BEIJING, March 27 (Xinhua) -- The world is now in a battle against COVID-19, a disease caused by a previously unknown coronavirus that has spread to over 190 countries and regions.
The following are the updates on the contagious illness.
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LONDON -- British Prime Minister's Office said on Friday that Prime Minister Boris Johnson had tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
A Downing Street spokesperson said Johnson, who showed mild symptoms, is self-isolating in Downing Street.
"He is continuing to lead the government's response to coronavirus," the spokesperson said.
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BERLIN -- A German virologist said on Thursday there was still no breakthrough for early coronavirus tests and warned that existing methods could show wrong results.
"We need a test that can detect the virus from the beginning, not one that detects the antibodies after about 10 days," said Christian Drosten, head of the Institute of Virology at the Charite University Hospital in Berlin, in a daily podcast by broadcaster NDR.
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TOKYO -- Japan's health ministry and local governments said that 62 new COVID-19 infections were confirmed nationwide on Friday as of 6:30 p.m. local time, with 40 of them being in Tokyo as the capital approaches a "soft" lockdown this weekend.
The total number of infections in Japan has now risen to 1,463 cases, according to the latest figures.
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CAPE TOWN -- South Africa on Friday reported its first two deaths resulting from the novel coronavirus, with the total number of confirmed cases in the country topping 1,000, according to its health ministry.
"This morning, we wake South Africans up with sad news that we now have our first deaths resulting from COVID-19," South African Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said.
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TEHRAN -- Iran's Health Ministry on Friday announced 144 new deaths from the novel coronavirus, raising the death toll to 2,378 across the country, official IRNA news agency reported.
Kianush Jahanpur, head of Public Relations and Information Center of Ministry of Health and Medical Education, said 2,926 new cases have been registered in the past 24 hours and a total of 32,332 people confirmed to be infected with the virus.
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TASHKENT -- Uzbekistan has suspended all transport links among its regions except for cargo shipments to counter the spread of COVID-19, the Ministry of Internal Affairs said Friday.
"We ask our people not to leave their homes or places of residence without urgent need," minister Pulat Bobojonov said in a statement.
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SOFIA -- Bulgarian hospitals have prepared 7,473 beds across the country to treat COVID-19 patients, Major-General Ventsislav Mutafchiyski, head of the national coronavirus task force, said here Friday.
Of the beds prepared, 1,137 are in hospitals in the capital Sofia, and 1,347 are intensive care beds for COVID-19 patients, of which 518 are in the capital, said Mutafchiyski at a press conference.
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KAMPALA -- China's telecommunications company Huawei has donated video conferencing equipment to Uganda to help in the fight against the novel coronavirus.
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni in a tweet late on Thursday hailed Huawei, noting that the video conferencing facilities would enable quick communication between the ministry of health headquarters, Mulago national referral hospital and other hospitals across the country.
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ADDIS ABABA -- The death toll from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in the African continent has reached 83 as confirmed positives cases surpassed 3,243 as of Friday, the Africa Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) revealed on Friday.
The Africa CDC, specialized agency of the 55-member African Union (AU), in its latest situation update said the cases were spread across 46 African countries.
