SULAIMANI (ESTA) — The World Health Organization (WHO) said Middle Eastern countries have seen a rise in coronavirus infections in the last six weeks because of low vaccination rates.
Reported COVID-19 cases rose to a daily average of 110,000 in the past six weeks, while average daily deaths rose to 345 in the last three weeks, WHO regional director Ahmed Al-Mandhari said on Wednesday, according to Reuters.
More than 35% of the region’s population is fully vaccinated, Rana Hajjeh, director of programme management.
But one quarter of the countries have not yet reached 10% vaccination coverage, Hajjeh added.
The WHO’s Eastern Mediterranean region comprises the Middle East, Egypt, Somalia, Sudan, Djibouti and Afghanistan, among others.
