‘New Wave’ of COVID Surges Again in Central, Southeast Europe

Central and Southeast Europe have seen a sharp increase in COVID-19 cases in the last few weeks, while there is no word yet from authorities on whether they will reinstate some or all of the protective measures that were eased before the summer.

Experts across the region have said that the rising level of infections is likely to be down to a number of factors including waning immunity but also a return to pre-pandemic behaviours and the tourist season, which is already in full swing.

Serbia leads the way with 876 new COVID-19 cases registered in the last 24 hours. Albania comes next with 581 followed by Montenegro with 221 new cases, and Kosovo with with 149.

On June 30, Serbia registered 921 new cases, while one person died from COVID, 102 people are in hospital and 10 are on respirators.

The numbers in North Macedonia are swelling as well. Ten days ago, according to the Health Ministry, the country had 351 active cases, while on Wednesday that number had doubled to 750. The country registered 180 new cases in the last three days. In the last 24 hours, it registered another 163 infections. There were no fatalities.

Positive cases in all six WB states increased significantly in the last week compared to one week before. In Serbia, there were 507 new cases on June 21, while on June 29 there were 876. Between June 21 and 26, the daily number did not exceed 590, but on Monday it jumped to 751, and on Tuesday and Wednesday they were over 800.

Albania on Tuesday saw 550 new cases while one citizen died from complications related to the virus. On Monday, there had been only 90 infected citizens. The numbers this week are almost twice as high as the previous week. On Wednesday...

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