Nearly 135 Destinations Listed as “High Risk” by the CDC

(CNN) - The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention added even more destinations on Monday to its ever-growing list of places considered to be a "very high" travel risk for Covid-19.

Level 4, the CDC's highest, has now swelled to almost 135 places, illustrating the rapid surge of the Omicron variant around the world. In early January, there were around 80 destinations listed there. Level 4 now has more destinations than all the other CDC categories combined.

Joining the Level 4 ranks this week are two island nations on opposite sides of the world: Japan in Asia and Cuba, the largest and most populous island in the Caribbean.

The other new Level 4 nations are also scattered around various parts of the globe.

Armenia is in the mountainous Caucasus region on the far reaches of eastern Europe. The Democratic Republic of the Congo is in the heart of Central Africa while Libya is on the Mediterranean coast of northern Africa. Oman is on the Arabian Peninsula, while Israel is on the Mediterranean shores in the Middle East.

The CDC places a destination at Level 4 when more than 500 cases per 100,000 residents are registered in the past 28 days. The CDC advises travelers to avoid travel to Level 4 countries.

To recap, this week's additions to Level 4 are Armenia, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Israel, Japan, Libya and Oman.