The new Corona virus, "Omicron", has prompted a number of countries to mobilize and expedite new measures, in an attempt to stave off the risks of its spread.

The World Health Organization called the new mutant "Omicron", a letter from the Greek alphabet for the new strain of the Corona virus, which it described as "alarming."

A statement by the World Health Organization following the emergency meeting of its technical team for the evaluation of the virus stated, "The B.1.1.529 strain was first reported in South Africa on November 24, 2021... and in recent weeks the number of infections has risen sharply, which coincided with Monitor strain B.1.1.529".

It indicated that the first confirmed case of infection with the strain B.1.1.529 was in a sample taken on November 9, 2021.

The organization confirmed that "the strain has a large number of mutations, some of which are alarming. Preliminary data indicate a greater risk of repeated infections with this strain compared to other strains. An increase in infections with this strain is monitored in almost all southern African provinces."

She indicated that the available PCR tests are able to monitor this strain of the virus, and may have an advantage over other strains in terms of spread, based on data on the rise in the number of infections.

The WHO added that its virus assessment team will continue its studies of the new strain and will provide information to member states.

United States attached

The director of the American Institute of Infectious Diseases, Anthony Fauci, said that his country needs to learn more about the newly discovered "Omicron" mutant in South Africa, noting that it is a "dangerous alarm" and alarming.

Fauci added, that the topic of "Omicron" is still interacting and developing, as facts are still coming about, stressing the existence of "very active contacts" with South African scientists.

Fauci explained that the accumulation of information about the Corona virus and its variants will give scientists a better opportunity to predict the effectiveness of vaccines against the Covid-19 mutant, stressing that “we do not know for sure whether this mutant can escape from the antibodies stimulated by the current vaccines or not .. But we will definitely find out."

"At the moment, we are studying it with our colleagues in South Africa.

The European Medicines Agency considers costs

The European Medicines Agency said on Friday that it was "too early" to plan to adapt vaccines to the new mutated coronavirus discovered in South Africa.

"It is too early at the moment to consider adapting vaccines in order to combat this new mutant," she said.

An infection with this mutant was recorded in Belgium, the first to be announced in Europe, while several countries in the world suspended flights from South Africa and several African countries.