New York, April 7 -- The benefits of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine are still "largely positive" and outweigh risk of rare but serious blood clots, according to an official with the World Health Organization (WHO), speaking on Tuesday during the agency's regular press briefing from Geneva.

Dr Rogerio Pinto de Sa Gaspar, Director for Regulation and Prequalification, was responding to a journalist's question regarding links between the vaccine and cerebral venous sinus thrombosis, a rare blood clotting syndrome.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) on Tuesday denied that it had established any link, following reports that one of its experts stated there was a connection.

Expert meetings underway

Meanwhile, an EMA committee that monitor...