Geneva: The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned of a “new and dangerous phase” of the coronavirus pandemic with people tiring of lockdowns despite the disease’s accelerating spread across the world.
“The world is in a new and dangerous phase. Many people are understandably fed up with being at home but the virus is still spreading fast,” Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General, WHO at the Global Media briefing.
The warning came as it emerged the virus was present in Italy in December, months before its first confirmed cases and about the same time as the disease was first reported in China.
The virus, which has now killed more than 454,000 people and infected 8.4 million people worldwide, is surging in the Americas and parts of Asia even as Europe starts to ease restrictive measures.
