The novel coronavirus has been rapidly spreading worldwide, including in Armenia and neighboring countries and the region in general.

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Armenia reached 265 on Wednesday, March 25 evening. A total of 18 patients have recovered from the disease so far.

Russia reported its first deaths from the virus, two elderly patients who also had underlying conditions, The Associated Press said.

The commission directing Russia’s response to the virus said Wednesday the patients died of pneumonia and were 88 and 73 years old.

Russia has reported 658 cases of infection nationwide.

Turkey confirmed seven more deaths from coronavirus on late Tuesday, bringing the total number of fatalities to 44, Anadolu Agency says.

A total of 3,952 coronavirus tests have been conducted in the last 24 hours on people suspected of contracting the virus, and 343 tested positive, bringing the tally of infections to 1,872, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on Twitter.

The number of confirmed cases of coronavirus has reached 73 in Georgia, with 10 people having recovered since the beginning of the outbreak, Agenda.ge reveals.

Two of the 73 are Austrian citizens who have already returned home via a chartered flight.

Azerbaijan, meanwhile, has confirmed its second death due to Covid-19 on Wednesday, according to a statement.

Six additional patients were reported in the country, increasing the total to 81 with 2,914 suspected cases under quarantine.

According to a report from Mehr News Agency, the death toll from the outbreak in Iran has risen to 2,077 with 27,017 confirmed cases and 9,625 recoveries.

Iran’s Health Ministry Spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour said on Wednesday that 2,206 new cases have tested positive for coronavirus in the past 24 hours.