Covid-19: Israel bans arrivals from most of Africa after new strain discovered

Israel on Friday imposed a travel ban covering most of Africa after the detection of a new variant of the coronavirus in South Africa that could be more contagious than the Delta strain.

“We are currently on the verge of a state of emergency,” Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said, according to a statement from his office, before expanding a ban he announced on Thursday on the entry of foreigners from seven African countries and Israelis’ travel to them.

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Under the broader restrictions, all African nations, except those in North Africa, were added to Israel’s “red list” of high-risk countries. Bennett, who met Israeli health experts before the edicts were announced, said there were a few cases of the new variant reported in Israel.

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