UPDATE - Palestine confirms 3 new coronavirus cases

UPDATES NUMBER OF CONFIRMED CASES

By Qais Abu Samra

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) - Palestinian authorities confirmed Tuesday four coronavirus cases in the occupied West Bank.

"The Health Ministry has reported three new coronavirus case in Bethlehem, which increased the number of people infected with coronavirus to 29," government spokesman Ibrahim Melhem said in a statement.

The government confirmed another coronavirus case earlier in the day.

Last week, the Health Ministry announced a state of emergency in the West Bank cities of Bethlehem and Jericho because of suspected virus cases.

The ministry said a hotel in Bethlehem was quarantined due to a number of suspected cases.

Health Minister Mai Al-Kaileh said on Thursday it decided to activate emergency plans in the governorates of Bethlehem and Jericho.

Accordingly, all educational institutions and training centers in the Bethlehem Governorate are closed for 14 days.

The disease has spread to at least 100 countries, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) that declared the outbreak an international health emergency.

The global death toll is more than 3,800 with and excess of 110,000 confirmed cases, the majority in China.

As part of the efforts to contain the outbreak, some governments closed borders and suspended land and air travel with many countries including China, Iran, Italy, and South Korea.

Last month, the WHO updated the global risk assessment of the coronavirus to “very high.”