coronavirus has now killed more than 2 million people worldwide since the outbreak in China in December 2019, according to a report from Johns Hopkins University. The United States, with about 4% of the world’s population, reported about one-fifth of all deaths reported globally.
About 1 million people worldwide have died from coronavirus complications the last three and a half months. On Thursday, 15,404 new deaths and 752,723 new cases were registered worldwide.
In a statement, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called the 2 million deaths “a heartbreaking stage”.
“Behind this amazing number are names and faces: the smile is now just a memory, the chair forever empty at the dinner table, the room that echoes the silence of a loved one,” said Guterres.
Based on the latest reports, the countries with the most new deaths were the United States with 3,882 new deaths, followed by the United Kingdom with 1,248 and Brazil with 1,131.
The United States remains the worst affected country, with more than 389,000 deaths in more than 23 million cases. More than 6 million people have been declared recovered.
After the USA, the most affected countries are Brazil, with over 207,000 deaths in over 8 million cases, India with over 151,000 deaths in over 10 million cases, Mexico with over 137,000 deaths in over 1.5 million cases, and The United Kingdom with over 86,000 deaths in over 3.2 million cases.
The country with the highest number of deaths compared to its population is Belgium, with 175 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants, followed by Slovenia with 149, Bosnia and Herzegovina with 134, Italy with 134 and the Czech Republic with 131.
Photo by JORGE BERNAL / AFP via Getty Images
In general, Europe has 646,489 deaths out of 30 million cases; Latin America and the Caribbean, 542,333 deaths from nearly 17 million infections; and in the United States and Canada, 406,214 deaths out of 24 million cases.
Asia reported 228,967 deaths out of 14,510,781 cases, the Middle East 93,132 deaths out of 4,330,451 cases, Africa 76,753 deaths out of 3,179,230 cases and Oceania 945 deaths out of 31,443 cases.
Photo by JEKESAI NJIKIZANA / AFP via Getty Images
Since the beginning of the pandemic, the number of tests performed has greatly increased, while testing and reporting techniques have improved, leading to an increase in reported cases.
However, the number of diagnosed cases is only part of the actual total number of infections, as a significant number of less severe or asymptomatic cases always remain undetected.
As the launch of COVID-19 vaccines around the world, Guterres has implored the world’s major economies to ensure that distribution is fair.
“Vaccines are fast reaching high-income countries, while the poorest in the world have none. Science succeeds – but solidarity fails,” he said. “Governments have a responsibility to protect their populations, but ‘vaccinationism’ is self-defeating and will delay global recovery.”