Japan has reported 151 cases of variants from Britain, SA and Brazil, according to the health ministry. The nation has had more than 400,000 cases of Covid-19 with 7,194 fatalities.
Meanwhile, 5 staff and 39 foreign detainees at a Tokyo immigration facility have tested positive for Covid-19.
All 130 detainees at the facility have been tested for the virus, according to a spokesperson for the Tokyo Regional Immigration Bureau. None of the cases is serious, and all infected detainees remain quarantined from others.
The representative declined to comment on the nationality of the infected detainees, citing privacy concerns.
Japan's detention system for immigration law violators and asylum seekers has been widely criticised for its medical standards, monitoring of detainees and response to emergencies.
“Many detainees are locked in a small, closed spaces,” said Motoko Yamagishi, the head of a migrants-rights group. “It is regrettable that such an outbreak happened in the centre.”