Two more patients have tested positive for coronavirus in Britain, health authorities said Thursday, bringing the total number of diagnosed cases in the UK to 15.

The two patients have been transferred to specialist infection centres after contracting the virus in Italy and on the Spanish island of Tenerife, said Professor Chris Whitty, England's chief medical officer.

A viral outbreak that began in China has infected more than 82,000 people globally. The World Health Organization has named the illness COVID-19, referring to its origin late last year and the coronavirus that causes it.

Pakistan has detected its first two cases of novel coronavirus, a public health advisor to Prime Minister Imran Khan tweeted Wednesday, days after Islamabad closed its land border with Iran, where 19 people have died from the virus.

President Donald Trump faces a critical personal challenge in grappling with the new coronavirus outbreak: Asking Americans to believe him after he and some of his top advisers have contradicted federal scientists in playing down the threat.

Keenly aware of the stakes not just for public health but also his credibility, Trump conducted a lengthy press conference Wednesday evening aimed at reassuring everyone that he has the crisis well in hand.

South Korea reported 334 new coronavirus cases Thursday, taking its total to 1,595, still the largest in the world outside China, where the disease first emerged.

With governments scrambling to contain a slew of new coronavirus cases popping up across Europe, here is an overview of the countries affected, where people have died and the precautions being taken. 

- ITALY -  

Iraq's vital religious tourism sector was already suffering after months of protests, political turmoil and sanctions hitting pilgrims from neighbouring Iran -- then the novel coronavirus arrived.

North Korea has postponed the new school term to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus, reports said Thursday, the latest measure as the ill-equipped country ramps up efforts to prevent a devastating outbreak.

Saudi Arabia on Thursday banned foreign pilgrims from entering the kingdom to visit Islam's holiest sites over the new coronavirus, potentially disrupting the plans of millions of faithful ahead of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan and as the annual hajj pilgrimage looms.

The decision showed the growing worry across the Mideast about the virus as Iran's confirmed that infected cases spiked by over 100, to 254 now. A total of 26 people have died so far, it said. That pushes the region's overall cases to above 350. Iran's death toll is highest outside of China where the outbreak began.

The sweeping measures taken in northern Italy to try to contain Europe's worst outbreak of the novel coronavirus are starting to take more than just a physical toll, with mental health professionals reporting some residents falling victim to anxiety.