The number of people infected with the new coronavirus every day worldwide has exceeded 160,000 in the past week, the worst in terms of infections since the start of the epidemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday .
“60% of all COVID-19 cases identified so far have been reported in the past month,” said WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus during a virtual press conference.
And “in the past week, the number of new cases has exceeded 160,000 per day,” he said. Against more than 150,000 the previous seven days, according to a report prepared by AFP from official sources.
Just on June 28, 189,541 new cases were identified on the planet, a record, according to WHO statistics.
The COVID-19 pandemic has killed more than 511,000 people worldwide since China officially reported the disease in December. More than 10.5 million cases have been identified, of which at least 5.3 million are now considered cured.
“We will never tire of saying that the best way out of this pandemic is to adopt a global approach,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, calling once again to respect the rules of distancing, to detect and isolate In this case, place their contacts in quarantine, and wear a mask when necessary.
We must “do everything”, he insisted, indicating that the countries which have adopted “this global approach” have succeeded in interrupting the transmission of the new coronavirus.
“One of the lessons from the pandemic is that whatever the situation in a country, it can be reversed. It is never too late, ”he said.
In this regard, the head of WHO said that Italy and Spain, although facing a “discouraging situation” when they were the epicenter of the pandemic in March, have managed to control the epidemic thanks to a “combination of leadership, humility, active participation of each member of society and the implementation of a global approach”.
While some regions are preparing for a second wave or a new peak, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus noted that “outbreaks of cases are to be expected as countries begin to lift restrictions”.
“But countries that have put in place the systems necessary to implement a comprehensive approach should be able to contain these outbreaks at the local level”, and thus not need to “reintroduce generalized restrictions”, he said. he judges.
Six months after the virus appeared, and as the pandemic accelerated, the WHO hoped to know more about the origin of the virus in China. Before being able to investigate, the specialized organization of the United Nations has planned to send two experts on the spot next week.
“The trip to China is a preliminary mission to define the scope of the investigation,” explained Michael Ryan, director of health emergencies at WHO, to the journalists, adding that one of the experts is an epidemiologist and the other animal health specialist.
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