COVID-19 updates: 2 cases of omicron variant confirmed in Canada, officials say

The U.S. will be restricting entry for foreign nationals from southern African countries in response to the discovery of omicron, the new COVID-19 variant, said senior administration officials.

According to officials, President Joe Biden will restrict travel from South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique and Malawi.

They take effect Nov. 29 and will not apply to American citizens or lawful permanent residents.

In a statement released Friday, Biden urged Americans to get vaccinated and called upon other nations to increase vaccine donations and "match America's speed and generosity."

"Finally, for the world community: The news about this new variant should make clearer than ever why this pandemic will not end until we have global vaccinations," Biden said.

Canada and the United Kingdom announced a similar ban on Friday and Thursday, respectively.

The World Health Organization on Friday named the new B.1.1.529 variant omicron and classified it as a SARS-CoV-2 “variant of concern.”

“This variant has a large number of mutations, some of which are concerning,” the WHO said in a statement.

The variant was first reported on Wednesday in South Africa, the WHO said. The first confirmed infection was from a specimen collected on Nov. 9.

Current PCR tests are successful in diagnosing the variant, the WHO said.

U.S. and South African scientists will address the new B.1.1.529 variant that has been reported in Europe and Africa, Dr. Anthony Fauci said Friday.

In an interview with CNN, Fauci said there is no indication the variant is in the U.S. but “anything is possible.”

“There’s a lot of travel, you never know exactly where it is,” Fauci said.

Scientists are still trying to determine if the variant can evade vaccines and is more transmissible.

“So right now you’re talking about sort of a red flag that this might be an issue, but we don’t know,” Fauci said.

The U.S. will evaluate the variant’s scientific data and decide if prevention measures such as travel bans are necessary, he noted.

“You’re prepared to do everything you need to do to protect the American public. But you want to make sure there’s a basis for doing that. And that’s what we’re doing right now,” Fauci said.

Belgium’s health department has confirmed its first case of the new B.1.1.529 variant.

The patient, a woman, had traveled to Belgium from Egypt via Istanbul. She developed symptoms 11 days after her return and was not vaccinated. Her family members have tested negative for COVID and the woman is not in a life-threatening condition, officials said.

Hong Kong has two confirmed cases and Israel has one other confirmed case of the B.1.1.529 variant. Several cases have been reported in South Africa and Botswana.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Friday issued a formal recommendation for countries in the 27 nation EU bloc to suspend travel with countries affected by the new variant.