Coronavirus deaths in Latin America hit global high
MONTEVIDEO, Aug 8 (AFP) - Latin America and the Caribbean surpassed Europe to become the region hardest-hit with coronavirus deaths, as India passed the milestone of two million infections.
The world's worst-affected region has reported 213,120 fatalities, 460 more than Europe. Worldwide there have been more than 19 million cases of coronavirus and over 715,000 deaths from the illness since it was first reported.
The virus has flared up again in areas where it appeared to have been curbed and has steadily spread across India and Africa.
India's cases have doubled in three weeks, reaching two million on Friday following a record daily jump of more than 60,000 new infections. It is only the third country after the US and Brazil to surpass two million cases. Official figures show the world's second most populous nation has also recorded 41,500 deaths.
PM Narendra Modi's government imposed one of the world's strictest lockdowns in late March, with tens of millions of migrant workers losing their jobs overnight. But with the economy in tatters, restrictions have been eased.
Experts say the true numbers of cases and fatalities are grossly under-reported as causes of death in the country of 1.3 billion people are rarely properly recorded. The stigmatisation of those infected has put off many from getting tested.
However, there have been some positive indicators in Africa, where health authorities warned against complacency amid hopes that the pandemic is peaking in some parts of the continent.
Some countries have seen declines of around 20 percent in cases but there remain fears of a second wave.
Much of the world is placing its hopes on an effective vaccine becoming available.
In Latin America, which is already the region with the largest number of infections at 5.3 million, deaths continue to soar. Over the last week, 44 percent of global fatalities from COVID- 19 -- 18,300 out of 41,500 -occurred in the region.
More than half the region's infections, some 2.9 million, are in Brazil, which has also recorded 98,500 deaths among its 212 million people.