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Coronavirus Pandemic Will Push 60 Million Into Extreme Poverty: World Bank

The pandemic will erase all the progress made in poverty alleviation in the past 3 years, World Bank saidWashington: The head of the World Bank warned Tuesday that the coronavirus crisis threatens to push some 60 million people into extreme poverty, wiping out the gains made over the past three years.The global lending institution is already financing aid programs in 100 countries, under its commitment to spend $160 billion over the next 15 months, bank president David Malpass said."That's home to 70 percent of the world's population. This represents a significant milestone," Malpass told a conference call.Malpass said the bank anticipates a five percent contraction in the world economy this year, with severe effects on the poorest countries."Our estimate is that up to 60 million people will be pushed into extreme poverty, erasing all the progress made in poverty alleviation in the past three years, and our forecasts indicate a deep recession," Malpass said.Nearly five million people have been infected by the virus around the world, and more than 300,000 have died since it first appeared in China in late 2019.So far, the World Bank has spent $5.5 billion to shore up beleaguered health systems, economies and social services in poor countries.But Malpass stressed that the World Bank's efforts alone were insufficient, and urged donor nations to step up bilateral aid to poorer countries to ensure a durable recovery.He said restoring the flow of remittance payments and tourism -- key sources of income for developing countries -- would be "critical steps in the reopening."A year-long moratorium on debt payments by less developed countries -- called for by the G-20 in mid-April -- has gained growing acceptance, he noted.According to Malpass, 14 countries have agreed to such a suspension of debt payments, another 23 are expected to request it, and 17 were giving it serious consideration."That's a very welcome and very fast response and positive response to the G-20 countries' commitment," he said.(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.) Read the full article

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Donald Trump Set To Restore Partial Funding To World Health Organization: Report

Trump has accused WHO of promoting China's "disinformation" about coronavirus outbreak.President Donald Trump's administration is set to restore partial funding to the World Health Organization, Fox News reported late on Friday, citing a draft letter.The Trump administration will "agree to pay up to what China pays in assessed contributions" to the WHO, Fox News reported, quoting from the letter.Trump suspended US contributions to the WHO on April 14, accusing it of promoting China's "disinformation" about the coronavirus outbreak and saying his administration would launch a review of the organization.WHO officials denied the claims and China has insisted it was transparent and open.The United States was the WHO's biggest donor.If the US matches China's contribution, as the Fox report adds, its new funding level will be about one-tenth of its previous funding amount of about $400 million per year. Read the full article

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US House Passes $3 Trillion Coronavirus Recovery Bill, Fate Uncertain In Senate

House Democrats on Friday narrowly pushed through the largest-ever US economic rescue package, but the coronavirus measure faces headwinds in the White House and Senate where Republicans bemoan its $3 trillion price tag.The Heroes Act, which passed largely along party lines, provides some $1 trillion for state and local governments, another round of cash disbursements to millions of hard-hit American families, funds for hospitals and health workers, and relief for devastated small businesses.The 1,815-page measure also would extend unemployment and food aid; provide rent and mortgage support for struggling households, and pump billions of dollars into virus testing, tracing operations and treatment."We think this is a major investment in the lives of the American people and in the budgets of our states and localities," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said.The American people, more than 36 million of whom have lost their jobs due to the coronavirus catastrophe and related business lockdown, "are suffering so much, in so many ways," Pelosi added. "We want to lessen the pain for them."All but one Republican opposed the bill, along with 14 Democrats, as the measure cleared the House on a vote of 208 to 199.Many Republicans branded it an exorbitant liberal wish list packed with Democratic priorities like funding for vote-by-mail programs or marijuana studies."It's not a stretch to say that this bill is nothing more than a Democratic policy agenda masquerading as a response to the coronavirus crisis," House Republican Tom Cole told colleagues."The Senate will not pass this bill, the president will not sign it into law."Leaders in the Republican-controlled Senate have said they are opposed to moving swiftly with a new tranche of relief, preferring more time to study how the previous aid measures have helped American communities.Pelosi has said the bill is effectively an opening offer, and she expects Republicans to join Democrats in negotiating compromise legislation.Trump has already signed four pandemic relief measures into law.They include a $2.2 trillion package in March and a $483 billion measure to pump additional funds into a loan program for hard-hit small businesses. Read the full article

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Antimicrobial Surface Coating Kills Coronavirus For 90 Days, Says Study

The colorless substance is sprayed on surfaces, and has to be reapplied every three to four months.Washington, United States: A specially formulated antimicrobial coating can keep surfaces clear of a human coronavirus for up to 90 days with just one application, a preliminary study said Friday, suggesting a new line of defense against COVID-19.The paper by researchers at the University of Arizona (UA), which has not yet been peer-reviewed, found that the amount of virus on coated surfaces reduced by 90 percent in 10 minutes and by 99.9 percent in two hours.Charles Gerba, a microbiologist at UA who was the study's senior author, told AFP the technology was "the next advancement in infection control.""I think it's mostly important for high-use surfaces like subways and buses, because you could disinfect them but then the next people that come in there will recontaminate the surfaces," he said. "It's not a substitute for regular cleaning and disinfecting, but it covers you in between regular disinfecting and cleaning."The UA team tested a coating specifically designed to act against viruses that was developed by the company Allied BioScience, which also funded their study.The researchers carried out their testing on human coronavirus 229E, which is similar in structure and genetics to SARS-CoV-2 but causes only mild cold symptoms and was therefore safer to use.The coating works by "denaturing" the virus' proteins -- effectively twisting them out of shape -- and attacking its protective layer of fat.The colorless substance is sprayed on surfaces, and has to be reapplied every three to four months.The technology behind so-called self-disinfecting coatings has been around for almost a decade, and has previously been used in hospitals to fight against the spread of infection, including against antibiotic-resistant bacteria.A 2019 paper by UA researchers found that coatings reduced hospital-acquired infections by 36 percent.Gerba said that as a university professor, he and colleagues had been discussing ways to make their environment safer for students when they return from lockdowns, and antimicrobial coatings on door handles and table tops would be useful."There's a lot of them being developed right now, but hopefully when we start opening everything, they'll be ready."(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Read the full article

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Spain's Coronavirus Daily Death Count Falls To 179

The number of diagnosed coronavirus cases rose to 2,23,578 in Spain (File)Madrid: Spain's daily death count from the coronavirus fell to 179 on Saturday, down from 229 on the previous day, the health ministry reported.Overall deaths rose to 26,478 from 26,299 on Friday and the number of diagnosed cases rose to 223,578 from 222,857 the day before, the ministry said.(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.) Read the full article

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US Justice Department Drops Case Against Ex-Donald Trump Aide Michael Flynn

The department said FBI's original probe of Michael Flynn had no "legitimate investigative basis."Washington: The US Justice Department withdrew its case against former White House national security advisor Michael Flynn Thursday, handing President Donald Trump a major political victory.The department said in a filing that Flynn's December 2017 guilty plea for lying to the FBI in an interview over his Russia contacts was moot because the alleged lies were not significant.It also said the FBI's original probe of him had no "legitimate investigative basis."The decision by the Justice Department, led by close Trump ally Attorney General Bill Barr, came as Flynn was fighting the court's move toward a decision on his sentence, and after public statements by Trump that Flynn was the political victim of "filthy cops."Flynn's secret talks with the Russian ambassador to Washington in December 2016, before Trump was inaugurated, was a cornerstone of the sprawling investigation by Special Counsel Robert Mueller into Moscow's meddling in the US election.Even though Trump fired Flynn just 22 days into his administration, the president has always claimed the investigation was a political "witch hunt" and that Flynn, a former general and head of the Defense Intelligence Agency, was a "good man."The Justice Department filing Thursday gave support to Trump's claim, saying there were no grounds for the original investigation."The government has concluded that the interview of Mr Flynn was untethered to, and unjustified by, the FBI's counterintelligence investigation into Mr Flynn -- a no longer justifiably predicated investigation," it said.The department said the January 24, 2017 interview was not "conducted with a legitimate investigative basis, and therefore does not believe Mr Flynn's statements were material if untrue."(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.) Read the full article

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Top US Expert Anthony Fauci To Testify Before US Senate On COVID-19 Response

Anthony Fauci is part of the White House Coronavirus Task ForceWashington: US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said top health official Anthony Fauci would appear next week before a panel in the Republican-controlled U.S. Senate examining the country's coronavirus response but could not testify to the Democratic-led House of Representatives.Trump, speaking to reporters at the White House, defended his decision to block the nation's top infectious disease expert from appearing before the House, saying he was being set up by Democrats who hate him and want to win back the White House in November's presidential election.Fauci, who directs the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and is part of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, is scheduled to appear May 12 before the Senate Health, Education, and Labor and Pensions committee along with other top US health officials."The House is a set up. The House is a bunch of Trump haters. They put every Trump hater on the committee," the Republican president said."The House they should be ashamed of themselves and, frankly, the Democrats should be ashamed because they don't want us to succeed. They want us to fail so they can win an election, which they're not going to win," added Trump, who is seeking re-election in November.A House Appropriations subcommittee that oversees health programs had been seeking testimony from Fauci for a May 6 hearing, but the White House last week said his appearance would be "counterproductive."Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen Hahn, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Robert Redfield, and Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary Brett Giroir are also scheduled to appear before the Senate hearing next week focused on "safely getting back to work and ... school," according to the committee.(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.) Read the full article

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NATO Withholds Key Information On Taliban Attacks: US Watchdog

The Pentagon is on course to cut its troop numbers from about 12,000 to 8,600Kabul: NATO's US-led mission in Afghanistan is withholding key information about Taliban attacks, a US government watchdog said Friday, potentially making insights into the war harder just as the Pentagon slashes its troop presence.The Resolute Support (RS) mission previously disclosed data on "enemy-initiated attacks", one of the few remaining public metrics of the conflict and the strength of the Taliban and other insurgent groups.In its quarterly report released Friday, the office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) said RS had stopped providing numbers.Instead, RS gave only a short statement noting the Taliban had stepped up attacks in March, immediately after the signing of a US-Taliban deal that was supposed to pave the way to peace talks."Between March 1 and 31, the Taliban refrained from attacks against coalition forces; however they increased attacks against (Afghan forces) to levels above seasonal norms," RS said, according to the report.Under the deal, US and other foreign forces will quit Afghanistan next year if the Taliban start peace talks with Kabul and stick to various security commitments.In the week ahead of the February 29 deal signing in Doha, violence plummeted during a partial truce and US officials hoped attacks would stay low.Instead, the Taliban immediately resumed assaults on Afghan forces.During the deal negotiations, the Taliban had agreed to stop hitting foreign troops, but there was no such prohibition on targeting Afghan forces.'Unacceptably high' violenceRS told SIGAR that it chose to restrict data because enemy attacks were now a "critical part" of discussions "regarding ongoing political negotiations between the US and the Taliban".SIGAR noted the Pentagon said it might release the information in the future.A Pentagon spokesman justified the decision to withhold data, citing ongoing talks."So the decision was that we're working toward a better solution and a better place for Afghanistan and that the sharing of that information would not... move the ball forward," the spokesman, Jonathan Hoffman, told reporters."The level of violence by the Taliban is unacceptably high," he said, adding that it was not conducive to a diplomatic solution.The move to withhold attack numbers follows a trend of diminishing insights into America's longest war, which the US has given up ever winning and is instead trying to end through a political agreement that will provide face-saving cover to leave Afghanistan.In 2018, RS stopped providing data on how much of the country the Taliban held or contested, amid criticism the war was at a stalemate.That followed a decision by the Afghan government to classify data on how many of its soldiers and police were getting killed by the Taliban, after shocking figures showed several thousand were dying each year.Data on enemy attacks "was one of the last remaining metrics SIGAR was able to use to report publicly on the security situation in Afghanistan," the watchdog said.The Pentagon is on course to cut its troop numbers from about 12,000 to 8,600 in the coming months.In its report, SIGAR also warned that Afghanistan faces a brutal toll in its worsening coronavirus crisis."Afghanistan's numerous and, in some cases, unique vulnerabilities... make it likely the country will confront a health disaster in the coming months," SIGAR said.Afghanistan officials have so far confirmed 2,171 cases of COVID-19, including 64 deaths.(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.) Read the full article