‘Worst yet ahead of us’

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director-general of the World Health Organization, has warned that "the worst is yet ahead of us" if the world doesn't unite to fight the coronavirus pandemic."

"Without national unity and global solidarity, trust us, the worst is yet ahead of us," he said during a press briefing.

Tedros compared the virus to the 1918 flu that killed 675,000 people in the US and tens of millions of people around the world. But he argued that the world now has the technology to prevent "that kind of crisis."

"Let's prevent this tragedy," he said. "It's a virus that many people still don't understand."

Ghebreyesus didn't explain exactly how he expects the virus' toll to intensify, but he argued that partisanship and political divisions are exacerbating the crisis.

"The cracks between people and the cracks between parties is fueling it," he said. "Don't use this virus as an opportunity to fight against each other or score political points. It's dangerous. It's like playing with fire."

Ghebreyesus said there were no secrets at the UN agency after being blasted by the United States for allegedly downplaying the initial COVID-19 outbreak in China.

The virus, which emerged late last year in the Chinese city of Wuhan, has so far infected nearly 2.5 million people globally and killed more than 170,000, according to an AFP tally.

Washington is the biggest contributor to the WHO but Trump is freezing funding, alleging that the organisation mismanaged and covered up the spread the virus.