Italy on Saturday reported eight new deaths from COVID-19, which brought the total national death toll related to the disease to 29. The Italian authorities have also confirmed as many as 239 new cases of people infected with the coronavirus as their total number rose to 1,128.

Italy is experiencing the worst outbreak of the deadly disease in Europe so far after it has spread to at least 48 world countries from its hotbed, China, where some 80,000 people contracted COVID-19 and almost 3,000 died.

Elsewhere in the world, more than 4,000 cases have been registered as the death toll stood at around 70. The situation prompted the World Health Organization to worsen the coronavirus global risk assessment, describing it as “very high.”