COVID-19 toll outside China reaches 1,130: WHO

Geneva, March 12 (IANS) The death toll due to the novel coronavirus outside the Chinese mainland, the epicentre of the outbreak, has increased to 1,130, according to a report by the the World Health Organization (WHO). The new toll as of Wednesday morning was an increase of 258 deaths from the previous day, Xinhua news agency quoted the report as saying. Over 110 countries and regions have reported 118,326 confirmed cases, including 37,371 cases outside China. WHO said on Wednesday that the COVID-19 outbreak can be characterized as a "pandemic" as the virus spreads increasingly worldwide. Bolivia, Jamaica, Burkina Faso and the Democratic Republic of the Congo have reported their first coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours as of Wednesday morning. Additional five countries -- Serbia, Albania, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Paraguay -- have seen local transmission of COVID-19, raising the total number of countries and regions where local transmission emerged to 66 in addition to China. Besides, WHO's report showed the coronavirus infects people of all ages, among which older people and those with underlying medical conditions are at a higher risk of getting infected.
--IANS ksk/