South Africa facing separation amid fears over new COVID strain

South Africa is facing increasing separation as more countries ban travel over the discovery of a new variant of the coronavirus.

South Africa: South Africa is facing increasing separation as more countries ban travel over the discovery of a new variant of the coronavirus.

Israel, Turkey, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Switzerland are amid countries that have halted air travel to also from South Africa following the announcement that a new variant of the coronavirus is driving South Africa’s resurgence of the disease, with larger numbers of confirmed cases coronavirus cases, hospitalisations and deaths.

As per the health officials and scientists leading the country’s virus strategy, the new variant, known as 501.V2, is dominant among recently confirmed viruses in South Africa’s current wave.

The new strain, distinct from the one in the United Kingdom, appears to be more contagious than the original virus.

South African scientists are examining if the vaccines against COVID-19 would also offer protection against the new strain.

Professor Salim Abdool Karim, head of the government’s COVID-19 Ministerial Advisory Committee, stated in a briefing to journalists on Monday that preliminary data proposed that the new strain was dominating South Africa’s latest wave, which is expanding faster than the original.

In answer to the resurgence of COVID-19, the South African government introduced more stringent lockdown restrictions, which include limited days and hours for the trade of alcohol and the closure of beaches in areas identified as hotspots.

“South Africa’s tourism industry had relied pretty much on this time of the year on people coming in from Europe, the Middle East, Asia and other parts of the world.

“Now, these businesses are feeling the pressure. A lot of hotels in Durban are closed. In Johannesburg, many of the big hotel chains are also shut. Lots of people are losing out on work.”

South Africa currently has more than 8,500 people hospitalised with COVID-19, surpassing the previous high of 8,300 recorded in August.

So far, a whole of 930,711 virus cases has been reported in South Africa, including 24,907 deaths.

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