Malaysia will temporarily ban the entry of travelers from countries that have reported the omicron coronavirus variant or are considered high-risk, its health ministry said on Wednesday.
The travel ban applies to eight African countries, including South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and Malawi, but could be extended to other nations where the variant has been detected, such as Britain and the Netherlands, health minister Khairy Jamaluddin said.
It will also delay plans to set up so-called Vaccinated Travel Lanes with those countries, minister Khairy Jamaluddin told reporters.
"These are just temporary measures until we find out more about the Omicron variant," Khairy said.
The Omicron, also known as B.1.1.529 variant, was first reported to WHO from South Africa on 24 November 2021.
The discovery of Omicron, dubbed a "variant of concern" last week by the World Health Organization, has sparked worries around the world that it could resist vaccinations and prolong the nearly two-year Covid-19 pandemic. Omicron is potentially more contagious than previous variants, although experts do not know yet if it will cause more or less severe Covid-19 compared to other strains.
It has now spread to more than a dozen countries.
The travel ban applies to eight African countries, including South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and Malawi, but could be extended to other nations where the variant has been detected, such as Britain and the Netherlands, health minister Khairy Jamaluddin said.
It will also delay plans to set up so-called Vaccinated Travel Lanes with those countries, minister Khairy Jamaluddin told reporters.
"These are just temporary measures until we find out more about the Omicron variant," Khairy said.
The Omicron, also known as B.1.1.529 variant, was first reported to WHO from South Africa on 24 November 2021.
The discovery of Omicron, dubbed a "variant of concern" last week by the World Health Organization, has sparked worries around the world that it could resist vaccinations and prolong the nearly two-year Covid-19 pandemic. Omicron is potentially more contagious than previous variants, although experts do not know yet if it will cause more or less severe Covid-19 compared to other strains.
It has now spread to more than a dozen countries.
