Less than two months after forecasting “a long period of tranquility” for Europe in the pandemic, the World Health Organization’s regional chief warned this week that much of the continent was in the grip of a fresh Covid-19 surge after “brutally” sweeping away restrictions.
Hans Kluge’s volte face was spurred by the rapid spread of a highly infectious version of the Omicron coronavirus variant, known as BA.2. The strain has taken hold as people stop wearing masks and socialise more, prompting a jump in infections in at least 18 European countries, according to the WHO.
Experts predict North America will be hit by a similar resurgence within weeks, with some warning that sluggish vaccination and booster uptake among older groups in the US could leave it exposed to a bigger wave of hospitalisations than its European peers.