The new COVID variant XBB.1.5, the most contagious with the “recombinant” new strain of Omicron dubbed “Kraken,” has been brought to the attention of the public by Prime Minister Hun Sen this morning.
Samdech Techo Hun Sen warned citizens to be careful against the COVID-19 epidemic, especially the highly contagious XBB.1.5 form, in his speech at the groundbreaking ceremony for the repair and upgrade of National Road No. 7 in Kampong Cham province.
“We really don’t know how the COVID-19 virus will develop to more new varieties, therefore we have to administer the booster doses of COVID vaccination,” he stated, reiterating that there are now roughly 7 million doses in stock and that 20 more million doses will come in Cambodia shortly.
Experts claim that the “Kraken” strain, which is descended from the omicron XBB subvariant and a cross between the strains BA.2.75 and BA.2.10.1, has overtaken other strains as the dominant strain in the USA.
Since the WHO initially expressed worry about the original XBB version in last October, waves of infection have already been triggered in nations like Singapore and India.
In a news briefing on January 4, Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO’s Covid-19 technical head, stated that XBB.1.5 is “the most transmissible sub-variant which has yet been found.”
138,628 confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Cambodia, of which 135,547 have recovered and 3,056 have died, according to a news release from the Ministry of Health on January 8.
