That’s according to the World Health Organization‘s latest weekly report on the pandemic.
The UN health agency said Wednesday infections have been increasing for more than a month, although the worldwide number of deaths dropped by about 8%.
In the Middle East and Asia, however, deaths increased by more than a third. In the last week, the highest numbers of coronavirus cases were reported by the US, India, Indonesia, Brazil and Iran. More than 130 countries have now reported cases of the easier-to-spread delta variant, first identified in India.
After nearly a month of rising cases, WHO said the European region reported a 9% drop in Covid-19 infections, citing falling caseloads in Britain and Spain. Last month, the UK relaxed nearly all remaining Covid-19 restrictions amid heavy criticism the move would lead to another deadly wave of infections. Nearly 60% of the British population has been fully immunised against the disease.