WHO officials told a news conference that a small but growing number of infections with the XBB1.5 variant have been detected in Europe.
Catherine Smallwood, the World Health Organization’s emergencies manager in Europe, said passengers should be advised to wear masks in high-risk locations such as long flights, adding that ‘this should be a recommendation for passengers from any background. place where Covid-19 disease is spread”.
Health officials said the XBB1.5 variant, the most infectious variant of the Omicron strain, accounted for 27.6% of infections in the US in the week ending Jan. 7.
It is not yet clear whether the new variant will cause a new global wave of infections. Experts say current vaccines still provide protection against severe symptoms, hospitalizations and death.
On Tuesday, the European Union’s Aviation Safety Agency and the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control issued recommendations for flights between China and the European Union, including “non-pharmacological measures to limit the spread of the viruses, such as wearing a mask and testing travelers, as well as monitoring wastewater as an early warning tool to detect new variants.”
