Global COVID deaths surge by a fifth in a week
The number of deaths from COVID-19 soared by a fifth worldwide in the last week, as the number of daily cases surged in the Middle East, Europe and Asia. Here is a state of play based on AFP's database. 3.3 million cases a day The average number of global daily cases leapt to 3.36 million this week, an increase of eight per cent over the previous seven days. The pace of the increase nevertheless slowed, according to an AFP tally to Thursday. The confirmed cases only reflect a fraction of the actual number of infections, with varying counting practices and levels of testing in different countries. Flare-up in Middle East The week's main surge took place in the Middle East, where the number of daily cases rocketed by 70 per cent. They also leapt by 20 per cent in Europe, by 19 per cent in Asia and by eight per cent in the Latin America-Caribbean zone. The situation improved, however, in the United States-Canada zone, where the number of cases decreased by 22 per cent. And they fell by 13 per cent in Africa, where the highly contagious Omicron variant has begun its rise. The number of cases also decreased by a quarter in Oceania. Deaths soar The number of COVID-linked deaths...