Spain confirms first case of Omicron variant

Spain has diagnosed the first case of the South African variant Omicron of the Covid-19 virus detected in its territory.

The case has been reported by the microbiology service of the Gregorio Marañón Hospital in Madrid. The patient is "a traveler from South Africa," the hospital said in a message on Twitter shortly after 6:00 pm.

The case was confirmed on Monday by sequencing.

The patient is a 51-year-old male. The disease was diagnosed after undergoing an antigen test performed at the Adolfo Suárez-Madrid Barajas airport.

The man arrived in Madrid after making a stopover in Amsterdam on a flight from South Africa. The man is with mild symptoms and in isolation in quarantine.

"We have managed to set up an ultra-fast procedure that allows us to have the result in the same day. The patient is fine," says the hospital's infectious diseases lab in a subsequent tweet.