Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the first African to head the World Health Organisation, was re-elected for a second five-year term following a secret ballot.
He said he was humbled by the appointment and became tearful during his acceptance speech.
Dr Tedros described himself as “a child of war” and that after witnessing his younger brother’s death at an early age, it was “luck [that] brought me all the way here”.
His upbringing during war was especially meaningful given the current situation in Ukraine.
“Let peace and understanding be the antidote to war,” he said.
“I am really, really overwhelmed by the support,” Dr Tedros told the assembly after his re-election was announced to thundering applause.
“This recognition is not only for me. I really believe this is recognition for the whole WHO family. I am really proud to be WHO.”
An overwhelming majority of the WHO's 194 member states voted for Dr Tedros to continue as the UN health agency's director general.
No other candidate challenged Dr Tedros for the post amid the continuing difficulties of responding to the devastating coronavirus pandemic.
He is the first African to lead the agency and the only director general not qualified as a medical doctor, though he has a doctorate in community health.
Dr Tedros became a familiar face after he spearheaded the global response to the coronavirus pandemic — an issue that remains centre at the WHO's annual assembly taking place in Geneva this week.
The Ethiopian former minister of health and of foreign affairs has also increasingly been sounding the alarm over the heavy toll that conflicts such as the war in Ukraine are taking on global health.
“More even than pandemics, war shakes and shatters the foundations on which previously stable societies stood,” the 57-year-old malaria expert said at the start of the assembly on Sunday.
“And it leaves psychological scars that can take years or decades to heal.”
Amid the near-universal focus on Ukraine after the Russian invasion, Dr Tedros slammed the global community for not doing enough to solve crises elsewhere, including Yemen, Syria and Afghanistan, arguing that it was possibly because those suffering were not white.
While leading the WHO throughout its management of the global response to Covid-19, he has withstood occasionally withering criticism over its many missteps.
Under Dr Tedros, the UN health agency failed to call out countries including China for blunders that WHO officials grumbled about privately, advised against mask-wearing for months and said initially that the coronavirus was not likely to mutate rapidly.
Scientists drafted by the WHO to investigate the coronavirus’s origins in China said the critical probe was “stalled ” last year after issuing a report that even Dr Tedros acknowledged had prematurely ruled out the possibility of a laboratory leak.
“There have been some mishaps, but Tedros has also been a steady voice throughout the pandemic, advocating for an equitable response,” said Javier Guzman, director of global health policy at the Centre for Global Development in Washington.
He said despite reservations about Dr Tedros’s leadership, some countries weren’t willing to push for change.
“We are in the middle of the pandemic and there is some pressure for consistent leadership to take us through this difficult moment,” Mr Guzman said.
Still, critics say Dr Tedros has failed on some fundamental issues, such as holding staff accountable after allegations that dozens of outbreak workers managed by the WHO sexually abused young women in Congo during an Ebola outbreak that began in 2018 in one of the biggest sex scandals in UN history.
None of the senior WHO managers alerted to the abuse allegations have been fired.
Some experts have also raised concerns that the WHO is not fulfilling its primary role as a technical agency providing science-based guidance to countries.
David Tomlinson, a cardiologist who has campaigned for better protective equipment for health workers in Britain’s health system, says he has been appalled by WHO advice, most notably their reluctance to acknowledge that Covid-19 is widely spread in the air.
In July 2020, more than 230 scientists published a paper appealing to the WHO to recognise that coronavirus was airborne. This later prompted the organisation to alter some of its recommendations.
Dr Tomlinson and others say Dr Tedros should ensure that the WHO’s top priority during future health emergencies is evaluating the science.
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The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
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Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
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Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
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The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Company profile
Company name: Suraasa
Started: 2018
Founders: Rishabh Khanna, Ankit Khanna and Sahil Makker
Based: India, UAE and the UK
Industry: EdTech
Initial investment: More than $200,000 in seed funding
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
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Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
Chinese Grand Prix schedule (in UAE time)
Friday: First practice - 6am; Second practice - 10am
Saturday: Final practice - 7am; Qualifying - 10am
Sunday: Chinese Grand Prix - 10.10am
Company%20profile
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THE SIXTH SENSE
Starring: Bruce Willis, Toni Collette, Hayley Joel Osment
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Rating: 5/5
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