Officials say some of the cases in the Middle East have no confirmed epidemiological connections, meaning they are not sure where or how they contracted the virus
Fears are mounting as cases of the new coronavirus multiplied outside China in places such as Europe, the Middle East and Asia, with pockets of outbreak sparking lockdowns and school closures.
"The contagiousness of this virus is very strong and pretty virulent," Lombardy's health chief Giulio Gallera told reporters.The cases triggered a lockdown in approximately a dozen Italian towns -- a move reminiscent of China's sealing off of entire cities in central Hubei province, the epicentre of the virus where millions remain under quarantine.
A study from the Imperial College London meanwhile estimated that"about two thirds of COVID-19 cases exported from mainland China have remained undetected worldwide, potentially leaving sources of human-to-human transmission unchecked."The number of new cases in China outside Hubei has been generally declining, although new outbreaks have emerged in several prisons and hospitals.
Based on official figures, nearly 18 percent of those infected with the new coronavirus in the country have died, compared with little more than three percent in China. Two former Japanese passengers in their 80s have died. Meanwhile, a Japanese woman who was part of the latest group of passengers to disembark has tested positive in Tochigi Prefecture, local media reported.
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