Lebanon has detected its first case of the new variant of the coronavirus, which has been spreading rapidly in parts of Britain, on a flight arriving from London.
In a tweet on Friday, caretaker Health Minister Hamad Hasan announced that a new variant of the Coronavirus was discovered on board a Middle East Airlines plane coming from the United Kingdom.
“The detection of the first case of the new variant of Covid-19 on Middle East Airlines flight 202 coming from London on Dec. 21,” the minister said.
He urged the arrivals from the United Kingdom, especially passengers on board the aforementioned flight and their families, to exercise caution and abide by the preventive instructions.
A surge in coronavirus infections is straining Lebanon’s healthcare system, which was already struggling amid a financial crisis and following the huge port explosion in August which damaged hospitals in Beirut.
Lebanon, with an estimated population of 6 million people, has reported more than 1,000 deaths as a result of Covid-19.
Source: Reuters and NNA
