The number of deaths from the coronavirus has surpassed 800,000 around the world, according to the latest AFP tally based on official sources.
In total, 800,004 fatalities have been recorded globally, out of 23,003,079 declared infections.
Latin America and the Caribbean is the region the most affected with 254,897 deaths.
More than half of global fatalities have been reported in four countries: the United States with 175,416, Brazil with 113,358, Mexico 59,610 and India 55,794.
Italy has reported 1,071 new coronavirus infections in the past 24 hours, exceeding 1,000 cases in a day for the first time since May when the government eased its rigid lockdown measures.
Italy, one of Europe's worst-hit countries, managed to contain the outbreak after a peak in deaths and cases between March and April.
However, it has seen a steady increase in infections over the last month, with experts blaming gatherings of people associated with holidays and nightlife.
Last time the country recorded a higher figure was 12 May, with 1,402 cases, six days before restaurants, bars and shops were allowed to reopen after a 10-week lockdown.
Rome-based health official Alessio D'Amato said that 61% of new cases were linked to people returning from holiday.
Since the pandemic erupted, Italy has recorded more than 257,000 cases, including more than 35,000 dead.
In the UK, the British government said 41,423 people had died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19 as of today, an increase of 18 on yesterday.
Separate figures published by the UK's statistics agencies show there have now been 57,000 deaths registered in the UK where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate.
The British government also said that as of 9am this morning, there had been a further 1,288 lab-confirmed cases of coronavirus. Overall, 324,601 cases have been confirmed.
Iraq has registered nearly 4,000 cases of Covid-19 today, bringing the total number of cases recorded by the country to over 200,000.
According to the Iraqi health ministry, 201,050 Iraqis have contracted the virus, including 6,353 who have died, while 143,393 are declared to have recovered since the pandemic began.
The daily increases have hovered around 4,000 for more than a week, but authorities have declined to reimpose a strict lockdown that was lifted earlier this summer.
An overnight curfew remains in place, most restaurants are closed for dine-in customers and land crossings are officially shut.
But airports, supermarkets and take-out cafes are open, with varying degrees of social distancing or mask-wearing.
Many fear yet another spike in cases is imminent, as Shiite Muslims converge on the holy city of Karbala to commemorate the beginning of the mourning month of Muharram.
Muharram, which includes the memorial of the killing of the Prophet Mohammed's grandson Hussein in 680 AD, is typically marked by mass funeral processions and self-flagellation.
It usually sees thousands of pilgrims cross the border from neighbouring Iran, which has suffered the largest mortality figure from Covid-19 infections in the Middle East, with more than 20,200 deaths officially registered.
Iraq's hospitals have already been worn down by decades of conflict and poor investment, with shortages in medicines, hospital beds and even protective equipment for doctors.
