Setting a welcoming trend which negates the fears that the coronavirus spread may get out of control, Pakistan reported less than 2,000 new coronavirus cases for the third consecutive day during the past 24 hours, showed the latest data released by National Command and Operation Centre on Tuesday morning.

With another 1,776 persons testing positive for the virus, the overall number has reached 475,085 as most of the new cases were again detected in Sindh.

The region-wise distribution of the coronavirus cases now stands at: Sindh 212,093, Punjab 136,669, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 57,746, Islamabad 37,390, Balochistan 18,099, Azad Kashmir 8,235 and Gilgit-Baltistan 4,853.

Meanwhile, the number of active cases in the country is 39,599 with the majority of them having been isolated at their homes or other places for having mild symptoms. However, 2,756 of them are being treated in different hospitals.

Out of these patients, 2,259 are in a critical condition and thus admitted in intensive care units with 302 of them placed on ventilators. 

On the other hand, the coronavirus death toll in Pakistan increased to 9,992 after 63 more patients died of the virus with 38 persons dying in Punjab. It was followed by 11 in Sindh, eight in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, five in Islamabad and one in Azad Kashmir.

Hence, the overall deaths-related figures for different provinces/regions are: Punjab 3,959, Sindh 3,502, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 1,617, Islamabad 412, Azad Kashmir 219, Balochistan 182 and Gilgit-Baltistan 101.

Meanwhile, the number of closed cases in Pakistan reached 435,486 as 425,494 people have so far fully recovered from the infection with 9,992 patients dying of the virus.

But efforts are also underway to identify, trace and isolate the infected persons to reduce further spread of the coronavirus. Thus, the past 24 hours saw 30,666 tests being administered across the country, increasing the overall number to 6,619,983.

Global developments

Here are the latest developments in the coronavirus crisis:

- Russia triples death toll -

Russia admits to more than three times more coronavirus deaths -- over 186,000 -- than previously announced making it the nation with the third-highest number of fatalities.

- Vaccines -

Belgium joins a growing list of countries to launch Covid vaccinations, a day after the EU began its immunisation campaign.

But Pfizer postpones the delivery of new batches of its vaccine to eight European nations including Spain, the Spanish health ministry says, due to a "problem in the loading and shipment process" at its plant in Belgium.

Meanwhile, Jordan orders one million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, with the first shipment expected at the end of January or early February.

- China jails journalist -

A Chinese citizen journalist is jailed for four years for her reporting from Wuhan as the Covid-19 outbreak began, her lawyer says.

Zhang Zhan, a former lawyer, is sentenced at a brief hearing in a Shanghai court for allegedly "picking quarrels and provoking trouble" during her reporting in the chaotic initial stages of the outbreak.

- New variant in South Korea -

Three cases of the particularly infectious virus variant that recently emerged in Britain have been confirmed in South Korea, health authorities say, in three members of a London-based family who arrived in the country on December 22.

- Trump signs relief bill -

US President Donald Trump finally signs a massive $900 billion stimulus bill, in a long-sought boost for millions of Americans and businesses battered by the pandemic. The move helps US and European stocks into record territory.

- South African curbs -

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announces a ban on alcohol sales and says mask-wearing will be mandatory in public as his country becomes the continent's first to record one million coronavirus cases.

- 1.76 million dead -                                 

The coronavirus has killed at least 1.76 million people since the outbreak emerged in China in December 2019, according to an AFP tally on Monday based on official sources.

At least 80 million cases have been registered.

The United States is the worst-affected country with 333,140 deaths, followed by Brazil with 191,139, India with 147,901 and Mexico with 122,426.

The tally does not take into account updated Russian figures.

- Mexican songwriter dies -

Mexican singer-songwriter Armando Manzanero, one of the country's best loved musicians, dies at the age of 86 after being hospitalised with the coronavirus.

- Neymar controversy -

Brazil's star footballer Neymar is at the centre of controversy after several of his country's media report that he is organizing a huge New Year's Eve party despite the coronavirus pandemic.

- Man City-Everton clash off -

Manchester City's Premier League visit to Everton on Monday is postponed after multiple new positive tests for coronavirus are detected at City.

With inputs from AFP.