WHO chief says threat of COVID-19 pandemic very real

Now that the coronavirus has a foothold in so many countries, the threat of a pandemic has become very real, the chief of World Health Organization (WHO) said here Monday, noting it would be the first pandemic in history that could be controlled.

This is an uneven epidemic at the global level, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a daily briefing, reminding that different countries are in different scenarios, requiring a tailored response.

Tedros called on all countries to take a comprehensive blended strategy for controlling their epidemics and pushing this virus back.