<p>The World Health Organization voiced alarm Monday over a rapid worsening of the Covid-19 situations in Brazil and Mexico, urging them to be "very serious" about halting the spread.</p>.<p>Both countries had seen both cases and deaths from the novel coronavirus surge in recent weeks as a second wave of the pandemic has hit.</p>.<p>"I think Brazil has to be very, very serious," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters, warning the situation there was "very, very worrisome".</p>.<p>And he echoed the same concern when asked about Mexico, saying that country was "in bad shape".</p>.<p>"The number of cases doubled and the number of deaths doubled... we would like to ask Mexico to be very serious."</p>.<p><strong>Also read: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/world-news-politics/lets-not-politicise-probe-of-covid-19-origins-whos-tedros-921796.html" target="_blank">Let's not politicise probe of Covid-19 origins: WHO's Tedros</a></strong></p>.<p>Brazil has been one of the countries hit hardest by the pandemic, with more than 172,000 people killed -- the second-highest number in the world, following the United States.</p>.<p>After a seemingly endless plateau, with more than 1,000 deaths a day from June to August, on a seven-day rolling average, the numbers had finally been falling in the giant nation of 212 million people.</p>.<p>But Tedros pointed out that while the first week of November had seen 2,538 deaths, last week's death toll in Brazil stood at 3,876 -- "a significant increase".</p>.<p>Case numbers had also effectively doubled over the same period, with Brazil facing 218,000 cases last week alone.</p>.<p>President Jair Bolsonaro, who has downplayed the pandemic since the outset, has also dismissed talk of a second wave as "gossip".</p>.<p>The 65-year-old far-right leader, who has himself had Covid-19, argues the economic impact of lockdown measures are worse than the virus itself, and has also said he would not take a vaccine when one becomes available.</p>.<p>Mexico meanwhile saw its total death toll pass 100,000 on November 20 and has added more than five thousand deaths since then.</p>.<p>Over the weekend, for the first time, it counted more than 12,000 cases in a single day.</p>
<p>The World Health Organization voiced alarm Monday over a rapid worsening of the Covid-19 situations in Brazil and Mexico, urging them to be "very serious" about halting the spread.</p>.<p>Both countries had seen both cases and deaths from the novel coronavirus surge in recent weeks as a second wave of the pandemic has hit.</p>.<p>"I think Brazil has to be very, very serious," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters, warning the situation there was "very, very worrisome".</p>.<p>And he echoed the same concern when asked about Mexico, saying that country was "in bad shape".</p>.<p>"The number of cases doubled and the number of deaths doubled... we would like to ask Mexico to be very serious."</p>.<p><strong>Also read: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/world-news-politics/lets-not-politicise-probe-of-covid-19-origins-whos-tedros-921796.html" target="_blank">Let's not politicise probe of Covid-19 origins: WHO's Tedros</a></strong></p>.<p>Brazil has been one of the countries hit hardest by the pandemic, with more than 172,000 people killed -- the second-highest number in the world, following the United States.</p>.<p>After a seemingly endless plateau, with more than 1,000 deaths a day from June to August, on a seven-day rolling average, the numbers had finally been falling in the giant nation of 212 million people.</p>.<p>But Tedros pointed out that while the first week of November had seen 2,538 deaths, last week's death toll in Brazil stood at 3,876 -- "a significant increase".</p>.<p>Case numbers had also effectively doubled over the same period, with Brazil facing 218,000 cases last week alone.</p>.<p>President Jair Bolsonaro, who has downplayed the pandemic since the outset, has also dismissed talk of a second wave as "gossip".</p>.<p>The 65-year-old far-right leader, who has himself had Covid-19, argues the economic impact of lockdown measures are worse than the virus itself, and has also said he would not take a vaccine when one becomes available.</p>.<p>Mexico meanwhile saw its total death toll pass 100,000 on November 20 and has added more than five thousand deaths since then.</p>.<p>Over the weekend, for the first time, it counted more than 12,000 cases in a single day.</p>