South Africa has identified a new variant of the coronavirus that is driving a second wave of infections, the health minister said, days after Britain said it had also found a new variant of the virus boosting cases.
“We have convened this public briefing today to announce that a variant of the Sars-Cov-2 Virus — currently termed 501.V2 Variant — has been identified by our genomics scientists here in South Africa,” Minister of Health Zweli Mkhize tweeted.
“The evidence that has been collated, therefore, strongly suggests that the current second wave we are experiencing is being driven by this new variant,” Mkhize added.
