WHO: 13 Middle East nations report new variants

WHO: 13 Middle East nations report new variants

Coronavirus case numbers are stabilizing in parts of the Middle East but the situation remains critical, with more than a dozen countries reporting cases of new variants, the World Health Organization said Monday.Ahmed al-Mandhari, director of WHO's eastern Mediterranean region, which comprises most of the Middle East, said in a press briefing from Cairo that at least one of the three new coronavirus variants was reported in the 13 countries in the region. He did not name the countries, said AP.All three of the new variants are more contagious, according to WHO. Al-Mandhari said there are nearly 6 million confirmed cases of coronavirus in the region and about 140,000 deaths. WHO urged people to continue taking precautionary measures against the virus.Comments Read Next1 week agoAstraZeneca vaccine works against UK variant2 weeks agoBritain to test mixing and matching of COVID-19 vaccines2 weeks agoStudy says UK Covid strain does not cause more serious disease3 weeks agoVirus variant from South Africa detected in US for 1st time3 weeks agoNew COVID variants now in dozens of countries, says WHO3 weeks agoNew Covid variant discovered in Bahrain3 weeks agoNo Europe deaths directly tied to COVID-19 jabs3 weeks agoUK coronavirus variant linked to higher mortality4