“Omicron rages across the world.” Christmas travel is dangerous even for vaccinators

The Netherlands has closed stores, and plans have emerged to impose additional restrictions in other European countries. In the United States, the number of Covid-19 cases has recently increased by half. All because of the rapidly spreading Omikron variant.

Just before Christmas and New Year’s, the hottest times for travel and trade, more European countries are tightening anti-epidemic laws.

The Netherlands has decided to close most public life facilities, leaving only essential stores open. Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced, on Saturday evening, the closure of restaurants, hairdressers, gyms, museums and other public places from Sunday until at least January 14, Reuters reported.

An unprecedented increase in the incidence of COVID-19 can be observed in the United States and the United Kingdom.

According to the agency, the number of COVID-19 cases in the United States has increased by 50 percent since the beginning of the month.

White House medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci encourages travelers during the holiday season to boost vaccinations and wear masks in crowded public places. He added that the Omikron boom was “raging all over the world,” and that travel would greatly increase the risk of infection, even among vaccinated people.

COVID cases are increasing in 64 out of 240 countries, with 12 countries reporting more than at any time during the pandemic, including in the UK.

In Italy, the government is considering new measures to avoid a sharp rise in infections during the holiday season. The daily Corriere della Sera reports that Prime Minister Mario Draghi may decide to pass a negative coronavirus test before entering the most crowded places, including nightclubs or stadiums.

In turn, German Health Minister Karl Lauterbach, while ruling out the possibility of imposing a blockade on trade and services during the holidays, warns that the fifth wave of COVID-19 is inevitable, and that a vaccine is the only way to end it. epidemic.

The new COVID-19 mutation is already in Poland. By Sunday afternoon, there were seven official cases of the new variety.

The World Health Organization (WHO) reported that Omikron, a highly contagious species first detected last month in South Africa and Hong Kong, has now spread worldwide and is present in 89 countries.