U.S. health officials on Sunday said they were preparing for the likely appearance of the new Omicron COVID-19 variant in the country, with restrictions set to begin on Monday against travelers from eight southern African countries.
Americans should prepare to eventually encounter the new Omicron COVID-19 variant, but U.S. health officials on Sunday said the travel ban starting Monday on most travelers from southern Africa should help buy time to assess any new risk.
Dutch health authorities said on Saturday they had detected 61 COVID-19 cases among people who flew from South Africa on Friday and were now doing further tests to see whether any are infected with the new Omicron variant.
U.S. stock index futures pointed to a slide at the post-Thanksgiving Wall Street open and oil hit two-month lows as fears of a possibly vaccine-resistant coronavirus variant sent investors scurrying to safe-haven assets.
The European Union must make it clear to Russia that there would be a high price to pay if it acted against Ukraine, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas told Reuters on Wednesday, urging the bloc to quickly agree on how to deter Moscow.