The world is on high alert due to the new omicron Covid strain &mdash but delta is still responsible for most of the current infections globally, the World Health Organization pointed out on Monday.

&ldquo Over 99% of cases around the world are due to the delta variant and more deaths are occurring in the unvaccinated,&rdquo WHO Chief Scientist Soumya Swaminathan told CNBC&rsquo s &ldquo Squawk Box Asia&rdquo on Monday. &ldquo I think that&rsquo s our priority while we wait to find out more about [the omicron] variant.&rdquo

Last week, the global health agency recognized the omicron variant, first referred to as lineage B.1.1.529, as  a variant of concern. That means it could be more contagious, more virulent or more skilled at evading public health measures, vaccines and therapeutics. The strain was first identified by South African scientists.

Delta, on the other hand, was first detected in India.

Health experts are concerned  about the omicron variant&rsquo s transmissibility given its unusual constellation of mutations and profile that differs from previous variants of concern.

&ldquo The profile of the mutations strongly suggest that it&rsquo s going to have an advantage in transmissibility and that it might evade immune protection that you would get, for example, from a monoclonal antibody or from the convalescent serum after a person&rsquo s been infected, and possibly even against some of the vaccine-induced antibodies,&rdquo U.S. infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci  told NBC&rsquo s &ldquo Meet the Press&rdquo on Sunday.

&ldquo So it&rsquo s not necessarily that that&rsquo s going to happen, but it&rsquo s a strong indication that we really need to be prepared for that,&rdquo Fauci added.

WHO&rsquo s Swaminathan told CNBC that scientists need time to conduct experiments and collect data that would help them answer some of the fundamental questions surrounding the new variant.

&ldquo What we would like to know is, is this variant more transmissible, even more than delta? We would like to know if there is a different clinical pattern, is it less severe, more severe when it causes disease?&rdquo she said, adding, &ldquo And thirdly, and very importantly, is this variant able to evade immune responses either after natural infection or after vaccines.&rdquo