Russia registers all-time high number of coronavirus cases

Over 41,000 more infected as authorities blame low level of vaccination for spike in cases, deaths

MOSCOW:

Russia on Saturday registered a new record number of coronavirus cases with 41,335 people testing positive over the past day, raising the country's tally to 8.75 million and active cases to 975,123.

Over the same period, 29,201 people recovered, bringing the overall count to 7.53 million, while 1,188 died, pushing the death toll to 245,635, Russia's coronavirus emergency task force said in a daily report.

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Authorities blame the low level of vaccination for the spike in cases. Currently, the vaccination rate stands at 33.58% despite the wide availability of doses.

On Oct. 28, Russia launched a national 10-day non-working period, aiming to stem the virus spread.

Since December 2019, the pandemic has claimed more than 5.04 million lives in 192 countries and regions, with over 249.2 million cases reported worldwide, according to the US Johns Hopkins University.