World Health Organization (WHO) has set up an independent panel to review its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and the response by governments. The announcement follows strong criticism by US President Donald Trump, which accused the WHO of being China-centric.<br />'' <br />''Former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark and former Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf have agreed to head the panel. The co-chairs will select the other members.<br />'' <br />''The panel will then provide an interim report to an annual meeting of health ministers in November and present a substantive report next May.<br />''<br />''WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that the magnitude of this pandemic has virtually touched everyone and deserved a commensurate evaluation.<br />'' <br />''More than 1.2 crore people have been infected by the novel coronavirus globally and over 5.48 lakh have died.<br />'' <br />''<span style="color: #222222;">US has formally informed WHO that it is withdrawing from the UN agency in a year's time.</span><br />