People, wearing a protective face mask, stroll through a flea market in Paris centre on Sept 19, 2020. (GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT / AFP)

LONDON / ADDIS ABABA / ALGIERS / WASHINGTON / BUENOS AIRES / SAO PAULO / QUITO / CAIRO / BOGOTA / PARIS / TBILISI  / MOSCOW / RABAT / WARSAW - As vacations and parties fed a late-summer surge of COVID-19 in Europe, there’s been one reassuring constant: A lower death toll. The latest numbers out of the continent’s hardest-hit countries show the relief may only be temporary.

The virus has started spreading in older populations again, according to data from France, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK. In France, its prevalence among those aged 75 or over more than doubled in the past three weeks.

The shift could be a tipping point as Europe faces another wave of the virus. Rising cases among the elderly, more reports of nursing-home clusters and the number of deaths edging upward are “major warning signs,” France’s public health agency said in a report on Thursday.

“We have a very serious situation unfolding,” said Hans Kluge, the World Health Organization’s regional director for Europe, said. For the first time, he wore a mask at the press conference on Thursday. “The September case numbers should serve as a wakeup call for all of us.”

A 75-year-old is 220 times more likely to die of a coronavirus infection than her 27-year-old granddaughter, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In France, Health Minister Olivier Veran pointed to what he called a worrying increase in the number of COVID-19 patients in intensive care. More infections among the oldest people means there will probably be even more hospitalizations and deaths in coming weeks, French authorities said. Because people who are sick usually take a few weeks to get worse, there’s a time lag before new infections begin to cause a shift in mortality rates.

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Africa

The total number of confirmed COVID-19 positive cases in Africa has reached 1,390,560 as of Saturday, the Africa CDC said.

The continental disease control and prevention agency said in a statement that the death toll due to illnesses related to COVID-19 in Africa has reached 33,626 as of Saturday.

The Africa CDC said the number of people who recovered from the virus across the continent reached 1,140,980 so far.

Noting the uneven impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on African countries, the Africa CDC also disclosed that the most COVID-19 affected African countries in terms of the number of positive cases include South Africa, Egypt, Morocco, Ethiopia and Nigeria.

During the past one week period, Morocco reported the highest number of COVID-19 cases with 14,603 new cases, followed by South Africa and Ethiopia with 11,013 and 4,742 new cases, respectively.

The war-torn nation of Libya and neighboring Tunisia round up the top five African countries reporting the highest number of COVID-19 cases in the past week.

Algeria

Algeria on Saturday reported 210 new COVID-19 cases and six new fatalities, bringing the total infections to 49,623 and the death toll to 1,665, said the Ministry of Health in a statement.

Meanwhile, 105 more patients were discharged from hospitals, bringing the total number of recoveries to 34,923.

Algerian Health Minister Abderrahmane Benbouzid on Saturday expressed his satisfaction with the results of the fight against COVID-19, the official APS news agency reported.

Benbouzid said there is a drop in new cases in recent weeks, which is due to "the effective participation of all sectors and all sections of society, despite the fact that some still do not respect the compulsory wearing of masks."

Algeria has been resuming economic and commercial activities since June 7 as part of its efforts to return to normal life.

On Feb 25, Algeria recorded its first infection with COVID-19.

Argentina

Argentine reported 9,276 cases of COVID-19 and 143 deaths over the past 24 hours, taking its national count to 622,934 cases and 12,799 deaths, the Health Ministry said on Saturday.

Of the new cases, 4,560 were reported in the province of Buenos Aires and the capital city.

It is the first time that more COVID-19 cases have been reported in the metropolitan area of Buenos Aires, the ministry said.

Currently, 3,213 patients are hospitalized and 478,077 people have so far recovered, it added.

Brazil

The Brazilian Ministry of Health announced on Saturday that the country registered 739 deaths from the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in the last 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 136,532.

Additionally, the ministry reported that 33,057 new cases were registered in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of cases to 4,528,240.

The state of Sao Paulo, the most populous in Brazil, has been the most affected by the disease, with 33,927 deaths, followed by Rio de Janeiro, with 17,634 deaths.

Both states are planning to return to face-to-face classes starting in October.

Brazil is the third in the world in the number of COVID-19 cases, behind the United States and India, and the second in deaths, after the United States.

Canada

There have been 141,911 cases of COVID-19 in Canada, including 9,205 deaths, the Public Health Agency of Canada said Saturday.

As of Friday, the average daily case count was reported as 849 cases being reported daily across Canada during the previous seven days.

On Friday, two Canadian party leaders tested positive for COVID-19.

In a rare weekend press conference Saturday morning, Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced an expansion of new social gathering restrictions across the entire province as COVID-19 cases continue to surge.

Effective immediately in Ontario, new gathering sizes will be capped at 10 people indoors and 25 people outdoors for at least the next 28 days. The previous gathering limits were 50 people indoors and 100 people outdoors. 

Colombia

Colombia reported 186 deaths from COVID-19 over the past 24 hours, taking its national death toll to 24,039, the Health Ministry said on Saturday.

Meanwhile, 7,927 new COVID-19 cases were reported, bringing the nationwide tally to 758,398, the ministry said.

A total of 627,685 patients have so far recovered from the disease, it added.

Colombian President Ivan Duque announced on Saturday the reopening of international flights in the country after five months of closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Office of the President said in a statement that to enter Colombia after Sept 30, it will be mandatory to submit a negative COVID-19 test result within 96 hours before the flight.

Ecuador

The Ecuadorian Ministry of Public Health announced on Saturday that 1,491 new cases and 38 more deaths from the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) were registered in the last 24 hours.

The new infections bring the national caseload to 125,620, and the new deaths bring the national death toll to 7,288.

According to the ministry, another 3,796 deaths were likely caused by COVID-19, but these have yet to be confirmed.

The capital city of Quito is the current epicenter of the pandemic in the country, with a total of 30,174 cases, or 24 percent of the cases reported in the country.

The country's state of emergency was lifted on Sept 14, and the government is urging citizens to behave responsibly to avoid the spread of the virus.

Egypt

Egypt registered on Saturday night 128 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total infections in the country to 101,900, said its Health Ministry.

In a statement, the ministry's spokesman Khaled Megahed said 17 patients died from the disease in the past 24 hours, raising the death toll to 5,750.

Meanwhile, 708 others were cured and discharged from hospitals, increasing the total recoveries to 88,666.

Egypt announced its first confirmed COVID-19 case on Feb. 14 and the first death from the viral disease on March 8.

Around mid-June, Egypt saw a peak of COVID-19 daily infections and deaths, and then both started to gradually decline in the first week of July.

France

France's Public Health Agency on Saturday reported 13,498 new coronavirus cases in a 24-hour span, a new daily record of confirmed cases since the start of the epidemic.

The country's previous highest daily of new cases was at 13,215 reported on Friday. Saturday's figure brought the cumulative total of confirmed coronavirus cases in France to 442,194.

Some 31,274 patients had died of COVID-19 since February, representing a single-day rise of 26.

Coronavirus infections have surged in France in recent weeks, particularly among young people, prompting the government to order the mandatory wearing of face masks outdoors and in workplaces.

It also pledged to further boost COVID-19 tests, reinforce control of self-isolation conditions and impose stricter rules in zones of high risk. But it ruled out a new nationwide lockdown.

France's major cities of Bordeaux, Marseille and Nice -- classified as red zones -- have banned public gatherings of 10 people in parks and beaches and reduced public-event attendance number to 1,000 from 5,000. People are urged to limit their visits to nursing homes, and not to eat and drink in bars while standing.

Georgia

Georgia reported 187 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, bringing its total to 3,306, the National Center for Disease Control and Public Health said.

Of the new cases, 116 were confirmed in the western Adjara region, the center said.

As of Saturday, 1,481 patients have recovered, while 19 others have died, the center added.

Georgia reported its first confirmed case on Feb 26.

Morocco

Morocco on Saturday reported 2,552 new COVID-19 cases, raising the total number of infections in the country to 99,816.

The death toll rose by 40 to 1,795, while 274 patients are in intensive care units, said the Moroccan Ministry of Health in a press release.

The number of recoveries from the coronavirus in Morocco increased to 79,008 after 2,318 more recoveries were added on Saturday, the ministry said.

Poland

The Polish health ministry reported on Saturday 1,002 new cases of COVID-19 over a 24-hour period, the largest single-day surge since the coronavirus outbreak in the country.

The government expects numbers to rise steadily over the coming weeks as people return to their normal lives, a health ministry spokesperson told local media after a press conference.

"People are returning to work," the spokesperson said. "We have a large number of contacts on the streets. This is simply the effect of returning to normality."

He added that the ministry currently does not identify any particular hotspots.

Experts note that the reopening of schools at the start of this month very likely contributed to the steady rise in numbers. "Every country that opened its schools is seeing a rise in sickness numbers," pediatrician Lukasz Durajski told news website Onet.

Up to 78,330 people in the country have been infected by COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic, with the death toll reaching 2,282, according to the health ministry.

Russia

Russia reported 6,148 cases of COVID-19 in the past day, the most new cases registered in two months. The number of new infections is up 30 percent since Sept 1, when schools opened nationwide, according to data from the country’s coronavirus response center.

Russia has had 1,103,399 cases, the fourth highest total globally, after the US, India and Brazil. Moscow reported 860 new infections overnight, the most since June 25.

A health worker (right) talks to municipal workers before their disinfect the entrance of a health center in the Usera district of Madrid, on Sept 18, 2020. (OSCAR DEL POZO / AFP)

Spain

A partial lockdown aimed at stemming a sharp rise in COVID-19 cases is set to begin in some of Madrid’s poorer districts next week, but resident’s of one of the worst-hit neighbourhood’s said on Saturday they doubted the new measures would work.

Vallecas, a southern district with a lower average income and higher immigrant population, has one of the highest infection rates in the Spanish capital - almost six times higher than in Chamberi, a wealthier, northern district.

Under the restrictions, announced by Madrid’s regional government on Friday, movement between and within six districts that are home to about 850,000 people will be restricted from Monday, but people will still be able to go to work.

Regional leader Isabel Diaz Ayuso said the areas had been chosen because contagion levels there exceeded 1,000 per 100,000 people. Police would be deployed to enforce the lockdown, authorities said on Saturday.

Access to parks and public areas will be restricted, gatherings will be limited to six people and commercial establishments will have to close by 10 pm in the areas.

Some 640,040 people have been diagnosed with COVID-19 in Spain, health authorities said on Friday, with a rise of 4,697 in the past 24 hours. Nearly 30,500 people have died.

A performer on stilts interacts with a member of the public during the annual Bermondsey Street Festival in London, England, Sept 19, 2020. (TONY HICKS / AP)

UK

Neil Ferguson, a professor of epidemiology at London’s Imperial College and a former government adviser, told the BBC the country was facing a “perfect storm” of rising infections as people return to work and school.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Friday that he did not want another national lockdown but that new restrictions may be needed because the country was facing an “inevitable” second wave of COVID-19.

“I think some additional measures are likely to be needed sooner rather than later,” Ferguson said.

Ministers were on Friday reported to be considering a second national lockdown, with new COVID-19 cases already at their highest in months, hospital admissions rising and soaring infection rates across parts of northern England and London.

Government data on Saturday showed 4,422 new cases, 100 more than on Friday and the highest daily total since May 8, based on positive test results.

The true rate of infection is likely to be higher. Britain’s statistics agency said on Friday that around 6,000 people a day in England alone probably caught the disease during the week to Sept 10, based on its random testing.

US

A new ensemble forecast published by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) projects up to 218,000 COVID-19 deaths in the United States by Oct 10.

The new national ensemble forecast predicts that 3,000 to 7,100 new COVID-19 deaths will likely be reported during the week ending Oct 10, and a total of 207,000 to 218,000 COVID-19 deaths will be reported by that date.

"The state- and territory-level ensemble forecasts predict that over the next 4 weeks, the number of newly reported deaths per week may decrease in 6 jurisdictions," said the projection posted on the CDC website on Thursday.

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Trends in numbers of future reported deaths are uncertain or predicted to remain stable in the other states and territories, said the projection.

The number of COVID-19 cases in the United States topped 6.7 million as of Saturday evening, with more than 199,200 deaths, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.