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Iranian authorities confirmed on Wednesday two cases of the new coronavirus, the first in the country, The Associated Press reported, citing local sources.

The report did not elaborate on the nationality of the two people infected. ISNA quoted an official in the country’s health ministry, Kiyanoush Jahanpour, as saying that “since last two days, some suspected cases of the new coronavirus were found.”

Jahanpour did not say how many people were suspected of having the virus, which causes the illness that the World Health Organization recently named COVID-19, referring to its origin late last year and the coronavirus that causes it.

He said the two confirmed cases were detected in the central province of Qom.

The agency reminds that the new virus emerged in China in December. Since then, more than 70,000 people have been infected globally, with more than 2,000 deaths being reported, mostly in China.