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Dr Ahmed Al-Mandhari, regional director at the organization’s press conference, said Wednesday that the organization reported nearly 4.6 million new cases worldwide last week, a new record since the outbreak of the pandemic, with 78,000 new deaths reported in the same week. The total of cases reported to the WHO exceeded 75 million, with more than 1.6 million deaths recorded.
He added: “At the regional level, we have witnessed a general trend of decreasing cases and deaths in recent weeks, with 15 out of 22 countries reporting a decrease in the number of cases and 13 countries reporting a decrease in the number of deaths.” .
The next few weeks are critical
“We will continue to work closely with all countries in the Region to monitor the current situation and provide appropriate guidance and recommendations to improve response interventions. The next few weeks will be critical as we will witness traditional people’s gatherings to celebrate the Christmas season, and winter will see temperatures drop at a higher rate, “he said.
He urged the people of the region to avoid unnecessary travel and large gatherings to limit the spread of the virus and prevent any Covid-19 mutation.
“We are all closely following the recent good news at the end of this difficult year. Covid-19 vaccines are finally within reach, with many advances on the horizon. Three safe and effective vaccines have been developed in record time, and people are starting, “he added. Vaccinations have already been carried out, including in our region. WHO is working with partners to ensure equity in vaccine supply, especially for low- and middle-income countries. “
The next period will be difficult for all of us who live in the Eastern Mediterranean Region and it is absolutely necessary to reduce fear, stigma and hesitation.
“Last week, health officials from South Africa and the United Kingdom informed the World Health Organization and the public about the discovery of new strains of the virus that causes Covid-19 in their countries. Until December 22, the A new strain that appeared in the United Kingdom had been discovered in small numbers in Australia, Denmark, Italy, Iceland and the Netherlands. Although both strains have a common mutation, the two strains reported by South Africa and the UK are different, and sequence analysis revealed that each arose separately. “
The UK stated that this new strain is more easily transmitted, but so far there is no indication that it is more likely to cause serious disease or affect vaccines. Studies are underway to determine whether the increase in prevalence is due to the strain of the virus itself, changes in people’s behavior over the past few months, or both.
He added that all viruses mutate during transmission and that could lead to changes in their properties. As viruses mutate and change, the feasible way to protect ourselves remains the same, and prevention measures must be taken seriously, now more than ever, to help slow the spread of the virus and ultimately stop it.
New strains emerging in the UK and South Africa underscore the importance of performing SARS-2 virus sequence analysis and exchanging sequence data internationally. Several countries in the Region have the capacity to perform a sequence analysis of SARS-CoV-2 viruses, and I recommend that these countries increase this sequence whenever possible and share their findings internationally.
For countries that do not have the capacity to perform sequence analysis, WHO will facilitate the transfer of positive samples to international centers cooperating with WHO on COVID-19 for advanced testing.
The more we know about this virus, the more chances we have to fight it. We must stop all transmission of SARS-CoV-2 as quickly as possible, before they have a greater chance of mutating and spreading.
