Published 14:23 IST, July 13th 2020
WHO reports record daily rise in global COVID-19 cases with over 230,000 new infections
The World Health Organisation has reported a record increase in worldwide coronavirus cases on July 12, with the total number of cases rising by 230,370.
The World Health Organisation has reported a record increase in worldwide coronavirus cases on July 12, with the total number of cases rising by at least 230,370 in the last 24 hours. According to the WHO report, the US has recorded maximum number of COVID-19 infections followed by Brazil, India and South Africa. The previous figures for new cases given by the WHO stood at 228,102 on July 10. As per reports, the death tally remained constant at about 5,000 per day.
Cases near 13 million
According to the John Hopkins tally, the coronavirus infections on Sunday neared 13 million marking a huge spread of the disease that has claimed more than 565,000 lives since the beginning of the virulent pandemic. The worldwide death toll has doubled in just over seven weeks. The grim milestone comes as many hard-hit countries are easing lockdown restrictions despite the health experts warnings that the pandemic is still in its infancy.
As the number of confirmed cases also surpassed 10 million worldwide, health officials are bracing for a second wave of the deadly virus infections. Some countries are experiencing a resurgence in infections, leading authorities to partially reinstate lockdowns, as per reports. North America, Latin America and Europe each account for around 25% of cases, while Asia and the Middle East have around 11% and 9% respectively, according to the tally based on government reports.
WHO team heads to China
In a recent development, an advance two-member experts from the World Health Organisation are headed to China to look into the origins of the pathogen that causes COVID-19. The novel coronavirus, which is believed to have originated from China’s ‘wet markets’, the WHO head said on July 10 that the experts will study how the virus was able to ‘jump’ from humans to animals. In the press conference WHO head Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus had announced that the advance team by UN health agency was currently ‘en route’.
Updated 14:23 IST, July 13th 2020