France has reported its first case of the new variant of coronavirus, as the number of infections and deaths continue to surge across the country.
According to the French ministry, the patient had recently arrived back in France from London on 19 December. He is currently self-isolating and his condition is under control, the ministry said, adding that he is asymptomatic at the moment.
France closed its border but ended its ban on Wednesday, although it required people to test negative before travelling.
The country’s number of confirmed COVID-19 cases now stands at 2,547,771 while its death toll stands at 62,427 – the seventh-highest in the world.
A new mutant strain of COVID-19 had hit the United Kingdom. Amid frenzy over the “out of control” virus, several countries across the globe imposed travel bans on the UK, shortly after the new variant’s gravity was announced. Scientists in the UK first discovered the new variant in September. Tracing the urgency of the mutation, Susan Hopkins of Public Health England alerted the government in early December, revealing that it could be more transmissible.
