KABUL, Afghanistan—After the Afghan government dithered for months last year over how to respond to the emerging pandemic, the country is now in the midst of its third COVID-19 wave, with the authorities still in deep denial about the severity of the disease. Its figures are widely derided, with numbers of deaths and infections believed to be much higher than reported.
Figures reported by the Afghan Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) show the number of positive cases on the rise: 1,582 new cases on Monday, with 56 reported deaths, up from 1,379 new cases on Sunday. A health economist, who did not wish to be identified, said the true figure was likely as much as double that released by the ministry. The MoPH said a total of 80,615 people have been infected with the coronavirus since the first case was reported on Feb. 11, 2020; 3,195 people have died, it said.
