According to an AFP count based on official figures as of Thursday at 10:00 GMT, approximately 1,500,105 deaths have been officially recorded in the European region (52 countries and territories ranging from the Atlantic coast to Azerbaijan and Russia) since the first death on the continent in February 2020.
This count, which takes into account the deaths reported by national health authorities, represents only a portion of the deaths actually linked to the coronavirus. The WHO estimates that by considering direct and indirect COVID-19-related excess mortality, the pandemic’s death toll could be two to three times higher than the officially reported figure.
Currently, the most affected country is Russia, with a total of 269,057 deaths. The United Kingdom (144,286 deaths) and Italy (133,415 deaths) follow Russia with the highest total number of deaths. France records nearly 120,000 deaths.
The WHO fears an additional 700,000 deaths in the region by spring.
