File
Pakistan has recorded a sharp rise in cases of the deadly coronavirus with the COVID-19 positive patients ballooning to 186. The country saw the number move up by 131 cases in just 24 hours.
However, no deaths due to coronavirus have been recorded in Pakistan so far.
"[The spike in cases] was mainly because of the people who came from Taftan. They had been quarantined there, and then we moved them to our own facility where we tested them," said Meeran Yousuf, spokesperson for Sindh province’s health minister.
The Prime Minister's Advisor on Health Dr Zafar Mirza said that all educational institutions have been closed and their staff stopped from attending the institutions.
The deadly virus, which originated in China's Wuhan city in December, has claimed over 6,500 lives and infected more than 169,000 people over 135 countries and territories. China remains the hardest-hit with 80,860 infections and 3,213 deaths. After China, Italy and Iran are the two worst-affected countries.
Pakistan's National Security Committee on Friday decided to close down the western border with Afghanistan and Iran. It also ordered the closure of all educational institutions in Pakistan till April 5 in view of the virus outbreak.
