US Sees Record Rise in New Coronavirus Cases as More Infectious Version Hits Shores

The latest COVID-19 information and statistics for the Middle East and North Africa

Coronavirus cases continue to increase as the United States heads into the Fourth of July holiday weekend.

The US experienced another record rise in coronavirus cases Thursday, with 51,504 reported, according to the Johns Hopkins coronavirus tracker. The previous record set on Wednesday was 51,174.

With a total of 2,739,879 confirmed cases and a fatality count of 128,740 as of Friday’s update from the Johns Hopkins coronavirus tracker, the US leads the world in both infections and deaths.

The US is dealing with a new form of the disease that spreads faster, according to the findings of a new global study that an international team of researchers reported Thursday.

The mutation that has traveled from Europe to the US is more infectious but does not make people sicker, according to the study, published in the journal Cell.

Researchers said that the mutation is now the main form of the virus infecting people.

Here are the latest COVID-19 numbers for the Middle East and North Africa as of 7 am UTC on Friday.