Brussels, (Asian independent) Belgium has confirmed the second case of the Omicron variant of Covid-19, Belgian microbiologist Emmanuel Andre has said on Twitter.
Belgium’s first case of the Omicron variant was reported on November 26, Xinhua news agency reported.
“These two patients are not linked,” Andre added.
The newly infected person is reported to have been infected in Belgium. Research is underway to determine the source and circumstances of the infection.
Belgium has passed the threshold of 27,000 Covid-related deaths since the beginning of the pandemic, with 27,015 confirmed deaths, according to data from Sciensano Public Health Institute.
Over the past few weeks, there has been a significant spike in infections, with 17,839 cases recorded on average per day in the week of November 21 to 27.
The number of patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) has gone up by 19 per cent compared to last week, with 780 patients currently being treated in ICU out of a total of 3,750 hospital admissions.
Belgium has so far registered a total of 1,766,035 infections since the onset of the global pandemic.
