SHAH ALAM, Jan 28 — The World Health Organisation has advised against the evacuation of foreign nationals from the central Chinese city of Wuhan, where the novel coronavirus was first identified, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported today.
Citing a report by state news agency Xinhua, its director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, following a meet with Chinese officials in Beijing, said the United Nations (UN) health agency had full confidence in the preventive measures adopted by the Chinese government to curb the spread of the disease.
Following the confirmed 1,771 new cases in mainland China today, Tedros said some countries planned to withdraw their citizens but the agency had advised against it, adding that the people should remain calm and that were was no need to overreact.
Meanwhile, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in a meeting with Tedros, said China would continue to cooperate with the WHO and the international community with “transparency”.
“With the strong leadership of comrade [President] Xi Jinping and the advantage of the socialist system, as well as the experience from SARS, we are more resolute in tackling this epidemic with more forceful and quicker action,” Wang said, referring to the 2002 to 2003 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome.
“We are totally confident that we have the ability and resources to defeat this epidemic.”
“With the strong leadership of comrade [President] Xi Jinping and the advantage of the socialist system, as well as the experience from Sars, we are more resolute in tackling this epidemic with more forceful and quicker action,” Wang was quoted, referring to the 2002-03 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome.
“We are totally confident that we have the ability and resources to defeat this epidemic.”
As of Tuesday morning, Chinese authorities have confirmed the death toll from the novel coronavirus outbreak in China to have increased to 106 this morning with the total number of confirmed cases has soared to almost 4,500 in China alone.
SCMP cited China’s National Health Commission (NHC) to have confirmed that the virus can be spread through air transmission as well as physical contact.
The NHC said the incubation period of the new virus is on average three to seven days and can go to a maximum of 14 days, adding that the coronavirus strain is 85 per cent similar to SARS.
It was reported that the virus can infect children and infants, but their symptoms have been relatively mild.
