Two coronavirus patients in UK being given treatment

LONDON: The first two people in Britain to be diagnosed with the new coronavirus are being treated in a hospital in Newcastle, northeast England, Britain’s health ministry said on Friday.

England’s chief medical officer had previously said he would not give the location of the two patients, both from the same family, while medics attempted to contact other people they might have spread the infection to.

Earlier today, the United States told its citizens not to travel to China in the first major response to the World Health Organisation's declaration of a global emergency over the spreading coronavirus.

The WHO, which has faced criticism for initially downplaying the virus threat, revised its risk assessment after crisis talks in Geneva. "Our greatest concern is the potential for the virus to spread to countries with weaker health systems," said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.