TEHRAN, Mar. 14 (MNA) – According to the latest reports, the worldwide death toll from the coronavirus pandemic surged past 5,000 on Saturday with the total infected cases also rising to more than 140,000.

As of Saturday, the novel coronavirus, officially known as COVID-19, has infected 145,681 people in 145 countries, claiming 5,436 lives.

Mainland China reported 11 new confirmed coronavirus cases on Saturday, putting the country’s total infections at 80,824 and a death toll of 3,189.

Italy with 17,660 patients and 1,266 deaths and Iran with 11,364 infected cases and 514 deaths stand at the second and third ranks, respectively.

Next, comes South Korea with 8,086 of coronavirus patients and 72 dead cases.

The US has also reported 50 deaths from the coronavirus and 2,329 confirmed cases as the outbreak that continues to spread to new countries around the world.

On Friday, US President Donald declared a national emergency over the coronavirus pandemic, opening the door to providing what he said was about $50bn in federal aid to fight the disease.

The WHO has warned that Europe has now become the "epicenter" of the pandemic.

The virus has also spread to several countries on the African continent, with Kenya, Ethiopia, Sudan, Guinea, Mauritania and Swaziland, all confirming their first cases on Friday and Saturday.

MNA/