GENEVA | The World Health Organization currently has no information on a possible death linked to the new Omicron variant of the virus giving COVID-19, a spokesperson for the organization said in Geneva on Friday.
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“I have not seen any information reporting deaths linked to Omicron,” said Christian Lindmeier, during a regular UN press briefing in Geneva.
As more countries test to try to detect the new variant, “we’ll have more cases, more information, and – although I hope not – possibly deaths,” he said.
The new variant, classified as worrying by the WHO, was first detected in southern Africa but since the South African health authorities alerted the WHO on November 24, infections with Omicron have been observed in around 30 countries. on all continents.
If outside southern Africa, the first infections were generally linked to people who had traveled to the region, the first cases of local transmission are now appearing, in the United States or Australia for example.
The World Health Organization (WHO) considers “high” the “probability that Omicron spreads globally”, even if many unknowns remain: contagiousness, effectiveness of existing vaccines, severity of symptoms.