Coronavirus: Turkey warns against travel to Iraq, Italy

With cases of coronavirus rising worldwide, Turkey has advised its citizens against traveling to Iraq and Italy unless absolutely necessary.

In two separate statements, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said Wednesday it “strongly advised” the public not to visit infected areas in Iraq and Italy.

Ankara has already suspended rail and air services to Iran, where the outbreak has claimed 19 lives so far. Border crossings between the two countries also remain closed.

While Iraq has diagnosed five cases as yet, some 322 cases have been reported in Italy with at least 11 deaths thus far, according to its Health Ministry.

In China, from where the virus emerged last December, there have been 2,717 deaths with over 78,000 confirmed cases.

Outside the Chinese mainland, the infection has spread to more than 30 other countries including South Korea and Japan.

The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak an international health emergency.