China reports 28 virus deaths, rise in new cases outside epicentre

China on Saturday reported 28 new deaths from the coronavirus outbreak, bringing the nationwide toll to 3,070.

There were 99 fresh cases of infection, according to the National Health Commission, with a rise in new cases outside the virus epicentre of Hubei province for a third consecutive day.

There were 25 new cases reported outside the central province, which remains under lockdown in a bid to control the spread of the virus.

New infections reported from Hubei have been on a downward trend for several weeks and at 74, the number of new cases is the lowest since quar antine measures were placed on the province in late January.

But health officials also reported 24 confirmed imported cases -- fuelling fears in China that infections could swell again as people get infected overseas.

The number of coronavirus cases worldwide surged past 100,000 on Friday, as a wave of countries reported their first cases.

The World Health Organization Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Friday that all countries should make containing the outbreak of Covid-19 their top priority, pointing to Iran's "national action plan" to combat one of the world's worst outbreaks after a slow start.

He stressed that slowing down the epidemic saves lives and allows hospitals to prepare, while warning that there was no evidence that spread would wane during the approaching summer months in the northern hemisphere.

"We are continuing to recommend that all countries make containment their highest priority," he added. "In a globalised world, the only option is to stand together."

South Korea confirms 174 new cases

South Korea on Saturday reported 174 additional coronavirus cases from late Friday, taking the national tally to 6,767, the Korea Centers for Disease and Control and Prevention (KCDC) said.

The death toll remained unchanged at 44 from late Friday, the KCDC added.

Kuwait suspends flights to and from seven countries

Kuwait suspended on Saturday all flights to and from Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Bangladesh, Philippines, India, and Sri-Lanka for a week starting on Saturday, Kuwait's civil aviation directorate said in a tweet.

Kuwait also banned entry of anyone who has been in the seven countries in the last two weeks except for Kuwaitis coming from the seven countries, who will be allowed entry but will have to submit to quarantine procedures, the civil aviation directorate added.

21 test positive for coronavirus on US cruise ship

Twenty-one people aboard a mammoth cruise ship off the California coast tested positive for the new coronavirus, including 19 crew members, Vice President Mike Pence announced Friday, amid evidence the vessel was the breeding ground for a deadly cluster of at least 10 cases during its previous voyage.

Federal officials have been working with the state and “we have developed a plan to bring the ship to a non-commercial port," Pence said.

“All passengers and crew will be tested for the virus. Those that will need to be quarantined will be quarantined. Thos e who will require medical help will receive it.”

Princess Cruises said 45 of the more than 3,500 people on board were tested in the first round. A military helicopter crew lowered test kits onto the 951-foot (290-meter) Grand Princess by rope Thursday and later retrieved them for analysis as the vessel waited off San Francisco, under orders to keep its distance from shore.

Health officials trying to establish whether the virus is circulating on the Grand Princess undertook the testing after reporting that a passenger on a previous voyage of the ship, in February, died of the disease.

In the past few days, health authorities disclosed that at least nine other people who were on the same journey were also found to be infected. And some passengers on that trip stayed aboard for the current voyage.

“The ship will not come on shore until we appropriately assess the passengers,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Thursday.

Death toll from coronavirus in Iran rises to 124

Iran's death toll from coronavirus infections jumped on Friday to 124, as 17 died and more than 1,000 new cases were diagnosed over 24 hours, the Health Ministry said.

Dr Mike Ryan, executive director of WHO's emergencies programme, said when asked about Iran's mushrooming outbreak that it resembled China and South Korea which quickly uncovered more cases as they began to do active disease surveillance.

"But I also think the Iranian system is switching on.

We are seeing a much more all-of-government approach ... with a national action plan now, with 100,000 workers committed to this plan," Ryan said.

"It is much better that we understand the extent of the problem. So we commend the move towards more aggressive, targeted surveillance and we hope that will lead to the kind of control measures that will help push this virus back."

Ryan, asked whether the virus may not spread as easily in Europe's warm summer months, said:

"We do not know yet what the activity or the behaviour of this virus will be in different climatic conditions.

We have to assume that the virus will continue to have the capacity to spread."

He added, "It is a false hope to say yes it will just disappear in summertime, like influenza virus ... There is no evidence right now to suggest that that will happen."

Italy coronavirus deaths near 200

The death toll from the coronavirus outbreak in Italy has risen by 49 to 197, the Civil Protection Agency said on Friday, the largest daily increase in fatalities since the contagion was uncovered two weeks ago.

Italy is currently reporting more deaths from the virus than any other country in the world and the government this week ordered the closure of schools, universities, cinemas and theatres around the country to try to stem the infections.

The cumulative number of cases in the country, which has been the hardest hit in Europe by the epidemic, totalled 4,636 compared with 3,858 on Thursday. The Vatican, an independent state that sits in the heart of Rome, also registered its first case on Friday.

The national health institute said the average age of those who had died so far was 81, with the vast majority suffering underlying health problems. Just 28 percent were women.

The fatality rate from the illness in Italy, which has one of the oldest populations in the world, is running at 4.25 percent, higher than in most other countries.

In a worrying sign for hard-pressed hospitals, the number of patients in intensive care rose more than 30 percent on Friday to 462. On a more positive note, some 523 people have fully recovered, authorities said, an increase of 26 percent on the previous tally.

Peru confirms first coronavirus case

Peruvian President Martin Vizcarra confirmed the first case of the new coronavirus in the country on Friday morning, increasing to seven the number of countries with reported cases in Latin America.

Health Minister Elizabeth Hinostroza later stated that the patient is stable and quarantined in his house, and called for people to be confident of the measures taken by the Peruvian government.

"Be confident in the government's health system which is prepared to face the epidemic. We work with the ideal people, resources and infrastructure for this purpose."

The Health Ministry claimed that laboratories in operation since February are capable of identifying the virus in one day. Health services can tend to patients in five hospitals in Lima, which were modified to keep patients isolated during treatment.