MojNews-Qatar's Health Ministry reported the first case of the novel coronavirus in the country on Saturday.

A 36-year old Qatari citizen who returned recently from Iran tested positive for the virus , the ministry said in a statement cited by the official QNA news agency.

The ministry said the infected person was among Qatari nationals evacuated on Thursday from Iran, where 43 deaths were reported from the virus.

Known as COVID-19 , the novel coronavirus has now spread to more than 45 countries worldwide, including the U.S., U.K., Singapore, France, Russia, Spain and India.

China , where the virus originated, is the worst-hit country, where 2,837 deaths were reported.