Muhammet Emin Canik and Zehra Ulucak
July 31, 2020•Update: July 31, 2020
BUENOS AIRES / ANKARA
The novel coronavirus claimed 1,129 lives in Brazil and 639 in Mexico over the past 24 hours, according to health authorities on Friday.
In Brazil, the country second hardest hit by the virus, the death toll reached 91,263 with the latest fatalities, while the number of cases surged to over 2.6 million, with 57,837 additions over the past 24 hours.
The number of recoveries in the country also topped 1.95 million.
With a population of over 211 million, Brazil is seen as the epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak in Latin America.
Mexico
The death toll in Mexico hit 46,000, with 639 additions over the past day, according to its Health Ministry.
The total number of cases rose to 416,179, as 7,730 more people tested positive for COVID-19. A total of 272,187 people have recovered from the disease.
The first coronavirus case in Mexico was recorded on Feb. 28 and the first fatality on March 19.
Since first appearing in China last December, the novel coronavirus has spread to at least 188 countries and regions. The US, Brazil, India, and Russia are currently the countries hardest hit in the world.
The pandemic has killed over 673,000 people worldwide, with some 17.3 million confirmed cases, according to figures compiled by the US' Johns Hopkins University. Over 10.1 million people have recovered from the disease.
