More than half a million South Koreans signed petitions, calling on tourists from China to be exposed to the risk of spreading coronary virus disease.

The petition submitted to the Blue House collected 540,000 signatures as of today, highlighting concerns about the spread of the corona virus (nCoV), the virus that is thought to be responsible for the pneumonia epidemic. issued in Wuhan, China earlier this month.

"The corona virus is spreading from China. North Korea has banned Chinese entry," the petition wrote, adding that a temporary ban on Chinese tourists would help prevent the spread of the disease.

The Blue House has yet to respond to this proposal. When asked about other countries' ban on Chinese entry, the spokesman said only that the issue should be dealt with in close consultation with the World Health Organization WHO.

The National Health Commission said this morning that 26 more people died from pneumonia stemming from nCoV, bringing the total number of deaths from the disease to 106. The majority of victims in Hubei Province, where outbreaks last month in the capital Wuhan. The number of nCoV virus infections in China also increased sharply, from 2,887 to 4,515. China was forced to blockade Wuhan and many other cities due to fears of widespread disease.

South Korea detected four cases of nCoV infection, including one Chinese national, the other three were Koreans from Wuhan. The South Korean government said it was making a comprehensive effort to prevent the disease and will send at least four aircraft to Wuhan this week, evacuating nearly 700 South Korean citizens from the epidemic area. Before leaving, these people will undergo a medical examination and are expected to be quarantined for about two weeks upon arrival in Seoul.

South Korean President Moon Jae In today visited the hospital treating nCoV-infected patients and sent a letter to Chinese President Xi Jinping, promising to help Beijing prevent the spread of the virus.

Cases have been reported in the United States, France, Canada, South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, Japan, Singapore, Nepal and Australia. Cambodia is the latest country to detect an infection.