Over 240,000 Covid-19-linked deaths globally – AFP tally

The global coronavirus death toll is approaching the 250,000 mark, an AFP tally indicates. The disease that has threatened to bring the global economy to a standstill has infected more than 3.3 million people worldwide.

The deaths of over 240,000 people have now been tied to the novel coronavirus that originated in Wuhan, China, the agency said on Saturday. More than 141,000 have died in Europe and some 65,000 in the United States.

The US remains the country that is worst-affected by coronavirus in the world with more than 1.1 million confirmed cases. Other badly-hit nations, such as Spain, Italy and the UK are now far behind with around 200,000 cases each.

The pandemic has prompted lockdowns across most countries around the globe that have been in place for weeks already. Despite the mounting numbers, some countries, including European nations, have already begun to gradually ease the coronavirus-induced restrictions.

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