Palestine's Omicron infections jump by third as Gaza sees first case of variant

The Palestinian territories have seen a dramatic jump in Omicron coronavirus infections in recent days.

Gaza and the West Bank have reported 35 cases of the highly infectious Omicron strain, Anadolu Agency reported Monday, citing the Palestinian health ministry.

This is up by over a third on the 23 infections that Reuters reported by Sunday.

One Omicron infection had been detected in the besieged Gaza Strip, Palestinian health ministry spokesman Kamal Al-Shakhra said on Monday - the enclave's first known case of the variant.

Most of the cases of the new Covid-19 strain were from people who had travelled from abroad, the official said.

The first three Omicron infections in the Palestinian territories were reported on Thursday.

While early evidence has indicated that the latest variant may be less life-threatening than the previous breakout Delta strain, the speed at which Omicron is spreading has caused alarm worldwide.

Palestinians living in territories occupied by Israel suffer medical inequality, while Gaza is suffering under a devastating siege which is periodically lifted by Egypt to allow through medical cases.