WHO officially declares Covid-19 a global pandemic
The World Health Organization (WHO) has just officially declared the outbreak of acute respiratory infection caused by the new strain of coronavirus a "global pandemic".
Speaking at a daily press conference in Geneva on the evening of March 11 (Vietnam time), WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that, up to now, Covid-19 has attacked 114 countries and territories around the world, infecting more than 118,000 people and taking the lives of at least 4,291 people, mainly in mainland China.
BBC quoted Mr. Ghebreyesus as emphasizing: "WHO has been continuously assessing the outbreak and we are deeply concerned, both by the alarming levels of spread and severity, and by the alarming levels of inaction. We therefore assess that Covid-19 meets the characteristics of a pandemic."
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| WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Photo: CNN |
WHO calls on countries around the world every day to take urgent and active actions to prevent Covid-19.
Ghebreyesus has repeatedly warned that the novel coronavirus is spreading too quickly and becoming an "existential" threat to many parts of the world. However, the official also expressed optimism about controlling the epidemic.
