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22nd Sep 2020

World sees record weekly number of Covid-19 cases

Rudi Kinsella

However, new deaths across the world have decreased.

The world has seen a record number of Covid-19 cases confirmed in the past seven days, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

In the week ending 20 September, 1,998,897 new cases of coronavirus were reported all around the world.

This figure marks a 6% increase from the week before, and “the highest number of reported cases in a single week since the beginning of the epidemic”, according to the WHO.

Last week, an estimated 37,700 new deaths linked to the virus were recorded across the world, marking a decline of 10% compared to the previous week.

Europe had an 11% increase in new cases last week, while the Americas went up by 10%.

The Americas still account for half of all worldwide reported cases and 55% of deaths in the world, with the United States being the worst affected country.

Monday night saw the Republic of Ireland record 188 new cases.

In more positive news, it emerged on Monday night that scientists may have discovered a potential “game changer” that “could help eliminate Covid-19”.

The discovery is in relation to a druggable pocket in the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein that could be used to stop the virus from infecting human cells.