Couple who fled Omicron quarantine arrested in the Netherlands

Spanish man and Portuguese woman were detained on board a flight that was about to leave for Spain

Indian students apply the finishing touches to paintings created to raise awareness of the variant in Mumbai. Reuters

International travellers wearing personal protective equipment arrive at Melbourne's Tullamarine Airport as Australia records its first cases of the Omicron variant. AFP

A greeting at the international terminal of Sydney Airport, as countries respond to the new variant. Reuters

A sign asking people to wear face coverings in a building in Manhattan as the newly discovered Omicron variant appears in countries around the world. AFP

Tourists wave as the ‘Europa’ passenger liner arrives in South African waters off Cape Town as the new coronavirus variant Omicron spreads in other countries. Reuters

Schiphol airport in Amsterdam. Dutch health authorities said they have found another case of the Omicron Covid-19 variant among passengers arriving from South Africa, bringing the country’s total to 14. AFP

Pupils wear face masks in Beijing. Despite the global worry, scientists say it remains unclear whether the Omicron variant is more dangerous than other strains of the virus. AP

People wearing face masks in Manhattan. New York's governor has declared a state of emergency due to the risk of a surge of Covid-19 cases as winter sets in. AFP

British Health Secretary Sajid Javid meets a member of staff at a vaccine centre in Guy's and St Thomas' Hospital, London. Getty Images

A sign points the way to a Covid-19 test centre at Schiphol Airport in the Netherlands. AFP

Narita International Airport in Japan is quiet after travel was restricted to prevent the spread of Omicron. Reuters

A PCR test at O.R. Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg. AFP

Soekarno Hatta International airport. Indonesia has banned the arrival of travellers who have recently been in eight southern African countries. Reuters

Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok after Thailand banned entry from eight southern African countries due to the Omicron variant. Reuters

Travellers wear personal protective equipment outside the international terminal at Sydney Airport, Australia. Reuters

Passengers wearing protective gear at Incheon International Airport in South Korea, where health authorities have imposed an entry ban on foreign arrivals from eight African countries, including South Africa. EPA

Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv. The Israeli government approved a 14-day ban on foreign arrivals over concerns about Omicron. EPA

Travellers queuing in the hope of boarding an overbooked Lufthansa flight at Cape Town International Airport. Antonie Robertson / The National

Covid-stricken Czech President Milos Zeman sits in a plastic cage as he appoints Petr Fiala as Prime Minister, near Prague. AFP

Tourists checking in at Cape Town International Airport in South Africa. Antonie Robertson / The National

Several airlines have stopped flying out of South Africa amid the spread of the new variant, causing disruption at O.R. Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg. Reuters

Australian Health Minister Greg Hunt at a press conference at Parliament House in Canberra. Two cases of the recently discovered Omicron variant were detected in New South Wales. EPA

Passengers, many not wearing face coverings, on the London Underground. Health Secretary Sajid Javid said mandatory mask-wearing would return to shops and public transport in England but there are concerns over how the rule will be enforced. AFP

A stroll, with face masks, in Biarritz, south-western France. French Health Minister Olivier Veran said France had no confirmed cases of the Omicron variant and was not changing its strategy of increasing vaccinations and booster shots. AP

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty during a press conference on the variant in London. Reuters

Live updates: follow the latest news on Covid-19 variant Omicron

Dutch border police arrested a couple on a plane after they fled a hotel where Covid-positive passengers from South African flights were staying.

One of the partners arrested was among 61 people who tested positive for Covid-19 after arriving at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport, on board two flights from South Africa on Friday, said public health authority spokeswoman Stefanie van Waardenburg.

She said both were back in isolation, but not at the same hotel.

It was not clear whether the infected person was among the 13 passengers found to have the Omicron variant that has prompted travel restrictions around the world after being reported by health officials in South Africa last week.

Police spokesman Stan Verberkt said the couple were a Spanish man, 30, and a Portuguese woman, 28.

"The Royal Netherlands Marechaussee at Schiphol arrested a couple this evening who had fled from a quarantine hotel," Mr Verberkt said.

"The arrests took place on a plane that was about to take off. They were on a plane that was about to depart for Spain at about 6pm."

Border police are now laying charges against the couple for jeopardising public safety, he said.

It was not clear how the couple left the hotel or how the alarm was raised.

The Dutch authorities announced stricter new travel protocols on Friday as alarm mounted around the world about the new Omicron variant.

The 600 people on the two South Africa flights on Friday spent most of the day stuck at the airport being tested in conditions that one person described as "dystopia central".

Dutch Health Minister Hugo de Jonge had said only hours earlier that authorities in the Netherlands would ensure that people obeyed quarantine rules.

The Covid-positive passengers from the South Africa flights are almost all at the hotel while a handful have been allowed to go into home quarantine. Passengers who tested negative have also been ordered into home quarantine.

"We will control whether they keep to those rules," Mr de Jonge told reporters.

The health minister added that it could not be excluded that more people than the initial 13 had contracted the Omicron variant.

"We are concerned, but how much we should be at this stage we don't know yet," Mr de Jonge said.

Police and security guards were on guard at the quarantine hotel, a spokeswoman for the local mayor said earlier.

"The security is there for a reason," she said.