US Covid deaths pass 1 million, North Korea sees 1st case| 10 global updates

Written by Manjiri Sachin Chitre | Edited by Swati Bhasin

In the United States, Covid deaths have passed the 1-million mark, news agency Reuters has reported, as global coronavirus cases top 519 million. The world has witnessed over 6.25 million deaths ever since the pandemic started more than two years ago. The World Health Organization (WHO) recently warned that the pandemic is “not over”, and had mentioned that the rise in the daily cases in more than 50 countries shows the “volatility of this virus”.

Also read: PM Modi to attend global Covid-19 summit hosted by US President Biden today

Here are the top 10 Covid-19 developments across the world:

The United States has recorded more than one million Covid-19 deaths since the start of the pandemic, according to a Reuters tally. Reportedly, more than 203,000 children in the United States have lost a parent or caregiver.
The rate of infection in the United States is rising again due to sub-variants of the coronavirus. According to the country’s health agency, from a low of 25,000 daily cases in March, the country now has a seven-day daily average of around 78,000 cases.
North Korea has confirmed its first coronavirus infections of the pandemic after holding for more than two years to a widely doubted claim of a perfect record of keeping the virus out of the country. Kim Jong Un has also ordered a nationwide lockdown after reporting the first Covid-19 case.
China is witnessing a massive surge in the Covid-19 cases after the 2020 surge – with Shanghai becoming the hotspot. The country’s financial hub reported a total of 1,449 new Covid cases on Wednesday, down slightly from 1,487 on Tuesday.
Europe is set to remove the face mask mandate at airports and on flights from May 16, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) said.
South Africa’s National Institute for Communicable Diseases has reported 10,017 new COVID-19 cases – the first day since January that the institute has reported more than 10,000 new infections.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has been diagnosed with COVID-19, a spokesperson for the alliance said.
India recorded a total of 2,827 fresh coronavirus cases on Thursday – 70 cases fewer than the day before.
Moderna Inc has made all submissions required by the US Food and Drug Administration for emergency use authorization of its Covid-19 vaccine in adolescents and children.
Vaccine developer BioNTech has completed the phase two clinical trial of its Covid-19 vaccine in China, however, is yet to release its results.

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