According to Israeli media reports, on the morning of March 16, local time, the Israeli Ministry of Health reported that two cases of Omicron subtype mutants were detected among inbound personnel at Ben Gurion International Airport. Cases of mixed strains of BA.1 and BA.2.
This is a completely new mutant strain of the Omicron subtype, hitherto unknown anywhere in the world.
The Israeli Ministry of Health added that both infected people had mild symptoms, including fever, headache and muscle pain, and neither required special medical attention.
Senior Ministry of Health officials believe that Israel has not yet started a sixth wave of infections, but the rate of new coronavirus infections will continue to climb. They estimate that infections will start spreading again, especially after the Purim festival in the coming days.
But researchers believe that widespread protection already exists in the Israeli population, which would prevent a large outbreak. It is estimated that about half of Israel’s population (4 million people) has been infected with the new coronavirus in the past few months. Therefore, it is believed that only those who have not been infected will be affected by the resurgence of the outbreak.
On Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Bennett will hold a meeting with Health Minister Horowitz and top medical officials to discuss the rising infection rate.
Source: China Biotechnology Network