WHO blames rising Covid cases in Europe on curbs lifted too soon

Regional director says several countries including the UK lifted restrictions brutally'

Several European countries lifted their coronavirus restrictions too soon, the World Health Organization (WHO) has said, and as a result are now witnessing sharp rises in infections probably linked to the new, more transmissible BA2 subvariant.

Hans Kluge, director of the WHO's Europe region, said countries including Germany, France, Italy and Britain had lifted their Covid curbs brutally - from too much to too few". Infections are rising in 18 out of the region's 53 countries, he said.