South Korea sets record for Covid deaths amid soaring infections

People queue to be tested for Covid at a centre in Seoul (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

South Korea set a new record for Covid-19 deaths on Thursday as officials warned that the highly transmissible Omicron variant could soon become the dominant strain.

In recent weeks, South Korea has been grappling with soaring infections and deaths after it significantly relaxed restrictions in early November as part of efforts to return to pre-pandemic normalcy.