overburden health systems, "and more people die," he said.

The WHO experts stressed the importance of vaccination, highlighting that even if vaccines prove less effective against Omicron, as some data indicates, they are still expected to provide significant protection against severe disease.

Aussie dy PM tests positive

Australia's Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce said Thursday he had tested positive for the coronavirus while travelling in Washington D.C. Joyce, who is fully vaccinated, said he would remain in isolation while seeking further advice. Other members of his delegation had tested negative.

Danes order restrictions

Mette Frederiksen, Danish prime minister. Pic/AFP

The Danish government has decided that school students up to the 10th grade must study remotely for the last few days before Christmas and ordered nightclubs, bars and restaurants to close at midnight in an attempt to counter an uptick in Covid-19 cases. PM Mette Frederiksen also recommended people work from home, banned concerts with more than 50 people standing and ordered people to wear masks in eateries when not seated. The measures apply as of Friday and are set to last for four weeks.

6,94,484
No. of new cases reported globally in the past 24 hours

26,65,04,411
Total no. of cases worldwide

52,68,849
Total no. of deaths worldwide

Source: WHO/Johns Hopkins

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