World crosses 2mn new daily Covid-19 infections

New global case numbers have soared by 270% since the highly contagious Omicron variant was discovered in Nov

PARIS: The world recorded more than two million daily coronavirus cases on average between January 1 and 7 with figures doubling in 10 days, an AFP tally showed on Saturday.

An average of 2,106,118 new daily infections were reported over the seven-day period, shortly after the one million case threshold was passed in the week of December 23-29, 2021.

New global case numbers have soared by 270% since the highly contagious Omicron variant was discovered in South Africa in late November.

But Covid-related deaths were at their lowest level since October 2020, with an average of 6,237 per day recorded in the period between January 1 and 7.

Although early studies suggest Omicron causes less severe illness, experts have warned the sheer volume of cases fuelled by the strain could still overwhelm health systems. Countries around the world have reintroduced restrictions & ramped up vaccination programmes in a bid to stem the spread of the virus.

Europe, as well as the United States and Canada, are the world’s infection hotspots. The two regions respectively represented 49% and 33% of global Covid cases in the past week.

Covid cases skyrocketed by 47% in Europe and 76% in the United States and Canada compared with the previous week.

In the same period, Covid infections increased by 224% in Oceania, 148% in Latin America and the Caribbean, 116% in the Middle East and 145% in Asia.

The number of new cases reported in Africa remained stable but, as elsewhere, were at their highest level since the start of the pandemic in March 2020.

UK govt advised against fourth vaccine dose

Booster shots are providing high levels of protection against hospitalisation and severe disease from the omicron Covid variant among older people, according to the latest data from the UK health security Agency.

Figures show that around three months after the third shot, protection against hospitalization among those 65 and older remains at about 90%. With just two doses, protection against severe disease drops to about 70% after three months and to 50% after six months, the agency said on Friday.

The panel concluded that there’s no immediate need to introduce a second booster dose to the most vulnerable, with priority remaining rolling out first booster doses to all age groups.

UK coronavirus deaths top 150,000: government

More than 150,000 people have died after catching coronavirus in the United Kingdom, the government said on Saturday, in a milestone for one of the worst affected countries in Europe.

The government reported that deaths within 28 days of a positive Covid test had reached 150,057 since the start of the pandemic. Britain reported 146,390 new cases of on Saturday, down from 178,250 cases on Friday, while the number of new deaths reported increased to 313 from 229, official figures showed.

Australia’s daily Covid infections top 100,000

Australia reported more than 100,000 new Covid-19 cases for the first time in a single day, as a backlog of home test results were included in the tally and states began reintroducing restrictions to help hospitals hit by the fast-spreading omicron variant. Cases more than doubled in Victoria state to 51,356 on Saturday, as officials started counting results from rapid tests for the first time. Some 26,428 of the positive results came from the newly admitted tests, which were taken over the past week, according to health minister Martin Foley.

Activists blame Iran for poet’s death after Covid

Dissident Iranian poet and filmmaker Baktash Abtin has died in detention in Tehran after falling ill with Covid-19, rights groups said Saturday, angrily blaming the Islamic republic’s leadership for his death. “Baktash Abtin has died,” the Iranian Writers Association said on its Telegram channel after the author was put into an induced coma in hospital earlier in the week.