A man and woman kiss in the Barcelona, Spain airport on March 12, 2020. (EMILIO MORENATTI/AP)

MADRID/DUBLIN/LONDON/BOGOTA/CARACAS/MOSCOW - Spain’s diagnosed cases of the novel coronavirus jumped to 5,753 on Saturday from 4,231 on Friday evening, the Health Ministry said. Deaths rose to 136 from 121.

Major Spanish regions shut shops, bars and restaurants, car plants ground to a halt and Easter parades were canceled as Spain prepared to enter a 15-day state of emergency, in a sharp escalation of its fight against the coronavirus.

This came as the World Health Organization on Friday said Europe has now become the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic, with more reported cases and deaths than the rest of the world combined, apart from China.

READ MORE: WHO: Europe is new epicenter of coronavirus pandemic

Madrid's government said that starting at midnight and until at least March 26, bars, restaurants and shops, except for food shops, petrol stations and others selling essential items, would be closed to the public

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said the number of cases could top 10,000 by next week - more than double the current level - and asked citizens to play their part.

“Heroism is also washing your hands and staying home,” Sanchez said in a televised address to the nation on Friday.

The regional government of Catalonia said it wanted and was ready to confine the whole region due to the epidemic and asked the central authorities to block its access by air, rail and water, regional leader Quim Torra said.

Madrid's regional leader Isabel Diaz Ayuso said she did not have the power to put the capital on lockdown and that such a decision would have to come from the central government.

Her government in Spain's richest region said that starting at midnight (2300 GMT) and until at least March 26, bars, restaurants and shops, except for food shops, petrol stations and others selling essential items, would be closed to the public.

Bars and restaurants would still be able to provide home delivery services or have food picked up at the premises.

People wear face masks as they sit on the Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain in Piccadilly Circus, in London, March 13, 2020. (ALBERTO PEZZALI/AP)

UK to ban mass gathering

The British government will ban mass gatherings from next week in an attempt to curb the coronavirus outbreak, an escalation of its crisis plan that critics had said was too relaxed.

Queen Elizabeth, 93, canceled some public engagements for next week due to the coronavirus outbreak, Buckingham Palace said on Friday

“Ministers are working with the chief scientific adviser and chief medical officer on our plan to stop various types of public events, including mass gatherings, beginning next week,” a government source said on Saturday.

Legislation would be published next week to give the government powers to deal with the outbreak, including to stop mass gatherings and compensate organizations, the source said.

Queen Elizabeth, 93, canceled some public engagements for next week due to the coronavirus outbreak, Buckingham Palace said on Friday.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson postponed for a year local and mayoral elections in England that had been due to take place in May.

As of Friday, Britain had 798 cases of the illness, and 11 people had died.

Coronavirus cases in Germany rise by 671 to top 3,000

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany has risen by 671 to reach 3,062, the Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases said on Friday.

It said five people had died after testing positive for the virus.

Ireland cautions citizens about travel to other EU states

Ireland advised its citizens on Friday to exercise a high degree of caution before deciding to travel to other European Union members states

Ireland advised its citizens on Friday to exercise a high degree of caution before deciding to travel to other European Union members states due to action over the spread of the coronavirus, the country’s foreign minister said.

Ireland had previously only urged against all travel to Italy and advised avoiding non-essential travel to China, Iran and Spain. The updated advice does not apply to neighboring Britain, a former EU member, Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said on Twitter.

Greece reports two more fatalities, suspends all flights to Italy

Greece said on Saturday it would suspend all flights that were still operating to and from Italy, after reporting two more fatalities from a coronavirus infection, raising the total number of deaths in the country to three.

The deceased were two men, aged 67 and 90, both with serious underlying health problems, the Health Ministry said. There were 190 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Greece by late Friday.

Greece has shut schools, bars, cafes and shopping malls and has already suspended all flights to and from northern Italy until March 23 to combat the spread of coronavirus.

Austria announces 4-billion-euro aid package

Austria is making 4 billion euros immediately available to deal with the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, the conservative-led government said on Saturday as it ditched a central pledge to balance its budget.

The initial 4 billion euro “corona crisis fund” would cover items such as bridge loans and credit guarantees to shore up businesses’ liquidity, Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said. Help with shortening working hours for staff and deferring taxes would also be provided.

Few people stroll along a main shopping street at Regent Street in light of the coronavirus outbreak in London, March 14, 2020.  (RICK FINDLER/PA VIA AP)

Austria has had 602 confirmed coronavirus cases and one death so far, and the disease is spreading fast. Italy, across the border, has more than 17,000 cases and 1,200 deaths.

IMF, World Bank staff to work from home

The International Monetary Fund and World Bank Group on Friday advised their Washington headquarters staff to work from home after an IMF employee was diagnosed with COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.

ALSO READ: WHO says risk of coronavirus 'very high' at global level

The advisories, which are not mandatory, affect about 2,000 IMF headquarters staff and about 16,000 Washington-based World Bank and International Finance Corp employees and outside consultants. The neighboring institutions are based in downtown Washington near the White House.

The IMF staff member diagnosed with COVID-19 is self-isolating and is receiving appropriate medical care, the IMF spokesman said, adding: “We are working with local public health authorities to identify the staff member’s close contacts and those who may have been affected.”

No World Bank Group staff or consultants have tested positive for the coronavirus, and the multilateral development lender remains fully operational, a bank spokesman said.

Mexican coronavirus tally increases to 26

Mexico has registered a rise in the number of confirmed coronavirus cases to 26 from 15 a day earlier, the Mexican health ministry on Friday.

Venezuela confirms first cases 

Venezuela on Friday confirmed its first two cases of coronavirus amid concerns that the economically struggling South American nation is unprepared to confront a pandemic that is spreading rapidly around the globe.

“We are declaring a state of alarm,” President Nicolas Maduro said in a televised appearance Friday night, urging Venezuelans to take precautionary measures and asking those over 65 to stay inside.

A woman covers her mouth and nose with a wash cloth on a subway platform in Caracas, Venezuela, March 13, 2020.  (ARIANA CUBILLOS/AP)

Hospitals in Venezuela have lost huge numbers of medical professionals and are so dilapidated that, in some, staff use paint buckets as improvised toilets and reuse surgical gloves. Maduro insisted Venezuela is prepared for a COVID-19 outbreak, but health workers have expressed concern that the country’s health system will be quickly overwhelmed.

Colombia closes border with Venezuela 

Colombia will close its borders with Venezuela and stop visitors who have been in Europe or Asia from entering the country, President Ivan Duque said late on Friday, as it looks to contain the spread of coronavirus.

Duque said Colombia will close its border with Venezuela from five o’clock Saturday morning. Furthermore, arrivals to the South American country who are not residents or nationals and have stayed in Europe or Asia during the last two weeks will not be allowed to enter from Monday, he said.

Honduras registers third coronavirus case

Honduran authorities have detected the Central American country’s third case of coronavirus infection, President Juan Orlando Hernandez said on Friday.

Hernandez said a 64-year-old man was the latest case. The man’s “epidemiological link” for infection was a relative, Hernandez said, without explaining whether the transmission had occurred inside Honduras.

Moscow makes school attendance optional 

Moscow will make school attendance optional starting on Monday in a bid to curb the spread of the coronavirus, its mayor said on Saturday.

Russia has recorded 45 cases of the virus as of Friday.