North Korea says its first COVID-19 wave is over
STORY: North Korea has marked the end of its own first wave of the pandemic.
State media said Friday that all of those it’s called ‘fever patients’ have recovered.
The reclusive country has never confirmed how many people caught COVID-19 there, apparently lacking the supplies to test for it.
State media did not boast of victory on Friday, only saying that the quote, “anti-epidemic situation ... has entered a definite phase of stability.”
Pyongyang has said around 4.7 million ‘fever patients’ have fully recovered and that 74 have died since last April.
South Korean officials and medical experts have cast doubts on those figures, especially the number of deaths.
In July, one sign of easing outbreaks came when the ruling Workers' Party hosted a large, mask-free event, inviting hundreds of Korean War veterans.
And this week, there was enough confidence in conditions that state media showed sports picking up again, from bowling to the national football league.
