According to a WHO statement, countries should adjust international travel policies due to the possible spread of the new strain.

The Organization warned that future outbreaks of Covid-19 could happen with severe consequences.

The new variant has an unprecedented number of mutations in the S-spike protein, which is the part of the virus targeted by most existing anti-Covid vaccines.

Omicron – first detected in southern Africa – is already present in Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, the United Kingdom and the United States, among other countries.

The WHO assigned the Greek letter Omicron to the new coronavirus variant, calling it a cause for concern.

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