France is banning all indoor public gatherings of more than 5,000 people to slow the spread of a coronavirus epidemic.
The cancellation of large gatherings in confined spaces was announced by Health Minister Olivier Veran after special government meetings Saturday.
Public gatherings are being banned completely in the Oise region north of Paris that has seen a cluster of cases, and in a town in the Alps that has also seen infections, he said.
As of Saturday, France had registered a total of 73 cases, up from 57 on Friday. Of those, 59 people remain hospitalized, two have died and 12 have recovered, the minister said.