The Director-General of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has said that 90 million cases of COVID-19 have been recorded since the Omicron variant was first identified 10 weeks ago. This is higher than the figure in the entire first year of the pandemic.

As several countries start easing pandemic restrictions, the WHO chief has warned that Omicron should not be underestimated, despite reports that it causes less severe illness compared to the earlier variants. He also emphasized that there has been a worrying rise in fatalities in most regions of the world.

He said that it is “premature for any country either to surrender or to declare victory.” He added that the virus continues to evolve.

The agency revealed that four out of its six regions are witnessing increasing trends in deaths… (The Hindu – AP, February 2, 2022)