LIMA – Peru has reported 5,563 new COVID-19 cases and 128 more deaths, bringing the total caseload of infections to 170,039 and the death toll to 4,634.

Among the worst-hit areas, capital Lima has registered 103,020 cases, followed by the west-central province of Callao, with 12,495 cases, the Health Ministry said in a statement late on Monday.

“To date, 8,868 patients are hospitalized with COVID-19, including 975 in ICUs (intensive care units) and on ventilators,” it said.

Peru began to relax lockdown measures at the end of May to restart economic activities in 27 different fields.

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Nearly 70% of cases are in the capital, Lima, and the neighboring port of Callao, home to 10 million people or almost one-third of Peru’s population.

Last month, the Pan American Health Organization expressed concerns over the accelerating number of cases in Peru, along with those of neighboring Chile and Brazil.