NICOSIA, Jan. 2 (Xinhua) -- The Omicron variant has become the main source feeding the COVID-19 pandemic in Cyprus, representing an estimated 80 percent of new infections, Health Minister Michalis Hadjipantelas said on Sunday.
Hadjipantelas told journalists after a tour of COVID-19 hospitals in two cities that it is likely the Omicron variant to fully replace the Delta strain as the only source of infection, a little over a month since it was first identified.
"We know very well the positivity rate of Omicron and we consider that in the coming days it will prevail in all our cases," he said, adding that the high transmissibility of the Omicron variant will cause a further rise in infections in the coming days.
New COVID-19 infections in Cyprus reached a record high of 5,048 on Dec. 31, more than doubling in three days, with the positivity rate standing at 2.98 percent.
On Jan. 1, the figure dropped back to 2,332 because of a reduced number of tests, but the positivity rate rose to 5.98 percent.
Hadjipantelas said that current figures show that the Omicron variant is less severe but warned that "there can be no complacency."
He also said that the government advisory committee of experts will on Tuesday discuss "how people's movements will be restricted or the reopening of schools will be affected by the rising cases." Enditem