A combination of online misinformation and intensifying fears about the coronavirus has triggered violent demonstrations in Ukraine, where protesters threw stones at buses carrying evacuees from China.

On Thursday, six buses carrying 45 Ukrainians and 27 foreign nationals were brought to a hospital in Novi Sanzhary, a town southeast of the capital city of Kyiv.

Dozens of protesters sought to block the route of the buses, hurling stones at the convoy while engaging in violent clashes with the police.

The vehicles were eventually able to reach their destination after a tense stand-off, albeit hours later than scheduled.

All of the evacuees will spend the next two weeks in quarantine.

The country's health minister has said that none of the passengers on board the buses were thought to be unwell.