The United States recorded 1,783 deaths related to the novel coronavirus over the past 24 hours, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University as of 8:30 pm Thursday (0030 GMT Friday).

The number of fatalities was lower than the previous day’s record toll of 1,973.

The total number of US fatalities linked to the virus now stands at 16,478, the second-highest tally in the world after Italy.

The United States on Thursday accused the World Health Organization of putting politics first by ignoring Taiwanese warnings over China's coronavirus outbreak, laying out its case against the UN body.

President Donald Trump has threatened to withhold US funding for the WHO, which is at the forefront of fighting the pandemic that has infected more than 1.5 million people worldwide.

Elaborating on Trump's case, the State Department said the WHO was too late in sounding the alarm over COVID-19, showed too much deference to China and questioned why it did not pursue a lead from Taiwan.

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Last Update: Wednesday, 20 May 2020 KSA 10:06 - GMT 07:06