The coronavirus pandemic led to nearly 15 million excess deaths worldwide, according to a new estimate by the World Health Organization, including people who died from covid-19 and others who died from other causes related to the crisis, such as health care shortages as the virus surged and overwhelmed hospitals.

The WHO defines excess deaths as “the difference between the number of deaths that have occurred and the number that would be expected in the absence of the pandemic based on data from earlier years.”

New figures from the World Health Organization Thursday estimate that around 14.9 million people died "directly or indirectly" from the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021, more than double the previously reported death toll.

Nearly 15 million people died as a result of Covid-19 in the first two years of the pandemic, the World Health Organization estimated in a report released Thursday. That figure is 2.7 times higher than the 5.4 million deaths that governments around the world reported to the global health agency for that period.

Neil Young is getting support for leaving Spotify this week – even the director of the World Health Organization is praising the musician. 

Young said he wanted his music removed from the music streaming platform this week because of the "false information about vaccines being spread." The 76-year-old rocker apparently doesn't want to share a platform with Joe Rogan, whose podcast, "The Joe Rogan Experience" has an exclusive deal with Spotify and has frequently spread false information about COVID-19.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO), is all but ensured to lead the organization for a second term, from 2022 to 2027, because he is the only candidate in the race. As a matter of procedure, on 25 January, the WHO’s executive board is expected to nominate him for re-election in May.

The probable extension of his leadership occurs against the backdrop of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, as the health agency continues to advise countries on how to curb the coronavirus’s devastation.

Amid persistent criticism that his organization failed to properly oversee China's coronavirus response and worked to downplay the communist nation's responsibility for the pandemic, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is facing growing calls for his resignation from American politicians and others around the world.