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Saudi Arabia reports first Omicron case coming from north Africa

01 December 2021 13:58 (UTC +04:00)

Saudi Arabia confirmed its first case of the Omicron COVID-19 variant coming from a north African country, according to state news agency SPA, APA reports citing Reuters.

SPA, quoting a statement from the kingdom's health ministry, said authorities had isolated the person and people who were in contact with them.

It is the first Omicron variant case reported in the Middle East and North Africa. The ministry said the person was a Saudi national who had travelled from a North African country, without giving further details.

The World Health Organization (WHO) warned on Monday that the heavily mutated Omicron coronavirus variant was likely to spread internationally and poses a very high risk of infection surges that could have "severe consequences" in some places.