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JOHANNESBURG (AFP) – The South African Health Minister has rejected the claim of his British counterpart that a new variant of the coronavirus in the country is more contagious or dangerous than a similar one that spreads in the United Kingdom.
“At present, there is no evidence that the 501.V2 (variant) is more transmissible than the UK variant, as suggested by the British Health Secretary,” Zwelini Mkhize said in a statement released Thursday night (24 from December).
“There is also no evidence that it (causes) more severe disease or increased mortality than the UK variant or any variant that has been sequenced around the world.”
In announcing restrictions on travel from South Africa on Wednesday, Britain’s Matt Hancock had said that the variant there was “very concerning, because it is even more transmissible and appears to have mutated more” than the similar strain in Britain.
The British minister’s words “have created the perception that the variant in South Africa has been an important factor in the second wave in the UK,” Mkhize said. “This is not correct.”
He pointed to evidence that the British strain, which has a similar mutation to the South African, appeared as early as September in the southeastern Kent County, “about a month before the South African variant appears to have developed.”
Citing “the widely shared opinion of the scientific community”, Mr. Mkhize also argued that “the risks of the travel ban may outweigh the benefits.”
“Banning travel between the UK and South Africa is an unfortunate decision,” he added.
South Africa is the country most affected by the coronavirus on the continent, with close to one million infections so far and 26,000 deaths.
About 14,000 positive cases were detected in each of the last two days, compared with between 8,000 and 10,000 earlier this week.
Mkhize said Wednesday that new restrictions might be necessary to slow the spread of the virus.
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