Iran Press/ Europe: Infections topped 5.2 million globally, with the worst outbreaks accelerating in many countries that are ill-equipped to deal with them.
The worrisome trend comes days after the world passed three million deaths, with countries rushing to distribute vaccinations to get the virus under control.
There was a 12 percent increase in infections this week, Johns Hopkins University said, casting doubt on the hope that the end of the pandemic is in sight.
The weekly increase passed the previous high set in mid-December.
While infection rates have largely slowed in the US and UK, countries in the developing world, particularly India and Brazil, have surging caseloads.
A leading epidemiologist at the World Health Organisation said on Monday that the latest rise in Covid-19 infections worldwide included increases among all age groups.
"We are seeing a slight age shift in some countries, driven by social mixing," Maria van Kerkhove told a WHO briefing.
The global death toll is also gaining momentum again.
Fatalities have increased for the past month and hit about 82,000 for the week ending April 18, an average of almost 12,000 a day.
That was up from a little more than 60,000 in the week ending March 14, or about 8,600 a day.
The world can bring the global Covid-19 pandemic under control in coming months provided it distributes the necessary resources fairly, the director-general of the WHO said on Monday.
India and Brazil are the two largest contributors in driving up cases globally.
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