Italy to quarantine Milan, Venice and other regions over coronavirus: Reports

The Italian government intends to quarantine the entire Lombardy region around Milan as well as areas around and including Venice and the northern cities of Parma and Rimini over coronavirus, Italian media reported Saturday.

A draft of the government resolution obtained by Italy’s Corriere Della Sera newspaper and other media said movement into and out of the regions would be severely restricted until April 3.

In a related development, the Vatican said Pope Francis will deliver Sunday’s Angelus Prayer by livestream instead of in person from his window overlooking Saint Peter’s Square out of concern over the new coronavirus.

“The prayer will be broadcast via livestream by Vatican News and on screens in Saint Peter’s Square,” the Vatican said in a statement.

The death toll from an outbreak of coronavirus in Italy slowed down on Saturday but the total number of cases in the country leapt by over 1,200, the Civil Protection Agency said.

The contagion came to light over two weeks ago and is focused on a handful of hotspots in the north of Italy, but cases have now been confirmed in each of the country’s 20 regions, with deaths recorded in eight of them.

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(With AFP)