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China Reports 121 More Coronavirus Deaths, Spike in New Cases

VOA News

   China's National Health Commission said Friday that 121 more people
   have died from the new coronavirus, bringing the death toll to nearly
   1,400.

   The commission has also recorded 5,090 more confirmed cases of
   infections.

   Speaking to reporters, commission Vice Minister Zeng Tixin said 1,716
   health workers have also been infected by the coronavirus and six of
   them have died.

   With the most recent update, the total number of infected people stands
   at 63,851 as of Thursday night.

   World Health Organization spokesman Tarik Jasarevic told Reuters
   Thursday the increase in the number of new cases reflects a "broader
   definition" of a coronavirus diagnosis and that his organization wants
   China to provide "further clarity" about the new methodology.

   WHO health emergencies program director Michael Ryan told reporters in
   Geneva Thursday the new, higher numbers do "not represent a significant
   change in the trajectory of the outbreak," but rather "a change in how
   the cases are being reported."

   The outbreak has led to the firing of Jiang Chaoliang as the ruling
   Communist Party chief in Hubei, just days after the province's top two
   health officials were removed from their posts. The official Xinhua
   news agency says former Shanghai Mayor Ying Yong will replace Jiang,
   who had been criticized by the public for his handling of the outbreak
   of the COVID-19 virus.

   The virus is believed to have emerged late last year at a seafood
   market in the city of Wuhan that was illegally selling wildlife. Wuhan
   is the capital of Hubei.

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