COVID-19 death tolls are likely a "significant undercount", WHO says

FILE PHOTO: Volunteers from the Khan Trust prepare to cremate the body of a person who died from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at the Kurukshetra Crematorium in Surat, India, May 11, 2021. REUTERS/Amit Dave/File Photo

GENEVA (Reuters) - Official tolls showing the number of deaths directly or indirectly attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic are likely to be a "significant undercount", the World Health Organization said on Friday, saying 6-8 million people may have died so far.

Presenting its annual World Health Statistics report, the WHO estimated that total deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 were at least 3 million last year or 1.2 million more than officially reported.