The number of people in Italy who have contracted the new coronavirus rose to 1,694 on Sunday, with the number killed by the virus up to 34, Civil Protection Agency head Angelo Borrelli told a press conference in Rome. Sunday’s tally, which included those who have recovered and those who died after contracting the virus, represented a 50 per cent increase on the 1,128 cases recorded the previous day. Borrelli said 83 of those infected had so far recovered. The Italian epidemic has fanned fears of a broader contagion across Europe: health officials have traced many cases back to Italy, and new cases emerged in the Czech Republic, Luxembourg, Germany and Britain on Sunday despite authorities’ efforts to stop it. The Italian government is planning a € 3.6-billion (US$3.9 billion) aid package to help boost the economy in light of the coronavirus outbreak, Economy Minister Roberto Gualtieri said in an interview with La Repubblica newspaper published on Sunday. Gualtieri said Italy’s cabinet intends to adopt the measures by the end of next week. He was confident the European Union would not challenge the request and said the approval of parliament would also be sought. As a first step, Rome unveiled a € 900-million aid package on Friday for the 11 towns on lockdown in northern Italy to contain the spread of the new coronavirus. Despite the Italian government’s measures, the Arabian Peninsula nation of Oman launched a one-month suspension of Italian flights carrying tourists to its Salalah airport, the Oman News Agency reported. Luxembourg became the latest European country to confirm its first case of the virus on Sunday. The infected man returned to the country from Italy via the Belgian airport of Charleroi earlier this week, Health Minister Paulette Lenert said. The 40-year-old is said to be doing well. The Czech Republic also joined the list of at least 60 countries where the new coronavirus has been detected. Czech Health Minister Adam Vojtech confirmed on Sunday that three people had tested positive for the virus: two Czech nationals who had been in Italy, and an American who studied there. None of the cases have turned out to be serious. Germany’s Robert Koch Institute more than doubled its count of nationwide infections to 129 on Sunday. The group had tallied 66 cases on Saturday. South Korea reports 476 new coronavirus cases and 4 more casualties The number of cases in Britain rose to 35 on Sunday when the government’s chief medical officer Chris Whitty reported 12 new infections. Six of the new cases were people who had recently returned from Italy and two had visited Iran, Whitty said. All but four of Britain’s 35 cases were contracted in other countries. Finland’s tally of new coronavirus cases rose to six after three new cases emerged. All three had contact with a person who had been infected in Italy. Neighbouring Sweden has to date registered 14 cases, while Denmark has 3 cases. Norway said 19 people were diagnosed with the coronavirus, including five employees at Oslo University Hospital’s eye clinic, where a physician who was infected while on holiday in northern Italy had returned to work. The number of cases across Europe has grown despite the cancellation or postponement of several major events, including the Geneva auto show, Berlin’s ITB travel trade show, the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona and Milan's annual furniture fair. The Louvre in Paris remained closed on Sunday after staff stopped working out of concerns about the outbreak. Despite discussions about preventive measures, the museum was unable to open, its press office said. More talks with the staff are schedule for Monday.
