Italy Confirms 283 Cases Of Coronavirus

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Italy has risen to 283, the country's Health Ministry said on Tuesday.

Of the total cases, the highest number in Europe, seven people died while one recovered, according to the ministry's website.

The country's ANSA news agency reported that all those who passed away were "over 60 years of age."

Giving a breakdown of the infected patients, the health department said some 109 are hospitalized, 29 are in intensive care, and 137 of them are in home quarantine.

The worst-affected region is Lombardy, where six people have died and 212 cases confirmed of the virus, which surfaced last December in a Chinese city and has so far claimed over 2,600 lives worldwide.

Regions and number of infected in Italy:

* Lombardy: 212

* Veneto: 38

* Emilia Romagna: 23

* Piedmont: 3

* Lazio: 3

* Tuscany: 2

* Sicily: 1

* Autonomous Province of Bolzano: 1

Meanwhile, the Canary Islands, a Spanish archipelago off northwestern Africa, isolated nearly 1,000 tourists after an Italian man staying at a hotel tested positive for the virus, daily El Pais reported.

Landlocked Austria, which borders Italy to the south, also confirmed two cases of the virus.

Gunther Platter, governor of the state of Tyrol in the Alps, said two Italian citizens in the region had contracted the disease. Their condition is not life-threatening, though, he added.

Switzerland, also bordering Austria, confirmed its first case of coronavirus, the Federal Office of Public Health announced, pledging details at a press conference later Tuesday.

Virus spreads to Balkans

The Balkan nation of Croatia also reported its first case of the virus on a patient who arrived from Milan, Italy.

Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said the patient was in the Italian city between Feb. 19-21, and "shows mild symptoms of the disease."

"We will arrange a quarantine for all people who have been in direct contact with the patient," Plenkovic said.

Also, three Chinese tourists suspected for the coronavirus were hospitalized in Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

"Three Chinese nationals are placed at one of the clinics at the University of Sarajevo Clinical Center (KCUS)," said Sebija Izetbegovic, the director of the center.

She added the current situation is not worrying.

The epidemic has spread to more than 30 other countries, with Iran and South Korea the hardest hit.

* Talha Ozturk in Belgrade, Serbia contributed to this report. -