Morocco bans all incoming flights for 2 weeks due to Omicron
Morocco's Foreign Ministry announced today that it is banning all air travel to the country for two weeks beginning on Monday. The action is in response to the spread of the new Omicron variant of the COVID-19 virus.
In a tweet, the ministry indicated that it was making the move to "preserve the achievements realized by Morocco in the fight against the pandemic, and to protect the health of citizens."
The government said it would evaluate the move on a regular basis and will make "adjustments if necessary."
The Omicron variant was identified in South Africa on Nov. 24. By Nov. 26, the World Health Organization had designated it as a "variant of concern."
In the last 24 hours, the U.K. as well as Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany have confirmed cases of the variant.
Related: WHO urges restraint on travel bans as alarming new variant is spotted
Yesterday, Israel announced that it was closing borders to foreign visitors in response to Omicron.