07/18/2020 - 13:50
- Clarín.com
- World
Approaching 350,000 cases, South Africa was on its way on Saturday to move to Peru and join the five countries most affected by the coronavirus , while sky- high figures worldwide show that a return to normal life is still far away.
The number of confirmed coronavirus cases worldwide exceeded 14 million on Saturday , with more than 600,000 deaths, according to a count by Johns Hopkins University, a day after the World Health Organization reported a new daily record for infections, with more than 237,000.
Experts believe the actual global number of people infected and killed by Covid-19 is much higher due to a number of factors, including limited access to diagnostic tests.
The United States, Brazil and India top the list of nations with the most cases . India exceeded one million confirmed infections on Friday, and in Brazil over two million infections, with 76,000 deaths, on Thursday. And as countries try to mitigate confinements, new outbreaks of cases occur .
New graves in a cemetery in Johannesburg, South Africa, for victims of coronavirus. The country has already surpassed Peru in number of cases and advances in the list of those most affected by the pandemic. / EFE
The relocation of South Africa will leave three Latin American countries in the following places of the most affected on the planet by the health crisis: Peru, Mexico and Chile, in sixth, seventh and eighth positions.
Iran's president surprisingly announced that up to 25 million Iranians could have been infected , in a country of about 84 million, the state news agency IRNA reported on Saturday. Hassan Rohani cited a new study from the Ministry of Health that has not been released. Iran has seen the worst outbreak in the Middle East, with more than 270,000 confirmed cases.
South Africa was on the verge of becoming the fifth country most affected by the pandemic when the world celebrated Mandela Day, honoring South Africa's first black president and his legacy of fighting inequality. However, the country remains the most unequal in the world , and health officials have warned that the pandemic will expose it more than ever.
Inhabitants of Rio de Janeiro, in Brazil, are tested for coronavirus in front of a hospital, this Friday. / AP
"The simple fact is that many South Africans are easy targets, because they cannot comply with World Health Organization protocols to improve hygiene and social distancing," said the foundation of former South African archbishop and Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond. Tutu and his wife Leah in a statement.
South Africa's new epicenter, Gauteng province, is home to a quarter of the country's population, and many poor people live in overcrowded conditions. The country's cases represent approximately half of all on the African continent. Their problems are a red flag for other African nations with fewer resources.
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On the other hand, India reported on Saturday 34,884 new coronavirus patients, which raised the national total to 1,038,716, while local governments continue to decree new quarantines for high-risk areas throughout the country, only allowing essential supplies of food and services of health.
The Ministry of Health also confirmed 671 deaths in the last 24 hours, for a total of 26,273. The recovery rate slowed slightly to 62.9%, he added. Indian authorities said they examine more than 300,000 samples of suspected cases a day.
A health worker takes a sample for a coronavirus test to a female passenger on a bus near the city of Ahmedabad, India, this Friday / AFP
Around a dozen states, including Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Assam, isolated high-risk areas, where only essential food delivery and health services operate.
In China, the number of confirmed cases in a new Covid-19 outbreak in western Xinjiang region has increased to 17.
In Bangladesh, confirmed cases exceeded 200,000, but experts say the number is much higher, as the country lacks adequate laboratories for testing. Most people in rural areas have stopped wearing face masks and are crowding shopping malls ahead of the Islamic Eid al-Adha festival later this month.
And in Britain, scientists are pouring cold water on Prime Minister Boris Johnson's hopes that the country can come out of the lockdown and return to normal by Christmas. Epidemiologist John Edmunds, a member of the government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies, said the return to pre-pandemic normality is "a long way, unfortunately" without a vaccine against the virus.
Britain has recorded more than 45,000 deaths from COVID-19, the highest in Europe.
By Cara Anna, Associated Press
