Glasses of beer outside the Churchill pub in Kensington, as pub bars cafes and restaurants are told to close by Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson due to the coronavirus outbreak, in London, March 20, 2020. (ALASTAIR GRANT/AP)

LONDON/ROMA/WASHINGTON/MADRID/PARIS/ATHENS/CAIRO/HAVANA - British Prime Minister Boris Johnson effectively closed down the United Kingdom on Friday, ordering pubs, restaurants, theaters, cinemas and gyms to shut their doors in a bid to slow down the accelerating spread of the coronavirus.

“I do accept that what we’re doing is extraordinary: we’re taking away the ancient, inalienable right of free-born people of the United Kingdom to go to the pub, and I can understand how people feel about that,” Johnson said. “It’s a huge wrench.”

“It’s a huge wrench to do that, everybody understands that,” he said. “It’s heartbreaking to think of the businesses that will face difficulties as a result of the measures this country has had to take.”

A total of 177 patients have died in the United Kingdom after testing positive for coronavirus, the health ministry said on Friday, up from 144 on Thursday.

As of Friday morning, 3,983 people had tested positive for the virus across the country, out of 66,976 who had been tested.

Italy 

Italy's Ministry of Health on Friday took the unprecedented step of closing all public parks, gardens and other open spaces, effective from Saturday.

The death toll from an outbreak of coronavirus in Italy has leapt by 627 to 4,032, officials said on Friday, an increase of 18.4% - by far the largest daily rise in absolute terms since the contagion emerged a month ago.

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On Thursday, Italy overtook China as the country to register most deaths from the highly contagious respiratory disease.

The total number of cases in Italy rose to 47,021 from a previous 41,035, a rise of 14.6%, the Civil Protection Agency said.

A soldier patrols Duomo square in downtown Milan, Italy, March 20, 2020. Army soldiers are increasingly being used to help in the coronavirus emergency. (CLAUDIO FURLAN / LAPRESSE VIA AP)

France 

France has confirmed 12,612 coronavirus infection cases, including 1,297 in intensive care, Director-General of Health Jerome Salomon said on Friday.

A total of 450 people have lost their lives to the virus while 1,587 patients have recovered, said Salomon at a daily briefing.

A curfew will be imposed in the French Riviera city of Nice from Saturday night, the local prefect said on Friday, saying it was necessary to enforce strict confinement measures decided by France to fight the coronavirus outbreak.

Spain

Spain’s death toll from the coronavirus epidemic soared on Saturday to 1,326 from 1,002 on Friday, according to the country’s Health Ministry latest data.

The number of registered cases in the country rose to 24,926 on Saturday from 19,980 in the previous tally announced on Friday.

The Spanish government on Friday introduced strict controls on roads leading out of the country's main cities in order to keep people inside during the coronavirus lockdown, which is part of the "state of alarm" declared six days ago.   

The government explained in a communique that the Civil Guard will carry out 30,000 controls over the weekend in an attempt to prevent people from traveling to their second homes in the countryside or at the beach.

Germany

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany has risen by 2,705 within a day to reach 16,662, the Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases said on Saturday.

It said a total of 47 people had died after testing positive, an increase of 16 from a tally of 31 published on Friday.

Poland 

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Friday that Poland has introduced a state of epidemic emergency to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.

At a joint press conference with Health Minister Lukasz Szumowski and Education Minister Dariusz Piontkowski, Morawiecki said the emergency laws were necessary to enable the proper execution of quarantine and other preventive measures. He added that the new regulations also imposed new obligations on society.

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Morawiecki also said that schools will remain closed until Easter.

The number of Poland's confirmed coronavirus cases has risen to 425, five people died from the COVID-19, the Polish Health Ministry announced on Friday evening.  

Russia

Russia is testing vaccines against the novel coronavirus as the number of infected in the country rose by 54 to 253 in the last 24 hours, according to official data published Friday.   

"Currently, six such drugs are being tested in Russia," Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said at a meeting of the Presidium of the government's coordinating council to combat the spread of COVID-19, according to an official transcript.   

Russia registered 54 new cases of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours in nine regions, up from 52 a day before.

Greece

Greece's Health Ministry announced on Friday that two patients infected with the novel coronavirus have died in the past few hours, bringing the country's total fatalities to eight and the number of confirmed cases to 495.   

A total of 31 new cases were registered on Friday and 90 persons were hospitalized, including 20 in serious condition, officials said at a press briefing.

A billboard displaying a hashtag concerning COVID-19 hangs over a sparsely populated Times Square, March 20, 2020, in New York. (JOHN MINCHILLO/AP)

US

New York City is closing all non-essential businesses from Sunday to curb the spread of the coronavirus outbreak, Mayor Bill de Blasio said.

Businesses such as grocery stores, pharmacies, internet providers, mass transit, banks and other financial institutions will still be permitted to operate, the mayor said in a statement. The new restrictions will take effect Sunday 8 pm local time.

Businesses that remain open must implement rules that facilitate social distancing, according to the statement.

New York had roughly a third of all confirmed cases in the US, the mayor said earlier.

Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker also ordered residents to shelter in place starting Saturday, following California, New York and New Jersey in restricting the movement of residents to combat the coronavirus.

Yet US President Donald Trump that he currently does not consider a nationwide lockdown to keep all Americans at home.

"I don't think so," Trump said when asked during a press briefing at the White House. "Essentially you've done that in California. You've done that in New York. Those are two hotbeds."

"You go out to the Midwest, you go out to other locations, and they're watching it on television, but they don't have the same problems," he added.

The number of COVID-19 cases in the United States has topped 18,563 as of 18:30 Eastern Standard Time Friday, with 227 deaths, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.  

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Friday the United States and Mexico have agreed to restrict non-essential travel along their border to counter the COVID-19 outbreak.

Canada

Canada will turn back asylum seekers who walk over the US-Canada border, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Friday, as economic damage from the coronavirus outbreak intensified and a ban on non-essential travel across the world’s longest undefended border was set to come into effect.

Canada’s tally of reported cases of the COVID-19 respiratory illness caused by the coronavirus has surpassed 1,000, along with 12 deaths.

A woman wears a surgical mask during a rally supporting Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro on Copacabana beach, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, March 15, 2020. SILVIA LZQUIERDO / AP)

Brazil

At least 11 people have died from the coronavirus outbreak in Brazil, up from seven on Thursday, the country’s health ministry said on Friday.

Infections now number 904, the ministry said, compared with 621 the previous day. 

Colombia 

Colombia will enter a nationwide quarantine from Tuesday night, President Ivan Duque said late on Friday, the most drastic measure implemented so far by the South American country as it seeks to prevent the spread of the fast-moving coronavirus.

The quarantine in the country, which has 158 confirmed cases of the virus, will last for 19 days. It has not reported any deaths.

Cuba 

Cuba will bar foreign visitors from entering the country for a month starting Tuesday in a bid to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus in the Caribbean island nation, President Miguel Diaz-Canel said on Friday.

The country will continue to allow Cubans and foreign residents entry, although they will have to go into quarantine for 14 days at a sanitary institution upon arrival, he told a televised roundtable. Foreign visitors will be able to return home and commerce will be allowed.

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Cuba rose to 21 on Friday - 10 of those foreigners - with 716 people hospitalized on suspicion of having the disease, according to the health ministry.

Egypt

Egypt on Friday registered 29 new coronavirus cases, the health ministry said in a statement, bringing the total to 285.

South Africa

South Africa’s Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said on Friday that the number of confirmed coronavirus cases had risen by 52 to 202, with the first cases recorded in the Free State province.

Angola 

Angola’s health ministry on Saturday confirmed its first two cases of coronavirus.

“Today we received results confirming two cases of patients infected with COVID-19,” health minister Silvia Lutucuta said at a briefing on national broadcaster TPA.

Tunisia 

Tunisian government announced on Friday a 14-day confinement across the country lasting from March 22 to April 4.

"Citizens and residents are called to stay at home and to go out only for a necessity such as medical supplies and treatment," said a statement released by the government.

As of Friday, the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Tunisia has risen to 54. 

Zimbabwe 

Zimbabwe on Friday confirmed its first case of coronavirus, a 38-year old man who returned from the United Kingdom on March 15.