Shawdesh Desk:

The overall number of global Covid cases has now crossed 276 million amid the rapid spread of the Omicron variant in several western countries.

According to Johns Hopkins University (JHU), the total case count mounted to 276,200,632 while the death toll from the virus reached 5,368,422 Wednesday morning.

The US has recorded 51,272,854 cases so far and more than 810,045 people have died from the virus in the country to date, the university data shows.

Omicron has raced ahead of other variants and is now the dominant version of the coronavirus in the US, accounting for 73% of new infections last week, federal health officials said Monday, reported AP.

Meanwhile, the total number of coronavirus cases in the UK mounted to 11,607,864, while the total fatalities reached 147,896, according to figures released Tuesday.

Coronavirus infections are surging in Britain — up 60% in a week — as Omicron replaced Delta as the dominant variant, and Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said more new restrictions may have to be introduced to slow its spread.

Brazil, which has been experiencing a new wave of cases since January, registered 22,219,477 cases as of Wednesday, while its Covid death toll rose to 617,948.

India’s Covid-19 tally rose to 34,752,164 on Wednesday, while the total death toll mounted to 478,007.