WHO warns 'the worst is yet to come'

It has now been six months since the first cases of a mysterious pneumonia-like illness were reported in Wuhan, China.

At the time it was feared that we would see a repeat of the Sars outbreak of 2002 to 2004, which killed 774 people.

Now, with more than 500,000 people dead and more than 10 million confirmed cases worldwide, WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said this is "a moment for all of us to reflect", the BBC reported.

But, he warned, the "worst is yet to come" - adding that "with this kind of environment and conditions, we fear the worst".

Despite progress in some countries, he said the pandemic was speeding up and the world would need even greater stores of resilience, patience and generosity in the months ahead.

"Six months ago, none of us could have imagined how our world - and our lives - would be thrown into turmoil by this new virus," Tedros said at the WHO press conference.