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Europe, Asia tighten borders against COVID variant as WHO urges caution

Headlines 19:04 26 Nov, 2021

European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said the EU also aimed to halt air travel from the region

Europe, Asia tighten borders against COVID variant as WHO urges caution

Global authorities reacted with alarm on Friday to a new coronavirus variant detected in South Africa, with the EU and Britain among those tightening border controls as scientists sought to find out if the mutation was vaccine-resistant, Qazet.az reports.

Hours after Britain banned flights from South Africa and neighbouring countries and asked travellers returning from there to quarantine, the World Health Organization (WHO) cautioned against hasty measures.

But European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said the EU also aimed to halt air travel from the region.

Scientists are still learning about the variant, identified this week, but the news pummelled global stocks and oil amid fears what new bans would do to already shaky economies across southern Africa.