The World Health Organization (WHO) is characterising the outbreak of the new coronavirus as a pandemic, Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says.

Iran urges people to stay at home, avoid unnecessary journeys and spread no rumours about the coronavirus after the death toll from the virus rose to 354 in the Islamic Republic.

The finance ministry has released Tk 50 crore for the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) to facilitate the treatment of coronavirus-infected people and to prevent the spread of the virus.

Prime Minister’s Principal Secretary Ahmad Kaikaus has instructed the health ministry to increase the number of health staff to 30 in each shift for screening passengers at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka.

Up to 70% of the population is likely to be infected with the coronavirus that is currently spreading around the world, German Chancellor Angela Merkel says, adding that since there is currently no cure the focus has to be on slowing its spread.

Indonesia today confirmed its first death from the coronavirus -- a 53-year-old British woman in Bali with several underlying health conditions including hypertension and diabetes.

Thailand cancels the grant of visa on arrival for 18 countries and visa exemption for three others to contain the spread of the coronavirus, the country's interior minister said.

Of the three reported cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) in Bangladesh, two people have tested negative in the second set of tests conducted on them yesterday.

Panama's health minister has confirmed eight cases of the new coronavirus in the country, including one death, the first virus-linked death in Central America.

The death toll from an outbreak of coronavirus in Italy has jumped by 168 to 631, an increase of 36 percent, the Civil Protection Agency says, the largest rise in absolute numbers since the contagion came to light on February 21.

British MP Nadine Dorries, a minister in the health department, has tested positive for coronavirus, raising concerns about whether senior government figures have been infected.

Although the diagnosis of novel coronavirus is so far only Dhaka-based, the authorities prefer not to expand the testing facilities to hospitals outside the capital right now due to a lack of trained manpower and unavailability of the necessary technology.

South Korea’s central bank started to quarantine all bank notes on March 6 for two weeks to remove any traces of coronavirus and even burn them as part of the government’s efforts to contain the outbreak.

Mobile courts fine at least 19 stores, including pharmacies, in Dhaka city, Savar, Narayanganj and Manikganj for selling products such as surgical masks, hand sanitisers and different medicines at prices higher than usual.

The Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education has asked all offices and educational institutions under its jurisdiction and people across the country to remain cautious to contain the spread of coronavirus.

The newly pandemic coronavirus, popularly known as Covid-19, usually takes five days on average to start showing symptoms in affected people, scientists have confirmed.

The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) supplies five new thermal scanners to international airports and ports across the country.

A 100-year-old Chinese man recovered from coronavirus and was discharged from the hospital on Saturday, according to state media reports, making him the oldest person to recover from the virus.

Institute of Epidemiology, Diseases Control and Research (IEDCR) requests all overseas returnees to self-quarantine.

Banglalink has declared the IEDCR hotline numbers toll-free for its users to facilitate preventive measures against the spread of coronavirus in the country, a press release says.