UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the 1 million global death toll from the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) "an agonizing milestone."
According to Johns Hopkins University, the number of COVID-19 deaths worldwide has topped 1 million, with over 33 million confirmed cases and more than 23 million recoveries.
"Our world has reached an agonizing milestone: the loss of one million lives from the COVID-19 pandemic. It's a mind-numbing figure. Yet we must never lose sight of each and every individual life. They were fathers and mothers, wives and husbands, brothers and sisters, friends and colleagues. The pain has been multiplied by the savageness of this disease," Guterres said in a statement.
"And still there is no end in sight to the spread of the virus, the loss of jobs, the disruption of education, the upheaval to our lives. We can overcome this challenge. But we must learn from the mistakes. Responsible leadership matters. Science matters. Cooperation matters - and misinformation kills," he said.
Guterres called to keep physical distance, wear face masks and wash hands.