Omicron reaches from Australia to Canada in widening spread

The omicron variant of Covid-19, first identified in South Africa, has been detected in locations from Australia to Germany and Canada, showing the difficulties of curtailing new strains. 
 

Most infections stem from travelers carrying the disease across borders. Israel, for instance, said a confirmed case who arrived from Malawi rode on a bus from Tel Aviv. Italy’s first case traveled around the country for days before testing positive. 

Researchers worldwide are racing to understand the full impact of the new strain, and governments have banned travelers from South Africa and nearby countries on concerns omicron could evade the protection of vaccines and fuel new surges. 

Here’s how far omicron has reached: 

South Africa	Early samples of PCR tests showed that 90% of 1,100 new cases reported midweek in the South African province that includes Johannesburg were caused by the new variant
Botswana	At least 19 cases detected
U.K.	At least three confirmed cases linked to travel in South Africa; the BBC reported six cases in Scotland
Germany	Two cases in travelers who arrived at Munich airport from South Africa, AFP reported, citing regional officials.
Netherlands	13 cases detected among travelers from South Africa
Denmark	Two cases in arrivals from South Africa
Belgium	One case
Israel	One confirmed case and other suspected ones, as of Nov. 27.
Italy	One case who moved around the country before testing positive
Czech Republic	One case, according to local media
Hong Kong SAR	Two cases in quarantine hotel
Australia	Two cases in Australia’s New South Wales state. Both had traveled from South Africa
Canada	Two cases who had recently traveled from Nigeria
Austria	One confirmed case in Tyrol for person arriving from South Africa. Authorities reviewing another 30 suspected cases
Switzerland	One suspected case for person who entered around a week ago from South Africa
France	Eight suspected cases
Portugal	Preliminary tests of 13 cases “strongly” suggests they’re all related to the omicron variant. One of the cases involves a person who had a recent trip to South Africa.