Breaking: Italy to Close All Schools & Universities as Coronavirus Death Toll Rises

Italy has announced the closure off all schools and universities in an attempt to contain the spread of coronavirus, as the death toll in the country rose to 79.

Reports say that the government ordered classrooms across the country to close until mid-March.

The decision was taken at a meeting held by prime minister Guiseppe Conte and his cabinet on Tuesday.

Schools and universities in the worst-affected regions of northern Italy, where a handful of towns have been quarantined, had already closed 10 days ago.

The outbreak has since spread and affected more than 2,500 people.

Furthermore, the Italian sports minister has said all Serie A matches are likely to be played behind closed doors for the next month in an effort to prevent further spread of the disease.

The semi-finals for the Coppa Italia were also postponed this week. Fixtures included Juventus vs AC Milan and Napoli vs Inter Milan.

A Serie A statement said: “The president of the Serie A League, having taken note of the order of the Prefect of Naples of 4 March 2020 which orders the postponement to a later date of the semi-final return match of the Coppa Italia Napoli-Inter scheduled on March 5 at 20.45, announces that the aforementioned is postponed until a later date.”