Fourth person dies as human-to-human transfer confirmed

A fourth person in China has died from a new virus that has spread rapidly across the country, as authorities confirmed that it can be passed from person-to-person.

A 89-year-old man was the latest victim of the new strain of coronavirus, which causes a type of pneumonia.

He lived in Wuhan, the city at the centre of the outbreak.

More than 200 cases have now been reported across major cities in China including Beijing and Shanghai.

The World Health Organization (WHO) is convening a meeting of the Emergency Committee on January 22, 2020, due to the outbreak of a new coronavirus in China. This is reported in the organization’s statement published on Twitter.

The Committee will determine whether an outbreak of coronavirus is a threat to international security and will develop recommendations to combat it.