BAGHDAD 

Iraqi health authorities reported new five suspected cases of coronavirus in the southern province of Dhi Qar on Tuesday.

In a statement, health official Abdul-Hussein al-Jaberi said samples have been taken from the five and sent to labs for examination.

"The five cases suspected of being infected with the virus are four people from Dhi Qar who recently visited Iran, and one person from Najaf province who was visiting Dhi Qar," he said.

On Monday, the Iraqi authorities confirmed 27 cases of the novel COVID-19.

Last week, Baghdad shut schools and universities for 10 days and banned travel to virus-hit states as part of its fight against the disease.

The global death toll from coronavirus has crossed 3,000, with more than 88,000 infected.

The World Health Organization, which already declared the outbreak an international health emergency, updated the global risk level to very high.