WHO meets to discuss new, ‘heavily mutated’ COVID-19 variant

The World Health Organization is holding a meeting Friday to discuss the dramatic rise in COVID-19 cases in South Africa that has been blamed on a new variant of the virus.

Joe Phaahla, South Africa’s minister of health, identified the new variant as B.1.1.529, and said it seems highly contagious among young people.

The BBC reported that the new variant seems to be the most heavily mutated so far in the outbreak. James Gallagher, the health correspondent, wrote that one scientist described the variant as "horrific." He said the meeting of the WHO will likely result in the variant receiving a Greek code-name, like the delta variant.

"This variant did surprise us," Tulio de Oliveira, the director of the Center for South Africa’s Epidemic Response and Innovation, told the news outlet. "It has a big jump on evolution [and] many more mutations that we expected."