U.N. chief pans countries who ignored COVID-19 facts, WHO guidance

FILE PHOTO: United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks during a news conference at U.N. headquarters in New York City, New York, U.S., November 20, 2020. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday decried countries - without naming names - who rejected the facts about the coronavirus pandemic and ignored guidance from the World Health Organization (WHO).

Guterres addressed a special session of the 193-member U.N. General Assembly on the coronavirus, which emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan late last year and spread globally, so far infecting more than 100 million people and killing nearly 1.5 million.