Xi Jinping visits Wuhan as number of new coronavirus cases fall

NICOLAS ASFOURI / AFP

Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Wuhan for the first time on Tuesday since the coronavirus crisis erupted in January.

According to state news agency Xinhua, he is set to "visit and express regards to medical workers, military officers and soldiers, community workers, police officers, officials and volunteers who have been fighting the epidemic on the front line, as well as patients and residents during the inspection".

His visit comes after the spread of the virus in mainland China has sharply slowed in the past week, with 19 new coronavirus infections registered on Monday. 

Meanwhile, Chinese authorities have ramped up efforts to deal with the risks of tourists arriving from Iran and Italy.

More from International News

  • Astronaut crew docks with ISS to replace stuck NASA pair

    A SpaceX capsule delivered four astronauts to the International Space Station early on Sunday in a NASA crew-swap mission that will allow a pair of stuck astronauts, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, to return home after nine months on the orbiting lab.

  • 59 dead and 100 injured in North Macedonia nightclub fire

    59 people were killed and more than 100 injured when a fire broke out in a nightclub early on Sunday in the North Macedonian town of Kocani, Interior Minister Pance Toskovski confirmed, saying the fire was caused by "pyrotechnic devices" used during a concert.

  • 31 killed as Trump launches strikes on Yemen's Houthis

    US President Donald Trump launched large-scale military strikes against Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis on Saturday over the group's attacks against Red Sea shipping, killing at least 31 people at the start of a campaign expected to last many days.

  • Israeli air strike kills nine in Gaza during ceasefire disputes

    At least nine Palestinians including three local journalists were killed on Saturday in an Israeli air strike on Gaza's northern Beit Lahiya town, the local health ministry said, as Hamas leaders held ceasefire talks with mediators in Cairo.

Blogs