Photographer: BSIP / Universal Images Group / Getty Images
Photographer: BSIP / Universal Images Group / Getty Images
The South African government has denied allegations that a new variant of the coronavirus found in the country has contributed to a second wave of infections in the UK and criticized its decision to impose travel restrictions.
A new variant of the virus that has been detected in the UK has a mutation that appears in common with the South African strain, known as 501.V2, but are “two completely independent lines,” said Health Minister Zweli Mkhize in a statement late Thursday. . There is no evidence that 501.V2 causes more severe disease or increases mortality than any other variant that has been sequenced worldwide, he said.
Mkhize’s comments came a day after British Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced that flights from South Africa would be banned and that anyone who had been there for the past two weeks should be quarantined immediately. Several other countries have also stopped flights from South Africa.
The new British strain was identified about a month before the South African version appeared to have developed, Mkhize said, citing ongoing research by the South African Genomic Surveillance Network, which was launched in June. He described Hancock’s announcement as “unfortunate.”
“It is the widely held view of the scientific community that, given current circumstantial evidence, the risks of travel bans may outweigh the benefits and that the options may be contained while supporting international travel,” Mkhize said. Therefore, we argue that non-pharmaceutical interventions and strict isolation measures remain the most important to reduce the risk of transmission. “
Coronavirus infections in South Africa have risen since the government eased most restrictions a few months ago, and a second wave now coincides with the summer holidays. The Ministry of Health registered on Thursday a record of 14,305 new cases, bringing the cumulative total to 968,563.
Experts in South Africa lead the field of genomic surveillance with those in institutions in Australia, Denmark, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom and have shared all information about the evolution of coronavirus with the World Health Organization, Mkhize said.