Havana, April 7 (RHC) --Cuban authorities are reinforcing social isolation measures in Havana to stop the spread of the new coronavirus. The city is at the top of the list of territories with the most cases of the disease with 111.

The Provincial Defense Council (CDP) of Havana announced Monday an increase in surveillance in the Cerro municipality, in response to the number of confirmed cases.

Last week,  the Popular Council El Carmelo, in the municipality of Plaza de la Revolución,  was the first to be placed under regulated isolation.

Carlos Martínez, director of the province's public health office,  said that 94.1 percent of the city's population had been screened, and cases with symptoms are being treated.

According to the authorities, the CDP is studying other actions to be carried out in municipalities like Diez de Octubre, Cotorro, Playa, and Habana del Este.

Meanwhile, Colonel Mario Méndez, head of the Identification, Immigration and Foreigners Department of the Ministry of the Interior (MININT), said that efforts are being made to reduce the number of foreigners on Cuban territory.

To that end, MININT, the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and embassies are working together.

Méndez stressed that from midnight this Tuesday, there will be no foreigner in Cuba whose stay is less than 15 days in the country, which means a significant step forward to counteract the spread of the COVID-19.

The Cuban Ministry of Public Health confirmed until Monday, 350 cases of the disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus on the island.

More than 18,000 patients are under observation in their homes, and another 1,718 remain in medical centers.