Today, Thursday, the number of new infections with the Corona virus (Covid-19) reached more than 318 million, while the number of deaths exceeded 5 million and 500 thousand.

While the outbreak of the Omicron mutant is accelerating at an unprecedented pace, French media announced the injury of the Minister of Health, and for its part, the World Health Organization expected the new mutant to be the cause of the increase in infections in the Middle East.

The website "World Meter" - which specializes in monitoring statistics on the outbreak of the epidemic in the countries of the world - said that the number of injuries this evening at 16:00 UTC reached 318 million and 105 thousand and 824 injured, while the number of deaths reached 5 million and 533 thousand and 665 deaths.

This organization estimates that the total number of deaths may be two to three times higher, taking into account the increased number of deaths as a result of the epidemic.


Injuries and difficulties

The United States leads in the number of HIV infections and deaths, with 64,359 infections and 886,891 deaths.

Although some studies indicate that “Omicron” causes less death than the previous variables, the increase in injuries means that hospitals in some countries will not bear the number of patients, and companies may face difficulties in continuing to work with the increase in the number of workers placed under quarantine. .

In France, on Thursday, the French Press Agency quoted people close to Health Minister Olivier Veran as saying that tests had confirmed that he was infected with the Corona virus.

This came at a time when the country is facing a severe wave of the high number of virus infections caused by the spread of Omicron, with new infections exceeding 360,000 per day in recent days.


Strike and decisions

In this context, French teachers, Thursday, entered a nationwide general strike, organized by the teachers' unions, in protest against the measures to combat the Corona virus.

And the "Associated Press" said that teachers began the strike less than two weeks after the start of the winter semester, amid a rise in infections with the Corona virus in the country and inside schools.

The agency added that the strike came as a rejection of the current anti-virus measures, and the constantly changing isolation rules for schoolchildren.

Amid this new wave, teachers are upset by the change in isolation rules, demanding clarifications about those rules and taking more protection measures, such as providing more masks and conducting additional examinations to deal with the current crisis.

We are still in the old continent, where the Danish authorities decided to provide a fourth booster dose of vaccines against the Corona virus, to groups at risk.

This came in the words of the Minister of Health, Magnus Heunik, during a press conference held on Wednesday, adding that the health authorities will provide a fourth dose for the most vulnerable and at-risk groups, such as those who suffer from weak immune systems.

The Minister stressed that, while Omicron appears to be less dangerous than the previously prevalent delta variant, it nonetheless remains harmful.


height and causes

The "World Health" official said - earlier on Thursday - that a staggering rise in the number of Covid-19 infections in the eastern Mediterranean is likely to be the result of the spread of Omicron, warning that some countries in the region still have low vaccination rates.

Ahmed Al-Manzari, WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean, said that cases of COVID-19 rose by 89% in the eastern Mediterranean, the first week of January compared to the previous week, but deaths decreased by 13%.

He added that of the 22 countries in the region, mostly Middle Eastern, 15 have recorded Omicron cases.

And he added, "While Omicron appears to cause less severe disease than (the previous mutant) Delta, especially among those who received the vaccine, this certainly does not mean underestimating it, as it still leads to hospitalizations and death."