GENEVA (Reuters) – Some countries have seen “upticks” in COVID-19 cases as lockdowns ease, and populations must continue to protect themselves against the coronavirus, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday.

“On upticks, yes we have seen in countries around the world – I’m not talking specifically about Europe – when the lockdowns ease, when the social distancing measures ease, people sometimes interpret this as ‘OK, it’s over’,” WHO spokeswoman Margaret Harris told a U.N. briefing in Geneva.

“It’s not over. It’s not over until there is no virus anywhere in the world,” she said, adding that U.S. protesters must also take precautions when gathering.