Global coronavirus infections soared past 25 million on Sunday, as countries around the world further tightened restrictions to try to stop the rampaging pandemic. A million additional cases have been detected globally roughly every four days since mid-July, with India on Sunday setting the record for the highest single-day rise in cases with 78,761.
A country of 1.4 billion people, India now has the fastest-growing daily coronavirus caseload of any country in the world. It has reported more than 75,000 infections for the fourth consecutive day. It has also had the highest single-day surge since Aug. 4.
The U.S. leads the count with 5.9 million cases, followed by Brazil with 3.8 million and India with 3.5 million. The real number of people infected by the virus around the world is believed to be much higher – perhaps 10 times higher in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – given testing limitations and the many mild cases that have gone unreported or unrecognized.
Global deaths from COVID-19 stand at over 842,000, with the U.S. having the highest number with 182,779, followed by Brazil with 120,262 and Mexico with 63,819. On the other side of the world, Latin America, the worst-hit region, was still struggling with its first wave, with COVID-19 deaths in Brazil crossing 120,000, second only to the U.S.
European cities protest masks
Despite the grim numbers, there has been steady opposition to lockdowns and social distancing measures in many parts of the world, often because of their crushing economic cost. But resistance has also come from the extreme right and left of the political spectrum, as well as conspiracy theorists and anti-vaccine campaigners.
With new COVID-19 cases on the rise, European nations are starting to tighten controls while trying to avoid the major lockdowns imposed earlier this year to contain the outbreak.
Some 38,000 people, double the number expected, had gathered in Berlin on Saturday to protest restrictions imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus, such as the wearing of masks and social distancing. Late Saturday, several hundred protesters broke through barriers and a police cordon to climb the steps leading to the entrance to the Reichstag. They were narrowly prevented from entering the building by police, who used pepper spray and arrested several people. The German government Sunday slammed the "unacceptable" behavior of protesters.
Symbols of right-wing extremism were on display at the capital's landmark Brandenburg Gate and the surrounding area. Participants held posters that read "Stop the coronavirus madness" and "End the coronavirus dictatorship" and carried banners calling for the government to resign and demanding an end to virus restrictions. Lead organizer Michael Ballweg addressed the crowd at Berlin's Victory Column, demanding that all coronavirus restrictions be lifted with immediate effect and that the government of Chancellor Angela Merkel resign.
The nephew of the late U.S. President John F. Kennedy also spoke. Robert Francis Kennedy Junior, who is a lawyer, environmental activist and vaccination opponent, spoke out against the development of 5G cellular networks, warned against state surveillance and attacked Microsoft founder Bill Gates, who has thrown his weight behind vaccine development.
Elsewhere in Europe, about 200 anti-mask activists held a rally in Paris to protest against sanitary measures with slogans such as "No to the health dictatorship" and "Let our children breathe." In London, several hundred demonstrators gathered in Trafalgar Square calling coronavirus a hoax and demanding an end to restrictions. Many carried banners saying "Fake News," or "Masks are Muzzles" and rejecting any mandatory vaccination programs. The virus has killed more than 40,000 people in Britain. There were peaceful protests in Vienna and Zurich.