The number of new COVID-19 cases dropped by 19% worldwide during the last week, while the number of fatalities remained stable, said the World Health Organization (WHO).

In its weekly report on the pandemic released late Tuesday, the agency said that a little over 16 million new COVID cases and nearly 75,000 deaths were reported last week across the globe. The only region that registered an increase in new weekly cases was the Western Pacific, with a surge of about 19%. Southeast Asia registered a decline of around 37%, which was the biggest drop globally.

Deaths increased by 38% in the Middle East and by nearly one-third in the Western Pacific. The biggest rise in the number of new COVID-19 infections was witnessed in Russia. Cases in Russia and elsewhere in Eastern Europe have increased two-fold in recent weeks… (ET Healthworld – AP, February 16, 2022)