Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Araghchi to Grossi: These parties will bear responsibility for the consequences of their actions
Araghchi to Grossi: Iran will respond to any unlawful action by European countries or parties attempting to turn the Agency into a tool for achieving their objectives
Araghchi to Grossi: We urge the Agency to warn against the consequences of any political move against Iran
Araghchi to Grossi: We call on the Agency to highlight Iran’s full cooperation during the upcoming Board of Governors meeting next week
Araghchi to Grossi: We demand that the Agency reflect the facts in a manner that prevents certain parties from exploiting it to advance their political agendas
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi holds a phone call with IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi
Trump envoy Witkoff has sent 'detailed and acceptable proposal' to Iran for nuclear deal; it's in their best interest to accept it: White House Press Secretary Leavitt
Hamas official says Witkoff's position toward group was 'unfair' and shows 'complete bias' to 'Israel'
Hamas official says it has considered Witkoff's proposal acceptable for negotiations, says 'Israel's' response was incompatible with what the group agreed on
Hamas official says group has not rejected Wikoff's proposal for Gaza ceasefire

WHO: Covid deaths far exceeds totals reported by countries

  • By Al Mayadeen Net
  • Source: Agencies
  • 5 May 2022 20:26
  • 1 Shares
4 Min Read

Nearly 15 million more people died during the first two years of the pandemic than would have been expected during normal times.

  • x
  • A logo is pictured outside a building of the World Health Organization (WHO) during an executive board meeting on update on the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Geneva,
    WHO logo pictured outside the building of the organization, April 6, 2021 (Reuters)

In a news release issued by the World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday, the organization reports that the full death toll directly or indirectly linked to the Covid-19 pandemic (described as “excess mortality”) between 2020 and 2021 was approximately 14.9 million.

Excess mortality is calculated as the number of deaths that have occurred minus the number that would be expected in the absence of the pandemic based on data from previous years. 

A WHO global panel of experts calculated the estimates of a number of countries and published them on its website on Thursday, showing how drastically death counts reported by several governments were understating the real toll of the pandemic.

The excess mortality during the first two years of the pandemic was two times as high as the government’s official tally of Covid deaths in Mexico, 12 times as high as the official Covid toll in Egypt, and 8 times as high in Pakistan.

The experts estimated that roughly 14.9 million more people around the world died between 2020 and 2021 than they would have in usual times. Most were Covid-19 victims, but some died because it was difficult for them to receive medical care for sicknesses such as those related to the heart. The previous toll was 6 million; it was based only on death counts that the governments reported.

Related News

Half a billion adolescents could face obesity by 2030, report warns

Gaza Ministry reports 136 martyrs in 24 hours amid ongoing genocide

Dr. Prabhat Jha, an epidemiologist at St. Michael’s Hospital and the University of Toronto, who was also a member of the expert panel, said, "It’s absolutely staggering what has happened with this pandemic, including our inability to accurately monitor it,” adding that “It shouldn’t happen in the 21st century.”

The WHO estimated that nearly a third of the excess deaths have taken place in India, where deaths were underreported, just like in several other countries, due to failure to count Covid deaths properly or because the primary cause of death wouldn't be registered as Covid.

In other countries, WHO experts used the limited data available to reach estimates greatly varying from previous counts. In Indonesia, for example, the experts based their calculations on monthly death data from the capital, Jakarta, to estimate that the country had experienced over a million more deaths than usual during the pandemic. The number would be 7 times as high as the reported death toll.

However, Siti Nadia Tarmizi, the government’s Covid-19 vaccination program's spokeswoman, admitted this week that the country had seen more deaths than it had reported. According to her, the problem was partly due to people not reporting their relatives' deaths in order to avoid applying the government's strict rules related to Covid-19 victims’ funerals.

Another example is Peru where the experts estimated 290,000 excess deaths by the end of 2021, just 1.4 times as high as the reported Covid-19 death toll. However, the WHO estimated 437 excess deaths for every 100,000 Peruvians who left the country, making the results among the world’s highest per capita tolls.

A public health specialist in Peru said, “When a health care system isn’t prepared to receive patients who are seriously ill with pneumonia, when it can’t provide the oxygen they need to live, or even provide beds for them to lay in so they can have some peace, you get what you’ve gotten."

In the United States, the WHO estimated roughly 930,000 more people than expected to have died by 2021, in comparison with 820,000 Covid-19 deaths that had been officially recorded over the same period.

  • World Health Organization
  • deaths
  • WHO
  • Pandemic
  • COVID-19
  • COVID-19 pandemic

Most Read

US judges quietly consider private security amid Trump tensions

US judges quietly consider private security amid Trump pressures

  • US & Canada
  • 25 May 2025
President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrive to a news conference in the East Room of the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2025, in Washington (AP)

Rift widens: Trump, Netanyahu clash in heated phone call over Iran

  • Politics
  • 26 May 2025
An Israeli army vehicle moves in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern occupied Palestine, Thursday, May 29, 2025 (AP)

Hamas rejects Witkoff ceasefire plan, says alters terms

  • Politics
  • 29 May 2025
Spokesperson for the Yemeni Armed Forces, Brigadier General Yahya Saree, announces a new operation against Ben Gurion Airport on May 29, 2025 (Yemeni Military Media)

Yemen announces successful hypersonic missile strike on Ben Gurion

  • Politics
  • 30 May 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
MIT bans class president who gave pro-Palestine speech
US & Canada

MIT bans class president over pro-Palestine speech

Arab ministers condemn Israel 'ban' on planned West Bank visit
Politics

Arab ministers condemn Israeli ban on planned West Bank visit

Major General Hu Gangfeng, Vice President, National Defense University, People's Liberation Army, China, leaves after a panel discussion during the 22nd Shangri-La Dialogue summit in Singapore, Saturday, May 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Anupam Nath)
Politics

China blasts Hegseth, calls US top 'troublemaker' in Asia-Pacific

US activists demand shutdown of Musk's 'dirty' supercomputer: Reports
Technology

US activists demand shutdown of Musk's 'dirty' supercomputer: NBC News

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS