MOSCOW, July 12. /TASS/. The number of new COVID-19 cases in Moscow has grown by 57% over a week while the incidence was at the lowest level since the pandemic began, the official Telegram channel of the capital's Center for Social Development reported on Tuesday.

It noted that the growth was caused by a non-dangerous substrain of Omicron. "The crisis center [reports that] the rise in COVID-19 incidence is related to the spread of a non-dangerous substrain of Omicron. In Moscow, like in the majority of European countries, an increase in COVID-19 incidence is observed. Yet as of today, the level of incidence in the city remains lower than in Europe. Last week, the number of new COVID-19 cases in the capital was 57% more than during the previous week," the statement said, stressing that the "basic level of incidence in Moscow was the lowest in the entire history of the pandemic."

It specified that the new rise was related to the spread of "ВА.4 and ВА.5 subvariants of the Omicron strain." "The regular sequencing of the virus genome in Moscow shows that the share of these subvariants dominates in the general structure of incidence in the city. In the majority of cases, the disease requires treatment similar to that used to treat a classic acute respiratory disorder. This is confirmed by the level of hospitalizations, which amid such an increase in incidence has grown only by 9% over the same time period," the statement said, quoting the crisis center.

The statement reiterated that "coronavirus may be dangerous to people in the older age groups and those with chronic diseases." ‘We are asking such residents to take care of their health and observe preventive measures," it concluded.

According to the latest global statistics, about 556.6mln people have been infected worldwide and more than 6.3mln deaths have been reported. To date, 18,468,310 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Russia. Russia’s latest data indicates 381,669 fatalities nationwide. Earlier, the Russian government set up an Internet hotline to keep the public updated on the coronavirus situation.