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Covid-19: South Africa’s surge in cases deepens alarm over omicron variant

In the outbreak’s epicentre—Gauteng, the populous province that contains Pretoria and Johannesburg—74% of samples sequenced from the last three weeks of November involved the new variant. This suggests that omicron is rapidly outcompeting the prevalent delta variant, which had already replaced the local beta variant. With only scattered cases identified in at least 23 other countries, South Africa’s experience currently offers the clearest glimpse of the variant’s possible future course.