Before coronavirus vaccine comes, global death toll may hit 2 mn: WHO

The World Health Organization (WHO) warned that the global coronavirus death toll could hit two million before an effective vaccine is widely used.

WHO emergencies head Mike Ryan on Friday said the figure could be even higher without concerted international action, the BBC reported.

The number of Covid-19 deaths is fast approaching one million - nine months after the outbreak started in China.

Ryan also urged Europeans to ask themselves whether they had done enough to avoid the need for lockdowns.

He questioned whether all the alternatives had been implemented, like testing and tracing, quarantine, isolation, social distancing, wearing masks and hand-washing.

Earlier, Spain's capital Madrid brought another eight districts under tougher coronavirus restrictions, which now affect a million people in the city.

In France, staff from bars and restaurants in the southern city Marseille protested against the closure of their workplaces which was brought in on Saturday.

And in the UK, tougher restrictions were announced in several regions as new daily infections rise.

--IANS

rt/