Japan has confirmed its first case of a new, faster-spreading novel coronavirus variant now sweeping South Africa.
The health ministry on Dec. 28 said a woman in her 30s who arrived at Narita International Airport via Doha on Dec. 19 was found to have contracted the variant when she was tested at the airport’s quarantine station. The woman had not displayed any suspicious symptoms.
The ministry also confirmed that six male and female passengers who arrived at Tokyo s Haneda International Airport from Dec. 1 to Dec. 24 tested positive for a new coronavirus variant detected in Britain, where they had stayed, during testing at the airport’s quarantine station. Their ages varied between 10 and 49, the ministry said.