U.S. to lift travel curbs on eight African countries

Washington, Dec 24 (Prensa Latina) The United States will lift travel bans imposed last month on eight African countries as it sought to slow the fast-spreading Covid-19 omicron variant, the White House said Friday.

December 24, 2021
18:22

Foreign nationals travelling to the US from those nations will be allowed to board flights to the United States from midnight on December 31, according to White House deputy press secretary Kevin Muñoz.

Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique, and Malawi have all faced restrictions as part of the ban, which was recommended by Anthony Fauci, Biden’s chief medical officer, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Omicron is now spreading rapidly throughout the US, including among the vaccinated, but a huge majority of those being hospitalized are unvaccinated.

According to local scientists, omicron has surpassed Delta just a few weeks ago, due to its fast-transmitting infections. mh/pll/mgt/age