Egypt has confirmed that two patients with coronavirus have died.

The two, a 78-year-old Italian woman and a 70-year-old Egyptian man, died in an isolation hospital.

The total death toll from the virus in North African nation now stands at six.

The news came as 30 more people were diagnosed with Covid-19, bringing the total number of cases in the country to 196.

The new cases were all Egyptians who had been in contact with people who had tested positive for the virus, health ministry spokesman Khaled Mujahid said in a statement.

Since the outbreak began, 26 patients in Egypt had recovered from the virus and been discharged from the isolation hospitals, he said.