WHO Names New Covid-19 Variant ‘Omicron’

The World Health Organization announced on Friday that the newly discovered B.1.1.529 strain of Covid-19 is a variant of concern, renaming it Omicron.

The classification puts Omicron into the most-troubling category of COVID-19 variants, along with the globally-dominant Delta

“Based on the evidence presented indicative of a detrimental change in Covid-19 epidemiology… the WHO has designated B.1.1.529 as a variant of concern, named Omicron,” the UN health agency disclosed this in a statement.

Meanwhile, EU officials holding an emergency meeting over the variant agreed on Friday to urge all 27 nations in the to restrict travel from that region.

Nations rushed to ban flights to slow the spread of Omicron, while stock markets and oil prices plunged on fears surrounding the variant, potentially dealing a heavy blow to the global economic recovery.