A prominent Chinese doctor who was punished by police when he tried to warn his fellow medics about the coronavirus has died from the disease, officials at the World Health Organization (WHO) have confirmed.
Li Wenliang had posted information about the outbreak of what was then a mystery illness in online chat groups, according the Global Times, the official newspaper of the ruling Communist Party of China, which also reported his death.
He was later reprimanded by police for “posting false information on the Internet,” the newspaper reported.
In response to a question about Li’s death during a WHO coronavirus news conference Thursday, Dr. Mike Ryan paid tribute to the doctor’s efforts to care for patients. “We should celebrate his life and mourn his death with his colleagues,” said Ryan, head of WHO’s Health Emergencies Program.
He added that the organization was “very sad” to hear of Li’s death from the virus.
