NCOC bans entry from 6 countries, Hong Kong 'due to threat' from Omicron

The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC)  on Saturday said a travel ban had been imposed on six southern African countries as well as Hong Kong "due to threat" from the new coronavirus variant — Omicron.

The NCOC, in a statement, said that a ban on direct or indirect inbound travel from South Africa, Hong Kong, Mozambique, Namibia, Lesotho, Botswana, and Eswatini has been imposed, with the countries placed in Category C "with immediate effect".

NCOC said Pakistani passengers travelling from these countries on "extreme emergency" will only be allowed after obtaining exemptions and ensuring the following protocols:

• Vaccination certificate;
• Max 72-hour-old negative PCR report before boarding;
• Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) on arrival at the airport;
• RAT negative cases will undergo 3 days mandatory home quarantine and re-RAT will be conducted on third day;
• RAT positive cases will undergo 10 days mandatory quarantine at government or self-paid facilities;
• Their PCR test will be conducted on the 10th day in quarantine.

However, to facilitate stranded Pakistanis, travel from these countries will be allowed till December 5, 2021, without exemption, but the aforementioned protocols will be applicable, the NCOC said.

In the statement, the NCOC also directed Aviation Division, airport management, and the Airport Security Force to devise a mechanism for screening passengers traveling from the above-mentioned countries through indirect flights and share it with all the concerned authorities by November 29.

NCOC urged people to take coronavirus safety precautions "seriously" in view of the new variant.

"Please ensure that your vaccination is complete, wear a mask and isolate yourself or get tested in case of any symptoms! Stay safe!!!" it wrote.

UK confirms two cases of new COVID variant

Britain on Saturday confirmed its first two cases of the new Omicron strain of COVID-19, both linked to travel from southern Africa, and expanded travel restrictions on the region.

"After overnight genome sequencing, the UK Health Security Agency has confirmed that two cases of COVID-19 with mutations consistent with B.1.1.529 (Omicron) have been identified in the UK," a government statement said.

"The two cases are linked and there is a link to travel to southern Africa," it said.

One case was detected in the central English city of Nottingham, and the other in Chelmsford east of London, officials said.

"We have moved rapidly and the individuals are self-isolating while contact tracing is ongoing," Health Secretary Sajid Javid said.

He added that the government was placing another four African countries on its travel "red list" —  Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and Angola — effective from 4:00am (0400 GMT) on Sunday.

Britain has already said it is banning travel from six southern African nations because of the emergence of Omicron: South Africa, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Zimbabwe and Botswana.

The government was widely criticised for its travel and quarantine policy earlier in the pandemic, when it kept borders open to foreign travellers even as infection rates spiralled.

"This is a stark reminder that we are not yet out of this pandemic," Javid said, urging the public to get follow-up booster jabs of vaccines. "We will not hesitate to take further action if required."

— Additional input from AFP