South Africa's coronavirus cases cross 900,000: health ministry

South Africa’s total reported coronavirus cases surpassed 900,000 on Friday, just a fortnight after it reported crossing 800,000, signaling a rapid rise in infections in the country battling a second wave. South Africa, hardest hit on the continent, reported its first case in March and saw peak infections in July when daily cases almost touched 14,000. The rise in daily infections, which had eased in the last few months with reports of daily new cases between 1,000 and 2,000 till mid-November, reached 8,725 with 274 deaths, the health ministry said in a statement.