Morocco closes borders after Omicron variant case – The HuffPost

Associated Press

BORDERS – The first case of infection with the Omicron variant of the coronavirus was detected in Morocco, which will soon be closing its borders partially reopened in the face of the “lightning” spread of the new variant, according to Moroccan authorities.

“This first case of contamination by the new strain Omicron was detected in a Moroccan citizen whose state of health is stable and does not cause concern ”, the Ministry of Health said on Wednesday (December 15th) in a press release released by the agency. MAP.

The patient was placed under medical supervision in a hospital in Casablanca, the economic capital of the kingdom, the statement added without further clarification.

The authorities have also decided to put an end from December 23 to the system put in place to allow Moroccans stranded abroad to return to their country.

A “partial” lifting announced on Monday

This decision was taken because of “the meteoric spread of the Omicron variant at the planetary level and its worrying progression in the European neighborhood of Morocco”, according to the interministerial committee for monitoring the Covid.

Announced Monday, December 13, the partial lifting of the closure of Morocco’s air borders, effective since November 29, was intended to allow “exceptionally” Moroccans trapped abroad to return to their country via Portugal, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.

From December 23, passenger flights to the kingdom will again be prohibited, specifies the pandemic monitoring committee.

However, the government authorizes special repatriation flights to foreign countries, especially to Europe.

“The Moroccan authorities will continue to place the preservation of the physical integrity and health of Moroccans, before any other consideration,” the statement concluded.

Concern for tourism professionals

However, tourism professionals are alarmed at the devastating impact of the closure of borders on this vital sector for the kingdom’s economy, already undermined by an unprecedented crisis for almost two years.

On Tuesday, the Moroccan Ministry of Health urged the population to respect preventive measures and to be vaccinated to avoid any deterioration of the epidemiological situation.

This call comes in reaction “to the abandonment, by a large number of citizens, of the main preventive measures of the virus as well as following the upward trend in the epidemiological curve during the last two weeks”, said worried the ministry in a press release.

In the Maghreb, Tunisia reported its first case of the Omicron variant as early as December 3, while Algeria reported its first case on Tuesday.

The WHO warned on Tuesday that the Omicron variant was spreading at an unprecedented rate and urged countries to act quickly to curb transmission of the virus.