A top Chinese epidemiologist has advised his compatriots "not to touch foreigners" because of the monkeypox virus, international media, including Reuters and CNN, report.
Wu Zunyou, chief epidemiologist of China's health department, made his recommendation over the weekend in a post on Chinese social media platform Weibo.
He advised avoiding skin-to-skin contact with "foreigners" or people who have returned from abroad in recent weeks.
His recommendation followed the announcement on Friday of China's first reported case of infection with the virus which, in recent months has been found mostly in Europe and the United States in men who have sex with men.
The infected person, diagnosed in Chongqing, southwest China, was quarantined immediately after arriving in the city.
According to local authorities, the risk of an epidemic is low. The patient is stable and has also tested negative for Covid-19.
