As many as 94.42 million (94,420,272) people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 2,020,217 have died, according to a worldodometer tally. It reported that there have been 67,463,480 cases of global recoveries. Coronavirus is continuing its spread across the world with over 94 million confirmed cases in 218 countries and more than 2 million deaths. The virus is surging in many regions and countries that had apparent success in suppressing initial outbreaks are also seeing infections rise again. The US recorded Friday 229,386 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours as the confirmed cases nation-wide crossed 23 million. It also recorded 3,769 virus-related deaths according to Johns Hopkins University. The tally showed that the confirmed cases nationwide reached 23,307,461 and at least 388,580 deaths across US, with the country remaining the world's worst hit by the pandemic. Furthermore there were a record 128,947 people currently hospitalized for coronavirus in the US, according to COVID Tracking Project. The US ranks first globally in the number of coronavirus cases and deaths. India and Brazil have the second and third highest case tallies, recording some 10.4 and 8 million cases respectively. Infections have been reported in more than 218 countries and territories since the first cases were identified in China in December 2019. Daily cases have now fallen in many European countries after steep rises in October. Lockdowns and other restrictions were reintroduced in some of the worst-affected regions to help bring numbers down. In London, Britain recorded 55,761 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, an increase on the 48,682 cases recorded the previous day, with the number of people receiving a first dose of the vaccination rising to 3.2 million, according to government data. The reported number of deaths within 28 days of a positive test from COVID-19 was 1,280, slightly higher than the 1,248 recorded the previous day. In Moscow, Russia reported 24,092 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, bringing the total number of confirmed infections to 3,544,623 after it crossed the 3.5 million mark. Russia's coronavirus crisis center said 590 coronavirus patients had died in the last 24 hours and the overall national coronavirus death toll was at 65,085. They added 27,311 people recovered from the virus, raising the total number of recoveries to 2,938,991. The COVID-19 pandemic was confirmed to have spread to Russia on Jan. 31, 2020 when two Chinese citizens in Tyumen (Siberia) and Chita (Russia Far east) tested positive for the virus. In Berlin, German health authorities reported on Saturday 980 deaths and 18,678 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours. The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases said the country's death toll increased to 45,974 cases and the total confirmed cases those to 2,019,636. Germany responded to the second wave of the deadly pandemic by shutting hospitality businesses as well as leisure and sports facilities. Schools and non-essential shops have, however, remained open. In Paris, the French Health Ministry reported 21,271 new coronavirus infections over the past 24 hours on Friday. France's cumulative total of cases now stands at 2,872,941. The COVID-19 death toll was up by 399 at 69,949. France announced last Friday its approval of the use of Moderna COVID-19 vaccine and to include it in its vaccine program. French Prime Minister Jean Castex declared a full 15-day curfew from 6.00 p.m.(local time) to 6.00 a.m.as of Saturday. In Rome, Italy's death toll from the coronavirus outbreak hit 81,325 on Friday after 477 more people succumbed to the disease over the past 24 hours, Health Ministry data showed. The Italian Ministry of Health said 16,146 new cases were logged in the same period to raise the total in one of the world's worst-affected countries to 2,352,000, according to government figures. It noted 18,979 people recovered from the virus in the past day, taking the tally to more than 1,713,000 recoveries since the outbreak of the pandemic. In Brussels, total infections of coronavirus cases in Belgium on Saturday increased to 675,089 with 2,203 new infections reported by Belgian health authorities. They reported 58 more deaths from COVID-19 in the last 24 hours raising the total death toll to 20,352. In Madrid, the Spanish Health Ministry on Friday reported new 235 deaths from the novel coronavirus and 40,197 more infections in the last 24 hours. The caseload has now surged to 2,252,164 and the death toll to 53,314 since the outbreak of the pandemic. In Amsterdam, the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment Friday reported that 6,093 new coronavirus cases were reported in the Netherlands raising the total number of infections to 901,951. Also around 96 more deaths were reported in the last 24 hours raising the total deaths from COVID-19 to 12,870, said the institute. In Vienna, Austrian authorities announced Friday that they recorded 1,528 new coronavirus cases raising the total number of confirmed infections to 390,788. More than 365,000 cases have recovered Since the start of the pandemic, deaths have reached 6,987, said the country's Health Ministry. In Beijing, China reported 130 new coronavirus cases in the mainland for Jan. 15, compared to 135 cases a day earlier, Reuters cited the country's health commission as saying. Of the new infections, 115 were local infections, according to a statement by the National Health Commission. China reported 79 new asymptomatic patients, which it does not classify as confirmed cases, compared to 66 a day earlier. The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Mainland China now stands at 88,118, while the death toll remains unchanged at 4,635. In New Delhi, India said on Saturday that 175 people died due to COVID-19 while 15,158 new cases of the coronavirus were registered in the past 24 hours. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said that fatalities due to COVID-19 rose to 152,093 as the total number of positive cases mounted to 10,542,841. According to the ministry, 10,179,715 people recuperated from the pandemic as it spread to 35 states. India has the world's second-highest caseload, but daily infections have dipped steadily since hitting a peak in September. In Tokyo, Japan reported on Friday 7,085 daily cases of novel coronavirus, raising the nation's total number 314,110, the Health Ministry and local authorities said. The country's cumulative death toll rose by 60 and stood at 4,350. Tokyo added 2,001 new infections, exceeding 2,000 for the first time in six days, which brought the total cases in the Japanese capital to 82,069. In an effort to curb the spread of coronavirus variants, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga declared a state of emergency for Tokyo and three surrounding prefectures. It had suspended new entries of non-resident foreign nationals from around the world to Japan through Jan. 31. In Seoul, South Korea's new Coronavirus cases stayed in the 500s for the fourth consecutive day on Friday, Yonhap News Agency reported. South Korea added 513 more COVID-19 cases, including 484 local infections, raising the total caseload to 71,241, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The government extended the current level 2.5 distancing measures in the capital area and Level 2 restrictions in the rest of the country until Jan. 17. South Korea is grappling to contain yet another wave of virus infections with the toughest social distancing rules banning gatherings of five or more people. In Latin America, Brazil has more than eight million confirmed cases and the world's second highest death toll. The country is currently seeing a second surge in infections. Brazil ranks third in terms of infection numbers globally, behind the United States and India. On fatalities, Brazil ranks second behind the US. Argentina, Colombia and Mexico have also recorded more than one million cases and all three countries are still seeing very high numbers of daily confirmed cases. Peru is also approaching the milestone of one million cases, although daily cases are falling. The country has one of the highest deaths rates in the world. Africa has recorded more than three million cases, but the true extent of the pandemic there is not known as testing rates are low. Concern is growing about a South African variant of the disease, which is thought to share some similarities with the new UK strain, including being more easily transmissible. South Africa, with more than 1.2 million cases and more than 30,000 deaths, is the worst affected country on the continent. Morocco, Egypt, Ethiopia, Tunisia, Libya, Algeria and Nigeria are the other African countries to officially record more than 100,000 cases. Kenya is the only other country with close to 100,000 cases. In Cairo, the Egyptian Ministry of Health and Population said on Friday that 879 more people tested positive for the novel coronavirus and 52 patients died over the past 24 hours. The figures took the country's tally to 154,620 infections and 8,473 deaths the ministry said. Another 720 patients have been discharged from the hospitals, bringing the overall recoveries to 121,792. In Tunis, Tunisia's Ministry of Health on Friday announced 50 deaths from the novel coronavirus and 4,170 more infections in 24 hours. The tally of confirmed deaths and infections rose to 5,528 and 175,065 respectively since the outbreak of the virus. Meanwhile, overall recoveries went up to 125,635. Meanwhile, Mauritania's Ministry of Health said Friday that 70 persons tested positive for the novel coronavirus, bringing the country's caseload to 15,963. Four more fatalities in the last 24 hours pushed the death toll from the viral illness to 400. The report said, 96 patients have been discharged from hospitals, raising the overall recoveries to 14,318 cases. — Agencies
