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NEW YORK -- Global COVID-19 deaths surpassed 280,000 on Sunday, reaching 280,507 as of 12:32 p.m. (1632 GMT), according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University.
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WASHINGTON -- U.S. Vice President Mike Pence has been distancing himself from others after his press secretary tested positive for the coronavirus, U.S. media reported Sunday.
"Vice President Pence will continue to follow the advice of the White House Medical Unit and is not in quarantine," Devin O'Malley, a spokesman for Pence, was cited by The Associated Press as saying. "Additionally, Vice President Pence has tested negative every single day and plans to be at the White House tomorrow."
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NAIROBI -- Huawei on Sunday pledged to support Africa's COVID-19 epidemic control efforts, an official said.
Chen Lei, president of Huawei Southern Africa region said in commentary published in The Standard newspaper that its remote video conferencing systems have already helped medical institutions communicate more efficiently.
"We have also implemented an AI-based diagnosis solution in several medical institutions. CT scan reviews can now be completed in two minutes, 80 percent faster, in a race with time, critical for saving lives," Chen said.
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LONDON --British Prime Minister Boris Johnson revealed his government's approach to tackling the COVID-19 pandemic in the next phase in his address to the nation Sunday evening.
The prime minister said that the government has a plan to ease lockdown, but "it is a conditional plan," and since "our priority is to protect the public and save lives, we cannot move forward unless we satisfy the five tests."
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NEW DELHI -- Former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was admitted at Delhi-based All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) after he complained of chest pain, reported the Press Trust of India (PTI) late on Sunday evening.
He has been kept under observation at a cardio-thoracic ward, added the report.
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CAIRO -- Egypt received on Sunday the second batch of medical aid from the Chinese government for the North African country to fight the COVID-19 epidemic.
The second batch consists of 440 boxes weighing 4.7 tons, including 10,000 N95 face masks, 10,000 protective suits and 70,000 nucleic acid detection reagents, said Chinese Ambassador to Egypt Liao Liqiang in a ceremony held at the headquarters of Egypt's health ministry's main storehouse for medical supplies in Cairo.
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QUITO -- Ecuador on Sunday reported 2,127 deaths from COVID-19 as the number of infections reached 29,559.
The death toll saw a spike from the 1,717 fatalities reported in the previous 24 hours.
The substantial one-day increase in deaths was due to "a reclassification of deceased persons," according to the Ministry of Public Health.
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JERUSALEM -- Israel's finance ministry has agreed to guarantee 80 percent of a 400-million-U.S.-dollar loan to save the country's leading airline El Al, Ynet news website reported Sunday.
However, to receive the guarantee, El Al will have to cut expenses by at least 50 million U.S. dollars, while the owners have to immediately inject additional 28.5 million dollars to the company.
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CAIRO -- Turkey's COVID-19 cases on Sunday hit 138,657 with 1,542 new infections, while Iran's tally reached 107,603.
The death toll from the coronavirus in Turkey rose to 3,786 after 47 new fatalities were added in the past 24 hours, Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca tweeted.
In Iran, COVID-19 infections rose by 1,383 on Sunday, while 51 new deaths from the virus were reported, raising the death toll to 6,640.
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HELSINKI -- Finland prepares to slam the brakes again if the COVID-19 pandemic hit back after restrictions was eased, national broadcaster Yle reported on Sunday.
The Finnish government has allowed commuting between Finland and Estonia, and the reopening of school classrooms -- both of which will start on Thursday, Yle reported.
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