Omicron Dominant Strain in Iran

The Omicron variant of the coronavirus has taken over Delta as the dominant strain across Iran, the national Covid-19 science committee announced on Monday. 
“Over 50% of transmissions are linked to the Omicron variant, it is safe to say that Omicron has become dominant,” Masoud Younesian, secretary of the committee, was quoted as saying by ISNA. 
The Health Ministry on Monday registered more than 7,600 new infections, up by a whopping 49.5% compared to a day earlier. 
Iran’s daily infections dropped to a low of 700 in early January and it has been steadily rising over the past two weeks. 
Health experts warned about the resurgence of the pandemic over one month ago when the first Omicron case was detected in the capital Tehran in a middle-aged man with recent travel history to the United Arab Emirates. 
Younesian pointed out, “Since early January, we’ve been seeing a 10-12% increase in infections every day.”
According to the official, if no restrictive measures are introduced, at this rate the number of patients would climb by 17 times to 85,000 a day. 
“Contrary to popular belief, any intervention would take at least one to two weeks to show results,” he said. 
Younesian warned that a return to five-digit daily infection figures was “inevitable”.
Noting that 72% of cases identified across the world are caused by the easily transmissible Omicron, he said, “Omicron has become dominant in the world and naturally, also in our country.”

Close to Peak 

Omicron cases will soon peak based on the daily tally of infections and hospitalizations, another high-ranking member of the national Covid-19 science committee, Hamidreza Jamaati, said on Monday. 
“It is the science committee’s recommendation that people receive a third shot as fast as possible as it can prevent hospitalization by 80%,” he said. 
The health official stressed the need for mask-wearing, saying that research shows it can prevent infections by 30%.
The National Coronavirus Headquarters extended vaccine eligibility to kids between the ages of nine to 12 to tackle the spread of Omicron. 
It is also giving out booster shots to those most at risk to reduce the number of possible severe cases and mortalities. 
More than 17% of the country’s population of 85 million people have been administered a third dose. 
Iran once again color-coded one city as orange (high-risk) after approximately 40 days since it had reported any orange or red cities throughout the nation.