KYIV: Ukraine reported a record number of daily coronavirus cases Thursday as the ex-Soviet country faces a new wave of infections driven by the highly contagious Omicron variant.
A government tally registered 32,393 new Covid-19 cases in 24 hours -- the highest figure since the beginning of the pandemic.
In a bid to curb the spread of the virus, Ukrainian authorities on Wednesday urged schools across the country to move their classes online.
Over the past week, the number of new cases has doubled, with the spike linked to the Omicron strain.
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Ukraine, however, has recorded significantly fewer deaths in recent days than during the previous Covid wave in the autumn.
On Thursday, Kyiv reported 154 coronavirus-related deaths, compared to 700 to 800 fatalities a day in November.
After at first facing a sluggish vaccination drive, the country's authorities in October introduced proof of vaccination requirements for public places, such as schools and theatres.
Vaccination rates have since picked up and some 14.5 million Ukrainians have been fully vaccinated.
Ukraine has recorded more than 3.9 million coronavirus cases and over 99,000 deaths since the start of the pandemic.
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