Confirmed COVID-19 cases in Europe hits almost 700k

The number of the confirmed coronavirus cases have exceeded 687 thousand in Europe, bringing the death toll to 62 thousand people, Report says, citing the TASS.

According to Hans Kluge, Director of the Regional Office for Europe of the World Health Organization, as of this morning, we have recorded 687,236 new cases of the infection We regret to report the death of 62,824 people."

Expressing "great concern" about the spread of the infection in Europe and the world as a whole, the head of the regional office recalled that seven of the most severely affected countries located in the European region. These are Spain, Italy, Germany, France, Great Britain, Turkey, and Switzerland.

Kluge drew attention to the slowdown in the number of new cases in Spain, although there are more cases than in Italy. Mortality in Spain is also showing "signs of decline," the Director said.

Speaking about the situation in Italy, he noted that although the number of cases continues to grow, the growth rate is slowing significantly. The number of [new] cases has also started to decrease in Germany. Austria, the Netherlands and Switzerland will also achieve further good progress."