Dreadful covid variant Omicron detected in U.K.

The U.K has confirmed two cases of the new Covid-19 strain omicron, Health Minister Sajid Javid said.

“The two cases are linked and there is a connection with travel to southern Africa,” Javid said on Twitter.

The U.K. will add four more southern African countries — Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and Angola — to its travel “red list” effective 4 a.m. local time on Sunday, he said.

People returning from red-list countries face a mandatory 10-day quarantine at a managed hotel at their own expense.

The two individuals and their households — one in Chelmsford and one in Nottingham — are self-isolating, and contact tracing is ongoing, according to the U.K. Health Security Agency. All involved will be re-tested.

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