The World Health Organization(WHO) gave a rather pessimistic outlook on the COVID-19 situation in North Korea.

Mike Ryan, the WHO's emergencies chief, said during Wednesday's briefing that the agency assumes that the outbreak in the North is getting worse, not better, contrary to the regime's claims that the transmission has slowed.

Ryan also said that the WHO has difficulty gaining access to raw data and to ascertained infections on the ground.

The agency official added that the United Nations health agency has made three offers of COVID-19 vaccines to the reclusive country to curb infections and continues to offer aid.

The regime's state-run Korean Central News Agency(KCNA) reported on Thursday that there were 96-thousand-610 new patients with fever nationwide in the 24-hour period leading up to 6 p.m. Wednesday.

The daily number of suspected cases plunged below 100-thousand in the past several days, after peaking at 392-thousand-920 on May 15.

[Photo : YONHAP News]