Pakistan has registered another 723 coronavirus cases and seven deaths during the last 24 hours (Thursday), showed the figures released by the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) on Friday morning.

As per the latest NCOC data, after the addition of seven new deaths, the overall toll has now surged to 30,298 whereas the number of total infections now stood at 1,517,512 after adding the fresh 723 cases.

During the last 24 hours (Thursday), 39,540 tests were conducted throughout Pakistan whereas the positivity ratio stood at 1.82 percent. The number of patients in critical care was 677.

https://twitter.com/OfficialNcoc/status/1502086695906430976

   During the last 24 hours (Thursday), as many as 956 patients have recovered from the virus whereas the total recoveries stood at 1,469,405. As of Friday, the total count of active cases in the country was recorded at 17,809.

As many as 571,268 coronavirus cases have so far been confirmed in Sindh, 503,426 in Punjab, 217,857 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 134,767 in Islamabad, 35,427 in Balochistan, 43,159 in Azad Kashmir and 11,608 in Gilgit-Baltistan.

Moreover, 13,535 individuals have lost their lives to the pandemic in Punjab so far, 8,089 in Sindh, 6,297 in KP, 1,019 in Islamabad, 790 in Azad Kashmir, 377 in Balochistan and 191 in Gilgit Baltistan.

GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS

Here are the global developments in the coronavirus crisis:

- El Dorado for match-fixers -

The pandemic has been an "El Dorado" for match-fixers, with Sportradar Integrity Services saying it detected 903 suspicious matches in 2021 –- the highest number recorded in the company's 17-year history.

- Slovakia's trad jab 

Slovakia rolls out the more traditional Novavax jab, which experts hope will win over its vaccine-sceptical population. The country is one of the least vaccinated in the European Union, with only 51 percent of Slovaks fully immunised.

- Anti-vaxxer paradise -

Dozens of mainly German and Austrian anti-vaxxers have moved to the South American country of Paraguay, joining a private colony to dodge "excessive" European Covid regulations.

- Rum rugby debut -

New Zealand team Moana Pasifika's debut Super Rugby season is hit again by a postponement due to the virus, after its first two matches were called off after some of its players tested positive. 

- Six million dead -

Coronavirus has killed at least 6,019,383 people since the outbreak emerged in China in December 2019, according to an AFP tally based on official sources on Wednesday.

The United States has recorded the most Covid deaths with 963,819, followed by Brazil on 653,498 and India with 515,459.

Taking into account excess mortality linked to Covid, the WHO estimates the true death toll could be two to three times higher.

With inputs from AFP.