Live updates: 'South Korea extending travel restrictions

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea is extending measures to guard against the omicron variant of the coronavirus for another four weeks.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said Wednesday that short-term foreign travelers from 11 African countries will continue to be banned from entering the country, while all other international arrivals will be required to observe a 10-day quarantine until Feb. 3.

The agency says South Korea reported 109 new daily COVID-19 cases involving the omicron variant, the highest 24-hour tally since the country confirmed its first omicron case on Dec. 1.

The delta variant still accounts for the vast majority of new cases in South Korea, but experts say omicron could become the country's dominant strain in the next few months.

South Korea registered a total of 5,409 new cases on Wednesday, and the number of critically or seriously ill patients reached a record high of 1,151.

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HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY ABOUT THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC:

— Asia keeps omicron at bay, but a surge may be inevitable

— WHO: Global COVID cases up 11% last week, omicron risk high

— California 1st US state to top 5M cases amid omicron surge

— Stricter Canadian rules complicate NHL push through pandemic

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Follow AP’s pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic

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HERE’S WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING TODAY:

JERUSALEM — Israel has lifted its travel ban on dozens of European and African countries, including Italy and Germany, even as the country’s coronavirus infection rate continues to surge.

But the Israeli government’s Corona Cabinet approved red-listing Mexico on Wednesday, adding it...