WHO asks China for more information about rise in illnesses and pneumonia clusters

By JAMEY KEATEN and MARIA CHENG
Associated Press

GENEVA (AP) — The World Health Organization says it has made an official request to China for information about a potentially worrying spike in respiratory illnesses and clusters of pneumonia in children. On Thursday, the U.N. health agency said Chinese officials told them they did not detect any “unusual or novel” diseases. The emergence of new new flu strains or other viruses capable of triggering pandemics, typically starts with undiagnosed clusters of respiratory illness. Both SARS and COVID-19 were reported as unusual types of pneumonia. Outside scientists said the situation warranted close monitoring, but were not convinced that the recent spike in respiratory illnesses in China signaled the start of a new global outbreak.