- A new
coronavirus variant — B.1.1.529 — is rapidly spreading in southern Africa. - It prompted the European Commission to recommend a flight ban from the region.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had earlier on Friday recommended that the member states take action over concerns of the new variant. The World Health Organization has named it "Omicron" and classified it as a "variant of concern."
"It is now important that all of us in Europe act very swiftly, decisively, and united," von der Leyen said, and it was then up to the 27 individual EU member countries whether they followed her guidance.
She said: "The European Commission has today proposed to member states to activate the emergency brake on travel from countries in southern Africa and other countries affected to limit the spread of the new variant.
"All air travel to these countries should be suspended. They should be suspended until we have a clear understanding about the danger posed by this new variant, and travelers returning from this region should respect strict quarantine rules."
Watch her statement here:
—Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) November 26, 2021
Von der Leyen did not specify which countries she wanted to ban flights from.
EU countries are free to set their own flight bans and quarantine rules. Germany and Belgium, which are EU member states, had already imposed their own travel bans from southern African countries.
The variant has been found in
Earlier on Friday Belgium's health minister said the country had found its first case of the new variant in a traveler who tested positive on November 22. It is the first such confirmed case in Europe.