As many as 103.5 million (103,595,858) people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 2,239,285 have died, according to a worldodometer tally. It reported that there have been 75,217,473 cases of global recoveries. Coronavirus is continuing its spread across the world with over 100 million confirmed cases in 218 countries and more than 2.23 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 has recorded about 26 million cases and more than 430,000 deaths, the highest figures in the world. Daily cases were at record levels in early January but they are now falling. More than 100,000 coronavirus patients are in hospital, but those numbers are dropping too. Canada, which has a far lower death rate than the US, also experienced a winter surge but daily cases are also falling there now. The US recorded Sunday 136,252 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours as the confirmed cases nation-wide crossed 26 million. It also recorded 2,640 virus-related deaths according to Johns Hopkins University. The tally showed that the confirmed cases nationwide reached 26,069,046 and at least 439,439 deaths across US, with the country remaining the world's worst hit by the pandemic. Furthermore there were a record 97,561 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 10.7 and 9 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 said that the death toll from coronavirus has risen by 587 to 106,158, the Department of Health and Social Care said on Sunday. As many as 21,088 more lab-confirmed cases raised the country's overall count to 3,817,000, according to the department's daily update. Recently, the British government declared that flights to and from Latin America's countries and Portugal are banned because of fears of the spread of new mutated strains of the coronavirus that appeared in Brazil. The ban suspends flights to and from Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Banana, Paraguay, Peru and others. As of next Monday, all passengers to Britain must have a document valid up to 72 hours free of coronavirus. In Moscow, Russia reported 17,648 new coronavirus cases on Monday, bringing the total number of confirmed infections to 3,868,087 after it crossed the 3.8 million mark. Russia's coronavirus crisis center said 437 coronavirus patients had died in the last 24 hours and the overall national coronavirus death toll was at 73,619. They added 18,169 people recovered from the virus, raising the total number of recoveries to 3,318,173. 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 Monday 175 deaths and 5,608 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours. The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases said the country's death toll increased to 57,120 cases and the total confirmed cases those to 2,221,971. 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 Rome, Italy reported 11,252 new cases of the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19), during the past 24 hours. In a statement, Italian health ministry indicated that the total number of COVID-19 infections has risen to 2553032, while the death toll in the country has reached 88,516 cases. In Brussels, total infections of coronavirus cases in Belgium on Monday increased to 710,153 with 2,316 new infections reported by Belgian health authorities. They reported 26 more deaths from COVID-19 in the last 24 hours raising the total death toll to 21,092. In Beijing, China Monday reported 42 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, and no virus-related deaths in the past 24 hours. The National Health Commission said total registered infections rose to 89,564 and fatalities remained at 4,636. It added 96 people have recovered from the virus and left hospitals in the past 24 hours to reach a total of 83,314. There are still 1,614 patients receiving treatment. In New Delhi, India said on Monday that 118 people died due to COVID-19 while 11,427 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 154,392 as the total number of positive cases mounted to 10,757,610. According to the ministry, 10,434,983 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 Monday 727 daily cases of novel coronavirus, raising the nation's total number 390,702, the Health Ministry and local authorities said. The country's cumulative death toll stood at 5,779. Tokyo added 393 new infections, falling below 400 for the first time since Dec. 21, which brought the total cases in the Japanese capital to 100,234. 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 reported 305 new coronavirus cases Monday, Yonhap reported in the past 24 hours, bringing the total caseload at 78,508, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Five people died in the past 24 hours raising the death toll to 1,425. Of the newly identified local infections, 104 cases were reported in Seoul and 89 cases in Gyeonggi Province that surrounds the capital. 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 nine 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 3.5 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 Sunday that 533 more people tested positive for the novel coronavirus and 53 patients died over the past 24 hours. The figures took the country's tally to 165,951 infections and 9,316 deaths the ministry said. Another 343 patients have been discharged from the hospitals, bringing the overall recoveries to 129,636. In Rabat, Morocco reported 466 new cases of coronavirus COVID-19 over the past 24 hours, bringing to 471,157 the total number of those who contracted the disease to date. In a statement today, the Ministry of Health of Morocco said that 16 persons have died of the pandemic to bring to 8,275 the number of the death toll while the number of recoveries reached 449,160. In Tunis, Tunisia's Ministry of Health on Sunday announced 74 deaths from the novel coronavirus and 1,427 more infections in 24 hours. The tally of confirmed deaths and infections rose to 6,754 and 208,885 respectively since the outbreak of the virus. Meanwhile, overall recoveries went up to 157,446. Meanwhile, Mauritania's Ministry of Health said Sunday that 27 persons tested positive for the novel coronavirus, bringing the country's caseload to 16,635 as the fatalities remained at 422. The report said, 42 patients have been discharged from hospitals, raising the overall recoveries to 15,676 cases. — Agencies
