Havana, March 19 (RHC)—Cuban health authorities confirmed five new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, bringing to 16 the total amount reported on the island.

The information was disclosed during the daily  COVID-19 meeting of Cuban authorities, headed by President Miguel Diaz-Canel.

The Minister of Public Health, Dr. Jose Angel Portal Miranda, said that of the new five cases, 4 are foreigners, and one is a Cuban woman, who had arrived from Italy.

All of them are in stable condition with no complications, as well as their respective contacts.

As of March 19, 523 people have been admitted to hospitals on the island for epidemiological surveillance, of them 159 are foreigners, and 364 Cubans.

According to a press release issued by the Public Ministry on Thursday evening, the new cases are a 69-year-old male French citizen, a 70-year-old male Italian citizen, a 34-year old male Spanish citizen, an 81-year old Canadian male citizen, and a 37-year old Cuban female citizen.

The new coronavirus is present already 153 countries around the world, with over 213 thousand cases and over 8,800 deaths reported.

Six nations announced their first cases on Thursday. They were El Salvador, Nicaragua, Zambia, Djibouti, Kyrgyzstan, and Myanmar.

In the Americas, 30 countries and six overseas territories have reported cases of COVID-19, and the United States has the highest number of cases.