COVID-19: Italy, Greece shut down schools

Miguel MEDINA / AFP

In a bid to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus, schools in Greece and Italy will remain shut.

Italian education ministry announced that all schools and universities in the country will remain closed until March 15. It comes as the death toll touched 107 and number of confirmed cases rose to 3,089. 

All public events have been cancelled, and cinemas ordered to shut down. 

Authorities also warned residents to limit physical contact, with major sporting events to be played in empty stadiums.

Meanwhile, officials in Greece also banned public gatherings in three districts in the west of the country.

More from International news

  • Zelenskyy to meet Trump in Florida for Ukraine peace plan talks

    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US President Donald Trump will meet in Florida on Sunday to hammer out a plan to end the war in Ukraine, but face major differences on crucial issues and provocations from Russian air attacks.

  • Myanmar votes amid civil war

    Overshadowed by civil war and doubts about the credibility of the polls, voters in Myanmar were casting their ballots in a general election starting on Sunday, the first since a military coup toppled the last civilian government in 2021.

  • At least 15 dead in Guatemala bus accident

    At least 15 people were killed and 19 injured after a passenger bus plunged into a ravine on the Inter-American Highway in western Guatemala, authorities said on Saturday.

  • Pakistan's former central bank head Shamshad Akhtar dies at 71

    Shamshad Akhtar, the first and only woman to lead Pakistan's central bank and a two-time caretaker finance minister, died at 71, the finance ministry said on Saturday.

News