New York, Mar 19: Security officials got alerted after the driver of a car claimed to have a bomb in his vehicle as he drove up to the White House.
There was no confirmation of any device in the vehicle, but security at the White House was immediately upgraded, CNN reported.
One person was taken into custody after the incident and the vehicle was checked.
Several streets around the White House were closed in what remained an ongoing operation.
Tel Aviv, Jan 4: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday came out in the support of Trump administration for carrying out the strike near Baghdad's international airport which led to the killing of Iran's elite IRGC Qassem Soleimani, saying that "The US has the right of self-defence."
"Just as Israel has the right of self-defence, the United States has exactly the same right. Qassem Soleimani is responsible for the death of American citizens and many other innocent people. He was planning more such attacks," PM Benjamin Netanyahu wrote on Twitter.
In another tweet, Netanyahu also credited US President Donald Trump for acting decisively in the operation of Iraq that led to the killing of Qassem Soleimani -- a US-designated terrorist, along with six others.
"President Donald Trump deserves all the credit for acting swiftly, forcefully and decisively. Israel stands with the United States in its just struggle for peace, security and self-defence," he added.
Meanwhile, Iran on Friday vowed to take a "vigorous revenge" over the killing of General Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran's elite IRGC.
The US had accused Soleimani of orchestrating several attacks on coalition bases in Iraq including the December 27 attack in which American and Iraqi personnel were killed.
United Nations, May 8: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Friday the coronavirus pandemic keeps unleashing a tsunami of hate and xenophobia, scapegoating and scare-mongering.
The UN chief said anti-foreigner sentiment has surged online and in the streets, anti-Semitic conspiracy theories have spread, and COVID-19-related anti-Muslim attacks have occurred.
Guterres said migrants and refugees have been vilified as a source of the virus -- and then denied access to medical treatment.
With older persons among the most vulnerable, contemptible memes have emerged suggesting they are also the most expendable, he said.
And journalists, whistleblowers, health professionals, aid workers and human rights defenders are being targeted simply for doing their jobs.
Guterres appealed for an all-out effort to end hate speech globally. The secretary-general called on political leaders to show solidarity with all people, on educational institutions to focus on digital literacy at a time when extremists are seeking to prey on captive and potentially despairing audiences.
He called on the media, especially social media, to remove racist, misogynist and other harmful content, on civil society to strengthen their outreach to vulnerable people, and on religious figures to serve as models of mutual respect.
And I ask everyone, everywhere, to stand up against hate, treat each other with dignity and take every opportunity to spread kindness, Guterres said.
The secretary-general stressed that COVID-19 does not care who we are, where we live, what we believe or about any other distinction. His global appeal to address and counter COVID-19-related hate speech follows his April 23 message calling the coronarivus pandemic a human crisis that is fast becoming a human rights crisis.
Guterres said then that the pandemic has seen disproportionate effects on certain communities, the rise of hate speech, the targeting of vulnerable groups, and the risks of heavy-handed security responses undermining the health response.
With rising ethno-nationalism, populism, authoritarianism and a push back against human rights in some countries, the crisis can provide a pretext to adopt repressive measures for purposes unrelated to the pandemic, he warned.
In February, Guterres issued a call to action to countries, businesses and people to help renew and revive human rights across the globe, laying out a seven-point plan amid concerns about climate change, conflict and repression.
Tokyo, Mar 4: Takeda Pharmaceutical Co said on Wednesday it was developing a drug to treat COVID-19, the flu-like illness that has struck more than 90,000 people worldwide and killed over 3,000.
The Japanese drugmaker is working on a plasma-derived therapy to treat high-risk individuals infected with the new coronavirus and will share its plans with members of the U.S. Congress on Wednesday, it said in a statement.
Takeda is also studying whether its currently marketed and pipeline products may be effective treatments for infected patients.
"We will do all that we can to address the novel coronavirus threat...(and) are hopeful that we can expand the treatment options," Rajeev Venkayya, president of Takeda's vaccine business, said in the statement.
Takeda said it was in talks with various health and regulatory agencies and healthcare partners in the United States, Asia and Europe to move forward its research into the drug.
Its research requires access to the blood of people who have recovered from the respiratory disease or who have been vaccinated, once a vaccine is developed, Takeda said.
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