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Europe reports 7% rise in new Covid-19 cases; daily deaths in Russia soar
Europe recorded 1.3 million new cases and more than half the countries in this region reported a spike in the number of cases.
The World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday said that Europe recorded a 7% rise in coronavirus disease (Covid-19) cases last week. It said that Europe was the only region in the world that reported a rise in cases, according to a report by news agency Associated Press.
The WHO’s weekly assessment of Covid-19 which was released on Tuesday showed that there were 2.7 million new Covid-19 cases and more than 46,000 deaths last week globally. Europe recorded 1.3 million new cases and more than half the countries in this region reported a spike in the number of cases.
The UK, Russia and Turkey were among the nations that accounted for the most number of Covid-19 cases. This is the third week in a row that the region has seen a rise in cases.
Russia over the past week broke new daily records for new cases. Russia on Wednesday reported 1,028 Covid-19 deaths over the course of 24 hours, setting a new record. It also reported 34,073 new Covid-19 cases, up from 33,740 cases recorded on Tuesday. The rise in the number of cases led to the Russian government announcing a slew of restrictions in order to curb the spread of the disease.
The UK reported 223 deaths from Covid-19 on Tuesday - the highest single-day toll since March, according to news agency AFP. The report also said that the UK was averaging more than 40,000 new cases per day and there was also a rise in hospitalisations. Experts have asked the UK government to reinstate some of the Covid-19 restrictions in a bid to ease pressure on the hospitals.
Turkey reported more than 25,000 new Covid-19 cases daily over the past week and health officials have warned that the cases could rise further, according to a report by Turkish news agency Hürriyet Daily News. The nation reported 33,680 new cases over a period of 24 hours on October 12, reporting a rise for the first time since April 30 this year.
Turkey and Russia also reported vaccine hesitancy among their citizens which could also exacerbate the pandemic-related situation in these nations.
(with inputs from Reuters, Bloomberg)
