ANKARA 

Brazil reported 855 fatalities from the novel coronavirus, while Mexico registered 552 more deaths over the past 24 hours, according to health authorities early Saturday.

In Brazil, the world’s second worst-hit country after the US, the death toll reached 119,504, while the confirmed cases surpassed 3.8 million, including 43,412 new infections.

According to the Brazilian Health Ministry, over 2.97 million people have so far won the battle against the virus in the Latin American country.

With a population of over 211 million, Brazil is seen as the epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak in the region.

While the government has been accused of not doing enough to stem the spread of the virus, Vice President Hamilton Mourao has defended its handling, and instead blamed a lack of discipline among Brazilians for the failure of social distancing measures.

Brazil’s vibrant financial center of Sao Paolo, with a population of nearly 46 million, is the most affected region in the country.

Mexico

The Mexican Health Ministry reported a total of 63,146 virus-related deaths with 552 additions over the past day.

The total number of cases in the country rose to 585,738, as 5,824 more people tested positive. As many as 404,667 people have recovered from the disease according to the official numbers.

The first infection in Mexico was registered on Feb. 28 and the first fatality on March 19.

Since it originated in China last December, the pandemic has claimed more than 837,300 lives in 188 countries and regions. The US, Brazil, India, and Russia are currently the worst-hit countries.

Over 24.74 million COVID-19 cases have been reported worldwide, while recoveries exceeded 16.2 million, according to figures compiled by the US' Johns Hopkins University.

* Writing by Merve Aydogan.