WHO: Europe is the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic 
Europe is once again the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) said. This is reported by Reuters.
According to the agency, the region has recently accounted for half of the latest infections and deaths from COVID-19 in the world. These are the highest rates since April 2020, when the virus reached its initial peak in Italy.
In this regard, a number of European countries are considering the possibility of re-imposing restrictions in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19 on the eve of Christmas. In particular, the Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte, announced the introduction of a three-week partial lockdown in the country. Federal Chancellor of Austria Alexander Schallenberg did not rule out that the authorities will decide on strict isolation for unvaccinated people. From December 1, the Italian authorities will offer the third dose of the vaccine to people over 40 years old.
According to the European Union, about 65 people in the European Economic Area (EEA), which includes the EU countries, as well as Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein, received two doses of the vaccine, but the rate of vaccination has slowed in recent months. It is noted that most EU countries provide additional vaccinations for the elderly and people with weakened immune systems. At the same time, scientists say that the priority should be to expand vaccination to the majority of the population. This will avoid taking measures such as isolation, they warn.
The WHO previously reported that the death rate of patients with coronavirus rose sharply in Europe, by 10 percent in the week from November 1 to 7. According to experts, Europe was the only one of the six regions in which there is an increase in the number of deaths. According to the organization, most of the sick Europeans are infected with the “delta” strain of coronavirus. So, recently this option was recorded in 99.6 percent of cases.