WHO: over 1M Europe region deaths from COVID-19

The World Health Organization confirmed more than 1 million COVID-19 deaths and 48 million cases in its European region, the health body’s regional director Hans Kluge said.

"The situation in our region is serious; 1.6 million new cases are reported every week. That’s 9,500 every hour, 160 people every minute," Kluge told a press conference on coronavirus’ impact on the 53 countries in the WHO Europe region, extending from Greenland in the northwest to the Russian Far East.

Worldwide, the number of deaths is nearing 3 million, with 137 million confirmed cases, said the WHO official.

In April, COVID-19 admissions to hospitals and intensive care in France reached the highest levels since this time last year.

"There are early signs that transmission may be slowing across several countries," said Kluge. "Let me be clear, early signs of decline are not equal to low rates of transmission. Transmission must be driven down to low rates and kept low by harnessing our energy and resilience to beat the virus."

Among the "silver linings" of COVID-19, Kluge said the disease has highlighted the urgent need to ensure equitable access to health care, Anadolu agency reported.

"It is only among the oldest that we are seeing declining incidence,” said Kluge. "Over the past two months, the trend among people more than 80 years of age has diverged from the trend seen in every other age group, possibly due to high vaccination uptake in this high-risk group."

Since February, the proportion of COVID-19 deaths in Europe, among those older than 80, has gradually fallen to close to 30%. That is the lowest level since the beginning of the pandemic, said the WHO official.