The World Health Organization (WHO) officially declared the COVID-19 novel coronavirus to be a pandemic on Wednesday, as the disease spread to at least 114 countries around the world.
“WHO has been assessing this outbreak around the clock and we are deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity, and by the alarming levels of inaction,” WHO Director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters at a news briefing. He said the organization “therefore made the assessment that COVID-19 can be characterized as a pandemic.
“In the days and weeks ahead, we expect to see the number of COVID-19 cases, the number of deaths, and even the number of affected countries climb.
“Pandemic is not a word to use lightly or carelessly. It is a word that, if misused, can cause unreasonable fear, or unjustified acceptance that the fight is over, leading to unnecessary suffering and death,” he said Wednesday.
At present, there are 118,381 confirmed cases of the virus around the world. The disease has killed 4,292 people so far, according to the World Health Organization.
In addition to China, the countries with the highest number of infected citizens include Italy, Iran, South Korea, France, Spain, and Germany.
The State of Israel reported 75 confirmed cases of the virus; the Palestinian Authority has reported 30 cases thus far.