539 new coronavirus cases, 15 deaths reported in last 24 hours

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan reported 539 new coronavirus cases and fifteen deaths over the last 24 hours, taking the national tally of infections to 284,660 and fatalities to 6,097.

According to the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), as many as 20,495 samples were tested for Covid-19 during the previous 24 hours, out of which 539 turned out to be positive.

Of the total Covid-19 patients, 260,764 have recuperated from the disease so far while the number of active cases stands at 17,799. Out of 1,859 ventilators earmarked for critically-ill Covid patients, only 149 are in use.

More than 2.1 million tests have been conducted across the country thus far, leading to the emergence of 284,660 positive cases.

‘Five million coronavirus cases’

The United States (US) on Sunday reached the extraordinary milestone of five million coronavirus cases as President Donald Trump was accused of flouting the constitution by unilaterally extending a virus relief package.

The US has been hammered by the COVID-19 pandemic, recording more than 162,000 deaths — by far the highest of any country, ahead only of Brazil, which on Saturday became the second country to pass 100,000 deaths.

The global death toll is at least 727,288 since the novel coronavirus emerged in China last December, according to a running tally from official sources compiled by AFP.