Coronavirus cases are declining everywhere except Europe, WHO says

The World Health Organization reported Wednesday that COVID-19 deaths rose by 10% in Europe in the past week, making it the only region in the world where coronavirus cases and fatalities are both steadily increasing. It was the sixth consecutive week that infections and deaths have risen across the Continent.

In its weekly report on the pandemic, the United Nations health agency said there were about 3.1 million new cases globally, about a 1% increase from the previous week. Nearly two-thirds of the coronavirus infections — 1.9 million — were in Europe, where cases rose by 7%.

The countries with the highest numbers of new cases worldwide were the U.S., Russia, Britain, Turkey and Germany. The number of weekly COVID-19 deaths fell by about 4% worldwide and declined in every region except Europe.

Out of the 61 countries that the WHO lists in its European region, which includes Russia and stretches to Central Asia, 42% reported a jump in cases of at least 10% in the last week.

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In the Americas, the WHO said that weekly new cases fell by 5% and deaths declined by 14%, with the highest numbers reported in the U.S.

On Tuesday, Pfizer asked the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to authorize booster shots of its COVID-19 vaccine for all adults. The WHO has pleaded with countries not to administer more boosters until at least the end of the year so that poorer countries with less access to vaccines can catch up, but about 60 countries are actively rolling the extra shots.

In Southeast Asia and Africa, COVID-19 deaths declined by about one-third, despite the lack of vaccines in those regions.

The WHO’s Europe director, Dr. Hans Kluge, said last week that Europe was once again “back at the epicenter of the pandemic.” He warned that if more actions weren’t taken to stop the coronavirus’ spread, the region could see another 500,000 deaths by February.