COVID-19 updates: COVID-19 cases in Brazil surpass 2 mln

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RIO DE JANEIRO -- The Brazilian government reported on Thursday that the country has registered over 2 million cases of the novel coronavirus after 45,403 new cases were confirmed in the last 24 hours, for a total of 2,012,151.

According to the Ministry of Health, 1,322 deaths were recorded in the last 24-hour period, bringing the total to 76,688.

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WASHINGTON -- The United States is approaching half a million new COVID-19 cases each week, according to a report of The COVID Tracking Project released on Thursday.

This week, about 435,000 Americans were diagnosed with COVID-19, the fourth week of big increases in the number of new cases, according to the report.

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WASHINGTON -- The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced Thursday the extension of a No Sail Order for cruise ships through September 30, 2020.

The order continues to suspend passenger operations on cruise ships with the capacity to carry at least 250 passengers in waters subject to US jurisdiction.

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NEW YORK -- The United Nations on Thursday released an updated COVID-19 Global Humanitarian Response Plan that requires US$10.3 billion to help fragile countries cope with the pandemic.

UN Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Mark Lowcock, who launched the new appeal, asked wealthy nations to do more.

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NEW YORK -- New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo said Thursday that the federal government's "incompetence" in managing the COVID-19 crisis failed New York, which became the first epicenter of the outbreak in the United States in March.

The governor made the remarks while commenting on a new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which pointed out that by the time the travel restrictions on Europe were implemented by the federal government, importation and community transmission of COVID-19 had already occurred in New York.

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JERUSALEM -- The number of active COVID-19 cases in Israel rose to 25,305 on Thursday, the highest since the outbreak of pandemic in late February, according to the state's Ministry of Health.

Meanwhile, the total number of COVID-19 cases climbed to 46,059 after the addition of 1,871 new cases, the second-highest daily rise since the outbreak, the ministry's data showed.

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TEHRAN -- An Iranian health official called for an extension of restrictive measures in Tehran as the novel coronavirus disease continues to rage in the capital city, Eghtesad Online news website reported on Thursday.

The duration as well as the scope of lockdown measures which have restarted across Tehran since Monday should be extended, Alireza Zali, the head of Tehran's Coronavirus Taskforce, was quoted as saying.