Pakistan records lowest COVID-19 deaths in 5 months

By Aamir Latif

KARACHI, Pakistan (AA) - Pakistan recorded 19 deaths from coronavirus over the past 24 hours, the lowest single-day toll since February, the Health Ministry said on Monday.

The South Asian country registered 16 fatalities on Feb. 21 — the lowest in 2021 — while 201 deaths were recorded on April 27, the highest since the country was hit by a third virus wave in March.

The number of new infections, however, remained over 1,000 for the sixth consecutive day following the lifting of almost all lockdown restrictions nationwide.

Some 1,347 new COVID-19 cases were reported, pushing the country's overall caseload to 963,660. The total death toll stands at 22,427.

The number of active cases in the country are 33,299, while 907,934 patients have recovered so far.

Pakistan, which mostly received vaccines from China, has administered over 17.39 million shots so far. Anyone over 18 years old is eligible for vaccination.

It has also started administering the Moderna COVID-19 jab, as the country's anti-virus task force said it is now available in select vaccination centers across the country.

"Received 2.5 million doses of Moderna sent by the US govt," Asad Umar, who heads the National Command and Operation Center, tweeted on July 3. This will particularly help those who have to travel for work or study to countries which are only accepting certain vaccines, he added.