UNITED NATIONS -- The United Nations on Thursday launched an updated COVID-19 Global Humanitarian Response Plan that requires 6.69 billion U.S. dollars to help fragile countries cope with the pandemic.
The fund requirement of the original response plan, which was launched on March 25, was 2 billion dollars. (UN-Virus-Appeal)
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WASHINGTON -- Former U.S. Ambassador to China Max Baucus said that the U.S. government's anti-China rhetoric reminded him of the McCarthy era.
"The administration's rhetoric is so strong against China. It's over the top. We're entering a kind of an era which is similar to Joe McCarthy back when he was red-baiting the State Department, attacking communism," Baucus said in an interview with CNN on Wednesday. (US-China-COVID-19)
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WASHINGTON -- A member of the U.S. Navy and personal valet to President Donald Trump has tested positive for the coronavirus, the White House confirmed Thursday.
"We were recently notified by the White House Medical Unit that a member of the United States Military, who works on the White House campus, has tested positive for Coronavirus," White House deputy press secretary Hogan Gidley said in a statement. (US-Coronavirus-Trump)
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TEHRAN -- At least one person was killed in the 5.1-magnitude earthquake that hit Damavand town, 69 km to the east of Iran's capital Tehran, at 00:48 local time Friday (2018 GMT Thursday).
The spokesman of Iran's Emergency Organization was quoted by Tasnim news agency as saying that a 60-year-old man was killed by the quake. (Iran-Quake-Casualties)
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ZAGREB -- Croatian Defense Minister Damir Krsticevic offered to resign on Thursday after a military airplane crashed near the coastal city of Zadar, killing two members of the Croatian Air Force.
Announcing his resignation during a press conference on Thursday evening, Krsticevic said that this is a great loss for the Croatian Air Force and he called for an investigation into the circumstances of the accident, as well as the training system and command line. (Croatia-Defense minister-Resignation) Enditem
