Italy virus death toll passes 25,000

Italy’s official death toll from the novel coronavirus has topped 25,000, but the number of those currently being treated declined for a third consecutive day as the government considers easing some of the lockdown measures.

With 437 fatalities reported by the civil protection services over the past 24 hours, the Mediterranean country’s official toll over the past two months rose to 25,085 — the second-highest in the world after the United States.

Worldwide, the death toll is now over 180,000, according to a tally kept by Johns Hopkins University.

The decline in the number of active virus cases was accompanied by a fall in the number of people receiving intensive care treatment to the lowest level since March 18.

— AFP