Europe stood out as the only major region worldwide to report an increase in both coronavirus cases and deaths over the last week, with double-digit percentage increases in each, the UN health agency said.

The World Health Organisation said new Covid-19 cases in its 53-country European region, which stretches as far east as former Soviet republics in Central Asia, recorded an 18pc increase in Covid-19 cases over the last week – a fourth straight weekly increase for the area.

In WHO's weekly epidemiological report on Covid-19, Europe also saw a 14pc increase in virus-related deaths. That amounted to more than 1.6 million new cases and over 21,000 new deaths.

Opinion

Editorial

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