Coronavirus
WHO, US health authorities tracking new COVID-19 variant
The WHO classified the new variant, BA.2.86, as one under surveillance 'due to the large number (more than 30) of spike gene mutations it carries', it wrote in...
The national Health Department on Wednesday confirmed the first case of the new COVID-19 sub-variant EG.5 or Eris. Officials said it was found in a sample taken from a patient in Gauteng.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared a new COVID-19 variant which it says is likely to cause a spike in infections, but not increased severity.
The WHO report lays bare how the virus itself and the broader impact of the crisis abruptly cut short the lives of millions of people.
Worldwide, the disease had as of 3 May officially claimed more than 6.9 million lives, and sickened more than 765 million others, according to WHO, which has said the true figures are likely far higher.
The White House said Biden signed a law passed earlier by Congress "which terminates the national emergency related to the COVID-19 pandemic."
The coronavirus pandemic likely arose from a Chinese laboratory leak, the US Department of Energy now says according to media, although the White House maintained Sunday that American intelligence remained divided on the issue.
Residents of China's Wuhan said Monday they were hopeful for the future and no longer afraid of COVID-19, three years after the city was locked down over what was then a mysterious virus.
The World Health Organization has repeatedly voiced concern that China's official statistics are not showing the true impact of its current surge in COVID cases.
The NICD said more than 650 sublineages of Omicron have been identified, of which more than 200 have been detected in South Africa.
Health Minister Joe Phaahla said that the ministerial advisory committee on COVID-19 vaccines would soon announce when more people could line up for their booster shots.
Health Minister Joe Phaahla stressed that immunisation against the disease remained the best form of protection.
The highly transmissible XBB.1.5. subvariant was detected in the Western Cape last week.
The variant has been named "Kraken", due to its ability to spread so far, after being detected in 28 countries.
Head of the KwaZulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform (Krisp), Tulio de Oliveira, said that he did not think that the new COVID-19 variant would cause much disruption in South Africa.
There is growing concern over China's steep rise in Covid infections since Beijing abruptly lifted years of hard-line restrictions in December, with hospitals and crematoriums quickly overwhelmed.
Crude prices extended losses from a day earlier, diving around five percent over concern about demand in the world's biggest oil importer China as it sees a steep rise in COVID infections in the country.
The steep rise in infections came after years of hardline restrictions were abruptly loosened last month with little warning or preparation, and quickly overwhelmed hospitals and crematoriums.
China has found itself under the spotlight recently after the country dropped COVID restrictions, triggering a slew of new infections.