The news was confirmed by virologist Bruno Verhasselt of UZ Gent.
One of the cases is said to be a person who had recently travelled to Africa, while the other had not. UZ Gent is still working on the full genes analysis of the samples, but there is enough information to indicate that the Omicron variant is involved. The lab is still examining a number of suspected samples.
The first case of the Omicron variant was reported on 26 November in Belgium, while the second was confirmed on Wednesday 1 December. Verhasselt said it was to be expected that further confirmations will follow in the coming days.
In addition to the above, a case of the Omicron variant has also been detected in the Haut-Rhin region of France. The case is said to be a woman aged between 40 and 50, who was fully vaccinated against Covid, according to the Grand Est health authorities.
The patient tested positive following a trip to South Africa and was placed in quarantine before sequencing revealed she was suffering from the new variant. The regional health agency (ARS) said very few at-risk contacts had been identified thus far.
