Passengers wear face masks as they arrive at the departures terminal at Sydney Domestic Airport in Sydney, Australia Nov 5, 2021. Flights between New South Wales and Victoria have resumed without any COVID-19 restrictions, as the border between the two states reopens. (BIANCA DE MARCHI / AAP IMAGE VIA AP)
JERUSALEM / KUWAIT CITY / MELBOURNE / COLOMBO / JAKARTA / RAMALLAH / MANILA / SYDNEY – Health authorities of Australia's state of New South Wales on Sunday afternoon confirmed two cases of the new Omicron coronavirus variant after conducting urgent genomic sequencing from overseas travelers.
The state, where the country's biggest international airport are located, said on Sunday morning that two of 14 arrivals from southern African countries have tested positive for COVID-19, and urgent genomic sequencing for the Omicron variant has begun.
The variant, believed to be more infectious than all previous strains, was first detected in South Africa and flagged as a "variant of concern" by the World Health Organization on Friday
The variant, believed to be more infectious than all previous strains, was first detected in South Africa and flagged as a "variant of concern" by the World Health Organization on Friday.
Health authorities said the two cases, both coming to Sydney from southern Africa on the evening of Saturday, underwent testing on arrival and tested positive for COVID-19 late Saturday night.
The two people were asymptomatic and are in isolation in the Special Health Accommodation. Both the cases are fully vaccinated.
The two passengers were among 14 travelers from southern Africa who arrived in Sydney via Doha. The remaining 12 passengers are undertaking 14 days of hotel quarantine in the Special Health Accommodation. Around 260 passengers and air crew on the flight are considered close contacts and have been directed to isolate.
Before the two cases were confirmed to be infected with the new variant, NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet warned that it is inevitable new variants will enter Australia, and said the government is taking a precautionary approach to the new variant.
The state already introduced some new measures from midnight Saturday including mandatory hotel quarantine for travelers who have been in South Africa, Lesotho, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Namibia, Eswatini, Malawi, and Seychelles during the 14-day period before their arrival in NSW.
Those who has already arrived in NSW from any of the nine African countries within the previous 14 days must immediately get tested and isolate for 14 days, said the NSW health authorities.
Indonesia
Indonesia will ban the arrival of travelers who have been in eight African countries, to curb the spread of the new Omicron variant of COVID-19, an official document showed on Sunday.
Indonesia, home to popular tourist island Bali, will not allow people who have been in South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Mozambique, Eswatini or Nigeria in the past 14 days.
The restriction takes effect on Monday, the document says.
Delegates attending G20 meetings, which Indonesia chairs, will not be affected by the ban.
Passengers arriving from the United States walk with their luggage at Israel's Ben Gurion International Airport near Lod on Nov 1, 2021, as Israel reopens to tourists vaccinated against COVID-19. (JACK GUEZ / AFP)
Israel
The Israeli government decided on Sunday to ban the entry of foreign nationals into the country in an attempt to stop the spread of a new variant of COVID-19.
The announcement came after a late-night cabinet meeting in which the cabinet discussed reinstating restrictions against the pandemic.
Israel has three new suspected cases of the Omicron variant from people who didn’t travel abroad recently, according to the country’s health ministry. Another four people were suspected but they returned from abroad
The decision to close the country for foreigners will last for 14 days. In addition, phone-tracking technology will be put to use again in order to trace people who are obligated to quarantine.
Israel has three new suspected cases of the Omicron variant from people who didn’t travel abroad recently, according to the country’s health ministry. Another four people were suspected but they returned from abroad.
Of the seven in total, three were classified as vaccinated. Israel already has a confirmed case from someone who recently traveled from Malawi.
ALSO READ: Israel to readmit vaccinated foreign tourists next month
In addition, a list of 50 African nations have been labeled as "red," forbidding Israelis to travel to them. Israelis arriving from the continent are obligated to stay in quarantine.
All Israeli nationals who have arrived from Africa in recent days will likely be tested in the coming days as a precautionary measure.
The Israeli military announced on Saturday that it will be distributing hundreds of home COVID-19 tests to civilians who have returned from those countries. Quarantine hotels which were closed until recently, will be re-opened.
"We are currently in a period of uncertainty," said Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett at the start of the cabinet meeting.
Bennett said his goal is to maintain "an open Israel with a functioning economy and open education system."
The new strain is believed to be more contagious than previous ones. It is still unclear how effective vaccines are against Omicron.
This week, Israel began vaccinating children from the age of five. The public response has so far been lackluster.
More than 8,100 Israelis have died of the virus since March 2020. There are currently over 7,000 active cases, with 120 people critically ill in hospital.
Maldives
Maldives said it was barring travelers from seven African countries from Sunday over concerns about the new Omicron variant of COVID-19.
Travelers will not be allowed into Maldives from South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Namibia, Lesotho and Eswatini, the health ministry said in a statement.
Travelers who arrived from these countries over the past two days will have to undergo 14 days of quarantine.
The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday declared the new coronavirus variant to be "of concern" and many countries have slapped travel restrictions on various African nations.
Palestine
Palestine on Saturday expressed deep concerns over the spread of the new COVID-19 variant, known as B.1.1.529 or Omicron, after Israel announced it had detected its first such case.
The Palestinian Health Ministry will recommend that the government authorities tighten procedures at crossing points and borders as a precautionary measure, Kamal al-Shakhra, a spokesman of the ministry, said in a press statement.
Al-Shakhra said "the danger of the new variant lies in the rapid spread" and that the ministry of health and its workers "are ready to take the necessary measures to confront the new variant."
He also said that in cooperation with concerned authorities, the health ministry has identified the areas in the West Bank popular with foreign tourists, especially the cities of Bethlehem and Jericho, as Christmas approaches.
"Medical teams will conduct tests in all the places they frequent to limit the spread of the virus," al-Shakhra added.
On Friday, Israeli media reported that the Israeli health ministry recorded the country's first case of Omicron. The variant was discovered in a genomic sequencing test of an Israeli who returned from Malawi, the ministry said.
Philippines
The Philippines will buy an additional 20 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer Inc and BioNTech, seeking to fully inoculate more than 80 percent of its population by mid-2022, a government official said on Sunday.
A deal has been signed with Pfizer, bringing the government's total purchases of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to 60 million doses, said Carlito Galvez Jr, who is in charge of the Southeast Asian country's COVID-19 vaccine procurement.
The additional Pfizer-BioNTech doses will be used as booster shots and for pediatric vaccinations, Galvez said at a virtual media briefing a day before the start of a downscaled three-day national inoculation drive.
BioNTech said on Friday it expects more data on the Omicron coronavirus "variant of concern" within two weeks to help determine whether its vaccine produced with Pfizer would have to be reworked. Galvez said the country has now received about 142 million doses of vaccines via purchases and donations. The Philippines has so far fully inoculated more than 35 million individuals, or about 46 percent of the targeted population, he said.
The government's goal is to inoculate 54 million Filipinos by year-end, or 70 percent of the targeted population, Galvez said.
The next goal is to hit the 77 million threshold by the end of March 2022, and then 90 million, or 82 percent of the country's population, by the end of June, he said.
Galvez said the government was looking to expand the coverage of booster shots, which currently is limited to healthcare workers and senior citizens, to include government personnel and "economic frontliners" starting next month.
The Omicron variant has not yet been detected in the Philippines, which has suspended inbound flights from South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Eswatini and Mozambique until Dec 15.
Singapore
Singapore is watching the impact of the Omicron variant “very closely” and may be forced to roll back some easing measures it had taken to open up the economy, according to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. The island has been easing border restrictions as part of a wider plan to take an endemic approach to the virus, similar to that of many other countries.
ALSO READ: Singapore relaxes tight COVID-19 social curbs from Monday
“We are not sure yet, but we may be well be forced to take a few steps back before we can take more steps forward,” Lee said in a speech on Sunday. “But despite all this, I’m confident we will find a way to living with the virus and safely resume all the things we love to do.”
Kuwait
Kuwait decided on Saturday to suspend direct flights with nine African countries over the new COVID-19 variant Omicron.
Kuwait will suspend direct commercial flights with South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Lesotho, Eswatini, Zambia, and Malawi, except for cargo planes, Kuwait's Center for Government Communication said.
Kuwaiti citizens coming from those countries will be in quarantine for seven days starting from Nov. 28, and they will be required to do a PCR test on arrival and another on the sixth day of arrival.
Meanwhile, non-Kuwaitis coming from those countries, whether they come directly or through other countries, will be barred from entry unless they stay in a third country for at least 14 days.
Kuwait's government called on citizens to avoid traveling to those countries at present, except in case of necessity.