US weighs travel curbs as new Omicron variant hits 23 countries

The US move to strengthen the testing regime reflects growing concern about the Omicron variant

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention plans to toughen coronavirus testing and screening of international fliers to the United States by requiring them to provide a negative result from a test taken within 24 hours of departure, a spokesman for the agency said Tuesday night as Saudi Arabia and Nigeria on Wednesday became the latest countries to record cases of Omicron, the latest variant of the Covid-19. With these, the elusive virus variant has now made its debut in both the Gulf Arab nation and West Africa.
 
With the fresh additions, the variant has now been recorded in