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Added on the 29/11/2021 20:00:00 - Copyright : France 24 EN
European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen says the world is in a "race against time" to understand the new Covid variant, calling for precautions to give scientists time to analyse the Omicron strain. She speaks during a visit to Latvia with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg IMAGES
Passengers walk in a terminal at Schiphol Airport in the Netherlands after authorities test whether 61 passengers who tested positive for Covid-19 after arriving from South Africa have the new Omicron strain. IMAGES
Dr Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO's technical lead on the Covid-19 crisis, declares the recently-discovered B.1.1.529 strain of Covid-19 to be a variant of concern, renaming it Omicron. SOUNDBITE
The UK's National Health Service (NHS) is preparing eight “Nightingale” units each able to house up to 100 patients, as the country continues to battle a surge in Covid infections. The Omicron strain has become the dominant form of the coronavirus in the UK, with nearly 200,000 infections reported on Wednesday. The special surge units will be used to help prevent the NHS from being overwhelmed by patients. IMAGES
Covid antigen self-test kits are distributed in Queens, New York, where people wait in long lines to get a free test before the Christmas holidays. The US is battling huge infection surges driven by variant Omicron's rapid spread. IMAGES
With hats, gloves and warm clothes, around a hundred people are waiting to get Covid PCR tests in downtown Washington DC, amid Omicron variant surge and days before Christmas gatherings. President Joe Biden was due to address the nation later Tuesday after a White House official said the government will distribute 500 million free Covid tests and mobilize military medical personnel if needed. IMAGES
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