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Zimbabwe cholera death toll over 1,100

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The death toll from Zimbabwe's worst cholera epidemic in decades has soared to more than 1,100, the United Nations said in a statement on Thursday.
GENEVA, December 18 (RIA Novosti) - The death toll from Zimbabwe's worst cholera epidemic in decades has soared to more than 1,100, the United Nations said in a statement on Thursday.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Geneva said 121 more deaths were recorded in the African country on Thursday.

The number of suspected cases of cholera in the country has risen to over 20,000 since August, the statement said.

The World Health Organization (WHO) earlier said up to 60,000 people could be infected in the worst-case scenario.

In Zimbabwe, which has in recent years become a focus of international concern over widespread human rights violations, some 80% of people lack access to safe and clean water, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) earlier said.

UNICEF has warned that the outbreak of cholera, which is spread by drinking contaminated water, could "get even worse due to a deteriorating sanitation system."

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