Li Wenliang, 34, was an ophthalmologist at a hospital in Wuhan, the city hardest hit by the outbreak.

He and seven others were reprimanded by Wuhan police last month for spreading "illegal and false" information about the coronavirus after he warned doctors on social media about seven cases of a mysterious new virus to try to help other physicians.

Many ordinary Chinese people on social media described Li as a hero and a tragic figure, reflecting the incompetence of local authorities to tackle the emergence of the virus early in the outbreak.

On Friday, China's Hubei province, where Wuhan is located, reported 69 new deaths, taking the total in China to over 600. It also reported nearly 2,500 new cases, taking the total in China to over 30,000, according to state television. Figures for all of mainland China were expected to follow shortly.

Chinese President Xi Jinping sought to reassure his citizens and the world that China would beat the coronavirus.

"The whole country has responded with all its strength to respond with the most thorough and strict prevention and control measures, starting a people's war for epidemic prevention and control," Xinhua news agency quoted him as saying in a telephone call with Saudi Arabia's King Salman.

In a striking image of the epidemic's reach, about 3,700 people moored off Japan on the Diamond Princess faced testing and quarantine for at least two weeks on the ship, which has 20 cases.

In Hong Kong, another cruise ship with 3,600 passengers and crew was quarantined for a second day pending testing with three cases on board. Taiwan, which has 13 cases, banned international cruise ships from docking.

In China, sometimes dubbed the world's workshop, cities have been shut off, flights canceled and factories closed, cutting off supply lines crucial to international businesses.

REUTERS