The new Omicron subvariant, Omicron XE, has been detected in Northern Ireland as many countries continue to deal with surges in Covid-19 infections and hospitalisations.
A small number of cases of this new variant were recently detected up north, according to data published by the Public Health Agency.
There have been around 1,179 cases of XE confirmed in the UK so far, however, to date, fewer than five cases of the strain have been detected in Northern Ireland.
