The first European case of the B.1.1.529 variant has been identified in Belgium; the US, UK, Australia, Canada and parts of Europe impose travel bans targeting countries across southern Africa
Omicron variant spreads to Europe, UK announces countermeasures
US, UK, Canada and Australia restrict travel from southern Africa
First European case of new Covid variant detected in Belgium
B.1.1.529 variant ‘most worrying we’ve seen’, says UK medical adviser
What do we know about the new ‘worst ever’ Covid variant?
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Morning, I’m Aamna Mohdin and I’ll be helming the blog for the next few hours. If you want to get in touch, you can email me (aamna.mohdin@theguardian.com) or message me on Twitter (@aamnamohdin)
Sri Lanka is the latest country to ban travellers from six southern African countries on Saturday over concerns about the new Omicron Covid variant.