WHO director-general implores world leaders not to politicize the coronavirus pandemic

Without directly naming President Trump, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Wednesday asked global leaders to refrain from politicizing the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.
On Tuesday, Trump said he will "strongly consider" ending U.S. funding to WHO, the United Nations health agency. He said WHO "called it wrong" on the pandemic and claimed they "minimized the threat very strongly." WHO declared a global pandemic on March 11, a little more than a week after Trump said the coronavirus would "disappear" like a "miracle."
More than 83,000 people have died worldwide from COVID-19, and at least 1.4 million people have been infected. When asked about Trump's comments, Tedros said, "Why would I care about being attacked when people are dying? I know that I am just an individual. Tedros is just a dot in the whole universe." The most important thing now is to save lives, he said, and there is "no need to use COVID to score political points. You have many other ways to prove yourself. If you don't want many more body bags, then you refrain from politicizing it."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Is the body positivity era over?
Talking Point For some, a 'parade of skeletons' on the red carpet is a symptom of a return to an ultra-skinny ideal
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Mountains of garbage are creating more hazards in Gaza
under the radar Gaza was already creating 1,700 tons of waste daily prior to the war
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Crossword: March 3, 2025
The Week's daily crossword
By The Week Staff Published
-
Texas outbreak brings 1st US measles death since 2015
Speed read The outbreak is concentrated in a 'close-knit, undervaccinated' Mennonite community in rural Gaines County
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Mystery illness spreading in Congo rapidly kills dozens
Speed Read The World Health Organization said 53 people have died in an outbreak that originated in a village where three children ate a bat carcass
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Ozempic can curb alcohol cravings, study finds
Speed read Weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy may also be helpful in limiting alcohol consumption
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
New form of H5N1 bird flu found in US dairy cows
Speed Read This new form of bird flu is different from the version that spread through herds in the last year
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Microplastics accumulating in human brains, study finds
Speed Read The amount of tiny plastic particles found in human brains increased dramatically from 2016 to 2024
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
FDA approves painkiller said to thwart addiction
Speed Read Suzetrigine, being sold as Journavx, is the first new pharmaceutical pain treatment approved by the FDA in 20 years
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Study finds possible alternative abortion pill
Speed Read An emergency contraception (morning-after) pill called Ella could be an alternative to mifepristone for abortions
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
California declares bird flu emergency
Speed Read The emergency came hours after the nation's first person with severe bird flu infection was hospitalized
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published