Singapore’s Ministry of Health yesterday announced that two passengers on a flight from South Africa to this country a day earlier tested positive for the Omicron variant.

These two people have been fully vaccinated and are being treated at the National Center for Infectious Diseases in Singapore, with mild symptoms including cough and itchy throat.

`Both were quarantined upon entry and had no contact with the community. There is no evidence of community transmission from these two cases,` Singapore’s Ministry of Health said, adding that authorities are investigating.

Malaysian Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin today announced that the country also recorded the first case of Omicron infection, a foreign passenger departing from South Africa, transiting in Singapore before landing in Malaysia on November 19.

Passengers at Malaysia’s Kuala Lumpur airport on November 29.

The announcement was made in the context of many Southeast Asian countries restricting people from some African countries due to concerns about the Omicron strain causing a new wave of Covid-19.

Singapore on November 28 imposed travel restrictions on South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia and Zimbabwe.

Malaysia last week banned people from leaving the 7 African countries mentioned above, while foreigners with a history of traveling through these countries in the past 14 days are not allowed to enter.

Thailand bans entry from December 1 to people from eight African countries at high risk of infection with the Omicron variant.

Vietnam has not recorded any cases of infection with the Omicron variant.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on the evening of November 29 requested the Ministry of Health to proactively follow the developments of the epidemic situation caused by the Omicron strain, regularly discussing with the World Health Organization (WHO) to update information.

Omicron was first discovered in Botswana in mid-November, and has more than 50 mutations, including 32 mutations in the spike protein.