Morocco Suspends Flights, Considers Stricter Measures as Omicron Spreads Globally

Due to the rapid spread of the new variant of the Covid-19 virus - Omicron (B.1.1.529), particularly in Europe and Africa, and in order to preserve the gains made by Morocco in the fight against the pandemic and protect the health of citizens, the government has decided to suspend all direct passenger flights to the kingdom, for a period of two weeks. Moroccan authorities could go further by tightening health measures, including the return of the night curfew. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Omicron is "a variant of concern", potentially more contagious than its predecessors, the previous variants Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta.

Even if no cases of the new Omicron variant, which appeared in South Africa and in some European countries, have been recorded in Morocco so far, the tightening of health measures could be considered. In a statement to Hespress, Dr. Mouad Mrabet, coordinator of the National Public Health Emergency Operations Center, at the Ministry of Health and Social Protection, estimates that a possible return of the night curfew will depend on the evolution of the epidemiological situation in the country.

As of December 2, 2021, the Covid-19 report shows 950,223 cases of contamination, 932,565 recoveries and 14,782 deaths. In total, 24,426,409 people have received the first dose, 22,692,707 the second dose and 1,718,267 the third dose.