South Africa Coronavirus Variant

South Africa's daily coronavirus test positivity rate neared a record, rising above 30% on Saturday for the first time in almost five months as two sublineages of the omicron variant spread rapidly ahead of the nation's winter season.

South Africa, where the Omicron variant was detected last month, says its latest coronavirus wave has peaked without a surge in deaths or hospitalisations, enabling the country to lift a nightly curfew for the first time in 21 months.

The total count of the highly transmissible coronavirus variant Omicron has reached 781 in India. The variant of concern that was first detected in South Africa in November has now spread to 21 states in the country.

South Africa's National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) has retained its lockdown at 'adjusted level 1', or the lowest of a five-tier system of restrictions, in the battle on the Omicron variant, health authorities said on Thursday.

A two-dose course of Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE's Covid-19 shot as well as a previous infection with the disease may give stronger protection against the omicron variant, scientists from the Africa Health Research Institute in South Africa said.

Leading scientists cautioned that the level of immunity against the coronavirus among South Africa's population due to earlier infections may be masking the severity of illness caused by the omicron variant.

A 42-year-old man from Surat who recently returned from South Africa tested positive for the Omicron variant of coronavirus on Monday, making him the first such case from Surat and fourth in Gujarat, a health department official said.

South Africa on Wednesday approved Pfizer's coronavirus booster shots for over-18s, as the Omicron variant dominates rising new infections.

South Africa is preparing its hospitals for more admissions, as the Omicron coronavirus variant pushes the country into a fourth wave of COVID-19 cases, President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Monday.

Initial data from a major hospital complex in South Africa's omicron epicenter show that while Covid-19 case numbers have surged, patients need less medical intervention.

Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Saturday said the Omicron variant of coronavirus has a higher rate of transmissibility but the symptoms caused by it are mild.

A 33-year-old man from Maharashtra who travelled to Mumbai from South Africa via Dubai and Delhi late last month has tested positive for the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, in the fourth such case confirmed in India.

A 33-year-old man from Maharashtra who travelled to Mumbai from South Africa via Dubai and Delhi late last month has tested positive for the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, in the fourth such case confirmed in India.

South Africa is being hit by a fourth wave of COVID-19 infections driven by the Omicron variant which has been detected in seven of the country's nine provinces, Health Minister Joe Phaahla said on Friday.

The heavily mutated Omicron variant of the coronavirus is rapidly becoming dominant in South Africa, less than four weeks after being identified there, authorities said on Wednesday, as other countries tightened their borders against the new threat.

South Africa's daily coronavirus test positivity rate neared a record, rising above 30% on Saturday for the first time in almost five months as two sublineages of the omicron variant spread rapidly ahead of the nation's winter season.

South Africa, where the Omicron variant was detected last month, says its latest coronavirus wave has peaked without a surge in deaths or hospitalisations, enabling the country to lift a nightly curfew for the first time in 21 months.

The total count of the highly transmissible coronavirus variant Omicron has reached 781 in India. The variant of concern that was first detected in South Africa in November has now spread to 21 states in the country.

South Africa's National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) has retained its lockdown at 'adjusted level 1', or the lowest of a five-tier system of restrictions, in the battle on the Omicron variant, health authorities said on Thursday.

A two-dose course of Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE's Covid-19 shot as well as a previous infection with the disease may give stronger protection against the omicron variant, scientists from the Africa Health Research Institute in South Africa said.

Leading scientists cautioned that the level of immunity against the coronavirus among South Africa's population due to earlier infections may be masking the severity of illness caused by the omicron variant.

A 42-year-old man from Surat who recently returned from South Africa tested positive for the Omicron variant of coronavirus on Monday, making him the first such case from Surat and fourth in Gujarat, a health department official said.

South Africa on Wednesday approved Pfizer's coronavirus booster shots for over-18s, as the Omicron variant dominates rising new infections.

South Africa is preparing its hospitals for more admissions, as the Omicron coronavirus variant pushes the country into a fourth wave of COVID-19 cases, President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Monday.

Initial data from a major hospital complex in South Africa's omicron epicenter show that while Covid-19 case numbers have surged, patients need less medical intervention.

Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Saturday said the Omicron variant of coronavirus has a higher rate of transmissibility but the symptoms caused by it are mild.

A 33-year-old man from Maharashtra who travelled to Mumbai from South Africa via Dubai and Delhi late last month has tested positive for the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, in the fourth such case confirmed in India.

A 33-year-old man from Maharashtra who travelled to Mumbai from South Africa via Dubai and Delhi late last month has tested positive for the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, in the fourth such case confirmed in India.

South Africa is being hit by a fourth wave of COVID-19 infections driven by the Omicron variant which has been detected in seven of the country's nine provinces, Health Minister Joe Phaahla said on Friday.

The heavily mutated Omicron variant of the coronavirus is rapidly becoming dominant in South Africa, less than four weeks after being identified there, authorities said on Wednesday, as other countries tightened their borders against the new threat.